All posts tagged Taurus magazines

If you are looking for the ultimate 1911 pistol magazine

There’s a  famous old saying in the world and it applies to all of those accessories and gun parts that you are putting on your guns.   The saying if you’ve never heard it from your grandma goes something like this, “you get what you pay for”.     Long  before I got into the business of selling guns parts and accessories, I remember ordering stock parts and accessory holders that I broke while installing them improperly and then blamed it on the manufacturer.   Then I realized I better pay attention to how I am putting this on and to not force things into place.   The next thing I realized is that expensive version I saw on mounting optics on an AK worked much better and actually held zero while the other part that cost $20 didn’t hold minute of man at 50yds.

Although I do not have combat experience, I have a friends that have served in Iraq and have actually been there and done that.   They claim that they have seen guys take 9 rounds of 9mm ball ammo to take to the ground while it only took 2 or 3 shots from a 45acp to drop them.   Even the military has finally after decades of complaining, agree that 9mm ball ammo sucks and there is a new 9mm ammo that is ballistically superior to the previous one.   Well, for those that have the option to bring their own sidearms to Iraq, they are all carrying M4 Carbines and 1911 style handguns.   If they need lots of handgun ammo, they prefer to use a rifle, if they are clearing rooms they like using handguns.   Don’t take it from me, take it from the guys that are on the front lines and they all swear by the Wilson Combat magazines that are stronger than the standard magazine called the ETM, or Wilson Combat Elite Magazine.

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1911 magazines wearing out too fast?

I’ve owned more than a few 45acp guns, basically for tests and evaluations, but I still love my 1911 handguns.  I have to admit that it still shocks me to see the number of gun malfuntions on firing ranges due to bad magazines or shooters not disengaging the thumb safeties during competitions.  In my humble opinion this should be a big warning to anyone that is carrying a 1911 style handgun, that they really need to do some research into the right type of 1911 magzines they should be using.   Although I would never feel out gunned  with a 1911, I stopped carrying them due to too many times I have missed the thumb safety during practice that I felt it wasn’t worth the time to keep practicing it when I could easily just switch to another type of gun.   I’m still not on the Springfield XD bandwagon, but many of my friends have jumped on that.  I do not think it’s a wise thing to carry a 1911 around without the safety engaged, but I would say that although the 1911 is a great competition and military gun, it has it’s place in the handgun community as much as a j-frame 38 special does.

There are many gun forums and places you can research 1911 gun magazines, the 1911 forum was where I first learned about swapping out various parts on my Colt 1991A1, and I have improved my shooting and reliability dramatically.   Wilson Combat magazines are my favorite, but Chip McCormick magazines seem to look more traditional and also have a very good reputation.   I have not had good experiences with GI magazines holding up for very long, and I also highly recommend paying attention to round counts in your magazines and recoil springs. Out of all of the guns I have owned, the Colts and Springfields I own do start to choke up after about 6000rds and become less tolerant of even just plain FMJ rounds.   If I had a round count like that using defensive HP ammo, I would expect problems much sooner.

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Ruge 10/22 possible the most fun semi-auto

I’m sure there are plenty of guys out there, or ladies that have a lot of military experience and got to shoot some neat stuff.   Comparing the Ruger 10/22 to being  in fire control on an AC130 Spectre gun ship is comparing apples to oranges.  I will say that I have shot a lot of semi-auto military style weapons and although I have fun shooting them, bringing a wife or friend that lacks the experience or has a fear of recoil can limit the types of firearms you are using.   The first Ruger 10/22 I owned had a pretty long break in period.  I had a lot of issues getting it to reliable cycle, but I had  a lot of  friends that gave me advice on how to tweak these firearms and having a reliable break in period was normal.
A friend suggested that I just fire a lot of ammo through it and eventually it will break in.   Anothe friend said to use some hot ammo like 22lr stingers and it will speed up the process.   I tried both of these, but after about 500rds, I still was annoyed at how many jams I had, I thought it was the gun magazines, but we’ll soon find out.   My other friend suggested I take the gun appart and try to polish it with nylon pads, very similar to what you use to clean dishes.   I took  his advice and spent about 15 minutes polishing the gun, I used a little CLP inside and took it out for another range trip.    I tried shooting some cheap Remington 22LR ammo and the gun functioned almost 100% of the time.   I was probable getting a failure to fire less than every 300rds which for a 22LR rifle, that is not that bad.

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Range experiences with 1911s

pistol magazinesAlthough I understand that polymer guns are here to stay and they are far more technologically advanced than their early metal counterparts, I still enjoy shooting my 1911 handguns.   The 1911s that are being made today are really several generations beyond where the guns that crossed the European continent and fought on the beaches of the Pacific.   The best improvements I have seen in the 1911 design compared to the GI guns are #1 the pistol sights, and #2 the gun magazines.  The GI 1911 magazines weakness seemed to be the followers.   The slide stops were so heavy that many of the times the tabs on the magazine would bend and the slide would close on an empty chamber.

Wilson combat and Chip McCormack magazines have the best reputations for durability.   I’d have to say that I’ve had good experiences with both magazines and really can’t say one is better than the other.   When it comes to many of the other pistol magazines,  I always go with factory magazines.   Now that the 1994 assault weapons ban has expired and many manufacturers were able to get their standard capacity magazines back on the market.   Without any real threat coming from Congress on gun control, prices have come down and it’s really a good idea to stick with the magazines that your manufacturer makes for your gun.

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