Question Popped into my head .

C

cw308

New member
On a Colt 1911 if you carry with a round in the chamber , does that weaken the extractor in some way being under constant tension ?
 
OK guy's , No & really is not a answer . I just was thinking that the extractor would be under a constant pressure pushing outward could in time loosen the hold on the case . I do carry in that condition , never thought to ask the question until now . Will not think of it anymore . Chris
 
cw308 said:
OK guy's , No & really is not a answer.
Click to expand...
Sorry, but "No" is an answer. The question was a simple "yes" or "no" question. The answer is "No."

The reason is that the amount of movement is not enough to stress the extractor beyond its elastic limit.
 
OK guy's , No & really is not a answer . I just was thinking that the extractor would be under a constant pressure pushing outward could in time loosen the hold on the case . I do carry in that condition , never thought to ask the question until now . Will not think of it anymore .
Click to expand...
Chris, when a round is in the chamber and the action is in battery, the extractor has very little tension on it inasmuch as it sits in the groove in the cartridge case. There is some pressure on it as can be demonstrated by sliding a cartridge under the extractor with the slide dismounted from the frame, as is done to test for extractor tension by checking to see if there is enough tension to hold the cartridge. The tension required to hold a loaded cartridge or while in battery with a loaded cartridge is minimal...never enough to cause a problem.

What is more damaging to the tension is when some neophyte tries to drop a loaded cartridge into the chamber (instead of stripping one off the magazine) and drops the slide on it expecting the extractor to snap into the groove. I think that bends the extractor and the diminished tension will result in extraction/ejection problems.
 
No is not only an answer, but the answer. "Really" is a comment on the obviousness of the answer.
Click to expand...
It was an honest question from a guy who wanted to know. Insulting him by suggesting his question should have been obvious serves no good purpose. We all have likely started out asking obvious questions and some of us have been fortunate enough to have encountered people who were willing and patient enough to explain the answers to us.
 
serves no good purpose.
Click to expand...
But more purpose than insulting people who gave an honest, simple "no" to a yes or no question.
No was an answer, and is the right answer, but the OP seemed to take exception to that fact.
 
dahermit
Thank You , that's exactly what I was looking for . What an interesting conversation it would be if everyone answered in one word , Really , No . dahemit thanks again . Be Well , Chris
 
ammo crafter
That never occurred to me , Designed for locked & cocked . That also would have answered my question . thank You , Chris
 
As has been mentioned in other discussions on related topics about springs and metal, having a spring (or metal parts) under pressure isn't, by itself, a cause for concern. And in some gun designs, the extractor itself acts as a spring.

It's only when the pressure (or amount of bending or compression or stretching) is extreme during use -- causing the metal to be pushed to or past it's elastic limit -- that eventual damage can occur. (Any material's elastic limit is the point where it slowly begins to break from being turned, bent, twisted, etc. All materials have an elastic limit -- be they glass, steel, aluminum, plastic, rubber, wood, etc., etc.)

Most springs or parts in guns aren't pushed to or near their "elastic" limit. (In a few cases, it can happen by design -- but it seldom happens with extractors or extractor springs.)
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top