I'd like to use. 45 super when backpacking, hunting, etc.

Its a Springfield loaded. Is there any benefit to Wilsons flat wire recoil spring? I have one in my m9a1 compact and has out lasted the heavier Wolff springs by a wide margin. Should I get the one for the +p or the 460 Rowland? Will they work reliably with standard pressure ammo?

Anything else I should know?

I think this is sound advice: "Some will tell you to install a 32# recoil spring and have at it. I think the recoil spring is about the least important part in the conversion, but you should go higher than ACP. Ace Customs, who developed the Super round, had a fairly extensive conversion kit, and you may be able to find a list of the contents. When I was working with a friend, to convert his Kimber Classic to Super, I was guided by my experience with my own Delta Elite. I won't tell you what to do with your gun, but here's what I did with mine: First and foremost, install EGW firing pin stop with minimal radius on the heel. Replace the mainspring with a 25# unit. Depending on the load, install a recoil spring of 20#-24#. I used a Cominolli frame-saver guid rod on my Delta, and a conventional shok-buff on the .45. Last, maybe not of much use, but conceptually an improvement, is to put a 10-round magazine spring in your standard mag tube. This reduces the capacity one round, but the slide velocity is such that a weak mag spring won't be able to keep up, so the "Super Mag" should add a bit of insurance."

Complete thread: https://forums.1911forum.com/showthread.php?t=234001

I would definitely go with the EGW flat bottom fps. If desired, you can give the bottom just a kiss of a radius. I've installed a few and my radius is probably less than 1/64". Wilson Combat ones are good too. As I recall, I had less fitment work to do with the WC than the EGWs (More metal).

I shoot lots of 45Super out of my Sig P220ST and my Springfield Range officer operator...

24# recoil spring

30# main spring

EGW oversized flat bottom firing pin stop. This makes a huge difference. (fitting this on my own, having never fit one before with just a piece of sandpaper and a polishing stone on a dremil to me about an hour. YMMV)

The gun shoots great with the 45 super. I also feed it a steady diet of Gold Dot 185+P HP's with no issue, other than scaring the shit out of people at the range. If you want to go back to basic ball ammo you can easily with a lighter recoil spring for stronger ejection. Leave the 30# main in the entire time.

If you really want to get a hoot of a blaster. Pick up a 460 Rowland barrel/comp from Clark Customs. I love mine and it's a BLAST to shoot. 1000ft lbs of energy in a 1911.


ETA: I also have a Wilson polymer slide buffer installed. It has some hammering marks in it and has helped for sure.

I converted my Springer Loaded 5" about 4 years ago to .45Super. We were having black bears breaking into cabins very close by ours... even with people at home during the winter by our mountain house near Highlands NC. So I wanted to run the Buffalo Boar 255 grain flat nosed hard cast pills.

I swapped in a 23lb Wolff recoil spring, the accompanying firing pin spring and went to the range. Most accurate .45 ammo I'd fired in the pistol but on a couple mags the slide velocity was outrunning the magazine springs. 2nd I decided to swap all mag springs for the Wolff Extra Power springs in all mags dedicated to the .45Super conversion. Headed back to the range. No mis-feeds at all, no stove pipes, no nose dives,  no failure to battery, etc. at all... nothing but sewing machine smooth operation; and complete joy to shoot. We went home and I noticed the rear of the factory guide rod was being beaten into the frame along with some minor to moderate frame wear from where the guide rod recoiled into it. Lastly, I installed a recoil buffer and all battering disappeared and the function was the same results; Sewing machine operation, recoil that I compare to shooting, (230 grain .45acp+P loads); and unparalleled accuracy with the aforementioned ammo. It was/is a complete joy to shoot. I finally felt it was ready to carrying the Springfield to the Mountain Home and enjoy the normal family activities while up there, i.e. kayaking, fishing, 4wheeling, and hiking around the property and into the Nantahala National Forest.

Lastly, I am glad I happened upon this thread. The recommendations by Getnlwr and Logan10 are also solid idea's to make an even more reliable and complete .45Super conversion for the 1911 platform. I really like the idea of upping the Mainspring to either 25 or 30lbs or somewhere in between. I had not thought of installing a 10 round magazine spring into an 8 round magazine but it will make for extra insurance that magazine can keep up with the accelerated slide velocity the .45Super will provide. I've had good results with the Wolff extra power 5% springs (I feel they are more like 10+%), but the 10 round spring in a mag body that is a true 8 round mag could be even better. I say a true 8 round capacity mag body because I've had a particularly popular brand magazine and model that in reality is really a (7) round magazine body. The result is mag springs that are asked to do too much when left loaded to full capacity for any amount of time makes them too weak to function correctly with .45acp... much less than running a .45Super conversion. This has been my experience, YMMV. I like McCormick and Tripp Cobra, and Mec-Gar branded (8) round magazines as host for the Wolff extra power spring conversions. Again, YMMV, but all the aforementioned has been my experience when converting a 1911 to .45Super. I have successfully done so but there is room to make it a better conversion with the addition of the 30lb main spring. That is my next spring upgrade for this .45Super. Good luck OP, feel free to PM me with any other questions. Oh, please be sure to do a range report with pics after you are done! The .45Super is my favorite handgun caliber and I love that guys here are getting into it more. Its a nice Woods conversion and a heck of an anti-personnel defense round.

I forgot about this thread

I've been slowly getting the parts to shoot .45 super. Mostly because I'm hardly ever going to shoot super and I want it reliable with ball.

So far I've added a 20lbs flatwire recoil spring
This one
But I might try the heavier one meant for the 10mm.

I've also fit an EGW firing pin stop and a Wilson bullet proof extractor.

There was nothing wrong with the factory extractor but I wanted to fit a spare and the Wilson just seemed nicer so I left it in. Now the factory extractor is my spare.

Next I'll change out the main spring

After every modification I've shot 2-500 rounds without a problem.

If you haven't tried shooting .45Super yet on the 20lb recoil spring then I suggest you try a couple magazines with it. It will likely tell you, that you will want a 23 or 24lb recoil spring pretty fast. The slide velocity/recoil with a 20lb, flat wire or not, is going to be less enjoyable than with a 24lb recoil spring. Been there, done that.

The Wilson extractor, good idea. Installing the 30lb mainspring, also good. If 98% of the pistol's diet is going to be .45acp then you can leave the 20lb recoil spring in for shooting .45acp. When using the pistol as a woods pistol then simply swap in the 24lb spring. All else you've done to the pistol can stay constant as is. That's the great thing about the conversion from .45acp to .45Super, and back and forth, so on...

So I just installed a 30lbs mainspring. That was a pain in the ass.

Is it safe to shoot with. 45 super now? Or does it really need more than a 20lbs recoil spring?

The 30lb main is nice and high, and it, combined with a flat bottom FPS might be okay. Go try it and see how far your brass flies. Might be fine with just a 20lb guide spring.

I haven't even shot it with ball yet. I'm not against going with a heavier recoil spring. I just wanted to get some outside input.

With Ball my brass barely falls out of the gun and doesn't lock back on an empty mag.

I bought the 1911 to shoot HOT loads and I do.

My P220 has seen a steady diet of the Supers as well. I put in a heavy guide spring only on those and they work fine.

I shot 50rds of blazer brass and 50 of wolf. No problems with the 30lb mainspring.

Go try a mag full of .45Super and see what you think... Take a 24lb spring with you and swap it in if shooting the .45Super is punishing; it won't take 2 minutes. You will find your pistol and your hand will enjoy the 24lb recoil spring more enjoyable though. It won't recoil more than say a 230 grain .45acp+P... But now you've got a great woods gun if it proves to be reliable!

Yup, I'll order spring and ammo tonight

I suggest Buffalo Bore's 255grain truncated cone hard cast "Outdoorsman load" ammo and the 24lb Wolff recoil spring... I personally have had good results with both of the aforementioned products! Don't be surprised that the aforementioned load is the most accurate of all .45 handgun loads you've ever shot! It's POA to POI at 25 yards for sure. With your new pistol set-up and 24lb recoil spring it will be a joy to shoot. What's not to love about a 255 grain pill touching off at about 1100fps or a hair over?

I will. It took me a long time to be able to load a round as accurate as their .45 colt loads for my revolvers.

Will an aluminum 1911 frame stand up to .45 super? I'm thinking of doing this in a 80% frame so if it destroys it I won't be out much, just $165 and some time to do a new frame but I'd like to try it.

I wonder why Clark Custom doesn't recommend a flat firing pin retainer for the Rowland.

They told me to consider one, it's that it's a fitted part for the most part, and the kit is meant to be dropped in.

I personally wouldn't.  Apart from anything else, the increased spring rates will probably oval out your slide stop pin hole very quickly.

Honestly speaking... I wouldn't do a .45Super conversion on an alloy frame. I'm a huge fan of my Springfield LW Operator but it's diet is 230 grain ammo in the 900fps range. It uses a captured 24lb recoil spring stock. When I tried Hornady 230gr +P's last weekend... I felt like a steady diet of that stuff would cause unnecessary frame battering. It shot and fed fine but but I won't be putting any more of that thru this pistol.

Personal experience and all setting up my .45Super, no, I would ONLY use a forged steel frame. I had some frame battering even with my steel framed Springfield and a 24lb recoil spring. With a 30lb main spring and a Wilson recoil buffer and all battering was gone. What a pleasure it is to shoot now, damn! And with this new 10 round McCormick "RPM" magazine... A reliable 10+1 capacity for the woods with a spare is enough firepower for anything 2 or 4 legs in all Appalachia... I'm really digging the stout 19 coil "rocket wire" spring and the rolled feed lips of the RPM mags!

03RN, have you had a chance to run .45Super out of your converted 1911 yet? How does she shoot, reliability, recoil impulse, feed???

No, not yet. I haven't ordered ammo yet.

I did get a 24lb flatwire recoil spring so I can test both with standard ball and super at the same time.

Been shooting it a lot otherwise. Maybe 1800rds since I got the gun and 500rds of wolf with it set up for super (sans recoil spring) with no failures.

Have you tried the ball ammo with the heavy recoil spring?

I did it just to try it. The brass was entertainingly falling off the side of the gun. It wouldn't lock back on empty but did cycle the entire mag.

Not yet. Maybe Thursday

I understand. I haven't had a chance to do a McCormick RPM mag review I promised (2) weeks back.

Sounds like you've got the pistol set up correctly if it's functioning well with .45acp sans the 24lb recoil spring. Honestly the hardest part of the conversion in my opinion is fitting the flat bottom firing pin stop plate, (pretty easy with patience.) Do you notice any less recoil shooting .45acp ammo with the 30lb main spring? My brother changed his main spring out in his CZ "PCR" along with a better trigger kit from CZ Custom. He went from the 18lb stock spring to a 13lb main spring while keeping the stock Recoil Spring. Damn, the pistol recoils like every round is +P+... but it has a sweet trigger! I figured shooting your 1911 set-up for .45Super sans the recoil spring and shooting standard .45acp there would be a somewhat noticeable reduction in perceived recoil.

I just shot 100 rounds of wolf tonight with the Wilson 24lb flatwire recoil spring installed.

One mag failed to lock back and upon closer inspection it had a buggered follower where it engages the slide lock. The rest worked fine.