1911 questions

[retired]

What are the advantages/disadvantages of a one piece vs. a 2 piece ejector rod. I have been looking at some high line 1911 pistols (Ed Brown, Les Baer, etc.) and have seen them mentioned.

Also, what are the advantages/disadvantages of an internal vs. an external extractor.

I'm attempting to gain as much knowledge as I am able to prior spending somewhere between $1K and $1.8K on a 1911 in the next month or two. Thanks.

[HCz]

Also, what are the advantages/disadvantages of an internal vs. an external extractor.

I'm not an expert or someone with a good knowledge, but as for internal/external extractor situation, internal ones are the original design. Some tried to improve on it by using external extractor design, but it seems like it offered no more advantage. So If I were to get a 1911, I'd not get too hung up on internal/external extractor issue. Just for the sake of getting the original design, I'd go with internal one though.

Someone who is more well versed in the subject should educate both of us.

[NiteQwill]

Do you mean the guide rod?

If so, if you use a full length guide rod, it's a PITA to field strip without any tools.

If you have a normal GI plug, you can use your thumb, magazine plate, bushing wrench, etc. to field strip.

I prefer a tried and true GI plug.

The pros and cons? Well, there's a long winded debate about the spring can get "coiled" up in the gun... I don't want to get into it. But IMHO, it's a complete farce and there has never been any documented case of such AFAIK.

[lawnrevenge]

I'm intrigued by the responses that experts/keyboard commandos offer.

[Fjold]

What are the advantages/disadvantages of a one piece vs. a 2 piece ejector rod. I have been looking at some high line 1911 pistols (Ed Brown, Les Baer, etc.) and have seen them mentioned.

Also, what are the advantages/disadvantages of an internal vs. an external extractor.

I'm attempting to gain as much knowledge as I am able to prior spending somewhere between $1K and $1.8K on a 1911 in the next month or two. Thanks.

As soon as I figure out what a one piece or a 2 piece ejector rod is, I will be ready to offer a "keyboard commando" answer.

[lawnrevenge]

As soon as I figure out what a one piece or a 2 piece ejector rod is, I will be ready to offer a "keyboard commando" answer.

anxiously waiting

[tiko]

They are all functioning flawless. Some others even put a cap/lock on the end of the rod so you can pull out the whole spring-rod together without flying

[m1match]

I'm not a keyboard commando- I've got 14 1911s including 1 I did most of the build myself. I've been shooting and maintaining my 1911s for 25 years - what I say is based on my experience and your's may be different. I think you're referring to 1 and 2 piece guide rods. The original 1911 design is the standard plug and guide rod where the guide rod is only abou 2 inches long and the plug is closed at the end. 1 and 2 piece guide rods are full length rods. In a full sized 5" 1911, full length guide rods offer no advantages and they make the gun harder to disassemble. They are not needed and don't offer any performance advantages other than they add a little weight up front to dampen muzzle flip on recoil.

In a 1911, internal extractors are the tried and true John Browning design. They do require knowledge to tune and to fit a new extractor and they are not drop in parts. Internal extractors do occasionally need tuning to stay reliable. External extractors have worked great in other guns like Glocks, SIGs, Berettas, etc., but the ones used in the 1911 have not worked all that well. Kimber switched to external extractors, and then back to the original internal extractor because they couldn't get them work reliably. Smith & Wesson SW1911s have external extractors, but there have been reports of problems with them, although far fewer than with Kimbers. If I were you, I'd stick to the original internal extractor.

There are no high end 1911 manufacturers that use external extractors. Full length guide rods are easy and inexpensive to change so you can try them out if you want, but if it were me, I wouldn't waste my money on them.

[gmcal]

I own a Kimber that started off with an external extractor. After several thousand rounds it developed extraction problems. It went back to Kimber and was returned with a new slide that had an internal extractor. It also had a full length guide rod but switched because I had a thick bushing fitted and the barrel cut flush with the bushing. The end cap (I don't know the correct term) matched the bushing and would not work with the full length guide rod. I didn't have a problem disassembling the gun with the full length guide rod and don't notice and difference in function.

[retired]

Mea culpa. Obviously it is the guide rod; shows you what I recall and I have a SA Mil spec which I've taken apart. I should have checked my manual before posting.

Thanks for all of the helpful info, especially m1match.

I also managed to find a You Tube video (3 separate ones actually) by a guy named "korn," who shows how to disassemble/assemble the mil spec. I know how to field strip mine, but he takes everything down on the frame/slide for a complete cleaning. The videos were pretty good.

Again, thanks everyone.

[CrippledPidgeon]

Not a big fan of the 2 piece full length guide rod. Mine kept working out and I figured that if the gun operates just fine with a full-length guide rod that falls out, then it'll operate just fine with a standard short guide rod and plug. And considering that I don't need an allen wrench to disassemble my 1911 anymore, I'm pretty happy.

[Black Majik]

I'm intrigued by the responses that experts/keyboard commandos offer.

I'll await your keyboard commando response before I put in my $0.02.

[ojisan]

2 piece work better if you have a compensator as it may make for easier disassembly.
Some folks have had the two piece unscrew while shooting and cause a failure.
Some one piece guide rods are longer than others...some allow a traditional removal of the barrel bushing, some require the slide to be removed so the rod can be moved back a little so the bushing can be rotated.
I have used all three types: original, one piece and two piece.
No problems with any of them.
Range use: guide rod adds weight up front as mentioned above.
Carry use: go with the original set-up to save weight.

Am I a Keyboard Commando now?
I have a gun-related mouse pad...

[Colt]

I prefer the standard (short) guide rod, one piece, no shock buffs or anything else. I've never had the spring tangle up on me...

As for the extractor, JMB designed it as an internal part (he even did so with the High Power, although they are now external), so that's good enough for me. I don't know much about external extractors, but the internal ones are pretty easy to remove, clean, tension and replace - which I like.

Good luck!

[Bud Fox]

What are the advantages/disadvantages of a one piece vs. a 2 piece ejector rod. I have been looking at some high line 1911 pistols (Ed Brown, Les Baer, etc.) and have seen them mentioned.

Also, what are the advantages/disadvantages of an internal vs. an external extractor.

I'm attempting to gain as much knowledge as I am able to prior spending somewhere between $1K and $1.8K on a 1911 in the next month or two. Thanks.

Retired you might want to take a look at Dan Wesson. I purchased a CBOB about 9 months ago, at the time it was $1050, they've got up a little since then. He uses Ed Brown internals etc, and I happened to take it to Jim Hoag, anyone who's who knows Jim Hoag or has been around 1911's for any period of time knows he's the real deal. Well I took it to Jim to put a shorter trigger on it, and he hadn't worked on DW pistols before and when I picked it up he said, "WOW, for $1,050 you got a steal".

I would recommend http://forums.1911forum.com/ tons of great people, knowledgeable and very helpful.

Good Luck.

Here's my baby.