Polishing feed ramps....worth it or skip it?

[Buckeyeguy98]

Thanks a ton guys, this has been super helpful to a noob to the 1911 platform. So far I have not had any issues with ammo feeding or extraction issues but I always want to make sure I can optimize the performance of any of my weapons. It is a funny little mantra I got from the guy who got me into firearms, he told me " if you are gonna keep a pistol loaded, that damn thing better feed it when you need it" so I am on the ever quest to make sure that when I squeeze it goes bang!!!

 

[Certaindeaf]

I polished my 1911 and now it's awesome..





not really

 

[orygun]

After talking about my old series 80 Colt Officers, I dug it out of the safe for old times sake.
I was going to use it for a carry piece and that's why I had it worked on to make sure I could count on it if I needed it.
It's a heavy little chunk of steel and now I remember why I never wore it on my hip, plus it was too nice to scratch it all up in a holster, when there are lighter plastic guns that will work.


View attachment 397432

Had one just like it. If I had it now, I'd carry it!

 

[Alexx1401]

After talking about my old series 80 Colt Officers, I dug it out of the safe for old times sake.
I was going to use it for a carry piece and that's why I had it worked on to make sure I could count on it if I needed it.
It's a heavy little chunk of steel and now I remember why I never wore it on my hip, plus it was too nice to scratch it all up in a holster, when there are lighter plastic guns that will work.


View attachment 397432

Damn nice looking pistol!!

 

[Koda]

Purchased my first 1911 recently and have been looking for some function / reliability upgrades to do to it. I have seen a lot of chatter saying polishing the feed ramp is a necessity for most firearms, especially 1911's to improve feeding of hollow point ammo. So my question is for those who have polished feed ramps...is it worth it? If so where to get the materials and what has worked best for you. Thanks in advance!

If you've purchased a new gun failure to feed issues will be covered under warranty, for free. If you polish the feedramp, you will void the warranty.

And there are no function/reliability upgrades needed to a new modern 1911 they run fine, modern manufacturing techniques have taken care of any bugs in the 1911, if your having problems to a new 1911, its on the manufacturer to fix their production mistake. The list of things people will tell you you "need" for a 1911 is all folklore.

Well, you can get stung on cheap magazines but technically thats not the gun.

 

[KKG]

... he told me " if you are gonna keep a pistol loaded, that damn thing better feed it when you need it"...

The Easy way to do that is with something called a "Revolver"!!! They still get the job done.

 

[nammac]

Gave my ATI Commander a tad of Mother's Aluminum Polish on a felt tip, driven by a Dremmel... Just to bring the feed ramp sheen up to that of the barrel throat, now they look like a matched set... All purdy and shiney inside... Somehow, this helps me to sleep better at night... not really...

 

[Ura-Ki]

All the polish in the world isnt really going to help, its the throat and how the rounds come off the mag stack. Most every 1911 ever made will feed ball with out issue, its when large cavity hollow points enter the mix that problems happen. Remember, the 1911 was designed to feed 230 gr ball, and to be reliable like no other! A little polish isnt going to hurt any thing, may even make cleaning a little easier, but for feeding defensive ammo, the throat is what can cause hang ups. A light blending of ether side of the hood and the ramp to chamber is all thats needed!

 

[mkwerx]

Having owned a 1911 with some DIY gunsmithery done - I plead you leave the frame be. Bugger it up and you have a paperweight.

#1 thing to make a 1911 feed right is a GOOD magazine. My favs are Chip McCormick followed by the Wilson Combat 47 or 47D (one is a 7 round the D is an 8 round) I like the McCormick mags more. Kimber mags are decent too.

1911s are sexy as hell and its real tempting to dress em up like a runway model but even a plain jane gun will get yer giggles going if you do right with it.

 

[Certaindeaf]

If it rattles too much you can give the slide a good ol' squeeze in a heavy duty vice too.













do not do.. unless you are a professional, lol

 

[Argonaut]

I throat my 1911's primarley to allow them to consistently feed huge bucket mouth hollowpoints. We have been doing it for 40 years. You don't want to leave a rough surface so when done grinding polish is good.

 

[Ura-Ki]

Surprisingly, my 10 mm 1911s are the ones that really needed throating and polishing. The rounds come off the mag stack and ether hang up on the transition of the ramp to chamber, or the 200gr and heaver hollow points hit the underside of the hood and wedge part way into rhe chamber, causing a nice smiley in the brass about mid length! Once i blend the ramp transition and polish the underside of the hood, they all feed flawlessly what ever ammo i run through them!

 

[Sgt Nambu]

Well.....does it feed the ammo that you want to use?

Yes. Don't polish it!
No. Polish it!

I'll say it again, polishing is not metal removal, except an incidental unmeasurable amount. Want to know what to use and how. Go buy a Dremel brand polishing kit, (Sears has a Craftsman version), everything is in there, assuming you have an electric or pneumatic die grinder.

Below: A cluster of polish, cotton polishing rounds and an arbor. About half of my polishing kit.

 

[woody06]

I polish the feed ramp whenever I buy a new pistol. Also run a cloth with a little Flitz on it through the barrel 2 or 3 times, not a lot of elbow grease, just 2 or three passes, before firing the first time. Don't know if it makes feeding any better but does make it easier to clean.

 

[ron]

I have owned and tinkered with 1911's for+30 years. I have polished several
feed ramps of the barrel that did improve feeding. I use a dremel
and jeweler's rouge. I have also stoned the bolt face to make the round
feed smoothly up under the extractor. This book describes the procedure. Back
in the olden days it was common to "throat" the barrel to feed wadcutters
and hollow points. Argonaut's post shows a throated and un throated barrels.
Jerry Kuhnhausen's shop manual I have used since the 1980's.

 

[ikemay]

Purchased my first 1911 recently and have been looking for some function / reliability upgrades to do to it. I have seen a lot of chatter saying polishing the feed ramp is a necessity for most firearms, especially 1911's to improve feeding of hollow point ammo. So my question is for those who have polished feed ramps...is it worth it? If so where to get the materials and what has worked best for you. Thanks in advance!

Personally, I'd just shoot it a lot before doing anything at all. Doesn't make sense to take a new firearm and immediately start doing stuff to it, to "correct" a "problem" that may or may not even be an issue.

The shooting and consequent feeding of ammo during your shooting sessions and the cleaning afterward ........ your going to knock some of the roughness off anyhow. But that's what I would do, shoot it a lot before doing anything. "A lot" is a bit vague, but I think 300-500 rounds should give you enough information about it's functioning to make a decision on what to do, if anything. Some might say more, some might say less, just use your best judgement.

Best of luck and have fun!

 

[Argonaut]

Personally, I'd just shoot it a lot before doing anything at all. Doesn't make sense to take a new firearm and immediately start doing stuff to it, to "correct" a "problem" that may or may not even be an issue.

The shooting and consequent feeding of ammo during your shooting sessions and the cleaning afterward ........ your going to knock some of the roughness off anyhow. But that's what I would do, shoot it a lot before doing anything. "A lot" is a bit vague, but I think 300-500 rounds should give you enough information about it's functioning to make a decision on what to do, if anything. Some might say more, some might say less, just use your best judgement.

Best of luck and have fun!

Not a bad point.......but barrels are sort of consumable on a 1911, not expensive or difficult to replace if you screw it up. The biggest reason to throat and polish is if you are planing on shooting more exotic bullets. Hard ball feeds in anything. I think in a different pistol, like a revolver or more uncommon semi auto your point has more merit.

 

[Argonaut]

I have owned and tinkered with 1911's for+30 years. I have polished several
feed ramps of the barrel that did improve feeding. I use a dremel
and jeweler's rouge. I have also stoned the bolt face to make the round
feed smoothly up under the extractor. This book describes the procedure. Back
in the olden days it was common to "throat" the barrel to feed wadcutters
and hollow points. Argonaut's post shows a throated and un throated barrels.
Jerry Kuhnhausen's shop manual I have used since the 1980's.
View attachment 397525

I have that book. And many more done by him.........Jerry did wonderful work, well written and illustrated simple instructions for work on many different firearms. He was a Northwesterner.

 

[ikemay]

Not a bad point.......but barrels are sort of consumable on a 1911, not expensive or difficult to replace if you screw it up. The biggest reason to throat and polish is if you are planing on shooting more exotic bullets. Hard ball feeds in anything. I think in a different pistol, like a revolver or more uncommon semi auto your point has more merit.

I understand what you're saying. I'm simply commenting on the OP and his having purchased his first 1911. I just think he should shoot/clean/disassemble/reassemble and shoot it some more before he does anything. He'll have plenty of time to make any changes or modifications based on his experience with his 1911. But your points are well taken.

 

[Ura-Ki]

You guys are both rigjt on track. 1911s need to be broken in, and depemding on how tight, may take as many as 500 rounds to get it just right! Unless it has issues right out of the box, i would just focuse on breaking it in. Once you are ready to start carry, and are experimenting with diffrent loads, then is when i would look for any issues and how to solve them! Remember, a proper built factory 1911 is suposed to be the most reliable fighting pistol ever made whem running spec ball ammo, its the new stuff that usually causes issues. One of mine had ceracoating all over the inside of the frame and slide, even after breaking it in it still would hang up a little on the breach face, so that one got a little stone work and a polish! Its also the tightest factory 1911 i have ever seen, and it shoots amazingly well, as it should! Accuracy is target grade, and this is a carry gun with really good hand loads as there are still only a few options for a factory load yet!