[WRGADog]

the premium price versus Kimber Pro Tactical magizines? There is approximately a $12 difference in price at my local gun shop.

[skipsan]

Don't know anything about Kimber mags, but really don't understand the infatuation with Wilson mags given that there are very acceptable alternatives at half the price. There are reports of "weaks spirings" and reliability issues with certain brand pistols with Wilsons, yet folks swear by 'em, often noting that all the problems can be fixed with a Tripp follower/spring kit. Great, now you have a $50 mag that hopefully performs a well as a Chip, or Sa, or Kimber. Would really like to understand the attraction. Maybe its the logo.

[Shmackey]

Absolutely not.

[larryh1108]

Are there other mags out there as good or better? Sure. Are there other mags out there cheaper? Yep. If you want a mag that has proven to be reliable for many years and endorsed by so many on these boards and others like these boards then spend the extra $12. If you wish to buy a cheaper mag then it's your money. We can only tell you how well they work and how well they hold up. It's up to you if that's worth more money. Buy that extra half of box of ammo and shoot the $12. When that ammo is gone you'll still have the cheaper mag.

[bdb benzino]

I think so. I put them on the same level as MecGar mags for double stack autos. If you want a cheaper alternative, CMC Power mags and Shooting Stars work great also for less $. IMHO you can feel the smoothness of the Wilson's. YMMV.

[jfrey]

I'll pay the extra twelve dollars and have many times. I've used the less expensive mags and had intermitant performance. The Wilson's have a lifetime guarantee and I've never bought anything from Wilson they didn't stand behind. BTW I've never paid $50.00 for a Wilson mag.

[Zerodefect]

Don't know anything about Kimber mags, but really don't understand the infatuation with Wilson mags given that there are very acceptable alternatives at half the price. There are reports of "weaks spirings" and reliability issues with certain brand pistols with Wilsons, yet folks swear by 'em, often noting that all the problems can be fixed with a Tripp follower/spring kit. Great, now you have a $50 mag that hopefully performs a well as a Chip, or Sa, or Kimber. Would really like to understand the attraction. Maybe its the logo.

Or maybe it's an experienced shooter that has noticed a substantial improvement in reliability from Wilson and especially Tripp mags.

I'm not going to run sticky metal followers in any of my weapons. Not my Glock's, not my AR's, especially not my 1911's. The original mag design on 1911's, is quite pathetic. JMB didn't get everything right. Especially how the top round floats and can nose dive. Anything I can do to get mags in my 1911, closer to a proper design like Glock or Magpul, I'm going to jump at.

I need to know my 1911's are going to work. If they jam, I need to find out why. Wasteing time troubleshooting a pistol that just needs a new mag is frustrating. Good reliable mags, even if they do cost 2-3 times more, are worth every penny. HK mags are $65-80, AR mags are $20+, even a cheap looking Glock mag is about $30. Stay away from the $5 .45 mag bins at the gun show. LOL.

I still have a damaged Kimber CDP frame. Know how it was damaged? By piss poor Kimber mags that gouged into it after feeding the last round in the mag. That gun also got instantly better with my switch to Wilson mags and Wolff recoil springs.

The Checkmate mags that came with my DW seem nice. Even still, they have a nasty habit of not locking the slide after fireing the last round. I put a Tripp Kit in and they work great now. Still, I'll never use them for CCW even after fixing them. Just range and comp. I'll stick with Tripp Cobramags for that task.

What sets the Tripp mags apart?
-holds the top round as high as possible
-smooth bodies
-plastic follower that slides well, but has a metal insert to prevent follower wear against the slide stop
-firm mag springs that last
-flush fit bottoms (hard to find a flush Wilson these days)

[9mmepiphany]

The Wilson ETM magazines (which address the issues of their 47D mag) likely are worth the difference, but there are other less expensive options available

I think the best bang for the buck in a 1911 magazine, if you aren't wedded to an eight round capacity, are the seven round magazines, with the round top follower, from Metalform.

Your best band for the buck eight round magazine is the CMC PowerMag.

Hilton Yam of 10-8 Consulting has updated his article (http://www.10-8performance.com/pages/1911-Magazines.html) on top end 1911 mags, I highly recommend you give it a read

[Prosser]

Whatever. the only mag I've had not work between my Detonics and my Kimber is a Kimber mag. It locked up my Detonics, big time. I threw it away. Never had any problems with Wilson mags. I just got done loading 5 of them, and, I trust my life to them.

The Kimber mags lips flared open, locking the gun.

[aryfrosty]

YEs, they are worth the price. I bought 2 CmK Powermag 8 rounders and 2 same brand 10 rounders. My built Combat Commander is too tight for the McCormick mags to work smoothly but the 2 Wilson 8 rounders I bought work like a dream.

[JDGray]

I prefer Tripps if I'm gonna buy a premo mag, other than that, the dirt cheap Springfield mags have giving me no problems:)
Wilson followers have failed on me, where a steel lipped follower wouldn't have.

[Johnny Lightning]

I had the plastic base plate break off of my wilson 7rnd mag which ended that range session. I got ahold of wilson and they replaced the mag after I sent the broken one in on my dime. I will try a different mag next time.

[dcarch]

Absolutely. You won't be disappointed.

[Rinspeed]

The Kimber Tac-Pro mags are made by Checkmate and are damn good mags for the money.

[BullfrogKen]

I think the best bang for the buck in a 1911 magazine, if you aren't wedded to an eight round capacity, are the seven round magazines, with the round top follower, from Metalform.

That's what I've been using in the .45 ACP's. I have CMC mags, half a dozen Wilson 47Ds, and Metalform 7 rounders with the round follower. I like the Metalforms the best. The Tripp follower looks like it would work well, but I'm not shooting enough .45s these days to want to bother.


I tried the plastic Wilson followers in my 38 Super, and to a mag each one just went bad after enough rounds. I'd say that after about 10,000 rounds through the gun I saw the followers getting worn with gouges from the slide stop that prevented them from locking the slide open. I will only use Metalform round followers in my 38 super mags these days.


Now if Tripp made a hybrid follower for 38 Super I might give it a try. But plastic Wilson mag followers don't last long enough for my taste. I'll stick to a metal round follower, thank you.

[rklessdriver]

I own more than a few and for life and death I will only use 2 types of 1911 magazine.

1) Wilson 47D
2) Metalform 7rnd hybrid feed lip, flat dimple follower (COLT marked or not)

Both of those have a long and proven history well beyond my meger 15yrs or so. However in my 1911 ownership they have never let me down in a match or even just plinking in numerouse different 1911's over that time.

I've expirimented and bought other brands over the years but Wilson and Metalform have consistantly proven themselves in my use.
Will

[ExecutiveCarry]

Higher priced magazines are like anything else in life. It just depends how serious or finicky you are about your pistols. Sure, you don't have to spend $34.00 for a mag .....but some of us don't mind doing so.
I just purchased 3 Wilson Combat mags from RogueElite.net .... who has them for a few bucks cheaper than most others, and had free shipping. :)

[Hangingrock]

The nettlesome aspect of the Wilson 47D magazine are the issues that have a risen over time. What is really disturbing to me were the endorsements of noted firearm expert’s pertaining to the usage of the 47D. When issues became noted none of the experts said word one till the new series Wilson magazines was marketed. Still these expert’s are rather muted in addressing 47D issues. I suppose they don’t want to bite the hand that feeds them.

[Mastergunner40]

Wilson mags are good, but for the money, I think CMC Shooting Stars are a better value. I've got quite a few of the CMC's and never had a problem with any of them. Now, for a step up in overall quality, Tripps are the cats behind. Expensive, but you get what you pay for.

[Broker]

I much prefer KimPro mags myself, & I pay about half as much for them as Wilson's. I sold all the Wilson & McCormick mags I had, & replaced them with KimPro's.

[Drail]

Thw Wilson Combat mags are pretty nice but WAY overpriced. McCormick's basic mags (for 12 dollars) got me through 6 years of constant IPSC shooting while all of my Wilson mags developed cracks at the rear of the lips. So did all of my wife's Wilson mags. Unless McCormick has changed their design they have the best mag for the money IMO. Change the springs when they need it and don't step on them and you'll never need to buy any more magazines.

[9mmepiphany]

Still these expert’s are rather muted in addressing 47D issues.
Is there a some big secret that the 47D suffered from premature spring fatigue, rapid follower wear, and feed lip spread...I guess I didn't get the memo.

There is nothing wrong with the 47D for recreation shooting or even competition (where folks keep a pretty close eye on their equipment), the problem arises when folks don't realize that the 1911 magazine is a consumable item which needs to be discarded when it starts acting up

[Hangingrock]

The Wilson 47D was marketed and sold under the pretext that it was the best period and endorsed by various firearms trade experts/writers as such. The general shooting public didn’t see write ups in gun magazines addressing the issues which developed with the Wilson 47D magazine and Wilson never marketed their product usage with the under standing for match and recreational shooting only.

They being Wilson marketed the 47D eight round capacity magazine of marginal design at a premium MSRP to an unknowing public spoon fed by gun writers rave reviews. Now Wilson is marketing the ETM which supposedly addresses the issues of the 47D.

[msb45]

FBI HRT specs Wilson 47Ds, I don't kick doors in for a living but they do. So for $12 more I'm in. I might be paying too much, but then again I'd rather lose $12 than something more dear.

[1858]

I've been using Wilson Combat ETMs for a couple of years now. I have ten of them for USPSA matches and haven't had a single malfunction shooting mostly 200gr LRNFP reloads. I've shot thousands of rounds through a bunch of 1911s using the ETMs so I know that they work and I would trust my life to them. They take a beating in our matches getting dropped onto pebbles and rocks, they get full of dust and sand, stepped on, kicked etc., but they keep on working. I'm not thrilled about the flimsy follower but I've never had a failure to lock back on empty with any of them. I do clean/test them after every match to make sure that they're free of any grit/dust/sand to bind up the follower, and so far so good. Are they worth it though? Not if a magazine that's one half or two thirds the cost performs equally well. In the last few months I've been using a number of Check-Mate magazines with hybrid feed lips and dimpled followers. They work GREAT in six different 1911s, and at $21.95 each, I doubt I'll be buying any more Wilson Combat magazines even though they've proven to be very reliable.

[9mmepiphany]

You have to remember that the 47D was originally designed by an FBI agent. There was a lot to recommend it over the Devel magazine...from which the Shooting Star mags are descended,

You also have to remember that an agency the size of the FBI has a lot of inertia in changing equipment...plus if you keep and eye on them and throw them away when they start wearing, it isn't a problem

[cpirtle]

The Kimber Tac-Pro mags are made by Checkmate and are damn good mags for the money.

+1

I have a lot of Wilson 45 mag's and they have been great but I've been shooting the Tac-Pro's for a while now and think they are every bit as good. They're about the only thing kimber makes that I'll spend my money on ;)

I am a bit soured lately on Wilson Mag's, mainly for the 9mm. Poor design IMO.