Is this bad?

[BKennedy]

I bought this pistol brand new about 3 weeks ago, about 400 rounds through it. I stripped it down to give it the Militec treatment and noticed this pit in the slide rail. Is this something to worry about as far as structural soundness goes? All opinions appreciated.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v607/bkennedy/pit2.jpg

[dsk]

Welcome to the forum. You can't link pictures directly to your computer's hard drive. You need to upload it to a hosting website first, like Image Station or a location provided by your Internet service provider.

[BKennedy]

Sorry, forgot to put in the bucket.

[XavierBreath]

Others may disagree, but I would lube it up and shoot it.

[BKennedy]

dsk- I didn't see who it was on your post, aloha fellow traveler!
XaveirBreath- That's what I planned on as it's not causing a problem now, but what about down the road?

[XavierBreath]

XaveirBreath- That's what I planned on as it's not causing a problem now, but what about down the road?

Fixing this would likely entail frame replacement. I just cannot see filling it without causing more potential damage, or a temper change to the rails. IF any more damage occured, it would likely be in the form of a flake of metal dislodging in the same area, or possibly a crack. The area is not a high stress area. It is likely that no further damage will occur, and what has happened is an anomaly in the grain of the steel letting go. Because the anomaly was at the surface, it dislodged and a "pit" resulted. (does the "pit" have finish in it, or is it bare metal? It appears to have finish in it.) It is possible that there may be other anomalies. There could be anomalies in a replacement frame as well. The only way to know for sure is through a NDI type inspection, and I doubt that Colt will do that instead of just replacing the frame.

The reason I say lube and shoot it is because I have seen the same type of pitting (usually due to rust though) on rails of old guns and they remained very servicable.

I would watch the area very carefully for the next 1000 rounds or so, make sure the rails are well lubed with a good gun grease, and continue to shoot. If there is no further damage done, I would be inclined to believe that no further damage will be done as long as the pistol stays lubed.

If any further damage occurs, I would ask Colt to intervene. I doubt you will see a catastrphic failure before you see more damage.

That's just my opinion though, and I don't have the vast experience others on this forum possess.

[wichaka]

It doesn't look that deep from the pic, I would use some good lube like Wilsons Ultima-Lube and keep an eye on it.

What does the rails on the slide look like?

[BKennedy]

The rails on the slide appear to be fine, and now that you mention it, yes it does appear to have finish over the pit. I didn't think it would be too bad as it hasn't malfunctioned yet, but I'm wondering if the longer I let it go on the less likely Colt would be to fix it. Thanks for the help guys.