A lot of things have drifted under the bridge since 1982. Shooter sophistication has increaased, barrel accuracy has increased, bullet availability has increased. Sights have been improved. And, hopefully, gunsmiths have not sat on their laurels, but have learned new techniques and improved their knowledge of shooter physiology. I didn't recognize you, so I assumed you were a gunsmith. One thousand pardons!
Dane: The most prolific cause for claims of tight chambering seems to come from ammunition anomolies. Most shooters haven't the faintest idea how to check their ammo. First,check the chamber with reamer headspace gauges to make certain it is within SAAMI specs. Then you need a "cartridge headspace gauge" from Midway, or other supplier. If the round drops in and reads between the extremes, it is a beginning. Then an RCBS case checker is used to "spin" the round to determine whether it is concentric. Amazing how many bases are not at 90 degreees to the case sidewalls. (Obviously, this condition will jam a case into the side of the chamber when the slide goes into battery, simulating a "tight chamber.")
Then you pull a bullet with your centrifugal puller and place it on a V block. As you rotate the bullet in the V, you check for out of roundness with a vernier height gauge or dial gauge. Oval bullets (all too common) will force the case walls outward at the extremes, simulating a "tight chamber" condition.(You cannot check for out of roundness with a two point contact; you need three points, as the v block and gauge.)
And, not all slide breech faces end up at a 90 degree angle to the chamber walls. Some people insist on using links that are too long, again forcing the case into a point on the chamber wall, simulating a tight chamber condition. So, there is more going on here than meets the eye.
And, any pistol from 1982 can be stripped to the frame and slide, provided it has not been fitted with obsolete sights, rebuilt with modern aftermarket parts and fitted up so that it will outshoot most anything that comes onto the line against it. If you look backward carefully, you will see some revolutionary new ideas taking form about every 10 years. I can't account for the fact other than saying that more aftermarket producers have taken an interest in solving the problems of shooters and gunsmiths. Even in the early 80's the number of aftermarket parts was very limited, but we did our best. We still do our best with what we can obtain. But, today, we (meaning pistolsmiths today)can take almost any pistol and make it a modern, reliable, accurate shooter. Witnes the 1927 Argentine pistols that have been rebuilt. Also, ask GYP_C about the rebuild I did on his chronically malfunctioning Colt in 48 hours.
If you have problems with a pistol, reason out the problems and possible solutions. Jumping to conclusions often results in worsening the problems. And, you don't have to be a gunsmith to solve firearms problems.One of Kuhnhausen's manuals helps. A good book on handloading also goes a long way. You would be astounded at how many problems can be solved by using different ammunition.