SA 1911A1 Feed Questions

[ArcherAce]

Hi guys,

I just picked up a Springfield 1911A1 Night 45 and am having trouble with it feeding my Speer Gold Dots.

Trying to feed them with my USGI mags, they jam face first into what I assume is the feed ramp. With my old Shooting Star mag they jam into the feed ramp. If I use the SA magazine that came with it, they seem to feed fine.

So, should I assume that the Night 45 needs better magazines to feed as well as my Norc did (I should have kept it!) or is the new magazine just covering up a bigger problem?

http://www.gun-nation.com/archerace/night45jam.jpg

[1911Tuner]

Trying to feed them with my USGI mags, they jam face first into what I assume is the feed ramp. With my old Shooting Star mag they jam into the feed ramp. If I use the SA magazine that came with it, they seem to feed fine.

Your USGI magazines need new springs. The Shooting Stars need springs and a different follower. (But I ain't gonna refight the Battle of Gettysburg again over that issue.) :D

The spring in the OEM magazine will need replacement pretty soon, as they aren't hittin' on much either. Wolff 11-pound springs for the GIs and the OEM
will probably squash your bug.

[ArcherAce]

Your USGI magazines need new springs. The Shooting Stars need springs and a different follower. (But I ain't gonna refight the Battle of Gettysburg again over that issue.) :D

The spring in the OEM magazine will need replacement pretty soon, as they aren't hittin' on much either. Wolff 11-pound springs for the GIs and the OEM
will probably squash your bug.

Thanks for the quick reply, Johnny!

So, the magazine bodies are ok, it's just the parts that are acting up?

Where's a good place to order the parts from?

Is wear like this normal?

http://www.gun-nation.com/archerace/night45/nightscrape.jpg

Also, my local gunshop has Wilson and Kimber mags in stock. I'd like have at least two reliable magazine on hand until I can get the new springs and followers. Do the Wilson or Kimber magazines have springs and followers that will work for me?

Thanks,
Rob

[Justsomeguy]

You can get the mag springs from the Wolff site here:
http://www.gunsprings.com/1ndex.html

They should, as Tuner says, solve your little problem.

[ArcherAce]

*update*

The new springs didn't help.

I installed new springs in all the mags. It still does the same thing.

[1911Tuner]

The new springs didn't help.

I installed new springs in all the mags. It still does the same thing.

Which magazines? All? Just the 8-rounders? Be sure that you didn't use 8-round springs in 7-round mags. It makes a difference. If the follower angle is wrong, it'll cause or at least contribute to top round nosedives. The follower angle shouldn't match the magazine's angle exactly, but should correctly be a little wider.

[ArcherAce]

Which magazines? All? Just the 8-rounders? Be sure that you didn't use 8-round springs in 7-round mags. It makes a difference. If the follower angle is wrong, it'll cause or at least contribute to top round nosedives. The follower angle shouldn't match the magazine's angle exactly, but should correctly be a little wider.

It was all of them. I only have one shooting star mag and only ordered one 8 round spring. The other mags are 7 rounds and the springs for them came in a three round pack. I'm sure I didn't mix them up.

I tried the shooting star mag, and four of the USGI mags. I didn't try the original SA mag.

Rob

[1911Tuner]

It's still very likely a magazine problem. Make sure that the springs are oriented correctly. Odd-looking top coil points to the front...behind the slidestop shelf, and flat against the bottom of the follower. Check the follower angle with the angle of the magazine and adjust as necessary.

[ArcherAce]

I took the SA to my gunsmith and told him what the problem was. He said that he could fix it, but would rather send it back to Springfield. He said something along the lines of "They ship junk like this let them fix it!". Ok...

To fix it, Springfield modified and re-finished the frame, installed a ramped barrel, and gave me a new magazine. The receipt said they tested it with both ball and hp ammo. Judging by the mess, I'd say they did.

Cost to me, $26.00 in shipping.

Not a bad deal at all.

[Brian D.]

I took the SA to my gunsmith and told him what the problem was. He said that he could fix it, but would rather send it back to Springfield. He said something along the lines of "They ship junk like this let them fix it!". Ok...

To fix it, Springfield modified and re-finished the frame, installed a ramped barrel, and gave me a new magazine. The receipt said they tested it with both ball and hp ammo. Judging by the mess, I'd say they did.

Cost to me, $26.00 in shipping.

Not a bad deal at all.


..Well, assuming that it works properly now. Geez, it seems like several of the makers today would like the conventional barrel/feed ramp configuration to just disappear from the planet, and would hit all of us who'd object with that memory-eraser gadget from Men In Black!

The ramped barrel was (maybe) a good solution to improve reliability in 1911s with short slides or chambered in other calibers, but a 5" .45acp version doesn't need such "help". Heck, to their credit--or maybe it's their longtime lousy fiscal situation--Colt has never seen fit to switch over to the ramped barrel setup in ANY of their 1911s.

EDIT: Or does the Defender have a ramped barrel, can't recall? (Dang, somebody must be trying out that neural nebulizer thingy after all!)

[1911Tuner]

Colt has never seen fit to switch over to the ramped barrel setup in ANY of their 1911s.


Interesting point...and one that I've made several times over the years since the influx of the manufacturers' attempts to gain a piece of the action by imitating custom and racegun features on basically what is no more than a gussied-up Ordnance-spec gun.

Colt does many things out of tradition...but on some things, I have to ask myself if it could be due to the fact that Colt may just know a few things about the pistol that they've been building non-stop for almost a century.

[Brian D.]

The reason I mention that about Colt is that I've owned a few of the "weirdo" chamberings and short slides from Hartford, and they seemed to work pretty well with the old-school barrel w/out ramp system. These included a 9mm Luger Gov't model, a 9x23 Gov't., a Delta Elite, and a couple of .38 super Commanders.

By comparison Springfield has had numerous reliability issues with their 9mm 5" guns, for an example. Their solution? Stop making them with anything but ramped barrels! Yeah that worked but..."was this trip really necessary?"

[John]

Reliability issues with Springfield's 5" 9mm guns? I have to assume that nobody told that to my 9mm Springer, since it's been ticking like a clock for the last 10 years or so.

[Brian D.]

Reliability issues with Springfield's 5" 9mm guns? I have to assume that nobody told that to my 9mm Springer, since it's been ticking like a clock for the last 10 years or so.

El Supremo, I didn't mean to defame your gun, I was basing my opinion on several--over a dozen--of that model which were all purchased by Steel shooters in my area within a short time frame. There were two issues: The ones with non-ramped barrels weren't operating properly, and they had some trouble based on where the spacer was located in the magazine. (Can't remember for the life of me if it was the ones with the spacer in front or back that worked right.)

[1911Tuner]

Brian...We had a few plate shooters who use the 9mm Springer down at PHA who had the same issues. The biggest problem with the 9mms that don't occur with the .38 Supers is because of the shorter cartridge length and the added runup of the slide with the rear spacers. The slide was knocking the rounds ahead of the extractor, and causing all sorts of trouble. I tried something and hit on a possible cure. Adding two CP buffs to the recoil system shortened the runup and the guns started to sing. Might suggest it to your buds who are pullin' out their hair. For the front spaced magazines...a single, thin buffer from Hiett Technologies might provide the answer.

[Brian D.]

Thanks, but why would I want to help my competition opponents straighten out their equipment troubles? :lh: Nah, this was a while back, they either got those guns runnin' or sold 'em off by now.

[1911Tuner]

Thanks, but why would I want to help my competition opponents straighten out their equipment

Oh! Yer an evil lad, you are...