Does it make a difference? If so, how?
>>64765607+ makes ejecting empty cases easier.- weakens the slide
+ Dents brass less- Diects crud to barrel link more
>>64765607Wtf am i even looking at
>>64765865Smaller vs larger ejection port cuts on a 1911
>>64765755Weakened in a meaningful way? No.
>>64765921You are most likely right. And with modern metallurgy and some fancy nancy alloy, the slide with the larger ejection port is probably still more rigid than the old one made from some inferior alloy.But if someone is using Bobbas pissing hot hand loads™ at the end of this slides life span, it will most likely crack at this exact spot.Fun fact. That's the spot where some pistols of the first version of the P8 (Germanys version of the HK USP) cracked. And this was a gun that was designed around the .40 S&W while only shooting some 9mm FMJ +P. Wikipedia says that it was due to pressure spikes in the ammo. I've heard another story from someone. Let's call him swim and he just made it up and he definitively never looked into confidetial records.Story goes something like this. After training and before putting the weapons back into the armory the soldiers usually oil the barrel and chamber to prevent rust. Now before going to the range they should run a couple of cleaning wicks through the barrel to get it dry again.If the barrel and chamber are still oily it would greatly reduce the friction of the empty case in the chamber during opening. Resulting in a faster recoiling slide and a drasticly reduced life span of the gun. My memory might be wrong on this one, but we are talking about <1000rds for a gun that should have a life span of >10.000rds.
>>64765755As anon writes, I believe it is primarily done to make ejection more reliable.>>64765921As anon here mentions though, it probably does not change the durability of the slide. I cant speak for all 1911s but Colt makes the slide out of a pretty thick piece steel. Slide cracking was an issue on CZ-52 and TT-33 but that was mostly due to poor metallurgy and manufacturing and overall design. Even then most TT-33 pistols will last probably 8-10k before this happens.Newly produced 1911 will definitely be more durable anyway due to improvements in metallurgy and manufacturing.I like to check the recoil spring strength on surplus pistols and replace them if needed and not using too much +P ammo.The recoil spring part is important as that is the part that minimises the impact of the slide slamming into the frame of the gun when firing. Weak spring could cause the slide to crack eventually.
Slides were not hardened the same way back in the day. A flared ejection port will have ZERO effect on longevity now. The frame is way more likely to crack near the safety/slide stop plunger.
