Hey folks, just got here and into pistols just a short time(little over a year). Owner of Sigs mainly and a few others...The others are what concern me. The sigs have no problems and I haven't done more than the fluff and buff. The Others are in the sub compact cat. My KelTec p11 rocks, but the parap10 that I love/hate so much is getting on my nerves. I got it used for $450(yup couldn't let that one go...boy was the wife...). Anyway, I did all I can to this thing except get the rasp out to do a little filing. The sucker jams on EVERYTHING...totally inconsistant too. No patterns to make out which and what. Sometimes it will actually dump all 11 rounds and hold the slide back. I figure it is the mag since it was the worst part of the gun aside from the finish. This is my first 1911 style pistol...I love the design but the function is awful. Is it time for a Glock? My other pistols eat everything including cheap reloads, lead, ANYTHING. Am I just unlucky with this one? Help...and sorry for the wordy post...Some say I'm shy.
Newbie...got one for you folks...
- Thread starter KelTeKee
- Start date
Small frame 1911s aren't known for reliability, at least not w/o major mods, or a redesign such as Kimber/Wilson did. I'd say it is time for a Kimber, if you need/want a 1911. A Glock if you don't.
Try a replacement mag (try Brownell's) and use the felt tip and jeweler's rouge on your dremel to buff the feed ramp and breechface. Make sure the extractor is holding the round fairly tight against the breechface when you take the slide off (you will have to shake fairly hard it to get it to fall off).
If the gun double feeds (two rounds trying to go in the chamber at the same time b/c the first round wasn't extracted), then you have an extractor problem.
Try a replacement mag (try Brownell's) and use the felt tip and jeweler's rouge on your dremel to buff the feed ramp and breechface. Make sure the extractor is holding the round fairly tight against the breechface when you take the slide off (you will have to shake fairly hard it to get it to fall off).
If the gun double feeds (two rounds trying to go in the chamber at the same time b/c the first round wasn't extracted), then you have an extractor problem.
I suspect that you are right B Shipley, about the extractor. I have actually polished the ramp, throat and frame a number of times. Very slick. I checked the tension of the extractor with a spent casing and it was not real tight. I hear that you have to actually bend the extractor to adjust it? EEK, that sounds kinda squirley. I also have a suspicion that it is the mag as well. They are terrible, the worst I have ever seen from a $500+ gun. I think even promag makes better mags than ParaOrd. I'll have to investigate the extractor some more. Dang, I really love/hate this pistol. It's the perfect package for me aside from the sheer mass. I call it the black hole...mega dense compact power. And the little bugger is loads of fun to shoot! Thanks for the info!
Rod from MO
Inactive
I've owned and shot a P-10 (steel, .45acp) for about two years. In the beginning it acted like yours, but with patience and excellent gunsmithing help, it has turned into a reliable pistol. I have one factory mag and two Pro-Mags. All three work fine, although it is tough to get the tenth round in the two pro-mags, although it can be done. I would suggest changing the recoil spring assembly. Para-Ordnance and Cylinder & Slide both recommend changing every 1000 rounds. I also had the ejection port slightly enlarged and flared. My P-10 is very reliable now and fun to shoot. I also had a beavertail grip safety installed, but of course that didn't add to the reliability factor. As another thought, possibly the small size, being somewhat harder to grip properly, is contributing to "limp-wristing" which will have an effect on reliability. Hang in there, the problems you have described can be overcome, and you will drop the hate portion of your love/hate relationship with your P-10. I can recommend Cylinder & Slide for any work you want to have done. Good shooting.....Rod.
Here's how to bend it:
The extractor has two wide portions, one at the back that is near the hammer, and one near the front for support in the extractor channel.
Bend only the portion in front of this forward support area. Put your thumb in this wide area for support and apply gentle but firm pressure against a hard surface. Just a little bit more bend than before. Install and check. Repeat if necessary.
Don't hold the extractor behind the wide area, and yes, it can become too tight (won't chamber properly, round probably nosing into the hood of the barrel at ~ 45 degrees). It bends inward.
You can also file the groove on the extractor and polish the front area. The concept here is to round off any sharp angles in the groove channel that may impede the extractor from sliding smoothly over the rim. Best done with a copy of Kuhnhausen's "The Colt .45 Automatic: A Shop Manual" in front of you.
The extractor has two wide portions, one at the back that is near the hammer, and one near the front for support in the extractor channel.
Bend only the portion in front of this forward support area. Put your thumb in this wide area for support and apply gentle but firm pressure against a hard surface. Just a little bit more bend than before. Install and check. Repeat if necessary.
Don't hold the extractor behind the wide area, and yes, it can become too tight (won't chamber properly, round probably nosing into the hood of the barrel at ~ 45 degrees). It bends inward.
You can also file the groove on the extractor and polish the front area. The concept here is to round off any sharp angles in the groove channel that may impede the extractor from sliding smoothly over the rim. Best done with a copy of Kuhnhausen's "The Colt .45 Automatic: A Shop Manual" in front of you.
suckersrus
New member
A friend of mine bought the steel and aluminun versions of a para Ordanance the same day I bought my Sig 229. We went out to the gravel pit to do some shooting. One Para jammed first shot every time with all magazines so he put it away. The second Para jammed on the 3rd or 4th shot on all mags each and every time.
My Sig 357 fed and fired everything we put in it and has continued to di so until this day.
My friend sent his Para to the gunsmith and dropped a couple of hundred dollars on them then locked them away in the gun safe.
He promptly ordered a Sig 229.
The 357 Sig shoots faster, flatter, and is a more reliable cartridge in a more reliable pistol.
My Sig 357 fed and fired everything we put in it and has continued to di so until this day.
My friend sent his Para to the gunsmith and dropped a couple of hundred dollars on them then locked them away in the gun safe.
He promptly ordered a Sig 229.
The 357 Sig shoots faster, flatter, and is a more reliable cartridge in a more reliable pistol.
I don't know what slug weight you are shooting but if 230 gr try 200 or 185.Short slide 1911's have a problem with slide speeds.A gunsmith told me that one when I was haveing problems with a officers.Changed to 200 grners and problems left.Simple?Yes but seems to work.
------------------
beemerb
We have a criminal jury system which is superior to any in the world;
and its efficiency is only marred by the difficulty of finding twelve men
every day who don't know anything and can't read.
-Mark Twain
------------------
beemerb
We have a criminal jury system which is superior to any in the world;
and its efficiency is only marred by the difficulty of finding twelve men
every day who don't know anything and can't read.
-Mark Twain
BShipley: Sounds like a simple enough task. The esctractor design is kinda strange. all others in my pistols have alever type with a spring instead of just the extractor bending. I guess if it has worked for about a century it should work in my pistol. I will have to ge that manual you recommended.
Like Rod, I think I will stay patient for a while since there has been no gun smith dollars spent, just my own work. I would like a bigger 1911 but I love the size of this grenade! With the hogue wrap around, it is like a sledge hammer. I do have a several sigs that have no kinks what so ever in them in all calibers but they got sort of boring since they don't give me any trouble or bad groups for that matter. They will remain my defense weapons. They really need to make a 9/40/357 in the size of the KelTec and I would jump on it in a second. Aside from the extractor I will also start to experiment with lighter loads like Beemerb suggested. What type of round nose type hollow points are out there that are good. Glasers are really light and +p. Any suggestions? thanks everyone for the advice. Off to the garage to tinker.
Like Rod, I think I will stay patient for a while since there has been no gun smith dollars spent, just my own work. I would like a bigger 1911 but I love the size of this grenade! With the hogue wrap around, it is like a sledge hammer. I do have a several sigs that have no kinks what so ever in them in all calibers but they got sort of boring since they don't give me any trouble or bad groups for that matter. They will remain my defense weapons. They really need to make a 9/40/357 in the size of the KelTec and I would jump on it in a second. Aside from the extractor I will also start to experiment with lighter loads like Beemerb suggested. What type of round nose type hollow points are out there that are good. Glasers are really light and +p. Any suggestions? thanks everyone for the advice. Off to the garage to tinker.
I'm not recommending +P over standards, but merely suggesting you give'em a try. They ususally decrease reliability, but stranger things have happened than to have them make your gun work like a swiss watch when using them.
I mentioned what I like, bullet wise. Cor-Bons are fun, but not recommended anymore, due to quality problems. I had bad experiences with these in my Glock 20. No more.
I mentioned what I like, bullet wise. Cor-Bons are fun, but not recommended anymore, due to quality problems. I had bad experiences with these in my Glock 20. No more.