Anyone know the correct weight of a Commander recoil spring?

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45flattop

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I've owned 1911A1s for years but have little experience with the Commander
variant, lightweight or the Combat Commander(all steel version) and I suspect
that the one I have, someone has put a bit too heavy recoil spring in. I know
the official full sized 1911A1 in .45 ACP weight is 16# while I usually run an
18# with standard bullet weights and pressures without a hitch. I assumed
that by doing so I would eliminate some long term battering of slide and frame.
Having said this, this Commander is so hard to rack the slide that it either
stovepipes half the time or does a FTE/FTF. I would like to correct this but don't
wish to substitute too light a spring and thus aggravate the very condition I
wish to avoid. Any help would be highly appreciated. I am not the original
owner of this Commander which is why I suspect that the spring in the gun
has been replaced since its so hard to rack the slide. I'm no lightweight, at
6'1 and 215# so sheer hand strength isn't part of the problem.
 

45flattop

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gunzo said:
Wolff gun springs list the stock .45 Commander spring as 18#.

Thanks gunzo, I didn't think to check with Wolff since I didn't realize they
might have had such recommendations; as it happens I'll be getting my
new Commander spring from them anyway. Thanks again...…….John
 

1911Tuner

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I wouldn't worry overmuch about frame battering. The "recoil" spring's only real function is returning the slide. Whatever else it happens to do is incidental. The plain truth is that the slide doesn't hit the frame all that hard. As long as the slide strips and chambers the next round and goes to full battery, 16 pounds is a gracious plenty.

You can fire a 1911 pistol without a recoil spring repeatedly and no damage will occur. You have to use a FLGR for that because the standard guide will get carrywampus and possibly damage the gun.

For the last 30-odd years, my habit has been to cut a 16 pound Government model-length spring down to 24 coils for Commanders. Note that this will only work in true Commander-length pistols with standard recoil systems. Bushingless/reverse plug systems won't fly.
 

veeman

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I want to say the 9mm spring is 12lbs, I always felt it was too light, but it always worked. I replaced it with a 16lb spring anyway, now it feels much better.
 

45flattop

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I discovered the reason why the Commander I bought had such a terrifically hard
to rack the slide, I borrowed a spring gauge from a gunsmith and on measuring it,
it read 30 pounds of all things. I have to wonder what the previous owner thought
they were doing, nothing remotely sensible in my opinion for sure. I replaced it with
a 20# Wolff spring and tossed the too heavy one in the trash. Gun runs fine now
and I don't need to be the 2nd incarnation of the incredible hulk just to rack the
slide; I'd love to see the hands on whoever the prior owner was, I'm imagining
a 6 foot 6 inch near monster.
 

dakota1911

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I remember years ago a gun smith I knew called the recoil spring in the 1911 a return to battery spring.
 

1911Tuner

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dakota1911 said:
I remember years ago a gun smith I knew called the recoil spring in the 1911 a return to battery spring.

And he was absolutely correct. That's all it's there for.
 

1911Tuner

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Just for giggles...

Does any body know why the Commander's "recoil" spring tends to run a little heavier than its 5-inch cousin?

Before we start...John Browning's original spring wasn't 16 pounds. It wasn't rated in pounds at all. It was specified as 32 and 3/4ths turns of .043 diameter music wire, which when compare to a Wolff 32turn 14 pound spring, works out to about 14.5 pounds at full compression, and around 13.7 pounds installed in the gun at full slide travel.
 

langenc

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For the next several guns measure the springs length new and record somewhere and see what happens to the length after some firing and then after a lot of firing??
 

1911Tuner

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langenc said:
For the next several guns measure the springs length new and record somewhere and see what happens to the length after some firing and then after a lot of firing??

It will take a set and shorten after a couple hundred rounds...or less. Doesn't mean that it's worn out. The "set" is factored in. All springs will do it.
 

dakota1911

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Although Brownell is out right now there is a spring tester out there if you reeeeely want to know.

https://www.brownells.com/search/index.htm?k=1911+recoil+spring+tester&ksubmit=y
 
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