How Do I Identify An Authentic S&W 1911 Magazine?

[MichiganScott]

It doesn't work without problems. I would like my $1500 gun to include mags that work and not need to go buy mags that do. If S&W can't handle that monumental task then next time I'll buy something else.

Here's a thought - since you love your Ruger mags so much, toss the Smith mags and then just use the Ruger mags. Problem solved and you can stop whining. Better yet, sell the Smith and buy three Taurus 1911s. Then you will get six mags that don't mark up when used.

People need to understand that magazines are considered a consumable part by the firearms manufacturers. They could make them non-consumable and of the same quality as the handgun, but no one would want to buy extra mags at $120 each.

 

[epj]

Well, the OP is right. His mags ought to fit. I'd rather they provide one really good mag with the gun rather than a couple of moderately priced ones. Usually there are no issues with S&W branded mags, but they are made by MecGar. In this case they just went with the low bidder. They aren't going to supply a mag with some other manufacturer's name on it.

 

[H Richard]

I've been shooting 1911's in competition for over 30 years, and have never had a magazine that wouldn't fit. Old G I mags mags work but sometimes need the lips adjusted. I bought 6 Wilson mags early on and they are still working fine. I must have 2 dozen mags, and 3 .45 1911's, and I just never worry about mags.

 

[dfs2006]

I'm selling my Ruger but keeping the two extra mags I bought because they are of way better quality. In fact, they go as far as having their logo stamped into the mags. My Sig mags don't have a scratch on them after many rounds of use because THEY FIT. Amazing that they can find good mags but S&W can't.

 

[MichiganScott]

Not complacent, just realistic.

The simple fact is the majority of posts in response to the original post are in disagreement and the ones that agree with the original post suggest giving S&W time to make it right. To keep hammering about the lousy product in an effort to change the minds of those that disagree without giving S&W a chance to make it right constitutes whining.

These guns are tools. I don't get upset when my other tools begin to look used. I'm certainly not going to get excited when a magazine that was originally designed to be consumable gets scratched.

 

[dfs2006]

Part of the cost for the gun was for the mags and I expect to get what I paid for.

 

[Frici]

I just purchased 2-45 SS Kimber mags to use in my S&W 1911 108282, the guy at the gun shop told me that they will work with my S&W.
Can anyone verify that from first hand experience.
Thanks.

 

[old&slow]

Most of my 1911's prefer Wilson magazines. One Springfield I have seems to like the McCormick mags. better. I number my magazines and if I have problems with that mag. a couple times. I throw it in the drawer with the other $6 dollar / factory magazines that are questionable.

I good 1911 magazine costs about $20 to $35. I don't want to bet a shooting match ,, or my life ,, on a $6 magazine that may or may not work..

Last year I was having problems with my STI mags. At $80 to $110 a mag. I tuned and rebuilt them. Way to expensive to throw in a drawer and buy new..

 

[AveragEd]

Kimber magazines work in my S&W 1911s but some magazines won't work in Kimbers. I bought some Wilson #47 magazines for my Kimber Stainless Target II in .38 Super and they didn't feed reliably or hold the slide back when empty. Wilson told me that even though their website and catalog state that their magazines will work in ANY 1911, they are aware that they won't function properly in Kimbers. They refunded my money and paid the return shipping charges.

dfs2006, I am in compete agreement with your position and feel the same way about products that are supposed to be "above average." And as a retired service manager who spent his working life with his feet held tightly against the customer satisfaction fire, I get testy pretty quickly now that I'm on the other side of the counter. But when the dust settles, more gray hair and heart strain aren't worth it over a few magazines when known good ones are readily and fairly inexpensively available. No, you shouldn't have to buy them and yes, it's good to let a manufacturer know they have a problem. But life's too short to fret over something like handgun magazines.

I always preached to my employees that most dissatisfied customers just quietly go away and the business has no idea it lost them or why so the customer who complains is really doing the business a favor. You've done your favor for Smith & Wesson; now take two aspirin and call Wilson (or someone) for magazines.

Ed

 

[dfs2006]

All I want to do is shoot my nice new gun but I can't.

 

[epj]

Ed, everyone's focusing on bad mags but missing the part where I mentioned that the trigger was unusable out of the box. It was binding against the frame and impossible to shoot. Then I find out that the mags don't fit. I've spent the past week+ trying to get the gun to shoot right including taking the gun apart and polishing all of the internal components. Now S&W tells me it's going to take 4-5 weeks if I sent it back. All I want to do is shoot my nice new gun but I can't.

One or the other would have been "chit happens", but both together is an indication that quality isn't priority and I have every right to be upset in that context.

Bottom line seems to be a $1500 gun that doesn't run properly. There are offerings from several other manufacturers in that price range that have a reputation for running out of the box. STI and DW are a couple that come to mind. That said, my E series, the standard FS stainless model, which cost about $750, has had no issues since day one, other than some springs I deemed to be too heavy for my liking.

 

[dfs2006]

I live in MA. Most guns available to the rest of the country aren't available to us unless we find them used. Smith, Ruger and Sig are the biggest payers in the market with a few others being less available. Kimber, Colt, Springfield and many other are not on our "Approved Firearms roster or Attorney generals safety list so we can't buy them new, legally. It's gun control MA style.

 

[NH Rugerman]

I just purchased a E Series 1911 SC..the mags are made by Checkmate, they work without issue....I hope the new mags solve your problem.

Good luck, please update us.

Thanks

 

[dfs2006]

My gun is in a box on it's way back to S&W.

 

[AveragEd]

Perhaps I'm thinking of someone else and if so, I apologize. But didn't you state in another thread on this site or the 1911 Forum that you worked on the trigger yourself? If so, you may not get much warranty assistance from Smith & Wesson on that concern when they see that someone has been in there.

Ed

 

[dfs2006]

That was me. I just got two new mags in the mail. Once I get my gun back I can check them out.

 

[AveragEd]

That's great. A lot of companies want nothing to do with a product after someone other than themselves or a factory trained and authorized service center has worked on it. And given the liability concerns that could be involved, especially with a gun's fire control system, that position is very understandable.

Ed

 

[dfs2006]

I just traded some stuff for an 8 round Wilson Combat mag and a 10 round Chip McCormick power mag so I have plenty of mags to experiment with once I get it back. Both the Wilson and McCormick are thinner than the Checkmates which are both the same thickness as the original Checkmates that don't fit.

 

[AveragEd]

You know, tight-fitting magazines are not necessarily a negative IF they drop out when released. Magazines that fit loosely can rattle around in the gun, something I wouldn't want.

I just looked at the four S&W-supplied magazines I have and they exhibit light scuffs on the sides but so do the Kimber magazines I have for my Kimber Stainless Target II in .38 Super. In comparison, the Wilson 47D magazines I have do fit in my 1911s more loosely so perhaps the gun manufacturers specify that their magazines be sized so they don't rattle.

Just a thought...

Ed