Posted: 1/20/2015 8:35:24 PM EDT
| Last November I was shooting a tactical rifle match and my 1911 locked partially open. No amount of beating it in either direction would do anything to open or close so I sent it back to the manufacturer. I got it back with notes saying the barrel was the issue and looks like it was replaced. Shot a couple of magazines through it with no problems so thought it was solved. Decided to try it out again at a class and had something similar happen at the end of the day and playing around with it again a light tap to the end of the barrel with a rawhide hammer made the slide go forward. I've been sick so haven't had the chance to try it again, but racking the slide over and over I cannot replicate the problem. The ejected case showed no issues, either. Can anyone point me in the right direction for things to look for? I intend to trade it at the LGS for something else, but I also don't want it to end up doing the same thing to someone else when they need it if I can fix it. Yes, it is a Taurus 1911 and I know they are universally reviled, but until now it hasn't given me any problems and CS was quick about fixing it and returning it to me. |
| Look at the lower barrel lugs for peening and examine the link for cracks. You may also want to check the firing pin stop the next time this happens... sometimes the firing pin stop can slide down and stop the slide from going fully forward. This is more likely if you have some improperly fitted firing pin safety parts. |
| I haven't had time to shoot it again, but will tomorrow. I see no issues except the barrel link does seem to have a rough spot on the bottom. Lockup seems to be the same as a Colt Series 70 I have to base against, nothing loose, nothing seems overly tight. I'm thinking of smoothing up the barrel link tonight, but that shouldn't be riding against anything, should it? The rough spot is on the outside "bottom." I thought about the slide release as well but can't find anything wrong there. I shot it as is from repair, it was very well lubed from the smith who worked on it. |
| You don't seem to be very familiar with the 1911, and its almost impossible for us to do anything but speculate with the limited information given. Can you be specific under what conditions the slide hung up after the gun was repaired? Was it after firing a shot as the slide went forward? And you say you tapped on the barrel muzzle with a mallet and the slide snapped shut? There really are 36 things that can cause this; okay, I lied - there may be only 11. :) Was the pistol trying to load a fresh round when the slide stopped? If so, had it extracted and ejected the previous shell? There could be many more questions, but we need some answers to narrow the field of possibilities. |
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Quoted:
I haven't had time to shoot it again, but will tomorrow. I see no issues except the barrel link does seem to have a rough spot on the bottom. Lockup seems to be the same as a Colt Series 70 I have to base against, nothing loose, nothing seems overly tight. I'm thinking of smoothing up the barrel link tonight, but that shouldn't be riding against anything, should it? The rough spot is on the outside "bottom." I thought about the slide release as well but can't find anything wrong there. I shot it as is from repair, it was very well lubed from the smith who worked on it. That link may have something to do with it. Look in the frame at the link slot right in-between the two holes for the slide stop pin. See if there is a corresponding wear mark in the slot that the bottom of the link is hitting. I haven't heard of this happening but I guess anything's possible. |
Thought I was clear but reread it and I didn't specify the cartridge in the chamber had been fired and the slide stuck open about 1/4" on the ejection cycle. There had been approximately four magazines put through it since getting it back before the malfunction happened. And no, i definitely do not claim to be an expert gunsmith on a 1911. 
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Me neither. I just like solving their problems. So it fired and the slide stopped in mid-extraction. I have to say that's a new one on me. I would have dropped the mag and tried to pull the slide back to complete extraction and ejection. Failing that, I would have put the top of the muzzle of the slide against something and pushed to force the slide open. I believe you are saying you can cycle the slide with no problem. This rules out a bulged barrel - at least one bad enough to stop the slide. Now the Taurus PT1911 has two features of interest - a full-length guide rod and the Series 80 firing pin safety. The FP safety lever can pop up when the slide is off the frame and stop the slide on re-assembly, but I haven't heard of one that stopped a slide that was already on the frame - its really not possible. I also have not heard of a guide rod stopping a slide from recoiling but we'll set that aside for a moment.
1911 slides will usually hit a 'bump' at that position which is the disconnector hitting the inside of the disconnector relief in the slide, and an unusually stiff one has been known to stop a slide - particularly under certain conditions, like maybe a strong mainspring and recoil spring, snug slide-to-frame fit, lack of lubrication and firing residues build-up or any combination of those. Now suppose your ammo is a little underpowered; it will still expand the brass when it fires. Let's say the chamber is dirty from firing too. Now throw in a couple of those conditions above with a stiff disconnector; you fire, the case expands, the slide is blown back, hits the disconnector and slows - the brass sticks in the chamber and the extractor has a firm grip on it. The slide stops and feels stuck. You smack the rear of the slide and it closes, after which you are able to manually extract the case. What I would do is a detail strip, cleaning, inspection and oiling of every part. The disconnector/sear assembly should be put back in packed in light grease. This not only makes it easy to position for pinning, it also pretty much rules out getting stuck later. I also grease the FP safety levers for the same reasons. Clean and lube everything. If you can't do it, have it done. There is a possibility of a quick fix at least for the disconnector/sear - drop some light oil on the tip of the disconnector and work it up and down. Oil the bottom center flat of the slide and the semi-circular disconnector relief. Clean and oil everything you can get to. Make sure the barrel/chamber is clean. Shoot full-power 230 gr factory ammo. |
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Update:
Shot it today, locked partially open on the first shot. At least it isn't an intermittent problem. Using 230gr factory ball. My observation is the slide is opening until the point that the barrel should drop, but the barrel is not dropping to allow the slide to move further through the cycle. I field stripped it and the barrel link appears to be very slightly bent, but I haven't removed it to be sure. |