whats ailing my 1911--38 super

[dick w. holliday]

38 super single stack race gun is acting up a little--it's doing two things--the first is that it will leave the last fired round of a mag laying on top of the mag...no stove pipe or anything like that --it's just laying on top of the mag with the slide locked back----i checked the extractor pressure by sliding a round under it and although i've not measured it--the pressure on the shell feels ok to me-----

the second thing i've noticed is the first round prints a couple of inches low at 25 yards--the others will be on a nice tight group --- any suggestions????

thanks--Dick

 

[Brian48]

You need to replace the springs on your magazines. Are you using the "Shooting Stars" follower and spring by chance?

 

[Tomas]

The first round shooting low could be the result of a cold barrel. We would do a lot of "cold firing" in the USMC sniper school I went to.

Basically, you practice shooting out of a cold barrel. One shot, let it completely cool, then shoot again (yup - you end up doing a lot of waiting - but that's what snipers do best). Firearms often have a different impact point when the gun is cold. If you are trying to drop him with the first shot, you don't want to be sighted in from "hot firing".

If it's doing this even with a hot barrel, I can only suggest shooter error. (sorry, not trying to be a prick [though it does come natural to Marines])

I've read in a lot of gun rags about the first round chambered having a different impact point because the round is hand cycled, blah, blah, blah . . . I have found this to be a bunch of Ayoob B.S. - it's because the barrel is cold, plain and simple.

Hope this helps.

Tom

 

[James K]

If the empty case is not ejecting, the problem is with the extractor or the ejector, not with the magazine spring. With the barrel and slide off the gun, see if the extractor will hold a loaded round; if not, tune it or replace it.

I am assuming that the pistol was made for .38 Super. Some folks try to build .38 Supers by just replacing the barrel and magazine in a .45 pistol. Won't work.

Jim