Another 1911 cycling problem

M

Malone LaVeigh

New member
I recently replaced the disconnector and sear in a very old Springfield Armory 1911. I have now taken it out to the range twice, and to my surprise (and a bit of pride) it seems to be working well. However, now that it's not going to go full-auto on me, it seems to have a couple of other minor problems.

On about 1/4 of the magazines fired, the slide did not remain in the rear position after the last shot in the magazine. The spent shell was ejected fine, it just didn't lock in position.

Also, I got a couple of failures to feed in about a box and a half. On both occasions, it ejected the spent shell and cycled forward, but didn't quite close. Thank goodness, the new disconnector worked and prevented it firing in that position!

I picked up a couple of $10 no-name mags at a gun show recently, and unfortunately, was not keeping track of which I was using. Could this be the problem? Or could something else be worn out in the old soldier? I tried a search, but maybe didn't know how to word the problem. Any ideas?
 
Slide not locking back after the last shot is either a magazine problem or the slide stop pin. Mark your magazines and see if it happens only with certain mags. If it is only happening with a few, then the mags are to blame and this is a common problem.

Failure of the slide to fully close on a live round could be a result of the barrel feed ramp. If it is a military style barrel, it might benefit from throating and polishing. If you do not know how to do this, let a gunsmith do it. Over throating a barrel is a recipe for disaster.

Failure to fully load could also be a result of a rough breech face, too much extractor tension or oversize ammo. It could also be caused by bad magazines.
 
Sometimes the style of bullet will cause the out of battery failure. If you were using a turnicated cone or semi-wadcutter style bullet, try it with standard 230-grain ball and see what you get. If you were using reloads, get some quality factory fodder.

After you mark your magazines, take them apart and clean them. If the front of the follower hangs up just a little at the top of the magazine the slide lock lever won't get pushed up. If it's just crud in the magazine tube you shouldn't have any more failures to lock back, unless it is a weak magazine spring. Could be both.
 
Sounds like the magazines are definitely the thing to check. I also noticed that some of the mags didn't eject very readily. The ejector button seemed sort of mushy with them. I'm also noticing that the springs on the new mags are weaker to the touch.
 
When you say "Springfield Armory 1911", I assume you're talking about the old WW1-era piece? If so, I'd suggest taking it to a gunsmith for a good looking-over, especially if you're having functioning problems. After 90 years just about anything could be wrong with it.
 
Malone,
If the magazines aren't ejecting readily, the bodies could be out of spec and a little large. As long as they are for practice only, you can try compressing the sides of the magazines slightly with a channel lock, etc. Just don't depend on them for serious use, and mark them prominently.
Once when I was conducting some training, one of the shooters with a 1911 had a "gun show special" magazine that was causing malfunctions. I told him that he should set it aside and keep it if he wanted to practice clearance drills, but to use his good magazines for the rest of the day. Of course, a couple of strings later the problem unit had worked its way back into his 1911, and I decided to fix it. Took the magazine off the line and pounded it flat with a framing hammer-he never had trouble with it again.
 
I agree with the mag theory.

The mags you bought might just be a touch too long and that could be causing both problems. If what you have is pre-ww1 have her checked out. I'll bet if you post this with George Stringer, he'll drool all over himself to play with it. Go to the gunsmith board and ask George!
 
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