Your firing pin stop has been lost. It is a small rectangular part that slides up into the slide and holds the firing pin in place as well as the extractor. Perhaps the firing pin spring is lost as well and why the firing pin is protruding through the breech face and blocking the cartridge. Look at an exploded view and note the "firing pin stop" and "firing pin spring" which is the firing pin return spring.

If the firing pin spring is missing or broken the firing pin can go through the breech face too far, to the point of wedging in the hole. This leaves nothing to hold the firing pin stop from falling out. The firing pin stop should fit snugly, however it is very common for them to be loose, too loose. A quality part require fitting so it is snug and holds the extractor snug as well.

LOG

 

It looks like the firing pin somehow became stuck in its most forward position, extending out from the breechface. The rear of the firing pin then became disengaged from the firing pin stop and allowed it to drop out of the frame.

Possibly there is interference in the firing pin tunnel preventing free movement, or a very weak firing pin spring. It should require about 2 lbs of force to move the firing pin from its rest position.

Firing pin stops have been known to fall down from the slide, usually from weak springs or excessive looseness within the slide. But it's not normal.

Can you describe exactly what happened better? I'm wondering how the firing pin got out that far on top of the case being fed.

-

 

This struck me as an odd occurrence for sure, especially on a brand new gun that I hadn’t even broken down yet.

I was able to fire several magazines through the pistol normally. I had a second shooter with me, who also fired the pistol. At one point, I loaded a magazine and racked the slide, and noticed it wasn’t feeding (the cartridge was getting stuck like I show in the image). I found that odd, so I dropped the mag—at that point I was thinking it was a magazine issue, since I had just switched to a different brand of magazines and it seemed to be the most obvious explanation.

The issue persisted, so I figured something was up. Without any magazine inserted, I racked the slide manually, and that was when the firing pin protruded.

I’m now looking at the exploded view, and it does appear that I’m missing the firing pin spring, though I still have the stop. Additional pics for reference (in terms of what parts I have). The spring the firing pin fits into is labeled as a stop, I’m not sure if that’s correct, or a mislabeling of parts.

Thanks to both of you for helping me to figure out this weird turn of events. I’ve never encountered an issue like this with a pistol.

 

Well I don't know for sure without being able to examine the parts you do have, but here is a possibility. The firing pin spring has two responsibilities, one to return the firing pin, and two it stops the firing pin from going to far forward when dry fired, at least it should. However it is very possible that may have been the problem, if the firing pin spring allows the firing pin to go a little too far forward the firing pin will get stuck in the breech face hole. This will then allow the firing pin stop to drop out. When ever fitting a new spring or firing pin it should be checked by pushing the firing pin with the spring in place as far forward as it can be firmly pushed, you will need a small punch to check this, the firing pin should not be able to become stuck, your pictures show it did. I do not know that the spring was in place at that point so you will have to get up to speed and check it out. Welcome to some of what makes the 1911 so addictive.

Yes the stop can be bought from a number of sources, the best from EGW or John Harrison, or Brownells, regardless buy the correct one, an S70 45acp firing pin stop is the correct choice, there are four stops made for the different variations, the others are, S70 9mm/38sup, S80 45acp, and S80 9mm/38sup.

LOG

 

Thank you for taking the time to explain all of that to me, and for the recommendations as well. Rather than find this to be an inconvenience, I actually find it interesting and feel inspired to become better versed in understanding the workings of these firearms.

 

Replacing a loose firing pin stop plate....

I recently had to purchase the above.....through Brownells, I got an Ed Brown oversized FP stop plate for about $18 which included shipping..... fitting may be required.

If the firing pin is binding on the FP hole in the breech face, this will need to be addressed...… sometimes there may be a slight burr in the firing pin hole, and a round needle file inserted through the firing pin tunnel and then through the front of the breech may fix the issue.....

Otherwise, you may be able to place the firing pin in a drill press, and use sandpaper to turn down the area where the firing pin is binding.

 

There may not be any obstruction now that was the root cause of the failure you experienced. It may have been just some debris left over from the machining process that was left when it was assembled to ship. Don’ t be alarmed if you don’t find the culprit as you fit and assemble the stop/pin/spring and test it. Just make sure the correctly installed spring and pin don't stick in the bore as Log Man explained.
Do you have any tools to reshape the firing pin stop? Small files or emery boards,sand paper? And do you have any experience with crafty hand work? Firing pin stops are available from loosely fitting ( drop in ) to very oversized. If you describe what your skill set is a better recommendation as to a part vendor can be related.
A mostly universal quote on this forum is that “there are no drop in parts for a 1911 .” Generally true with exceptions. And a part that does drop in and function can typically be upgraded to a gunsmith fitted part of much higher quality.
Joe

 

Thanks for the input. I’d rank my skill level as novice. I’ve done some minor work on firearms by following video tutorials, but I tend to outsource anything more complex to a smith (that said, I want to become more proficient
in this area).

I’m not super handy (mainly just due to lack of experience), but I have a father who is—I’m sure when I visit him, he will have every size file, etc. that I‘ll require.

 

Hi,
Another excellent tool to have!

 

I definitely need one of these.

 

Check the firing pin if it’s bent
If it got stuck forward and you loaded the gun, the round feeding from the mag will hit the pin and bend it slightly, not enough to be obvious but enough to bind in the firing pin tunnel
If it’s bent, don’t try to straighten, just buy a new one, and replace the FP spring with a extra power one from Wolff