Help - 1911 9mm sluggish recoil

[doh31672]

So I've looked here and online, trying to figure out how to improve a basic RIA 1911 9mm. The best way i can describe the problem, is that the recoil feels sluggish. Like I pull the trigger, it going bang, then it takes a beat or two for the slide to return to battery. I believe I am currently running an 11# recoil, but am looking to buy a new recoil spring and am looking for guidance on a good combination to try, for someone who has already faced and addressed this problem.

I've seen posts say to try to run extra light, like a 9# recoil spring. I guess the theory is that spring will not create as much resistance as the slide moves backward after firing? Doesn't it also stand to reason that the weaker slide won't have enough strength to push the slide back forward fast enough?

I was actually thinking of going the other direction and going heavier, to make the slide return to battery faster. Even if I go to 14, I would think that a factory 115g 9mm bullet has enough power to cycle the slide, even a heavier 1911 slide.

And would changing the mainspring have that big of an impact on recoil? i forget what i currently have in there, but I believe it's already a reduced power, for purposes of lightening the trigger pull. i've also read something about polishing the firing pin stop?

Any anecdotal guidance would be appreciated.

[prod39]

Are you shooting full power, factory loads or reloads ?

[Canucky]

Call RIA support. They are very helpful.

[Bill Steele]

You intuition is correct. You want a heavier recoil spring. If you already have a light hammer spring, the heavier recoil spring isn't likely to hamper extraction (the heavier the hammer spring, the more resistance to rearward slide movement)

[doh31672]

running factory loads. Standard 115g range ammo. I've shot federal and WWB.

[himurax13]

So I've looked here and online, trying to figure out how to improve a basic RIA 1911 9mm. The best way i can describe the problem, is that the recoil feels sluggish. Like I pull the trigger, it going bang, then it takes a beat or two for the slide to return to battery. I believe I am currently running an 11# recoil, but am looking to buy a new recoil spring and am looking for guidance on a good combination to try, for someone who has already faced and addressed this problem.

I've seen posts say to try to run extra light, like a 9# recoil spring. I guess the theory is that spring will not create as much resistance as the slide moves backward after firing? Doesn't it also stand to reason that the weaker slide won't have enough strength to push the slide back forward fast enough?

I was actually thinking of going the other direction and going heavier, to make the slide return to battery faster. Even if I go to 14, I would think that a factory 115g 9mm bullet has enough power to cycle the slide, even a heavier 1911 slide.

And would changing the mainspring have that big of an impact on recoil? i forget what i currently have in there, but I believe it's already a reduced power, for purposes of lightening the trigger pull. i've also read something about polishing the firing pin stop?

Any anecdotal guidance would be appreciated.

If this is your first 1911 in 9mm, you just may not be used to how the recoil feels on this platform. It is far less snappy then other 9mm pistols.

If you go heavier, you will slow down the slide even more and increase your chance of stovepiping.

I wouldn't run anything heavier than a 10lb recoil spring on a 9mm 1911 with factory 115g loads.

A video of you shooting at full speed (like a Bill Drill) would help.



Here is a 10 lb recoil spring with 130 PF ammo.

[ironhorse1]

I have used 181/2 and a 16 pound springs, in the 9mm 1911.

Since my reloads are lighter than factory I kept the 16 pound in the gun.

You may want to buy several and try them. Start at 14 and work your way up until it feels right.

irh

[ruchik]

The rule of thumb in a 1911, regardless of caliber, is to run the strongest recoil spring your gun will reliably lock back on with an empty magazine.

Go to Wolff Gunsprings, and order up a recoil spring calibration pack. Take your gun out to the range. Load one round into each magazine. Then try out different weight recoil springs, with just one round. The strongest spring lets the gun lock back all the time on an empty mag is the one you want.

[HPGunner]

I run a 12# recoil spring on a 19# hammer spring on my Springfield Loaded 9mm 1911. It runs well for me.

[Limited-Ten]

It is a possibility that 11lb recoil spring is a tad stiff and is preventing the slide from fully retracting, basically short stroking the recoil cycle but not to the point where it can't eject and feed.

Just something to keep in mind

[L84CABO]

This is an inherent challenge with 9mm 1911's. The 9mm cartridge can be a bit under powered for the slide of a full size 1911. It is one reason why you may want to opt for a 4 inch gun if it's going to be chambered in 9mm.

Keep in mind that this isn't an exacting science. Lots of variables including the hammer spring weight, how tight the gun is, etc. So some trial and error may be needed to get it running right.

Also, are you having any actual failures or does it just feel sluggish?

Here are some suggestions...

First and foremost, call RIA and discuss the problem with them. They know how that gun is sprung and they can probably save you a lot of time by guiding you on what to try first. They may even send you some springs for free.

Make sure you ask them what the hammer spring weight is. You'll want to know this anyway should you need to replace it. And make sure you confirm the weight of the recoil spring that is in the gun currently. It's critical you know where you're starting from. Ditch the current spring and put in a new one if you're not 100% certain that it's an 11 pounder.

Make sure the gun is lubed will with a lite oil. No grease or heavier oils. Wilson Combat makes a good lite oil.

You will want a selection of recoil springs to work with from 8 lbs up to 14. It will surprise me if a heavier spring than the 11 lb is in order, but again, it all has to do with the combination of what is in the gun, etc. All of the 9mm's I've had have been in the 9-11 pound range.

And if you're ordering springs anyway, you may want order a lighter hammer spring depending on what's in it currently.

Make sure you are using quality full power factory ammo. Something like Federal American Eagle, Remington UMC, etc. Stay away from budget ammo like Federal Champion and Winchester White Box.

You will likely find that the gun simply runs better with 124 gr and 147 gr. Keep that in mind when you're looking for ammo. And yea, I understand that the whole point of a 9mm 1911 is probably to save money on ammo.

Grip - Make absolutely sure you are using a good tight grip and firm wrist. Over-exaggerate your grip initially to a) see if this affects anything and b) to eliminate this factor while you're working to get the gun running right

Thumbs - Make sure your thumbs aren't contacting the slide in any way. You may want to switch to a thumb over thumb grip during this process to remove this possibility from the equation.

[GunHo]

Had the same problem with my SA RO 1911 9mm. Sent it back to SA free of charge. Gun cycles perfect now. I definitely would try RIA first before doing anything. If they're anywhere near as good as SA, then consider it fixed.

[Voo]

I've shot a lot of rounds through 9mm 1911's.. Kimber, SA and my buddies STI Trojan in and out of competition..

You're not going to want a heavier recoil spring. That will induce failure to eject/failure to feed as the ammo you're using barely has enough "oomph" to get it to cycle- hence the sluggishness.

There's two basic ways to approach this
1) run a lighter recoil spring.
2) shoot 'hotter' ammo.

I opted to run a lighter recoil spring. I think i was using a 10 pound spring with my ammo (I reload).

As for your Mainspring question - The lighter mainspring will help 'slightly' with allowing the slide to come back faster. What plays a bigger factor in how fast it comes back is the bevel of the firing pin stop, where it contacts the hammer. There's a caveat as having it very beveled will allow the slide to reciprocate faster but will cause the gun to feel like it's recoiling more. The firing pin mod that a lot of 1911's have is a squared firing pin stop- this gives the sensation of less recoil. Your choice as to how you want the gun to feel. Leaving it squared makes it more sluggish but reduces felt recoil. Having it beveled allows the slide to come back faster. I beveled mine as I wanted the gun to 'snap' more.

The other thing to do regardless of what you decide is to ensure that the slide can move freely on the frame. I deburred and polished the rails and disconnector, disconnector hole (actually I did the whole pistol). Doing this gives the slide the best chance at moving backwards and forwards, freely. This is important, if you're going to run a lighter recoil spring. Basically you're going to want a 'reliability package' done to the gun..

As others have alluded to- the 1911 was not built around the 9mm cartridge. The 9mm round is very weak and has to move a lot of mass (the slide) to work properly. It can be done, but you're seeing the 'edge effects' of a 9mm in a 1911 platform. I would change/try a lighter recoil spring as that's a very fast and quick way of seeing how the gun will feel. Also, I would clean and then lube it with a very 'thin' type oil. For now, stay away from grease as the viscosity will actually slow the slide down (which is what you dont' want).

As additional food for thought, I did run factory ammo. I tried WWB (very underpowered) and factory 9mm NATO ammo. The 9mm Nato is 'hot' at +P I believe. It worked "ok" but I couldn't get a consistent source and so I decided to run a lighter spring.

Good luck!

[cowtown]

So I've looked here and online, trying to figure out how to improve a basic RIA 1911 9mm. The best way i can describe the problem, is that the recoil feels sluggish. Like I pull the trigger, it going bang, then it takes a beat or two for the slide to return to battery.

I've got around 400 rounds through a new Springfield 9mm 1911 and know exactly how you feel. It's a very different feel from my .45 Sig 1911 and other 9mms like Mk25 and CZ75. Kind of a "slow-mo" feel.

Having said that, the thing shoots accurately and extracts flawlessly so far. Does yours have other problems? Because as long as mine's functioning correctly and accurate, I'm not going to touch it. Chalk it up to unique character.

[seal20]

You get the same effect when you shoot a G17 and immediately switch to a Beretta M9.