Slide/frame play

T

TANTOR

New member
I´d bought a new Colt Commander Model 1991 A1 45 ACP, There is a lot of play between slide and frame, is this normal? can affect accuracy?
 
Can affect accuracy, will increase wear. Suggest a professional gunsmithing service to tighten that right up for you.

Buy quality, always worth it.
EGW, Robar, Clark, etc.......

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"All my ammo is factory ammo"
 
First of all, it is a normal condition for guns with "GI" specs. You'll see much less movement in upper grade Springfields, most Kimbers, and the majority of custom guns.

In terms of effect on accuracy the slide/frame fit is around #3 in relative importance. Much more important are the fit of the barrel and bushing.

Unless you shoot many thousands of rounds a year wear shouldn't be a problem. And tight slides get looser with shooting too.

My suggestion would be to shoot the gun a bunch and see if it does what you want it to do. If not then you can decide on what work needs to be done.
 
It's not as critical as barrel lockup. Although having a tight slide to frame fit will improve accuracy, first shoot it a bit. Then ask yourself, can I shoot better then this gun? If so, get a good smith to tighten the slide to frame for you.
 
Though I'm not an expert, it's been explained to me, and it makes perfect sense, that slide to frame fit makes very little difference in accuracy. It is the barrel to slide fit that is important, as the aiming device is on the slide, not on the frame. You're aiming the barrel, not the frame. A whole lot of frame to slide slop will cause more wear, but hey, I'll bet you can dunk it into your wife's cake batter and it'll still work!
 
You're right, but the most important thing of all is that the barrel go back to the same spot every time. The slide/frame fit is only a small part of that. The real key is that the barrel goes to the same spot in realtion to the sights, but in order to do that the bottom barrel lugs have to push the barrel up into the slide in the same position each time. What you'll notice is that a properly fitted barrel greatly reduces the slide slop because the slide is being pushed up against the frame rails. Tightening and smoothing the slide is still part of any good accuracy job.

I think it would be hard to tell if accuracy improved with just tightening the slide unless you had a good number of groups fired from the Ransom Rest both before and after the slide work.
 
How much is too much play? My Hi-Power will rattle when you shake it and it still shoot 2-3" groups at 25 yards. My Colt 1911 is as tight as can be and it shoots the same accuracy. I've heard Les Bear guns are so tight, you can barely move the slide back with your hands. Shoot the gun and then see if it's worth spending the 100 bucks or so to have the fit tightened.
 
I have a series 80 Gold Cup with a slide to frame fit that is loose as a goose. It happens to be one of my most accurate handguns. It is also utterly and completely 100% reliable, feeding any ammo I stuff in it. Can't ask for more than that.

I'd do as suggested above and put a few hundred rounds thru it before concerning yourself with a loose fitting slide. You may be pleasantly surprised.

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Just one of the Good Guys
 
Many Thanks to you all! I´ll put some rounds on it (let say 100) and see what´s is her behaivor.
Again, Thanks for your expertise.
 
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