Garrison Joe

Does it have a rail? Remove - it's illegal in Traditional. Arched mainspring housing? Replace with straight anodized aluminum or plastic one. Steel trigger? Replace with aluminum. It is allowed to make ejection port relief cuts even on a Traditional gun, and a good idea too unless your ejection is well tuned. Do you have a base pad on that magazine? Remove. And check with several of your mags - some may be heavier than others. And, you are allowed a grip cut at the magazine release for "relief" - there is no spec'd limit on how much that relief can be (hint). You are also allowed beveling of the magazine well. I bevel enough that the bottom edge of the frame is close to a "knife edge." As mentioned above, it is real unusual for a real govt spec gun to come in that heavy. My Colt series 70 from the 1970s is only 37.5 or so. You are only looking for a half ounce shaving off, since the weight limit for Traditional is 40 ounces. good luck, GJ

So, now you need to really put on your inspector vision glasses (or Sherlock Holmes magnifying glass) and find exactly the spot that is marking the nose of the bullet. The coating of the ramp (mentioned above) should quickly tell you. If it is that lower left side of the feed ramp that is the contact point, that is probably where you need to concentrate your polishing/reshaping work. Since you can clear the jam with just light jiggling of the slide, that says to me you won't have to remove a lot of the ramp metal. So, that is as good as the news gets right now. Since it's a mark that is unsymmetrical asymmetrical, it's a problem with only one side of the ramp catching the nose. good luck, GJ

Paint the ramp with some Dyekem fluid or a black marker. Let dry a few minutes. Test your jam again, a streak of raw metal should show where a jam contact is. GJ

If the bullet tip shows NO contact damage from the ramp, you could also have a very tight extractor. That would be a simple fix. You can do the "extractor tension shake test" yourself in 5 minutes and see if that might be the problem. However, considering that 230 grain ammo fed and 200 grain ammo (having a different nose shape, I'll bet) did not, it probably eliminates the tight extractor issue. Since all your ammo should have the same extractor groove shape regardless of the bullet shape you load. And, by the way, I doubt seriously that you are making (consistently) a 150 power factor with a 200 grain slug over 4.2 grains of WST. I load 4.6 to 4.7 grains of WST with a 200 grain slug and quite consistently get 168 power factor. 4.2 grains of WST is the often-used load with a 230 grain lead RN slug. You will probably want to raise that powder charge a smidge - never run Wild Bunch at 152 or even worse 150 PF average. good luck, GJ

Meaning you have a pre-Kahr-company-takeover, 1980s or early 90s gun made in West Hurley, New York? If so, you have a rough road ahead of you I would guess. For reference, read this quote on a post in the 1911 Forum from 2016: Serial number starts AOC and the following numbers below 50000? West Hurley for certain. If that is true, you may wish to read the whole thread at: https://www.1911forum.com/search/359589/?q=west+hurley&o=relevance good luck, GJ

Looks matter only a little. The feeding performance in the field is the important part. It could be that the left hand frame just was made a little short of material, so the same ramp milling took different amounts off. The picture that tells us the most is HOW the first round out of magazine comes to a halt when trying to chamber it. And, are you sling-shotting the slide or dropping the slide with the release lever? And what spring weights did you install? Like on most problems with the 1911, the hard part is finding the exact problem. The easy part is usually fixing the problem. Now that your jam pictures are up, I'd guess the nose is catching on the very lowest (beginning) part of the ramp. Does the bullet nose show any marks on it like it ran into a sharp edge? If when you have a jam, can you "push the slide through the jam", which could show you even more clearly what is catching the nose of the round. Does the round show any other marks on it that indicate other contact points? Now, what to do next is kinda based on your previous gunsmithing success. I (myself) would first try smoothing the feed ramp with some cratex abrasive tips, attempting to turn that sharp edge of the "bottom left" side of the ramp into a smoother and broader shape. NOT done with a dremel tool or a milling machine because you likely don't have the skills to know what to cut and how to control a perfect cut. You will need to be sure that the "nose contact point" on the ramp is what you are working on. Smooth a little, clean and assemble and test again. If you tried a good, fairly recent Colt magazine, then you can be pretty sure this is not a magazine issue. But I get the best feeding from Tripp magazines, just saying. If this starts to give you the "willies", then you can be certain a gunsmith should take a look. This should not be a difficult task for a good 1911 gunsmith. Properly ramped and throated, a 1911 should be able to feed a fully stuffed magazine of 185 grain hollow points or the good old 200 grain H&G68 semiwadcutter bullet 100% reliably. As well as your short-nosed 200 RN. As well, it should feed empty cases! Feeding a 230 grain RN shaped like a FMJ load - that's a cake walk and proof of almost nothing (perhaps why the factory can get away shipping a gun with a poorly cut feed ramp?). Now, looking at your loaded round - I see a bunch of bullet shank sticking out above the case mouth. This can quite easily impact into the forcing cone ahead of the chamber. I like to see the intersection point between the shank (cylindrical portion) and the beginning part of the ogive (the nose) be seated right at the case mouth, meaning a little shorter OAL than your pic shows. If you send the gun off to a smith, make up rounds that you want to be sure will feed in your gun and include them. Otherwise, they may test with jacketed loads and make the mistake of not really fixing it for lead ammo. good luck, GJ

Why would it be legal? It's not a model 12 (or 93 or 97). And, it's a modern 21st century design! The only trenches this could have been used in are in the SouthEast (SE of Ukraine!) good luck, GJ

One way I've seen chronographing done is for the selected shooters to be approached when at the loading table and asked to give up ten pistol rounds and same number of rifle rounds. Done at loading table so that loads the shooter actually uses are tested, not just "special box of ammo from the cart." Five rounds get shot over chrono from the match's selected firearms. If some unusual caliber rifle is being used, the competitor's rifle is used by match officials at a time which does not interrupt the stage. One round is pulled apart and bullet weight is obtained. Failures of the 5-shot average power factor (calculated from average velocity and actual weight of bullet) to make minimum power factor are retested. The shooter is given one more chance, providing their own firearms and the match officials will shoot the remaining collected ammo. Done because some competitor guns show higher velocities than the match test firearms might. Failure to make power factor even by one-tenth of a unit is a Match DQ from Scoring, with shooter allowed to finish match but not eligible for awards. Testing before match starts is encouraged. How this will ensure the shooter's actual match ammo is what is tested is not described, however. All this is covered pretty well in the Wild Bunch Range Operations / Match Directors Handbook, Appendix B. Match directors are allowed deviations from the full procedures written there, as long as testing is done consistently. good luck, GJ

Almost any 1911 can be easily set to a 4 pound crisp pull with no creep. If your factory trigger is more than about 5 pounds, it needs work. The lighter mainspring we talked about (above) will take off some pull weight. A good quality sear spring (the three leaf thingy) sometimes helps, as does taking out that Series 80 FP interlock. Auto Ordnance is not well known for doing much tuning on their guns, and it's not surprising that you got a poor trigger. Several reviews I have read call out the need for fire control tuning, as well. But most improvement on a 1911 will come from having a practicing 1911 smith work a little magic with stones and polishing. Many things to look at, and the pro knows which ones yours might need. Things like checking and setting the sear-to-hammer contact correctly make a BIG difference. That ammo should work real well, and certainly will be powerful enough for Wild Bunch. good luck, GJ

Both are symptoms of too much recoil spring pressure, surprised you didn't have cases falling right on your boot, too. Take out the buffer and don't put another in. Then check for how your cases eject. good luck, GJ

No buffer is needed NOR recommended. These are essentially a gimmick for when folks shoot hot ammo in lightly sprung guns and believe they see damage due to that. If the gun is correctly sprung, it needs NO buffer. A shock buffer does not make recoil less or the gun shoot softer. Buffers do add a piece of plastic/rubber that breaks down and jams the gun. I've run one 1911 Colt Government that I got new back in the 1970s with 130,000 rounds fired. Never had a buffer in it. Ran factory springs when I was shooting full power ammo. Put in lighter springs and retuned the gun when I started using it in Wild Bunch. My other 1911s do not have shock buffers either. good luck, GJ

"Another forum" post on this subject is here: https://thefiringline.com/forums/showthread.php?t=584466 Even though this post was made in 2017, no one seemed to know about the Secure Firearm Products tester which began to be sold as early as 2010. Shows that a spring weight tester just does not get much publicity. 😄 The original recoil spring specs (and how to measure the weight) from US government can be found in that post. Although current Colt factory springing practice is the 16 # weight, not the 13.5 # found in the spec sheet! good luck, GJ

Spring makers have a way to measure spring "weight." Here is the only commercial end-user scale I have found: https://www.securefirearmproducts.com/Model_Details.php?modelno=11490-SR-D It includes the compressed length at which a 1911 recoil spring is measured already researched for you. BUT - If they are "old" springs, just toss them. The ones you will install will be what you run for the next couple of years anyway (and those springs in the drawer will be even older then). A 1911 (or any other defensive semi-auto) deserves to have the best possible springs that never instill doubt in the shooter's mind! good luck, GJ

For reference the conventional factory springs on Colt 1911s have been 16# for recoil and 23# for main. GJ

On my guns with tuning and smoothing performed, for Wild Bunch 155-170 Power Factor, a 15 pound recoil spring and a 19 pound main spring work well for me. A lighter mag release spring is also handy. Some folks start tweaking their (3 leaf) sear/trigger spring, but I can get good triggers without bending or lightening that spring. That makes it easy to just drop in a new one every 5 thousand rounds or so. With higher power (factory and above), that set of springs may lead to hard battering on the slide and frame, so consider what you will be feeding the gun. 1 - Keep your recoil and main springs balanced. Just putting a light recoil spring in will not work as well as reducing spring weight on both. 2 - I've learned from reading instructions from several 1911 smiths that your gun is "sprung well" when fired cases fall 5-6 feet away from where you stand. If they dribble out, the springs are strong for your load. If they fling 15 feet away, springs are too light. 3 - The firing pin retaining plate bottom edge is often square and has a sharp back edge. Rolling that back edge to a radius of about 1/2" works for me to reduce slide retraction force, spreading the hammer cocking over more slide travel distance. 4 - Most mainspring housings have a rough bore for the mainspring. Brownell's has a flexi-hone made just for smoothing that drilled hole. good luck, GJ

Factory guns are indeed sprung heavier than is needed for Wild Bunch with it's 150 minimum power factor. And then consider the square/sharp edge on the bottom of the firing pin retainer, rough mainspring housing bore, and other burrs and tight fits on slide, etc., yes, non-tuned guns are stiff. General gun will probably be very usable after tuning and smoothing. From reports from others, not from any personal experience with them. Sights on the PO Wild Bunch model may have 3 paint dots on them, from advertising I've seen on the gun. For use in a Traditional category, those would need to be covered to match the main color of the sights. good luck, GJ

Stages with 35 rounds of pistol are VERY common. Stages with 42 rounds are also encountered. That latter stage would require 6 magazines IF you never fumble a magazine change. Or have a need for "just one more round" due to popping a round loose while inserting a mag. Magazines can get stepped on, filled with dirt, etc. during a match. All that means I never go to a Wild Bunch match with less than 10 magazines I trust. And enough mag slides (holders) to carry 6 magazines on my belt. good luck, GJ

They's the one. My experience with Tripp has been flawless for Wild Bunch use in either of my 1911s. Some folks like to add a 1/4" thick leather pad for more sure seating of mag in the well, and to minimize the chance of pinching part of their palm. GJ

Tripp for me. VERY solid, almost impossible to bend feed lips or dent the body. An anti-dive follower to prevent nose-dives of cartridges coming off the top of the stack. good luck, GJ

Choice between 70 or 80 series Colts (basically with no or a firing pin block) - the type of trigger controls make little difference, perhaps adding 6 or 8 ounces to the trigger pull after tuning on the Series 80 guns. Although it appears from a quick look-see at the catalog that you can't any longer get Series 80 guns in the government standard specs (spur hammer, no extended grip safety, fixed blade rear sights). Yes, the Colt Classic model is the only blued finish gun that fits Traditional requirements from what I see in Colt's on-line catalog. Stainless - the name changes to Colt Government (the old name for a standard 5" simple 1911). Why? Hard to tell. Maybe they roll marked a whole bunch of stainless slides that haven't sold yet and they are trying to clear the inventory... I prefer the series 70 guns, since the trigger pull can be slightly better and there are fewer small parts to fiddle with on a complete strip of the slide. good luck, GJ

^^ double like this post GJ

I would be inclined to treat the 1911 as we do any other firearm, since the handbook does not have a special rule just for this situation. And I would not encourage anyone to ADD a new rule just for this situation. Why make things more complicated? good luck, GJ

CND - thanks for the fix. And, no, lots of other forums make me much sadder than this one ever does. This is one of the MOST useful forums on the net. good luck, GJ

Edit to previous post just above for purpose of fixing a typo - A Model 48 Yugo "mauser," not 28. grrr, GJ

Be wary of the different action sizes that get called 98 Mausers. If the stock has any indication it is from a Yugoslavian made "Mauser", there is a good chance the action well is shorter than a normal 98 Mauser, so the wood won't fit (and can't easily be made to fit) a K98 German made Mauser. Might be worth a call when ordering to have them give you the dimensions between the front and rear action bolts! All the Model 24, 24/47 and 28 48 Yugoslavian (BRNO) Mausers are short like that, I believe. And even some Turkish made Mausers, too. good luck, GJ