Performance Center Recon 45 with some squidsix mods.

This turned up at my local shop and I pounced. With one magazine it was $650 so I brought it home.
No "before" pics but there are a couple of "after" ones.
It was filthy, which always surprises me. I assume they make a huge profit on used guns so why not make them more desirable by a cursory cleaning?
First thing that had to go was the horrible factory Hogue rubber grips. If I wanted to grab a fistful of Play Doh I would go to the toy store.
Factory Xenoy gripa from a 4516 solved that problem.

Then theres the issue of the ported barrel. I REALLY wanted this gun because it has awesome features. Porting is not one of them, in my book.
Starting with a hacksaw and then crowning with a Brownells crown cutter. Came out pretty nice and groups great without blinding the shooter.

Then the little stuff. Replaced the trigger play spring following BMCM's exceptional advice.

Removed the starboard-side safety lever and trimmed it down. Needs a little more profiling and cold blue and it will be great. (These guns are "de-cock only" so this lever is worthless to me)

Also trimmed the slide release lever as it protruded beyond any other part of the gun. Final finishing is yet to come, but the shape is right now.

Finally, ordered a trijicon front sight from Optics Planet who had the .233 tritium front for $45!! I removed the white paint dots from the rear sight in preparation for it.

Thanks to all the folks on this excellent forum for providing me factory mags at excellent prices, and I followed my own advice and made a spacer sleeve for a 4506 magazine to use that as a belt magazine.

I carry it for now in a cheap Bulldog holster for Sig P220, which works fine for my needs at the moment. I will look around the classifieds for an open-top pancake holster that fills the bill.

Range session was a trouble-free success, putting 200 rounds of hardball and 150 rounds of mixed batch hollow points all into the black at varying distances made me feel comfortable with the accuracy and reliability of the thing. Will check accuracy again when I swap the front sight of course.

Now for the pics. This is all I have at the moment but will take a few more after blending and cold blue of the small parts.




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Looks awesome. Can you talk about the barrel more? Did you buy a longer barrel and cut it down?

No they come ported with about .3" of the barrel (the only portion that is ported) protruding from the slide. I cut it just behind the first port (there are two) and worked from there.

squidsix said:

No they come ported with about .3" of the barrel (the only portion that is ported) protruding from the slide. I cut it just behind the first port (there are two) and worked from there.

Click to expand...

This is what they look like from the factory.


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Sweet ...... passed on a Recon back in the 90s due to the, IMO, stupid ported barrel.... and "Billboard" .............but your's is SWEEeeeet!

Yeah I might have to mask off the slide the do away with the billboard via glass bead blast. Time will tell...

Thanks for sharing your gunsmithing work although the purist in me cringes when I see PC semis altered past a condition that can be returned back to factory. I also replaced the hogues with 4516 grips and replaced the sights (and kept both parts) on my blued Recon 45. Not sure if I'm feeling the barrel cut and recrown or the cut decocker. It looks like it was in great shape for only $650. Your gun though and as long as it suits you and your carry needs then you can't really get a nicer piece to protect your life with.

SVT28

I totally understand your cringe, but for me the porting made it a non-starter as a carry gun. All the other stuff is very easy to replace (I used a 5904 part to trim on the decock lever, for example, and kept the original).
I stuffed the grips, PC-marked magazine, the lever, and will stick the front sight all in one box and leave them. The barrel was a must though.

squidsix said:

. (These guns are "de-cock only" so this lever is worthless to me)

Click to expand...

Perhaps not as 'worthless' as you think...

There's a reason why the spring loaded decocker guns always have an ambi lever. The spring loaded decocker body lack the plunger & spring that keeps a manual safety body correctly positioned in the slide and retains it so. As such, the spring loaded decocker bodies depend on the ambi lever to keep the body in correct position in relation to the slide, firing pin, ejector, sear release lever and firing pin safety lever. Without the ambi lever bearing against the slide the body is free to walk out towards the left and bind on the firing pin or other bits.

Also, regardless of whether on a 9mm gun or a .45/10mm the ambi lever needs to be a 45 lever since this variant has an extra 'tab' of steel on the underside that bears against the slide flat to keep the body properly located and prevent walking out to the left.

I recommend replacing that modified ambi lever. As it is now, ok as a range toy but not considered reliable for any serious purpose. If you can't find one PM me.

The blackened parts are stainless steel castings that are black oxided. cold blue is unlikely to have any significant effect. Caswell plating makes an oxiding solution for stainless steel.
Stainless Steel Blackener - 1 Pint - Caswell Inc

I can't help but wonder if there's not someone out there with a Shorty45 who might have traded you for the 45Recon before you modded it. You've basically made it into a Shorty45 anyway.

Otherwise the pistol looks quite nice

Cheers
Bill

Your mods are both well reasoned AND executed.

Ditto to Bill re: the right side decock lever.
You can substitute a single sided lever (although it will not be decock only).

I also cringed at the desecration of the barrel as it also defies my personal "prime directive": no irreversible mods.

However I also respect that it IS your pistol.

I must tell you though, I felt a disturbance in the force.
I believe it was Brother Sevens dying a little bit.

He worships at the PC altar!

John

Thanks Boats and John. I noted the lack of blue on my cold-blued parts and laughed.
Replaced the lever, as mentioned by you fine fellows.
As for your Prime Directive, John, mine is "NO SAFE QUEENS".

Nope, you've made the wrong assumption! I'm in favor of folks modifying their own guns, I've always held this opinion.

I much more in to the steel frame PC guns, most especially the Limited 5 and 6-inch target guns.

As for this subject gun, I agree with much said but not all. I don't care for the porting or the original look with barrel sticking out. Agree that billboard text on handguns is ugly, also agree that the massive Hogue rubber isn't attractive.

I like the mods done.

But there is one bit that I disagree with for sure. The whole "no safe queens."

Well you've ruined that one, at least there's 602 more out there that could still be in original condition.

squidsix said:

Thanks Boats and John. I noted the lack of blue on my cold-blued parts and laughed.
Replaced the lever, as mentioned by you fine fellows.
As for your Prime Directive, John, mine is "NO SAFE QUEENS".

Click to expand...

I agree with that. When I see a gun that has been modded, especially one done as nice as this one, I know it was used as intended, not sitting in a safe, and I wonder what the situation was that caused the change. Very nice work!

What's done is done and that limited production race gun is now a nice looking carry gun.

You are not alone squidsix. Here is my 45 RECON before and after. Had the PC Cut off the port and recrown. I replaced the MIM hammer and trigger with forged flash chrome. I also like the Billboard. It's like wearing a MAGA hat.

Nice!!!
Have you tried 4516 grips? Really make the gun perfect for holster work.

Yes, I have some 4516 grips on standby if I want to use them. The Hogue grips have the S&W Logo on them so I keep them on for photo ops and barbecue socials. I have also replaced the magazine catch nut with one for a 639 to get a Tactical release.
Original to me is what I had and Modified is where I am. I only modify when there is an improvement that works for me. My first bold one was the trimming of a 645 trigger guard and rear sight ears.

That's fantastic work on the 645 rear sight, HOW specifically were you able to do it? I've always wondered if that exact work could be done.

Have you got more pictures and other angles?

Here is the right side. I also included a photo of the 645 before and after the modifications. Please note, I did not do the work myself. I enlisted the services of a highly skilled and reputable gunsmith for the 645 modifications. I sold the 645 and bought a 4506 no dash and modified it to "decock only". This gives me all of the factory improvements.