Garrison Joe

I will assure you that none of replies I have written have EVER been created by AI. I do not trust the junk that most AI produces. I do not even look for AI material to try to better my knowledge. When I said that several points had been brought up on "other forums" and might be considered for possibly solving the poster's problem, those came from real well known LIVE members of the 1911 Forum. Can you please stop with the attempts at character assignation and insults? And also believing that you can comment on how "everyone else" feels. Get on the topic, please. Thanks, GJ

Sounds like you are making a load for Wild Bunch in .45 Auto. Be VERY aware that the minimum bullet weight allowed for 1911 .45 auto ammo HAS been 180 grain, and now is cited (wrong) in the rules as "minimum bullet weight for the 1911 pistol is .45 ACP" Per the current rulebook. 😄 Whether that 170 grain slug would be match legal is, as far as I can tell, up for questioning due to this typo. The current Lyman Cast Bullet Loading handbook (4th ed) shows 170 grain cast slug load data of 5.8 to 6.4 grains of Bullseye, making from 971 to 1048 FPS. An old Lyman handbook (48th edition) shows charges as low as 3.5 grains of Bullseye with a 185 grain bullet (probably used for bullseye target shooting). You just didn't look in the right current loading manual. Pick what power factor you are wanting to make (150 is the new minimum for the handgun), and you can figure out what powder weight you want to drop. My guess would be about 885 FPS (making that 150 powder factor) and that might be obtained with about 5.0 to 5.2 grains of Bullseye. Chrono your loads if these are to be used in important matches! good luck, GJ

I am under no such illusion. Do you want to talk about magazine last-round-squirting problem or not? Or would you rather talk the exact proper wording to describe the end of slide rearward travel during 1911 cycling? Years of folks talking about how "heavy loads batter the 1911 frame" has led to the common shorthand that the slide impacts the frame. Which I know is not right, but that is the shorthand that folks use. good luck, GJ

"Other forums" discussions of "last-round-escaping-magazine-early" have also mentioned other possible solutions (besides the dimple on follower) - * heavy recoil loads (or loads not matched to recoil/mainspring combinations) may let the slide recoil hard into the frame and the impact of that drives the last round off the top of magazine early. So, make sure spring weights match well with the power factor of the ammo you are using. Like 14# recoil spring, 19# mainspring when shooting 155-165 PF ammo in 1911. Or factory level springs (16# and 23#) when shooting 185 PF loads. * rounded-top followers seem more resistant to last-round escaping * heavier magazine springs seem to resist last-round escape The gun getting real warm before seeing round-squirt problems may indicate that metal expansion (in slide perhaps) or the lubricant "loosened up" and resulted in faster slide movement as gun heated up, letting slide impact the frame. Hard to diagnose this with only a limited amount of info available, and only a few reports of this problem listed in technical articles and other forums. A test with highest quality mags may be worth the expenditure (Tripp or Check-Mate). As would inspection of the frame for impact marks. As would slipping an extra-strong magazine spring into one of the mags that is suspected of being problematic. As would sticking in a Tripp skirted follower with polymer follower surface and a dimple. good luck, GJ

Recently, I think they contract out their mags to CheckMate. They used to make them in house. But I go by the brand stamped on the bottom (Colt) and don't get involved with their subcontracting operations.

One thing that JM Browning noted early in the life of the 1911 was that putting a small dimple in the flat follower of the magazine, dimple round side upwards, was enough of an improvement to retaining the LAST round inside the magazine to prevent it squirting out with recoil. Colt mags ever since have carried that dimple. My Tripp mags also have a small dimple to help retain last round. Maybe it's something worth duplicating? I have at times used other brands of mags than Colt and Tripp. I found myself adding Tripp followers and springs to my Wilson and Chip McCormick mags because they ran better with the non-diving follower and the stronger springs. At this point, Tripps are what I shoot with, and never have had a "loose last round" problem. (Nor any broken base plate welds, either.) good luck, GJ

I don't know how Ruger shop "repaired" the ejector retaining pin without just putting a new one in. Straightening one or filing off burrs on one at the repair shop would be more expensive than a new pin that costs Ruger almost nothing. Just about the same story with the ejector itself. They must have replaced barrel due to a manufacturing defect. If they found damage from reloads, I expect you would have been charged. Their shooter-unfriendly "No Reloads" policy has been around for several decades, and routinely ignored. good luck, GJ

Glad you got things to work, and I see you ended up with a fairly conventional powder and a proper crimp diameter. In the long run you might want another tenth of a grain of powder just to make sure in all weather you exceed power factor. Clean gun every match and practice session - it's the key to keeping a good load and a good gun running. The OAL that works for a bullet design is highly dependent upon the nose shape. For example, my 200 grain truncated cone nose loads feed perfectly at 1.180" OAL. Nothing beats testing - except practice and shooting matches. So, sounds like you are ready to do both!! good luck, GJ

Yes, any shotgun legal for Cowboy or legal for WB. Any WB shotgun would have already been legal under the previous rules. Welcome to Wild Bunch. good luck, GJ

See your question answered in the General Wire section. GJ

Didn't find it? Then the modification of using an oversized mag release is illegal. Unless it's a completely internal modification, in which case it IS allowed. Now, the Traditional 1911 may have neither extended nor oversized release: And the Modern 1911 may have an extended release but not an oversized one: I'll take it that the question you had was about the Mag Release, not about the Thumb Safety that the title of the post seems to talk about. For that, the Traditional pistol uses only a standard Thumb safety. And the Modern can use an extended thumb safety. See same Pistol Modifications lists on page 13. Grip Safety follows the same pattern - standard grip safety nromally, but a oversized (beavertail) safety allowed on Modern guns. good luck, GJ

That was a really poor design choice by the maker who oversized the loaded round checker - thus defeating 100% of the purpose of the tool. Hope you can get your funds back. So many good reloading tools are being made by reputable manufacturers, that I don't buy such important items off EBay. good luck, GJ

Rabbit and squirrel hunting. 4 and 6 widely used even today.

It's the RO's job to call any penalties, like a SDQ. It's the spotters' job to call hits and misses. They can point out a POSSIBLE penalty, but RO has to call it. Unless it's a situation where an immediate Cease Fire needs to be called, like a person down range.

You have to be on the firing line to determine "breaking the 170." Looking at a video is NOT the way to judge it. I'll trust the eye witnesses who were right there. good luck, GJ

Out of what powders you have, TiteGroup will run the 1911 better over a wide range of loads. The best 1911 powders IME, and also classics, are WST, Unique and Bullseye. good luck, GJ

Once. I've even forgotten. Can you?

What you thought you had to be bent about was about 4 years ago, and has nothing to do with this thread.

Looked up the applicable rule in the handbook. Page 13 under 1911 Pistol Modern Category Modifications good luck, GJ

That is not a rib, it's a sight base. That older style of adjustable sight needs a long slot to mount the front part of the sight. Besides, factory (OEM) full ribs have been allowed if they are part of the manufacturing process, not an add-on. Like on some Gold Cups. good luck, GJ

Mine get edited when I spot a typo after posting it, or I want to comment on another point, like I did about the question of how the OP's ammo looked. None were edited after another poster added their reply. GJ

What I see looking up that model, is that the rear sight is either a Millett or Bo-Mar-style rear target sight, adjustable. It is almost certainly a legal rear sight for a "Modern" category 1911. Not even close for Traditional category for a lot of reasons after taking 5 minutes worth of look at a video about them. What did this little birdie tell you made the gun illegal for Modern? There might be other reasons for failing Modern checks, but a sight base and adjustable sight would not be one. Gun was made as a hardball gun, as I understand, so you should not be surprised if you need to tune the barrel and feed ramp some to feed lead bullet loads. good luck, GJ

A new 1911 has traditionally needed about 200 factory power FMJ rounds through it to break it in. Loosen up the action, wear in the extractor, etc. The Taurus? Would not HURT to run some through it, too. Fire 50 or so, clean the gun. Repeat. Look for any failures of any sort. If a 1911 is hiccuping on factory FMJ, it for sure has problems that can get in the way of running lighter power lead bullet ammo. Report back how the break ins go. There COULD be a function problem with both guns, but very unlikely. Unlikely either will malfunction with FMJ, but the object is to loosen the gun up so testing with lighter lead bullet ammo tells no lies. So, loosen the guns up before you seriously start looking for why the reloaded ammo does not run the guns well. The ammo you have loaded at this point looks reasonable. Nose is a little flat-ish compared to FMJ ammo. That should not cause a failure to feed the last 1/8" into chamber though. Powder coating CAN cause some chambering problems. Have the bullets been run through a sizer die AFTER being powder coated? I have seen some coatings so thick or so non-slick that they cause a failure to feed, but mostly by sticking the nose to the feed ramp and depositing powder coat color there. good luck, GJ

Layered safety, I would guess. Just like in aviation, where a mistake in operation or mechanical failure can be fatal. But, I did not help write the rules. I just shoot by them. good luck, GJ

Gun is not in battery (ready to drop hammer on firing pin) until the rear surface of slide and rear surface of frame just below the joint between them are perfectly flush. This is not a jam, or a failure to feed. It's a failure to go into battery. If you push the slide forward with a strong tap of heel of your off-hand, does this resolve the failure-to-fully-chamber problem and let it fire? If it does, do you keep the disconnector tip lubed with a drop of oil every time you take gun apart for cleaning? Are you using range pickup brass to reload? If so, you really need a chamber check gauge to see if your brass has a base bulge common with loads that are hot enough to swell the case just in front of the extractor groove. Barrel plunking probably will not find these bulged brass situations. Spend $20 or so and get a good loaded round checker gauge! The most common problem new .45 auto loaders have is they run into brass with bulges at the base, which the sizer die in .45 auto will not remove! That is where the Lee bulge-buster kit comes in really handy. This consists of a push-thru die and a push rod which install on a spare single-stage press. Even a loaded round can be pushed through this die safely. But the best way to use it is "bulge bust" all fired brass that you know you did not shoot from your own guns, before you reload it. If you sometimes shoot almost +P level reload ammo, you may want to bust all your own fired brass, too. The bulge if not removed, sometimes means the round will not fully chamber, thus will not fire. Second cause of failure "just short of fully chambered" is a bullet seated long enough to jam the ogive of the nose into the very short throat of the 1911. If you find the rounds that do not chamber and inspect the exposed bullet nose for rifling marks, it should tell you if that round was over-length for your gun. No part of the cylindrical SHANK of the bullet should be in front of the case mouth. Only the rounded ogive of the nose can hang out in front of the mouth. good luck, GJ