From 1911_purview

Right around the time I was graduating from high school, this Colt in .45 ACP was being made by Ikey Starks of Sports West out of Lakewood CO. Ikey co-founded Sports West with George Orndorff and the two of them crafted high end custom guns in the 70s and 80s. George was more focused on rifles and Ikey is best known for the “Commando Special” which he made in collaboration with firearms instructor Chuck Taylor. In addition to his gunsmithing expertise, Starks was an accomplished shooter. He won the Wimbledon Cup in 1973, a prestigious long-range rifle shooting competition. My good friend Tim Gerhard worked for Sports West right out of gunsmithing school, and he used to tell me, “Ikey was a real asshole, but that asshole could build a gun” To which I responded, “isn’t asshole gunsmith a redundant phrase? He didn’t laugh. I wasn’t joking.