9mm 1911 mag choices

[Mike21STI]

The Tripp magazines that I had for my STI sentry were flawless, they never failed on me.  

I shouldn't have sold that gun...

Edited December 16, 2020 by Mike21STI

[Bakerjd]

9 hours ago, Mike21STI said:

The Tripp magazines that I had for my STI sentry were flawless, they never failed on me.  

I shouldn't have sold that gun...

I have one gun I wish I never sold. Not even really a special edition or anything. It was a Springfield loaded 9mm 1911 that Ryan Spencer worked over for me. Man did that gun shoot awesome. Been chasing that feeling for 2 years now. I dont know what it was really but THE STI Trojan 9mm was trash compared to it. Sold that one and now doing a Dan wesson. 

[.45 ACP nut]

I really like the Metalform 9.743. They have preformed very well in 3 different 1911's chambered in 9mm. Available from Greg Cote

Edited December 21, 2020 by shred
removed link

[Bakerjd]

Well got a Dawson, metalform, tripp and chip McCormick range pro mags. Tried each. All were good and a little easyer to load into a 1911 with slide closed except the dawson. I dont know what was up with the dawson but I couldn't get 10 rounds into it for the life of me. And I'm almost sure all but the tripp mag were actually just metalform mags. 

[Jim Watson]

I wonder how many magazine manufacturers there really are.  Those punch presses aren't cheap.  

And a lot of working parts are suspiciously similar.  My FLG showed me slide stops under three different labels with the same mold and tool marks.  

[cbrussell]

I suspect a whole lot yes than we think.

[cbrussell]

I meant to type “a whole lot less than we think.”

[Bakerjd]

On 12/25/2020 at 10:55 AM, Jim Watson said:

I wonder how many magazine manufacturers there really are.  Those punch presses aren't cheap.  

And a lot of working parts are suspiciously similar.  My FLG showed me slide stops under three different labels with the same mold and tool marks.  

Mim is mim. EGW, and Cheely I know for fact machine their own slide stops. 

[Magictalent]

My 9 mm mags are from dawson. Other mag works too.

My 40 SW are from Tripp.

I like mag with thicker steel. They last a little longer. Mags are comsumerbles. Depends on how often you dryfire and pratice, 2 to 3 sets of mag are good to have.

 

 

 

[Bakerjd]

10 hours ago, Magictalent said:

My 9 mm mags are from dawson. Other mag works too.

My 40 SW are from Tripp.

I like mag with thicker steel. They last a little longer. Mags are comsumerbles. Depends on how often you dryfire and pratice, 2 to 3 sets of mag are good to have.

 

 

 

Totally agree. For my 40 I settled on Wilson and tripp 10mm mags. Mostly Wilson's. Still undecided on the 9mm mags. 

[robertg5322]

Metalform for 9mm, they work and they're affordable, especially if you get the Brownell's branded versions. Gun is a Springfield Armory Loaded Target with almost everything but the frame, slide, and firing pin replaced. I bought two when I got the gun to test, they worked, bought ten more. Never had the need to try any of the more exotic options.

 

Tripp for .40 S&W. They work, they're not ridiculously expensive, and they work. Also hold 9 rounds. My gun uses factory length .40 S&W ammo, so I use the .40 S&W mags. Zero issues. Also got some Checkmates, a Wilson Combat (it's exactly the same as their 10mm mag) and some others who's provenance I cannot recall. All worked for a bit, then the followers started jumping over the slide stop. I replaced the springs & followers with Tripp stuff and now they work fine. Won't bother with anything but Tripp Research for .40 S&W single stack mags anymore. Not worth the hassle. Gun is a Kimber I converted to .40 S&W, with a KKM ramped barrel.

 

For .45, I use mostly a bunch of $7.00 Shooting Star magazines I got from the Del Mar Gun Show in 2002. The gun will feed from any in spec magazine, so I don't see the need to spend real money on magazines for it. I also have some Joes1911magazine.com mags that work fine, and some Wilson Combat 47D & ETM mags that I got super cheap in the marketplace. And an old Ed Brown 8 pack that also works fine. Gun is an old (2006) Les Baer Hardballer with a BTGS installed. 

[ck1]

I've run pretty much every different brand/type of 9mm 1911 magazine out there... IMO the newer/newest Mec-Gar 9mm 1911 mags with the rib running down the front are the best ones ever made thus far. Be careful though, because Mec-Gar decided to use the same SKU for the new ones as their old ones (which are trash).

 

All the 9mm 1911 mags with the spacer in the back of the mag tube (Wilson, Metalform, Dawson, etc) are crap compared to the new Mec-Gar's. Having the spacer in the rear of the tube is a terrible design choice, but they're a lot cheaper to manufacture, so that's probably why there are so many made that way.

 

You can load/unload the Mec-Gar's easily just like any other mag because it's a better design vs just stuffing rounds in and slapping a spacer in the back of the tube.

 

These: https://gregcotellc.com/cart/1911-mecgar-magazines-c-166/mecgar-1911-9mm-10-rd-match-grade-mgcgov910afc-p-1586.html?zenid=p03na9hoh6m7bleumagud9nqf3

Edited December 31, 2020 by ck1

[robertg5322]

2 hours ago, ck1 said:

I've run pretty much every different brand/type of 9mm 1911 magazine out there... IMO the newer/newest Mec-Gar 9mm 1911 mags with the rib running down the front are the best ones ever made thus far. Be careful though, because Mec-Gar decided to use the same SKU for the new ones as their old ones (which are trash).

 

All the 9mm 1911 mags with the spacer in the back of the mag tube (Wilson, Metalform, Dawson, etc) are crap compared to the new Mec-Gar's. Having the spacer in the rear of the tube is a terrible design choice, but they're a lot cheaper to manufacture, so that's probably why there are so many made that way.

 

You can load/unload the Mec-Gar's easily just like any other mag because it's a better design vs just stuffing rounds in and slapping a spacer in the back of the tube.

 

These: https://gregcotellc.com/cart/1911-mecgar-magazines-c-166/mecgar-1911-9mm-10-rd-match-grade-mgcgov910afc-p-1586.html?zenid=p03na9hoh6m7bleumagud9nqf3

Got 12 older Metalform mags that haver given me a bit of trouble in two guns (heavily upgraded Springfield Loaded Target 9mm and a Colt GCNM that's had nothing done to it). Calling magazines that work "crap" is a bit extreme, no?

 

Not saying your MecGar mags ain't the bees knees, just pointing out that there are other options out there that seem to work for a lot of people.

[Bakerjd]

I got teo of the black metalform mags in from greg Cote and they function fine but dont drop free every time. I think it may be the black coating. But so far all the mags I've tried the metalform, most are just with different brand name, have been the vest as far as loading into the gun with slide forward. The only exception to that is the one dawson mag that came with the dawson basepad. I can still only get 9 rounds in it. Very odd. I've never had an issue with dawson stuff before. 

 

I think the only one left to try is the mec gar.

[rishii]

I have the Brownells branded metalforms, and I did 2 mods to them both involve the feed ramp on the front of the mag.

i polished out the sharp inside edge on the feed ramp, and I saw the feed ramp was ever so slightly sticking out past the mag body and causing it to not drop free, a couple of taps with a hammer solved that

[C-Money]

@Bakerjd How is the basepad on the Mec Gars? It looks similar to a Dawson basepad. Is it plastic? Does the magazine come apart easily? Can you swap the basepads around, that is, do the Metalform pattern Dawson base pads fit on these new Mac Gars?

[Bakerjd]

24 minutes ago, Twinkie said:

@Bakerjd How is the basepad on the Mec Gars? It looks similar to a Dawson basepad. Is it plastic? Does the magazine come apart easily? Can you swap the basepads around, that is, do the Metalform pattern Dawson base pads fit on these new Mac Gars?

Just ordered the mec gar mags yesterday. I'll let ya know when I get them in.

[Badluck2]

Dawson Precision 9mm 10 Round Magazines with Competition Basepads!   The best!!!

[ck1]

On 12/31/2020 at 6:48 PM, robertg5322 said:

Got 12 older Metalform mags that haver given me a bit of trouble in two guns (heavily upgraded Springfield Loaded Target 9mm and a Colt GCNM that's had nothing done to it). Calling magazines that work "crap" is a bit extreme, no?

 

Not saying your MecGar mags ain't the bees knees, just pointing out that there are other options out there that seem to work for a lot of people.

 

Yeah, calling them "crap" is little strong for sure lol!

 

The thing is though, after running/fighting with the 9mm 1911 mags with the spacers in the back for so many years, even when I had ones that were 99.9%, the Mec-Gars are like a revelation...

 

The spacers being in the back of the tubes like in ETM's or whatever presents the rounds to the chamber at a really steep angle, and right at the end of the stroke of the slide coming back (so zero room for things to go anything other than perfect): if anything is wonky at all with the rounds, or one's extractor isn't tuned just right, rounds can jam into the ramp or even into the top of the chamber (because the feed angle is so severe) - with the "spacer" being in the front of the mag tube (like with the Mec-Gar's) the slide strips off the rounds earlier and the feed angle of the round to the chamber is much shallower, really runs A LOT more smoothly...

I think the easier loading/unloading is just bonus side-effect because with the rounds sitting at the backs of the tubes they don't require such a stout spring.

 

It's crazy how "clunky" the ETM's/Metalforms/Dawsons/etc run compared to the newer Mac-Gar's if you play with them back to back.

 

The Mec-Gars come apart easily for cleaning and such and the base-pad is pretty good, it's plastic though, a bunch of drops onto concrete like at indoor matches will eventually take a toll.

[robertg5322]

6 minutes ago, ck1 said:

 

Yeah, calling them "crap" is little strong for sure lol!

 

The thing is though, after running/fighting with the 9mm 1911 mags with the spacers in the back for so many years, even when I had ones that were 99.9%, the Mec-Gars are like a revelation...

 

The spacers being in the back of the tubes like in ETM's or whatever presents the rounds to the chamber at a really steep angle, and right at the end of the stroke of the slide coming back (so zero room for things to go anything other than perfect): if anything is wonky at all with the rounds, or one's extractor isn't tuned just right, rounds can jam into the ramp or even into the top of the chamber (because the feed angle is so severe) - with the "spacer" being in the front of the mag tube (like with the Mec-Gar's) the slide strips off the rounds earlier and the feed angle of the round to the chamber is much shallower, really runs A LOT more smoothly...

I think the easier loading/unloading is just bonus side-effect because with the rounds sitting at the backs of the tubes they don't require such a stout spring.

 

It's crazy how "clunky" the ETM's/Metalforms/Dawsons/etc run compared to the newer Mac-Gar's if you play with them back to back.

 

The Mec-Gars come apart easily for cleaning and such and the base-pad is pretty good, it's plastic though, a bunch of drops onto concrete like at indoor matches will eventually take a toll.

 

Well, my two 9mm 1911s are a 2017 Colt GCNM and a Springfield Loaded Target, and both were so loosely put together, if the bullet jams onto the feedramp, there's probably enough wiggle room for the barrel to move and chamber the round anyway. 

 

The magazines that came with the Springfield were of the design you're talking about, but only held 9 rounds. I had no issue with them other than the limited capacity. Maybe I'll pick up one of the newer 10 round version and try it out. You can never have too many guns or magazines.

[ck1]

15 minutes ago, robertg5322 said:

 

The magazines that came with the Springfield were of the design you're talking about, but only held 9 rounds. I had no issue with them other than the limited capacity. Maybe I'll pick up one of the newer 10 round version and try it out. You can never have too many guns or magazines.

 

Exactly the same idea as those old Springfield 9-rounders, and they always seemed to work for everybody!

 

Like you said, the only problem with those was capacity (9rds vs 10rds), and also their springs would go south pretty quick (after a while they wouldn't lock-back on empty). I used to run those back in the day before the rules changes when it used to be an advantage in IDPA to use 9-rounders over 10's sometimes depending on the match (since round-dumping is legal now there's no reason not to roll with 10's)... they always ran way better than any of the 10-rounders with the spacers in the back.

Edited January 3, 2021 by ck1

[Bakerjd]

@Twinkie just got the mecgar mags. Hands down the best mags I've found. Seat easily when slide closed, easy to unload them (like as easy as just pushing the rounds out like a 2011 mag), easy to disassemble. To disassemble all you have to do is push up the bumper tab at the front and slide the base pad off. All I know is I'm gonna run these 2 a bunch and if they work good in live fire I'm buying 10 more. 

 

Thanks everyone for the input. 

[ck1]

On 1/7/2021 at 2:15 AM, Bakerjd said:

@Twinkie just got the mecgar mags. Hands down the best mags I've found. Seat easily when slide closed, easy to unload them (like as easy as just pushing the rounds out like a 2011 mag), easy to disassemble. To disassemble all you have to do is push up the bumper tab at the front and slide the base pad off. All I know is I'm gonna run these 2 a bunch and if they work good in live fire I'm buying 10 more. 

 

Thanks everyone for the input. 

 

 let us know how it goes? Mine have been flawless... I got 12 of them too lol!

 

Edited January 8, 2021 by ck1

[Jim Watson]

Anecdote Alert:

 

The Metalform 10x9mm get good reports often under Dawson label.

So don't let me discourage you, but...

It has been some years since I was watching closely and when Metalform announced the 10x9mm, I pounced.  I talked my friends into buying them so I could order enough to get the wholesale price; 40 mags minimum.

 

I was disappointed to see they had the 1950 rear spacer instead of the Springfield Front Ramp.  

I was very disappointed to find they didn't work, the follower would not always depress under more than one round.

So I had to round them all up and send them back.  Turned out they had put a 9 round rear spacer in a 10 round tube and that left a ledge that would stop the follower.

They then worked ok for a while, but only for a while.  I replaced springs which did not help much.

I knew the Metalform .38 Super magazine with round follower would feed 9mm, so I took out a spacer, put in a .38 follower and spring and voi'la, back in business.  But Metalform wouldn't sell me those followers.  I ground the necessary relief in some spare .45 round followers which worked but was laborious.  So the last few got Tripp Super followers.  They are now acceptable for practice and club matches with roundnose bullets.  

[Bakerjd]

@Jim Watson interesting info about 9rnd spacer issue. I have a brand new dawson that came with the base pad and it will only accept 9 rounds. I'll have to check the spacer. 

 

Side note, the mecgar dont use any spacer. They have a formed rib down the front of the mag instead. Much better idea IMO. And they are cake to disassemble. Cant loose a spacer if there isnt one. And springs come out much easier then the metalform ones also.