soulbyte

My 40 Hi-Cap runs fine with no nosedive issues. I currently own only one hi-cap mag that came with the pistol, and 6 older P16.40 ten rounders I found off ebay. All mags run flawless. The only issue I'm having is finding more factory hi-caps. I guess it'll be L10 for me until I do. Oh, the pistol was pretty heavily sprung when I got it, changing to a 15lb recoil and 19lb mainspring made is shoot much flatter with easier follow ups.

Hi guys, I just purchased the tactical 40 version #51782 with magwell. I was wondering if anyone could tell me if these mecgar 15 rounders will work. http://www.mec-gar.com/Magazines/Para-USA/MGP164015 I was able to purchase 6 ten round para mags recently off ebay and they seem to work fine. Also, I have a para p18.9, I bought four of the 38super/9mm canadian blued mags. With a little compression of the mag body at the base of the taper using four triangle files placed at the grooves and vice, plus ismi springs, I was able to feed 9mm reliably. I've been using these mags for the last year set up with dawson basepads and arendondo inserts, 100% reliable. I thought maybe this might help some of you 9mm guys.

Thanks for the help guys! I now have 22 reloadable/reliable rounds per mag! I appreciate your help. Here's a picture of my baby

awsome thanks! just ordered.

How would I go about determining that? Any recommendation on an OAL I should try?

Ok I'll try trimming the follower down a little more, thanks. OAL is 1.15 and shoot both 115gr and 124gr. I'v tried as short as 1.12 and as long as 1.16 and run fine, but 1.15 seems to be the sweet spot. I should say that I am extremely new to reloading, like this year new, so I'm still learning

The first holster I bought for my p18 was the bladetech holster. It does work it just doesn't sit in completely, I have had no trouble shooting club matches with it. A month after I bought the bladetech I bought a "5.11 by bladetech", aka 5.11 tactical, search in google. I prefer that holster better as my p18 sits much deeper and is faster to pull out. oh and as far as grips go, i bought the grey vz's and love them!

ParaGunner, thank you for the reply. I radiused and beveled the factory follower as instructed when I installed the basepads for the first time. I did notice that happening, but the round jumping between the follower the ant mag body happened after while running 22 rounds. I guess my real question is do I really need the basepad inserts? And, how many rounds should I be getting? I am able to fit 21 rounds fine in all four and a tight fitting 22 in a couple.

A little while back I was able to get blued Canadian factory Para 38 super mags to feed 9mm reliably through my P18.9 by compressing the mag bodies and switching to ISMI 140mm springs. The original mags came with +2 para basepads to hold 20 total. Now I know 9mm is not going to be competitive shooting anything else but production in USPSA unless I load 9 major in Open, but I would consider myself a novice and only shoot club matches (limited minor) and steel. I made the decision to purchase Dawson Extended basepads to add 3 if not a couple more rounds. I was told that I wouldn't need basepad inserts so didn't get them at the time. Well to make a long story short, I shot a steel match last Thursday and during one of the runs one of mags topped off with 22 rounds stopped feeding. When loading to capacity one of the rounds toward the base of the mag would move itself between the follower and the mag body. If I loaded to 20 it would feed reliable, which kinda defeats the purpose of buying the dawson basepads because my stock mags already fed 20. Today I ordered Arendondo purple inserts for 38 super from Dawson to remedy the problem. The problem is when doing research for the Para mag/Dawson basepad nobody mentions needing the insert, just spring, follower, body and base. I should mention that most of the forums I searched the were shooting 16.40 or 14.45. Finally my questions. Do I need mag inserts like the arendondo to make 38super or 9mm run reliable in the factory blue para mags with dawson basepads? How my more rounds should the Dawson basepads add over factory when loading 9mm? Should I get Arendondo followers too? What spring, follower, basepad combos work best for you? I realize this is a long post, so thanks for taking the time to read it, and thanks for your advice in advance.

Just wanted to update you guys on the progress. Last night I was able to test out a few recoil and main spring combinations. The lowest I was able to go was a 10lb recoil and 17lb mainspring and it flattened the gun out dramatically. I was able to achieve my follow up shots very quickly within 2 inches of the original shot. Not quite the super fast double tab, but it's getting there. Previously it was set up with a 14lb recoil and 23 main. I have since ordered ISMI 9lb recoil and 15 and 16 lb mainsprings as I think it would benefit to go just a tad lighter. Also at the range I was able to let a couple of seasoned shooters and instructors test the timing out and got their approval with a recommendation of a good trigger job. My para is now with the smith. Last night I was able to shoot my instructors Kimber Gold Cup set up with a 10lb recoil and 19 main. I couldn't believe how easy it was to shoot rapidly and group well. Hopefully I'll be able to get the same results with the trigger job.

Got Juice, I really liked the 14recoil and heavy main as well (I think mine was 24 or 26). It made the gun feel really soft. I only started to second guess my setup when I started reading all of the "lighter is better" threads on this site. Only problem was that it gave me a really heavy trigger pull. With that setup. Do you notice a lot of muzzle flip? EDIT: When thinking muzzle flip, does lightening the recoil reduce muzzle flip, allowing for a heavy mainspring. Or does the mainspring play a roll as well with reducing muzzle flip? Sorry if this seems a little confusing.

Hi guys, I'm testing out a few spring combinations. I just talked to Tim at Para Proshop and he stated for the the P18.9 his records show a 12lb recoil and 14lb mainspring factory. The recoil spring sounds about right at 12lbs (i believe mine came with 14lbs) but a 14lb mainspring sounds a little light to me. The mainspring mine came with seemed to be much heavier. Thoughts? Your help is greatly appreciated.

Thanks for the reply toddrod. Would this setup be optimal for range reloads and factory ammo at 115 gr, or do you use a lighter custom load?

Hello, to everyone on the forum, this is my first post. I am a new shooter to USPSA and for the last 4 months or so I have been shooting weekly in local club matches. I recently purchased a Para P18.9 9mm to shoot at matches along side my 1911 in 45acp. I'm trying out a few spring combinations out for the Para in competition. Recently I've tried a a 14lb recoil and what I think may be a 21 or 23lb main. With this setup the factory 115gr loads felt very soft and very light, almost 22lr like. The drawback is a very heavy trigger pull and a heavy slide return. Then I tried a 10lb recoil and and 17lb mainspring. The trigger is very light, slide easy to rack but the recoil is pretty snappy and the slide action is a bit slower. I've ordered a 12lb recoil and 19lb mainspring and hope to test it soon. I'm a novice USPSA competitor at my local club and trying to get a better tune for repeat shots and faster sight aquisition. Can anyone tell me what the factory main spring and recoil spring weights for a Para P18.9? Any recommendations on other combinations? I've heard of people using lower spring rates as low as 7-9lb recoil springs and 15lb mainsprings, but because I usually use range reloads and factory ammo and don't reload, those specs might be a little too light. Thanks in advance for your help.