RIA hiccups

[myk]

Well in an attempt to run away from the doom and gloom in CA I took my new RIA 'Tac and Benelli Supernova to the range today.

With the RIA 1911 'Tac, I was a little disappointed with it and myself. Unlike my other firearms this one is the first to have trouble on its first shoot. Within 100 rounds shot I had these mechanical issues:

*1 FTE on the last round of the very first 'mag load.

*A couple of times, in the middle of shooting a 'mag the slide would lock back as if it was empty but there were still a round or two left.

*A couple times where the gun went empty but the slide didn't lock back.

And my hits on paper weren't so great either, however I'm not convinced that a lack of accuracy was the gun's fault-like the shotgun I had trouble controlling it, and I was definitely taken by surprise as this .45 doesn't handle like my 9mm Beretta which I've gotten accustomed to.

Any ideas or suggestions about these issues with the .45? Am I limp-wristing it, holding it too tight, is it the factory 'mags, did I NOT put it back together right, does it need to be cleaned/lubed, does it need to be "broken in?" I see threads where people talk a lot about breaking in their guns, especially 1911's. I also read that bad 'mags can cause the problems that I experienced-I was only running the one factory 'mag from Armscore/RIA. If you guys think I should try different mags which ones? BTW all 'ammo used were from American Eagle, 230 grain.

In any case, thanks for listening...

[Rekrab]

I had problems with the slide catch on mine not getting bumped by the magazine follower. I replaced it with a Wilson Combat extended slide stop and it worked perfectly.

[pdq_wizzard]

I have a RIA 3.5" I had about 5 malfunctions in the first 200 rounds after that it's been ~500 and no problems


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[NewbieDave]

Rock's are pretty rough out the gate... give it couple hundred rounds for everything to smooth out. If you're still having FTE issue afterwards, come back here and post again.

As for your magazine issue, try some good CMC or WIlson mags to resolve those. I've always had issue with the factory mags and that funky metal follower. Also look at your slide release and how it interacts with your mag follower... that'll probably tell you if your catch is engaging your follower.

dpc

[TheExiled]

If this is your first 1911/.45, you're likely limp wristing. Keep shooting and see if the problem persists.

[Mr357magnum]

If you havent already, get some good gun grease (I suggest Tetra Gun Grease) and field strip the gun. Grease the inner rails of the slide so that slide glide along with ease. The first time I took my RIA tactical out, I had not cleaned or lubed it. I had several failure to feeds where the gun would not go into battery all the way. A simple tap got it all the way home, but the grease solved all my problems.

[RedFord150]

If you havent already, get some good gun grease (I suggest Tetra Gun Grease) and field strip the gun. Grease the inner rails of the slide so that slide glide along with ease. The first time I took my RIA tactical out, I had not cleaned or lubed it. I had several failure to feeds where the gun would not go into battery all the way. A simple tap got it all the way home, but the grease solved all my problems.

I also use Tetra Gun Grease on the slide rails of all my Semi-Autos.
As others have said, give it 200 to 500 rounds too break-in. I would thoroughly clean and lube every 100 to 200 rounds and I would only use quality factory ammo during the break-in.
If you still have problems, try a Wilson mag.

[redcliff]

Failures to extract on the last round can be a sign of too little extractor tension. If it jammed the case into the magazine is can spread the feed lips causing additional problems.

Pre-mature slide lock is usually caused either by the operator's off-hand bumping the slide stop in recoil or by a poorly fitted slide stop lobe that is being struck by rounds feeding from the magazine. Does your slide stop lobe have copper marks on it?

The slide not locking back usually indicates a weak magazine spring. I personally only buy Tripp Research and CMC mags after having tried about all the rest since I like 8 round magazines and am not a fan of the Wilson 47D and lukewarm to the ETM after having some issues prematurely with them.

As far as accuracy many people develop a flinch when going from 9mm to .45acp. There a substantial difference in power. Are your shots impacting low? The solution is work on the basics of grip, sight alignment, front sight focus and trigger squeeze. It's just a mental condition to work through.

[myk]

Failures to extract on the last round can be a sign of too little extractor tension. If it jammed the case into the magazine is can spread the feed lips causing additional problems.

So would I have to replace or tweak the extractor?

Pre-mature slide lock is usually caused either by the operator's off-hand bumping the slide stop in recoil or by a poorly fitted slide stop lobe that is being struck by rounds feeding from the magazine. Does your slide stop lobe have copper marks on it?

There's some sort of mark on there-I'm assuming it's copper marking.

The slide not locking back usually indicates a weak magazine spring. I personally only buy Tripp Research and CMC mags after having tried about all the rest since I like 8 round magazines and am not a fan of the Wilson 47D and lukewarm to the ETM after having some issues prematurely with them.

I was looking into the 47D's but I'll check out CMC and Tripp 'mags. I don't know about that factory 'mag either. When I first tried to load it I expected a lot of tear-inducing resistance like with my Beretta, but it was very easy to squeeze rounds in; is that a sign of a weak spring?

As far as accuracy many people develop a flinch when going from 9mm to .45acp. There a substantial difference in power. Are your shots impacting low? The solution is work on the basics of grip, sight alignment, front sight focus and trigger squeeze. It's just a mental condition to work through.

Lol it's like you were there-yes, most of my shots went low, just below center mass and the difference in power is substantial. I really wanted to spend more time with the gun but after the shotgun I could barely rack the slide lol.

Guys I appreciate it-I'll look into a possible "extended" slide release and different 'mags. I will also give the gun more 'ammo and hope things settle down. As for sights, I think I'm going to have some Novak's installed, at least some white dots-I don't know how anyone can line anything up with anything less-that damn 92FS has really spoiled me.

[Army]

Shoot it more before you do any parts replacement. New 1911's simply need to wear into themselves, and so does the shooter. You'll learn to grip it tighter and higher on the backstrap, keep your weak thumb away from the slide stop (point both thumbs forward), and focus more on the front sight for better accuracy.

[Kraviwannabe]

Find someone who will do a competent "Fluff and Buff" on it for you!

[redcliff]

So would I have to replace or tweak the extractor?



There's some sort of mark on there-I'm assuming it's copper marking.



I was looking into the 47D's but I'll check out CMC and Tripp 'mags. I don't know about that factory 'mag either. When I first tried to load it I expected a lot of tear-inducing resistance like with my Beretta, but it was very easy to squeeze rounds in; is that a sign of a weak spring?



Lol it's like you were there-yes, most of my shots went low, just below center mass and the difference in power is substantial. I really wanted to spend more time with the gun but after the shotgun I could barely rack the slide lol.

Guys I appreciate it-I'll look into a possible "extended" slide release and different 'mags. I will also give the gun more 'ammo and hope things settle down. As for sights, I think I'm going to have some Novak's installed, at least some white dots-I don't know how anyone can line anything up with anything less-that damn 92FS has really spoiled me.

Next time you shoot the pistol, try two tests. Insert a loaded magazine into the pistol, load a round and remove the magazine. Fire. Repeat five times. Did each empty eject properly out the ejection port and not down the magazine well? If they didn't eject properly your extractor needs more tension.

Next shoot the pistol either one handed or left handed. Did the slide lock back prematurely? This usually tells if you're bumping the slide stop or not

If you have problems in either area you could avail yourself of your pistols warranty; you have a lifetime warranty and RIA has a good reputation for warranty work. Or you can add a bit more tension to the extractor and/or replace the slide stop yourself.

And under no circumstances put an extended slide stop on your 1911 My disdain for them is so great I have it in my signature line. Run the pistol properly. After a reload from slide lock either sling shot the pistol with your off-hand or hit the slide stop with your off-hand thumb as you reacquire your two handed grip on the pistol.

There are a couple reasons from a mechanical standpoint not to run extended slide stops besides their stupid look. Wilson sells more of them than anyone else. Wilson sells them because people buy them. Wilson's own gunsmiths will tell you not to order one on a new Wilson pistol. None of their pistols come standard with one.

[myk]

I will take to those tests as soon as possible. I'm also going to take the advice of running a few more rounds through it before any real panic...

[evidens83]

The factory ACT/Novak magazines are finicky. I swapped mine out for WC 47Ds and haven't had any problems since. YMMV

[MalC]

Listen to redcliff, he has given me some really great advice on operating the 1911 since I bought my RIA Tactical a few months ago. I, too, thought I wanted an extended slide stop until I was told how to properly grip and shoot a 1911.

As redcliff said, the slide is probably locking back early due to your off-hand thumb riding the slide stop as you're shooting. As to the slide not locking back on an empty mag.... it's probably a mag issue and while I personally haven't had this problem with my factory 8rd ACT mag, you should probably try out a couple different aftermarket mags and see if it resolves the issue (after all, you need more mags anyways right?). I bought a Wilson Combat 47D mag (sorry redcliff! ) and a Chip McCormick Shooting Star mag (was a little upset when the gun store said they had powermags but only had the shooting stars), and both have worked flawlessly so far. I haven't tried the Tripp Research Cobra mags yet but those are next on my list.

If you're developing a flinch from the increased recoil of the .45, try doing dry fire practice for 5-10min every day, and at the range before you start shooting. Don't let that front sight move at all when the hammer drops! You can also buy snap caps and have someone at the range load one or two of them in a mag with some live rounds... this way you won't know when a live round or a snap cap is in the chamber and if you ARE flinching, it'll become quite obvious when the front sight dips an inch when you pull the trigger. This is pretty embarrassing if you're shooting with friends so it's a great incentive to stop flinching

Good luck and keep us updated!