Need some advice regarding 1911 accuracy

[tomme boy]

Don't size the boolit. Tumble lube them 2 times and load them. That was the only thing that I could do to get that boolit to shoot.

[MaineJim]

Even a loosely fitted 1911 will put most of its shots in the inner orange square at that distance,it takes thousands of rounds to became a good pistol shooter,even from a bench.Like it was mentioned before ,I would try some match ammo and your loads from a bench and see if there is any difference.
You need to establish the accuracy potential of the gun with good factory match ammo first, so you can compare your own loads against it.
Accurate number 2 should be fine,i used it a while back with the 200 grain TL boolit and it shot real well,i have the same mold as the one you are using now but with conventional lube grooves and it performs real well out of a Kimber 1911 as well as a Glock 30.

[FLHTC]

Rock Island has different grades of 1911s and most likely the accuracy changes among them. Barrel bushing fit, firing technique, bullet and load choice, barrel quality all can play a part in your accuracy. I've seen WWII 1911s that would't hit an automobile at 25 yards due to being so sloppy but have also shot high end guns that would cluster shots into 2" at 25 yards. You might be getting all you're going to get from your gun until you start replacing parts.

[44man]

TL boolits shoot better with a regular lube, I have good luck with them. Even if you need to lube with your fingers and not size, give it a try.

[Char-Gar]

Trigger control is the biggest gremlin in handguns.

Absolute pure truth!

[Jim]

If you are going to test the accuracy of your handloads or your pistol you need to remove as much "Human" factor as possible. That would be a "Solid" bench, a stable chair and a good pistol rest or sand bag set up at about 25 yards. ..... It is very difficult to test the accuracy of handloads without a good rest, especially if you are a relatively new and inexperienced shooter.

There ya' go!

I recently purchased my first 1911, a Rock Island GI Series midsize. I sought out guidance from the more experienced 1911 shooters, worked up a load and shot it at 15 yds. from a rest.

It shoots exactly to point of aim and turned in a good group. However, I ain't got a snowball's chance in a brick oven of shootin' a group like this without a rest.

[prs]

Good advice above from folks far more advanced than I in this area of shooting, but overlooked one glaring possibility that ruins my accuracy with very similar loadings and that same boolit. Doing pretty much what you described, using straight LLA or Recluse modified LLA, that boolit over 5gr Unique or Win 231 starts-out shooting just fine. After a magazine (7 rounds) it begins to open-up the group, after 2 magazines that opening is really noticeable, and after a 50 to 100 round of plinking I could not hit the wall of a barn even if I were inside! Leading galore in my SR1911. I have not had much luck with tumble lube on any boolit loaded from starting levels up to mid range of the charts, they all leaded the barrel to some large degree and accuracy goes to Hyades in a handbasket pretty quick. I have not tried lubing that TL design with NRA 50:50, but doing so with two different Lyman moulds, the 225 hard ball clone and the old SWC 200 grain let both of those shoot superbly, more accurate than my meager skill can wring-out off hand and ZERO leading. I don't shoot off sand bags or rests and that is a flaw I may never cure, just not appealing to me. I really wish tumble lube agreed with my two 1911s, but neither shoots worth a cr@p with it with any 5 boolit designs I tried. So I am using my trusty SLOW 450 to lube for 45acp. Arrrrrrrgggg.

prs

[mpmarty]

My RIA "tactical" 5" 1911 groups them just fine. I've shot IPSC with the LEE tumble lube boolits for years and they are great performers with just the LEE push through sizer (.452) and 45/45/10 mule snot mixture applied before sizing and after. No leading and solid accuracy. Don't blame the pistol until you've mastered accurate pistol shooting with lots of practice. AA#2 is an excellent choice for this application.

[Char-Gar]

We have been loading cast bullets in 45 ACP cases for use in the 1911 pistol for well over a hundred years now. There are no secrets left to discover. It is a straightforward and rather simple process, yet folks continue to try and find new ways to do an old thing. The result often is inferior performance.

I am not going to waste my time going through a primer on how to load ammo for this pistol again.

Shooting a handgun while more difficult that a rifle or shotgun, is not as hard as learning to type or ride a bicycle. There are however some basics (grip, sight picture, breath control and trigger control) that must be practiced and mastered. A good quality revolver or autopistol in 22 Long Rifle is perhaps the best teacher. One should not move on to a 1911 pistol until they have the basics down cold.

[fredj338]

You need a benchmark for accuracy. What is the best you & the gun will shoot with decent factory ammo? My stock Springfield will do 2" @ 50ft all day with cast 200gr loads over WST. Many have complained about the TL bullet design & accuracy. I don't know if it's the micro grooves deforming or what. I have no issues w/ most conventional groove design bullets in any of my 5 diff 1911s.

[EddieNFL]

IME any suitable powder will deliver better than combat accuracy (provided the bullet and firearm are up to the task).
This was offhand at 25 yards. Over the years I've learned 231, 452AA, 540, 473AA, Bullseye, Clays, WST, AutoComp, 310, 320, and Titegroup will all do the same (I probably forgot some). It will typically be the bullet or the shooter long before the powder or gun.

[waksupi]

The inconstancy of the target tells me you really need to have someone who is an experienced pistol shot test for accuracy. The dispersion of the shots tell me your grip and trigger work are the biggest problem. Just like any other shooting discipline, not everyone can do it without some coaching and training. If you can't take the human factor out, you can't effectively test your loads. After that, it just takes thousands of rounds to gain the muscle memory. For a .45 acp, loading one round in the magazine at a time is the best way to start. Otherwise spray and pray seems to enter into the game until you gain control of your firearm.

[Foto Joe]

I won't re-hash the suggestions above (all good) but I might suggest something a little different. Not knowing your experience level I'll make the assumption that you and your 1911 are not old friends. A 1911 can have a pretty serious "bark" to it, as such flinching is something that can and will absolutely destroy your accuracy. What I would suggest before you start changing over your entire loading operation to different powders and primers or buying new and expensive molds is to do some stability training.

Take a friend or spouse with you to the range. Have the "helper" load and chamber the magazine with only one boolit or no boolit. The gun gets handed to you safed and cocked and you have no idea if it's going to go bang or click. When it goes click pay attention to whether or not you flinched, chances are you did. Once you get comfortable with the idea that you really have no idea whether it's going to fire your accuracy should improve dramatically. It's human nature to anticipate the recoil and it takes a LOT of training, especially with a weapon that has the potential to have a good kick, to let that anticipation get the best of you.

Relax and enjoy, some of the best shooters in history used what we would call today some of the worst powder, primer boolit combinations. Learn the gun and once you relax and get comfortable with it your accuracy should improve. Incidentally, this isn't going to happen overnite.

[dondiego]

I have a dummy round blindly loaded into the magazine with the other 6 rounds and I do not know at which point it will chamber. When it does get chambered and you jerk the trigger, you will know a lot. For revolvers, I only load 5 rounds into a 6 round cylinder, spin it and close the cylinder without knowing when the empty chamber will come up. This is great training and will help with your trigger control. This technique has greatly improved my shooting abilities.

When I got my first 1911 I had groups like yours. I handed that pistol to a good shooter and his one ragged hole group convinced me it was not a problem with gun or ammo!

[EddieNFL]

I have a dummy round blindly loaded into the magazine with the other 6 rounds and I do not know at which point it will chamber.

We occasionally do this in IDPA matches to force a tap/rack/bang situation. You'd be amazed at how many muzzles dip down when the shooter hits the dummy.

[eljefe]

Just an FYI, Grafs has the following in stock...

https://www.grafs.com/dealer/product/205355

https://www.grafs.com/dealer/product/205104

https://www.grafs.com/dealer/product/207817

[MrWolf]

Didn't notice but those links are for wholesalers only - requires a password.

[eljefe]

Grafs has the Lee six cavity 200 grain swc mould in stock.
They also have the mould handles and the top punch, as well.