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2/13/2022 7:08:48 PM
 
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Section 8: Handguns Subject: Lightweight Commander and gear Msg# 1152350
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| Just a for-what-it's-worth, Wilson also recommends a round count for changing out their recoil springs. One might need to be pretty anal to hit those changes right on the nose, but staying reasonably close to those changes is a pretty good idea. Unless you go by a visual check of the spring length and make a determination based on looking at used springs compared to new springs over a course of decades, which you and I could probably do pretty well. | ||||||
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For reference, the above message is a reply to a message where: I've never used anything but Wilson's Shok Buff pads so I can't speak about others, and I've never had a Wilson pad come apart. I do keep track of their condition as their working surface gets flattened out over time and once this happens their ability to absorb shock diminishes. I check the pad each time I clean its host gun and when I see "thin" areas forming at the points of contact I replace them. I'm embarrassed to say I never noticed that Wilson had a suggested round count life span for the buffer pads, I've always used the inspection method described above as it was taught to me by more experienced shooters during my competitive shooting days. I picked up a lot of good and bad habits back then. 
Wilson's Shok-Buff pads are blue but if I remember correctly back in the '70s when I started using them they were black. At that time other companies came out with imitations that looked as much like Wilson's as they could get away with, but I never used them. They were made of a harder, less flexible material and I didn't think they would do as good a job. I use the slingshot method of releasing the slide to chamber the first round out of a fresh magazine and I was surprised to find it didn't work with the 9mm Commander when a Shok Buff pad was installed. It works on all my 5" 1911s and on my 4.25" .45ACP Combat Commander. They also did not work in my first 1911 carry gun that was built with a short, 3.5" barreled Officers ACP top end and a lightweight Commander frame, but the gunsmith who did the final work on it warned me they wouldn't. For lurkers or others who may not be familiar with the "slingshot" term, it is one of two ways to release the slide and chamber the first round after a semi auto pistol has been shot empty and the slide has locked back. You remove the empty mag, replace it with a loaded one, and then either press the slide lock/slide release lever to allow the slide to slam forward or grasp the slide with your support hand, smartly pull the slide back to its rearward travel limit, and let it go. Competitive shooters usually use the first method because it's faster, but I prefer the second slingshot method because it compresses the recoil spring just a little more and I'm convinced that the resulting extra push from the spring could make the difference between chambering a less than perfectly shaped round, or any round in a gun that's getting dirty, and result in a full chamber rather than a failure to feed. I think in terms of self-defense, increasing the odds of getting that first round chambered is more important than saving a tenth of a second. I have to agree with you about full length guide rods. I have 1911s with and without them and I have seen no difference in performance or reliability in them either way.
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