Used norinco 1911a1....

The discussion of a semi-automatic pistols

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BigBill
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Used norinco 1911a1....

Post by BigBill » Wed Jan 23, 2008 10:24 am

First i'm a class A machine builder, Machine erector, I also built 155mm howitzers for the US army, besides a lead engineering tech. With all my assembly experiences i wanted to try some mods on a 1911 since i'm sitting here disabled and bored. I can't do much for any length of time. Here's my story;

I picked up a used norinco 1911a1 in 45acp. The slide is really loose on the frame but still has some life left in it. The barrel bushing was loose on the barrel and inside the slide too. Overall the pistol looked great but it was well used. I picked up the 1911/1911a1 book and the armorers DVD. I ordered a new barrel from www.sportsmansguide.com with a full length guide rod kit with an 18# recoil spring. I also ordered an IAI national match barrel bushing from CDNN with some IAI full wrap around rubber grips.

I fitted the barrel bushing to the slide first. I polished out the slide so that the wrench is needed to turn the bushing in. Its not too tight its just snug enough to hold the bushing inplace. Then i fitted the barrel to the slide and bushing. I opened up the front upper part of the bushing just enough to let the barrel swivel from full battery position into the load position by removing some metal from the bottom rear part of the barrel bushing too. The barrel has to go from full battery to the load position with no barrel spring at all. But it has to lock up tight when its in full battery. The upper rear of the bushing and the lower front of the barrel bushing is untouched so it will hold the barrel snug when its in full battery. I made sure it had no barrel spring when its in both positions it just lays there.

I cleaned the pistol and lubed it with moly on the recoil springs and the full length guide rod setup, and the slide and frame rails, the face of the hammer were it resets and on the bottom of the slide too. After working the slide by hand a few times(50) it was ready to test fire at the local range.

The pistol shot perfect without a hitch, there were no jams or stovepipes for over 250rds. I did notice it cycles faster because there is no over travel with the 18# recoil spring. It cycles faster and smoother and it has very little recoil jump too. You can almost put the second round in the same spot very quickly its that fast when it cycles.

The only problem is its shooting 3 shot clover leafs @ 25yds no matter who shoots it. I did it 3 times the first time out. My youngest son with his girl friend wanted to go shooting, and they never shot handguns before. They also shot one clover leaf each too.

I purchased the swage kit to swage the frame rails a tad tighter but with it shooting so good i hate to touch it. Should i swage the frame rails a tad tighter in the front part of the rails?

Trust me i'm not bragging nor a 1911 guru. I took my time and read and watched the video over and over to try to understand what they do and how the 1911 functions and works. I took my time bu going very slow and watching the progress and improvement as i went along with each change.

I started buying the parts for a complete 1911a1 build next. I would like to see if i can do better with a new pistol to build from the frame up. I need the lower frame now but i'm not sure which one is the best one thats still affordable to use. Again i purchased all the parts from sportsmans guide i just need the lower frame or should i purchase the lower frame with the slide(matched)?

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