From the vault: A list of 1911 pistol recoil reduction products compiled by Daniel T. McElrath and published in the May 2001 issue of Shooting Sports USA.
(Editor’s note: While the options provided here date back to 2001, this article still provides solid information for all 1911 pistol shooters regarding pistol longevity and the need for aftermarket upgrades.)
Sudden Impact: Model 1911 Recoil Reducers
By Daniel T. McElrath
A good Model 1911 pistol is like a beautiful woman—desirable, expensive, potentially dangerous in the hands of the inexperienced and always at risk of being taken away (by the government and a better-looking guy, respectively). Anyone who gets “into” guns soon realizes he or she has chosen an expensive hobby. Custom 1911s—and more and more factory models are on the far side of $1,000. I don’t care how good the economy is, that is a lot of money.
In order to protect your investment, it makes sense to investigate items that can prolong the useful life of your gun. Of course, proper cleaning, lubrication and rust preventatives are important, but what can be done to protect your pistol from repetitive impact damage caused by the slide slamming into the frame during cycling?
The answers are becoming increasingly more plentiful. Several companies are now making products designed to reduce the battering of the frame by the slide and attendant damage to both parts. Moreover, these products are practical and often legal for use in various action-pistol competitions. They fit inside the gun, are easy to install and do not negatively affect shooting in any way. In fact, they have a positive effect in that they often reduce felt recoil. Best of all, they are affordable, meaning a small investment now can preserve a large investment for years to come.
I obtained a sampling of these products and found several different approaches to the same goal—impact reduction.
Buffers: This is a generic term used to describe small, washer-like polymer or fiber discs that slip onto the guide rod and up against the guide rod head. So positioned, they buffer the impact of the slide into the frame. Light, flexible and resilient, buffers generally last about 1,000 rounds before they need replacing. At about a dollar apiece, they’re cheap, convenient insurance against frame damage.
Cominolli Frame Saver: The Cominolli Frame Saver takes buffers to the next step. If there is a problem with buffers, it is that the design of the typical recoil spring guide permits placement of a buffer against only the inside of the guide rod head, on the rod side. By redesigning the guide rod head and designing a second, slit buffer/cushion, Cominolli has created a system that puts a buffer on both sides of the guide rod head. That means that both the frame and the slide are protected and that there is no metal-to-metal contact. The result is less impact stress on both components and less felt recoil, which may permit faster follow-up shots. The Cominolli guide rod head is necessarily narrower than a typical unit but appears adequately sturdy.
The company makes both one- and two-piece guide rods for five-inch 1911 patterns, plus two-piece units for six-inch and Commander-length models. A tungsten version which adds more than three ounces of weight for further recoil dampening and muzzle steadiness is also available. Extra buffers (Cominolli refers to them as recoil cushions) are available for about the same price as other buffers. By the way, you’ll need to order both the inside and outside recoil cushions when the included two pair wear out, as they are not interchangeable.
EFK Fire Dragon Dual Action Buffer Spring Kit: The Fire Dragon kit consists of a full-length, 416 stainless steel recoil spring guide rod containing an internal spring that compresses during the last bit of rearward slide travel. This slows the slide considerably, lessening its impact with the frame. The attendant decrease in muzzle jump is said to be 30 percent to 40 percent, making it faster and easier to get the gun back on target. The kit also includes a replacement recoil spring and a recoil spring plug. The .45 ACP Government Model kit will work with 9 mm Luger and .38 Super Government Models when using a 14-pound recoil spring.
The drop-in kit is available for Glocks as well as Officer’s, Commander- and Government-length 1911-pattern pistols. EFK backs the Fire Dragon with a lifetime warranty.
ISMI Officer’s Recoil Control System: Designed expressly for the Officer’s Model, the ISMI system uses a full-length guide rod, reverse spring plug and a flat wire recoil spring. The single spring is made of durable, heat-treated chrome vanadium alloy. It is shot-peened and stress-relieved to resist “taking a set”—meaning it should remain functional for years. The spring has increased compression strength and keeps the slide in battery longer upon firing, which should diminish eventual impact forces on the frame. This unit does require some minor fitting to the slide.
Nowlin Dual Recoil Spring System: This product is manufactured by Alpha & Omega Gun Works and marketed directly as well as through Brownells’ website and Nowlin’s. The Dual Recoil Spring System is precisely that in addition to a high-quality, standard-weight recoil spring, the steel, full-length recoil spring guide contains a second spring. This second spring comes into play only after ejection, resisting slide movement at the end of the slide’s rearward travel, reducing its impact with the frame while assuring positive functioning of the action.
Alpha & Omega claims that felt recoil is reduced 30 percent to 50 percent. A nice touch is that the shoulders of the two facing sections of the guide rod at either end of the secondary spring are beveled. This prevents the guide rod from catching on the recoil spring coils and binding.
The Dual Recoil Spring System is available for numerous models of semi-automatic handguns, including those from Glock, SIG Sauer, Beretta, C2, Taurus, Ruger and Browning as well as 1911 pistols from Colt and Springfield. The manufacturer asserts that the system can extend the frame life of polymer-frame guns by 600 percent.
Shock Tec Recoil Shock Absorber: Shock Tec is a German-made recoil reduction device. Unlike many of the other models here, the Shock Tec uses a short, conventional-length recoil spring guide. However, like one of the others, the guide is hollow and contains the recoil dampening system. This one relies on “elasto-pneumatics,” which I take to mean some type of rubber compound filled with a compressed gas. The head is composed of two separate flanges with approximately 1/4-inch between them. The elasto-pneumatics inside the guide rod hold the two flanges apart until the slide slams back into them forcing them together with the impact being dampened by the resilient device inside. As the slide returns forward, the elasto-pneumatic material decompresses and causes the flanges to separate again. The product is claimed to potentially reduce slide-to-frame impact by 90 percent. A computer-measured slide impact graph on the packaging indicates that the Shock Tec reduced impact forces by some 52 percent in actual use.
The Shock Tec is also available for pistols from Ruger, SIG Sauer, Browning, CZ, Beretta, Taurus, Springfield Armory and Tanfoglio, in addition to the 1911.
Sprinco Recoil Reducer: The Sprinco Recoil Reducer augments the recoil spring in your pistol with another smaller spring or “sub-spring assembly.” What this consists of is a gradated sub-spring housed within a heat-treated, full-length stainless steel guide rod. This sub-spring greatly decelerates the slide just prior to its impact with the frame, reducing that impact by a significant margin. According to Sprinco, peak recoil forces that can exceed 1,500 foot-pounds at impact are reduced by 500 to 750 foot-pounds. Careful engineering and precise positioning of the sub-spring within the guide rod promote normal, reliable cycling.
The Sprinco Recoil Reducer is not limited to the 1911. There are various models designed for pistols from Beretta, Glock, and SIG Sauer as well as 1911-pattern guns like the Para-Ordnance P10, STI and Infinity. There are even specially tuned models for race guns. Sprinco, too, offers some tungsten models for increased muzzle heaviness and its associated advantages.
This drop-in unit, like other recoil reducers, offers decreased felt recoil, faster follow-up shots and reduced frame damage.
Wilson Combat SHOK-BUFF System: This system consists of a full-length stainless steel guide rod, six Wilson SHOK-BUFF buffers, an extra power heavy-duty recoil spring, a reduced power heavy-duty recoil spring and an extra power firing pin spring. The buffers cushion slide impact upon the frame while the extra power recoil spring also helps diminish felt recoil, particularly with heavy competition loads. The reduced power recoil spring can be installed for reliable cycling when firing light practice loads.
Though it involves only a parts swap and the installation of a slip-on buffer; Wilson Combat recommends gunsmith installation of the SHOK-BUFF system. It would seem a pretty easy process, but I’ll not argue with a manufacturer’s instructions regarding firearms.
Wilson offers the SHOK-BUFF kit for both full-size and Commander-length guns and also has tungsten full-length guide rods that are available separately.
Whether it’s small, cushioned buffers placed between the slide and frame, extra strong recoil springs, secondary spring assemblies or pneumatic systems, there are plenty of companies out there offering well-conceived, innovative products to lessen the effects of pistol recoil. Just as importantly, they are making the products convenient to use and affordable. Prices range from less than $6 for a pack of five buffers to about $95 for some high-performance tungsten guide rod units. Further, the units don’t have the collateral costs usually associated with modifications such as a change in external dimensions, reduced reliability, installation costs and general hassle. If you’d like to make shooting a less painful experience and at the same time enhance the longevity of your pistol, a recoil reducer of some type makes a lot of sense.
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