My 1911 got weird on me today

Handguns
1

Something went wrong with the hammer spring (maybe?) on my Rock Island Gi

After the 2nd 8 round mag it started light striking, had to pull the hammer back again on at least 2 per mag for the next 3 mags.
After the first light strike oiled it up, slide and firing pin, didn’t help.

Could it have just gone soft right in the middle ?

2

Never a good time to go soft…

When you lubed the firing pin I assume you would notice if there was a buildup of crap in the pin hole?

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3

Gun has less than 60 rounds though it
Another reason why I’m not sure what’s happening here

4

Brand new gun like that not lighting off primers, check the firing pin channel for swarf. It can wedge in there good and get in the way.

5

The firing pin and channel should be free of oil. Clean all that junk out of there. Any oil will trap the dirt and clog the channel.

Before you reassemble it, slide the firing pin into the channel without the return spring. Feel for any binding as you push the pin all the way in and check that it is protruding through the breech face properly. Also check that the tip of the firing pin has not broken off.

Reassemble with the spring and make sure it is still not binding. A deformed spring could impede the pin’s travel.

ETA: It could very easily also be the ammo. What was it and how had it been stored? Do you still have any of it? Check it for high primers.

6

All good suggestions here, I also recommend trying different ammo. Had similar happen with Geco ammo in past, stuff had hard primers or whatever, any other brand ammo worked fine. If doesn’t pass the ammo change test then open a ticket with Armscor/Rock Island, they will fix it.

7

+1 for clean and clear firing pin channel. Degrease the area well. Even if it isn’t dirty, enough lube can slow the movement of that pin.

Also a good suggestion to check for firing pin protrusion.

The main spring is not hard to replace if it does end up being the main issue.

8

Ammo was fresh off the press
230 gr alloy, powder coated semi wadcutter
4.9 Bullseye - which isn’t the cleanest burning powder but is the standard for .45 ACP
CCI primers, all well seated

Fired fine from 3 other guns, only this one had an issue, and based on the fired primers it was a light strike thing

I’m going to break it down and see if it was a gunked up firing pin. Based on the amount this gun has ever been shot (barely at all) I’m leaning towards that vs the spring. I do shoot Red Dot and Bullseye, not your cleanest burning powders.

9

Try throwing it over the wall??

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