Bar Sto Barrel 9mm 115 gr OAL Question

[nhglyn]

Just had a BarSto ported barrel fit into my Springfield XDM by a professional gunsmith.  He tested it with factory 124 gr ammo and worked fine.  I got it home and tested it with my 9mm load that I have used for many years and am getting failure to feed issues. (See photo).  My normal load is 3.8 grs Titegroup with Rocky Mountain Reloading 9mm 115 gr FMJ round nose bullets (chrono 1050 fps).  OAL is 1.140.  Question......is OAL too long that would be causing these misfeeds?  The Bar Sto barrel chamber is tight with drop ins but the rounds do fit into chamber.  Just not when being stripped from magazine.  Any suggestions appreciated.  Or, could stretching the mag spring just a hair to increase upward pressure help solve the problem?  Or......do I need to increase powder charge to make sure slide travels far enough back to fully compress recoil spring?  If yes, then who has a load for my bullet and powder combination that will get me the 1100-1150 fps I would need?

Edited March 13 by nhglyn
Additional Information

[chopps]

My 1st guess would be check magazine springs.

Then ladder your loads and verify length and see.

Edited March 13 by chopps

[Joe4d]

Looking at that pic though,, is that as far as you are getting ? Was thinking OAL in a tight chamber at first.. But you are getting failure to feed not failure to chamber..
Shorter OAL may help.. I mean its not a 1911 made for 1.2 ammo.. 1.150 is getting a bit long..  you are also sitting at 120 PF.. pretty light for that gun if you are running stock springs. and XDM's dont take kindly to super light recoil springs.
Is there a reason you are loading that long ? Like you also use it in a 1911 that likes longer ammo ?
If not personally Id clean snot out of exctractor, and drop OAL to 1.130 and up the powder to hit about 130 pf. 
I mean you have gone to a tight accuracy driven barrel. Your ammo is going to have to be ideal to get back to the level of reliability you had..  Pick up a box of Blazer 124's if your gun runs fine, problem is you ammo

[Farmer]

That seems long. I’d shorten it to about 1.135-1.130 and re-chrono and test for function. You’ll pick up a little fps (possibly) with the .010” less. Once it functions then you can up your charge if needed. The XDM’s will generally tolerate a wide velocity range as far as extraction goes as long as you’re grip is good. Also is your crimp good and recoil spring good too?

Edited March 13 by Farmer

[Dr. Phil]

I have a 6" 1911 with a tight chamber. I have to run my reloads at 1.060 or so. I have tested up to 1.100 and down to 1.020 and the shorter always work. At 1.100 they will sometimes not feed correctly depending on how hot the gun is, dirty, and I guess other factors. Try shorter (maybe 1.100) just for grins.

BTW I shoot the same OAL in all of my 9mms now, including revolvers.

[HesedTech]

2 hours ago, nhglyn said:

Or......do I need to increase powder charge to make sure slide travels far enough back to fully compress recoil spring?  If yes, then who has a load for my bullet and powder combination that will get me the 1100-1150 fps I would need?

No

 

The problem isn't the load, it is the new barrel and feed ramp are different than the one you replaced.

 

I saw the very same thing happen at a match with another shooter (same brand of barrel). We compared the strike on the primer between barrels and what we observed is his new barrel was no longer centered over the striker. The barrel was actually higher than the old factory one. This caused the mag to feed ramp to not be aligned properly.

 

The only simple solution is to try different OALs, but I think your problem is the mag is too low relative to the barrel feed ramp. Do the striker test and see if the dimple is in the same area. Additionally mark the feed ramps (clean) with a Sharpie and see where the nose of the bullet is hitting.

 

BTW, unless you are using a massive heavy recoil spring, that load should cause the slide to fully travel. I don't know you GS, however I have had work done in the past and told things ran perfectly and then they didn't at competition speeds. You are the final test of the work done.

Edited March 13 by HesedTech

[zzt]

You get FtFs like that when the nose of the bullet strikes the end of the feed ramp and bounces up.  Bullets are tight when dropping in the chamber, because Barsto barrels have very short leades.  As suggested above, drop your OAL by .010" and see what happens.  When you plunk rounds into the chamber you should be able to spin them my hand.  If you can't, you need a shorter OAL.  Normally, I'd say get the barrel throater.  However, you have a feeding issue to solve first.

[nhglyn]

Thanks for everyones help.  Tested 3 new loads today and have found one that runs perfectly, no FTF, light primer strikes, or FTEs.  I needed to up the powder to 4.0 grs of Titegroup and shorten the OAL to 1.130.  Now to make some rounds, check the sight in, and run them through the chrono.  Thanks again.

 

[Farmer]

A lot to do with timing. 

[Joe4d]

Alot to do with why ? just caught the ported part,, again WHY ?  Ported to reduce recoil but its so tight you gotta up powder charge to get it to run ?  Then you are running one of the fastest powders available guaranteeing the ports do even less ?  What exactly were you trying to accomplish ?

Edited March 15 by Joe4d

[RangerTrace]

I bought a semi-fit one for a P320 last year.  I had to send it back because the chamber was too tight, even for factory 9mm ammo.  It's a little sloppy now, but it feeds everything.

[Farmer]

4 hours ago, Joe4d said:

Alot to do with why ? just caught the ported part,, again WHY ?  Ported to reduce recoil but its so tight you gotta up powder charge to get it to run ?  Then you are running one of the fastest powders available guaranteeing the ports do even less ?  What exactly were you trying to accomplish ?

He also shortened the OAL which was probably more of the solution. Main Reason why you test One Thing At A Time!

[Joe4d]

14 hours ago, Farmer said:

He also shortened the OAL which was probably more of the solution. Main Reason why you test One Thing At A Time!

no my question was why go to a Barsto ported barrel to begin with  if he is wanting to shoot minor PF tightgroup loads. He spent a bunch of money to accomplish nothing.. Factory barrels are plenty accurate.

[Farmer]

2 hours ago, Joe4d said:

no my question was why go to a Barsto ported barrel to begin with  if he is wanting to shoot minor PF tightgroup loads. He spent a bunch of money to accomplish nothing.. Factory barrels are plenty accurate.

I was wondering the same thing. My comment not directed at you. 

[zzt]

5 hours ago, Joe4d said:

no my question was why go to a Barsto ported barrel to begin with  if he is wanting to shoot minor PF Tightgroup loads. He spent a bunch of money to accomplish nothing.. Factory barrels are plenty accurate.

 

Even with that loading, ported shoots flatter than unported.

 

I do something similar.  Back when my home club did not allow ports or comps in their outlaw matches, I fitted a plain barrel to my 2011 Open gun.  I shot factory minor.  When they allowed comps for loads under 140 PF, I switched back.  My 132 PF 124gr load using Sport Pistol or AA2 absolutely shoots flatter in the comp'd barrel vs. the plain one.  It is a small difference, but it is there. 

[sharko]

I load most of my ammo to 1.115" (JHPs) but I also have a lot of Barsto barrels in Sig's and those are to long for those barrels. Have to shorten them to 1.1". Never caused a feeding problem just a problem going fully into battery.