Posted: 3/20/2005 12:37:58 PM EDT
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I recently bought an older Colt 1911, manufactured around 1975ish. It looks like it's been rode pretty hard, with most of the bluing gone, cracked panels...she's been around the block a time or 3, but mechanically PERFECT....well, almost perfect, or I wouldn't be posting, would I? I've put close to 400 rounds thru it, and it has not given me any of the FTF, FTE problems I expected when I bought it. I'm sending it in for a polish and reblue in the near future, but I want to correct the one little problem I have with it first. I get bonked on the head by each and every spent case! I'm a lefty, and I get hit in the forehead or slightly higher every time I pull the trigger. Shooting righty, cases go over my shoulder and land in a neat little pile. I've already replaced, tuned and tweaked the extractor per the instructions on M1911.org (penned by Mr. Bill Wilson) with no discernable change in ejection trajectory. Before I get out the Dremel tool and monkey with the angle of the ejector, is there anything else I should be looking at? |
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Can you send me a link to the site you were referring to? It will give me a better idea of what you did. Also, what ejector do you have? It sounds like you are using a non extended ejector. I can give you some ideas, but I need to know the starting point. Don't use a Dremel either. A file is all you need, and you don't want to remove too much material. There are a couple common causes for empty casings ejecting more to the back than the side. One is an insufficient or missing relief cut on the extractor. If looking at the face, there should be a rounded corner on the bottom right. Also, a short Mil-Spec or GI type non extended ejector can have this problem, especially when the top is angled too far rearward. I would suspect the extractor is missing this relief cut. |
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thanks Hobbs, I knew I could count on you! I replaced the extractor with a Wilson Bulletproof. I don't have a link to M1911.org, but it's in the FAQ in gunsmithing....if I have time before work, I'll dig it up. ETA: here it is www.m1911.org/technic2.htm I compared the extractor to the ones in my Les Baer and Springfield Loaded. They have the same angles and shapes to the hooks, including the rounded corner you described. Pin stop is also nice and tight, allowning no twisting of the extractor. When comparing the ejectors, the Colt's is longer by about 1/16" and is completely flat on the front part, where the LB and SA are both angled something like 25 to 30 degrees. It look like it was replaced recently but not fitted, as the finish on the ejector is considerably darker than the rest of the gun and doesn't show any wear....I think this is the cause of my problem. Question now, is how much of an angle is the ejector supposed to have, and what is the optimum length? I like the ejection angle of my SA best--straight out the side. Should I use that as a pattern and file-n-shoot until it works the way I want it to, or is there anything else I need to look at? |
| I did the filing on the ejector yesterday, shot 100 rds of Walchester 230gr ball last night....every spent casing goes straight out the side and lands in a little pile about 6 feet away. I'm sending the Colt in for bluing as soon as I finish polishing the flats and blasting the curved parts--she's still ugly as sin, but I believe she's ready for carry duty! |