Hello,
I have a RIA 1911 Government model in .45 ACP and wanted to replace the stock 18# recoil spring with a lighter one since I plan to shoot light loads. I bought a Wilson 13# spring and was surprised to find it longer than the stock spring, by 1/2". Has anyone who's installed a lighter Wilson spring know if the Wilson spring is installed as-is or should it be cut down to the same length as the current stock spring? I would think that with the 1/2" extra length, there would be more preload with the slide fully forward, more than with the stock spring, and countering the effort to reduce the recoil spring force. I also worry about the slide not recoiling fully back when the spring is fully compressed and hitting it's solid length.
I have a RIA 1911 Government model in .45 ACP and wanted to replace the stock 18# recoil spring with a lighter one since I plan to shoot light loads. I bought a Wilson 13# spring and was surprised to find it longer than the stock spring, by 1/2". Has anyone who's installed a lighter Wilson spring know if the Wilson spring is installed as-is or should it be cut down to the same length as the current stock spring? I would think that with the 1/2" extra length, there would be more preload with the slide fully forward, more than with the stock spring, and countering the effort to reduce the recoil spring force. I also worry about the slide not recoiling fully back when the spring is fully compressed and hitting it's solid length.