What mags for Sig 1911 MAX

[crispy690]

I have recently started into shooting uspsa single stack. I am currently using a borrowed gun, and am looking to purchase a Sig Sauer 1911 Max in .45. Was just wanting to know if anybody has any first hand knowledge on what mags run well in this gun. chip, wilson combat, tripp, or do you pretty much have to run sig mags in it for good reliability?

thanks much.

Edited March 30, 2016 by crispy690

[LilBunniFuFu]

Buddy of mine runs one with Wilsons. Well actually he runs Wilsons in all of his 1911s.

[Foxj66]

Wilson makes great mags, but I would give tripps a try as the entire mag comes apart from the basepad for easier cleaning at matches. Also unless you have a reason you are going with 45 I would take a strong look at a 40 instead.

[crispy690]

Wilson makes great mags, but I would give tripps a try as the entire mag comes apart from the basepad for easier cleaning at matches. Also unless you have a reason you are going with 45 I would take a strong look at a 40 instead.

Main reason i'm going with 45 is that i already reload 45. not opposed to the 40, just dont want to buy all the new reloading supplies if i can help it.

[zzt]

I use the Wilson ETMs in my Sig 1911 Tacops. I like them much better than the Wilson 47s and the Chip McCormacks. The Tripp Cobra II mags did not work at all in my gun. They hung so low the slide would not strip a round from slide lock. I've got about 10,000 rounds each through my first four ETMs and I've disassembled them to clean them only two times. Usually I just blow them out. For some reason dust and dirt don't seem to stick to them. I wish my Limited mags worked as well. Drop one of them in the dust and it won't run until you take it apart and run a brush through it.

When you get your Max you get 8-round mags. Try them. My Tacops came with three 7-round mags, which is why I sold them. Almost everyone at all the ranges I shoot at is friendly. Show an interest. Ask what mags they use and why. Ask if you can try one of their mags in your gun. If the answer isn't "sure", I'd be very surprised. It beats the heck out of buying one of everything just to see what runs.

If you are going to shoot more than SS with your Max, you'll eventually need 10-round mags. The best I've found for my Tacops is the Wilson 47 10-round mag with a Tripp Hybrid follower. The Wilson follower is convex and makes seating a fully loaded mag a chore if the slide is closed. You really have to whack it. The Tripp Hybrid is concave and lets you push the top round down about half a cartridge worth. That extra play makes seating much easier.

Edited March 30, 2016 by zzt

[crispy690]

/\ /\ great info thanks much

[TimH]

I run a Max .45 1911. I use Wilson ETM's exclusively. I also run the Dawson ICE "no gap" magwell insert and use Dawson "no gap" basepads with the ETM mags. Its a fantastic setup. I believe the Dawson basepads are a necessity because otherwise with standard basepads and the ICE magwell, there's not enough basepad to properly seat the mags in the gun reliably. Using the Dawson basepads ensures that there is enough base left below the magwell and not flush or recessed.

And yes, everything fits in the box fine

[robertg5322]

Had 2 .45s (turned one into a .40 a couple of years ago), both would run with any magazine, from $7.00 Del Mar Gun Show Shooting Star mags to Ed Brown 8 Pack.

Last year I got tired of pulling the guts out the top of the mags to clean them and picked up some Mec Gar mags. I like the way they disassemble. Makes them easier to clean. They're affordable ($17.00 each if memory serves) and have run fine for the past several thousand rounds.

I'm one of those guys who believes that since 1911 guns in .45ACP have been in production for over 100 years, they should have the magazine issue solved by now and the mags shouldn't break the bank. If the mags are in spec, and the gun isn't working, fix the gun. It should run with any in-spec mags out there. Sig seems to have a pretty good reputation for reliability so I doubt you'll have trouble finding mags that work with it.

[zzt]

The problem is not with out of spec mags. The problem is the tweaks made my various manufacturers and custom builders to make the guns run better for competition. Almost anything works in a loosy goosy GI 1911, but not when things are tightened up. Guns set up for competition almost always have mag catches that hold the mag higher than JB's spec. Often, there is extra material to prevent over insertion of the mag. So some mag manufacturers adjust some of their their mags to suit. If you take a mag designed for a GI 1911 and try to use it in a race gun, it most likely will give you problems. Same the other way around.

My Sig Tacops was originally designed specifically for the Blackwater group providing security in Iraq. It was designed for combat/LE use, so it is no surprise that a mag designed for the same uses, the ETM, works so well. The only mags I tried that did not work at all were the Tripps I mentioned above and the MecGar 10 and 11 rounders. I don't consider $30 for a quality mag that will last the rest of my life to be expensive.

[robertg5322]

Kimber Custom II, circa 2000 (not loose at all) and a Les Baer Hardball gun (they do not have a reputation for being loose and this one is not loose even now after I-don't-know how many thousands of rounds through it) bought in 2006 both run with any mag (so far). Both used for USPSA SS shooting.

[robertg5322]

$30.00 is not expensive, you're right about that. But it is more than $17.00.

I consider mags consumables. They get dropped, stepped on and kicked around in matches and practice. I like knowing I don't need a specific mfr's product to keep my guns running.

That said, I have yet to have one get messed up so bad I couldn't make it work.

[Scott_Sweeney]

I've run the sig mags in my modded tac ops (Max wasn't designed till after I got it) and they run like a champ. They look very similar to some other magazines hold eight+1 and stick out far enough from a mag well you don't have to use an extended baseplate.

[thermobollocks]

The factory Sig mags work great. I have also had excellent luck with CMC Powermags and Wilson 47Ds. I've also found cleaning is unnecessary unless they fall lips-first in the mud

[robertg5322]

Shoot a few matches in dirty gravel and you're going to eventually have to clean mags.

When you do you learn to appreciate the ones with removable bases that give a cleaning brush full access.

Can other mags be cleaned, of course. But it's so much easier with f ull access from the bottom.

[crispy690]

Thanks eveyrbody. From everything i hear here and what i have read, its looking like the Wilson ETM is the way i am leaning. Appreciate the input!

[shooterDrew]

Saw at least one comment above about MecGar 1911 mags. I have had a good experience with them. I shoot them along side my CMC power mags and both are perfectly reliable. The antifriction coating makes the mags feel super slick when loading rounds more so than any other mag I've got.

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[jcc7x7]

wilson 47d's and CMC any of them