Fabricating a Fixed Ejector for Jarvis .22 Conversion Unit

Fifteen or so years ago, I purchased a Jarvis .22 Long Rifle conversion unit for the M1911 frame. The unit never really worked correctly, because the floating ejector didn’t fit my Colt 1911 frame. Not long ago I decided I wanted to see if I could make the Jarvis unit function reliably, so I dug it out of the box where I had it stored and went to work. Apparently, at some point in time I had broken the ejector, which you can see in the photo. The ejector fits into a slot milled in the side of the barrel.

It’s not fixed into the slot in anyway; it’s just floating. Just above that slot is another slot milled for the steel slide. Jarvis, Inc., no longer manufactures this unit, but has transferred the manufa Tactical Solutions www.tactical sol. co Other 1911 .22 LR conversion units use a fixed ejector mounted to the barrel. This seemed like it would be more reliable to me. I reasoned that if I mounted it with a roll pin instead of some other more permanent means, I could always remove/replace it.

Drilling the Barrel For the roll-pin hole, I wanted to get the hole as close to the inside of the slide-rail slot as possible without breaking through. Since the ejector slot is deeper than the slide rail slot, this should be the mid-point of the ejector, and leave plenty of clearance for the chamber and bore. With the 22 LR conversion unit. Note the broken floating ejector at the bottom. It broke at the bend. new ejector pressed against the inside of the ejector slot and pinned in place, it should not move.

I installed the barrel upside down in my machinist’s vise so it was level. The top of the barrel was milled flat so I set that on a parallel. I positioned a 1/16-inch square-end bit 0.1825 inch back from the breechface and 0.09 inch in from the side. First, I milled a 1/16-inch flat on the bottom of the barrel at this point. This flat made sure the drill bit started correctly and didn’t wander around. Then I took a #53 drill bit (0.059 inch) and drilled a hole through the barrel.

The #53 drill bit is slightly smaller than 1/16 inch, which allows a 1/16-inch roll pin to fit snugly. Fabricating the New Ejector I measured the thickness of the broken ejector and it came to a bit over 0.046 inch (3/64 inch). I purchased a Figure 1. Bend Bend

The hole can’t intrude into the slide-rail slot, but also can’t be too close to the inside edge of the ejector slot. piece of 01 tool steel 18 4 its ed a little less than 1/4 inch, so I knew that would give me more than enough stock to fabricate several ejectors (and make some mistakes). I carefully measured the original ejector so I could fabricate the new one (see Figure 1).

Even though I used a CNC mill (the "hobby" type), you can actually make an ejector using nothing more than a file. (It just takes longer with a file.) I used my CAD program to create a diagram of two ejectors. The 1/2-inch-wide tool-steel stock allowed me to cut out two ejectors side by side. I put the blank in my CNC mill and cut out the two new ejectors. I removed any burrs and then broke the sharp edges with a jeweler’s file.

Next, I marked the ejector with a blue marker and scribed lines where I needed to make the bends. I put the ejector in a vise up to the top line and carefully bent it by hitting it with a small steel punch at the point it stuck up above the vise jaws. I lifted the ejector out to the next line, and bent it the other way. It took some trial and error to get this right. I installed the ejector in the slot in the barrel and marked where the mounting hole should be drilled.

I removed the ejector, drilled the hole with the #53 bit, then pinned the ejector in the barrel to test for fit. The ejector fit tightly in the barrel slot, the barrel fit into the slide, and the entire unit fit onto the frame. To harden the new ejector, I hung it from a paper clip and heated it with a propane torch until it glowed bright red. I then quenched it in a cup of motor oil. After quenching the ejector, I reinstalled it in the barrel. The barrel fit onto the slide and moved with nothing binding.

The entire unit fit on my 1911 frame, and again, cycled with nothing binding. I tested the new ejector with an empty case and a loaded live round to ensure it would eject both. Finally, I took the unit to the range. I’m pleased to say that, for the first time in all the years I’ve owned this unit, it functioned flawlessly. Spent cases eject with authority, and I can eject a loaded round if I get a misfire.

Conclusions/Recommendations When I purchased the original Jarvis unit, it came with two ejectors. (Which should tell you something.) I promptly broke one ejector the same day the unit arrived. And in trying to get the unit to function, I broke the other one.

This modification from floating ejector to fixed ejector has several advantages: First, with the fixed installation, you don’t have to worry about getting the ejector aligned properly (which is one reason the floating ejector is so prone to breaking.) Second, the new ejector can’t be lost because it’s pinned in place. The new ejector is easy to replace if necessary by simply punching out the roll pin. And finally, my shop-made ejectors are affordable.

I don’t know what Tactical Solutions is charging for a replacement ejector these days, but the piece of tool steel I bought cost less than two dollars’and it will allow me to make at least ten ejectors. I