Lightweight Commander magazines

[CMK14]

Asking for a little help here.

Took my new Commander for a test run on Saturday. I used several different magazines in addition to the two that came with the gun.

With Springfield (7rnd. GI), Colt (7rnd. GI) and Wilson Combat (8rnd. Elite I believe) the gun had several issues. Some would not feed, some would not lock open and the Springfield mags jammed the slide open (but not all the way to slide lock) twice. The supplied mags ran flawlessly with both FMJ and Gold Dot HP.

So the big question here is what mags are you all using successfully? I have about 15 1911 mags total and as of now 2 are reliable in the gun.

Also, are the mags made by Checkmate? I can get my hands on some other Checkmate mags to try before I buy any more.

By the way, I love the gun! it shot a very nice 1 in. (5 shot) group at 7yds. with Speer Gold Dot HP 230grn.

Thanks for the help.

 

[loaded round]

This has been discussed several times recently.

 

[DGW1949]

Re: "So the big question here is what mags are you all using successfully? I have about 15 1911 mags total and as of now 2 are reliable in the gun."

Assuming that the other 13 are in serviceable condition, and assuming that they run fine in other 1911 platforms.....it's perty-obvious that you've got a gun problem.

As for "what mags are you all using successfully?"......

I've got quite a hodge-podge of various brands which I've accumulated over the years, plus dozens of old USGI mags from various eras, and they've all worked as intended in every single 1911-platform which I've ever owned. The newest of the bunch were bought on sale from CDNN a year or so ago for about $6 each, but I can't remember the brand name off the top of my head.
At any rate, my point is that if ANY certain gun requires the use of a specific mag, it's either out of whack, or wasn't "made to spec" to start with.

You can take it from there.

DGW

 

[gunman42782]

I have the same gun, and it had run fine with every mag I got, with the exception of a couple of Chip McCormicks I have had for several years and are getting wore out. On those the last round in the mag wants to hang up. Wilson, Colt, and the other Chips I have run fine.

 

[charlesappel]

I run my SR1911 with Colt and Ruger 7 round magazines. These work fine in my SR1911 and I have used the Colt mags in several other pistols with good results. In my experience 8 round magazines tend to be less reliable than 7 rounders. I have not had good luck with Wilson or Pachmayr mags.

Have you tried the non-working magazines in other guns?
Have you put enough ammo through the pistol to full break it in?

 

[jn 41]

I am having the exact same issue. that said all my other mags are 15-20yrs old, but the still work fine in my colt. ???

 

[revhigh]

I've got quite a hodge-podge of various brands which I've accumulated over the years, plus dozens of old USGI mags from various eras, and they've all worked as intended in every single 1911-platform which I've ever owned. The newest of the bunch were bought on sale from CDNN a year or so ago for about $6 each, but I can't remember the brand name off the top of my head.
At any rate, my point is that if ANY certain gun requires the use of a specific mag, it's either out of whack, or wasn't "made to spec" to start with.


DGW

Most likely out of spec ... Which is why I only own Colts and Springfield's.


Me too ... I own more than a dozen Colts, and a few Springfield 1911's. I don't keep any mags in them. When I take them out to shoot, I grab a half dozen mags from my 1911 mag box at random from about 75-80 mags. From 80 years old to current $6 CDNN mags. Every one works perfectly. I'd buy used 1911 mags at gun shows for $1, groups of 12 still in GI wax paper for $20, etc etc.

Those boutique mags are a ripoff. Totally unnecessary, and just lighten your pockets, and make the manufacturer rich.

If my 1911 needed special mags to run right ... I'd dump it ASAP. Who wants an unreliable 1911 ... And make no mistake ... If your 1911 won't run with any standard GI mag ... It's the gun. And it shouldn't matter if you're shooting 230 ball ammo or 200 SWC.

REV

 

[dakota1911]

Something not right with that pistol I think. I have several Ruger CMDs including a LW and they are fine with a wide variety of mags.



I think Mec-Gar and/or Checkmate make have made Ruger SR1911 mags. There was a thread on this forum that talked about that.

http://www.rugerforum.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=43&t=146237

 

[Vulcan Bob]

Number all of your 1911 mag's then keep a log of what number mag work in your gun's. If you have multiple 1911's this really helps. Wilson 47D's seem to work fine in most and for some odd reason the Chip McCormick's work well in almost all of my 1911's. Just bought one of the new Colt Lightweight Commanders and both of the eight round Colt mags have issues so I just put them in the factory box for "safe" keeping.

 

[mohavesam]

The SR1911 is not a mil-spec 1911A1.
Some parts (including magazines) will interchange, some will not.
Experiment and remember what works.