Light FP Stikes in A .45

[StrikeEagle]

Well... dang.

My Colt Double Eagle Officer's Model has me singing the blues. Again.

I've had it for maybe 15 years... and it's had perhaps 1000 rounds through it. It's been back to the factory *twice* for failures to feed. Well, I took it back out, and this time started getting light firing pin strikes... a second or third pull fired them. But this is the ONLY .45 I have that has any problem with this ammo. The ammo is my own reloads with Winchester primers. Decent ammo, really.

What can I do about this? I was getting 2 or 3 light strikes in a magazinefull. I'm really about ready to just sell the piece. My confidence in it is near-zero, as you can imagine. But I'm willing to give this thing one more try.

Help is needed.

hopefully,
StrikeEagle

 

[nemesis]

Is it the gun or the ammo? Were the primers firmly seated?

 

[R.H. Lee]

Mebbe try some factory ammo first, to eliminate a prob with your reloads (primer seated too deep or case too short). If it still suffers with factory ammo, look at the mainspring and fp spring. Are they broken or not spec? Are there any burrs in the fp channel? Is the fp bent or deformed?

 

[Vern Humphrey]

Take it one at a time:

1. Try factory ammo. If no misfires, suspect your handloads.

2. Check the firing pin and firing pin tunnel. Is the firing pin to spec (length, diameter, straightness?) Is the tunnel obstructed (burrs, crud, corrosion)?

3. Check the firing pin return spring -- too long, too stiff?

4. Check the mainspring.

 

[StrikeEagle]

Thank you all!

The fp channel was clear, so I tried some GI .45 ammo. It worked fine.

I guess it's my handloads... sigh.

Still odd... I've been using this exact load for years and it works with every other .45 I have.

thanks again!
StrikeEagle

 

[BluesBear]

I've been using this exact load for years and it works with every other .45 I have.

Then it's time to do the pencil test.

Make sure your Double Eagle is unloaded.
Take a brand new unsharpened pencil.
Confirm the gun is unloaded.
Cock your pistol and point it toward the ceiling.
Check one more time to make sure it's unloaded.
Drop the pencil down the barrel.
Pull the trigger.

Notice how far up the pencil travels. It helps if you have someone else watch from a distance to confirm the distance.

Repeat with one of your other .45s

If the pencil doesn't go as far with the Double Eagle then you have a weaker mainspring.

Also, remove the firing pin and compare it to one of your others. Is the length and nose profile the same or different?
Are the firing pin springs the same?

The Double Eagle is a Series 90, if one of your other 45s is a Series 80 just swap the firing pins and see if it makes any difference.


Then let us know what happens.