old506 Posted April 22, 2012 Share Posted April 22, 2012 In my 1911 I was running a ISMI 14lb recoil spring that had a good 20k rounds on it. The builder of my 2011 suggested that I buy Wolff springs so I did and at the same time I figured I would replace my 1911 spring too with a Wolff. So, I put the Wolff 14lb spring in and it is as stiff as a board, way stiffer than the ISMI 14lb! I really have to get a purchase on the slide just to get it back, I am not used to that. I also bought a 13lb and 12lb for my 2011 build so I tried the 13lb Wolff and it too is stiffer than the 14lb ISMI. I slap the 12lb spring in and it is getting real close but still seems stiffer. So, Should I try the 12lb to get the old "feel" or should I run the 14lb or 13lb a little while to see if it "lightens up"? Or should I should have just stuck with the ISMI? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al503 Posted April 22, 2012 Share Posted April 22, 2012 20K on a recoil spring is a lot. I've been told that they should be changed every ~5K or so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
old506 Posted April 22, 2012 Author Share Posted April 22, 2012 I know, but it never stopped so I didn't worry about it. 20K on a recoil spring is a lot. I've been told that they should be changed every ~5K or so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
al503 Posted April 22, 2012 Share Posted April 22, 2012 What caliber is the 1911? If its a 45, I'd probably lean towards the heavier spring. You might try all of them and see which one feels the best. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RippSpeed Posted August 10, 2012 Share Posted August 10, 2012 (edited) yup found this out 2 days ago... I've been running on a Wolff 10lb recoil spring for a year. And when I took a class with Taran Butler; he looked @ my gun and asked me what spring I had in it. I told him 10lbs and he looked puzzled and said its too stiff to be 10lbs. Long story short... I placed an order with ShootersConnection and got me some ISMI springs. And put them in yesterday and the ISMI 10lb spring was 1" shorter than my 10lb Wolff spring. Now the gun cycles like butter. I also changed out my stock 21lb mainspring with a 17lb ISMI spring... The Wolff spring feels like a 12 or 13lb ISMI spring... And after re-watching all my shooting view is super slow-mo ... With the Wolff 10lb I was still getting a little dip and the slide reset. I'll try this setup for awhile not worried with about the frame. Because I run a aluminum buffer from Dawson. A buddy told me that Wolff is more towards the HD and combat pistol than ISMI is more for competition. I don't know if its true or his just blowin smoke up my @$$... But the difference in feel between 2 springs with the same weight is HUGE!!! I've always used Wolff on all my pistols... But ISMI might just find their way into all my competition pistols. But Wolff springs will stay on my HD pistols... Edited August 10, 2012 by RippSpeed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gdboytyler Posted August 10, 2012 Share Posted August 10, 2012 I made a spring tester and found ISMI springs are usually 2 lb LESS than the stated value. The Wolff springs I measured were within 0.5 lb of the stated value. Which means a 10 lb Wolff spring feels like a 12 lb ISMI spring. There's a lot of info on the Internet on how to build your own spring tester. I would highly recommend building one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RippSpeed Posted August 11, 2012 Share Posted August 11, 2012 Ran the ISMI and compared to running the Wolff 10lb for like alittle over a year... I definitely stay ISMI because the pistol ran flatter and I saw the sights soo much better. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted August 12, 2012 Share Posted August 12, 2012 I made a spring tester and found ISMI springs are usually 2 lb LESS than the stated value.The Wolff springs I measured were within 0.5 lb of the stated value. Which means a 10 lb Wolff spring feels like a 12 lb ISMI spring.There's a lot of info on the Internet on how to build your own spring tester. I would highly recommend building one. I'm with Johnnie Good Boy, don't trust the packaging markings as they seem to be merely a suggestion. I consider a recoil spring gauge one of the essential tools for the 1911. Also, it's great for sorting out unknown springs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jasonub Posted August 12, 2012 Share Posted August 12, 2012 yup found this out 2 days ago... I've been running on a Wolff 10lb recoil spring for a year. And when I took a class with Taran Butler; he looked @ my gun and asked me what spring I had in it. I told him 10lbs and he looked puzzled and said its too stiff to be 10lbs. Long story short... I placed an order with ShootersConnection and got me some ISMI springs. And put them in yesterday and the ISMI 10lb spring was 1" shorter than my 10lb Wolff spring. Now the gun cycles like butter. I also changed out my stock 21lb mainspring with a 17lb ISMI spring... The Wolff spring feels like a 12 or 13lb ISMI spring... And after re-watching all my shooting view is super slow-mo ... With the Wolff 10lb I was still getting a little dip and the slide reset. I'll try this setup for awhile not worried with about the frame. Because I run a aluminum buffer from Dawson. A buddy told me that Wolff is more towards the HD and combat pistol than ISMI is more for competition. I don't know if its true or his just blowin smoke up my @$$... But the difference in feel between 2 springs with the same weight is HUGE!!! I've always used Wolff on all my pistols... But ISMI might just find their way into all my competition pistols. But Wolff springs will stay on my HD pistols... ripspeed your using a 10 pound on a limited gun? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scott Steele Posted August 12, 2012 Share Posted August 12, 2012 I've found Wolff to be close to advertised weight and ISMI to be around 2 LBS lighter than stated. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sudden Death Posted August 12, 2012 Share Posted August 12, 2012 (edited) Wolff makes a couple different springs, standard, extra power, and progressive rate. All are top notch springs, and like someone said they are closer to the packaged weight. Now there is two ways to run your gun slow and pushy, or fast and snappy For myself I dont worry about how hard it is to rack the slide or whatevere, it is how the gun settles down for the second shot, so if it takes a 16 lb. spring to do what I want then a 16 is what it gets, so I hope my views help someone out. Edited August 12, 2012 by Sudden Death Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RippSpeed Posted August 12, 2012 Share Posted August 12, 2012 (edited) yup found this out 2 days ago... I've been running on a Wolff 10lb recoil spring for a year. And when I took a class with Taran Butler; he looked @ my gun and asked me what spring I had in it. I told him 10lbs and he looked puzzled and said its too stiff to be 10lbs. Long story short... I placed an order with ShootersConnection and got me some ISMI springs. And put them in yesterday and the ISMI 10lb spring was 1" shorter than my 10lb Wolff spring. Now the gun cycles like butter. I also changed out my stock 21lb mainspring with a 17lb ISMI spring... The Wolff spring feels like a 12 or 13lb ISMI spring... And after re-watching all my shooting view is super slow-mo ... With the Wolff 10lb I was still getting a little dip and the slide reset. I'll try this setup for awhile not worried with about the frame. Because I run a aluminum buffer from Dawson. A buddy told me that Wolff is more towards the HD and combat pistol than ISMI is more for competition. I don't know if its true or his just blowin smoke up my @$$... But the difference in feel between 2 springs with the same weight is HUGE!!! I've always used Wolff on all my pistols... But ISMI might just find their way into all my competition pistols. But Wolff springs will stay on my HD pistols... ripspeed your using a 10 pound on a limited gun? yup I was running a Wolff 10lb recoil spring for a little over a year. And just recently changed it to a ISMI 10lb recoil spring. And I really like how this ISMI recoil spring affected my sight movement. But, I use a aluminum buff with it; same as I was doing with the 10lb Wolff spring. But, I do have a lightened slide as well. And my 200gr load is a 170-172pf... Edited August 12, 2012 by RippSpeed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sudden Death Posted August 12, 2012 Share Posted August 12, 2012 I do not run shock buffs Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RangerTrace Posted August 12, 2012 Share Posted August 12, 2012 Go with Sprinco and don't look back...they are awesome... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RippSpeed Posted August 12, 2012 Share Posted August 12, 2012 Go with Sprinco and don't look back...they are awesome... SpringCo is it a progressive spring or is it just like Wolff or ISMI Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jasonub Posted August 12, 2012 Share Posted August 12, 2012 yup found this out 2 days ago... I've been running on a Wolff 10lb recoil spring for a year. And when I took a class with Taran Butler; he looked @ my gun and asked me what spring I had in it. I told him 10lbs and he looked puzzled and said its too stiff to be 10lbs. Long story short... I placed an order with ShootersConnection and got me some ISMI springs. And put them in yesterday and the ISMI 10lb spring was 1" shorter than my 10lb Wolff spring. Now the gun cycles like butter. I also changed out my stock 21lb mainspring with a 17lb ISMI spring... The Wolff spring feels like a 12 or 13lb ISMI spring... And after re-watching all my shooting view is super slow-mo ... With the Wolff 10lb I was still getting a little dip and the slide reset. I'll try this setup for awhile not worried with about the frame. Because I run a aluminum buffer from Dawson. A buddy told me that Wolff is more towards the HD and combat pistol than ISMI is more for competition. I don't know if its true or his just blowin smoke up my @$$... But the difference in feel between 2 springs with the same weight is HUGE!!! I've always used Wolff on all my pistols... But ISMI might just find their way into all my competition pistols. But Wolff springs will stay on my HD pistols... ripspeed your using a 10 pound on a limited gun? yup I was running a Wolff 10lb recoil spring for a little over a year. And just recently changed it to a ISMI 10lb recoil spring. And I really like how this ISMI recoil spring affected my sight movement. But, I use a aluminum buff with it; same as I was doing with the 10lb Wolff spring. But, I do have a lightened slide as well. And my 200gr load is a 170-172pf... Im have been using a 12.5 pound ismi for about 4 years. about 174 pf 180 grain heads.I just ordered a 11 pound rs from ismi and will use it for the first time. I use a cominolli frame saver tungsten rod thus 2 buffs, but will also replace one of the buffs with a dawson aluminum buff at the same time making the rs 11 pounds. I hope im doing it right. I thought 10 pounds is for open pistols Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RippSpeed Posted August 12, 2012 Share Posted August 12, 2012 (edited) I do not run shock buffs Extra protection for me because unlike you guys ... I cant just call and order a frame to replace the one I have. I like in Komifornia where I cant order crap Im have been using a 12.5 pound ismi for about 4 years. about 174 pf 180 grain heads.I just ordered a 11 pound rs from ismi and will use it for the first time. I use a cominolli frame saver tungsten rod thus 2 buffs, but will also replace one of the buffs with a dawson aluminum buff at the same time making the rs 11 pounds. I hope im doing it right. I thought 10 pounds is for open pistols Yeah I dont like the rubber buffs... I like the feel of the aluminum one from Dawson. I dont know about you guys but open guys around here run some where like a 8 to 7lbs recoil spring Edited August 12, 2012 by RippSpeed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jasonub Posted August 13, 2012 Share Posted August 13, 2012 thanks rippspeed Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AlexOsensei Posted August 13, 2012 Share Posted August 13, 2012 when u can say that the spring u r using is the right one? I am ipsc shooter limited, pf 175, lead bullet 180 grs, I am using 13 lbs wolff(+ sprinco) and main 16 wolff. Someone told me to cut a coil, other to use 12.5 ismi...I am confused.. yesterday I read a lot of post about spring rate , cutting a coil, lbs.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
67ls7vert Posted August 15, 2012 Share Posted August 15, 2012 so, any idea what spring a STI trubor is sold with stock? Chris Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
67ls7vert Posted August 15, 2012 Share Posted August 15, 2012 The way I understand it the length of a spring does not change the rating unless you are preloading it with a buff pad of some type. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
g mac Posted August 18, 2012 Share Posted August 18, 2012 Go with the heavier spring, and see where your empty shells land, 3-5ft is good. The standard spring for 45 acp is 16-16.5 lbs. Watch how your front sight tracks when changing/testing springs, the idea is to have the front sight move less (up and down) and return to "zero" as soon as possible. It also depends on how it feels for you as well, but mainly to ensure proper function (feeding, extraction, etc) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
moonshoxx Posted December 8, 2012 Share Posted December 8, 2012 I used wolffs but honestly cant tell the difference. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ParaGunner Posted December 8, 2012 Share Posted December 8, 2012 Go with Sprinco and don't look back...they are awesome... +1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaxshooter Posted December 9, 2012 Share Posted December 9, 2012 I use Wolff variable rate springs in my Open amd Limited guns and a regular spring in my 45 SS. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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