CMP 1911 Magazines Question

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  • rickgman
    • Oct 2009
    • 1347

    #31
    Originally posted by Gewehr43 View Post
    Is there a way to identify the hybrid magazines you mention?
    Markings? Examination?
    Yes, one can identify a hybrid lip Checkmate magazine by the H in the SKU number. For instance: CM45-7-B-H which is a cal .45, 7 rd., blue, hybrid lip magazine.

    One can also visually inspect the feed lips. One will notice that the feed lips on a GI magazine are straight from rear to front. Hybrid feed lips flare outboard at about the dimple on the magazine follower. This allows the cartridge to be released from the feed lips a little earlier than with a GI magazine. It can be hard to tell the old time wadcutter feed lips from hybrid feed lips. Both release the cartridge earlier than GI feed lips but the wadcutter feed lips do it even earlier than the hybrid feed lips. Early release aids in feeding cartridges which have a more blunt profile and are shorter than the standard GI 230 grain ball cartridge. GI ball ammo is about 1.265" OAL so it is definitely on the long side compared to many newer cartridges.

    Comment

    • rickgman
      • Oct 2009
      • 1347

      #32
      Originally posted by Gewehr43 View Post
      Milsurp:

      Rickgman: I know you've played/worked with the 1911 magazines alot, anything to add? thoughts?

      I know very little about the 1911 mags, so feel free to add, as I'm all ears.
      Well, as everyone has probably detected, I highly prefer magazines with hybrid feed lips. They are just more reliable than GI feed lip magazines - specifically when using anything other than standard GI 230 grain ball ammo.

      I also highly prefer magazines with the dimple on the magazine follower. John Browning put it there for a reason. If there isn't enough friction and too little spring force, the last round will sometimes jump out of the magazine and cause a jam. Ask me how I know. The dimple increases friction on the last round when the spring force is lowest. With a stiff magazine spring, the dimple generally isn't really a necessity but it is once the magazine spring starts to fatigue. The vast majority of 7 rd. magazine (including all USGI magazines) have this feature. I think there are only two 8 rd. magazines on the market which have it - the newer Checkmate 8 rd. magazines and the Wilson Combat Vickers 8 rd. magazine. McCormick markets a 8 rd. magazine with a smooth follower but uses a heavy magazine spring. That significantly delays the loss of spring tension but like all springs, it will sooner of later relax.

      I think that Checkmate magazines are the best overall value. I haven't tried the Wilson Combat Vickers magazines but I expect them to be great magazines - they just cost a lot more than Checkmate magazines. By the way, Checkmate manufacturers magazines for a number of 1911 pistol manufacturers including Colt. Springfield Armory magazines also appear to be Checkmate magazines.

      A pistol is only as reliable as its magazine and I have found the vast majority of 1911 malfunctions to be magazine or ammo related issues.

      Just my two cents worth.

      Comment

      • fenton04
        • Dec 2019
        • 13

        #33
        Rickgman thanks for the info. I was wondering about after market magazines,

        Comment

        • Dingsbums
          • Apr 2013
          • 536

          #34
          Milsurp Collector - the magazines you have in the first picture are Mason-Rust mags (cage code 30745) that I mentioned. As to whether they're genuine GI, others say that they're fake surplus. Regardless, I cancelled the order I had for some.

          Comment

          • Milsurp Collector
            • Oct 2009
            • 2045

            #35
            Originally posted by Dingsbums View Post
            Milsurp Collector - the magazines you have in the first picture are Mason-Rust mags (cage code 30745) that I mentioned. As to whether they're genuine GI, others say that they're fake surplus. Regardless, I cancelled the order I had for some.
            That picture is from that article that I quoted. The article used them as examples of USGI magazines, not me. Those 30745 magazines are either not USGI or are not to specification and were rejected. The markings on the bottom are oriented the wrong way and they have too many witness holes.




            Authentic magazines. Notice that the toe of the magazine is pointed to the left when reading the marking, and the number of witness holes.


            Comment

            • rickgman
              • Oct 2009
              • 1347

              #36
              Originally posted by Milsurp Collector View Post
              The markings on the bottom are oriented the wrong way and they have too many witness holes.
              Good eyes. Yep, there is definitely an issue with the holes.

              Comment

              • Dingsbums
                • Apr 2013
                • 536

                #37
                Maybe this threads title should be changed to "Fake 1911 mags". I just found another source offering "1911 Magazine, 7rd, .45 ACP, Steel, Nitride, USGI Cage Coded, *NEW*" mags. The cage code on them is 8R320, which comes up as Steen Armament Research Co., and another website equates that cage code to SARCO. So......

                Comment

                • jagd1305
                  • Oct 2009
                  • 284

                  #38
                  CMP 1911A1 magazines

                  I ordered 10 magazines from the CMP a few years ago and opened the packaging for some of them a few weeks ago to use.
                  All were packaged in either January 1989 or in 1984. Some in 1991.
                  The magazines manufactured by Checkmate (MFR 1M291) work flawlessly, regardless of ammunition or ball type.
                  Those manufactured by Mason-Rust Company (MFR 30745) occasionally give me feed issues.
                  While the finish on these magazines are better than the Checkmates, the reliability of function is questionable.
                  Anyone else have issues with these?
                  Last edited by jagd1305; 01-19-2020, 09:15 PM.

                  Comment

                  • jagd1305
                    • Oct 2009
                    • 284

                    #39
                    Originally posted by Dingsbums View Post
                    Maybe this threads title should be changed to "Fake 1911 mags". I just found another source offering "1911 Magazine, 7rd, .45 ACP, Steel, Nitride, USGI Cage Coded, *NEW*" mags. The cage code on them is 8R320, which comes up as Steen Armament Research Co., and another website equates that cage code to SARCO. So......
                    So CMP sold me fake USGI magazines?
                    They were advertised as USGI

                    Comment

                    • flat_top
                      • May 2016
                      • 16

                      #40
                      Originally posted by Milsurp Collector View Post

                      Authentic magazines. Notice that the toe of the magazine is pointed to the left when reading the marking, and the number of witness holes.


                      Those magazines look identical to the 4 that I purchased from the CMP for $8.40 each in September 2017. They came wrapped in Ludlow Zerust foil inside a brown paper sleeve wrapping. The outside of the brown paper sleeve is stamped with a “A-5/91” marking, so I assume they were packaged in May 1991.

                      Comment

                      • jagd1305
                        • Oct 2009
                        • 284

                        #41
                        Originally posted by flat_top View Post
                        Those magazines look identical to the 4 that I purchased from the CMP for $8.40 each in September 2017. They came wrapped in Ludlow Zerust foil inside a brown paper sleeve wrapping. The outside of the brown paper sleeve is stamped with a “A-5/91” marking, so I assume they were packaged in May 1991.
                        Exactly the same happened to me.
                        I ordered mine from the CMP when they were $8.
                        Same packaging and date as yours.
                        I still have 3 unopened.
                        Looks like CMP sold us junk.

                        Comment

                        • Milsurp Collector
                          • Oct 2009
                          • 2045

                          #42
                          Originally posted by flat_top View Post
                          Those magazines look identical to the 4 that I purchased from the CMP for $8.40 each in September 2017. They came wrapped in Ludlow Zerust foil inside a brown paper sleeve wrapping. The outside of the brown paper sleeve is stamped with a “A-5/91” marking, so I assume they were packaged in May 1991.
                          Originally posted by jagd1305 View Post
                          Exactly the same happened to me.
                          I ordered mine from the CMP when they were $8.
                          Same packaging and date as yours.
                          I still have 3 unopened.
                          Looks like CMP sold us junk.
                          flat_top said he got these magazines:



                          The ones marked MFR. 1M291 are USGI and good to go.

                          The ones marked MFR. 30745 with 7 witness holes are the ones that are questionable.

                          Comment

                          • jagd1305
                            • Oct 2009
                            • 284

                            #43
                            Originally posted by Milsurp Collector View Post
                            flat_top said he got these magazines:



                            The ones marked MFR. 1M291 are USGI and good to go.

                            The ones marked MFR. 30745 with 7 witness holes are the ones that are questionable.
                            When I was an armorer a few decades ago, I remember having to pull some of the magazines from inventory when the Update 12 came out.
                            I can’t remember specifically anymore which 1911A1 magazines they were though.
                            I just remember destroying the M16 thermold 30 round magazines we had in the inventory, which thankfully, were few

                            Comment

                            • rickgman
                              • Oct 2009
                              • 1347

                              #44
                              Originally posted by Milsurp Collector View Post

                              The ones marked MFR. 1M291 are USGI and good to go.

                              The ones marked MFR. 30745 with 7 witness holes are the ones that are questionable.
                              That is a fact.

                              Comment

                              • jagd1305
                                • Oct 2009
                                • 284

                                #45
                                Originally posted by rickgman View Post
                                That is a fact.
                                So why would CMP sell them as USGI?

                                Comment

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