1911 problem... magazines, or something else?

[nic]

Hi All,
I have a problem... I have a Springfield Mil-Spec that frequently jams on the last round of the magazine, whenever I'm using my Springfield or Kimber mags. I tried replacing the springs with Wolff 11 pound springs, and I still get the same problem that the last round gets about halfway up the feedramp and then wedges the slide open.

All of the Springfield mags and the Kimber have the dimple on the follower.

When I use either my Wilson Combat magazine or my Chip McCormicks, I do not get any jams at all. None of these have a dimpled follower.

I was under the impression that magazines with a dimpled follower should reliably work in the 1911, but I am having the opposite experience. Does this sound like a magazine related issue, or could there be a problem with the gun? Are there any gun-related problems that would cause this?

Thank you so much in advance for any advice you can give me.
Best,
Nic

[Saigon1965]

I don't know, but all I use are WC mags.


Yours sounds like mag issue.

[scotthmt]

i had that issue for a little while, got the feedramp polished and it only happened once in the last 500 rounds, try breaking the gun in.

[nic]

i had that issue for a little while, got the feedramp polished and it only happened once in the last 500 rounds, try breaking the gun in.

This gun isn't new, though. I've probably fired about 600-700 rounds through it.

[eaglemike]

What ammo are you running? Have you or anyone else worked on the gun? How old is the gun? How many rounds?

The ammo and/or magazine are the usual problems. Once in a while other things cause an issue - too many little things for me to type. Start with the Wilson Mag's, they've been the best in my experience.

Edit: had to answer the hpone, so I'm slow here.... reloaded ammo that's a little too short can cause marginal feeding or failure to feed, but since it's only the last round, pretty sure it's the mag.

all the best,

Mike

[Mute]

If the CMC and Wilson mags work fine why worry about the other mags? Just use the ones that work. I've personally never liked the dimpled mag followers.

[nic]

@ Mike - I got the gun at the end of 2006. 700+ rounds through it. No one has worked on the gun, and I'm running 230gr ball ammo through it, mostly WWB and Magtech.

@ Mute - My big reason for concern is that this problem happens with four different magazines - three springfield armory mags, and one kimber. When this problem came up, I replaced the springs in these magazines with the Wolff 11 pound springs, and still have the same problem. Since it's multiple magazines causing the problem, I was worried that it might be more than just a magazine related issue... one bad mag I could easily pass off, but I just want to be sure.

Thanks for the input so far, guys.
Nic

[Kruzr]

Could be an extractor problem. Have you pulled the extractor and cleaned the channel? A build up of crud can keep the extractor from flexing as it should. The last round of a magazine is being pushed up with the magazine spring at it's weakest. If there isn't enough "umph" to get under the extractor, the round will slam into the ramp since the nose cannot turn up. If the rim of the round isn't above the extractor, I would clean it and check the tension.

[bear]

I have a GI gun that will not run on anything reliably EXCEPT for Wilson Combat. So that's what I use.
There are a lot of variables, but if something works...use it.
JP Enterprises makes this gadget, I never got around to trying it, because the Wilsons work! http://www.jprifles.com/1.5.3.2.php

[JTROKS]

It sounds like those mags you're having problem with is either, feeding the last round at a different angle than the first 7 rounds or your loads are not fully cycling the slide causing it to go forward before the last round gets into proper angle. Also check to see if the suspected mags' followers are partially engaging the slide stop with one round left in the mag. This may cause slowing down of the slide thus producing the slide to short stroke when you fire the 7th round, assuming these are all 8 round mags of course. Without exactly seeing what's going on it's hard to diagnose. If your gun has a 16 lb spring (usual stock spring weight for 45 acp) try using a 14 lb recoil spring.

[Colt]

+1 re extractor and cleaning the tunnel. Also could be extractor tension, or perhaps the hook. Additionally, how old is recoil spring, and what weight is it?

I would guess extractor related, however. Good luck.

[nic]

The recoil spring is the stock one that came with the pistol... so I imagine 16lb. I will try cleaning the extractor/tunnel. Is there a way to test to see that extractor tension is as it should be?

[eaglemike]

The recoil spring is the stock one that came with the pistol... so I imagine 16lb. I will try cleaning the extractor/tunnel. Is there a way to test to see that extractor tension is as it should be?

The usual way is :
make sure it's unloaded
Remove the top end, and remove the barrel from the slide.
Push a round or piece of brass under the extractor. It should stay in place as you rotate the slide around the long axis. One company makes a gauge to slide in there, and you can use a trigger gauge on it. They say about 3-4 lbs....

all the best,

Mike

[nic]

OK, just got done cleaning the extractor and tunnel. Holy crap, it was dirtier than heck!!!! Whether or not that is the cause of the problem, it definitely could not have hurt to clean all that gunk out of there. I checked the extractor tension as per Eaglemike's advice- the round stays put no matter how I rotate the slide.

I will let you guys know what happens when I shoot it this weekend.
Thanks again,
Nic

[GotBaer?]

I'm glad you got your extractor clean.. That should help. The most simple solution is discard/disregard the magazines which aren't 100% reliable. I have had good luck with CMC, Novak, and Wilson Combat. However one of my Wilson mags but only one isn't 100%