Purpose of Full Length Guide Rod

[AndyLate]

I have a Colt XSE Commander with the factory 1 piece guide rod and am planning to replace it with a standard guide and plug, purely for personal preference.

It dawned in me that I don't really understand why the extended guide rods are/were the hotness. Was it enhanced reliability or just a way to add weight to the muzzle end of the pistol?

Andy

[matemike]

with a full length guide rod:

Extends Recoil Spring Life
Improves Cycling and Overall Operation
Extends Life of Slide to Frame Fit
Can Improve Barrel to Slide Fit and Accuracy on Older Military 1911s

That was taken from wilson combat site.


I guess I don't get the reason to not use a full length guide rod. My colt gov't came with full length. I tried putting a shorter guide rod and plug and liked being able to press check on a table or fully cycle without a rod protruding out like on glocks. But my only ftf's on my 1911 was when using the shorter guide. Gun had over 1500 trouble free rounds through it with long guide rod. Within 50 rounds of using the shorter rod was when I had the ftf's. So I'm back to the full length on this colt gov't series 80.

[gaijin]

Full Length Guide Rod is necessary on a Tapered Barrel with Compensator, but a PITA to remove. We used to drill a hole in them to use a 90 degree (bent) paper clip for disassembly in the day.
On a standard barrel, Commander length or 5" gun the OEM Guide Rod and Recoil Spring Plug is GTG. I always installed these OEM parts in a "New" gun that had the Extended, Full Length part(s).

And yeah, the justification for the Full Length G.R. I remember; "to prevent recoil spring from kinking". Never had a RS kink using the OEM Recoil Spring Plug and Guide Rod. : - )

[1986s4]

I read one expert GS saying that it acted as an additional form of control over the slide, aid to accuracy. I have one from Dawson Precision made of aluminum, it has an enlarged head that is supposed to be a sacrificial part, dead blow hammer style for the slide/frame. I used it for a while but discarded it when I went to a Wilson flat wire spring.

[Steve_in_Allentown]

On a standard barrel, Commander length or 5" gun the OEM Guide Rod and Recoil Spring Plug is GTG.

I've been slinging lead down range using 1911s professionally and for fun since 1973. Yeah, yeah. I'm now officially an old man. I fully agree with @gaijin. All the words from Bill Wilson are marketing hype. I have to give him credit though. His triple net profit has been impressive.

One of the other major reasons I prefer GI length guide rods is they allow the area of the slide below the barrel to be placed against a solid object (shooting bench, tree, boot heel, end connector, etc) so that you can easily clear a cartridge that is lodged in the barrel by pushing the frame forward hard and fast. It also gives you another way to do a press check to verify a loaded chamber. I know, I know. Someone will jump up to play latrine lawyer and point out that this is dangerous but in some situations it's the only way to do it.

Smaller diameter full length guide rods do come in handy when using flat wire recoil springs in shorter than Commander length slides. The flat wire recoil springs last a very long time in those short pistols while standard round wire springs have a much shorter service life. I still use GI style guide rods in the shorties since they are carry pistols and I only put a few rounds put through them once a year to be sure they still run right.

The real benefit of a full diameter guide rod is that it adds weight to the front of the pistol thus reducing muzzle flip. This is really only useful in the various shooting games where the margin of victory is measured in nanoseconds. You can get these long guide rods made from various materials like steel, stainless steel, tungsten, and depleted uranium (just kidding about the uranium). I have a hollow FLGR in my competition 1911 that is filled with mercury and three steel balls that makes a noticeable difference in the recoil characteristics of the pistol.

All of my go-to-war 1911s have GI style guide rods.

[AndyLate]

FWIW, the guide rod is a 1 piece and Colt included a bushing wrench (which I used once and put back in the box). EDIT -The bushing wrench didn't come with the Colt.

I am leaning towards the GIGR because thats how my 1911 is set up and I am striving for commonality. Cheaper to convert my Commander to GIGR than my 1911 to FLGR.

The added weight of the FLGR also seems a bit counterproductive on my Commander.

Andy

[mRad]

I had a Colt XSE that came with a FLGR. In my young wisdom input the GI plug in it to make it proper. I pitched the FLGR, thinking it was trash.

The gun quit running soon after. I bought a Wilson FLGR and flat spring. The gun magically worked again.

I don’t know if it was BS or not but that Colt wouldn’t run without one.


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[CPM]

There is absolutely zero benefit to a full length guide rod, except for the perception that the gun hand cycles smoothly.

[Evil Black Rifle]

There is absolutely zero benefit to a full length guide rod, except for the perception that the gun hand cycles smoothly.

Conversely, if the pistol functions 100% and you don't do one handed press checks, there is no reason to swap out a full length guide rod.

[NickySantoro]

There is absolutely zero benefit to a full length guide rod, except for the perception that the gun hand cycles smoothly.

I put one on years ago. It absolutely did improve the smoothness when racking the slide. Necessary? No. Helpful? Yes. Would I do it again? Maybe.