Chambering Semiauto First Shots

[Halo]

Do any of you ever have a problem chambering your first shot from a magazine in a semiautomatic pistol?  

In various self defense threads, it has often been mentioned that a revolver is generally more intrinsically reliable since all we have to do is pull the trigger or **** (male rooster) the hammer and pull the trigger.

I really like my Springfield XD .45, but I have to admit I occasionally  botch the first shell chambering by not pulling the slide back far enough.  Or sometimes in various drills I get too exuberant and pull the slide back too far, locking it open.  

Not too cool if that was an emergency.  I guess that's why military and law enforcement usually go ahead and chamber the first round so they won't have to do that in a crisis.  

For extra safety in home defense, I never keep a gun loaded.  I can quickly grab a loaded magazine and chamber the first shot.  Except I know I occasionally mess up that first round chambering.  

Is there something I'm missing about chambering the first shot in a semiautomatic pistol?  Any of you ever have a similar problem?  Any thoughts or recommendations?

[Captain Virgil Hilts]

One thought:

Load the gun.

You have trouble chambering a round if there IS NOT an imminent threat. If you can't chamber a round 500 times straight, without looking or thinking, either load the gun and put the safety on, or get rid of the gun and get something else.

[Halo]

You never have trouble chambering a round in a semiauto?  Am I the village klutz?  

[Xargos]

Have you tried a different clip?  A bad clip can cause you all sorts of problems.  That's why some folks never fully load their clips so as not to wear out the spring.

Also, The type of ammo you feed it makes a big difference.  Anyone who says that .45 FMJ is not enough needs to have their head examined.

[Halo]

Yes, I have three different magazines.  I keep two loaded nearby and one empty magazine in the XD.  I fire the gun periodically at an indoor range and rotate the magazines.  

I don't use fancy ammo.  The XD seems fine after about 300 rounds of American Eagle and Atlanta Arms .45 ACP FMJ.  

I practice enough that I'm reasonably proficient in clearing a misfeed and reloading.   The gun is great, but I wish it had a more definite intermediate spot or feeling where the optimum chambering point is.  

I've fired a lot of semiautomatic pistols but don't recall any of them having a particularly distinct optimum point in the slide for chambering the first round.  

I need to know if I'm missing something or there is a way to always successfully chamber that first round.  

I know I shouldn't be using the XD for home defense unless I solve this problem.  But I also know I can work around it fast enough that it still is a good home defense choice.

[Xargos]

Is the spring in the slide set right?  Field strip it, clean it real good and put it back together then try again to load it.

[lasersailor184]

Originally posted by Xargos
Have you tried a different clip?  A bad clip can cause you all sorts of problems.  That's why some folks never fully load their clips so as not to wear out the spring.

Also, The type of ammo you feed it makes a big difference.  Anyone who says that .45 FMJ is not enough needs to have their head examined.

Fully loading a clip doesn't wear the spring out.  Keeping it fully loaded, does.



But as to the problem with the gun, I don't personally understand.  Both my .45 and my Taurus don't engage open if there are any bullets in the magazine.  So pulling all the way back isn't a problem, because the catch doesn't keep the slide back.

[Captain Virgil Hilts]

Originally posted by Halo
You never have trouble chambering a round in a semiauto?  Am I the village klutz?  

The only time I have problems is when I'm trying tricks and fooling around. My self shuckers always swallow their ammo without complaint, when I'm serious about it. Any of mine chamber on the first try, pulling the slide all the way back. I wouldn't have one that won't.

It may be your weapon of choice. It may also be your handing of it. I lean towards the weapon, if you have to "hit a sweet spot" to get it to swallow. Get it fixed or find it a new owner.

[Xargos]

keeping a spring loaded does not wear it out, loading and unloading it does.

[lasersailor184]

Originally posted by Xargos
keeping a spring loaded does not wear it out, loading and unloading it does.

Wrong.  Blatantly wrong.

[Captain Virgil Hilts]

No gun that does not function flawlessly is useful for defense. If it won't function reliably, you cannot be sure you can make it function under stress. The lives of you and your family could hang in the balance, would you trust the lives of your family to a weapon you cannot trust? I would not.

[Halo]

Good thoughts, and I've stripped the XD and cleaned it.  Generally the XD seems to work fine.  The only shells that didn't feed were the first time I used each of the first two magazines.  But then one didn't feed right the other day.  

And then, as the pistol gets broken in, it's easier to yank the slide back too far and lock it open.  That requires jettisoning the magazine, pulling the slide back and letting it go so it closes, then reinserting the magazine and recocking the slide to load the first cartridge.

[Xargos]

Originally posted by lasersailor184
Wrong.  Blatantly wrong.

You don't know what you are talking about.

[lasersailor184]

Originally posted by Halo
Good thought, and I've done that.  Generally the XD seems to work fine.  The only shells that didn't feed were the first time I used each of the first two magazines.  But then one didn't feed right the other day.  

And then, as the pistol gets broken in, it's easier to yank the slide back too far and lock it open.  That requires jettisoning the magazine, pulling the slide back and letting it go so it closes, then reinserting the magazine and recocking the slide to load the first cartridge.

Are you saying that the XD does lock open even if it has a loaded mag in it?

You don't know what you are talking about. You really need to get your money back from that collage.

What is this?  The third, or fourth time you've misspelled college when trying to insult me?  Normally I don't care about typos, but the irony is just devastating.


Any spring can be operated within it's normal bounds many many many times with minimal fatigue.  It's when you put it near the normal bounds and keep it there that is the trouble.

[Halo]

(quote) Are you saying that the XD does lock open even if it has a loaded mag in it? (unquote)


Good point, lasersailor.   I practice feeding loaded magazines at home, but I won't chamber a shell at home.  So I've had the slide lock open only when there is an empty magazine in it.

The manual says the slide could be locked open with a loaded magazine; I'll have to doublecheck that at the range.  I cleared those few misfeeds at the range without needing to lock the slide back.  

I'm still curious about 100% shell feeding, though.  The few times a shell didn't load, I thought I simply didn't pull the slide back enough.  There's a feel that comes with practice, of course.  

Yet I still marvel that apparently some of you have never had this problem, so I have to wonder if my problem is me or the gun?  Probably me.  

Note this gets back to the core debate whether a revolver or pistol is more reliable for home defense.  As some have pointed out, revolvers can screw up too if the cylinder is not fully seated or a shell is not fully inserted.