Why? Please answer HELP! Wrong bullets?

[Nathaniel]

I bought my first handgun it's a federal 1911A1 .45.  Then i asked a friend to buy me 100 rounds of .45 acp, he got me the ones that has  "45 auto AP 13" written under them, they're full metal by the way, IM NEW TO GUNS, so i tried loading the bullet in the chamber it fits well. I can't try them out yet because the range is far from my place and i live in a city i'm going there next week. THE PROBLEM IS THIS: when i tried to fit the bullet through the barrel (bullet's pointed part first into barrel , barrel's end outside the gun) it won't fit and is tight! I tried doing the same thing with a hollow point and it fit right.   Did My friend get me the wrong ammo or this is only normal with FMJs?  I really don't understand...  I FEAR THESE ROUNDS MIGHT END UP STUCK IN MY BARREL.

Please help me i don't want to look like a complete idiot in the firing range with my friends next week bringing the wrong ammo.   Thank you so much and Godbless America!

[GEvens]

If you tried to fit the bullet into the muzzle end of the barrel--the part of the barrel that the bullet usually comes out of--it is normal for it to fit very tightly.  The bullet is actually a little larger than the grooves in the barrel so that it forms a tight gas seal when fired.  I suspect you did not have any problem with the hollow point bullets because the largest diameter of those bullets is probably inside the cartridge case and that part will not go into the barrel.  The markings you describe on the .45 cartridges are typical for military surplus ammunition.

[ellis4538]

Not sure what the AP means but it might be "Armor Piecing" which is a BIG NO NO at most if not all ranges!!!!!  Better ask the person at the range if it is an indoor range.


Richard

[atmiller]

Never heard of "Federal" 1911A1. 

[robert69]

Re headstamp on case.
There is a website that will tell you by the letters on the case where the BRASS came from.
If that brass was reloaded, than the source of the loaded ammo would be incorrect.
The AP designation could be from arms corp of the Phillipines, or also a manufacturer  in France.
The #'s usually designate year of manufacture.  Probably not 2013. DO NOT USE +P AMMO!
Yes the bullets had better not fall down the barrel, they would be VERY inaccurate.
The Federal brand of 1911's were originally a decent pistol, and were assembled from
surplus parts.  In the later years of production their quality fell off, their reputation fell,
and they went out of business.
I would suggest having the pistol looked at by a good gunsmith, because the Federal pistols had a reputation of soft metal, and not good machine work. The information about the Federal 1911's can be researched via google.

[Sponsor]

[Big Frank]

As it's been mentioned it should be a tight fit, if it goes in at all. It has to be a tight fit in the barrel to seal in the combustion gasses. Other wise it would have "blow-by" where the gasses escape around the bullet.

[Silver Bullet]

I bought my first handgun it's a federal 1911A1 .45. 

Then i asked a friend to buy me 100 rounds of .45 acp, he got me the ones that has  "45 auto AP 13" written under them, they're full metal by the way,

IM NEW TO GUNS, so i tried loading the bullet in the chamber it fits well. I can't try them out yet because the range is far from my place and i live in a city i'm going there next week. THE PROBLEM IS THIS: when i tried to fit the bullet through the barrel (bullet's pointed part first into barrel , barrel's end outside the gun) it won't fit and is tight!

I tried doing the same thing with a hollow point and it fit right.   Did My friend get me the wrong ammo or this is only normal with FMJs?  I really don't understand...  I FEAR THESE ROUNDS MIGHT END UP STUCK IN MY BARREL.

Please help me i don't want to look like a complete idiot in the firing range with my friends next week bringing the wrong ammo.   Thank you so much and Godbless America!

 

No offense, but, yours is one of the scariest posts I've read on anybody's internet gun forum in years - Years!  Sounds like you're really in, 'over your head', my friend. 

Your 1911 appears to be an old, late 60's - early 70's vintage, 'Federal Ordinance' pistol.  You might want to have it checked out by a competent 1911 mechanic BEFORE you start shooting it. 

If the ammo is marked, 'AP' then, yes, it probably is armor-piercing.  (Better you should put it on the shelf as a collector's item; and go out, again, and buy some conventional 45 Auto ammo from Wal-Mart.) 

Right now you're toying around with a real gun, and real ammo.  THIS is never a smart thing to do.  I don't know where to tell you to begin?  It's certainly not with trying to squeeze fit bullets into the muzzle, though.  I worked with the Boy Scouts of America for years; and during this time I never found a better place to begin firearm training than with the memorization of, 'Cooper Four Rules Of Firearm Safety'.  I'll list them for you here: 

1. The gun is ALWAYS loaded!

2. Never allow the muzzle to point at - or, even, so much as sweep across - ANYTHING you are unwilling to see destroyed! 

3. Never put your finger inside the trigger guard until AFTER you have made a conscious decision to fire!

4. CLEARLY identify your target, the target's backstop, and what is beyond!

Don’t embellish these rules. They are what they are for good reasons!  In order for firearm safety rules to become truly effective they must stop being just rules, and become a PROFOUND PERSONAL HABITS, instead. 

If you want to really learn how to handle that,  '45' I'll give you the phone number for NRA Firearms Training; they can put you in touch with any number of local firearms instructors. 

http://training.nra.org/  (Bottom of page) 

Another good way to familiarize yourself with your new handgun is to attend IDPA orientation and practice sessions. 

http://www.idpa.com/ 

Now how about making an older firearms instructor very happy, and stop fooling around with a deadly weapon about which you know next to nothing.  By the way, thanks for having the vision to ask for help!  Good luck!        

[kmitch200]

If the ammo is marked, 'AP' then, yes, it probably is armor-piercing.   (Better you should put it on the shelf as a collector's item; and go out, again, and buy some conventional 45 Auto ammo from Wal-Mart.)

Since his friend probably didn't go to the SecretSquirrelAmmoDump™ to pick up armor piercing handgun bullets, it's much more likely they are made by Armscor Precision of the Philippines.

[tombogan03884]

Mitch, Silver Bullet is wrong. You are correct, "AP" headstamp is PROBABLY Armscor , but may also refer to an unidentified factory in France.

http://cartridgecollectors.org/?page=headstampcodes

[ellis4538]

tom, I was the one who first put forth the opinion that "AP" might mean armor piercing. (The fact that the op didn't mention a brand name made me think it might be old surplus ammo out of the box. Surely newer ammo would be in a factory box!  Your comment about "an unidentified factory in France" makes sense also.)  After I posted that, I wasn't sure but didn't correct the post.  I believe rifle ammo has non-standard colored bullet tips but am not sure about pistol bullets.  Maybe someone can help. 

FWIW


Richard