Pistolsmith Travis Strahan / Ringgold, GA - anybody know of his work?

[jglenn]

You'll not see a other gun like the accu-lock..very impressive machining given the period it was developed in. Quite a few current bullseye shooters have them today.. several local shooters.. they were not for everyone due to the cost.

Yes they are very tight and require something more than the typical light loads most of us use for BE. Closest thing to a accu-lock today would be a cone barrel(not a bull barrel) but still not the same. They are are.pretty heavy compared to the typical BE wad gun..

 

[WildMan]

Thats really cool man.

 

[SchmittZoid]

As you noted, Travis could fit a gun up as tight as anyone...The most unique thing about his Acculock system was the front lock-up which replaced the Barrel Bushing...

I first heard about Travis around 40 years ago from an old Army Bullseye shooter, who had several Strahan-tuned guns--He was one of just a few people who could do a proper "Action Job" on a Colt revolver, and I have seen two or three Colt PPC guns he built that were fully the equal of any gun to come out of any shop anywhere...In addition, for a time Travis produced his own PPC Rib & Sight system, which he called the "Mascot".

Member Shrek926 learned some pistolsmithing tricks from Travis, he might be worth checking with...HTH

Well, let's get him to join the discussion. Yo @Shrek926 - please read from the top. Looking to pick your brain and expertise.

Anyone else have one of Travis' guns they can share photos of?

Thanks for the reference Mikey.

Z

 

[SchmittZoid]

I'll be bringing this one to the Gwinnett Varsity Meet & Greet tomorrow if anyone would like to see one of these in person.

https://theoutdoorstrader.com/threads/meet-greet-varsity-in-gwinnett-11-am.2126994/

 

[jessc706]

Hey Zoid, congratulations on getting one of Travis’s tack drivers. Yes, I own one of his acculock pistols, but mine is the only one of its kind. It shoots much better than I can. It is a Beretta 96 which is a .40 S&W. As far as I know all the other pistols are 1911s like yours. Travis was famous before I met him and before he came up with his “dragon teeth” that he used in his Accu-lock system. Massad Ayoob had one of his “pocket pistols.” It was a K framed S&W in .357 mag that Travis cut down the barrel, the trigger guard, and the butt length to make it more concealable for deep cover carry. I met Travis in 1986 when I was a deputy sheriff. Over the years he worked on three of my handguns and I know of no better gunsmith. He retired as an armorer in the army and I believe he served in Korea as well as Vietnam. He was the official gunsmith for the US Army Shooting Team. And after retirement, he still supplied World Champion Shooters with firearms that could “shoot the wings off flies at 100 yards.” I would visit him periodically as he was developing the Accu-Lock system and getting the patent on it, which took several years and frustrated him quite often. If I recall correctly, he made his own match barrels to put in his firearms. I remember seeing him machining a barrel on his lathe in his shop. I do not know exactly how the Accu-Lock was made, but I do know that it is a revolutionary system that can make a winner out of a shooter. Enjoy his legacy! If you ever want to sale the pistol, his daughter would love to have one, as she has told me several times.

 

[Ignatz]

If you need any support for your Accu-Lock if you go to a monthly Bullseye match at River Bend Gun Club some of the local shooters can help you out as a couple of them worked with Travis. I got to shoot an Accu-Lock at RBGC and while somewhat heavy it shot softly with the hotter 185 JHP target loads. Reportedly they have never had a barrel separate and the shop had freshened up several high use competition pistols.

Travis's shop did an action job on my Colt E frame revolver and piece-parted a low end Bullseye 1911 for me, but these were small jobs with no markings, just great results.

 

[Gary L Guy]

Hello gentlemen ,
Recently enjoyed the comments about
Travis. He was a good personal friend of mind
the last five years of his life. I own several of his
firearms and myself and my business partner own
the patents and all of his machinery. I did see
a post where his daughter wanted one of his firearms
she has one now and it’s a beauty. My partner and I
had the opportunity to learn from him and spend many
enjoyable days with him and Hershel Anderson. I find
myself having thoughts of those times often.

 

[Capt.Joe Pearson]

I have the very first one he made..it has a serial number with his initials and the number of his patents that correspond to this pistol.He had invented a unique pistol lock and made this gun with one.It helped me win several PPC matches including at least two state championships.Travis was a genius with firearms design..I have a smith and Wesson PPC revolver that he replaced the factory spring with a block and coil spring of his design that makes for an extremely smooth action..The acculock is the most accurate semiauto pistol I ever fired,and I have owned and shot some tack drivers..

 

[Capt.Joe Pearson]

Here are a few more photos.


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I finally got the barrel taken out of the slide. Travis sure knew how to do "hard fit" parts. Getting the barrel out of this one was a chore.


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Most folks assume that block on the end of the gun is a compensator. It is not. It is a welded on barrel extension geared to provide absolute lockup, shot to shot. Is all that necessary? Probably not, but it seems pretty hard to argue with the results. See this quote from JGlenn from post #4 above.



This gun is a Travis Strahan Accu-Lock built over a 1944 Remington Rand M1911A1 frame. I'm just trying to get more information on how many may have been produced, over what time period, etc. From the internals on this gun, it looks like it had been very rarely shot. Definitely not one that saw a lot of competition.

Z

I have his first one and I believe I bought it from him in 2003 or 2004.He brought it out to show me when I was visiting him so he could work on a couple of guns for me.When he told me he would sell it to me I knew I was in trouble LOL..

 

[kc30121]

Former American Pistolsmith Guild charter member and former Ringgold, GA resident Travis Strahan - notable for his unique bullseye target pistol creations.

I have looked far and wide for more information, but have come up fairly empty. I figured one of the esteemed ODT members from the North Georgia mountains must have known him and have additional insights to his builds. Maybe one of y'all is related to him . . . . .

Anybody?

Inquiring minds . . . . . .

How did you find one? Those are so rare and I’ve never been able to find one for sale.