Well, they said the problem with a new slide is that it may not fit the gun properly. Which sounds like BS but that's what the SW lady said on the phone. My logic is I wanted to cerakote or do some type of finish to the slide anyways so if he pays for this then I'm happy and I don't have to jump through hoops. Or if need be I can just ask the gunsmith to buy me a new slide so I have two! That's my reasoning if that makes any sense.
I hear ya. I'm with BK though...guns like these don't require hand fitting.
If it ends up REALLY being a concern (i.e. your gun has a ton of rounds through it and parts are getting worn anyway), just buy a new universal sear block and front locking lug. Heck barrels are cheap too. Those are the only things you'd need to change.
The bonus is that they are all drop-in and YOU can do it with the help of Youtube and us. No gunsmith required. A 1/8ths punch and small hammer are all you need. Thank gawd!!!
I want to stress how much that is a worst case and that in all probability all you'll need (with almost 99% certainty) is a new slide and no fitting.
I know some guys have been hard on ya, and I'm not trying to bust you up even more but here's the thing man…if you go cerekote (and I'll get to that in a minute) and expect/ask your smith to pay, the "or if need be" part of the sentence for the new slide is out the window. If he doesn't do one, he's not going to do the other.
The vibe I'm getting from your smith is that you'll be lucky to get him to pay anything, but I'll bet you my car that if he doesn't pay for the cheaper option ($75 cerakote) he sure as heck isn't gonna pay $125 for a new slide!!! That's unicorns and fairy stuff right there.
Your smith is not very good….I think we've established that, so it stands to reason he's also not making a whole lot of money from that. Unless this guy is only doing this for fun or the benefits of having an FLL for personal use and claiming a 'smithing business', he's strapped for cash. If I'm even half right, he is going to be like getting water from a rock.
OK, so I get that you want another finish on your slide other than the black melonite. Do you understand the advantages in toughness, wear, and corrosion resistance that melonite gives you as a surface treatment vs. a coating (think paint) like cerakote? Don't get me wrong, as a coating cerakote is great stuff. It comes in lots of colors, lots of people do it, and you can touch it up. But to take off the melonite to put cerakote on is ONLY for looks….If you're cool with that, great; Then have you considered Robar'sNP3? If you're going for a Ti look I'd go NP3 over cerakote. Ideally you'd want cerakote to be applied over the melonite...not sure if you can do that and still get the benefits of both.
Last thing… I'm curious of the new smith that said he can fix that dent. How? I'm not a smith, but there's only two choices right, grind it or fill it? Are you OK with either of those choices?
Wouldn't it make more sense to get a new slide and then cerakote and/or pimp to your hearts content? I think you're making a mistake by not doing that, but like I said before, it's your gun…whatever makes you happy bro.
