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Thread: Cartridge Sticking

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  1. #1
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    Cartridge Sticking

    Hi, this is my first time posting here and I am hoping someone can help me troubleshoot my issue. I do not know a lot about guns so pardon me if I use incorrect terminology. When I put in the magazine and pull the slide back the 45 acp round gets stuck as shown in the picture below. I am able to forcefully push the slide forward to chamber the round. The gun was working fine until recently. I have another 1911 that works fine and I tried using the recoil spring from the working gun but it still had this issue. The recoil spring on the m1911 that is working is a bit shorter than the one on the one that is not working. I would appreciate any suggestions and can post further information or pictures as needed. Thanks!

    IMG_20210820_173417085.jpg

  2. #2
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    Welcome to the forum. Try using the magazine from the other working pistol.

  3. #3
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    18th August 2012
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    First round out of a fully loaded magazine failure-to-feed.

    Do as Doran suggests but also try this magazine in your other pistol to see if it will feed the first round out of a fully loaded magazine.

    Will this malfunction occur if the magazine is downloaded by one, two, or three rounds? If this magazine will hold seven rounds, load only 6 then try chambering the top round. Then load only 5 and try it again. Then load only 4 and try it again. The first round out of the magazine will strike the frame ramp lower than the next round out of the mag which will strike the frame ramp a bit higher and so on.

    If you find that the mag will successfully feed when only 6 rounds or 5 rounds are loaded in the mag then it's likely that the feed ramp on this pistol is "off" in some dimension. Not 31.5 degrees and/or not not deep enough in the frame (.400" from the top of the rails is ideal). Correcting this is best left to a gunsmith but dropping in an EGW higher mag catch may cure the problem by causing cartridges to hit slightly higher on the feed ramp.

  4. #4
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    Quote Originally Posted by Joe View Post
    Hi, this is my first time posting here and I am hoping someone can help me troubleshoot my issue. I do not know a lot about guns so pardon me if I use incorrect terminology. When I put in the magazine and pull the slide back the 45 acp round gets stuck as shown in the picture below.
    I think you are inadvertently leaving out a step or two. Rounds don't get stuck when you pull the slide back -- they get stuck when you try to chamber them. So the question is -- how are you chambering them?

    Do you pull the slide ALL the way back and then release it, or are you holding onto the slide as it goes forward (also referred to as "riding" the slide)?

    What happens if you use the slide stop to lock the pistol open with no magazine, then when you insert the magazine you try to load the first round by releasing the stop stop by pushing it down?

    Is this the same brand of ammunition and the same bullet type and weight that you have used previously?
    Hawkmoon
    On a good day, can hit the broad side of a barn ... from the inside

  5. #5
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    Thanks for all your responses. I get this problem on all 3 of my magazines I have that all work on the other m1911. This problem occurs with just 1 round in the magazine and with it fully loaded. I have tried using several different rounds but still get the same problem on the same type of round I used when the gun used to work. When I use the slide stop with no magazine and then insert the magazine with one round in it and release, it still seems to get stuck.

  6. #6
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    I reread your message and realized I had left out the results of how I pull the slide back. When I pull the slide back enough to cock the hammer and release it the round gets stuck. It also gets stuck if I pull it all the way back and "ride" the slide. When I pull all the way back and release it does not get stuck. The last time I went to the range I had this issue of the rounds sticking even while firing the gun. Do you think the recoil spring is not pushing the slide back all the way when I am firing it?

  7. #7
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    18th August 2012
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    Quote Originally Posted by Joe View Post
    The last time I went to the range I had this issue of the rounds sticking even while firing the gun. Do you think the recoil spring is not pushing the slide back all the way when I am firing it?
    The recoil spring doesn't push the slide rearward. It only pushes the slide forward.
    • Who is the manufacturer your pistol?
    • What is the length of the barrel?
    • Is the barrel ramped?
    • What ammo are you using? Factory 230gr FMJ?
    • What weight recoil spring is in the pistol?

    It's possible that the recoil spring is too strong for the ammo you're using but a correctly built .45 1911 should easily feed with a 10lb recoil spring in place.

    If the slide is short stroking (not going all the way back), the amount of force pushing the slide forward will be less than the recoil spring weight but it should easily have well more than 10lbs.

    A 5" 1911 should run like a scalded dog using a 16lb recoil spring and standard pressure factory ammo.
    A 4.25" 1911 should run like a raped ape using an 18lb recoil spring and standard pressure factory ammo.

    You should be using factory 230gr FMJ ammo to test the functioning of the pistol. If it won't feed these then the pistol has geometry problems somewhere that may require a 'smith to correct.

    Use the picture below to identify whether or not your barrel is ramped. The two on the right are ramped.


  8. #8
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    The pistol is a Colt. The barrel length is 5". The barrel matches the standard in your picture so it is not ramped. I have tried old Federal which appears to be factory and some new Remington which definitely is. Both are 230 grain fmj. I don't know the weight of the recoil spring.

  9. #9
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    When an empty magazine is inserted and locked into the pistol -- with the slide locked open -- if you press up on the bottom of the magazine, how much movement is there?

    How about the same thing but with the slide closed?
    Hawkmoon
    On a good day, can hit the broad side of a barn ... from the inside

  10. #10
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    There is a tiny amount of movement when I push on the magazine whether the slide is locked open or not. The other m1911 that is working fine has almost no movement to it.

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