konkapot Posted January 30, 2019 Share Posted January 30, 2019 I felt frisky and bought a 4" 1911 .40 caliber on Gunbroker. Was built by.....a guy. Felt good about the purchase, knowing that there was some risk. I am not new to 1911s. The builder emphasized using some "special" oil he sent with it. I have not used his "special" oil. Gun is beautiful; excellent parts list. Trigger is probably the best trigger I've ever felt. The gun also seems to be mechanically/intrinsically accurate. It came with a 10lb recoil spring. Gun kicked like a mule and out of 300 rounds had about 4 instances of the round getting caught on the feed ramp; light tap of the back of the slide chambered the round. I put a 12lb recoil spring in there; out of 150 rds I've had three instances of the rim of the new round not fully seating under the extractor, and one instance of a round getting hung up on the feed ramp. Gun is properly lubed, ammo is factory. My inclination is to up the recoil spring to 14lbs, but am now concerned about the new issue of the round getting hung up under the extractor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jcc7x7 Posted January 30, 2019 Share Posted January 30, 2019 Is the extractor to tight? Captain Obvious = Have you checked the extractor tension. (BTW I'm making fun of myself not you!) Honestly though, give it check may be to tight. Last guy may have been running all the same brass or new factory etc. If you're like me shooting mixed brass, tensioning the extractor a "little" loose may be the answer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ltdmstr Posted January 30, 2019 Share Posted January 30, 2019 Check the extractor tension and the fit of the hook in the case bevel. The hook should not be contacting anything. The only contact should be the flat part of the extractor on the case rim. Also check to see that the feed ramp isn't overhanging the frame surface. A 12# spring should be ok, but not always. If I recall, the Commander uses a heavier spring than a full size 1911. So you may need to go up to get it to work reliably. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
practical_man Posted January 30, 2019 Share Posted January 30, 2019 The recoil spring sounds light. I run an 18# in my .45 Commander. No idea what’s right in a 40. As as others have said, extractor tension or shaping would be a first thing to check. Sometimes a guy doesn’t properly radius or Polish the extractor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
konkapot Posted January 31, 2019 Author Share Posted January 31, 2019 I was not overly optimistic about the 12 lbs spring; had it laying around. Heavier springs are on the way. Got into the slide tonight, fully expecting to find an extractor that was a hair too tight. Get the firing pin out, tilt the slide down and..............the extractor fell right out of the gun. It was straight; no curve or tension at all. Failure to extract has not been one of the problems, so to find an extractor with NO tension at all was a little disorientating. I will look at it tomorrow in better light, but the hook appears to be smooth, polished, and generally like someone actually fitted it properly. How do I reconcile a tension-less extractor with rounds not sliding under it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ming the Merciless Posted January 31, 2019 Share Posted January 31, 2019 5 minutes ago, konkapot said: I was not overly optimistic about the 12 lbs spring; had it laying around. Heavier springs are on the way. Got into the slide tonight, fully expecting to find an extractor that was a hair too tight. Get the firing pin out, tilt the slide down and..............the extractor fell right out of the gun. It was straight; no curve or tension at all. Failure to extract has not been one of the problems, so to find an extractor with NO tension at all was a little disorientating. I will look at it tomorrow in better light, but the hook appears to be smooth, polished, and generally like someone actually fitted it properly. How do I reconcile a tension-less extractor with rounds not sliding under it? Just curious, did you actually check the tension either with a gauge or with a dummy round? Just because it is straight does not necessarily mean it doesn't have tension on the case. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
konkapot Posted January 31, 2019 Author Share Posted January 31, 2019 Agreed/understood on the tension being a "false negative." Just seemed to be the opposite of the problem. Just hand cycled a dozen or so dummy rounds; the gun consistently extracts rounds. Had one instance of not sliding under the extractor. In "creating" the malfunction it appears that, like ltdmstr mentioned, that the hook is making a LOT of contact with the case wall. Although a solid 1911 guy, I am not familiar with 38 Super external case dimensions. Is there a chance that this could be a 38s extractor? The hook itself appears to be too "long" for the rim on this case. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ltdmstr Posted January 31, 2019 Share Posted January 31, 2019 (edited) If the hook is contacting the case on the bevel or recess, then it needs to be dressed so it doesn't. Take a bit off the area where the contact is then check it. Go slow and keep checking until there's no contact. Then slightly bevel the bottom of the flat area where the case first makes contact with the extractor as it's riding up. That smooths the transition when it feeds from the magazine. Then adjust the tension. To do this you don't need a gauge. Take the slide off and run a round up the breach face and under the extractor hook. There should be light tension, not a lot. Then with the slide horizontal, the extractor should hold the round in place. It also helps to polish the contact surfaces. 400 grit sandpaper wrapped around a needle file or sanding stick works well. Edited January 31, 2019 by ltdmstr Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
konkapot Posted January 31, 2019 Author Share Posted January 31, 2019 It is currently passing that extractor test. I will get in the shop this morning with better light and maybe a magnifier and take a look at the hook itself. Thanks to all. Will update. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Toolguy Posted February 1, 2019 Share Posted February 1, 2019 Check for a burr or sharp edge on the firing pin hole. Sometimes the rim can get hung up there. A small edge break with a chamfer tool or drill bit will eliminate any chance of that problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
konkapot Posted February 6, 2019 Author Share Posted February 6, 2019 Extractor looked pretty good; did some very light dressing. Put a more appropriate recoil spring in the gun. In 60 rounds there was one instance of the rim getting stuck under the extractor. Will check the extractor for clocking. If none will try a new extractor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ltdmstr Posted February 6, 2019 Share Posted February 6, 2019 I would also check the fit of the firing pin stop. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
konkapot Posted April 21, 2019 Author Share Posted April 21, 2019 Exhausted my short list of DIY options and took it to my local gunsmith; took him about .5 seconds to realize that it was actually a 9mm slide. He confirmed this with Caspian. He opened it up a tiny bit and gun runs 110% perfectly now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mpssrh Posted April 21, 2019 Share Posted April 21, 2019 Just a point of clarification: when you say, "He opened it up a tiny bit...", what did he open up? Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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