ltwguns.com

Was this the pistol that started the Retro crazed? I knew that several 'smiths were building GI like guns but maybe this was the gun that received first gun media coverage.

I noticed a real surge in the interest of this style when the article on the "Cooper 80" pistols came out. It was pretty simple in appearance, with Novak sights as the only modern convenience outwardly visible.

I've got a couple of them here in the shop - I'll try to get Bailey to snap a couple of pics.

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Ted:

I was always curious about what it felt like to handle and shoot one of those guns with the grip safety ground down to the frame, and the very, very bobbed hammer. Ever get any requests for those ?
I also seem to remember an article about some guns that Bob Loveless built that had that feature.

They're fine as long as you acquire a perfect grip every time. If you slip up a bit, they'll let you know right away

Both the Cooper 80's here now are getting beavertails.

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Heirloom Precision, LLC.
480-804-1911

Far and away the best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing.

TR

Ted:
That would be great if Mr. Bailey can take some pics of the C80s. I always liked its look.

Thanks for the reply, Ted. Now my curiousity is satisfied without having to go through the pain of getting bit myself

Smooth One,
If I remember correctly, you've posted earlier that the pistol is Bearcoated, correct? I didn't know "spray and bake" could look so good.

eub:
Thanks. The finish is Wilson Combat's "Armor Tuff". It looks very good. When applied correctly the teflon/polymer coating looks very classy.

I would strongly agree with Ted, when the Cooper 80 came out, i know it got my attention.

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It's not as bad as that. After seeing pics of the Cooper 80 in a gunrag article, I performed the same treatment to a gun on which I was working. I shot it at USPSA nationals, and a couple of state IDPA championships and single stack matches, and I've never been bit. It's a functional, as well as attractive mod.

I beleive those Cooper 80's are the two that I sent to Ted. I thought about it for a while before I sent them in. I pestered Ted with a couple of emails, then I finally broke down & sent them.
I really like the low profile grip safety & bobbed hammer. I really don't like overly aggressive checkering. The guns are very accurate. They have the slim line grip, grooved front strap, smooth stocks and shooting them here in Oklahoma when it is hot and humid, they tend to slip a bit.
All things considered, I thought a little larger tail on the grip safety might anchor the gun a little better for a more consistant grip for me. I guess I'll know soon enough.

I have been thinking about blending the grip safety tang on a 1911 without the slim line grip frame to see if that might be alittle easier to hold.

I don't have anything new but with everyone posting pictures of their new blasters, I thought I'd share a few more pics of an oldie.



Yes, those are little wear on the front edge of the dust cover, the Armor Tuff finish after about 1500 rounds and lots of leather holster draws.

Actually, this is the original retro!









Yes, its mine

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Nice pics. Nice guns. Thanks for sharing.

Rob

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Uh, yours is the original, mine is a retro. You just had to, didn't you Anthony.

Hi Rich!

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Too me those are just standard issue .45's. From my first introduction to the 1911 as a soldier , shooting and qualifying and learning to strip it clean it and put it back together it just seemed to feel right. that to me is how they were supposed to look, I didnt discover customs, until years after service. Naturaly my first "new" 1911 was a SA Milspec in 2003, oh they had Kimber, Colt, Para, and some stuff from the phillipines , but my hand fell on that Milspec, and it was like going home. It is my current daily weapon, ( can't carry all the time until GA house bill 998 passes) but she is close by, and takes front row over the TRP.

I like the 1911 because it is the Chevy 350 of the gun world, stock it runs, but souped up , it screams, and there are a million different ways to build one.

I have said before, the 1911 is the Katana of our time, but it has a bit better range. The smiths we see here, will be the Masamune of the 1911, 100 years from now , they will bring prices beyond expectation and will be remembered as the weapon of America. Guess Rob will be the Musashi of our time.

A katana has a maximun effective range of arms length plus 3 feet, so don't bring a blade to a gun battle.

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Just to elaborate a bit on the gun. While this gun looks retro, it doesn't shoot like the originals. The bigger dovetailed front sight combined with the King's hardball rear sight are a great combination for carry and self defense. I've shot this gun at the 2002 IDPA Nationals right after I took delivery from Larry Vickers. On the standards stage that required shooting from 7 to 20 yds, the sights, trigger and barrel fitting allowed me to shoot with almost 0 points down, I dropped 2 pts. on that huge round count stage.
The grip safety and the grip frame (as well as the entire gun) were dehorned so that no matter how I grabbed the gun in a hasty presentation, the hammer would not bite my hand. Try that with a Colt or Springfield Milspec, you might be a bloody surprise.

Please don't forget the pics. Thanks.

John

I had two of the Cooper 80 pistols in for installation of a beavertail grip safety & new hammers. The old parts are numbered to the guns they cam off of. I did not feel that the bobbed tang on the Cooper 80 pistols was comfortable for more than incidental firing. The tang on the new grip safety does not extend much more than the hammer so does not really pose a problem for concealment. FWIW the guns shoot great before and after the safety change. The third gun in the picture is a series 70 Colt, the I recently had Yost-Bonitz tweak a bit. Shoots great also!