Are Armscor 1911s the REAL 1911 over others available?

[88E30M50]

What mags were you running it with and what type of jam were you getting? I don't put much faith in any factory mags and run Wilson Combat 47Ds or mags rebuilt with WC parts. What's your approach to making a 1911 reliable?

 

[DoggyDaddy]

Oh I am good. Now i have an excuse to dissect the gun and make it run.

It's what I do.....

Well, I'm no gunsmith, but it would appear that you have some type of barrel obstruction in that thing...

 

[JB357Mag]

The trigger on the OA is not bad but the damn thing will not reliably strip a round from the mag and put it into battery. 2 to 3 times every mag.

Check to see if the firing pin stop is loose, mine was very loose and
allowed the extractor to spin a little and affected feeding.

I put in a wilson combat extractor & firing pin stop and its perfect now
with 230 grn ball.

Jimmy

 

[churchmouse]

What mags were you running it with and what type of jam were you getting? I don't put much faith in any factory mags and run Wilson Combat 47Ds or mags rebuilt with WC parts. What's your approach to making a 1911 reliable?

We never run factory mags. Wilson 47D's or Chip McCormack pieces.
The round will not go full into battery. Sticks the slide about 1/4" to 3/8" out. A bump or nudge on the back of the slide pops the round into battery. The slide is free moving.

Reliability can be many different things. Issues need to be addressed and rectified such as the feed issue we are having here.

 

[churchmouse]

Well, I'm no gunsmith, but it would appear that you have some type of barrel obstruction in that thing...

Yeah, I saw that. Might be a tough one.

 

[88E30M50]

We never run factory mags. Wilson 47D's or Chip McCormack pieces.
The round will not go full into battery. Sticks the slide about 1/4" to 3/8" out. A bump or nudge on the back of the slide pops the round into battery. The slide is free moving.

Reliability can be many different things. Issues need to be addressed and rectified such as the feed issue we are having here.

I ran into a similar issue with my Remington for a short time. Part of my issue was reload related, but I think it was exacerbated by an overly tight barrel to bushing fit. As the slide started to come forward, it would drag the barrel along until the barrel met the upper lugs which messed the timing up causing a 3 point jam. I tried to slot the link a couple of thousandths and that helped a little but the problem really only went away with an angle bored EGW bushing. It locks nice and tight but has a relief cut to give a couple of thousandths clearance when the barrel is fully tilted back. Between that and reloads that are back to spec, I have not seen an issue in over 500 rounds. It's become my favorite shooter now.

 

[philbert001]

We never run factory mags. Wilson 47D's or Chip McCormack pieces.
The round will not go full into battery. Sticks the slide about 1/4" to 3/8" out. A bump or nudge on the back of the slide pops the round into battery. The slide is free moving.

Reliability can be many different things. Issues need to be addressed and rectified such as the feed issue we are having here.

Check the chamber yet? Could it have been cut with a tired reamer, leaving it on the tight side?

 

[halfmileharry]

Well, I'm no gunsmith, but it would appear that you have some type of barrel obstruction in that thing...

That's one of them things that the "BANG" flag comes out of in the cartoons.

 

[aaron580]

I'm not a 1911 snob, but any gun that I have to instantly go replace parts out of the box or tighten things up because they are loose or ream something, I'll steer clear of...

 

[SERparacord]

I'm not a 1911 snob, but any gun that I have to instantly go replace parts out of the box or tighten things up because they are loose or ream something, I'll steer clear of...

SNOB!!!!

 

[halfmileharry]

I'm not a 1911 snob, but any gun that I have to instantly go replace parts out of the box or tighten things up because they are loose or ream something, I'll steer clear of...

I'm with you and My Name is Halfmile Harry and I'm a SNOB. Not really a snob but I've wasted enough money on "bargain bangers" that I no longer try to save a couple of bucks on a gun.
I mean....I can save a few cents on paper towels, laundry soap, etc but when I think about "cheapin' out" on a gun that has to perform flawlessly if needed I have an issue in trying to save money on a lesser dollar gun I just can't depend on. Maybe my thinking is off but I think my life and the lives of my loved ones are worth the comfort in knowing it's gonna go BANG when called upon to do so.

 

[JB357Mag]

Got a brand new Auto Ordnance this Jan, and the first 30 rounds were flawless.

Then I changed the super tight firing pin spring and pin to
USGI & removed the series 80 firing pin safety stuff. Also a
USGI trigger. Added the frame spacer.

The firing pin stop was super loose and started to get random failure
to feed.

Tried a Colt then a Wilson Combat mag, no change.

Put in a Wilson Combat bullet proof extractor & firing pin stop,

THATS IT!!! works perfect again.

I think the series 80 stuff along with the over tight firing pin spring
kept the extractor from clocking and when removed it was loose and clocking.

Now it doesn't move and it works very well.

Jimmy

 

[roadrunner681]

i dont know do RIAs work like the old 1911s do? my grandfather wont go no where with out his 1940s colt its old and been shot a lot but it still works great. he can hit man sized targets out to 50 yards not bad for some thats 83 years old.

 

[churchmouse]

Got a brand new Auto Ordnance this Jan, and the first 30 rounds were flawless.

Then I changed the super tight firing pin spring and pin to
USGI & removed the series 80 firing pin safety stuff. Also a
USGI trigger. Added the frame spacer.

The firing pin stop was super loose and started to get random failure
to feed.

Tried a Colt then a Wilson Combat mag, no change.

Put in a Wilson Combat bullet proof extractor & firing pin stop,

THATS IT!!! works perfect again.

I think the series 80 stuff along with the over tight firing pin spring
kept the extractor from clocking and when removed it was loose and clocking.

Now it doesn't move and it works very well.

Jimmy

What little I have had the time to look at I did find the firing pin spring to be very tight. I will look at the extractor as this could also be an issue.

The barrel/bushing fit is stupid sloppy so I do not think this is the problem but I will look into timing etc. The chamber is not tight but we are having 3 point jambs.
The series 80 crap is on the list to go away as well.

 

[88E30M50]

i dont know do RIAs work like the old 1911s do? my grandfather wont go no where with out his 1940s colt its old and been shot a lot but it still works great. he can hit man sized targets out to 50 yards not bad for some thats 83 years old.

That was kind of the original intent of this thread, comparing today's RIA level 1911s to the war time production M1911A1. I think they are pretty close in a lot of ways, but it sounds like some of the offshore mfgs need to work on barrel fit as well as FPS fit to keep the extractor from clocking. But, I believe that the stock RIA is a series 70, not 80 so they would be closer to the M1911A1 than most current production guns.

 

[churchmouse]

I'm with you and My Name is Halfmile Harry and I'm a SNOB. Not really a snob but I've wasted enough money on "bargain bangers" that I no longer try to save a couple of bucks on a gun.
I mean....I can save a few cents on paper towels, laundry soap, etc but when I think about "cheapin' out" on a gun that has to perform flawlessly if needed I have an issue in trying to save money on a lesser dollar gun I just can't depend on. Maybe my thinking is off but I think my life and the lives of my loved ones are worth the comfort in knowing it's gonna go BANG when called upon to do so.

SNOB.....

The gun I am dealing with is my sons 1st self bought 1911. Seems an RIA may have been the better choice.....

 

[Wabatuckian]

I'd like them more without the giant gaudy logo/lettering on the side. Kinda kills the GI feel.

They will no longer be doing that. Just a small, tasteful circle on the rear of the slide, back of the serrations.

Courtesy TheTruthAboutGuns.com

 

[Wabatuckian]

The Rock Island/Armscor is closer to what John Browning designed, internally.

The Rock Island stands on its rear lugs. When the military switched from the 1911 to the 1911a1, they did away with standing on the rear lugs and began counting on the link to both unlock and lock the barrel, which is a really good way to make it fail in about 5000 rounds and shear the top lugs off the barrel.

Too, the new radius the barrel followed to lock up was not correct, and started the three-point jam thing.

Rock Island stayed true to the original design, internally. Externally it's an a1, almost, but internally it's the original Browning design, not a redesign the military did to easily swap parts among pistols.

Kimber and most custom 1911 pistols stand on the lower lugs as is proper, but most mass-produced 1911 pistols do not, though that may be changing.

 

[Wabatuckian]

What little I have had the time to look at I did find the firing pin spring to be very tight. I will look at the extractor as this could also be an issue.

The barrel/bushing fit is stupid sloppy so I do not think this is the problem but I will look into timing etc. The chamber is not tight but we are having 3 point jambs.
The series 80 crap is on the list to go away as well.

Is the extractor properly tensioned and beveled?

Are you getting lower lug bump? This will cause three-point jams until you re-radius the lugs.

Smooth breech face?

 

[churchmouse]

Is the extractor properly tensioned and beveled?

Are you getting lower lug bump? This will cause three-point jams until you re-radius the lugs.

Smooth breech face?

Breech face is smooth.
Chamber passes size wise.
Not looked at the lugs or extractor as yet.

I have only spent a brief bit of time so far with it but today I am sitting down and doing the full monti.