1911 Barrel Bushing Broke

[Jon]

So, I was out at the range Saturday morning and about 25 rounds in my pistol started jamming on me. I field stripped it, and found that one of the fingers on the barrel bushing had broken into two pieces.

After doing a little online reading, apparently I have one of the often vilified collet bushings, and this happens. They are supposedly more accurate, but tend to break fingers after awhile.

What's a decent standard barrel bushing for my SA 1911A1 that isn't too expensive? I don't need the latest and greatest, just something that will work, and isn't sloppy.

Thanks :coffeecom

[docone31]

Most any good solid bushing will work. While you are at it, put in an extended slide guide also. Makes a good difference. I have one in my wife's 1911, and my Combat Commander.

[462]

MidwayUSA or Brownells will have an assortment of replacements.

[HeavyMetal]

If your going to replace that bushing with a solid one get an over sized one and fit it your self or have it fitted!

The collet barrels shot darn good, because the collet locks up tight in Battery, try a Loose fitting GI type bushing as a replacement and you'll think you got a shotgun!

The full length guide rod is also a good suggestion.

Brownell's is a real good place to get both!

[imashooter2]

If you don't want to fit one, measure your barrel and slide and pick from the wide variety that Brownell's offers. You can generally get pretty close.

[MtGun44]

Collet bushing fingers do occasionally break, and a good solution is to replace
it with a new collet bushing as a drop in part. That said, I have replaced some
unbroken collets with hand fitted solid match bushings, and if properly done, they
will enhance accuracy a bit over the typical collet.

In my opinon the main thing a guide rod improves is the bank account of the
seller of the guide rod. It also adds to the weight of the pistol, maybe good or
bad depending on what you want out of the pistol. John Browning knew the
spring was trapped and needed no internal guiding when it had 100% external
guiding. It also makes the gun (in most designs) much harder to field strip. I have
some now that I haven't yet bothered to replace since they are relatively harmless
except for wt, cost and field stripping. I would not add one, but haven't been
in much of a rush to remove them, except in my carry Commander where wt
is important, and field stripping might be important, plus I want the pistol as
John Browning intended as far as the basic functioning is concerned. Sights and
beavertail, bolder safety, etc are not changes to the basic design. I think the
spring guide is on the border. Of course, Browning did not design the shorter
Commander version, so that is already a compromise, but a well proven one.

However - it is a still (for the time being) a free country and you should put one in if you like
them. At least they are pretty well proven harmless. ;-)

Bill

[Jon]

How hard is it to fit a bushing to a barrel? Is it something I can do with some needle files fairly easily?

[Dale53]

Jon;
A proper bushing is fit with a reamer. It is critical to the operation and accuracy of a good 1911.

Dale53

[StarMetal]

I might add that just getting the bushing to fit the barrel isn't all there is to it. Some bushing must be fitted to the slide too, but that's not what I'm talking about. When the slide racks back on a 1911 the barrel is cammed out of the locked position and the barrel is then at a great angle to being horizontal in the slide. That means that the bottom inside rear or the bushing and top inside front of the bushing must be relieved. If not done, especially with a tight bushing the barrel will bind.

Dales is correct the best way is to use a reamer to open up the inside of the bushing, but it can be done on a lathe too. Always polish when finished.

Joe

[StarMetal]

By the way I have a collet style bushing from Colt running since the 70's and in some very hot wildcats too. I've too heard they break the fingers, but I reckon I must have gotten a really good one. Watch it break now. :-D

Joe

[redneckdan]

I am not a fan of guide rods either; one more thing to deal with for disassembly, adds weight that I don't really need on a carry gun, makes it much harder to chamber a round one handed. Those are just a few reasons. With the GI style rod you can place the front of the slide on an edge and charge the weapon. With a guide rod pistol sometimes you can still use a narrow edge but its much harder, can also try catching the rear sight on your belt but that doesn't work with novak style stream line sights.

[Geraldo]

For duty or carry guns, a collet bushing is a bad way to go, as it will surely break just after you engage in a gunfight. I replaced one years ago with some sort of drop in from Brownells and never had any problems or real loss of accuracy.

I know a lot of people who are opinionated one way or the other on guide rods, but I'm ambivalent about them. I have 1911s with them and won't take them out, but I won't add them to 1911s that don't have them. The arguments against them are that they make field stripping harder (I haven't found that to be so) and that in an emergency they make it impossible to rack the slide by pushing the slide against a hard edge (this is true, but there are other ways to skin that cat).

[StarMetal]

Guide rods don't improve accuracy....I've run tests on quite a few of my 1911's. I shot 25 yards groups with and without guide rod. In some instances and certain calibers the guide rod took away from my accuracy a little. I do run them on the ones that shoot good with them because I think the recoil spring compresses more uniformly and the pistol seemed to cycle smoother. I'm, after all these years, still up in the air about them. I pay particular close attention to when a manufacturer brings out a new whistles and bells 1911 with all the gizmo's that a gunsmith would put on for you, but straight from the factory.......to see how many have guide rods. Guess what, not all of them do. Note that sometimes when reading advertisements.

Joe

[flinchnjerk]

On a 1911 the barrel is concentric with the slide (parallel to the top of the frame) when it's out of battery, and at an angle to the slide (breech end cammed up) when it's in battery. It's the lower front and upper rear that must be relieved.

[MtGun44]

You need an adjustable reamer in the correct range, around 5/8" if I remember correctly,
to get the ID correct. The OD is files and patience. Get another collet and drop it in.
They DO break but not often. My old Gold Cup has one that has about 70K rds or more
thru it without problems, I have seen some break but many go on and on.

Bill

[Jon]

Thanks guys for the input so far. I do take this gun to the range, but it's also my carry gun. I'd like to have it as reliable as possible. I don't have a whole lot of extra money at the moment to pay someone to gunsmith it for me, so I'll have to do what I can myself.

I'm looking at the Swenson Bushing at Midway.
http://www.midwayusa.com/viewProduct/?productnumber=528011

[Bill*]

Jon- just looked at the midway link you just posted. Either I haven't let the coffee take effect yet or Midway needs to move the decimal point one place to the right. Good luck getting a .45 boolit down a barrel that fits in a .0581 hole[smilie=1::rolleyes:

[Jon]

Jon- just looked at the midway link you just posted. Either I haven't let the coffee take effect yet or Midway needs to move the decimal point one place to the right. Good luck getting a .45 boolit down a barrel that fits in a .0581 hole[smilie=1::rolleyes:

Yeah I noticed that too. The reviews seem ok for it. I haven't measured my barrel OD yet, but it should be pretty close. I may have to invest in the reamers as mentioned above. Sears has a wheel cylinder hone that would fit for $9. Would that be able to take any material off from the inside, or would I be wasting my money?

I found these online for adjustable reamers. I'm not sure about the quality, but they might be ok.
http://grizzly.amazonwebstore.com/Grizzly-H5938-7-pc.-Adjustable-Reamer/M/B0007D2BRU.htm?traffic_src=froogle&utm_medium=organic&utm_source=froogle

And this place.

http://www.wttool.com/product-exec/product_id/35516/nm/Adjustable_Hand_Reamers_WT_Import_

[Bill*]

Yeah...I'm sure it'll be fine, I'm just goofin' on their mistype. And No, the wheel cylinder hone is usually spring loaded and would follow the contours of the original hole, dont think it would be a good idea as the hole in the bushing isn't completely "square". See Starmetals post above (post # 9)....Bill

[redneckdan]

the 'step' isn't wide enough for a hone to work properly, need to have a reamer or a lathe.

[mtgrs737]

I have very slowly added custom parts to my SS Colt Gov. Model over the years, right now there are not many small parts that haven't been replaced on it. I too shucked the finger bushing for fear of breakage at the wrong time, I also wanted to get back to the configuration that John Browning intended. I went with a solid bushing by EGW and am very happy with it. The EGW bushing took very little fitting and is tight as can be in the slide and barrel.. It is the angle bored model with the extra thick flange. I only needed a small piece of 400 wet or dry paper to polish it up to get it to fit tightly while still being able to install/remove it with a bushing wrench. The barrel moves in and out of battery easily due to the angle boring from the factory, it is a high quality bushing. I got it from Brownells for under $20. The only thing I don't like is the extra thick front flange, I called EGW and had them checker one of their long nose recoil plugs so that it would be flush with the end of the bushing, the std. plug would of worked but I didn't like the looks of it.

I used to run a full length recoil rod but I dropped it when I figured out I didn't need the extra weight up front. I like the idea of not needing an allen wrench to remove the rod when cleaning.

Check the dimensions of the bushing to your slide and barrel, I would bet that little fitting will be required. Good luck!