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View Full Version : Average 1911 Guide Rod/Recoil Spring life expectancy?


Gatotsu77
05-22-2011, 7:07 PM
I just replaced my guide rod/cap and recoil spring in my Kimber Custom II after what I'd estimate to be ~4k rounds down the pipe. (could be +/- 500-1k, I didn't keep good count early on) The guide rod had some decently deep scoring and gouging from what I'd imagine to be unburnt powder, brass shavings, and other crap expelled from the gun when shooting, but still functioned acceptably. The recoil spring had finally given up, and the slide was battering the base of the guide rod. (this happened for maybe 15-20 rounds, at which point I decided something just wasn't right and I stopped shooting) I popped in a Wolff 16lb recoil spring and a new factory Kimber guide rod/cap set, and wow, it is like a brand new gun again. The action of the firearm is VERY smooth again, and it was a dream to shoot at OC Indoor yesterday. (few buddies of mine and I went shooting for my birthday) 100 rounds down the pipe yesterday and no visible scratches/scoring on the new guide rod as of yet. I have found that this gun likes to run a bit wet compared to how I ran it when I first bought it. (this was my first firearm.. I was a bit naive) With the crisper and smoother recoil after replacing those parts, I was holding some pretty tight groups at about 10 yards... 3-4" 10 shot groups with a bit of an eager trigger-finger. I'm sure this is no where near what some of you would shoot.. but for my purposes, I figure it isn't too bad

My question to you all is, (sorry for the long story first) have you ever replaced a full-length guide rod in a 1911? If so, roughly how many rounds had you fired by the time you did so? How often do you all change out your recoil springs? I've read that it is suggested to do so every 1k, but that seems excessive to me.

Cokebottle
05-22-2011, 7:17 PM
Depends on the spring.
I've seen numbers anywhere from 1000 and up, 3000 pretty common.

Springco springs are supposedly good for 10,000.

Q619
05-22-2011, 7:32 PM
You shouldn't be wearing out guide rods or caps. They really don't do anything but retain the spring. The springs however should be changed every 5k. I tend to go a bit less than that sometimes as springs are cheap. I buy bulk Wolff packs.

Cyc Wid It
05-22-2011, 7:46 PM
I don't use FLGR in any of my 1911's - GI set up. I'm using ISMI springs and I think around 3-3.5K is a good safe number.

chaseface
05-22-2011, 8:23 PM
For a fullsize Kimber the manual says change the factory ones every 1,500-1,800 rounds. I've heard the wolf ones are better. I would guess (and seriously just guessing here) that your guide rod got messed up because of not change the springs when they needed to be. Mine doest even get very dirty so I dont see how it would be from that.

Gatotsu77
05-22-2011, 11:09 PM
I'm not certain what exactly did it in... but I do remember noticing a bit of wear fairly early on. (we're talking after maybe 500-800 rounds of use) I thought initially that it was because I wasn't cleaning out under the guide rod cap well enough... and at one point suspected a burr somewhere on the recoil spring. I'll take a macro photo of it tomorrow and post it so you'll all see what I'm talking about.

Cokebottle
05-23-2011, 6:57 PM
For a fullsize Kimber the manual says change the factory ones every 1,500-1,800 rounds.
:eek:

I've done that in 2 months on my RIA.
Good thing I upgraded to a SpringCo right out of the box.

Swoop
05-23-2011, 7:07 PM
Depends on the gun and some people are crazy and go 5-10k on full size but to keep it reliable I believe the suggested is 2k for government, 1500 commander and I'm not sure for officer actually...

JRJCP
05-23-2011, 8:58 PM
http://www.gunsprings.com/faq

Kruzr
05-23-2011, 9:06 PM
Your guide rod gets scratched when you put the spring on it and take it off. There is a burr on the end to keep it in place. Other than that, there shouldn't be anything that scratches the guide rod. If it does get scratched, just sand it smooth, no need to ever replace a guide rod unless it breaks.

Average life of a 1911 Gov't recoil spring with factory ammo is about 2500 - 3000 rounds. Changing it early is cheap insurance.

chaseface
05-23-2011, 9:15 PM
This may sound like a dumb question since u have obviously put lots of rounds through ur gun and know it well but is there any chance u put the spring in backwards?