The "weak" Gold Cup business was addressed back in the 1960's by the late Skeeter Skelton.
He'd heard all the stories that the Gold Cup had lighter springs and would batter themselves to death if shot with standard ball ammo.
Also, there were stories that the tightly fitted Gold Cup didn't keep it tight fit long, and was a "shop Queen", having to be rebuilt often.
To find out, Skelton got a new 60's Gold Cup, and checked Colt factory records.
Surprise, the Gold Cup had the EXACT same recoil spring as used on the Government Model.....no light "soft ball" springs.
Next, Skelton acquired 10,000 rounds of 230 grain ball ammo and a group of friends, and proceeded to fire the entire 10,000 rounds through the Gold Cup.
Results of the test: Under magnification, the slide and frame showed burnishing of parts from firing, the rear sight pin broke, and the gun was actually MORE accurate than at the start.
According to Skelton, the gun showed what he called being properly broken-in.
NO excess wear, NO damage from being shot with full power ball ammo, and it actually got MORE accurate.