Norinco 1911 Chamber length Issue ?

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Hi, folks. I'm loading for a new Norinco 1911 Police model in .45 ACP. I've shot 100 rounds of Wolf reloads and 100 rounds of my own reloads without any problems. I made up a new batch of ammo and suddenly the cartridges don't fit. Yet, they shoot just fine in a Tanfglio Witness that I tried them in.

I.m using standard 230 gr FMJ bullets and various kinds of once fired brass. I've checked and rechecked all the specs; COL, diameter and case lengths. ALL are well within spec. I've tried various bullet seating depths and taper crimping/not crimping. Nothing makes them fit. The cartridge is sticking out of the chamber by about .025 when loaded, yet the empty brass will seat into the chamber with room to spare. This causes the slide to stop short of proper battery and the trigger can't be pulled.

So, the question is; has anyone run into this before with Norincos, and if so is cutting the chamber slightly deeper an option ? As I said, the cartridges work fine in another gun, so I'm thinking it must be the Norinco chamber that's the problem.

Thanks for any answers.
 
norinco or not this is a reload problem not a chinese problem

have you messed up with your expander die or powder through expander die?
i had that problem when i switched from using expander die to powder through expander, bell was just a notch too aggressive, not enough to see it, but too much to chamber right.

I either had to pull 300 or buy a lee factory crimp die to crimp the excessive bell (went for option #2)
 
I'm using an RCBS taper crimp seating die. I've tried setting it from no crimp, increasing the crimp in very small increments and fitting to the chamber each time, and seating at various lengths. No combination ( and I've got about 20 loaded cartridges to prove it, heh ) gets the final product to the correct length, which I would assume is even with the back of the chamber. Something has changed since my first batch of reloads and I just can't figure out what it is. Plus the fact that the Norinco is so fussy makes me go Hmmmmm...

Oh, I also thought about the expander, so I reduced the bell to the point where the bullet would just balance on top of the case. Still no joy.
 
I found with my Norinco 1911 that if I don't bell flare my cases enough to allow the bullet to seat cleanly...it can cause a small amount of overhang....almost unnoticeable by the naked eye but enough to cause the slide not to go fully into battery. Try using a micrometer on a reload vs. a factory round and measure right where the case meets the bullet.

Hope this helps,

Sean
 
Yes, this batch of loads is exactly the same materials as my original batch.

Sean, so you are suggesting that the initial case expansion might be the problem. I'm sympathetic to that idea since it seems to me that since the bare brass fits into the chamber without a problem, then maybe if I'm not belling the case mouth enough, as the bullet pushes into the case it's expanding the case too much and even with the taper crimp it's hanging up on the oversized brass near the mouth of the case. I did a lot of measuring with the calipers trying to determine if that was a problem but couldn't find any obvious signs of a bulge. I can put a micrometer on it and look more closely but still, it makes me wonder why the Norinco would be so tight in it's tolerances. I'm thinking it's not exactly a match barrel on it, heh.

Thanks for the replies, gents.
 
I have seen this before.

it could be a probelm at the mouth of the case, with a small bulge cause be inadequate or improper crimp.

But, the way you describe it, i think you should try seating your bullets a bit deeper. The bullet may be sticking in the chamber throat.

remember, the published COAL is for THEIR gun, not yours.
 
x3 on seating deeper. I have had my Nork about a year and put about 3000 reloads through it. All different types of bullets, and played with COAL, and crimp. My Norc feeds everything I throw at it. Semi wadcutters all day long, so whoever says the norks are picky I cannot agree.
 
Actually, I'm seating the bullets way deeper than the published COAL, and it's not really doing anything. I've decided to take my pile of oddball attempts, some of my leftover original working loads and some of my non-working loads, along with the calipers and micrometer, out to the range tomorrow where I can safely load them into the gun and see if they work. If I come to any ear shattering conclusions I'll share, but I'm not really too confident.
 
It occurs to me that I've never shot any factory loads out of this gun. I've used Wolf reloads, my own original batch of reloads, and some reloads that the RO at my range lent me. All worked fine.

Of course, this doesn't explain why my "bad" reloads shoot fine in other guns, or why they measure to the same tolerances as my "good" reloads.

It's a puzzlement. Perhaps heavy drinking of strong Scottish spirits will provide clarity. I'm sure it won't make my hands shake on the morrow, either.
 
Take one of the rounds that won't chamber and cover it with a black felt pen (bullet to). Try to chamber, then extract cartridge and look for any of the marker to be scuffed off.
Don't feed from a mag, drop in chamber and close slide.
 
Try cleaning the gun!!! Check the chamber for burs, or debris(piece of patch). Why are you assuming it is the loads when they worked before, and in other guns. Something had to change in your barrel.

Or

Back your crimp off all the way and slowly increase testing the rounds for fit with every increase. I don't even have to crimp mine and they drop in the chamber fine. I crimp to prevent bullet setback. If you get to the point you are pressing the case into the bullet you have gone to far.

If the same reloads worked before and you havent changed your setup then I can't think of what else it could be.

I just loaded 100 rounds of 9mm and about 10 didn't drop completely into the chamer of my g17. I know that in the gun if I have the force of the recoil spring helping them in, it wont make a difference though.

Did you check the previous rounds for fit before actually firing them. If not you may have just created a problem that doesn't even exist. Go shoot em.
 
Win Shooter- good thinking. I'll have to try that.

miehtovaara- I've done all those things, multiple times. As I said, it's extremely puzzling; in fact, Does Not Make Sense. So, off to the range tomorrow with my box of stuff. Maybe enlightenment will strike me, heh.

Thanks for the comments, fellas.
 
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