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Defender goes BOOM! kunk! Owww! ...Huh!....and what I did about it...

2K views 11 replies 10 participants last post by  Dave Berryhill 
#1 ·
The BOOM! was a 185 gr Cor-bon +P going off in my Colt Defender. On the 3rd shot with that ammo, the empty case drills me in the center of the forehead, hence the Kunk! and Owww!. The third shot also split one of the ebony grip panels in half. Something tells me Defenders are not so crazy about +P ammo:D

At least this time the case head hit me on the head end, and not the open case mouth end. I've found it distresses range officers when you walk in the office with a round bleeding hole in the center of your forehead:rofl:

As much as I like the Defender, they are notorious for drilling one's forehead with the empty case. Today, I think I fixed the problem.

Noting that the Defender has a extended ejector, I reasoned that the ejection problem comes from the slide moving at high velocity when the case head actually hits the ejector. If I grind the jector back slightly, the problem should get better, as the case will be moving a little slower just prior to ejection.

I shortened the ejector by about .030", and went to the range today to shoot 230 gr Hydra Shoks, which are normally 50% about dinging one's forehead. Surprise, the problem was completely cured. The HS arched nicely over my shoulder, to the right, just like one would expect. The file I included in my range kit wasn't required.

I was surprised that .030" made this much difference. If your Defender is sighted into your forehead, start filing back the ejector in .015" increments. I think you will find this an easy way to fix an annoying problem with an otherwise neat little gun.:rock:
 
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#3 · (Edited)
I think I already reached that conclusion also, at least as far as Defenders:D No damage done though, other than the grip panel - who knows it may have been defective anyway.

edit to add - the grips are Ahrends ebony, not factory.

It would ding my forehead with Federal HS, both 230 gr and 165 grain, which are not +P, so the problem needed attention anyway.:)
 
#8 ·
No, actually, certain brands of ammo were bad about denting my forehead - Federal 230 Gr Hydra-shok, and 165 gr PD Hydra-shok would hit me in the head about every other round, yet aren't +P and feed reliably.

I shot more of the Hydra-shok 165 Gr "personal defense" loads this morning, and they worked fine. I had one round glance off the top of my head, but otherwise no more repeats of the dinged forehead.

Incidently, the 165 Federals chrono'd an average of 950 fps out of the Defender, with some individual rounds going as high as 990 fps. I think this is a pretty good load for a short barreled .45:D
 
#9 ·
Need assistance on assemblying

Hello, I have recently purchased a colt defender and i was hoping if you can help on how to assemble it. i need help on assembling the recoil spring assembly to the barrel lug. Everytime i try to put it 2gether the recoil spring assy. jus sticks over the barrel lug. Its really been a pain in the ass so if you can please email me at anonymousx323@yahoo.com or you can always leave a answer here thank you.
 
#10 ·
Dumper-

You just spammed the board with this exact same post no less than five times. You also brought up old dead posts while doing so. Please DO NOT post multiple times like that. Find the right place to ask your question, and ask it once. Thank you.
 
#11 ·
I have a short, GI ejector in my Commander, and even with a shok-buff, the gun ejects just fine. The gun looks to have been shot very little, so it doesn't seem likely that the ejector was replaced due to wear or failure.
 
#12 ·
tex_n_cal said:
...Noting that the Defender has a extended ejector, I reasoned that the ejection problem comes from the slide moving at high velocity when the case head actually hits the ejector. If I grind the jector back slightly, the problem should get better, as the case will be moving a little slower just prior to ejection....
The last Defender I worked on did the same thing. I left the range with a couple of dings in my glasses and several crescent-shaped cuts in my forehead. I shortened the ejector and it took care of the problem. I'm not sure why Colt puts such a long ejector on that pistol in the first place. It's long enough to eject a .380 case! Perhaps it's to get positive ejection when the recoil springs start to weaken(?)
 
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