Chip McCormick Match Grade Magazines

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TunnelRat
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Chip McCormick Match Grade Magazines

Post by TunnelRat »

I am looking for a 7 or 8 round magazine for a full-size 1911. I would like one that is stock length and 100% reliable.

I have always preferred to use 8-round Wilson Combat magazines in my 1911's when I shoot IPSC or IDPA. However, the Wilson mags stick out a good half inch below the stock, and for carry I find that they tend to print under my jacket.

I've had a lot of luck with Chip McCormick Power mags. I use them in my Officers length Kimber with great results. I wuz looking at a couple of stock-length, Match Grade, 8-rounders until I read the following review. Has anyone else had a problem with Chip McCormick magazines?
Date Posted: 9/6/2004

Review:
I bought 4 of these mags and found them very unreliable in my Colt 1911. The follower spring is so strong they've had to form extra heavy lips at the mouth of the mag to keep the rounds in place. These lips cause the rounds to strip off the clip at too shallow an angle, and before the round can clear the magazine, it's forced into the feed ramp rather then up it, causing frequent jamming. The noses of the rounds that do chamber are distorted enough to affect accuracy, especially with JHP's. The mags are sturdy and well made, but they definitely need to be redesigned.
TunnelRat

"Applying the standard that is well established in our case law, we hold that the Second Amendment right is fully applicable to the States." ~ McDonald v. Chicago

When your only tools are a hammer and sickle, every problem starts to look like too much freedom.
Willy P
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Post by Willy P »

Tom I use 7 round Wilsons in my Para. I do one thing though, I buy a 10 rounder and swap the base pad or you can get the thin base pads extra by themselves. I carry the thin base mag in the gun and use the thick based or 10 rounder as a reload mag. I hope that helps. Cheaper than Dirt has some mags on sale right now. Lots of brands even mec gar and kimber factory mags.
Brian D.
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Post by Brian D. »

Tom, I have found the McCormicks to be plenty trusty MOST of the time, maybe 90% of mine have worked flawlessly. The Wilsons may have a slightly better 'batting average', but at about twice the price.

For a while there CMC was putting out some thin basepads for their magazines, but haven't seen any for sale lately. For carry I'd just as soon have no base pad though, so no biggie.
Quit worrying, hide your gun well, shut up, and CARRY that handgun!

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TunnelRat
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Post by TunnelRat »

Willy P wrote:Tom I use 7 round Wilsons in my Para. I do one thing though, I buy a 10 rounder and swap the base pad or you can get the thin base pads extra by themselves. I carry the thin base mag in the gun and use the thick based or 10 rounder as a reload mag. I hope that helps.
Wow, I love this forum. Willy, you're a genius!

I had a Wilson Combat 8-round magazine sticking out (and I do mean "sticking out" :? ) of my carry gun as I was typing. But, hey, I'm a shooter -- I happened to have a Wilson 10-rounder in my range bag. It took me about a minute to swap the base pads, and voila (pardon my French...), I now have a Wilson Combat mag with a much lower profile. :D

Thanks a lot!

BTW, I called Wilson to check with them about the swap. They don't recommend it generally because the ultra-slim base pad from the 10-rounder doesn't have the magazine stop built into the front of it, so on a forceful reload you can jam the mag too far up into the gun. However, it won't be a problem so long as I use it on my main carry mag and don't use it as a spare. :)
TunnelRat

"Applying the standard that is well established in our case law, we hold that the Second Amendment right is fully applicable to the States." ~ McDonald v. Chicago

When your only tools are a hammer and sickle, every problem starts to look like too much freedom.
TunnelRat
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Post by TunnelRat »

Brian D. wrote:Tom, I have found the McCormicks to be plenty trusty MOST of the time, maybe 90% of mine have worked flawlessly. The Wilsons may have a slightly better 'batting average', but at about twice the price.

I figure I'll only ever use one or two magazines for my carry gun and I want the very best I can buy. You are right about the price being nearly double for the Wilsons. If I were buying ten magazines for competition, I'd probably go with the Chip McCormicks. Since I only need one or two, I went with the Wilsons. Hence I found myself with the extra length problem.
Brian D. wrote:For a while there CMC was putting out some thin basepads for their magazines, but haven't seen any for sale lately. For carry I'd just as soon have no base pad though, so no biggie.
I actually prefer the length of the Chip McCormick magazines. They are the length of the stock and no more. Plus, you can get them without the base pad. Such would be my preference if only I had just a tad more confidence in the McCormicks.

I use the Chip McCormick mags in my Kimber CDP officers length, though. There is just no point in carrying a shortened grip frame if you're gonna let the mag stick out... :?
TunnelRat

"Applying the standard that is well established in our case law, we hold that the Second Amendment right is fully applicable to the States." ~ McDonald v. Chicago

When your only tools are a hammer and sickle, every problem starts to look like too much freedom.
Brian D.
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Post by Brian D. »

You hit the nail on the head with that last one, Tom. Take an Officer's size grip frame, add a Wilson mag with the fat pad, [/i]presto, you just made a Gov't sized frame out of it.

Btw, Wilson sells those thin steel basepads with their Officer's ACP mags, and are of late offering them on the Gov't 7 and 8 rounders (I think).
Quit worrying, hide your gun well, shut up, and CARRY that handgun!

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1911 and Browning Hi Power Enthusianado.
Willy P
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Post by Willy P »

Once in a while a blind hog finds an acorn. 8) I'm glad to be able to have helped you Tom.
Engineer Bill
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Post by Engineer Bill »

Tom
I took the mags that came with my UC CDP II, plus the 2 additional I purchased from Kimber, rebuilt them using Wilson parts. I picked up on this from another forum. They work great.
Bill
Life/Benefactor NRA member, NRA Training Counselor, NRA Chief Range Safety Officer, NRA Recruiter; NRA RTBAV Instructor, OFCC member, Varmint Hunters Association member
Willy P
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Post by Willy P »

Bill are the Kimber mags built with a removable foot? My Para mags are the type you have to compress and bind the spring then tip the follower up and out of the mag before trying not to lose an eye when you let the pressure off the spring. I like the Wilson guts rebuild idea and just might give it a try on the Para mags. Thanks
Engineer Bill
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Post by Engineer Bill »

WillyP wrote: "the type you have to compress and bind the spring then tip the follower up and out of the mag before trying not to lose an eye when you let the pressure off the spring. I like the Wilson guts rebuild idea and just might give it a try on the Para mags"
If your mags have the holes in them on the side, compress the spring in them, slide an awe or a nail thru the holes to retain the spring! It sure makes it a little safer! I can changes out springs and followers in less than a minute.
Bill
Life/Benefactor NRA member, NRA Training Counselor, NRA Chief Range Safety Officer, NRA Recruiter; NRA RTBAV Instructor, OFCC member, Varmint Hunters Association member
Willy P
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Post by Willy P »

I played with the Para mag today sticking the Wilson guts in it. I didn't like the Wilson follower as it was short, in my opinion, for the Para mag. The Wilson springs are about 2" longer than the Para so I may order or just go buy some, if carried around here, and put them in the Para mag.

I do the allen key in the hole after compressing the spring but to get the Para follower out the top you really have to compress the spring a lot so it can tip up and come out the top of the magazine past the lips. Then you have to remove the allen key and that is when the spring want you to call NASA if you don't use a rag over the open end of the mag to stop the spring from taking out the flag we left on the moon. :D

Tom with the slide forward I can't put the Wilson mag in my pistol too far. Now with the slide back, I can see that could be a problem. Since I chamber a round, put the safety on, and then remove the mag to replace a round to make up for the chambered round out of the mag, I don't seem to have any troubles.
TunnelRat
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Post by TunnelRat »

Willy P wrote:Tom with the slide forward I can't put the Wilson mag in my pistol too far. Now with the slide back, I can see that could be a problem. Since I chamber a round, put the safety on, and then remove the mag to replace a round to make up for the chambered round out of the mag, I don't seem to have any troubles.
Yeah, that's how I do it, too. So I don't expect any trouble with the ultra-slim base pad. I like to keep things topped off.

Hey, my Browning Hi-Power holds 14+1 comfortably, so I like my 1911 to have 8+1, and my Kimber officers size 7+1.

I don't carry a spare mag these days. Maybe I should consider that...
TunnelRat

"Applying the standard that is well established in our case law, we hold that the Second Amendment right is fully applicable to the States." ~ McDonald v. Chicago

When your only tools are a hammer and sickle, every problem starts to look like too much freedom.
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