AMU John Miller Hard-Fit Barrel Fitting

[HisDisciple]

Below is an article by American Handgunner by Cameron Hopkins talking about Larry Vickers and his preferences for a 1911.

http://findarticles.com/p/articles/m...5/ai_75211979/

Not having the privilege of learning the Army Marksmanship Unit barrel installation procedures, could someone with real world experience please clarify what is so different about this method of installing a barrel the "John Miller Hard-fit method" way?

Below is a excerpt from the article:

The Miller Method

Barrel fit is another matter. Barrel fit matters a lot. For that reason, Vickers is very particular about barrels and how he fits them. He prefers Bar-Sto stainless steel match barrels, and he fits them by what he calls the "John Miller hard-fit method." Miller was an armorer for the Army Marksmanship Unit who taught Vickers how to fit a barrel-- the old fashioned way-- slow, deliberate, no jigs or fixtures, just skillful handwork."I have yet to see a barrel fit technique that is better than the so-called 'hard fit' by John Miller. It's the good, old-fashioned AMU barrel fit. It's done one at a time and it's done in a method that's not very fast. It's a slow, tedious method, but it's been proven to give a long-lasting, durable fit," Vickers said.

There are several benefits of the Miller barrel fitting method. First, there is no break-in required; the gun runs perfectly right from the get-go. Second, the barrel and slide stay together longer. There is no deterioration in the barrel-to-slide fit, so the gun's accuracy remains consistent throughout the life of the gun. "It's not uncommon to have a gun still shoot so well that you won't even realize the bore is worn out until you chrono it. Then it's like, 'I need a new barrel,"' Vickers explained.

Thank you gentlemen for your time, any thoughts on this would be great.

[Sacamuelas]

Oh crap.... here comes the Team Sergeant on his way. He loves the custom 1911 gunsmithing threads. haha H&K... here comes another plug for your pistols.

[TF Kilo]

Well, let's be realistic... tinker tinker tweak and finagle, or it works out of the box?

TS has more experience than I ever will on both sides of the 1911/HK debate, but *I* have not had a single issue with any of the HK's I currently own, or have owned. For me, it just falls back to always owning a tool that does the job to the point that any errors are mine and mine alone... Limiting the variables in the equation, and all that.

Easier to honestly know I and I alone failed a task, than to have to question my equipment's capabilities.

[Team Sergeant]

Originally Posted by HisDisciple

Below is an article by American Handgunner by Cameron Hopkins talking about Larry Vickers and his preferences for a 1911.

Who's Cameron Hopkins ????

[Peregrino]

Originally Posted by Team Sergeant

Who's Cameron Hopkins ????

TS - Play nice!

HD - That's a rhetorical question; a number of us here know Cameron personally. What you have to explain is why his opinion matters to us.

[Sinister]

At the AMU when you spec out a new M1911A1-series pistol one of the first things SFC (retired) Brad Throlsen, Custom Gun Shop Pistol Section Chief will ask is, "Bulleye or Combat-tight?"

All barrels are first tested in a machine rest with either the ammo you load yourself or issued ammo -- the barrel either meets specs or not before even fitting into a gun -- nothing is done to it -- no fitting, filing, polishing, nothing.

Slides are fitted to the frames, then the barrels to the slides.

An AMU gun is guaranteed to work. You can't screw around and lose a national, service, or international competition, or get drilled between the runing lights while shooting your secondary in a gunfight.

Cameron Hopkins is a magazine editor. I don't believe he made a living with a gun, per se.

[HisDisciple]

I wanted to give credit to the author of the article and give you gentlemen all the info you needed about the source of article. I didn't want to appear as one who has no inititiave and does not look for the info himself.

I was just wondering on the John Miller Method if there was any "Special Way" he did it. I knew that someone on here probably knew the method-Heck there's probably guys on here that were armorers for CAG during Vickers time in.

The reason I wanted to know that special way is because I rather have slivers of knowledge passed down by a Professional of proper gun procedure than a $4,000 1911 from a custom shop with no real world gun knowledge.
Heck, I would pay for Team Sergeant to make me a 1911 ( If I could afford it)
But, then I would most likely just pay him to teach me about the 1911 and shooting in general and pick up a HK USP, HK45, and a Sig 226.

The reason I like the idea of toying around with the 1911 is if Vickers gave a prescription on how to make a custom SA Mil-Spec I would do it not because its cheap, but because he's has real world experience with it. I know it would not be as reliable as his but it's in the right direction. If any QP and others such as Defoor, Lamb, Howe, and Tigerswan guys gave their wisdom about guns I would listen. I appreciate The Reaper and his sticky about rifles and carbines-pure gold there.

I could care less about what new tactical thing companies push, until a QP or SOF has been there in the thick of it with the item and they approve, then I don't want to waste my time.

If only Team Sergeant gave a HK hints and tips page

Thank you Sinister for the information you provided.

[Team Sergeant]

Originally Posted by Sinister

Cameron Hopkins is a magazine editor. I don't believe he made a living with a gun, per se.

That's who Cameron Hopkins is, just another gun "amateur" with an opinion.
And, if you just happen to "own" the magazine you write for, well you can sure fit in a whole lot of opinions (and make tons of money promoting everyones products, good or bad).

You are what you read.