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Thread: Care and Maintenance of the 1911 pistol (courtesy of 1911Tuner)

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  1. #1
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    Care and Maintenance of the 1911 pistol (courtesy of 1911Tuner)

    Care of your M-1911

    Cleaning: (Range Queens and Beaters) Field-strip, clean, oil every 500 rounds (Jacketed ammo)
    Field-strip, clean, oil every 250-500 rounds (Cast lead reloads)

    Detail strip,clean, examine for wear or impending parts failure every 2,500 rounds (Jacketed ammo)
    Detail-strip, clean, (Might as well check the parts) every 1,000-1250 rounds for Cast lead reloads.

    Recoil spring replacement...2500 runds
    Firing pin spring replacement...5,000 rounds
    Sear spring replacement...10,000 rounds
    Mainspring replacement...20,000 rounds
    Plunger spring replacement...If/When needed
    Firing pin...as needed, indicated by wear or damage.
    Plunger detent pins...as needed, indicated by wear or damage.

    Examine:

    Link and pin...Recoil guide rod head...Front frame rails and impact surface... Slide (cracks) all corners and in the ejection port...Extractor tension check... Firing pin stop (cracks) in the corners and in the firing pin hole...Firing pin, for signs of wear or deformation on both ends...Plunger tube for looseness... Perform all safety checks...Locking lugs in barrel and slide for any signs of radiusing, flanging, peening, or obvious deformation...Lower lug for cracks at the front and rear adjacent to the barrel...Lowr lug feet for signs of peening and/or deformation...Slidestop for impending failure at the junction of crosspin and arm...Barrel bushing for signs of cracking at the junction of the tube and flange, peening and/or deformation of the lug.

    Lubrication:

    Don't over lubricate. Oil is a dirt/girt magnet and the result is an effective lapping compound. A little is good...A lot is NOT gooder.

    Two drops in each frame rail...A drop on the cocking/disconnector rail in the slide...A drop between the cocked hammer and frame for the hammer hooks and sear...A drop on the link...A light smear on the bushing OD and ID...A drop on the thumb safety lug(when removed) A drop on the slidestop crosspin...A drop on the top of the disconect...A light smear on the trigger bow(When removed) Push the mag catch button and put a small drop on the right side and work it in...Firing pin...LIGHTLY..with slightly oily fingers...Firing pin spring...LIGHTLY...with oily fingers...A light smear on the extractor with oily fingers...One drop in each locking lug in the slide...Wipe the surface down with a lightly oiled cloth, and follow with a dry cloth. Yes. Stainless pistols too. Lightly oil all pins whenever the pistol is detail-stripped. If you don't know how to detail-strip the gun...learn to. I can help.

    Carry guns should be maintained each time they are fired. Though detail-stripping each time isn't necessary, do it at 500 rounds or quarterly..whichever comes first. Cheap insurance. Carrying a gun concealed exposes it to a lit of lint and dust. Lightly re-oil the frame rails weekly.

    Safety/function checks:

    Hold the trigger to the rear and hand-cycle the slide briskly. Release the trigger and listen for the disconnector to reset. It will be a light click. Engage the thumb safety, and pull the trigger with about double the amount of force needed to cause the hammer to fall. Hold the left side of the gun to your ear and slowly pull the hammer past full-cock. No click should be heard. A click means that the safety isn't blocking the sear correctly. With the hammer cocked, push the slide rearward an eighth of an inch and pull the trigger. The hammer should not fall. This can be done with the recoil spring out.

    Point the gun straight down and perform grip safety check by pulling the trigger without depressing the safety. Hammer should not fall. If it does, the right leaf of the sear spring is allowing the safety to disengage by gravity and should be fixed. Holding the gun parallel to the floor doesn't give you a true test of the grip safety because the gun isn't carried that way.

    Load one dummy round in the magazine...or a live round if you're very careful...release the slide with the slidestop. Repeat by releasing the slide by hand. Hammer should not fall.

    Lower the hammer to half-cock...empty gun please...push on the hammer fairly hard. The hammer should not slip past the half-cock notch/shelf.

    After detail-strip cleaning, put a new pencil in the bore, eraser first. Point the gun straight up and pull the trigger. The pencil should be propelled from the bore approximately 1-2 feet. Repeat 3-4 times to get an average.
    John Caradimas SV1CEC
    The M1911 Pistols Organization
    http://www.m1911.org

  2. #2
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    Excellent El Commandante! The first maintainance and spring replacement schedule that makes absolute sense! Apparently when talking with manufacturers, it depends on the person you get - I've had Kimber personnel tell me to replace recoil spring from anywhere from 800 to 2000 rounds. Your schedule is essentially what I've been doing for 25 years. I'm going to copy that down for my fellow shooters!

  3. #3
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    Quote Originally Posted by Herb Clark
    Excellent El Commandante! The first maintainance and spring replacement schedule that makes absolute sense! Apparently when talking with manufacturers, it depends on the person you get - I've had Kimber personnel tell me to replace recoil spring from anywhere from 800 to 2000 rounds. Your schedule is essentially what I've been doing for 25 years. I'm going to copy that down for my fellow shooters!
    Yes, an excellent post and now part of my regime...
    As far as what seems like inconsistant advice from Kimber... It depends on the model of pistol. They really do range from about 800 to 2000...

    From their site:
    Custom full size and Ultra size recoil springs have a 1500 to 2000 round lifetime, depending on ammo; while the Compact has a span of 500 to 1000.

    If you notice the pistol is ejecting your brass further than 15 feet away, it may also be time to replace the spring. (5-10 feet ejection is normal).
    I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, nor the arrow for its swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend.
    It only takes a second to dial 911; it could take the rest of your life for help to arrive...
    Posts are my opinion based on my experience; YMMV.

  4. #4
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    Quote Originally Posted by warmrain
    Yes, an excellent post and now part of my regime...
    As far as what seems like inconsistant advice from Kimber... It depends on the model of pistol. They really do range from about 800 to 2000...

    From their site:
    Custom full size and Ultra size recoil springs have a 1500 to 2000 round lifetime, depending on ammo; while the Compact has a span of 500 to 1000.

    If you notice the pistol is ejecting your brass further than 15 feet away, it may also be time to replace the spring. (5-10 feet ejection is normal).
    What kind of lube do you use? CLP?

  5. #5
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    I'm using CLP everywhere except for the rails. The rails get Wilson grease from the syringe applicator. I've been told that CLP is not a good long term storage oil but my pistols get used so regularly I'm not sure there's a point...

    This has been my regular use for the last 15 years or so, as long as I've been into handguns. It is the same for them all from the baby browning to the GCNM.
    I do not love the bright sword for its sharpness, nor the arrow for its swiftness, nor the warrior for his glory. I love only that which they defend.
    It only takes a second to dial 911; it could take the rest of your life for help to arrive...
    Posts are my opinion based on my experience; YMMV.

  6. #6
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    Hi to all,

    I suppose this is the correct place for this question. To oil my Colt, I often use U.S Army LSA, for automatic weapons. Is that really a correct choice in this case ?

    Best,
    Red

  7. #7
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    Lsa

    Howdy Red. LSA is as good as any. I use it all the time. Light is the operative word. For tiny crevases and hard-to-reach places, like the hammer/sear area and top of the disconnect, I like something a little thinner. CLP Breakfree will do nicely...but LSA in the rails and slide lugs is about as good as it gets. Shake well before use.

  8. #8
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    Tuner what kind of maintenice do you recommend for the magazines?
    I usually disassemble them about every fourth trip to the range. Clean all parts with Brakleen. and then give the spring a light coat of CLP for rust protection.

  9. #9
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    Mag Care

    My range/beater magazines...I disassemble and clean'em maybe once a year, or if they start to get sluggish from so much gunk from the cast bullets...but on average, about once a year is enough.

    Carry magazines are kept meticulously clean. I take'em to the range and use'em until I'm satisfied that they've proved themselves, and take'em home for a thorough cleaning. I put a drop of oil on my finger and thumb...smear it around...and lightly wipe the outside of the springs. After that, carry-only magazines are only used to burn up the ammo that they've been loaded with in the gun that they've been with. The gun and magazine are detail-stripped...cleaned and oiled...and put away to wait for the next call to duty in the rotation. I rotate carry guns every 3 months.

    ALL carry magazines are proved in all carry guns...even the spares that are never carried, or only carried AS a spare. If I obtain another gun that is designated for carry...all carry magazines are used to prove in that gun...cleaned and put away....one usually staying with the gun. The others are stored.

    I have about 90 "Beater" magazines. 72 on duty, with the rest in reserve...
    and I have almost as many carry magazines...and add to the stable whenever I have the opportunity or the means. All my beaters are wadcutter mags. All
    my carry mags are either USGI or Colt "hybrid" mags...regardless of whether the carry guns run well with the wadcutter mags. Occasionally I'll carry a wadcutter mag as a spare, in a gun that will run with those...but the primary is always a GI or Colt hybrid.

    Why so many carry magazines? Simple...I have a lot of 1911 pistols, and all except the beaters are potential carry guns...even the collectible examples...and because you can never have too much ammo or too many magazines.

  10. #10
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    The only part of the mag that gets oil is the spring?

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