I own a Colt Series 80 M1991A1. It's a fine little shooter, and has never failed to go boom when the trigger was pulled, but it has an issue: it is hard to get magazines in the well unless I really force them. Around the magazine catch, a magazine just stops unless I hit the magazine hard from the bottom. I've owned other 1911s and this is my second 1991A1, and I never had a problem with magazines sliding right into the magazine well except for this pistol. So is this something easy to fix or is this something for a gunsmith to figure out?
Can you clarify? Every 1911 I've shot I stick the mag in the well firmly pushing it in as far as I can. Then smack it to seat it properly with the palm of my hand.
New 1911 is like a virgin on prom night. It sometimes is real tight at first, but after it's been worked a few times, loosens up. It's still tight but doesn't require a lot of effort to get the job done. An older 1911 that has been around the block is like that mom with three kids. Sure, getting up in there is easy, but there's no tightness left to it. This is tight like the asshole of a nerd who just got sentenced to 60 days in county. He's clenching, he's squeezing, and he's doing everything he can to not let that fine specimen of pure Alabama blacksnake belonging to Tyrone into his tender balloon knot. It's only after using some brute force, like a good swift hit to the bottom, enough to leave a bruise on the hand, that anything goes in and stays in enough to do the job. No 1911 I've ever fired has been this difficult to get the magazine all the way in, and I've tried several magazines that work perfectly in other 1911s.
OK. I just wanted to clarify what level of force you were having to apply. I'll see what I can find talking to some buddies.
Weren't the series 80s 1911s problematic to begin with? Sounds like this might require a trip to the 'smith to fix. But I am just guessing. Elwood is the SME when it comes to 1911s
#1 - You say it's a Series 80 1991A1. I DO NOT want to know the serial number. But, I do want to know if it actually says 1991A1 on the slide. #2 - If it does, your gun was made during the deepest and darkest period of Colt's quality control problems. I'd get a smith to check it all the way over. Any problems would come to light during that. #3 - If it has the new roll mark and does not actually say 1991A1 on the slide, gimme some pictures of the magazine well, please.
It has the big ol' ugly M1991A1 rollmark. It was in new condition when I bought it, but was old stock (didn't even have the idiot stratch in the parkerized finish). Magazine comes out just fine, it's just a cast iron pain to get the magazine in. I was hoping to avoid the gunsmith route. The only gunsmith I know has a multi-month backlog, in large part because he's that good and because he's semi-retired and only works on guns for something to do when the fish ain't bitin'.
Give me some pictures, both up close and medium distance away, of the magazine well. I don't want to go guessing until I get a look at it.
Are the magazines new too? Is it hard to insert loaded, unloaded or both? Do you have the same problem when inserting a magazine with the slide locked back?
