1911 recoil spring poundage

[Klock20]

Hey guys just purchased a Kimber custom two TLE 10 mm was wondering if anybody knew what the recoil spring poundage on a stock Kimber was and what poundage I should use for underwood type hot loads?  Someone told me 22 to 23 pounds but I figure it's always good to get a second opinion thank you.

[The_Shadow]

Those that I have communicated with using 10mm Kimbers were running the 22 lb Recoil, not sure if they changed the main springs.

[10mmfan]

I don't recall what it is stock but you will get greater benefits by increasing your mainsping# and runing a flat bottom firing pin stop. I have a 18 1/2# recoil spring in my tle and I had feeding problems when I tried a 20#. 25# is the promoted weight for the mainsping I use 25# and 26# in my 10mm's

[Mike_Fontenot]

Hey guys just purchased a Kimber custom two TLE 10 mm was wondering if anybody knew what the recoil spring poundage on a stock Kimber was and what poundage I should use for underwood type hot loads?  Someone told me 22 to 23 pounds but I figure it's always good to get a second opinion thank you.

My 10mm Eclipse Custom II (bought new about 3 years or so ago) came with an 18.5lb recoil spring.  It seemed to run best that way for me for a long time, despite the fact that I shot DoubleTaps (and some Underwoods for a while) almost exclusively.  I occasionally tried 20lb, and even 22lb springs, but they didn't cycle as well at that time.  But eventually I started to see some excessive wear with the 18.5lb spring (which had probably gotten noticeably weaker than when new, even though it had probably no more than a couple of hundred rounds on it), and I switched to 20lb.  I haven't seen any more evidence of battering, and my gun has been running well (after some extractor work by my 3rd gunsmith), and some chamber throating (by that same gunsmith).  BTW, I had been monitoring the rest-length of that 18.5lb spring all along, and I believed that it wasn't getting any weaker, because it quit losing any rest-length after the first couple of range trips.  But it definitely HAD gotten much weaker, and I've concluded that you CAN'T use rest-length as an indication of spring weakening ... BEWARE!  10mm's eat recoil springs.

[Mike_Fontenot]

I don't recall what it is stock but you will get greater benefits by increasing your mainsping# and runing a flat bottom firing pin stop.

Just some additional info about my particular Kimber:  I use an 18lb hammer spring (=mainspring), and a flat-bottomed FPS.  When I initially put in my flat-bottomed FPS, I tried increasing the hammer spring, all the way to 28lb.  I didn't see any reduction in how far it threw the brass, or in the "firing-pin-wipe" on the primer craters. But I DID see a huge increase in trigger-pull.  I had had a very nice 2-1/4lb trigger with the 18lb hammer spring, so I went back to that.  But later, when I went to a 20lb recoil spring, I started getting hammer-follow when chambering the first round, so I had to increase my trigger-pull to 3lb ... I don't like it nearly as well as before, but that's that.

[sqlbullet]

In my 1911 wide body I run 18.5lb recoil, 25lb mainspring and flat bottom firing pin stop.  As long as COAL is below 1.250" it runs like a top.

[Klock20]

Thanks a lot mike!!!  I appreciate the detailed information it really helped I ordered a 20 pound recoil spring I think that should be sufficient I don't plan to shoot the gun a whole lot just enough to be efficient with it. it's more for Woods protection than anything. I shoot the crap out of my Glock 20 though  I've had my Glock for  years but I have small hands and I could never get over the grip size then somebody told me to do a grip reduction but I needed a good excuse to get a new 1911 anyways 

[Klock20]

And thank you to everyone else also really enjoy this form and think it will help out a lot in my 10 mm travels

[dakota1911]

Colt on their Deltas use two springs the larger outer spring is 16lb and not sure what the inner spring is.   Wolff Springs has a single 23lb spring as a replacement.  This is maintaining the same main (hammer) spring.  Since a 1911 is sort of a "dance of the springs" then changing the mainspring is also possible as the slide has to recock the hammer in a firing cycle.