I'm issued a M1911A1 over here in the sandbox. Am having problems with it not ejecting spent casing at least once per mag. Round extracts but doesn't eject and gets hung up on extractor. Have no spare parts for the M1911A1s here. Is there anything I can do to tweak the extractor?
Have 6 Wilson 8rd mags and 2ea Wilson 10rd mags that its doing to all mags and ammo is M1911 230 FMJ.

Thanks,

CD

Sounds more like ejector problems. There is a possibility of a recoil spring that is too strong, and the slide is not comming back far enough for use with the short ejector. Slide could also be dragging during recoil, not allowing it to come back far enough. Check for grains of powder between the slide and the frame. Back side of extractor hook should be smooth, without any sign of burrs. Being experienced with firearms, as I believe you are, I doubt that you are limp wristing the firearm. If you were new to Auro's I would have been my first thought. These are a few things to look at, there are more, but these are the most common.

Lee L.

I see you've already checked into the 1911Forum. There's a fellow on the The HighRoad name of 1911Tuner who's very good at debugging 1911s.
http://www.thehighroad.org/forumdisplay.php?s=&forumid=16

I'm no pistolsmith, but the first thing that I though of is, have you tried standard 7 round flat follower mil-spec magazines?

Bye
Jack

I'm issued a M1911A1 over here in the sandbox. Am having problems with it not ejecting spent casing at least once per mag. Round extracts but doesn't eject and gets hung up on extractor. Have no spare parts for the M1911A1s here. Is there anything I can do to tweak the extractor?
Have 6 Wilson 8rd mags and 2ea Wilson 10rd mags that its doing to all mags and ammo is M1911 230 FMJ.

Thanks,

CD
I'm not much on fixin the 1911, but if I can send you any parts you need, just let me know what they are and give me an address and I'll do my darndest to get them to you quick as I can. I'm retired Msgt (USAF) and know how crummy the supply system can be. Be safe and come home soon! Greg

Thanks guys,

Checked the tension on the extractor and its correct and ejector is pinned solid. Ejector does appear to have a very small gap under the slide (tolerances?). First mag this morning no problem and second one had the last round hang up under the extractor. Case appears to moved up higher and missed the ejector. Several other people then shot it along with some flat follower GI 7rd mags. Same problem was observed. Smoothed the inside of the extractor this morning with a stone for any burrs. Have a new extractor and recoil spring inbound tomorrow.

On another weapon this morning had a under folding AK fail to chamber. After several attempts to chamber several rounds, checked the bore for obstructions and none seen. Rechamber another round and that one fail to extract. Punched it out with a cleaning rod and round along with a fully broken case came out. Broken case had last quarter of case and case head missing! Weapon was carried by a contractor on several missions before ever test firing!!!

CD, if you have access to a method of polishing, try polishing the breach face, that will let the cartridge slide up under the extractor more easily.
Remind those contractors that captured weapons need real close inspections and test firing prior to use.

Lee L.

Thank God for the internet , if our boys in WWII had to write back home to get their guns up and running we would have been in quite a pickle . I guess I don't fully understand your situation over there Combat diver , but I feel a bit flabbergasted that were over here in the States on line debating " The best deer cartridge " and your over there with apparently no small arms support available from our Government. God Bless you and be safe. You'll be in my prayers.


sincerely

444fitch

First thing I would go after would be a wilson combat slide spring kit - comes nicely bundled together for load testing. http://www.wilsoncombat.com/a_spring_caddy.asp
I'll be the first to tell you about the woes of the infamous 1911 - I shoot IDPA with one because I'm too hard headed to shoot one of the plastic "G" guns..Just Kiddin guys. Sounsd to me like you have one of two main issues - I would start by either reducing the slide spring by ordering the above - I believe mil-specs were shipped with either 19 or 21# springs - a good rule of thumb - i stick to - is to start at 13lbs and go down or up in weight as per the load fired. If you are at 13 and are still having ejector problems - go to a 9# And see how she runs - you may have to take a 13 coil by coil untill you get the right "slide ride" - you will feel differences in the way the gun handles after each spring swap - trust me! Also, be sure to check the extractor gap as well as the tension, you can tune the extractor by hand - there should be a slight angle ath the groove and the base starting from the center line. Many milspec models came sraight and solid, any mil-spec part needs a good tuning. Most of the times - most of the time - when you have an ejector problem, you can witness spent case damage in some way, I've seen some take the entire lip of of a 45acp. You may also want to check for chamber fouling - in some cases, when the chamber is neglected - the brass will momentarily hang in the chamber and the tension won't engage the rim fully, leading to stove pipes and double feeds. Since you are over there, and more than likely dont have much of an armorer - I would purchase the spring kit - a Wilson Tuned Extractor, replace those two parts, and find some way to gently polish your chamber - and try that first. Order your parts from www.midwayusa.com, thell them you are in the service, and you will get a pretty good discount.
I hope this helps you a llittle - It's hard for anybody to fix a gun online - I've built several 1911's and bought several more - I've shot and accurized a many - and most of them have all had their own unique issues. But, for around 50 - 60 bucks - if your life depends on it - I'd go ahead and order them - you cant go wrong. I'm with greatnorth - I have alot of rebuild parts in my shop that could be tweaked if you need them - just let us know - I was a OS in the USN for 4 - I feel ya brother!
Thanks for what your doing over there by the way!

Got some new parts on the way, extractor, ejector, and recoil springs. Shoot the gun during a stress shoot today (hogans alley but started with a M240 machine gun then finished with the M1911). First mag rd 5 gave me the stoppage again. Next three mags didn't. Double checked the tension on the extractor and after several different tests its correct. Ejector as mentioned is mounted without any play.

Thanks
CD

16 lb. recoil springs are standard, and have been since JMB's day. Running a 9 lb. spring with mil-spec ammo.???
http://www.gunsprings.com/SemiAuto/Colt.html#Colt1911

Bye
Jack

I saw the same phenomenon recently in a Springfield manufactured 1911 clone. One of their specialty concealed carry models. The cut-out in breech face in the slide allowed the case to sit very high in the breech, the ejector was a little bit short. You could actually position the empty on the breechface such that it would miss the ejector. Remove the barrel, bushing, and recoil spring from the slide. Put an empty case under the ejector and position it as high as the cutout will allow. Put the slide back on the gun and observe the position of the ejector in relation to the empty case from the front of the slide through the bushing hole. I'll bet that the ejector is too short and is actually riding under the shell or just barely touching the shell and camming it upwards. You will probably have to replace the ejector with a taller one and preferably an ejector with a perpendicular or forward sloping leading contact edge as opposed to the rear sloping contact surface of the standard ejector.