We all know that the S&W Scandium framed pistols/revolvers are aluminum alloy with Scandium added for strength. My question is; Does the adding of the Scandium eliminate the need to anodize those parts due to the extra strength of the Scandium, or do the parts still get anodized? In the case of the S&W 1911 SC models, are the frames anodized or is just a black finish applied?
Anyone know for sure what the process is??
Your frame is really just aluminum with a minuscule amount of scandium added as an alloying element typically much less than 1% then anodized same as any other aluminum frame. If your thumb safety is chewing up the frame I'd suspect defects in the finish on the underside of the thumb safety. Any defects or roughness found can be dressed & polished away by hand through careful stoning with some small stone files. Fine india stone followed by hard Arkansas or ceramic for final polish. You'll want to use stones by hand taking care to ensure the part stays perfectly flat and especially stay clear the sear engagement lug, you can quickly disable the safety and ruin the part by hitting that lug.
This is a Colt part but nevertheless you can see some of these are pretty crusty on the underside...The tail of that file is pointing to the lug you want to not mess with.
As to minimizing further wear... once you have addressed any defects on your safety lever/s, I would suggest a tiny dab of extreme pressure grease under the lever to isolate the steel part from the aluminum frame. Dupont Krytox GPL-217 or GPL-215... this stuff is a very thick EP moly synthetic grease with teflon thickeners ideal for applications such as this. It's not particularly cheap but its by far the best stuff I know of for protecting aluminum from getting chewed up where it interfaces with a steel part. A little goes a very long way... a dab no larger than a sesame seed ought to suffice.
Cheers
Bill
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Mostly Gen 3s
Last edited by Merc6; 08-04-2018 at 05:51 AM.
Reason: LOL you aready in that post....