Colt 1911 Jamming...help.

[AeroEngi]

Some more information would be better. How exactly is it failing to feed? Maybe you can post a picture of what the failure looks like. Also, post some pictures of your frame and barrel ramps and the extractor hook while in the slide.

[Pryde]

shoot 500 rds through it and report back. 1911s tend to need a little bit more break in than modern designs, common with off the shelf production 1911s. some break in earlier, some never do. but 500 seems to be the magic mark.

This is an incorrect and a long held myth. According to Hilton Yam, one of the most well respected smiths/1911 guys in the country:

Basic Reliability:
Your new 1911 needs to complete this 1000 round test period without ANY malfunctions to be considered reliable out of the box. If you are buying a new production 1911, there really is no "break in" period that should be permitted. Contrary to popular belief, new factory production 1911s (ie. Colt, S&W, Kimber, Springfield, etc.) are not so tight that they need to be broken in. They are largely composed of drop in and minimally fit parts, especially the slide/frame/barrel, which should function correctly from the start. Any problems that crop up during the first 1000 rounds will need to be addressed, as they will typically continue to give you headaches down the road.

Don't waste $200 worth of ammo trying to "fix" it by breaking it in. Try different mags and if that doesn't work take it to get fixed or send it back under warranty.

Here's the rest of the article:

http://10-8performance.blogspot.com/2011/10/your-new-1911-first-1000-rounds.html

[c3 rolling]

This is an incorrect and a long held myth. According to Hilton Yam, one of the most well respected smiths/1911 guys in the country:

Basic Reliability:
Your new 1911 needs to complete this 1000 round test period without ANY malfunctions to be considered reliable out of the box. If you are buying a new production 1911, there really is no "break in" period that should be permitted. Contrary to popular belief, new factory production 1911s (ie. Colt, S&W, Kimber, Springfield, etc.) are not so tight that they need to be broken in. They are largely composed of drop in and minimally fit parts, especially the slide/frame/barrel, which should function correctly from the start. Any problems that crop up during the first 1000 rounds will need to be addressed, as they will typically continue to give you headaches down the road.

Don't waste $200 worth of ammo trying to "fix" it by breaking it in. Try different mags and if that doesn't work take it to get fixed or send it back under warranty.

Here's the rest of the article:
http://10-8performance.blogspot.com/...00-rounds.html

This was my experience also, breaking in just increased the FTF/FTE malfunction. Turned out it was a loose extractor.

[PRCABR4Christ]

did you read his whole post

I was at the range with him and at his house later taking a look at the gun

the problem is FTF it ejects fine the most common ftf happens while loading an empty chamber..in fact you can replicate the problem at home by cycling rounds through the chamber over and over..we did try my chip mccormic mag and the same thing happened.

we should have gotten a picture of the ftf..it was bad enough where you couldn't just tap it to chamber the round.

my SA 1911 ate his ammo fed by his mags just fine.

not sure on the exact round count..OP needs to wake up and answer that one. it has not hit the 500rd mark though.

Are you guys "slingshotting" the slide, or using the slide release? If you're using the slide release, try slingshotting it by pulling the slide back and letting go

[Montu]

Are you guys "slingshotting" the slide, or using the slide release? If you're using the slide release, try slingshotting it by pulling the slide back and letting go

slide release has a much higher failure rate...while sling shotting is the way to go it still fails. Also it happens while shooting in the middle of a magazine.

[wizdumb]

Here's a post I made on Reddit a while back. It has a LOT of links of information about the 1911. Easier for me to share the link than repost it all.

http://www.reddit.com/r/guns/comments/kyrgn/a_wealth_of_information_about_the_1911/

[InGrAM]

I can't say what others already have.

That is a fine looking 1911. You picked a keeper.

[JTROKS]

Where are you located at? Maybe a CALGUNS' member knowledgeable with the 1911 can help you out. It is also so much easier to troubleshoot when seeing what's going on.

[PhoPoweR]

He's located in the Concord east bay area and frequents the Concord gun range

[MongooseV8]

A trip to a proper gunsmith is in order---1911s tend to need attention more than modern pistols like HK, Glock, etc. Very old design, needs to be fitted just so---still a good gunsmith will have it purring like a kitten in no time.

This is FUD

Most 1911 feeding issues are magazine related. If I could buy a $5 Chinese knockoff mag for my Glock it would have a harder time feeding as well.

[Mute]

slide release has a much higher failure rate...while sling shotting is the way to go it still fails. Also it happens while shooting in the middle of a magazine.

Neither is more prone to failure than the other. It sounds like a too tight extractor as Ojisan suggested, but without a more detailed description it's hard to be certain. I suggest you and the OP take a look at this link:

How to check extractor tension

and see if this may or may not be the issue.

[esartori]

This is FUD

Most 1911 feeding issues are magazine related. If I could buy a $5 Chinese knockoff mag for my Glock it would have a harder time feeding as well.

I agree with this. Some 1911s just don't like certain magazines. If you clean it and lube it, it should work. If not, then check magazine, then probably extractor. Just because it is a 1911 does not mean it shouldn't run

[RamezPower]

I've cleaned and lubed it pretty well and I'm going to buy another mag just to throw that out of the picture. I'm trying to replicate the jam so that I can post a picture.

[esartori]

I've cleaned and lubed it pretty well and I'm going to buy another mag just to throw that out of the picture. I'm trying to replicate the jam so that I can post a picture.

Sounds good! Let us know!

[JTROKS]

It just happens I may be able to shoot at Concord USI tomorrow or Thursday. I can bring 4 different brands of magazines. I need to shoot my Sig TTT for function and accuracy testing.