Start with our ideas. Finish with yours.
Choose the proven Ed Brown foundation that best fits the pistol you want to build.
The traditional 1911 builder offers our broadest range of choice. The EVO builder begins with a smaller, thinner platform engineered specifically around 9mm.
Freedom without guesswork.
A useful custom pistol is not a random collection of options. It begins with a proven Ed Brown foundation, then changes where your intended use, preferences, or sense of proportion call for something different.
Both configurators explain the available choices as you go, keep a running price, and submit the complete configuration for Ed Brown review before the build proceeds.
Two platforms. One standard.
The difference is not the level of workmanship. It is whether you want the broadest traditional 1911 canvas or the focused proportions of the EVO 9mm platform.
1911 Custom Build
Choose the traditional builder for the widest range of frame, caliber, slide, controls, sights, barrel and recoil setup, finish, grips, and individual details.
EVO Custom Build
Choose the EVO builder for a smaller, thinner four-inch platform optimized for 9mm, with stainless, light-rail, or lightweight construction and a focused range of custom choices.
Choose by purpose first.
The right builder usually becomes clear when you begin with the role the pistol will serve.
- Choose the 1911 builder for the widest range of sizes, calibers, and traditional custom options.
- Choose the EVO builder when you already want a compact 9mm 1911.
- Use each “Help Me Choose” explanation when a selection is unfamiliar.
- Watch the calculated price as options are added or changed.
- Use Special Instructions when the listed options do not fully capture the request.
Choose. Configure. Submit.
Each builder brings the choices together in a deliberate sequence and sends the completed configuration to us as one request.
Start with a gun that already speaks to you.
Browse historical models, commemorative work, and earlier Ed Brown configurations for ideas—or choose a completed in-stock pistol when the right configuration is already waiting.