45 ACP feed issues

[WildBillD]

Kind of at my wit's end with this. I have a new Sig 1911 (my S&W 1911 did the same thing, so I'm sure it's ammo related) which sometimes fails to go into battery with my reloads. I'm using 230 Xtreme plated round nose, loaded to 1.250 overall length, .471 width on the case. Bullets measure a consistent .452. I'm using Lee carbide dies. I'm just seating the bullet in the seating die, taper crimp done by FCD. I can feel some initial resistance on the Lee FCD, but when I field strip the gun all will drop into the chamber with no problem. Generally happens when loading a magazine and closing the slide. Does it regardless of whether I operate by hand or hit the slide release. A slight tap on the slide puts it into battery, and have not had any problems firing. Only on initial magazine load.

I've loaded up some dummy rounds (old primer, no powder) and have been experimenting with OAL, currently at 1.2750 where I would expect to have some feed problems. With recoil spring removed (heard this so you can feel where problem might be), and marked dummy rounds so I know where the problem is, it seems to hit where the feed ramp has a slight "space" before entering the chamber (hope that part was clear) as it will leave a little dimple about 1/2 way between the case and top of the bullet.

I'm thinking adjust the seating die to do the crimp and the FCD to catch the odd-ball. I use a Dillon 550, been reloading about 2 years. I load a bunch of 9mm and never had a problem. I'm about out of ideas.

Anyone else had this problem? Any and all ideas appreciated.

Thanks, Bill

 

[lebomm]

I had an Argentine 1927 that would do that occasionally, and took care of it by polishing the breech face a bit.

 

[Maximumbob54]

Is the bottom of the case when dropped in the chamber level with the barrel hood?

I use that same set of dies and my 1911's all chew through my reloads. Could this be a bad run of brass? I smash A-Merc cases with a hammer when I find them.

 

[2hawk]

Polish the breech face, and maybe polish up the ramp as well, BUT DO NOT CHANGE THE CONTOUR! No metal reshaping, just polishing!

The other thing that might be a factor is an over-tensioned extractor, but since your guns have external extractors I would tend to discount this.

Also- have you tried different magazines, or shortening your OAL? I load almost all my 45acp at 1.25", this is for 230 and 200 grain bullets of various types. Can't remember the last time I had a feed problem, among 5 different 1911s. hth

ETA, one other thought- no personal experience, but I have heard that the FCD can cause a bulge if it is overdone. If your loads drop into the chamber easily they sound gtg, but if there is any tightness at all you may want to check your crimp. Let us know!

 

[JoeHatley]

Anyone else had this problem? Any and all ideas appreciated.

Yup. Many times. Really. With many different autos.

For me, it means I've neglected to change my recoil spring in time to avoid problems.

 

[SMSgt]

It sounds like you may have a rough extractor and the cases aren't sliding into it easily. Look for roughness/nicks in the casing rim. Also check that the firing pin is fully retracted and there's no roughness in the firing pin opening or evidence of brass shavings.

 

[max]

Sometimes you need to leave a bit of lead above your crimp to aid in the chambering. I see this most often with swc's but I suppose it could also happen with rn. At the juncture where the round nose part begins to curve away leave just a small area of lead and see if that helps.

 

[WildBillD]

Thanks to everyone for the suggestions. Answers in no particular order:

Brass: The first thing I thought of. I originally thought I found the problem with PMC brass (always hits the FCD, I've heard a little thicker walls) and seemed to be the consistent non-feeder. Since then I've culled through the brass and eliminated everything (PMC, CBC, PWS and all others) except Winchester, Remington, Federal and Starline.

Gun only has about 300 rounds through so I doubt it's the recoil spring, although it may weak from the factory.

Case rims seem to be OK, although rougher ones I suspected run fine.

Bullets drop completely into chamber, and fall back out by gravity. I don't believe the cases are bulged, and calipers show same top to bottom.

I have not polished feed ramp (yet) as it looks pretty good-much better than the S&W I had. That will likely be the next step.

I did adjust seating die to give just the smallest bit of crimp. All dummy rounds cycled fine, so it may be I didn't eliminated all the belling. I ran a sample of 50 and will get to the range tomorrow. I also get to shoot my new (to me) K38 Masterpiece from 1948-49 for the first time as well. Should be an interesting day.

 

[Rule3]

1.250 is the OAL I use in all my 45"s 1911 or Sig 220. You state case width is .471" Is that at the mouth (your "crimp")?

If using the LFCD how far are you turning it in after it initially hits the bullet? 1/2, 3/4?? You can turn it a lot and never over crimp.

Try more crimp and see if they slide in there.

 

[halco46]

Feeding of a 1911

I use a OAL of 1.260. I do not use a crimp die either. I de-cap and resize,Flare then seat...thats it. Then I shoot `em all up with No problems. Any questions..Please PM me.

 

[m1gunner]

I, too, would try more crimp. That die shouldn't deform the cases with more crimp.

If problem still there, polish the breech face and the extractor (not the "hook", the parallel flat that rides on the outside rim edge. A slight chamfer on the bottom edge never hurts.

Try again.

If still doing the same thing, try another brand of magazine. My understanding is there are 2 major feedlip configurations, one does better with certain bullets than others, and each gun can have their own preferences. If you have different brand mags, it is an easy thing to try.

 

[amazingflapjack]

I am another one who eliminated the FCD after asking in this forum. I was causing a slight bulge of the bullet. Once I did that it was aces; this in a 1006.

 

[97thSignalman]

I use a Lee 4-die set in my Lee Classic Turret press when reloading .45ACP. The fourth die is a version of the factory taper crimp die that passes over the entire case looking for high spots and smoothing them.

When loading for any semi-autos I check all my cases by dropping them in either a Lyman case gauge or a Wilson case gauge. Since I started doing that I really never have any feed issues.

I have found that while Colt mags work well with round nose FMJ bullets (commonly referred to as "hard ball"), HP bullets work best when fed from modern design mags that present the round a little higher and more steeply inclined compared to the colt mags. Any of the modern major brand mags like Chip McCormik, Novak, and Kimber, to name a few, are designed to reliably feed HP's.

Those are the areas that I would look into if nothing else seems to work for you.

 

[fredj338]

My 1911PD feeds anything everytime. With only 300rds, it just may need a bit more shooting Have you tried factory ammo? If it's gun related, it should balk w/ factory. Are you running the gun w/ grease or oil? Most 1911s like to run "wet". So I switched to a good gun grease for better reliability when the guns starts to get dirty.

 

[fredj338]

I don't like the LFCD, but to each his own. Just make sure the rounds are not over crimped & bulging. Make sure the sizing die is screwed down all the way so just a sheet of paper slides under it snuggly. That will size the max w/o worrying about cracking a carbide ring.

 

[Rule3]

How does it function with "factory ammo"?????

 

[m1gunner]

I just looked at some of my LEE processed 45 reloads. I use a good firm crimp, and it is obvious each round was crimped. But I always crimp as a separate step. Bulges and deformations would occur on some of my rounds when I tried to seat and crimp in one step. 357 loads is where I saw problems. Since then I always crimp as a separate step. As I am not doing this for profit, the extra time is just more time doing an enjoyable task.

 

[Skip Sackett]

Since this occurs when you use your hand or slide release and only on the first rounds, change your technique.

Pull the slide to the rear to the fullest and don't baby it, let it go.

The gun works that way when you pull the trigger.

DON'T DO THAT WHEN THERE IS NO CASE THOUGH! (or with a case in the chamber already!)

Have I had this happen? Yes BUT, only with lead bullets that were entirely too soft. They would hit the feed ramp, then the chamber and stop. I found that getting harder bullets was the way to go. After this problem arose though, I started casting my own and all of that problem went away!

 

[WildBillD]

Shot my sample rounds after a tad more crimp yesterday with some success, but still not 100%. On inspecting the offending rounds, I noticed a little nick on the rim of the case on the which I assume was hitting the feed ramp. It happens with all magazines. When I got home I happened to look in the owners manual. Said failure to go into battery could be from too much lubrication. (That's what it says-really). I thought 1911's were supposed to run wet. Anyway, I cleaned it, and since I had it apart, polished the feed ramp. Reassembled with oil only (no grease), and so far has cycled everything. I'll shoot it again tomorrow and post results, but looks like it will work.

Thanks for all the suggestions. What a great forum with a bunch of great folks.