1911 Feeding Woes, Mags?

[JohnH]

I have RIA that reliably feeds all but the last round of the mag. The last round will invariably be found in either a 3 point jam or in the chamber ahead of the extractor. I've decided I have a magazine problem. So I ask this, If you were going to throw money at the problem, what magazine would you buy first?

[paul45120]

I'd buy some new Wolf springs from Brownells.
If you want new mags I've had very good luck with the Chip McCormic 10rnd Power Mags.

[sagacious]

A lot of manufacturers put cheap springs and followers in their 'fancy' mags. The mag body itself is probably OK, so don't toss your mags in the dumpster just yet. Even the cheapo mags work flawlessly when outfitted with Wolff springs and the C&S metalform fully-supported mag follower. It's at the very top of the list of the very best mag followers available. A good mag follower can cure a host of problems-- or prevent a host of problems.

http://www.cylinder-slide.com/index.php?app=ccp0&ns=prodshow&ref=81

Well worth the money. Good luck.

[bootsnthejeep]

Factory ammo? I don't have a bundle of experience, but I got a couple of Wilson Combat mags and I'm pleased with them.

[Mk42gunner]

I like the Chip McCormack 8 round Shooting Star magazines. They have always worked well for me, and are fairly inexpensive.

Robert

[Rick459]

this is what you want. click on the upgrade kit and then super 7
http://www.trippresearch.com/store/store_1911.html

Rick

[technetium-99m]

CMC powermags and Wilson's are my favorite singlestack mags.

[Shepherd2]

I've never had a problem with the Chip McCormick Shooting Star magazines.

[captaint]

I've never had a problem with the Wilson's. Think I paid 22 bux at a gun show. enjoy Mike

[Trapshooter]

You might take a look at the 1911.org site's gunsmithing section. There is quite a bit of info there about diagnosing & fixing this sort of problem, from folks who know as much about the 1911 as we do about casting :) . From what I recall, the problem sounds like a problem with the follower not having a dimple to restrain the last round. Are you using the RIA standard issue Novak 8 round magazine. If so, 1911.org can help you.

Trapshooter

[mike in co]

I have RIA that reliably feeds all but the last round of the mag. The last round will invariably be found in either a 3 point jam or in the chamber ahead of the extractor. I've decided I have a magazine problem. So I ask this, If you were going to throw money at the problem, what magazine would you buy first?

me thinks you have the major problem correct..the mag.
four parts to the mag...body, follower, spring, floor plate.
the lips of the body are feeding fine as all but the last go, so the body is probably ok.
not the floor plate.

so either spring or follower.

having said that my para 1911 gi expert does well on mecgar mags, 8 and 10 rd.


mike in co

[NickSS]

I have used the chip McCormic Shooting star 8 shot mags with goon results in a couple of guns as well as the ones sold by Springfield Armory.

[35remington]

As mentioned above, the problem is with a weak spring letting the last round get jarred loose when the slide hits the frame under recoil. When freed of the feed lips, it will jam and the round's rim ahead of the extractor is the clue.

This problem is especially endemic to magazines that try to get 8 rounds in a flush fit format, as they have less room for a smaller, weaker spring trying to push the rounds up over a longer distance.....a double whammy to reliability on the last shot. I'm afraid the Shooting Star magazine is the most prone to this type of malfunction of any available on the market due to inherently weak springs. Heavier loads that cause the slide to strike the frame smartly are especially prone to causing last round feeding issues with weakly sprung magazines.

First, try seven shot flush fitting magazines, as these have more spring for a smaller space.

I would also recommend m1911.org's forum. Scroll down to the "Parts Bin" section and look for the stickies in the Magazine forum. More info there about what causes a 1911 to puke on poor magazines than is found anywhere else, and exactly why it occurs.

Most of this can be laid at the feet of the "extra capacity" magazine hucksters that neglect to tell you the downsides of their "improved design" magazines.

Hint: most of the "improvements"......ain't.

[Char-Gar]

Some folks carry on like finding a good 1911 magazine is akin to finding the pot of gold at the end of the rainbow and try to turn the subject into some sort of arcane science.

When a fellow remembers that John Browning designed the 1911 pistol to function with a seven round magazine life starts to get much simpler. The world is full of good seven round magazines. I tend to favor good old Metalform magazines one of the oldest companies in the business and at last check made the magazines Colt provides with their pistols. They come with either a welded bottom or a removable bottom. Get the welded one. They come with either a traditional flat follower or a rounded one. I have had no problems with either follower.

Metalform also makes some whizbang 8 rounders, but if you don't you won't survive in the magazine world because of demand.

If you can lay your hands on some "gen-u-wine" USGI mags, they are also first class.

[Blammer]

I'd try a standard milspec 1911 magazine first.

[Cherokee]

Wilson ETM's are my presonal choice. MetalForm makes great mags as well. As you can tell, we have our preferences. Don't be afraid to spend the money for good mags, gun is useless without them.

[JohnH]

Thanks Very Much Guys. I'll let you know how it goes.

[thebigmac]

Try a rounded follower. I put them in all my bullseye pistols. NO MORE problems. from Brownells.. Stainless... Mac

[35remington]

A seven round magazine is indeed what the 1911 was designed to function with, but the other half of the equation is it was designed to function with a seven round, tapered lip magazine.

The tapered lip portion is what you're missing in the reliability equation; most users do not know this, and indeed most don't have tapered lip magazines.

In the rush to develop a magazine to feed rounds that the 1911 wasn't originally designed to feed, we've forgotten the characteristics of the magazine type the 1911 was originally designed to work with.

Lesser reliability has been the penalty we've paid.