During Day 1 of the class, we go over the nuts and bolts of the 1911, including a teardown and inspection of all student pistols. I worked on 15 of 19 of the student guns, based on deficiencies found during this inspection. The following items were addressed:
-Hex head grip screws stripped - screws removed and replaced with flat head screws
-Loose MIM factory plunger tube - removed and replaced with bar stock unit
-Cracked thumb safety (cast) - gun pulled from service
-Extractor tension/geometry corrected in 14 guns
-Hammer follow corrected on 3 guns via sear spring adjustment
-Barrel/feed ramp gap corrected on 2 guns
-Trigger overtravel adjustment corrected on 3 guns
-Mag catch trapping magazines - mag catch relieved internally
On Day 2 we headed to the range for a function fire protocol (sorry, it's part of the class and doesn't mean as much without all the context...so don't ask for it to be posted here). A few more guns were found to be deficient, and the following items were addressed:
-Extractor tension corrected on 4 guns
-Feedway and chambering stoppages - feed ramps recut, chambers polished on 3 guns
-False lockbacks on 4 guns - slide stops clearance cut and detents cut
Of the 19 guns in the class, I worked on 18 of them. The 19th actually had feedway issues which were not brought to my attention until after the class was over, and I did not have a chance to work on the gun. One of the guns, an alloy frame 4" barrel Commander style gun, was not able to be brought to proper functional spec with the time and resources we had available during the class.
The key learning point here is that the 1911 user must be educated and vigilant. Many guns that the owners previously thought were ok actually had some setup or function issues. Many of the required fixes were simple and only took me a few minutes in the classroom. After these easy adjustments, the same guns performed well on the range.
Learn more about your 1911 and get it squared away! Find an upcoming class near you on the 10-8 Performance Training Page. Our next class is 04/13-14/2012 in Garland, Texas.
Read some AAR's on our recent classes:
