Odd Experience with Ruger SR1911 CMD 3rd UPDATE

mark056

mark056

Joined
Sep 11, 2005
Messages
8,983
Likes
3,544
Location
Leoburg/Fitchminster area
Feedback: 9 / 0 / 0
THIRD UPDATE Took the pistol to the car shoot yesterday. Put 50 rounds of 230 gr ball, plus several magazines of Winchester Ranger 230 gr hollowpoint, plus a mixed magazine of 185 gr Federal hollow points, 230 gr Winchester Ranger HPs and ball in a ratty GI magazine. No problems and absolutely no problems with the front sight.

I will upgrade to an XS sight finances permitting and will replace the flat mainspring housing with an arched housing as I am one of those in the apparent minority today who prefer arched over flat.

For the money, I don't see how you can beat it.


SECOND UPDATE Received pistol back from Ruger today exactly one week after I sent it out to Prescott. It came with a Ruger cleaning cloth as a token of appreciation of "my support for Ruger products." Note also said that they fired 30 rounds of Black Hills 230gr Ball using both magazines with no problems. I will be taking the pistol to the NES Shoot on Saturday to test it out. I'll let you know what happens.


Last Sunday I purchased a new Ruger SR 1911 CMD (Commander Model) .45 ACP Pistol from Blue Northern. Very nicely finished, rosewood (?) grips, beaver tail grip safety, flat mainspring housing, skeletonized hammer, aluminum trigger with adjustable over travel screw, nice street trigger (@4.5-5lbs est.) and Novak front and rear sights. Today was the first opportunity that I had to shoot the pistol. Since I let my membership in the local Rod and Gun Club lapse and the weather was hot, I decided that the Manchester Firing Line would be a good place to go, so I drove up to Manchester to enjoy the air conditioned comforts of an indoor range.

The pistol had been field stripped, cleaned and lubed per my Army training on the 1911. I fired from a distance of 15 yards and seven yards using NRA targets and small silhouettes. It took a little bit of warming up, but I could comfortably shoot 2.5 inch groups at 15 yards. Not stellar marksmanship but more of a reflection on me than the pistol. I was shooting Armscor 230 Grain Ball and Independence 230 Grain Ball. I also had a box of Winchester 230 hollowpoints which I was going to try after shooting about 200 rounds of ball.

I experienced three FTFs which I attribute to me not seating the magazine, and not the fault of the pistol.

Things were going along fine until I got to round 181. At that point the blade of the front sight sheared off. I can offer no explanation as to why this happened. This is not a stressed part as I understand the mechanics of the 1911 pistol. I have seen older pistols with staked front sights get loose, but I have never seen a pistol where the front sight literally sheared off. The sight is in a dovetail slot. I showed the slide and sight to the Manchester Firing Line Staff. One of the guys said that he saw it on one other Ruger 1911. He thought it was due to the part being MIM and essentially weak. I have heard the arguments for and against MIM for a long time. The thing of it is, though the front sight is not a critical part as I understand it.

I'll contact Ruger Monday morning. I have every confidence that they will make things right. I may also upgrade to the XS Sight which I really like a lot.

Needless to say I am disappointed especially since Ruger has the reputation for making rugged, durable firearms. I am including photos and welcome any ideas that you might have.

UPDATE: Contacted Ruger yesterday (June 3rd) Customer Service wants we to ship the complete gun back. I asked if I could just ship the slide or if they would just ship me a new front sight. They were quite emphatic and said "No, because of liability reasons" and they want to test fire the pistol. I got a UPS Shipping label within minutes. Packed it up last night and will take to a Customer Service Center this afternoon. I'll let you know what happens.
 

Attachments

  • Ruger 1.jpg
    Ruger 1.jpg
    252.3 KB · Views: 210
  • Ruger 2.jpg
    Ruger 2.jpg
    214.7 KB · Views: 176
Last edited:
that isnt such an odd experience with that gun. Was talking to another member here yesterday, and he mentioned he has heard about 3-4 times from other people as well. I don't know the cause, but this is becoming a common problem with the Ruger 1911.
 
I have a fullsize and Commander SR1911, and my sights have been fine. It makes me want to shoot it a lot in 1 day though to see if anything happens.

There are a couple of other threads here with people having their front sights fall off as well or breaking. Could be some sort of defect maybe with that particular part???

Both of mine have shot fine to this point. I will get out ASAP though and shoot the hell out of both of them to see how it goes.
 
Odd Experience with New Ruger SR1911 CMD (Commander Model)

I have a sr1911. Mine broke too. Ruger sent me a new one and this one has been good.
 
I don't know what it is with Ruger sights, but I've heard of failures like this (As well as sights completely flying off) on a few of their models. It's odd, because everything else seems to be well made on the guns. I love my SR9C, and an SR1911 is probably next on my list for pistols.
 
The front sight is a stressed part. The G forces of cycling can wear heavily on this part. MIM parts suck and are usually weaker than milled sights. I would take this opportunity to upgrade. A nice fiber optic would be an improvement.
 
I don't have a lot of 45 ammo, but I will get out in the next few days, and shoot the hell out of both of them, to see how they run. I'll report back here when I do.
 
Ruger lc9 front sent fell off and rear sight walked a lot. In Ruger's defense they immediately sent me a replacement slide with front sight pinned and was here in less than a week no questions asked....good luck
 
So, did they replace whole gun with a new one, or just fix the issue you were having?

Also, if you got yours in 1 week, I am hoping for the same result with mine.
 
mark056 said:
I'm sorry I should have specified, they replaced the front sight which sheared off after 181 rounds. Same gun...
Click to expand...

If they tested it for 30 rounds, it's probably fine now. loki32687's Ruger has been fine I believe since he had his repaired.

Good luck with it, they are a great gun. It's frustrating having just sent mine in for a rust issue on the frame, but I know they will make it right, until it's right.
 
Congrats!

This is one of the few industries where standing behind a product is the rule, not the exception. I'm glad to hear they fixed you up so quickly.
 
You were at the car shoot? I was there too. In the back by the cars.

I am glad you're gun is working for you. I brought mine yesterday, but didn't even shoot it. [laugh]
 
mark056 said:
THIRD UPDATE Took the pistol to the car shoot yesterday. Put 50 rounds of 230 gr ball, plus several magazines of Winchester Ranger 230 gr hollowpoint, plus a mixed magazine of 185 gr Federal hollow points, 230 gr Winchester Ranger HPs and ball in a ratty GI magazine. No problems and absolutely no problems with the front sight.

I will upgrade to an XS sight finances permitting and will replace the flat mainspring housing with an arched housing as I am one of those in the apparent minority today who prefer arched over flat.

For the money, I don't see how you can beat it.


SECOND UPDATE Received pistol back from Ruger today exactly one week after I sent it out to Prescott. It came with a Ruger cleaning cloth as a token of appreciation of "my support for Ruger products." Note also said that they fired 30 rounds of Black Hills 230gr Ball using both magazines with no problems. I will be taking the pistol to the NES Shoot on Saturday to test it out. I'll let you know what happens.


Last Sunday I purchased a new Ruger SR 1911 CMD (Commander Model) .45 ACP Pistol from Blue Northern. Very nicely finished, rosewood (?) grips, beaver tail grip safety, flat mainspring housing, skeletonized hammer, aluminum trigger with adjustable over travel screw, nice street trigger (@4.5-5lbs est.) and Novak front and rear sights. Today was the first opportunity that I had to shoot the pistol. Since I let my membership in the local Rod and Gun Club lapse and the weather was hot, I decided that the Manchester Firing Line would be a good place to go, so I drove up to Manchester to enjoy the air conditioned comforts of an indoor range.

The pistol had been field stripped, cleaned and lubed per my Army training on the 1911. I fired from a distance of 15 yards and seven yards using NRA targets and small silhouettes. It took a little bit of warming up, but I could comfortably shoot 2.5 inch groups at 15 yards. Not stellar marksmanship but more of a reflection on me than the pistol. I was shooting Armscor 230 Grain Ball and Independence 230 Grain Ball. I also had a box of Winchester 230 hollowpoints which I was going to try after shooting about 200 rounds of ball.

I experienced three FTFs which I attribute to me not seating the magazine, and not the fault of the pistol.

Things were going along fine until I got to round 181. At that point the blade of the front sight sheared off. I can offer no explanation as to why this happened. This is not a stressed part as I understand the mechanics of the 1911 pistol. I have seen older pistols with staked front sights get loose, but I have never seen a pistol where the front sight literally sheared off. The sight is in a dovetail slot. I showed the slide and sight to the Manchester Firing Line Staff. One of the guys said that he saw it on one other Ruger 1911. He thought it was due to the part being MIM and essentially weak. I have heard the arguments for and against MIM for a long time. The thing of it is, though the front sight is not a critical part as I understand it.

I'll contact Ruger Monday morning. I have every confidence that they will make things right. I may also upgrade to the XS Sight which I really like a lot.

Needless to say I am disappointed especially since Ruger has the reputation for making rugged, durable firearms. I am including photos and welcome any ideas that you might have.

UPDATE: Contacted Ruger yesterday (June 3rd) Customer Service wants we to ship the complete gun back. I asked if I could just ship the slide or if they would just ship me a new front sight. They were quite emphatic and said "No, because of liability reasons" and they want to test fire the pistol. I got a UPS Shipping label within minutes. Packed it up last night and will take to a Customer Service Center this afternoon. I'll let you know what happens.
Click to expand...

I confess that I chuckled reading this thread, given the exchange we had on another thread:

http://www.northeastshooters.com/vbulletin/general-discussion/211858-army-killed-new-carbine-because-wasnt-trice-good-current-m4-2.html#post3258032

That 51 year old commercial Colt 1911A1 that I have, admittedly not used much, has never failed to feed or eject with all kinds of ammo: jacketed factory and handloads, FMJ, hollow points, lead SWC, everything; no dented cases, and hasn't thrown a front sight yet! No mysteriously rusting frame either.

:)
 
Your point? I think you are being smug now. I have seen and heard enough horror stories about Colts to know that any manufacturer can have a few lemons. Do you want to know about the Series 70 that I had back in the 70's? The Colt that would only feed hardball and dented every case it ejected, back in the day when I reloaded? I have seen the miniscule staked front sights on Colts fall off at the range.

Chuckle all you want, but I will stand by my remarks... Enjoy your pistol.

I don't have any problems with my Series 80 either, but today's guns are improved in many respects. To make the gun a viable carry piece I'd probably have to put @ 500 dollars to upgrade it: new sights (these eyes don't do so well with the standard Colt minuscule sights) extended thumb safety, beaver tail grip safety with bump (to ensure that the grip safety is always depressed) , and probably a trigger job. I could do some of this stuff myself (not the trigger job or cut a dovetail for a modern front sight). I would then have a basic personal defense pistol. Yeah, it will work fine as is I know, but it will work better under stressful conditions with those upgrades IMO. I want the most edge I can get in a PDW. But why do that when I can get something new for @ 150 bucks more? Also I prefer the commander length for CCW YMMV.

I find it interesting that you will base your experience and generalize regarding 1911's on one gun. Your argument is intellectually flawed because we are talking about trends and generalities and not specific examples. In the roughly six million Colt 1911's that have been produced it would be ludicrous to suggest that all are equal and that none were bad.

Let me know when you have put 10K rounds thru your gun and see if anything develops.

Madisonian said:
I confess that I chuckled reading this thread, given the exchange we had on another thread:

http://www.northeastshooters.com/vbulletin/general-discussion/211858-army-killed-new-carbine-because-wasnt-trice-good-current-m4-2.html#post3258032

That 51 year old commercial Colt 1911A1 that I have, admittedly not used much, has never failed to feed or eject with all kinds of ammo: jacketed factory and handloads, FMJ, hollow points, lead SWC, everything; no dented cases, and hasn't thrown a front sight yet! No mysteriously rusting frame either.

:)
Click to expand...
 
Last edited:
Madisonian said:
I confess that I chuckled reading this thread, given the exchange we had on another thread:

http://www.northeastshooters.com/vbulletin/general-discussion/211858-army-killed-new-carbine-because-wasnt-trice-good-current-m4-2.html#post3258032

That 51 year old commercial Colt 1911A1 that I have, admittedly not used much, has never failed to feed or eject with all kinds of ammo: jacketed factory and handloads, FMJ, hollow points, lead SWC, everything; no dented cases, and hasn't thrown a front sight yet! No mysteriously rusting frame either.

:)
Click to expand...

Yeah it's only Ruger's fault. Only they can make a bad firearm, or have a mistake at QC. [rolleyes]

Give me a break. I'll buy a Ruger any day of the week.
 
I meant my comments a bit tongue-in-cheek, not as an attack on anyone or their preference; light hearted.

That said, I do not agree that the "1911 of today bear(s) little resemblance to the service 1911s of a century ago." I think they are virtually identical in their fundamental design and features, and while I concede metallurgy has come along since 1911, that the metallurgical technology available so long ago was aptly applied in the design of the pistol. I don't think today's 1911s are significantly better than those of 30, 40, 50 years ago.

Producing a good pistol still requires control of the process, or material and process quality, and that is as true today as it was 100 years ago.

As far as the upgrades go, I guess I'm not following how you'd need to apply $500 worth of upgrades to a new pistol to arrive at a "basic personal defense pistol." Heck, in my view a basic personal defense pistol doesn't even need sights! Different strokes, I guess.
 
Last edited:
Madisonian said:
I meant my comments a bit tongue-in-cheek, not as an attack on anyone or their preference; light hearted.

That said, I do not agree that the "1911 of today bear(s) little resemblance to the service 1911s of a century ago." I think they are virtually identical in their fundamental design and features, and while I concede metallurgy has come along since 1911, that the metallurgical technology available so long ago was aptly applied in the design of the pistol. I don't think today's 1911s are significantly better than those of 30, 40, 50 years ago.

Producing a good pistol still requires control of the process, or material and process quality, and that is as true today as it was 100 years ago.

As far as the upgrades go, I guess I'm not following how you'd need to apply $500 worth of upgrades to a new pistol to arrive at a "basic personal defense pistol." Heck, in my view a basic personal defense pistol doesn't even need sights! Different strokes, I guess.
Click to expand...

Well I'm rather humorless when it comes to this topic. Also I am not going to enter the old point versus sighted shooting conundrum. Any student of the "modern technique" will use sights for distances more than three feet most likely. Point shooting has its disciples and I even took a point shooting class once at S&W, but keeping focused on the front sight appears to work in countless lethal encounters with a firearm and is doctrinal in most law enforcement and military training settings.

The reason you want is good trigger should be obvious. An extended thumb safety (wider) to ensure positive downward motion and not missing, a standard GI or commercial safety can be missed under stress. For those of use who were taught to use "the high thumb" and rest it on the thumb safety the wider oversized safety provides more space to place the thumb on. It's all related to ergonomics and technique. A beaver tail grip safety with a bump. The bump ensures that the grip safety will engage even with a less than positive purchase on the grip. The first thing to go in armed conflict is fine motor skills and I want to do have any practical enhancement that will give me an edge. Murphy's law seems to work best in combat...don't ask me why.

The point BTW and the reason you are not following me is because you didn't read. I said it would cost me $500.00 to upgrade my 27 year old Colt to current commercial standard, so why do that when I could get a new gun for about 150 bucks more that has the practical enhancements that will give me an edge already installed?

Next I suppose you will tell me that you don't carry your pistol in Condition 1. But, as you say, to each his/her own.

Believe what you want.
 
Last edited:
I hear you, and I agree the things you suggest are "all related to ergonomics and technique." I personally don't think a trigger job, better sights, beavertail grip safety, extended thumb safety, etc., are necessary for me, nor are they necessary to make a 'basic defense pistol,' for me; to each his own.
 
Just to add to this thread, my CMD broke it's front sight at about 900rds. Sent it back, the front sight broke off again at about 120-130rds. Back to the factory again. Still waiting for the return.
 

Similar threads

Help with rust prevention on my friend's Browning Citori CXS
Replies
15
Views
444
StephDoza
S
What's with this CZ?
Replies
15
Views
646
milktree
milktree
Help with SA Prodigy plate inquiry
Replies
0
Views
174
jeffC
jeffC
Ruger Max-9
Replies
0
Views
289
BigAl23
BigAl23
Ruger 22/45 lite grip size
Replies
2
Views
298
Lennypeters
Lennypeters
Back
Top Bottom