SR1911 locking up on the link

Pinecone said:

Mr. Snake is! Check some of his posts where he attacks me pretty severely from time to time...

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What are you talking about? I don't recall ever seeing your name before this thead. I just went back through the last 10 pages of your most recent posts--that's your last 150 posts, going back to the 1st of June--and I can't recall ever posting in any thread you're in (mostly stuff about Ruger revolvers, with which I have just about zero experience).

I think you might have me confused with someone. :?

For now, I softly suggest that these issues be taken up off line, please...... :wink:

For those of us who love this platform for the way it feels and shoots, but aren't all that savvy yet on the details of the way everything works, I'd like someone to explain something to me.

How do you tell if your pistol is "locking on the link" or "riding the link"? Must be some clues somewhere to look for.

And that, of course, begs a second question: If it is riding the link, how do you tell if it's doing so excessively. That is, how do I know if it's something to worry about (or not), before I have a failure?

I love all my 1911s (although today, I gave one of my favorites - a stainless Springfield Loaded - to my son). I'm trying to learn all I can about these fine guns.

How does one determine if a 1911 is locking on the link vs the lugs vs the slide slots?

Pocketfisherman said:

How does one determine if a 1911 is locking on the link vs the lugs vs the slide slots?

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You're the second or third person to ask that question. Doesn't look like anyone has the answer. Maybe funny wear marks on the lugs, and link pin/slide release or something like that. Just a guess. The SR1911 is my first so don't have much of a knowledge base at this time.

Yeah, a lot of crickets chirping here.

It's complicated. I could tell you and show you on a real gun, but it might take me an hour to type out an explanation that might not come across anyway.

Is it a lack of contact marks on the barrel lugs where they should be touching the slide stop? Is it visibly seeing the barrel hood drop down as it goes the last little bit into battery? Is it looseness on the hood end of the barrel when it is locked up? How do you figure it out? DieChem Blue on the lugs barel and slide lugs and then look for no contact?......Give it a shot with an explanation please.

A couple of tidbits from the M1911 Pistols Organization Forums:

http://www.m1911.org/technic22.htm

This one explains both "locking" and "riding" on the link, but doesn't really explain how to diagnose either condition.




http://www.m1911.org/technic_forum.htm

This one is a page with a lot of technical tips and data about the 1911. Pretty good reading on a snowy Saturday morning.

You could mark the lower lugs with Dychem Layout Fluid or a Sharpee marker to see if they are rubbing against the top of the slide stop pin when the slide goes into battery.

I noticed that my slidestop is rather loose in the frame. I read here:
http://ezine.m1911.org/showthread.php?t=91

Ruger's slidestop is .004" underside. I wonder whether installing a bigger pin would stop this link locking.

918v said:

. . . I read here:
http://ezine.m1911.org/showthread.php?t=91. . .

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Hmmm.

From the article:
"Similarly, we have come to expect the barrel to lock up by means of the barrel lugs contacting the slide stop pin. However, in service-grade pistols such as this "standing on the link" is not only common, it also reflects the original M1911 design."

Well, locking up on the slide stop pin tends to produce better accuracy. That's how all the bullseye pistols are fitted.

Agreed, locking up on the pin might be the best way.

But still, nobody has offered a way to diagnose how a gun is locking, whether on the link or on the pin.

I did, with layout fluid.

Also, if you take the barrel out, insert the slide stop pin into the link and articulate it, you will see if the pin makes contact with the lower lugs. If it doesn't, then you know it is locking up on the link. If it does, you will need to mark the lugs with layout fluid and cycle the gun.

Thanks.

You know, I thought about all that but figured it was just too simple to be a good check. I'll give it a try on all of mine this week.

But of course, if it IS standing on the link, how much is too much? Apparently (according to the quote above, for whatever it's worth), it was how JMB designed it. So if the barrel lugs aren't sitting on the pin while in battery, how do we know if it's doing so excessively?

I think that when you feel the link cam over as the slide goes into battery, forcing the barrel lugs into the slide, the link action is excessive.

918v said:

I did, with layout fluid.

Also, if you take the barrel out, insert the slide stop pin into the link and articulate it, you will see if the pin makes contact with the lower lugs. If it doesn't, then you know it is locking up on the link. If it does, you will need to mark the lugs with layout fluid and cycle the gun.

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How does this work without the slide in place and without the affect of the barrel hood hitting the breech face or the locking lug on top of the barrel fitting into the slide?