fred5876r

Thanks. I have a Glock guide rod with a 13# (as I recall). There were some issues so I installed a lighter Glock striker spring, but have not shot it that way yet. I have a Sprinco setup on order, but they are VERY slow to deliver.

Are you saying you removed 3 to 4 coils or 3/4 (i.e. 75%) of one coil?

To follow up, I have two C.O.R.E. pistols, a 5" and a FS, and I have recently had to send both slides to Apex to fix some problems (not caused by any Apex parts). Their smith turned my slides around extremely fast and at a reasonable price (except maybe for the return shipping). I can't recommend them highly enough.

Personally I would not want a big gaping magwell like a Dawson ICE for steel, since reloading is not on the clock. I do have S&W magwells on all my 1911s.

I received my slide racker and like it so much I immediately ordered another. I doubt anyone will say anything about using it on a ESP gun at our small local matches. If they do, I will swap it in and out for steel.

Glad I found this thread. I ordered one yesterday. I assume this will be legal in ESP? If not, I will use it on my open gun.

I have three: 1) S&W 41 with Clark Custom Barrel and C-More RTS. 2) Nelson Custom (formerly Marvel) 1911 conversion with threaded barrel and comp and C-More RTS2. 3) S&W 617 revolver 4" with Leupold Deltapoint on an Allchin mount.

I have a email with photos into them now for a striker problem. A tech picked up the phone on the first ring. I put their Forward Set trigger kit on a 5" C.O.R.E. with hard sear and USB, and my trigger pull was still 5.5 lb using their springs. I put the same thing on a 4.25" C.O.R.E. but kept the factory trigger spring and the pull is closer to 4 lb.

I bought two C.O.R.E. pistols, a 4.25" and a 5". I put Dawson sights on the 5" (the lower, non-cowitness ones) for ESP, and a Trijicon RMR on the 4.25" (all three of my local clubs allow a red-dot). I figure with the dot, the shorter sight radius is a non-issue.

I have a Spartan 9mm and it has been a great gun. Runs slicker than snot with a 9 lb. recoil spring and 17 lb. mainspring. I bought it from Dawson and had them add their FO front sight before shipping. Add a magwell (I like S&A) and some VZ grips and you are good to go. I have used Wilson ETM and Tripp Cobra mags, but recently I switched to Metalform Elite 10 rounders, as they have a longer body - easier to seat 10 rounds in the mag and easier to seat a loaded mag in the gun with the slide closed. They work 100% in the Spartan and a Rock Island Tactical 9mm which I recently picked up (couldn't resist a bargain, $375 brand new). Some (but not all) of my ETM mags yielded nose-dives in the RIA unless one or two rounds were off-loaded.

I use TW25b synthetic grease on the sliding parts and light oil on the rotating parts. After reading this thread, I may try Mobil 1 (have used it in all my vehicles for many years).

I think I own most of the guns mentioned in this thread. My first 1911 was a Metro Arms "American Classic II" in factory hard chrome. I had some work done on it by a local 1911 guru, and he was complimentary as to the quality - timing was good out of the box and he had no problem achieving a very nice trigger job with stock fire control parts. I then bought a STI Spartan in 9mm. Very recently I bought a new Springfield Range Officer .45 and a Rock Island Tactical 9mm. They are all good guns for their respective prices. I think the RO is the best quality (forged frame and slide, very tight and very accurate, and stone reliable), but it was the most expensive (but not by much over the Spartan, I got my RO brand new for $700 shipped). A Cylinder & Slide sear spring and a 18 lb. mainspring (in a S&A magwell) got the trigger down to a crisp 4 lb., and I added a HiViz FO front sight. All my 1911s get slim VZ grips (short fingers).

I have a DeltaPoint on my 617 steel gun. It is very nice to shoot (nice wide lens surrounded by a very narrow frame, auto brightness works well) but difficult to set up. The adjustment screws have absolutely no tactile and virtually no visual feedback. They are very tiny T5 screws and you rarely can tell if they are moving or by how much. I would say if you have an application that does not require frequent adjustment (i.e. always shooting the same load at the same distance) they are hard to beat. Otherwise not so much. So far I like my new RTS2 very much and I have another on order.

I have a slightly tricked-out Spartan and it has been great. I run a 9 lb. recoil spring and a 17 lb. mainspring, and it cycles slicker than snot. 100% reliable with 10 round Tripp Cobra and Wilson ETM magazines.

My RTS2 is a 6 MOA dot, so no surprise it appears smaller than a 8 MOA FFIII. My RTS is a 7 MOA, but I did not compare it to the FFIII.

I just viewed them side by side, and I have to admit the Fastfire III's dot is noticeably larger. On the other hand, I think the dot on the RTS2 is easier to acquire, because it has a larger viewing lens.

I have had four Burris Fastfire IIIs at various times and while they are a great sight for the money, my problem with them is they just are not nearly bright enough on a bright sunny day. I have had a RTS for some time (on a S&W 41 with a Clark Custom barrel) and it is great on a sunny day on full-bright manual mode, but the automatic dimming circuit does not work very well - at reduced light levels (i.e. near dusk or at an indoor range) the dot is WAY too bright. At the recommendation of C-More, I put a piece of blue painter's masking tape over the photocell, and then I still had to color over it with a black Sharpie marker. It works OK that way, but is a compromise on either setting in some lighting conditions. For that reason I very recently bought a RTS2 to replace the FFIII on my Magnum Research .22 steel gun, and I am pleased enough with it that I just ordered another to go on a Marvel 1911 conversion. I got them here for $364: Gunbroker Listing # 389844895.

Update: I just bought a new 9L C.O.R.E., running it with a Leupold Deltapoint. I am using a uncaptured 14 lb. Wolf spring, and it acts very similar to the 13 lb. ISMI I used to run on a prior non-optic 9L. It never fails to go into battery while shooting, but it feels a little reluctant to lock up when manually manipulating the slide (i.e. moving it partway open to check the chamber). A slingshot charge or even dropping the slide with the slide stop is no problem.

I had Bowie build me a M&P 9L Open gun a while back (I think it was in 2010) with milled Trijicon RMR and all the trimmings. At the time he was quoting 16 weeks and it took 18. His stippling is extremely nice - attractive and effective but comfortable.

I just bought a new 5" C.O.R.E. 9mm ($624 shipped on Gunbroker). It arrived on Friday, on Saturday I mounted and dialed in my Deltapoint, and today I shot a local IDPA match with it (they had no problem allowing a open gun). I love it! The trigger is not bad (but I have a Apex Forward Set trigger & sear kit coming). The way S&W handled the mounting of the optics is very slick. I will use it for steel and Open Minor, and local IDPA matches (both local clubs said they will allow it with the optic). The gun is very accurate with 130PF 147 FMJ match loads, and it shoots to point of aim with those loads using the factory iron sights. I like it so much I am goind to buy another one for SSP and Production (if allowed), and will most likely buy Dawson's new sights for it. That way I have the option of mounting a red dot down the road (I am 60 and depending on which glasses I use I can see the target or the sights clearly, but not both at the same time).

What Bob said makes a lot of sense. I run a 15 lb. mainspring on my 9mm STI, and so far it has worked 100%, but I am using Federal primers. With a 9 lb. recoil spring, the thing cycles slicker than snot.

I ran a 13 lb. ISMI on my 9L, and it never failed to go into battery while firing, but when hand charging to begin a stage, you could tell it was a little lazy closing up. Haven't tried the Wolf springs.

I recently picked up a SAR K2P (imported by EAA, thence the post here) and I like it very much. It was an impulse item, based primarily on the low price at a local dealer ($295 with a nice, fully adjustable rear sight). The gun is a CZ 75 clone with a polymer frame (hammer fired SA/DA with manual safety, but no decocker). It has an extremely thin and comfortable grip (16+1 in 9mm). The gun shoots well, is accurate, has a decent trigger in either mode, and has been 100% reliable so far. Read about it here: http://eaacorp.com/portfolio-item/k2-polymer-sarsilmaz/ Bud's has extra magazines for a very fair price.

Have you tried the Herrett Flat Trainers? I have them on both of my 41s and I love them. Very comfortable (for me) and do a great job of making the gun feel and point like a 1911. Also, the mag catch is fully exposed for quick and easy mag releases.