Which 1911 in 22lr

[MTBfarms]

I've had a GSG for a few months now and i have a few observations.

1. Keep your barrel retention screw TIGHT! You know that little allen head screw on the side of the frame you remove to take it apart? Well, on mine, if the screw isn't absolutely tight, the barrel will wobble up and down in the bushing and the accuracy goes out the window. I found this out the hard way after noticing the accuracy diminish recently.

2. The main spring housing can be swapped with a standard 1911 unit but you do need to swap over the GSG spring and the two parts that go on either end of the spring. My only concern was putting a GSG spring which is not true 1911 spec in a 1911 spec main spring housing. I went and mic'd the GSG spring and a standard Gov't main spring and the GSG housing is shallower internally in the spring channel than the govt housing and subsequently the GSG spring is shorter than a govt spring (But not by an equal amount with respect to the MSH depth difference). I called GSG to see what the main spring weight was and they claimed it was 23# but since it's not the same free length as a standard 1911 spring, it won't work. I put in an actual 23# 1911 govt spring and its too much spring for the GSG--the slide wont cock the hammer with that much weight under it. I don't know what weight 1911 govt spring would be equivalent here (maybe a shorter officer length spring?).

When did you get yours? I wonder if the quality has went down since they first introduced it. Mine is a very early one. Never had it apart. Just cleaned the bbl every so often and a little oil.

[JonF]

I've had it for only a few months and am the first owner. Don't get me wrong, i'm not complaining about any sort of flaw here or knocking it from any quality standpoint, i just wanted to comment about making sure the barrel retention screw is tight for best accuracy. Its what keeps the barrel in strict alignment and if its loose, the barrel will wander a bit, that's all. Keep it tight like it needs to be and you're golden.

My other comment is a caveat regarding adding aftermarket parts and is in no way a knock on the GSG as it comes from the factory. Since their MSH and spring is somewhat proprietary, care must be taken when swapping in any non-GSG parts to ensure OEM like operation and reliability.

[echase1]

I have a GSG and use it for practice for IDPA and SS. I have changed out the MSH to a flat one and plan on changing the grip safety and thumb safety to ones offered by STI to match my other game guns. It does like to be clean and wet, but it works and does allow for some cheap practice.