The Rose 1911
A great adventure for my wife Rebecca and I began in 1991. We moved to Anchorage, Alaska, arriving in August of that year. After a month unpacking and getting my engraving equipment set up, I selected several engraved items in my collection and headed out to introduce myself to the firearms community. If memory serves, I had a couple of engraved Ruger revolvers and two engraved knives.
After several stops at various gunshops on my list, I stopped by Bill’s Custom Automatics, a small Anchorage shop specializing in 1911 pistols. A rather distinguished gentleman greeted me and asked if he could be of service. After a short introduction of myself and showing Bill Thompson, owner and retired Anchorage policeman my engraving, I inquired if he might potentially have some work for me.
He immediately replied, “I’ve been looking for someone like you to do engraving for me.” He then showed me a pistol he was working on at the time and said in a few days he’d have it ready for me to pick up to be engraved.
Thus began a very enjoyable relationship. Within a short time his son Tim returned home from the Navy and began working in the shop. He, too, was a great guy, and over several years I engraved quite a few 1911s for them.
Sadly, the father/son team eventually ended up moving to Shelby, Mississippi. While I was happy for my friends when they moved, I did and still do miss them.
Not long ago I received a call from Tim. He’s still in Shelby and was wondering if I might be able to engrave a pistol he’d built for his dad. Of course, I would!
Tim now has his own CNC machine and makes his own 1911 frames, slides, sights, etc. He also machines and builds precision rifles. Doing his own machining allows him to control the tolerances of his builds, something I knew myself is highly important to reliable function and accuracy.
When we discussed the upcoming engraving job, one of the interesting parameters that needed addressing was the slide had no conventional serrations or texturing to aid in its operation. In fact, it had nothing at all – it was a perfectly clean slide. Tim wanted to know if I might do some deep relief engraving that would serve the same purpose.
As it so happens, yes. I could.
Several engraving jobs I’ve done over the years have utilized either high relief oak leaves or roses. By using a chisel to lift the leaf or flower petal edges, I have added apparent depth. This also leaves a very uneven, rugged surface, which would be perfect for gripping.
Knowing this, for years I’ve wanted to replace the standard 1911 slide serrations with an aggressive oak leaf or rose pattern. This must be accomplished in conjunction with a manufacturer at an early stage of machining. 1911 slides simply don’t leave the factory without some form of serrations or texture. I mentioned my idea to a 1911 maker I engraved for but drew no interest.
Here was the perfect chance to try my idea.
In due time the pistol arrived, beautifully polished and sporting grips of perfect color to match the theme. I blocked out the normal serration area and filled it with relief roses, then added single line borders and Jim White scroll. The roses were perfectly functional, providing a gripping surface equal to or better than standard 1911 serrations. I also engraved the grip screws, which while it is a very small detail, I believe is one of those that presents itself as much larger. Difficult to explain. Maybe because the beholder’s eye sees engraving over a larger area, even though the engraving itself is very minimal.
After completion, I sent it off to Mississippi. It arrived, and both Tim and Bill were quite pleased. I’d already texted pictures to Tim, so while not truly nervous the job would be acceptable, it always feels good to have that confirmed.
I have an idea that would utilize roses and be quite spectacular. Now to find a 1911 canvas and the time to do it……..!
