Automatic slide release with mag insertion

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DLrocket89

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Hi everyone,

First post here, been lurking for awhile. Thanks in advance for any help!

The very first pistol I bought was a Ruger P345 back when it first came out. I was a lot of fun, but I ended up getting rid of it for a Ruger SuperRedhawk (long story).

It came from the factory with a "defect" that I really liked (or so the gunsmith thought it was a defect). The defect: If the slide was locked back and I inserted the magazine hard enough, it would automatically release the slide and load a round. If I inserted the magazine gently, it wouldn't. It was at a really nice level where I had to be deliberate to get it to go, but I could every time I wanted to. I haven't come across a pistol since that does that.

I'm planning on getting my first 1911 (only semi auto gun that hasn't gone through the roof in price, probably because of the 8 round mag). My question is: are there any 1911s out there that do this by design? If not, what can I do to make it happen? Gunsmithing, change of parts, etc?

Thanks again for any help!

Dustin L
Wisconsin
 
I don't know but that happens occasionally if I slam a magazine home in my Glock 19. It's pretty cool really!
 
Not by design. I don't like guns doing things I didn't intend them to do.

At the same time....what's the downside? I suppose you could mess with a slide stop to see if you could make it happen, but I wouldn't know how to do it in a way that wouldn't also mess with the lock-open function.
 
It's not normal, but it occasionally happens with a hard slam. I had one...a New Roll Mark Colt Government Model...that would do it every time. It never bothered me enough to do anything about it, and it did make for a speedier reload.
 
I've never had a 1911 do that. All 5 of my Glocks do it without much effort. My AR's will do it on occasion.
 
Agreed on the front of "not having guns do something you don't tell them to do". On the P345, it was easy to control - in only happened if I really meant it.

I know there has to be an adjustment to make it to happen, because the smith wanted to make an adjustment to make it STOP.

Thanks for the replies. I'll probably end up taking it to a smith and seeing what can be done.

To aide in my internet search, does anyone know if there's a special name for this? For some reason I had "tactical reload" in my mind, but that means something else that really muddied up the search results.
 
factory "defect"

That factory defect is present in several brands of pistols. I and a bunch of others use S&W M&P's in competition and that is where you see people depend on that "auto release" to occur.

To get a 1911 to release the slide in the same manner would require the the slide stop be as delicately positioned as it is in the M&P. And, I have to say that with a pistol with as small a magazine as a 1911, I would want that feature also. I have 1911's but don't use them in competition and have never thought of modifying the slide release on them.

Good luck
 
Part of self defense training is repetition and muscle memory. To me, the slide releasing when it is not supposed is bad for a self defense gun (and competition gun), because we should practice for the self defense situation and for competition by doing the same things for the given situation over and over again. So, you slam the magazine home, the slide releases on it's own (which it is NOT supposed to do), and you aim and fire. Well, what happens when the gun works the way it is supposed to do? If your repetitive muscle training takes over you are going to aim and squeeze the trigger and nothing happens.

Or, what if the norm is for the gun to actually function as designed and you insert the magazine, pull the slide off the slide stop and release to load, aim and fire. Now, if the gun malfunctions and the slide goes home, repetitive muscle training takes over and you pull the slide and release, and lose the round that was unintentionally loaded by the malfunction of the gun.

I would rather have a gun that works as designed and the same way 100% of the time (or as near 100% as possible) and not actually rely upon a malfunction to occur during loading.
 
Mauser's HSC worked precisely as you describe. Frankly I always thought it was a great design and would be a very real asset in a tight situation.

Then again, I'm the odd man out that has ALWAYS thought SW's magazine safety arrangement was a good idea, and having been a LEO that carried one, a very real potential life saver..........doubt that? Then try rolling around in a 5 ft square bathroom with a wet, naked crackhead that's trying like the devil to get your gun!
 
Navy LCDR -

I understand what you're saying. What I'm wondering is how can I make it a design "feature", not a design "malfunction".
 
DLrocket89 said:
Navy LCDR -

I understand what you're saying. What I'm wondering is how can I make it a design "feature", not a design "malfunction".
Click to expand...

It would be difficult to do without also deactivating the function that locks the slide to the rear when the last round is fired.

Typically, when the last round is fired the magazine spring overcomes the slide release lever spring and the magazine follower pushes up on the slide catch lever, locking the slide open. If the slide releases upon insertion of a loaded magazine, it is because the slide is jarred enough, and the recoil spring is weak enough, that the slide bounces off the slide catch, and since the magazine is loaded now the magazine follower is no longer pushing up on the slide catch lever, so the slide release lever spring pushes the slide catch down and the slide closes.

To make this an actual function of the gun, there would have to be a mechanism that released the slide catch due to the force of an actual round loaded in the magazine pushing against it. If the inserted magazine itself released the slide catch, that would also defeat the slide locking open on the last round.
 
The most common cause of that "feature" is a wrong angle on either the slide stop or the slide notch (or both). That can come from a factory error, a design error, or simple wear, especially if the slilde stop is hard and the slide soft.

Of course in the Mauser pocket pistols, it was a real feature, and needed a fairly complex mechanism to make it work. It is also something of a nuisance when cleaning or disassembling the gun, since you normally remove the magazine and retract the slide to make sure the gun is not loaded, then have to reinsert the magazine to release the slide.

Jim
 
Its a bad idea ...to make it a function where, when you load the mag, it automatically closes the slide...

I agree with the other comments - that if you have a gunsmith or someone alter the slide stop so it performs like that ....you will likely have issues where the slide will not lock back on an empty mag ( which is not desireable at all ) !
 
I mostly hear about this sort of thing happening with polymer guns, not so often with steel/alloy 1911s. I've always assumed that it's because the poly frame allows for a little more movement when you slam that mag in, allowing essentially what NavyLCDR described to happen.

I've got no idea how you could modify a 1911 to do it, even with the guns where it does happen it seems to be a happy (or unhappy, depending on your opinion) accident, one gun will do it while an identical one won't.
 
I had a Colt Gold Cup that did this every time. Even posted on here about it. I got to the point where I liked it. It had to do with the notch not being cut correctly for the slide stop. It engaged but the pieces didnt mate well, the angle was bad, so it took very little to disengage. Slamming a mag home was just enough to make it happen and the gun always returned to full battery.
 
Ive owned a few pistols where this feature was designed from the factory and works fairly well in application. My FNP45, S&W MP9, Beretta M9 and HK USP all does this if inserted at the right angle and the mag slammed in hard enough
 
I have no experience with the FNP45, but the others definitely do NOT have that "feature designed from the factory".

Jim
 
Interesting read everyone, thanks for the replies!

Further thoughts on the matter, as I thought about it more. It happened on the polymer-framed P345, and it only happened with loaded magazines (more momentum). It also took a very deliberate motion to make happen - all of this I consider to be the "best" setup for this sort of thing. I guess that Ruger was just wrong perfectly for me.

...why did I sell it? :banghead:

Thanks again everyone!
 
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