I agree with the above about the importance of a properly maintained shok-buf. I have many custom 45's from Wilson and I have used Wilson's Shok-Buf's in all of them, all the time with thousands of flawless rounds. As mentioned, Bill Wilson designed his platforms to work with the devices and I am certain the match grade barrels are properly fitted and timed. Wilson recommends they are used in combination with a FULL length guide rod.
However, not everyone is a fan of the device and apparently you can design your platform so closely that if you use the device in some guns it may screw things up.
The following was lifted from Pistol Dynamics website:
POSTED BY PISTOL DYNAMICS BLOG AT FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 09, 2007
We Don’t Install Shok-Buffs in 1911s
If you send a 1911 to us for any kind of service that requires a barrel installation, recoil system upgrade or timing adjustment please make sure to remove the little blue thing on your guide rod (if you have one) before shipping it to us. We discard these devices in order to properly tune the pistol and will not return them.
Shok-Buffs reduce the slide travel on 1911s significantly enough to potentially interfere with how we do things. They reduce the dwell time at the end of the slide stroke and sometimes affect the ability of the magazine to deliver and settle a round to the lips of the mag in time to feed the next round effectively. This is particularly relevant to "Commander" length pistols where the slide stroke is already shortened by 080”-100” over a full size pistol. We have found that In some cases Shok-Buffs reduce the slide travel to such an extent that the slide either fails to lock back on the last round or damage occurs to the slide stop notch over time and the slide stop loses its ability to engage.
A 1911 with a correctly fitted barrel, that is well timed, and matched to the recoil system does not benefit at all from these devices in our opinion. PLEASE DO NOT INSTALL A SHOK-BUFF IN ANY PISTOL DYNAMICS HANDGUN. Our guns are precisely timed and tuned for function and the materials of the slide, frame, and guide rod have been carefully chosen to absorb impact that is not enhanced by the installation of a Shock-Buff.
From the Wilson Combat site:
The SKOK-BUFF® Recoil System is a great value for the improved performance it gives your 1911 style Auto. The full length guide rod controls the recoil spring to keep it from kinking, which means smoother, more reliable functioning and longer spring life. The original SHOK-BUFF® recoil absorbing, poly fiber buffers prevent the slide from pounding the frame, giving longer gun life and softer recoil. The combined effect of the match grade Wilson springs together with the smooth functioning full length guide rod, facilitates a more consistent barrel lock up, resulting in improved accuracy.