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Sluggish Cycling


MedicAJ

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I'm having an issue with an STI DVC 3 Gun and I was curious if anybody has encountered something or similar or has any ideas.

 

Occasionally when firing, the pistol will cycle very sluggishly, and occasionally the slide will remain to the rear with a various number of rounds still in the magazine. A quick tap on the rear of the slide will send it back into battery.  This does not happen all of the time, maybe 10%.  I have tried 4 different types of ammo (9mm, all 135-145pf), different mags, and different recoil springs, both with and without shock buffs.  I've disassembled the pistol, and removed the barrel and recoil spring and the fit is fine and the slide moves without any binding.  

 

Any other ideas as to what may be causing this? 

 

Andy

 

 

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The times I've had an issue like that, it's generally been something to do with the cartridge itself.  Usually a bullet profile or OAL that the firearm didn't like, and in one case my crimp die had backed out some.

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Another potential for this issue is simply pushing your thumb(s) into the side of the slide slowing it down. This is easy to verify by taking a sharpie marker and blacking out the whole left side of the slide. Shoot some drills and see if any of the marker is getting transferred to the sides of your thumbs.

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i would consider looking in the ejection port next time it happens, and see if a round is stuck on the feed ramp or something. It would help to know if the slide is all the way to the rear (i.e., before it has contacted the next bullet in the magazine).

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Next time it happens, stop and look where it’s hanging up

check if your disconnector is getting stuck in the up position, it’s unlikely but check it anyway

check your extractor and tunnel, is the tunnel clean, and check the extractor for chips, tension

check your firing pin stop, with the firing pin in, does it drop down below the disconnector rail on the slide when it might catch on the hammer

check the link and standing lugs for cracks

 

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On 3/25/2019 at 3:51 PM, CHA-LEE said:

Another potential for this issue is simply pushing your thumb(s) into the side of the slide slowing it down. This is easy to verify by taking a sharpie marker and blacking out the whole left side of the slide. Shoot some drills and see if any of the marker is getting transferred to the sides of your thumbs.

Left thumb into the slide causes that problem with my PM9 1911 with a light recoil spring.  Test it by shooting strong hand only before making any hardware changes.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Just a followup on this...cold northeast late winter temps and Lucas Extreme Duty Gun Oil were the culprit.  Stripped, cleaned, and lubed with Lucas Red and it runs like a sewing machine.

 

Andy

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On 4/13/2019 at 9:44 AM, MedicAJ said:

Just a followup on this...cold northeast late winter temps and Lucas Extreme Duty Gun Oil were the culprit.  Stripped, cleaned, and lubed with Lucas Red and it runs like a sewing machine.

 

Andy

I saw this same thing happen with a buddy’s 2011 and the lube was the root cause with 40 degree temps starting out in the morning. I was cringing as I help with his reloads but the gun ran much better as temps warmed up. I believe that he was running the heavier Slide Glide...

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  • 3 months later...
On 4/15/2019 at 4:49 PM, zzt said:

This is not correct.  You do the opposite.

 

Uhh Nope... Unfinished / sharp end goes onto the guide rod & seats against the end plate... Unless of course you like to gouge the heck out of the guide rod w/ the sharp end of the spring w/ every cycling of the gun...

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8 hours ago, SPL15 said:

 

Uhh Nope... Unfinished / sharp end goes onto the guide rod & seats against the end plate... Unless of course you like to gouge the heck out of the guide rod w/ the sharp end of the spring w/ every cycling of the gun...

Every 1911 I've ever owned has been assembled the opposite way...

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51 minutes ago, Mike21STI said:

Every 1911 I've ever owned has been assembled the opposite way...

 

ditto.  I'll also add that after 125,000 rounds fired through 1911s and 2011 I have yet to see a scratch on any of the full length guide rods.

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The "finished" end of the spring is supposed to be wrapped more tightly than the "unfinished" end.  It's designed that way so that the spring stays in place during assembly.  Regardless of which way you do it, there shouldn't be any gouges or scratches on the guide rod.

Edited by ltdmstr
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4 minutes ago, sauza45 said:

Yes the unfinished  end goes toward the barrel.

Yep. Make sure when you put a new spring in and cut coils off that you file down the edge of the freshly cut coil. A lot of the times there will be a sharp edge on the end of the coil and when you cut it you may have bent it inward or outward slightly. 

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