Ah! Gotcha...
The chamber face damage happens because, although the Chinese did a bang-up job of replicating the Ithaca-cloned "Model of the 1911A1" pistols,
the one thing they either didn't notice...didn't consider as important...or flat
didn't care about, was the slight angle (Undercut toward the bottom) on the chamber face that compensates for the barrel tilt as it goes into lockup.
Ironically, the tighter the barrel fit, the more pronounced the damage, up to the point that the required clearance was obtained...or the owner noticed that it was getting badly beaten up and sought the aid of a smith...who usually refit another barrel. No sense in trying to establish the angle, since once the hard chrome plating was breached, it would likely start to peel off.
This lack of clearance angle is the sole reason that only rarely do the barrels have the required 32nd inch gap...and the biggest majority sit flush with the feed ramp.
I like the Norinco 1911s a lot...rough though they be...but any that I buy I tend to accept going into it that there's at least a 10% chance that I'll be doin' a little surgery on it. That said...I'll buy a Norinco any time I get the chance if the price is right, and I'm sure that it's not a "hot" item.
Bookmarks