I bought a RIA 1911 45ACP a couple of weeks ago. I have put 141 rounds through it so far. Three times now I have had shell casing get stuck between the slide and the barrel while ejecting. The first 50 rounds were reloads that I bought. One case got stuck from that box. I just thought that it might not have had the right powder charge to rack the slide completely to the rear. That was the first time I went out, right after I got the gun. This past weekend I went to shoot, then it happened to me again with factory Winchester and Remington loads. What do you think could be the cause?




Thank you,
Sweetfish

My guess is that "maybe" you limp wristed the shot. Don't get angry and think you are less of a man if you did limpwrist the shot, it's a matter of getting used to the new pistol and the amount of grip strength needed. Since it happened with various ammo, you might have gotten distracted occasionally while shooting and had a loose grip for that shot that stovepiped.

I noticed that when I go out to shoot .460 Rowland in my 1911 and I haven't shot it for quite a while, that I tend to use a regular 45 ACP grip and it causes the same issue. I just have to tighten up my grip for .460 Rowland (using push-pull). Magically, the stove pipes disappear. That's why I think maybe you limpwristed the shots that stovepiped.

I'd also check for a loose ejector and incorrect tension on the extractor

You can google/youtube on how to do both of those things.
It's probably a lack of tension on the extractor.

johndoe3 wrote:My guess is that "maybe" you limp wristed the shot. Don't get angry and think you are less of a man if you did limpwrist the shot, it's a matter of getting used to the new pistol and the amount of grip strength needed. Since it happened with various ammo, you might have gotten distracted occasionally while shooting and had a loose grip for that shot that stovepiped.

I noticed that when I go out to shoot .460 Rowland in my 1911 and I haven't shot it for quite a while, that I tend to use a regular 45 ACP grip and it causes the same issue. I just have to tighten up my grip for .460 Rowland (using push-pull). Magically, the stove pipes disappear. That's why I think maybe you limpwristed the shots that stovepiped.

Thank you I will make sure I (push-pull) next time I go out to shoot and see if that fixes the problem.

chrismartin wrote:I'd also check for a loose ejector and incorrect tension on the extractor

You can google/youtube on how to do both of those things.
It's probably a lack of tension on the extractor.

I will check and see if the ejector is loose and tension on the extractor. Thank you.

looks rather dry. Put the oil to that thing!

It might be nothing more than a "new gun" thing. It looks like the slide didn't either go back far enough or maybe not fast enough ... which is kind of the same thing. Either way, it doesn't look like the brass was thrown free fast enough to beat the slide coming back to pinch it.

If the spring is too strong, then the slide may short-cycle; in which case the brass doesn't have a big enough window of time to clear the port.

If the gun has grit on the rails, or if the rails need some lube and light polishing, then the slide may have too much resistance to overcome as it goes backward.

I have an RIA in 22 TCM, and the first time I removed the grip panels there was actually oily grit beneath them. I assume that if this same lack of cleaning is prevalent throughout the gun that this might be an issue. I dealt with it by completely disassembling the gun and wiping and cleaning every piece. After lubing the rails with whatever your favorite lube is, you can just sit on your couch, watch "Dexter", and rack that slide again and again and again... periodically disassembling and re-cleaning, re-wiping as you go. This is the break-in period (in a way), and it will help to insure that all sliding surfaces begin to play nice with each other both by mechanically de-burring each other, working grit out, and by subtly loosening the spring. I almost hesitate to include "loosening the spring", because this is more of a theoretical reality as opposed to a practical one.... the spring tension will be essentially the same before you do this compared to after.

At any rate, without any information besides just that symptom, I would say the slide is short-cycling. limp-wristing... maybe. Weak loads... maybe. Incorrect slide velocity due to too much friction... maybe. Spring retarding the slide's normal cycle distance and time.... maybe. You've test the loads, so it shouldn't be that. Spring is unlikely given that the "proper" spring to use in a 1911 is hardly still a question at this point in history. That just leaves technique and dirty-or-rough rails.

My gut says that after a hundred slide-cycles with thorough cleaning and lubing in between, this problem will go away. I don't think it will matter if those slide cycles are done with ammunition or just manually.

*** JUST TO BE CLEAR: "polishing the rails" does NOT mean using sandpaper, a dremel, or anything of that nature. I just mean clean and wipe, clean and wipe. You do NOT want to change the surface geometry of your gun's internals on accident.

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I'm not an expert; this is based on personal experience, so take it for what it's worth. It may not be solved with my prescription, but my prescription shouldn't harm the gun or your wallet... it'll just take a little time. Give it a shot before you give up hope or try a gunsmith that will charge you money.