so, my dad gave me his 1911...

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Legumeofterror

New member
Its a Colt MKIV Series 80 Officer with tritium sights. ive shot it in the past and remember it had issues feeding reliably, even with ball ammo. what are some common causes for this? the magazines it came with from factory look to be cut down 7 round mags, if that might be a cause. i have taken it apart as far as removing the slide and barrel, do i have to go any farther as far as regular maintenance goes? are there any issues with this particular model i should know about? my dad didn't know much about it, not even how to disassemble it, and i don't have the manual. any info about it is appreciated. anyhow, here are some pictures!

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3-fitty-7

New member
my series 80 mk iv government had alot of trouble feeding when i first got it used. i bought a wilson combat mag thinking it was the gun but sure enough, it was me. i didn't know how serious a problem limp wristing would be since i only shot revolvers before that. one day i was in the range and it was misfeeding every other round so i got the range officer and he put 2 mags down it in the tightest group i've seen. he told me to adjust my grip, i did and now it is my favorite shooter. also when i take my friends with me it malfunctions alot and they blame the gun but i think the 1911 is all in the grip. go to youtube and checkout todd jerret and he has a tutorial on 1911's, if your sure it's not your grip maybe others will have better answers. hope this helped
 
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Boris Bush

Moderator
+1 3-fitty-7

My primary shooting buddy is one of them 1911 guys, you know the kind. He likes to limp wrist and guess what, his 1911s FTF on a regular basis. The one time I got one of his 1911s to jam for me was when I had a brain fart and used the slide stop to charge, or I mean jam the gun. I slingshot to charge autos and was just being lazy that time I guess.
 
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3-fitty-7

New member
to load i use both, sling shot and slide stop, i think i have had a ftf once with the slide stop.
oh, as far as maintenance i just field strip the slide and barrel to clean but once in a while i have my range use the ultrasonic machine for places i can't get to. i am no expert by any means tho, i still learn new things everyday from people on this and other forums.
 
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maestro pistolero

New member
The most important thing to remember with a short 1911 is that the recoil springs need to be replaced on a regular basis, sometimes as often as every 500-700 rounds. Do this as a matter of course, and you'll save yourself a lot of headaches.

Wolff gun springs are as good as they get, and not too expensive. Get a few of them and save yourself shipping. You can buy them online.
Good luck.
 
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Silvanus

New member
my dad didn't know much about it, not even how to disassemble it,
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But you do, right? If not I would learn how to disassemble it and give it a good cleaning and lubrication. I don't know if the gun was shot a lot or not, but it might just be very dirty and/or completely dry.
 
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B. Lahey

New member
Make sure it's clean and lightly lubed. Swap out the recoil spring every once in a while (now would be a good time if you don't know how old and battered the current spring is). Try a variety of different mags and lots of different ammo types from different manufacturers.

If you can't find a combo it likes after the above, I guess have it looked at by a good gunsmith.
 
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yomama

Moderator
Youtube a 1911 disassembly. You will find one that shows you how to fully disassemble. I'd clean every part as it probably has never been done on this gun.

After that, feeding reliably may take a polish job.
 
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M1911

New member
the magazines it came with from factory look to be cut down 7 round mags, if that might be a cause
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Those are factory officers model magazines. The officers model frame is shorter than the government and commander model, so fullsize magazines will not fit.

It should operate properly with factory officers magazines. Personally, I use 6 round Wilson magazines in my Kimber Compacts.

I've heard a number of gunsmiths say that officers model 1911s are more persnickety than government models. Clean it, lube it, change the recoil spring, then go shoot it. If it works, you're done. If not, find a good 1911 gun plumber.
 
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sholling

New member
Clean it and lube it good and feed it with quality Chip McCormick mags and there is a good chance it will work fine.
 
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Legumeofterror

New member
i know how to take it apart up to removing the slide and barrel, they have both been lubed and cleaned. the slide moves more smoothly now, so i guess theres some improvement. i will get some new springs for it, though i know he had a smith tear it down and everything a while back, and he never shot it much. ill go shoot it this weekend and see how it does.
 
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rem870hunter

New member
looks nice, i never saw an officers model before now. my dad has a govt. model colt 1911a1. mk.4 series 70. i think it has pachmyar grips on it.
 
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Sarge

New member
That's a nice little pistol; even nicer since it came from your Dad. On your problem...The Officer-sized guns do munch recoil springs faster than 5" guns. In the 17 years I have been doing LE firearms qualifications I have seen a number of them do exactly what you described.

The hands-down best replacement for these guns is the Ed Brown 'Reverse Plug' unit. This works well enough that I adapted it to an Auto Ordnance 'Pit Bull', solving its FTRB problems. It had been a problem child, busting both the spring plug and bushing in the first 100 rounds. It ran slick as a whistle after the reverse-plug mod.

Installing Ed's Reverse Plug Recoil System does require machining or filing away about 1/10 inch from the rear face of the recoil spring tube, on the bottom of the slide. The upside is that you'll never have watch your recoil spring plug launch itself downrange in the middle of a string.
 
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B. Lahey

New member
There is also something else you can try.

Graphite. I have a 1911 that just doesn't run as well with any other lubricant. With graphite it is totally reliable, but with other lubes, not so much.

I like the Hornady "One-Shot" graphite spray because you just spray some on, let it dry, wipe off any excess, and you end up with a super-even application. It's harder to get an even coat dusting with the powdered stuff.

It's one more thing to try before sending it off to a gunsmith, anyway.
 
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IdahoG36

New member
That is a very nice looking Colt. I hope it works for you. That is too nice of a gun to just sit in the safe because it malfunctions.:(
 
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