Loading one round in chamber of 1911 ...

[Dead Head]

A very helpful email from Boggus Deal arrived yesterday about the 2018 SASS Wild Bunch National Championships at Winter Range.

 

One of points was that "A single round may be loaded into the chamber."

 

Since you could already do that if you had a Barney Fife magazine loaded with one cartridge, I am assuming this means you could now drop a loose .45 ACP cartridge in the chamber and allow the slide to go forward with the extractor hopefully slipping over the rim and chambering the round fully allowing you to shoot that round.

 

I have always been told that this 'loose round method' of chambering is very hard on the extractor and will break it as it has to move sideways out of the way enough to get over the rim.  Maybe not break it the first time you do it, but sooner than later.  When you load a cartridge via a magazine the rim slips up behind the extractor from below.

 

Is loading the loose round in the chamber now the recommended way to load one round quickly or is it just an option that most of the good shooters won't do?

[Happy Jack]

It is NOT the recommended method of loading the pistol, BUT we felt it should not be against the rules to do so since it is done by some. Therefore the MSV for dropping a round in the chamber and then closing the slide is no longer against the rules. If you want to take the chance of damaging your firearm by doing it, go ahead.

[Dead Head]

Thank you.