I shot some reloads today in my SR1911, most of the spent cases had marks in the extractor groove. Not sure if this is normal or indication of a problem? No other cracks or dents, and the primers aren't flattened, pierced etc.
Load data:
Berry's plated 230 gr. RN
5.6 gr. W231
Federal 150 primer
Federal brass
Avg. COAL: 1.261"
Berry's recommends low-to-mid range jacketed loads, so I used the starting load for the 230 gr. TMJ RN from the Speer #14 manual.
No problems with rounds feeding or extracting.
Should I be concerned or could the markings be from something else?
Compare your charge to Hodgdon's data for W231. Most reloaders use cast bullet data for plated bullets and some manufacturers recommend that. Hodgdon shows a load range of 4.3 - 5.3 grs. but with a very short OACL of 1.200" for a 230 gr. RN. I guess it's possible that you might be just a tad over-pressure but I don't have any way of knowing what those "extractor groove marks" look like and it isn't easy to get over-pressure conditions with typical .45 ACP loads using a fairly stable powder like W231. I don't get any such marks with cast or JHP loads. I have W231, but don't use it much because I like WST for light cast bullet loads and Silhouette for faster JHP loads. For general use in .45 ACP, I prefer ZIP which is similar to W231 but gives better performance with JHPs and cleaner loads with cast bullets, not that there's anything particularly wrong in using W231.
K57, I saw the load data on the Hodgdon site and that got me wondering, but this is what Berry's website recommends:
When loading plated bullets we have found best results using low- to mid-range jacketed data in the load manual. You must use data for a bullet that has the same weight and profile as the one you are loading. Do not exceed mid-range loads.
I used Speer's recommended COAL of 1.260 so I thought I would be under max even though their starting load is higher than what Hodgdon recommends.
Well, I would be inclined to use a similar OACL to the SPEER recommendation, myself. Don't understand how you're getting the extractor marks because I don't see how your charge could be high enough to be a problem. What you could do would be to back down to the 5.3 gr. charge that Hodgdon lists as a Max. charge for their cast bullet. With the longer OACL you're using, there shouldn't be any issues.
I've encountered similar problems with a few pistols and it was, in my case, excessive extractor tension. Excessive extractor tension can also cause inconsistent feeding or an intermittent feeding problem.
No. Either tune the extractor yourself or have someone that knows what they are doing do it for you. It's no big deal to adjust. I'd hit the underside edges with a hard stone...very lightly to knock off any burrs if visible. It should not be sharp.
No. Either tune the extractor yourself or have someone that knows what they are doing do it for you. It's no big deal to adjust. I'd hit the underside edges with a hard stone...very lightly to knock off any burrs if visible. It should not be sharp.
Just take a 230 gr dummy round(with bullet seated properly) and slide it under the extractor claw up against the breech face. As you pull the cartridge up(or down) away you should feel a slight bit of pressure. Using that same dummy round slip it back under the extractor and take the slide and shake it up and down a little. The cartridge should not fall out but move up and down. If it's stiff as a board and stays straight ahead it's too tight.
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