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fail to feed on my RIA

Posted: Sat May 24, 2008 12:07 am
by lunchbox
i had some issues with failure to feed in the past and was looking to fix them well i tryed polishin the ramp and wile running the action it wouldnt feed and was worse than before what am i doing wrong

Re: fail to feed on my RIA

Posted: Sat May 24, 2008 12:17 am
by G.A. Heath
Please do not answer with anything similar with dremel, What did you use to polish the feed ramp?

Re: fail to feed on my RIA

Posted: Sat May 24, 2008 12:19 am
by lunchbox
G.A. Heath wrote:Please do not answer with anything similar with dremel, What did you use to polish the feed ramp?
thats exactly what i used
is that bad

Re: fail to feed on my RIA

Posted: Sat May 24, 2008 12:20 am
by G.A. Heath
thats not bad, thats very bad. Go pay a visit to http://forum.m1911.org and do a search for dremel.

Re: fail to feed on my RIA

Posted: Sat May 24, 2008 12:21 am
by lunchbox
dont tell me it cant be made right

Re: fail to feed on my RIA

Posted: Sat May 24, 2008 12:30 am
by Mike1951
Careless use of a Dremel has ruined many a gun.

I don't agree that just because you used a Dremel, that it is ruined.

What kind of bit did you use? If you used any kind of abrasive stone, then the news is probably bad.

If you used rouge on a felt tip, then there is much less likelihood of damage.

Re: fail to feed on my RIA

Posted: Sat May 24, 2008 12:34 am
by G.A. Heath
Worse case scenario: You have to have a ramped barrel. Best Case new mags/mag springs/recoil springs cure it. Most likely case: a little visit with a good 1911 knowledgeable gunsmith/armorer can resolve it on the cheap.

When any 1911 doesn't feed correctly first try some good 7 round hybrid lip magazines w/ a dimpled follower, if it still has issues change the recoil spring, if it still has issues contact a good smith for it. My arkie gun (aka little rock) is a RIA compact 1911 in tactical flavor has had thousands of rounds fed to it and has never had any feed issues, even with bad magazines. My GI model (On permanent loan) was picky about what mags it would accept Speer gold dots from. It only liked Novacks, Taurus, and the above mentioned 7 round dimpled hybrid mags for those rounds. In short the following commonly cause feeding issues in 1911s:

A weak mag spring
A weak recoil spring
Bad magazine design <-- #1 cause in my experience.

Re: fail to feed on my RIA

Posted: Sat May 24, 2008 12:35 am
by lunchbox
at first i use a cloth thing it didnt do anything at all
then i used a realy small green stone type thing that was kinda cone shaped

Re: fail to feed on my RIA

Posted: Sat May 24, 2008 12:40 am
by lunchbox
i just got a new wilson combat mag i dont think its the mags none of them are old it happens with all of them how much is a ramped barrel and what does it take to put one in where can i get one

Re: fail to feed on my RIA

Posted: Sat May 24, 2008 12:44 am
by Mike1951
I never use any abrasive bit.

Probably better to follow G.A. Heath's recommendations at this point.

You're close to Ed Vandenberg on Hwy 3. If the problem persists, look him up.

http://www.vandenbergcustom.com/

Re: fail to feed on my RIA

Posted: Sat May 24, 2008 12:50 am
by lunchbox
well now thats great geeze i cant catch a break here

Re: fail to feed on my RIA

Posted: Sat May 24, 2008 12:54 am
by lunchbox
i mean it wont even take it out of the mag most or the time why does this happen to me

Re: fail to feed on my RIA

Posted: Sat May 24, 2008 1:08 am
by Mike1951
lunchbox wrote:i mean it wont even take it out of the mag most or the time why does this happen to me
Because you didn't ask for advice before you used the Dremel?

I don't know if you damaged your feed ramp or not.

I do know that I never use anything other than the felt tips with Flitz polish on them. Purists would say that I am wrong for doing that. Rule of thumb, if you're removing metal, you're messing up.

A quick search at Midway shows a ramped barrel can run $150 and up.

Is the gun under warranty? Even though you've worked on it yourself, I would try contacting RIA for help.

If not, there are plenty of people knowledgeable about the 1911. Unfortunately, there are many more who only think they do.

I fall into the group that admits I'm ignorant.

You were getting sound advice from G.A. Heath before I butted in. So I'm gonna shut up now.

Good luck.

Re: fail to feed on my RIA

Posted: Sat May 24, 2008 1:12 am
by lunchbox
i was told to use a dremel in the past but now i feel dumb
and i need a carry gun and realy dont have money to spend this is just not been a good night

Re: fail to feed on my RIA

Posted: Sat May 24, 2008 1:38 am
by Mike1951
Get some sleep. The world hasn't ended.

I suspect you'll get some good advice on here later today.

And while a ramped barrel would be a major upgrade, a stock barrel won't break the bank.

Yours may even be salvageable.

I wish I knew another qualified 'smith south of Houston, but I don't.

Vandenberg, as good as he is, is likely to have a very long waiting list.

But he might be able to evaluate yours while you wait.

I'm gonna get off here. I'm afraid as long as I'm prattling on, the really knowledgeable folks won't chime in.