ATI (American Tactical Imports) FX-45 Titan SS

[marks]

so what did it cost you? And I have noticed with many....many...1911's regardless of manufacturer that they tend to send brass back in your face....

$399. The more I study animations and slow motion video of a 1911 being fired/cycled, the more I wonder how that trajectory is even possible. I have to wonder whether a good number of such reports occur at indoor ranges where the brass is bouncing off of a side wall/barrier. I'm headed back to the range with a friend tomorrow, and I'll ask him to watch as the brass ejects. I mean, I suppose it's possible, because yes, there are a lot of reports of this happening, but man, I just don't get it.

[marks]

HA!, figures. I don't have too much trouble shooting the little 1911's. (Ended up picking up the Kimber UC II instead the old lady HAD to have.) But she's not a fan. Says the short sight radius sucks and it too hits her with brass.

I said we should have gotten the Titan to see if she'd really be in love with a little 1911. She had to have the Kimber. *sigh*

I know there are a lot of Kimber owners who love them, had zero issues, and swear that the fit, finish, trigger, quality, etc, etc, are all worth every penny. That was not my experience though. My Kimber CDP II Pro had over 800 rounds through it of varying brands, using varying magazines (including Wilson Combat), and was never reliable enough (feed issues) for me to trust my life with it. Sure, I could have polished this, replaced that, tweaked the other thing, bought "brand x" ammo, done the hokey pokey, and turned myself around, but for the price of that gun, I preferred not to. I also (again, just a personal opinion) believe that the philosophy of "ultra tight tolerances" does little or nothing to ensure a reliable gun. In fact, I think such manufacturing makes the gun more finicky. That's my story, and I'm sticking to it.

For the record though it doesn't hit me with brass at all. So I blame her grip. So if you're getting tagged with brass, check your grip. Firm it up a level or two and fire again and see if you get hit. If you aren't then... well, you get the idea.

That's interesting, and something I hadn't thought of. I'll definitely do that, and report back. Thank you!

The little guns have a decent amount of 'whomp' to'em. So if you aren't maintaining a firm grip, ejection can become more varied than if you do. At least from what I have seen thus far. You may very well be able to tune it mechanically and stop the problem no matter how it gets shot. But idk how to do that.

It seems the recoil spring, extractor, and ejector are all factors, but I'm not sure that the exact method of tweaking, for a desired result is easy to determine. I intend to try your theory/thoughts first. After which, if it's still an issue, I might replace the ejector. Otherwise though, I'm not going to "fix it until I break it".

Keep us updated on your progress with the gun. I like to rub salt in my own wounds... and I knew I should have gotten that one instead for her to try before I dropped money on the Kimber.

I sure will, and again, thanks for the post/comments.

[Asmodeus6]

Luckily I can say that the Kimber has proven to be 100% thus far. No magic required. It's flawless.

[marks]

Luckily I can say that the Kimber has proven to be 100% thus far. No magic required. It's flawless.

I definitely want to like the Kimbers, so hearing that is good. One thing's certain. I really like the 1911 compact form factor, so knowing me, I'll probably go on a crazed trading mission to pick up another. I see RIA makes one, and of course there's the Colt Defender, as well as the SA EMP (though I think that's only available in 9mm and .40 S&W). Anyway, glad to hear the Kimber's treating you right.

[wellcraft]

i had a ruger p97 that use to pelt in the head all the time so i got rid of it. i was told or read the reason was the extractor needed to be tweeked. i don't know if there's any truth to that or not just something i seem to recall.

[harold63]

Limp wrist and weak, inconsistant ammo are big factors in getting hit by brass. Try WWB ammo and firm wrist. If this gun hasn't been shot much (likely) then it may still need a little break in. WWB ammo is good for this as it is not weak and it is very consistant for factory ammo. Try this before tinkering, I would say. JMHO

[marks]

Limp wrist and weak, inconsistant ammo are big factors in getting hit by brass. Try WWB ammo and firm wrist. If this gun hasn't been shot much (likely) then it may still need a little break in. WWB ammo is good for this as it is not weak and it is very consistant for factory ammo. Try this before tinkering, I would say. JMHO

That works for me. It's easier and cheaper than tinkering. Thank you!

[Asmodeus6]

I shot a lot of Federal and Aguila (230gr) too. The Aguila is a little dirtier, but it's cheap and has more zing to it than even the Federal. Way better bullet composition as well. The bullets themselves were very clean and uniform looking without any surface defects that are quite common in "target" ammo.

So if you're looking for cheap hardball that's full power. That's my choice.
(It's still $15 a box for brass)

WWB has OAL problems that causes it not to work in 1 of my guns at ALL. So I avoid it, and can't comment on it's performance. Gauging by the performance I get out of it in 9mm... I'd just as soon shoot steel case in place of WWB...

[RobW]

FWIW, CDNN has a flyer out with a truckload of this ATI stuff. I have no opinion on them either way, just FYI's.

[marks]

Well, today went well. I did a few things:

Firmer grip.
Stood farther left in the lane.
Ran 50 rounds of WWB, 50 rounds of Black Hills, and 50 rounds of Herter's through it.
Got pelted maybe a total of 4 times. At this point, I'm going to steer clear of PMC Bronze in that gun, continue to keep some distance between me and the right-side wall/barrier, and see how it goes. I really am amazed at how accurate I'm able to be with this gun and it's short barrel. So, today, was a good day. Before I change anything in the gun, I'm going to continue shooting it, as I might not need to change a thing.