Question for Les Baer owner ?

[newbie1234]

I had a 1911 45ACP Les Baer Premier II, I bought it used, I guess the previous owner shot around 2K rounds. On the last weekend I just finished the last round of 3K ammo.

My question is, after ~= 5K rounds, do I need to replace any part, such as barrel, firing pin, recoil spring ... or if it not broken then don't fix it.

(FYI, 3K ammo are my reload with 200gr, not 230 gr, RN, plated bullets, the powder is on the low side, speed unknow. I clean and oil my pistol after every range trip, this is my very very very favorite pistol so I need to take a good care of it ).

[Teachu2]

It's not broken. If it loses accuracy, develops feeding issues, or doesn't go into battery on it's own - then it will need attention.

[bruce381]

I put about 50K through mine then the extractor broke

[TKM]

All springs and magazines are wear items. Keep spares.

[G-forceJunkie]

Recoil spring for sure. Unless it is now softened up to the correct weight for your light reloads. Definitely change it before shooting full power ammo. I'm not a 1911 guy, but I typically hear them changing the recoil spring every 2-5k rounds.

[drdanno84]

Les Baer Maintenance Schedule

Maintenance

Field strip and clean with Ballistol after ever shooting session, typically 200-500 rounds. Detail strip and clean every 2000 rounds. Replace recoil spring (18#) and firing pin spring every 3000 rounds. Replace mainspring and sear spring every 10,000 rounds. Lube with FP-10.

[teflondog]

I'm paranoid so I replace the recoil spring every 2k rounds since it's cheap maintenance.

[ABR]

I put about 50K through mine then the extractor broke

That sounds about right for a Baer.

[IVC]

I would only worry about the recoil spring. Keep a spare in your range bag and replace either on schedule, or when the gun starts feeling a bit off during recoil. You can also watch the ejection pattern or pay attention to how the slide feels when you operate it.

Other consumables you change as needed (unless it's a carry or competition gun, when you might want to do it on a schedule). I would worry about magazine springs and cleaning magazines way before I worried about the rest of the springs in the gun. Do an overhaul after 100K rounds if you feel like it (50K if you're bored, 25K if you're paranoid). Otherwise, the rest of the springs don't prevent wear and tear like the recoil spring does and there is no damage done if you drive them into the ground.

In fact, for 2011 in USPSA I clean magazines between stages. High capacity long magazines and desert dirt along the wall will literally stop rounds from sliding up. Recoil spring and magazine springs are an annual replacement ritual. Everything else stays as-is.

[aklon]

I've had a TRS since December 2000 and have had zero problems with it. The only time I've had trouble is when using handloads but that was not at all a common event.

I still enjoy the reliability, simplicity, and (above all) accuracy this pistol delivers.

[XDJYo]

I usually replace the recoil and firing pin spring at 2k as a normal maintenance item. Someone mentioned mags, depending on how hard I use them (environment-clean range vs. dusty/dirty), I will disassemble and clean them out periodically. If I start to have feeding issues, I toss the mags and replace. Right now, I've got 11(?) of them, so they've lasted a good long time. Granted, I'm not a huge volume shooter, but I don't like to worry about those type of things, so I tend to stock up on them when I can.

My Les Baer has been awesome and makes me look way better than I am.

[Peahi2]

Most def swap out to. fresh recoil spring. Also clean it, and give it good lube. Shooting that much def smoothed it out.

[keith1911]

I've got a Concept 2 that broke the slide lock at probably 20k rounds. I replace the recoil and firing pin spring with the Wolff 16.5 Variable spring when the gun starts feeling off or starts failing to feed.

[Snuffleupagus]

My second Baer's internal extractor bent and failed to extract before 1000 rounds. It needed adjustment but I should probably replace it. Otherwise it runs fine.