1911 Owners: how do I fix the "idiot mark" ?

[Verci0013]

The mark has been bothering me like a thorn on my spleen, is there anything I can do other then refinishing the whole frame to make the mark of shame go away? (or at least conceal it)

[OneSevenDeuce]

Your gun is ruined man. There is no hope for it. Fortunately I would be willing to take it off your hands at a reduced price.

[Verci0013]

Your gun is ruined man. There is no hope for it. Fortunately I would be willing to take it off your hands at a reduced price.

Nice try

[OneSevenDeuce]

Nice try

Dangit!

[ocspeedracer]

here are your options as a man
If you can't fix it with the following as yourself, is it really worth fixing?
Duct tape
super glue
gum
lighter
knife
gun

Now that that's out of the way, a paint pen or touch up blue might be a plausable answer for you, depending on how it's finished.

[Mstnpete]

Get Birchwood Casey Cold Blue at any store.
Use a Q-tip and apply a dab on the scratch mark.
It will be like new again.

[1forall]

It just adds character...I wouldn't worry about it, unless you plan on selling it later on down the line. Nice pistol by the way.

[SarcoBlaster]

Forget about the idiot mark... get that grip safety fitted correctly!

[westcoast362]

Honest wear might add character, but an idiot mark on a 1911 just shows that someone field striped it without knowing what they were doing.

[perpetual otter]

The best fix for the idiot mark (i did it my first time too ) is to buy another 1911 and demote the marked one to your beater 1911 that you'll throw around and get even more holster/wear and scratches from really putting it through its paces. Or demote it to your HD gun that won't hurt to hand over to the police (and wait A LONG TIME to get it back if its not a pile of rusted steel by the time you get it back) when you're done blasting 7 rounds of .45 through the home invader.

[Hunter158]

Holy crap!!! What the hell did you do?

You could always buy a new gun and sell that one. (jk) Keep practicing on that one 'till you get the slips out of your system. Sorry it happened, but just like trigger control... Yeah, you get it.

I use the thumb of my left hand over the pin, and my thumb and index finger pinching the lever to guide it into place. I do this before the recoil spring plug is inserted. No need to try to try to hold too many things at once. I also use the safety when inserting the recoil spring plug.

You could probably touch it up with either cold blue or black. I've had good luck with BirchwoodCasey.

[darkest2000]

honestly cold blue makes it worse (stinks) and wears off as soon as you wipe it down oil like CLP. Either live with it or put more scratches on it. Or get a stainless gun next time.

[Ricky-Ray]

I have a similar mark on mine. I just live with it. Lesson learned and move on.

[Ed_in_Sac]

It looks like a scratch in the picture. However, sometimes the marks are not as bad as they seem and clean up a bit when you rub something like Hoppe's #5 into it. You can also try just taking a felt tip pen and running it over the scratch. It will wipe off easily though.

[Cyc Wid It]

Refinish in IonBond DLC.