SMS2

I'm using #10 and #11 ISMI recoil springs in my 9 major open guns using MG 124 JHP with 172 PF. The guns function/perform/feel perfect. I'm just curious as I see others refer to their 9 majors using recoil springs ranging between #7 - #10 with similar PF. Despite they're running exceptionally well what would be likely to happen were I to drop the springs# by that much? Would they possibly shoot flatter, softer, etc.? My assumption is they would loose their timing, have feed problems, etc., "if it's not broke don't fix it'. However if I'm missing an opportunity to improve performance I'd like to know. Thoughts?

All my C Mores but one are the click switch. The knob on the single standard switch is considerably smaller and much more difficult to turn......bordering on painful. Do you know if they can be sent back to be converted to the click switch? thanks, Stephen

Considering replacing my STI trigger with SVI triglide bow and trigger. Is there a noticeable improvement in the feel from the triglide bow? Also I am undecided as to modify the trigger to fit the STI grip or modify the grip to accept the wider SVI trigger. My thought is that if I am unhappy with the SVI I would be able to revert back to the STI trigger if I choose to modify the trigger rather the grip. Any first had experience as to improvement with SVI if any as well as modification choice would be appreciated. Thanks, Stephen

Considering replacing my STI trigger with SVI triglide bow and trigger. Is there a noticeable improvement in the feel from the triglide bow? Also I am undecided as to modify the trigger to fit the STI grip or modify the grip to accept the wider SVI trigger. My thought is that if I am unhappy with the SVI I would be able to revert back to the STI trigger if I choose to modify the trigger rather the grip. Any first had experience as to improvement with SVI if any as well as modification choice would be appreciated. Thanks, Stephen

Where can I get a slide racker like that in your pic? Do you know if it comes in black? thanks

I use both MG 124 JHP and Xtreme 124HP exclusively in 9 major open at 172PF. They both perform extremely well, accurate and clean. The concern that some have regarding the Xtreme is that the plating wont hold up at the velocity required in open. My understanding is that they are good up to 1600 fps, far beyond the realm of major, my expeierence is that it leaves no plating or shards behind. As for the 115 HP, while I don't use them, if you do the math 1475 fps will give you 170PF still below the 1600fps. I actually prefer MG 124 JHP slightly over Xtreme but not by much. Actually MG, when bought by the case, are slightly less expensive than the Xtremes when they're not on sale.

I have sent 3 stippled grips to Jason at Extreme to have painted. He charged me $40/grip delivered and had them back in a week. He did a great job! Just sent him another.

Xtreme just started a 10% discount on all copper plated bullets.

For what it's worth I find tuning mags completely unnecessary. The first race gun I purchased was a custom STI 40 which came with no mags. I purchased 5 new STI tubes with Dawson SNL+1 and Gram guts, unturned, and they worked flawlessly holding 20 reloadable. The next build I did was a 40 Akai which included 1 mag with the build. I brought 4 new mags when I picked up the gun to have tuned. All 5 mags used STI tubes, Dawson SNL+1 and Gram guts. They all held 20 reloadable and have worked fine since the day I took delivery. Since then I have added 2 9 major open and a 38SC open each with 5 dedicated untuned mags. The 9 majors have STI tubes, Dawson SNL +1 with Gram guts and hold 28 reloadable in the 170 and 23 reloadable in the 140. The 38SC has 5 unturned STI tubes with Gram guts and Taran bases and hold 29 reloadable in the 170 and 24 in the 140. All work flawlessly having never failed. So out of 25 total mags, 5 of which were tuned, all work flawlessly and like calibers hold identical loads. So I have decided that unless the new mags have issues I leave them in their natural state.

CED.com, the US distributor for DAA, has been great in servicing their products including replacement parts. Contact Kim and I'm sure she will be glad to help.

I've been using the pocket pro and never had any troubles

Good info but it still does not answer the question of what is the difference among the various duster models. It looks like there are three versions. Sarge.....To my understanding after speaking with Dr. Chet there are 3 models in total, which have various sub groups within that model, which are: ORIGINAL - this is the version with 5 pre-drilled mounting holes - within this model group are different colors, finishes, etc.. My understanding is that due to its size requires removal for field stripping as it blocks removal of slide stop therefore not recommended for 1911/2011. RACER - This is the version with 4 mounting holes which have the same base thickness as does the original. Again with the same variations as mentioned for the Original - This was designed primarily for Open guns(perhaps the derivation of its RACER name), or guns where clearance was not an issue, where the thumb rest was being mounted to an optic mount rather than directly to frame where no additional clearance was required. DUSTER - The version of the Racer that has the added depth of .08" for clearance. Designed for direct mounting to frame/DUST COVER, hence the name Duster. I have seen them referred to as Racer Duster Models or just Dusters. Have never come across an ORIGINAL DUSTER. That's it I'm out of info. I've managed to regurgitate more than I thought I ever knew or could make up regarding this. I would have inserted one of those cute little yellow smiley faces but don't know where they hide them. :-) just saw my post come up with that yellow little guy. I must have accidentally found the hidden source :)

I used to use the traditional horizontal Cmore mount on my open guns with a short curved Cheely racker which was positioned on the left side as you would expect. I have since changed all my Open guns to use the 90 degree side mount which does not allow clearance of the shorter slide racker on the left. I tried the longer Cheely racker and didn't like it. I ended up moving all my slide rackers to the right side and I rack the slide using my pinky finger on my left hand. While this might sound awkward it felt intuitive from the beginning and has worked out great. I have lost no time and in fact would not go back to a left sided racker. Hope this helps

I shoot Open and haven't shot limited in awhile so not certain if legal. DAA makes a magnet only that mounts to your belt using the same system as their mag pouches which is what I use. DAA also makes a magnet that can be mounted to the side of their mag pouches. It's possible that it may be mounted to your existing Ghost pouches, if plastic should not be a problem. They both are great options and will hold any loaded mag without losing them. Hope this helps.

I have several set ups all using DAA plastic mag pouches and DAA Racemaster holsters. One of the set ups uses the DAA belt as opposed to the CR speed belt. The DAA plastic mag pouches are great, holding securely any mags I've used. I considered the DAA aluminum ones but decided against them after seeing what they looked like once in use. While they continue to function fine the finish chips rather easily and they end up looking beaten and weathered in a rather short period. The plastic ones look as new as the day I got them. As to function they both have the same range of adjustability and reliability. There is a significant difference between the DAA and CR Speed belts. The CR Speed works very well and holds up to the use. It is also easy to mount your gear to it as well. The DAA belt is significantly stiffer and a bit thicker. Since my gear is DAA I had no problem in their mounting, (tight but not a problem), due to the mounting system they use. However, if you use different gear, especially if it does not have screws and clamps that can be completely removed ..........good luck trying to mount them to the DAA belt. Hope this was useful.

I use the GoGun thumb rest on all my Open and limited guns. I happened to speak to Dr. Chet the founder of GoGun this week and I asked this very question as the descriptions on the available web sites are insufficient. The Duster has an aluminum strip at its base (positioned under the mounting screw holes) that runs the width of the GoGun. It adds .08" of depth to the thumb rest giving it greater spacing from the frame/slide. The duster was designed primarily for limited guns that might need the additional clearance. That is the only difference. It used to also have a slightly smaller thumb pedal but that has been discontinued from the current models, as all the pedals are now the same size. Hope this helps.

Took delivery this week of a relatively new 38 SC. Planned on having it fitted with a new 9 barrel but of course decided to shoot it first. Took it to the range Wednesday and fired 250 rounds of 9 major along with about 100 rounds of 38 SC. After sighting the gun in I started with 38 SC and as expected the gun performed without issue. The 9s performed equally as well. I then took a couple of magazines and alternated rounds within the magazine between 9 and 38 SC. The gun noticed no difference between the two loads. It shot equally as flat and accurate with approximately the same amount of felt recoil with the 9 as it did the 38. The gun performed flawlessly with both loads. Did not have a single misfeed, failure to eject, not a single anomaly with any round of 9 major. I was so impressed with the way the gun performed with the 9 major that I shot it the following night at a match. Again the gun performed brilliantly in every respect, No different than my other 9 open that was designed and built from the beginning as a 9 major. Before purchasing I spoke to several prominent gun builders who explained to me I had a better chance that the 38 SC, rather then 38 super, would handle nine major due to the Aftec extractor being tuned the same for both rounds. While I understand my experience with the 38SC cannot be considered a universal maxim that all 38SC will perform the same with 9 major as did mine, I did want to share my experience and hope that it might shed some light on this issue as others were having the same questions I did.

Took delivery this week of a relatively new 38 SC. Planned on having it fitted with a new 9 barrel but of course decided to shoot it first. Took it to the range Wednesday and fired 250 rounds of 9 major along with about 100 rounds of 38 SC. After sighting the gun in I started with 38 SC and as expected the gun performed without issue. The 9s performed equally as well. I then took a couple of magazines and alternated rounds within the magazine between 9 and 38 SC. The gun noticed no difference between the two loads. It shot equally as flat and accurate with approximately the same amount of felt recoil with the 9 as it did the 38. The gun performed flawlessly with both loads. Did not have a single misfeed, failure to eject, not a single anomaly with any round of 9 major. I was so impressed with the way the gun performed with the 9 major that I shot it the following night at a match. Again the gun performed brilliantly in every respect, No different than my other 9 open that was designed and built from the beginning as a 9 major. Before purchasing I spoke to several prominent gun builders who explained to me I had a better chance that the 38 SC, rather then 38 super, would handle nine major due to the Aftec extractor being tuned the same for both rounds. While I understand my experience with the 38SC cannot be considered a universal maxim that all 38SC will perform the same with 9 major as did mine, I did want to share my experience and hope that it might shed some light on this issue as others were having the same questions I did.

Thanks for the help. Since I have no frame of reference on hard chroming other than when I commissioned the builds, cost and timeline are important for a frame of reference between refinishers. Thanks

In general how often do you change the recoil spring in your Limited and Open guns. What are the symptoms of a recoil spring that is in need of changing? Also how often do you change the mainspring? Thanks

I usually shoot Open but on occasion will shoot my Sig X5 L1 9mm in Limited. The trigger, at 1.5# , is a fast and delightful as any of my open or limited custom builds. If I shot limited more often this would be getting much more use.

I have a 38SC incoming this week. While planning on having a new 9 barrel fitted I plan to try and will let you know the results.

I use Breakfree LP to wipe the entire gun down after cleaning then MC2500 in rails and all tight spots. Has always performed well.

Being somewhat new to race guns curious why you would want to break it in in the "white" before choosing a finish. Wouldn't the slide to frame fit change (tighten) after finishing then requiring another "break in" period?

Don't know why you would assume you would need a preliminary finish waiting for the better finish to follow. While I have 1 open in IonBond, which looks as good as the day I took delivery, the rest of my opens and limiteds are Hard Chrome. I think Hard Chrome will last longer and handle the wear much more gracefully. If taken care of properly it may never need refinishing. Going forward it will be my finish of choice.