My GF just picked up a gently used 3914LS. She intends for it to be her eventual carry gun so she has been putting in some range time. She is a very competent shooter with her Beretta PX4 Storm and she really enjoys the Lady Smith. After she got the gun I gave it a through cleaning and proper oiling.

However, this evening at the range, she had numerous failures to return to battery. I have read a bit about what might cause this and it seems that it can be a couple of issues. One is "limp wristing" the others being the ammo or a weak slide return spring. She is rather petite and has limited hand strength, but this sort of failure has never been an issue with her Beretta. On the other hand, when I was shooting her LS I didn't have any problems.

Given the unknown history of the gun, I am at first inclined to replace the return spring with a factory replacement.

Any suggestions are appreciated.

Andrew

I agree - if you put in a spring set and she still experiences failures, no doubt it's an ergonomic problem and she's going to want to get rid of the gun. The spring job is a selling plus.

She is very picky about her firearms. She doesn't buy a gun unless she has a chance to fire it first. It so happened that a friend of mine had a 3913LS that she has never used. She allowed my GF to test it out at the range. We told her that the break-in would be free of charge

When we took that gun to the range it didn't give my GF any problems at all, even being new. This gives me some idea that it may not be an ergonomic issue, but something in the gun.

I have a new slide return spring coming along with new springs for the 5 magazines that were included with the gun.

Is there a way to determine what magazines are factory and which ones might be aftermarket?

Andrew

I would advise replacing the recoil spring in any used gun because you never know what the condition of the spring is. I just picked up a used Springfield GI and I'm not even sure what the recoil spring it had in it was for because it wasn't even close to any recoil spring for a 5" 1911 that I have ever seen.

I don't know how much you shot the 3914LS, but if it is working fine for you, consistently, then it seems likely that she is limp-wristing it. My wife's friend is also petite and has limited hand/wrist strength and she will start having FTRB's with my 3913 after about 50 rounds, when she starts to fatigue.

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Ban lunatics and criminals

I'd definitely start with the new springs. I stay factory with the 3913 springs.

Something else that's sometimes been found useful to try and reduce shooter fatigue for shooters of smaller stature and/or grip strength is to install Hogue grips on a 3913. The slight increase in overall grip dimension is often nicely offset by the increased cushioning of the felt recoil.

My hands are certainly large enough to accommodate the standard factory Delrin grips, but I notice less fatigue when shooting 3913's when Hogue panels are installed. Maybe it's the slight reduction in felt recoil caused by the cushioning effect ... and maybe it's that the rubber Hogue panels don't allow the gun to move around in my hand as much (handy in wet weather), making it easier to acquire and keep a good grip without continually having to reacquire a grip. It helps, though.

If someone is really recoil sensitive, and may not keep the frame from shifting rearward at the wrong moment during cycling, I could also see how the use of lower pressure lightweight bullet loads might allow more potential for "grip stability" (limp-wristing) issues to manifest. Try some 124-147 loads made by one of the major American ammo companies. Sometimes the budget 115gr stuff is operating at the very bottom of the 'normal pressure' range.

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Ret LE Firearms inst & armorer

Yep, or the Pach equivalent. $10. Ugly but effective.

I do have a new S&W recoil spring on the way along with 5 new S&W magazine springs. We've been buying cases of the Federal 124 grain FMJ ammo, which is not anything fancy, but it had been feeding without any issues through her Beretta and my CZ 75B.

Can anyone spot which magazines are the original ones? I assume the one on the far right is a real S&W part, since it has a logo. What about the other 4?











Thanks!
Andrew

Andrew,
Excellent Pictures! You have what appears to be 5 factory mags! Non-factory mags would be easy to spot, if they were set along side the other mags. The troubleshooter side of me, would suggest concentrating on using one magazine loaded with 124gr rounds to to determine if the problem is mechanical with the pistol or with the procedure of the shooter. As a owner of a 3913, 3913TSW, 3914, 3914TSW, ammo choice has been my biggest problem with shooting one these fine 9mm's! Enjoy!

Mags look factory to me too. I would guess that the blued ones came with the gun originally since it is a 3914.
I think turnejm's idea of using one mag is good, at least to start with, but if you are having problems with that mag you will want to try another and see if the problems clear up (indicating a problem with the first mag), or persist (indicating a possible problem with the pistol, or the second mag as well).
Fastbolt, I'm going to have to find some Houges and let my wife's friend try them next time she is in town. Thanks for the tip.

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Ban lunatics and criminals

Excellent. I also like the idea of using the same magazine for troubleshooting purposes.

So it sounds like once I replace the recoil spring and the magazine springs I will have a much better idea of what's going on.

I just want her to be confident that the gun will not fail, although she is efin awesome at "tap n rack." The first time it failed she just wham, bam, racked and kept going. I actually had to tell her to slow down so I can examine the gun and make note of what was happening with what magazine, etc...

Andrew

AHA! This makes perfect sense...

Thank you...

Andrew

PM sent...

I received the new springs from Midway over the weekend. The new replacement slide springs was green and noticeably stiffer than the spring that was in the pistol.

The new magazine springs were colored red on one end and were noticeable longer than the old springs. After installing them, you could definitely tell a difference when loading ammo.

I am hopeful that this will take care of the issue. Today we will visit the range and I will test each magazine separately and do all the shooting myself. Tough job, I know...LOL

Andrew