Fighting The Slide Stop....(1911 Rant)

[billt]

Without a doubt, this is the absolute worst part of 1911 reassembly. On every 1911 I own, every time, all the time. They pop right out with zero effort. But go to reassemble them, and let the frustration and cussing begin. I've tried it with the pistol right side up, upside down, on it's side. In every conceivable position, with the exception of in the weightless environment of the International Space Station. Eventually they go in. The problem is eventually we'll all be dead.

And, before anyone tells me they've never had trouble with one, forget it. Tell me you've had sex with the entire Dallas Cheerleader squad in one night. I'll have an easier time believing that! The damn things go all the way in without effort with the catch down around the trigger guard. Then carefully move them up into position and press, being oh so careful to avoid the idiot scratch......... And nothing. Realign and try again..... Nothing. Repeat........nothing. Finally, after 247 tries, it snaps in without effort, almost like that's the way it was designed!

On no other pistol is this more of a pain in the a$$. CZ's, Browning Hi-Power's, Sig's, Beretta's. No problem at all. Pick up a 1911, (I don't give a damn if it's a $400.00 Rock Island, or a $4,000.00 Ed Brown or Wilson Combat), and let the struggle begin. John Browning stated that when he designed the Hi-Power he said he wished he had put everything on the 1911 he put on it. Translated he meant, He wished he would have better designed the F*#KING slide stop!...... OK, rant off. Now let me hear from you guys how you deal with this, because we all know what a pain in the a$$ it is.

[Timothy]

I had to learn to reassemble in the dark, Bill!  This ain't your first 1911... 

My Para wasn't too bad, the S&W my SIL had wasn't too bad either.  In the military, we were issued different firearms from the armory any time we were called on to carry so just a simple breakdown and reassemble was done to make sure it wasn't a broken down brick.  Still not too many issues.

I still prefer one over anything else...

[billt]

The problem, (or blessing depending on how you look at it), with military guns, is most of them look like they were dragged to town and back on a Saturday night. So you don't have to worry about scratching them up. Sure, we all could just force them, and if you get a nice big idiot scratch, who cares. But I don't own a 1911 with an idiot scratch, and I don't want one. Perhaps I'm being too careful, hell I don't know.

A big part of the problem it seems, is the hole in the frame for the slide stop is bigger than it needs to be on most, but not all, 1911's. This allows just enough misalignment when the slide stop engages the plunger, just as it's engaging the hole on the opposite side of the frame at the same time. Also, if the slide stop was just a bit longer, that would help as well. The problem is it would look stupid when the pistol was reassembled.

There is a modification to the slide stop that cuts a small groove in it where it engages the plunger. This groove is cut in with a triangle file on an angle. This allows for a more gradual engagement of the slide stop plunger, allowing it to snap into place easier. I just don't believe a pistol that has endured over 100 years, needs a file or Dremel, so you can assemble it without the wife and the dog leaving the house in fear, because they think you're cracking up.

[PegLeg45]

I know you don't believe it (and no, I have never had relations with a cheerleader) but I don't have this issue with my Colts.....maybe it is the length of protrusion of the plunger....maybe it's a gift. 
Like Tim, I can 'do it in the dark'. 
None of my 1911's bear the "scar" of the slide stop.


Now, I have seen it be an issue on other guns..... a friends standard Para last year was the devil to get to go in.
What I used was an old thin plastic "dummy credit card"....you know, those fake ones that come in the CC junk mail.... I keep them because they are handy for things like smoothing caulking and things like that... I just used it to depress the slide stop plunger as I pivoted it upwards. It takes the right 'feel' and once you get past the point of the plunger, it should pop right in.

Might not work for everyone, but it did for me the one time I needed it.

[Timothy]

Remember the history of the 1911 design wasn't to be a bullseye gun.  It was designed to run clean, dirty, wet and basically to be "minute of chest width" accurate @ 25-50 yards without using anything but the sum of it's parts to disassemble and put back together.

I qualified with my instructors "tweeked" 1911 in 1977-78 but didn't shoot too badly with a Korean War era Colt 1911A1 from our armory or several since I never used the same gun twice. 

The dreaded scratch isn't a big deal cuz once you've scratched it once, the next won't make more damage...

[Sponsor]

[Big Frank]

I put the slide stop in until it gets to the plunger and press in and up at the same time and it pops right in. No scratches that I ever noticed. I never had a problem but I think it's even easier with an extended slide stop because you have more leverage. 

[billt]

I've got some plastic machinists shim, (.020 thick). I'm going to try that next time between the plunger and the slide stop. I'm going to the range Tuesday, so I'll see how it goes than.

I think Springfield's are the worst for this. My Remington Stainless R-1 slides in without much grief. It's more the brand or individual gun, than it is the "technique".

[addict]

It's more the brand or individual gun, than it is the "technique".

Ditto that! No problems on most of mine, but I have an STI Trojan and the plunger hole is just a smidge too big and it sticks out a few too many thousandths. Have to use a dental pick to depress the plunger while lining up the hole and pressing in the slide stop. I get lots of practice as it is one of my favorites! 

Addict

[billt]

This is the problem with 1911 handguns. If the tolerances are stacked against you on the high end, you'll fight the slide stop, regardless of who made the damn thing because you've got zero "wiggle room". If you get everything on the money, you'll have no grief. They can be the same make and model gun.

[alfsauve]

Tell me you've had sex with the entire Dallas Cheerleader squad in one night.

Darn,3 day weekend.   Maybe you'll give me some cred anyway.

I had to go double check the part description to make sure I knew what you were talking about.   Never ever had a problem.   I have a '70 Government model.

Holding in my right hand left side up,  I make sure the link is lined up by looking through the hole.  With the slide stop parallel to the slide I push the rod through the link and gun.  When I get to the detent plunger then I tilt the stop downward just a little and then push upward and inward to force it past the plunger.  Jiggle the slide back and forward to get an exact alignment while pushing on the stop and voila.    Never been a problem.   Never given it a second thought.

The only hard part on a 1911 is getting the detents and spring back in after taking out the safety.

Harder than that is the detent and spring on an AR forward take down pin.    Who hasn't lost one of those?  <crickets>?