[goaround28]

Many thanks to WC for shipping out their new 10 round 9mm mags to several forum members to test drive. I’ve shot a total of 450 rounds through two of the new mags and here are my observations:

PARTS:
Tube -
Adds a lateral indentation that creates a shelf to the leading edge of the tube just below the top round
Adds engraved round count numbers

Follower -
Complete redesign
Round appears to ride at a steeper angle in the tube (see post #16)
Metal as opposed to synthetic
Includes a dimple
Adds a very long trailing edge, probably to support the nose
Easier to remove and replace from the tube than the synthetic version (the older version isn't hard, it just takes getting used to. The new one doesn't).

Spring-
Adds a different bend to support the new follower
(same round wire as before)

All other parts appear unchanged


BUILD:
Tube -
Tube #1 was as expected and unremarkable
Tube #2 was moderately abraded on spots inside the right and left side leading to follower slowing and occasional near snag. Wondering if the tube was narrow I compared the ID and ED with tube #1 and found them to be identical.

All other parts were as expected and unremarkable.


SETUP:
Both mags were disassembled, inspected and wiped with a dry cloth. The tube interior was hit with a dry mop. I found no residue but noticed the rough interior surface on mag #2. The mags were reassembled and the followers actioned about s100x with a nylon toothbrush. During cycling mag #2 experienced varying degrees of slowing as the follower passed over the rough internal area. After cycling, the mags were loaded with 10 rounds and left for 24 hours. I repeated this cycle two more times (total three) over 72 hours.


RESULTS:
I put a total of 450 rounds through the two mags from a 5” CQB with 5500 rounds. In hindsight I should have used a Pro. 50 rounds each (25 through each mag) of:
115 ball - AE, PMC, Magtech, Estate
124 ball - AE, PMC, Magtech, Fiocchi, Geco,

Tube #1 - 100% reliability
Tube #2 - Four failures to feed across different ammo and in round counts that place the follower at or near the rough spots. This gun has had zero prior malfunctions sans two during very early break in. It was not the gun.

All of my previous ETM’s have been 100% flawless, so tube #1 matched the performance of the older mag and tube #2 fell behind. The more interesting findings will come from those who are going to test with TC’s, HP’s and other non ball rounds.

Thanks again to WC for providing the opportunity.


New mags (L and R). Old mag center:

Old:

New:

New (left)

New (right)

New (top), Old (botttom)

New (left), Old (right)

New components are on top, old on the bottom:

 

[goaround28]

Internals of Tube #2:

 

[Raylan Givens]

Interesting findings, D. Well written report with good visuals. I'm hoping they do even better on the 38 Super mags.

 

[Grandpas50AE]

Very good report, good visuals showing the design changes. Thanks.

RG - I agree with you on the .38 Super mags, will be interesting to see what they have done (or are doing) with them.

 

[Live2Ride]

Thank you for the detailed write-up and pictures. I like the new design, judging by what you've shown. Is there any difference in the smoothness of the old mags and mag #1? Hate to see mag #2 had issues. I trust this won't be the norm. Is there any difference in the angle the round is held?

 

[Atlas]

Thank you for the report. Excellent write up. Glad to see the new design, I'm a little surprised that they didn't use a flatwire spring.

 

[Birdy]

That's Birdy's style report!
Thank you so much.

Follower: with or w/out a dimple?

Now I have to buy new magazines....:grumble:

 

[Birdy]

Let me be the first to put in two stupid cents.

"Parabellum" would have been nicer than "Luger".
Actually "Si vis pacem, para bellum", would be perfect. Well, maybe too long.

 

[Raylan Givens]

Let me be the first to put in two stupid cents.

"Parabellum" would have been nicer than "Luger".
Actually "Si vis pacem, para bellum", would be perfect. Well, maybe too long.

Lol. I know Parabellum means "prepare for war ". Check this out.

www.urbandictionary.com/define.php?term=Luger

 

[Hammond]

Very well done, great write up!

 

[RCND82]

Originally posted by Birdy
That's Birdy's style report!
Thank you so much.

Goaround28: You have received the ultimate compliment. Take the rest of the day off.

p.s. you've set the bar high for the rest of us on this one...

 

[WilsonCombatRep]

PS-there is no need to cycle the springs like that. If you cycle past the last witness hole and compress the spring you can damage it. I think your tube was an anomaly but we will start checking them in assembly.

 

[goaround28]

PS-there is no need to cycle the springs like that. If you cycle past the last witness hole and compress the spring you can damage it. I think your tube was an anomaly but we will start checking them in assembly.

Just following your 9mm break in advice from 2013:

Updated


A soft shooting and accurate 9mm 1911 is one of the most enjoyable custom handguns to shoot but because of their low recoil energy you must take special care during break in and usage or you may be faced with reliability issues.

Ammunition Requirements: A 1911 in 9mm will typically feed and fire most Full Metal Jacket (ball) ammunition and jacketed hollowpoint ammunition that closely follows the profile of FMJ ammunition. Since the 9mm cartridge has a tapered case and is shorter overall than the 1911 was originally designed for, jacketed hollowpoint ammunition must be loaded on the long side of specs to prevent nose-down failures to feed (approx. 1.150").

We recommend our ammunition for best results http://shopwilsoncombat.com/9mm-Parabellum/products/299/

You may need to download 10 round magazines to 9 rounds to feed square nose hollowpoint ammunition.

1) Use plenty of lubrication during break in and thereafter. We recommend our Ultima Lube Lite Oil or another very light, low viscosity oil like Weaponshield or FP-10. We find that most service issues are caused by under lubricating tight 9mm pistols.

2) Make sure you tailor your recoil spring to the ammunition loads at hand. Our full size 9mm handguns come standard with a 10# recoil spring. For light loads during break in you may need an 8# spring to run reliably. A 9mm 1911 will not require a shok-buff. A compact 9mm pistol usually has a 13# round wire or flatwire recoil spring installed.

3) Make sure your magazines are clean and the springs have taken a set. Our ETM 9mm magazines are the most reliable 1911 9mm magazines on the market but when new the springs are very strong to ensure proper round position and last round lockback. Load and unload your magazines a few times prior to first use and keep them loaded for a few days. Use a non-marring tool like a plastic bushing wrench to cycle the spring and follower as far as it will travel for a few dozen cycles. This will ensure your springs are “set” and do not exert undue pressure on the slide when cycling.

4) If your pistol locks back manually on an empty magazine but you experience a failure to lock back on empty when shooting you likely need a lighter recoil spring or should use a higher velocity or heavier bullet loading. Make sure there is no shok-buff installed on the guide rod.

5) If you experience a failure to feed or chamber your handgun is probably under-lubricated, lubricated with too thick of oil or fouled. We find that a 9mm 1911 must be kept cleaner than a similar .45 ACP handgun for best reliability. Some hollowpoint loading will require the use of a 12# recoil spring for best feeding.

6) If you experience a failure to eject the slide is not coming far enough to the rear and it indicates you may need a lighter recoil spring or your ammunition is underpowered.

8) If you experience light strikes with military or surplus/foreign made ammunition you may need to replace your firing pin spring with a #26 XP firing pin spring. We use a XXP Power spring to increase drop safety but as a result some hard, military style primers may fail to ignite. Also check your firing pin tunnel for fouling and primer shavings which are more common in high-pressure rounds like 9mm.

9) Clean your 9mm 1911 every 500 rounds for best results. Excessive fouling from cheap powder in most inexpensive 9mm ammunition will cause your pistol to quickly become sluggish and will lose the energy required to strip, feed and chamber a round from the magazine.

10) A properly broken in and sprung 9mm 1911 will shoot any factory ammunition from a tame standard velocity load to +P+ major caliber factory ammunition and reloads. Be advised if you are shooting +P or +P+ ammunition to be observant of any signs of excessive pressure like swollen case heads, pierced or flattened primers or primer material flowing into the firing pin hole as this debris can cause a failure to fire.

A complete video archive is available on www.wilsoncombat.com
Click the YouTube channel link for all of our instructional videos.

1-800-955-4856
Fax: 1-870-545-3310
www.wilsoncombat.com

 

[WilsonCombatRep]

The new mags don't require that. The FAQ has been updated

Go "More info" section
http://www.wilsoncombat.com/new/default.asp

 

[joshua1911]

Thanks for the great write-up and pictures! Definitely am considering 9mm for my next build.

 

[goaround28]

Thank you for the detailed write-up and pictures. I like the new design, judging by what you've shown. Is there any difference in the smoothness of the old mags and mag #1? Hate to see mag #2 had issues. I trust this won't be the norm. Is there any difference in the angle the round is held?

L2R, no difference in the look or feel of the old tubes vs the new and the exterior of #2 is the same as #1 and all my previous ETM's. To the untrained eye they appear to be the same material.

I've suspected all along that mag #2 was a true anomaly but it's good to know WC will check the process.

Glad you asked about the angle of the round. The first thing I did out of the box was check how the top round sat in the tube. I suspected to see a noticeable difference, and thought I did, but after manipulating the top round in a fully loaded mag I wrote this off to placebo. Now I believe I was wrong.

To answer your question I went back and pushed on the loaded stack of the new and old loaded mag down then let it snap up into position. Then, without touching it, I compared how the two rounds landed in the lips and yes, there's a difference. This can also be replicated by pulling up on the nose of the round with a fingernail to the point that it stops on the lip. The only way to ensure an apples to apples comparison is to action the round as I described. As in all 9mm mags it's very easy to manipulate the top round into a lower angle without realizing it. That's what I had done initially, but that didn't replicate how the round ends up during feeding. I've updated the OP. Here it is (old in front):

 

[goaround28]

That's Birdy's style report!
Thank you so much.

Follower: with or w/out a dimple?

Now I have to buy new magazines....

Yes, complete with a dimple. OP edited.

(the iphone will never replicate your L Glass, but thanks)

Let me be the first to put in two stupid cents.

"Parabellum" would have been nicer than "Luger".
Actually "Si vis pacem, para bellum", would be perfect. Well, maybe too long.

I like that...A LOT !

Goaround28: You have received the ultimate compliment. Take the rest of the day off.

Thank you Sir, will you be my boss?

Thank you for the report. Excellent write up. Glad to see the new design, I'm a little surprised that they didn't use a flatwire spring.

Yes Atlas, I was surprised as well.


Really looking forward to the results from others using different bullet confgs.

 

[WilsonCombatRep]

Thank you Sir, will you be my boss?



Yes Atlas, I was surprised as well.

They were tested and we stayed with the conventional spring. In 9mm there is no real advantage. In .45 there is a big advantage.

 

[Al Bundy]

My report is that two boxes ran perfect last night shot from the new mag in a 9mm CQB.The gun has never missed a beat since new.

 

[Hammond]

Have a client's 9mm build that is to arrive on Monday, be interesting to see if these are shipping with guns yet.