1911 Feeding problems

[H Richard]

A friend brought over a 1911 that he was having feeding problems. He described mostly the rounds going into the chamber, but slide stopping just short of going into battery. Was told needed the feed ramp polished and the slide needed lubed.

Well, the feed ramp was pretty smooth from the factory, the gun wasn't too dirty, but could use a little lube. When I checked the rounds he was using, (handloads from a licensed handloader who is known to make quality ammo), the case mouth was .474' to .475". Dropping them into the barrel (removed from the gun), they would stop short of full seating. I ran some of them through my taper crimp die to .469-.470, and they drop right into the chamber like they should.

My gut tells me this is the problem, but would this .003 to .006" keep the slide from going into battery? Some of them felt like the case mouth was actually scraping the chamber walls going in. I would think the forward motion of the slide would seat them. It had a factory recoil spring, which I replaced with a Wolf 17 lb spring. Haven't fired it yet, just curious what you all might think.

 

[Dragon88]

Yes, you absolutely found the problem. The "licensed" handloader did not crimp the rounds after seating, leaving the mouth expanded. A few thousandths of flared case mouth is more than enough to prevent proper chambering and headspace on a straight-wall pistol cartridge.

Dan

 

[Titegroups]

Time for your friend to speak with his dollars and find another source of ammo. With no crimp on the bullet they could also be forced back into the case deeper on their way into the chamber and drive pressures way up. Lots of people with a "License" don't know what the hell they're doing, afterall the Gov't issues most of them.

 

[ArchAngelCD]

My gut tells me this is the problem, but would this .003 to .006" keep the slide from going into battery?

Yep, you found the problem and there's no reason to look further. I agree with the 2 above posts, time for your friend to find a new reloader and he's lucky the ammo didn't work or he could have had a real problem with overpressure rounds if the bullet setback.

 

[fredj338]

Yes, you absolutely found the problem. The "licensed" handloader did not crimp the rounds after seating, leaving the mouth expanded. A few thousandths of flared case mouth is more than enough to prevent proper chambering and headspace on a straight-wall pistol cartridge.

Dan

^^THIS^^^ There is a very old wivestale that you do not need to taper crimp the 45acp. Well, maybe back in the WWI days when chambers were sooo over sized, but for best results, ALL semiauto ammo, regardless of caliber, should be taper crimped.

 

[AllAces]

Bad Fitting Rds

Is your friends 1911 a Kimber, by chance? (NOTE: This is not a knock Kimber post). If so, I thing I know the problem, and it is not the gun.

 

[shovelwrench]

While you found the problem, a standard .45 Gov't model runs a 19lb spring. There is no need for a 17lb unless you want to batter the frame.....

 

[H Richard]

AllAces, no it wasn't a Kimber, it was a RIA, and I have good respect for the RIA.

 

[Skip Sackett]

^^THIS^^^ There is a very old wivestale that you do not need to taper crimp the 45acp. Well, maybe back in the WWI days when chambers were sooo over sized, but for best results, ALL semiauto ammo, regardless of caliber, should be taper crimped.

Especially if you load your own SD ammo, like I do, and want it to feed and fire reliably.

Load for the firearm though. They are all individuals. What works in mine may not work well in yours. Taper crimp though, essential, in my book.

 

[fredj338]

While you found the problem, a standard .45 Gov't model runs a 19lb spring. There is no need for a 17lb unless you want to batter the frame.....

Well, not entirely true. If you are shooting ball ammo or equiv. staying w/ the std spring is wise. If you shoot nothing but light target loads, dropping to even a 16# spring isn't going to hurt the gun one bit.
BTW, as carbnon fouls the chamber, there will only be more problems feeding w/o a good taper crimp. That should not be applied w/ the Lee FCD either IMO, but that is a diff thread.

 

[thndrchiken]

How many rds does your buddy have down the pipe, it could be a weak recoil spring. Also I recently watched a video online done by one of the colt engineers, states that a government model 1911 has a 16 lb recoil spring, commander 18 lb spring and officer models are 22 lb. Now different manufacturers may have different specs but shouldn't be that much different.

 

[H Richard]

I installed the 17 Lb Wolf as it is marked as "Standard for Government Model", as well as multiple other models. It functioned flawlessly and doesn't hammer the frame. I did test the re-sized rounds, and several magazines full in rapid fire went downrange without a hitch.