Colt Government Series 70 Bushing

[kBob]

Anyone still using one?

I used one from 1975 until 2005 when a “gun school” instructor said that if I loved my kids I would go to a “Standard Barrel Bushing”

I was wondering if anyone has one they used longer than 30 years with no issues.

Despite all the stories from instructors, gun smiths, and range and gun store Commandos I have yet to have a face to face with anyone that saw the dreaded Broken Bushing finger jam.

Having seen an actual stoppage caused by a broken Standard Bushing and seen a couple of cracked bushings over the years on Service pistols, I do wonder if breakage and stoppages from them are any more common on the Series 70 bushing than the standard.

Maybe we “just know” the finger bushings are “Bad”because folks say so!

-kBob

 

[starnbar]

Never had an issue with mine bought pistol in 73 I replaced it with another finger bushing in the late 80s I shot ammo cans of hardball all those years and no failures had to replace extractors and recoil springs several times but no bushings.

 

[Old Dog]

Are you talking about the collet bushing?

I have one 42 year old Series 70 with the original collet bushing. I have had no issues with it. The pistol has about 8500 rounds through it (I know, I'm a piker, should shoot it more, but I haven't been able to see the sights on it for a while).

On my other Series 70, the first owner had replaced the collet bushing with a standard bushing.

I have never known anyone who's had one break, though if you go over to one of the 1911 forums, you'll see this question asked a lot, and maybe a handful of posters will claim to have broken one.

 

[CapnMac]

Yes

Busted versus not busted

And the busted bit did cause a jam. How soon after breaking, I couldn't say.
Pulled the recoil spring plug out and the spring, and the bit fell out, too. Reassembled just fine.

 

[MutinousDoug]

My old gunsmith "friend" told me when he talked me into buying a Gold Cup Slide, Collet Bushing, Barrel and Link he had laying around, instead of having my REAL gunsmith rebuild my Bullseye gun after 20K rounds that if I moved the slide back 1/4"before rotating the collet to remove it, it would last forever. If I used the bushing tool without 1st doing so, I was courting disaster. Otherwise, the collet bushing and standard bushing were (supposedly) equally robust although he also ultimately recommended having a standard bushing fitted because he'd never seen one of those broken.
I hated that Gold Cup and, although I don't compete much anymore, my built up Springfield continues to soldier on; The Gold Cup contraption languishes in my safe...

 

[gnappi]

I broke the fingers off of my Colt .38 super before they could break on me. It's still in a .38 super I might add!

 

[halfmoonclip]

Despite all the stories from instructors, gun smiths, and range and gun store Commandos I have yet to have a face to face with anyone that saw the dreaded Broken Bushing finger jam.

Back in the dark ages, when all we had were gunzines and gun store commandos, there was no end of concern about the finger bushing. An old, now late, shooting buddy was the proud owner of a collet bushing Colt, and he worried about it a lot. Don't recall it ever breaking, but I've avoided them ever since.
Moon

 

[derek45]

I would replace it with a hand fitted NM bushing

 

[Slamfire]

One finger broke off the bushing on my Colt Combat Elite. Must have been in the late 80's. I found the broken piece inside the slide, luckily nothing had been damaged by that piece of metal rattling around inside the slide, while I was shooting. That pistol had a lot of problems and when I sent it off to Wilson Arms, I had the Colt barrel and bushing replaced, along with a Bomar rear, different front sight, Wilson beavertail, new hammer, etc, installed.

That rattled me enough, because the finger is a substantial chunk of metal, and it could have damaged something while the pistol was cycling, that I replaced the series 80 split finger bushing on my other Colt with an Ed Brown bushing.

the Ed Brown bushing was a total drop in, no filing needed. This period of series 80 Colts had flared barrel ends, you cannot use a standard GI barrel bushing.

I thought amazing, the zero of the pistol was unaffected. My first shot at 25 yards, with the Ed Brown bushing installed, was dead center at 25 yards.

I think those split Colt bushings were a horrible idea.

 

[Charlie98]

I think those split Colt bushings were a horrible idea.

Nice idea, poor execution.

The bushing cracked on my Series 80 Colt, but it cracked through the main part, not the finger.

 

[CapnMac]

but it cracked through the main part, not the finger.

I've seen several of those--rather a few un-noticed by owners. The bushing is a spring steel component, and the circumference is constrained by the slide, so, that "failure" may not affect the operation of the firearm.
I would replace it if I were using it in 3-gun or IPSC, where a person is going through several hundred rounds per week. But, for a box or two every other week, maybe not.

 

[cfullgraf]

I bought a 1911 Series 70 Government Model around 1980. I liked the collet bushing but it broke one of the fingers around 2500-3000 rounds. Colt sent me a new one on their dime.

But a crack appeared in the dust shield where the dust shield mates with the rest of the frame. The broken finger got jamed in the recol sping channel and jammed the gun a bit.

I shot the gun for a while with the new collet bushing then installed a 38/45 Clerke barrel in the gun. I changed to a full barrel bushing at that time.

Still concerned about cracked dust shield, as a project, I built a stainless frame for the gun and installed the original slide with a standard bushing on it.

I bought a Wilson 22RF 1911 upper which I installed on the Colt frame with the cracked dust shied. I figured the recoil from 22 RF would not measurably add to the damage on the frame. It is a great 22 RF pistol.

At first, I thought the collet bushing aided with lock up amd produced better groups. But, after shooting 1911’s with solid bushings for the past 25 years or so, at least with my shooting skill, the collet bushing gives no benefit with a high risk of trouble.

 

[Anchorite]

Yep. I ran a GCNM for a number of years with zero problems.

 

[Charlie98]

I've seen several of those--rather a few un-noticed by owners. The bushing is a spring steel component, and the circumference is constrained by the slide, so, that "failure" may not affect the operation of the firearm.
I would replace it if I were using it in 3-gun or IPSC, where a person is going through several hundred rounds per week. But, for a box or two every other week, maybe not.

We continued to shoot it... but the tolerances on this pistol were so sloppy, it didn't matter. My brother sold it shortly after we discovered the cracked bushing... and because it had that prancing pony on the side, he got back what he paid for it. It was a beautiful pistol, but much like my 'Made in Belgium, Assembled in Portugal' HiPower, it was not the sum of it's parts.

 

[25-5]

Going on 50 years and north of 60,000 shots fired without issue. Actually never heard of the problem. I do have a Barstow SS barrel.

 

[Rock185]

About '76, I bought a new Gold Cup. I don't know how many thousands of rounds have been fired through it, but a member of my family still owns it. It still has the original collet bushing. I get to shoot it occasionally, and the old pistol is just as accurate and reliable as it was 45+ years ago. I did sometimes replace collet bushings with solid bushings. With the loose factory Colt drop-in bushings, accuracy deteriorated. Accuracy was restored with a fitted bushing.

That being said, back in the day, while shooting with an acquaintance, the collet bushing in his new S70 Government model broke. The remains of the bushing, the recoil spring plug, and recoil spring launched down range. The solid Clark bushing in another friend's S70 Govt. also broke. His gunsmith had recommended he replace the factory collet bushing with the Clark bushing, because factory collet bushings are liable to break

 

[sgt127]

I did. I was at an advanced shooting school. Colt series 70. The gun stopped. Cold. Slide felt like it was welded on.

Rubber malleted it far enough to get the slide stop out. Beat it some more. When it was close, I hit the back of the slide with my palm.

It let go and I got a pretty nasty slice down the heel of my hand from the ejector.

I have one left on a colt .22 conversion unit.