Problem with Ruger SR1911 front sight

FAQMAT

FAQMAT

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So, last sunday i was at the range shooting my SR1911, about 1000rnds fired with this gun give or take, and suddently, my front sight disapeared! Back at home i Google the problem and realized that it is a well known problem with this model. Contacted Ruger CS and they tell me to contact the Canadian repair location, Snap Shot, located in the Montreal area. Witch i do yesterday. They tells me to send just the slide and that they will replace the deffective sight with a new, improved model. Is anywone have their replaced and can confirm that i will not receive the same crappy sight that seems to broke on almost every SR1911?
Anyway i sent the slide there and should get it back by the end of the week or early next week. Other than that the gun is flawless, especially for the price.
BTW the front sight is not made by Novak, only the rear one is, the front sight seems to be a 2$ pot metal piece.

 
They will fix it and it should be back quickly. Their quality control stinks but their warranty work is pretty good.
 
Will they ship just the sight? I'm not interested in having my gun torn down and half of it shipped to gawd knows where, relying on gawd knows who to make things right. I'd much rather just have the part in my range bag. Know what I mean? Am I off the mark?
 
Sent my in twice, just the slide. The second time it lasted about 250 rounds, won't be buying anything from Ruger again any time soon.
 
There are two SR1911s in our pistol club that have had this happen to them. One went warranty, one went to a local smith. I'm betting the local smith fixed the problem correctly, time will tell.
 
plinker 777 said:
Will they ship just the sight? I'm not interested in having my gun torn down and half of it shipped to gawd knows where, relying on gawd knows who to make things right. I'd much rather just have the part in my range bag. Know what I mean? Am I off the mark?
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I hear you. I had a major issue with my 12 gauge Ruger Red Label and they told me to contact this same repair depot. No thank you, I'd rather have the gun down and source out a solution myself than send it off to an unknown warranty shop. They were ignorant on the phone and I will not be sending anything to them. I wouldn't trust them to put air in the tire of a wheelbarrow.

Find an appropriate replacement sight, and install it yourself. Gunsmithing is a vocation that has evolved into a group of lazy do-nothings that will mess up your firearm, tell you it will be at least six months to return, or that they simply aren't capable of doing your repairs (if they have any shred of honesty).

Seriously though, its a dovetailed sight. You can do it yourself if you have even the most rudimentary tools and any self respect. Tap out the old, tap in the new. I just revealed the secrets of gunsmithing!
 
Dont bother with warranty, just buy some nice quality sights that you like and never have another problem with it.
 
I didnt ship slide to QUEBEC SO I had to buy and
pay for sights and shipping .
I had local gun shop here in Charlottetown get them for me.
Total cost they charged me for two front sights was $ 32.00

I paid it. Way over cost but I didnt want to ship slide. So...
I dont own gun any more and wont get another SR 1911
 
jackrabbit000 said:
This is what you get when they use MIM parts. I would replace it with a real steel sight.
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Bingo - that is indeed the problem. MIM - "Metal Injection Moulding" is a quick and very cheap way to make small detail parts - like a front sight on a Ruger. Basically they crush a buncha very fine bits of metal together, and the heat of compression binds them into one piece. A lot cheaper than machining the part - but add enough vibration and the bits'll eventually fly back apart on their own. I've read about several SR1911's that suffered this.

We're replacing the back sight on "SWMBO"s SR1911 with an adjustable - it's been fitted once already, in the process of which we discovered the new rear sight is a lot taller than the old rear sight and therefore, it's a lot taller than the front sight too. So we've got a new, taller FO front sight on order, and when it gets here, our old front sight will be available for somebody desperate - but it's a MIM part too, so it's likely not worth replacing yours with it.
 
A front sight is a very small problem to detour you from ever owning another ruger, or sr1911. Besides the front sight, the sr1911 is an amazing firearm with great accuracy and a real nice look that always receives compliments at the range. For the price one of the best 1911's.
 
It is crazy to me that a company would ship a gun with that common problem. I mean how much can they be saving by shipping the crap front sight? 20$??
 
The problem was adressed by Ruger about as quickly as can be done by a major gun company.

The new sight they supplied us with are machined and no problem has been reported with those.

all you have to do is ship the slide to: Location Snap Shots, 650 rang Roy, Ste_Martine, QC J0S 1V0, along with your return address and the gun's serial # and your sight will be replaced on warranty.

I generally replace the sight on the day the slide comes in and the slide is shipped back to you on the next day.

P. Barrette
 
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