Maybe it's just my "Old School" self, but where I come from,
when you decided you had put away enough money to buy a
factory custom or high grade firearm, you were investing in a piece of art created by craftsmen that put that particular firearm on a high pedestal, to be admired and awed by those who could appreciate it.

Today, there are factories that present custom limited editions by Talo. All I see is generic junk. Your opinion please.

"Custom" is a big word.

If I install a gold bead into the front sight, isn't that custom work?

If a factory does the same thing, which isn't the norm, isn't that custom work?

If I go outside the usual suppliers for a factory gun to put on a special to me set of grips, such as from Herrett sized to my hand,
isn't that custom work?

If a distributor replaces standard grips with special order Herrett grips or perhaps Hogue grips isn't that something of custom work/order?

Custom doesn't have to mean specialized work by an artisan, especially if the price point of a "custom" gun is to keep it within many ordinary gun buyers' budgets.

Here's my Talo.

Ruger doesn't offer a Mark III with such a short threaded barrel for a can, no sights and equipped with a picatinny rail other than through Talo. Exactly what I was looking for.

Spin on a Silencerco Sparrow and Burris FF3... instant smile.

One man's "generic junk" is another man's treasure.

Says it all.

"Yes, my guard stood hard when abstract threats too noble to neglect
Deceived me into thinking I had something to protect
Good and bad, I define these terms quite clear, no doubt, somehow
Ah, but I was so much older then I'm younger than that now"

Bob Dylan
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Sorry, I'm feeling a little philosophical tonight.

TALO guns are unique but not custom or special and no better than any other factory made gun in a particular model.

Example: Talo 686+ 3" barrel. The 3", 5" &7" barrels for the 686+ are offered by Talo with unique grips.
They are no better than any other 686 currently being made.

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2B1ASK1

Limited editions, factory 'enhanced' models, choosing the model with a thumb safety vs no thumb safety, are hardly custom guns. And, IMO, it takes more than swapping grips or sights or having your guns painted your favorite color to make it a 'custom'.

If you go to the car dealer and order a new car and choose the big engine and the shiny wheels and the fancy stereo, does that make it a custom car? No, not by any stretch of the imagination.

If the next guy in line can pick exactly the same 'custom' gun out of a catalog or off of a website that you just bought, I guess your gun isn't so custom, is it?

That's not to say that limited editions and special runs and 'semi-customs' aren't nice guns, they are. And, they fill a market niche by offering packages, like ChattanoogaPhil's Talo Ruger that he'd otherwise have to go to a gunsmith and pay a lot more money to have the gun made the way he wants.

But a custom gun is something that you commission a gunsmith or a shop to build for you to your specifications or within a set of guidelines, maybe using a gun you already have as the foundation or starting from scratch with a bare frame. Certainly you can buy custom guns that other people have had built, sometimes you can find something very close to what you picture in your mind when you think of what you want. I have bought many customs that other people had built, but buying their dream guns only whetted my appetite for my own. And there is nothing like having a custom gun built just for you.

I'm not sure about the S&W Performance Center but the Colt Custom Shop and the Springfield Armory Custom Shop will build you whatever you want from the ground up or using your gun as a base. And there are many, many talented gunsmiths around that will do the same thing, depending on what you're looking for. Most custom builders specialize in one style of gun - 1911s, revolvers, bolt action rifles, AR style rifles, M1As, you name it. Expect to pay for their expertise, and to wait a while for it to be done. But, you can also expect to come away with a truly unique gun that represents both your vision and their mechanical and artistic ability. That is 'custom'.

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Don't kiss smiling dogs!

I own a Talo S&W 642. It is also a Performance Center gun with a much improved trigger over stock plus a nice set of Rosewood basket weave 3 finger grips. At the prices I found a stock 442/642 locally it was a no brainer to spend a little extra more and buy the Talo edition when I saw it for a good price at a gun show. I would never call it a custom, but an improved model.

The distributor specials aren't so much customs, but alernate configurations. They're often not much more expensive than standard models and some end up becoming collectible. They're just another option. There's nothing wrong with that.

Talo editions are no more "generic junk" than the product they begin with. I own several Talo edition firearms. As an example, neither of my Colt Wiley Clapp 1911s are "generic junk", nor are they custom builds per se. They are simply special edition guns. Even Talo calls them "special editions". I didn't read their entire company website but I didn't see the term "custom" used.

In your opinion, which specific factories are presenting "generic junk" through Talo Distributors?

A sabe hombre! If you can pick up a carry gun (or other gun) with a smoother action from the factory, do it! Forget about the spring kits, etc. The extra cost is really minimal, and a little pride-of-ownership (even if only internal) never hurts.

Kaaskop49
Shield #5103

Dang it Phil, I'm already gun poor. But, I'm gonna have to smooth talk Mrs. Santa to see iffin' I can't git me one a them.

MB

I picked up this Talo Ruger GP 100 and I'm liking it so far. I did however have to send it back for them to re buff the SS. I wouldn't consider it "junk" just a Friday at 4 pm kinda gun lol.

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Isaiah 41:10