Throated barrel in Colt New Agent. Worth it?

G

GringoLoco

New member
I picked up a new Colt New Agent earlier this year and it didn't like my regular brand of defense ammo, or the next two brands I tried. I know 3" 1911s earned a reputation for being finicky, but I also noticed the barrel has a very minimal feedramp, and it isn't integrated into the frame very precisely (there's a step from the frame to the edge of the feedramp that likes to snag the leading edge of a hollowpoint and just stop it cold). Does anybody have much experience tuning compact 1911s? Wondering if it would be a good candidate for a barrel throating job or if I should just carry FMJ.
 
The lower front edge of the barrel throat, should stop about 1/32" from the front edge of the frame feed ramp. The edge of the barrel throat must not hang over the edge of the feed ramp.

This is an easy fix & your pistol will then feed jhp ammo. If you do not wish to do this yourself, i can recommend two of the best in the whole usa:

Teddy jacobson----"actions by-t"----sugarland, tx.

Alex hamilton----10-ring precision---san antonio, tx.

Tell them that michael in sealy, texas referred you to see either of them.

Guru1911
 
Cool, thanks. I'll take a closer look when I get home. Normally I'm a do it yourselfer, but I might ship it out for this job. Thought about sending it to Colt, but I wasn't impressed with the job they did or the service when I sent it back for a beavertail install.
 
Pistolsmiths

Alex & teddy have been in the "top 100" for the past 20 years, as rated by the "american handgunner magazine". Alex is a charter member of "the american pistolsmiths guild". They are both in their early 70's.

Check out their websites for more info---promise neither will disappoint you & your expectations will be exceeded.

Guru1911

OOOPS---LEFT SOMEONE OUT WHO CAN ALSO FIX YOUR PROBLEM:
WAYNE NOVAK @ "NOVAK'S GUNS"---PARKERSBERG, WV.
 
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GURU's right. You need to retain that gap. It's a common mistake for people to assume that it's a flaw and the try to grind it away, ruining their pistol in the process.

And I can also second his recommendation for Alex Hamilton. He'd done some work on one of my 1911's, and I was impressed by the quality of his work and his professionalism.
 
I'll look into them. I really like the pistol but can't carry it if I can't trust it. Just wanted to make sure it's realistic to expect a quality smith to be able to make a 3" 1911 reliable with hollowpoints. I'm willing to pay for quality if that's the case.
 
Sounds like the overhang of the barrel ramp is backward from what it should be, but without photos I can't be sure. If you're going to send it to a custom smith, inquire as to what he wants for an overall reliability packagem, assuming he offers one. That would include fixing your feed issue and other general smoothing and checking of fit and timing. Also, if you want trigger work or anything else done, it's cheaper to get it done at the same time, thanks to shipping costs.
 
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