Problem after changing out FLGR

[sleepyone]

I recently replaced the stock FLGR on my new Colt XSE 1911 with the Ed Brown Recoil Spring Plug and Wilson Combat Recoil Spring Guide. I shot two hundred rounds through my pistol with NO failures or hiccups of any kind PRIOR to swapping these parts. I kept the stock 16 lb. recoil spring.

First time out after replacing these parts I started having failures to eject and feed after the fifth round. It happened many times over the next several magazines. Sometimes the slide would be closed and the hammer cocked but the trigger would not work and the slide had to be pulled pretty hard to eject the round. Other times, the slide would be open when it jammed. Never had a stovepipe. Just the round jammed in the chamber.

To troubleshoot, I grabbed my two seven round magazines from my DW 1911 and ran six magazines through the Colt with zero problems. Then I went back to the two eight round Colt magazines and ran four full magazines through the Colt with only one problem. The round did not seat all the way. I don't think it is the magazines. Just trying to eliminate the obvious first.

So I went from having major problems with the two Colt 8 round magazines, to no problems with the Dan Wesson magazines to almost no problems when going back to the original Colt magazines.

I was shooting 230 gr. FMJ Winchester Whitebox

Do I need to replace my recoil spring with an 18.5 lb or stronger one. I'm fairly new to working on 1911s. It sounds like the slide is not coming back hard enough to eject the previous round or moving forward fast enough to seat the next round properly. Am I way off on my assessment?

Oh yeah, I also swapped out the nylon MSH with an Ed Brown SS one, but I don't think that is the culprit.

 

[sleepyone]

I was hoping one of our resident THR 1911 experts would have a suggestion about what could be causing my FTF and FTE. Anyone care to share their knowledge? I would be much obliged.

 

[hAkron]

Is the Wilson Combat a full length or a standard short? If you put the full length guide rod back do the problems go away? I'm not a 1911 guy but I am not immediately seeing a correlation between recoil spring power and a fl or standard length guide rod, though based on your symptoms that would be the first suspect.

 

[9mmepiphany]

Just curious, why would you mix a Brown plug and a Wilson guide rod?

 

[sleepyone]

Just curious, why would you mix a Brown plug and a Wilson guide rod?

Ed Brown does not make a SS recoil spring guide, and when I was ordering my parts Midway USA and Brownells were both out of the Wilson Combat SS Government Recoil Spring Plug. They both have that part in stock now, but mixing a different make of plug with guide should have no bearing especially two quality makes like Ed Brown and Wilson Combat. People do it all the time. They are both high quality SS parts made to spec.

Of course, that does not mean it can't happen. Have you ever seen a case like that?

 

[sleepyone]

Is the Wilson Combat a full length or a standard short?

It is the government model length recoil spring guide. I have not had a chance to install the original FLGR. I did not have the parts with me at the range. That will be my next step. Thanks for the suggestion. Going back to the original setup is always a good approach.

 

[sleepyone]

A friend of mine says all his 1911s have the 18.5lb recoil spring because it works better with heavier loads. I was shooting all 230 FMJ Winchester Whitebox and another locally sold handload of the same type. It happened on both.

 

[Jim K]

Does the recoil spring fit easily onto the recoil spring guide without any kind of binding*? Does the recoil spring fit easily into the recoil spring plug without binding? Is the back of the recoil spring plug chamfered to prevent the spring from hitting it?

*Except for the rear coil which should be tight to retain the spring when the gun is disassembled.

Jim

 

[sleepyone]

Does the recoil spring fit easily onto the recoil spring guide without any kind of binding? Except for the rear coil which should be tight to retain the spring when the gun is disassembled.
The stock recoil spring moves more freely on the FLGR than it does the new recoil spring guide. It is a pretty tight fit but not so tight that it binds when sliding it on. I have a set of new Wolff springs and I just compared the movement of one on the FLGR to the new recoil spring guide. The Wolff spring also slides on the FLGR easier than it does the new recoil spring guide.

Does the recoil spring fit easily into the recoil spring plug without binding?
Yes.

Is the back of the recoil spring plug chamfered to prevent the spring from hitting it?
Yes. There is a very slight chamfer; about the same as on the FLGR. The recoil spring seats the same way on both.

I measured the diameter of each with my caliper at the chamfer, middle and end. The FLGR measures 3.17 at the end and middle and 3.14 at the chamfer. The new spring guide measures 3.30 along the entire length including the chamfer.

 

[Walkalong]

Unless something is binding, slowing down the slide going into battery, it shouldn't affect chambering.

That's where to look.

 

[sleepyone]

Thanks for the feedback, gentlemen.

 

[coalman]

Problem after changing out FLGR

I recently replaced the stock FLGR on my new Colt XSE 1911 with the Ed Brown Recoil Spring Plug and Wilson Combat Recoil Spring Guide. I shot two hundred rounds through my pistol with NO failures or hiccups of any kind PRIOR to swapping these parts. I kept the stock 16 lb. recoil spring.

First time out after replacing these parts I started having failures to eject and feed after the fifth round. It happened many times over the next several magazines. Sometimes the slide would be closed and the hammer cocked but the trigger would not work and the slide had to be pulled pretty hard to eject the round. Other times, the slide would be open when it jammed. Never had a stovepipe. Just the round jammed in the chamber.

To troubleshoot, I grabbed my two seven round magazines from my DW 1911 and ran six magazines through the Colt with zero problems. Then I went back to the two eight round Colt magazines and ran four full magazines through the Colt with only one problem. The round did not seat all the way. I don't think it is the magazines. Just trying to eliminate the obvious first.

So I went from having major problems with the two Colt 8 round magazines, to no problems with the Dan Wesson magazines to almost no problems when going back to the original Colt magazines.

I was shooting 230 gr. FMJ Winchester Whitebox

Do I need to replace my recoil spring with an 18.5 lb or stronger one. I'm fairly new to working on 1911s. It sounds like the slide is not coming back hard enough to eject the previous round or moving forward fast enough to seat the next round properly. Am I way off on my assessment?

Oh yeah, I also swapped out the nylon MSH with an Ed Brown SS one, but I don't think that is the culprit.

In bold above seems like binding or ammo. Does the slide move freely to closed when hand cyclying empty? Do the back sides of the rods (the part that contacts the barrel lugs) look the same or different? I'd put the stock FLGR back in and check things. And, to ensure ammo is not the issue, "drop test" the rounds in the chamber first. Good luck.

 

[sleepyone]

Does the slide move freely to closed when hand cyclying empty? Do the back sides of the rods (the part that contacts the barrel lugs) look the same or different?

I checked the back of each rod and they look the same. As a matter of fact, what little use each one is showing after only a couple of rounds each is in exactly the same location. The slide racks and releases easily when cycling empty.

 

[Jolly Rogers]

Put the stock mainspring housing back in and leave the GI guide rod system in.
Bet there is something in the new MSH that is binding.
Joe

 

[DPris]

My Colt Lightweight GM came with a standard GI short guide and plug for some reason. Company specs called for it to be a fluger, and I'm not complaining since Colt saved me the trouble of replacing the fluger myself.

Using those standard Colt parts, zero malfunctions with the pistol.
Might consider going that route?
Denis

 

[sleepyone]

Put the stock mainspring housing back in and leave the GI guide rod system in.
Bet there is something in the new MSH that is binding.

I'm ignorant as to the exact function of the MSH. I need to do some reading. What is its specific role in the ejecting and reloading function?

 

[coalman]

I'm ignorant as to the exact function of the MSH. I need to do some reading. What is its specific role in the ejecting and reloading function?

The hammer strut travels inside the MSH and rides on a plunger that's atop the hammer spring. If you have binding/drag within the MSH it can slow rearward travel as the hammer is giving added resistance to the slide and you may not get a full cycle. I agree to return all parts to the configuration that worked to check things.

 

[sleepyone]

I agree to return all parts to the configuration that worked to check things.

looks like some range time is in order next week. This has actually been good for me to learn more about my 1911s. I'll start with the MSH. It seemed to me that my hammer was slightly harder to pull back after replacing the MSH, but is was not enough that I was concerned. Everything dropped right in. The internals from the stock MSH fell right in the new one. Thanks for all the feedback! I'll follow-up with my findings.

 

[Magnumite]

coalman is onto something. Are you using reloaded ammo, selfloaded or commercial? The malfunctions you mention would cause the difficult extraction as well as what was in the previous posts.

I'd remove the barrel from the pistol and use it as a chamber gauge, dropping each round into the chamber. It should drop in all the way with a tap heard at the end (the sound of the case hitting the chamber shoulder.

You could also return the pistol back to factory configuration and parts. Shoot it to ensure function, then make one change at a time until the malfunction returns. Then you'll know where to look closer for the root cause.