Recoil spring for older LW Commander

[Alaskan]

Hello. I am new tonight to this forum and am seeking direction from those more knowledgeable. I have a LW Commander purchased NIB in 1967. After years of hardball, handloads, and some hot Super Vel ammo the aluminum frame developed the usual crack. Colt eventually replaced the frame but the LW went into semi-retirement about 20 years ago. It is time to get it back to active duty and even though it functions well I have been considering replacing the recoil spring and maybe others. Any suggestions/recommendations would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

[John]

LWC are not meant to be shot a lot, especially with heavy loads.

I would suggest that you use a steady diet of normal loads, either 230gr FMJ or the standard JHP loads, no +P stuff in it.

For those loads the 18 or 20 lbs recoil spring should be adequate.

Rgds

[Alaskan]

Thanks, John, for confirming my thoughts on this. I'll visit the Brownell or Midway sites and order up an 18# spring. In the meantime my steel framed 1911s will make the majority of the trips to the range.
Dave

[Chuck S]

I run an 18# recoil spring in my '67 Commander (no Lightweight Commanders in those days :p ).

My serial is 509xx-LW. Anywhere close to yours?

-- Chuck

[Alaskan]

Chuck, my LW has SN 55xxx-LW and according to my reference it was produced in '68 although I could have sworn I purchased it just before I got married. After my first trip to the Orange County Sheriff's range (CA) it went directly to a gunsmith for a trigger job and sights I could use. That factory trigger must have been at least 12 lbs.! Can't guess at how many rounds it has digested since then...especially when I was in the Army and could draw 50 rds. of hardball a day (except Sunday) for my own use.
Dave

[Chuck S]

Check the area under the feed ramp for wear. There's a thread running on the other 1911 site about frame damage from magazine followers and mine exhibits nothing in that area.

Mine is still box stock, althought I did flirt with ambidextrous safeties and recoil dampeners for a while. I slip a Kings beavertail on her for range trips, that little stub grip safety will cut the web of my hand.

-- Chuck

[Alaskan]

Chuck,
No feed ramp problems. The only apparent wear is to some of the blueing along edges and the thumb web of my right hand (permanent scarring) from the grip safety. Over the years I tried but threw away the cheap aftermarket magazines and stayed with Colt or USGI mags.
Dave

[wichaka]

I run an 18# recoil spring in my '67 Commander (no Lightweight Commanders in those days :p ).

My serial is 509xx-LW. Anywhere close to yours?

-- Chuck

Hate to burst your ballon there Chuck, but the LW stands for light weight. The steel versions didn't show up until about 1970.

[Chuck S]

Sorry too! :p

There were no Lightweight Commanders (note the Capital L in Lightweight) in 1967, only Commanders as the Combat (Heavy) Commander didn't show up for a couple more years. Colt's rollstamped Commander on the slide of the alloy frame versions and Combat Commander on the all-steel versions. But didn't stamp Lightweight Commander on anything for several more years.

Commanders certainly had alloy frames (suffixed with LW) and that made them lighter than the all steel Combat Commander (when it finally appeared), but didn't make them Lightweight Commanders for several years. Lightweight Commander didn't appear until sometime after the release of the Combat Commander.

Common useage today, and even Colt's markings use Lightweight as part of the name for the alloy Commander, but not so back then.

And, of course, a 1967 Commander wasn't Series 70 either! ;)

-- Chuck

[wichaka]

Chuck you are correct!

When Colt set out to design the Commander (proper term here), they nicknamed it a lightweight because they wanted a smaller and lighter weight gun.

The true Lightweight term really didn't come into being until after the steel framed version came into being (as you pointed out), as they wanted to differ the two models some how.

As Commander was too generic, even though Colt had named the steel version Combat Commander..........folks kept calling it a Commander anyway, so Colt decided to end the problem by adding the Lightweight designator, going back to the nickname they gave it back in the late 40's during R&D.

Ah yes Chuck, pre 70's..............when Super 38's had their own designator! How times chage for the worse in some things..........

Sorry if I was too short there Chuck.........didn't get the full meaning of your post.

[Alaskan]

Thanks, guys, for correcting me. My Commander Model is the lightweight alloy frame with the serial number suffix -LW.
Dave