Bent ejector

[midatlantic]

Somehow, I managed to over insert a magazine in my 2011 and bent the ejector upward so the tip started to ride against the slide. 
 

It’s a very good gun, a Brazos in .40 made from his small block kit. I fixed the problem by gently tapping the end of the ejector literally only two or three times. Gun’s fine. The ejector I installed came from Brazos and is modified by him specifically to avoid what I did.
 

Question is whether the ejector now needs to be replaced. Did bending it significantly weaken it? There are probably about 25,000 rounds through the gun. 
 

 

Edited June 19 by midatlantic

[Maximis228]

Once you bend a part like that it will bend more easily next time. Typically, this only happens when you slam a mag home when your slide is locked back. 

 

I would replace it if it's your main match gun. I would also look into making sure none of my mags lock back the slide. 

[jwhittin]

The problem is either you have a magazine that over inserts or the ejector was not clearance properly for all your magazines.  Check all your mags to make sure they can't over insert.  And then make sure there is enough clearance on the bottom edge of the ejector so the mags don't contact the bottom of the ejector when applying upward pressure on the base of the mag. I would allow about 1/16th of an inch clearance for tolerance.   

[zzt]

Replace the ejector.  I prefer Cheely 9mm ejectors.  What grip are you using?  If a Cheely e2 with STI gen 2 9mm mags, the problem cannot be resolved.  Even with Cheely's special mag catch designed to prevent over insertion, the problem remains.  The problem is eliminated by using Atlas or MBX magazines.

[Joe4d]

woulda had to be a slam reload at slide lock..  But yeh that thing is gonna break,, they dont take kindly to being bent back and forth.. Besides they are cheap. 

[shred]

If it wasn't a big match gun I'd say tap it back down and drive on.  If you aren't whanging on it it'll last a long long time.  One of my 1911s is on year 5 or 6 of a blacksmithed ejector that did this very thing.  I fitted a spare for when it breaks but it refuses to.

 

 

[lefty o]

probably last a good long time, however i would replace it as soon as convenient.

[CHA-LEE]

The long term solution for this is to NOT smash magazines into the gun when the slide is locked back. If this is a competition gun in a high cap division (OPN, LO, LTD) then you shouldn't have the slide lock function enabled anyway. If you are shooting the gun dry during a stage with high cap mags you have much bigger problems to solve. If you are making ready by slide locking the gun then smashing a magazine into the gun, then stop doing that as it will damage the ejector if the magazine over inserts.

 

This is no different than "It hurts when I smash my thumb with a hammer". The fix is to stop hitting your thumb with a hammer.