Bushing question.

[nickthecanuck]

All you 1911 experts out there:

My kimber's bushing is really tight, less tight than it was new but still really tight after 600 rounds.

I am not comfortable needing a wrench to take my pistol apart. Will it get looser over time with more rounds downrange? Do I need to buy a new bushing if I want it finger tight?

 

[mattw]

do you mean that your recoil-spring is really strong and that its hard to depress the part that is required to move the barrel bushing? The spring will get weaker over time (a long time) and will be easier to depress. Nothing happens to the barrel bushing over the course of shooting that would loosen the bushing itself (that i am aware of)

(note: i'm just and 18 year old kid and it is entirely possible that i do not know what i am talking about)

 

[nickthecanuck]

No, I'm not talking about the recoil spring, I can push the plug down just fine.

The actual bushing is fitted extremely tightly so that I can't turn it with just my fingers and then I have to push it out of the slide with the barrel.

 

[model 649]

Sounds like a good fit to me. Loose bushings generally make for loose groups. On a military gun a loose bushing is okay in that it might need to be taken down in the field where a soldier might not have the time or the tool. On a competition or target gun, a tight fit ( a bit beyond finger-tight) is an asset. The fit of the barrel to the bushing is also important for accuracy but not too tight as the gun will become unreliable. Mechanical repeatability in that the barrel locks up the same way each time it cycles is a good thing. Your bushing will likely loosen up in the slide over many take-downs (turning it to take it apart and put it together). If it really bothers you , you could take it out and sand it down till it fits the way you want it, but don't be surprised if accuracy is negatively affected. I lately fitted an EGW bushing to my Commander. The groups dropped almost an inch, so, yes, I don't mind using a wrench. The original bushing rattled in the slide when fitted by itself (way too loose).
Josh

 

[Old Fuff]

Retract the slide about 3/8" and see if the bushing is any easier to turn after you push in the recoil spring plug. (I presume this pistol does not have a full-length guide rod).

The tight bushing is there for the purpose of enhancing accuracy. You can polish either the slide's bore, or the O.D. of the bushing to relieve the tight fit, but accuracy may suffer slightly.

 

[nickthecanuck]

Old Fuff, you presume correctly, no FLGR.

I tried retracting the slide slightly and it does make it a little easier to turn. Still a bear to get it out of the slide though. Is it normal for me to have to push forward almost hard enough to draw blood on the underside of the barrel while twisting the bushing back and forth?

This pistol will never be used for target shooting and ease of takedown is more important to me than tiny groups at 50 yards. Maybe I will try polishing the bushing a little if it doesn't loosen up some more in the next few hundred rounds.

I wonder if maybe the Kimpro finish is a little thicker than other finishes and is making things tighter.

 

[Old Fuff]

This is something that isn't going to get easier with age because the bushing doesn't move or turn when you're shooting. The barrel/bushing fit might ease a bit, but the slide/bushing fit won't.

Brownells' sells a hone that is used with an electric hand drill to hone the inside of the slide's bore. I sometimes use one to clean up any roughness back to the ejection port (going very lightly around the locking lug slots). Anyway this is one way to solve the problem. Another way is to chuck up the bushing on a mandel and polish it. Again, Brownells' sells the tool.

You won't have to remove much metal to get the bushing finger-tight. (or loose as the case may be), just don't go any further then you have too.

Edited to add: The real cause of your problem is that folks want their "combat guns" to shoot under three inches at 50 yards. That requires a tight bushing. When John Browning designed the gun it might shoot between 4 to 6 inches at 50 yards, but you could take everything apart with your fingers.

 

[nickthecanuck]

Thanks for all the info Old Fuff.

I guess if it isn't going to loosen up from firing maybe I should just strip the gun a hundred times and see if that does the trick. I am VERY nervous about using power tools on my new pistol so if it comes to that I think I will just send away it to somebody who knows what they are doing.

 

[MICHAEL T]

I guess you could polish the bushing by hand. Might take a while But if all you got is time.