Remington 1911 slide stop issues

[DavidB2]

Took my recently purchased Remington R1 1911 out to the range today. It shot great and very accurate; but I had an issue with the slide stop not staying open after the first 200 rounds. On both of the mags that came with the pistol; the slide stop failed to stay open after the last round. The range director suggested that the mags were probably to blame and that I had "weak springs." He said to go home and slightly stretch the mag springs in order to make them tighter and be able to properly function; keeping the slide stop open.

I did as he suggested and took the springs out and stretched them; only slightly. After re-assembling them I inserted the mags into the pistol. Now the slide stop is extremely difficult to release when the mags are inserted. I had to really press down with both hands to release the slide. I know that the slide stop is not supposed to be easy to release with empty mags; but this seems a bit much. Perhaps now there is too much tension on the mag follower as it presses on the slide stop? I went ahead and loaded both mags with 7 rounds to try and lesson the the spring tension.

Any suggestions on how to remedy this issue are appreciated. I hope the mags are the problem and cause of my frustration. I plan to get new mags as soon as possible; as I think the Remington mags are cheap junk. Thanks for your insights!

 

[Skylerbone]

If hold open on an empty magazine is the only issue then there can only be two causes, a defective slide stop (dimensionally) or weak springs. You've already proved a solution though you are correct in thinking it should not be the permanent one.

I'd guess the magazines are fine and that new springs would be a reasonable investment to accompany a few extra mags. Remember also that the slide should not be dropped frequently on an empty chamber nor should you use it to fight an empty magazine. Having a few dummy rounds will safely test the stop's function.