1911 JHP Issue

[Mage218]

Got me a Springfield 1911. my first ever 1911, and I am having an issue with the slide not going to battery with hollow points. I have been inspecting it today and it looks like the magazine could be causing this. What I noticed is when I released the slide, The round would nose down in the magazine and get stuck on the feed ramp. Once I realized this was happening I pulled the mag out and slowly pushed the round out with my thumb. Same thing happened, nosed down into the mag. The rounds continued to do this until the last 2-3 rounds, which nosed up and the slide closed no problem. Now this is my first 1911 and I am not sure if this is normal for the magazines or not, but from my experience with my XD and other pistols ive fired, the bullet noses up and into the chamber.

The 1911 "expert" at the gun store told me to polish the feed ramp and I could then feed pretty much every hollow point without a hitch.

Anyone got any suggestions?

[G.A. Heath]

Get good magazines before altering the weapon. Get mags with hybrid feed lips and a dimple on the follower, if that doesn't cure it call Springfield and they will fix it.

[Texas Dan Mosby]

Anyone got any suggestions?

Yes, buy and use CMC 8 rounder power mags. They are practically bullet proof in all my 1911's.

Use hollow points that have a profile that more closely resembles the round nose profile. Remington golden sabers come to mind, work in all my 1911's, and have been reported to work in most, if not all 1911's.

DON'T polish the feed ramp. You don't need to...

NONE of my 1911's have "polished" ramps and ALL feed what I give them.

[The Annoyed Man]

If you do decide to buy new mags, take a look at Cobra Mags from Tripp Research. I bought three of these for my Springfield Loaded, and they are great. But what makes them special - at least to my mind - is that the follower is designed so it won't tip.

Here is a picture of an 8 round magazine:


Here is a picture of the follower:


The followers are self lubricating too. At $34.95 each, the magazines aren't cheap, but they work flawlessly.

[USA1]

I am having an issue with the slide not going to battery with hollow points.

Out of curiosity, what brand of ammo were you using?

I know a guy that has that same problem with CorBon JHP's but the same gun (a 1911) runs fine with Speer Gold Dots.

[Mage218]

Out of curiosity, what brand of ammo were you using?

It was Hornady Custom XTP. It has a relatively flater nose than most and now Ive got some Winchester Supreme Elite PDX1. Its a little more rounded and loads a lot better than the the Hornady but still hangs up on the first round of full magazine. I also just tried something to see if it made a difference. I racked the slide like normal and when it hung up, I locked it back, and pushed the back of the round down in the mag so it nosed up, re-racked and it loaded just fine.

Going to check out what magazines the gun store has to offer tomorrow. Not a big fan of waiting for things to come in the mail, but if need be I will. Thanks to everyone for your info so far.

[USA1]

Going to check out what magazines the gun store has to offer tomorrow.

Good idea. I'm not familiar with what kind of mags those Springers come with, but the first thing I did when I got my Kimber was to replace the stock mag.

[Mage218]

Question - when you load the first round, are you babying/easing the slide forward or letting snap home under full steam?

I just pull back on the slide and let it go same way Ive loaded my 9mm and all the FMJs I fired. I might be holding it back a little bit unintenially though. So I guess thats a no no on 1911s ?

I will try loading it tomorrow just by pressing the slide release and see what happens. Got people sleeping right now and dont want to wake em with the sound of a pistol being racked.

[RiverRat]

My wife's new Wilson Combat put the Hornady SD stuff on the NO GO/Do Not Use list in it's manual. Her's seems to shoot them ok, mine doesn't like them. The mags I'm using are McCormick and Wilsons.

I do have some other 1911's that are sensitive to mags and followers, too. I won't start modifying the pistol until all the other options are exhausted.

[glbedd53]

My Colt Officer did the same thing when it was new and it did have to have a ramp job. Gunsmith did it not me. It's been perfect ever since.

[ddstuder]

If you do decide to buy new mags, take a look at Cobra Mags from Tripp Research. I bought three of these for my Springfield Loaded, and they are great. But what makes them special - at least to my mind - is that the follower is designed so it won't tip.

Here is a picture of an 8 round magazine:


Here is a picture of the follower:


The followers are self lubricating too. At $34.95 each, the magazines aren't cheap, but they work flawlessly.

Since I bought my first Tripp Mag, I have since gone and bought the upgrade kits for all of my Kimber and Colt Factory mags. I have not had one failure after upgrading! I have 4 1911's and 14 Mags, and they all feed any ammo I put through them!

[Charles L. Cotton]

Agreed - the feedramp is the very last thing you want to touch, and then only by someone who is very familiar with the 1911 controlled-feed design.

I "tinkered" with one of my 1911's one time, then took it to Ed Vanden Berg who has been building, modifying and repairing my guns for years. He made me an offer I couldn't refuse; "Charles, I won't try to practice law and you don't try to be a gunsmith." That arrangement has worked well for years.

Seriously, I'll do very minor things, grips, magwell, etc. but nothing with feeding or fire control.

Chas.