Novak 1911 8 Round .45 Magazines

[SHIVAN]

Power Mags and 47D's have worked for me.

Based on comments from a lot of places, I think 1911 mags should be treated like any other mag. If they work well for you, then GREAT!!

If not, then pitch them behind the berm or in your nearest waste bin.

I have a 10rd Power Mag that has lasted me since Blackwater in '04. It's begun to bulge and no longer drops free.

Makes a good practice mag, but that's about it.

I believe the recommendation from our recent class was, "If my life depended on a 1911, I would run Wilson 7rd/8rd mags with the aluminum baseplate -- for durability."

[Bushytale]

The recommended set-up from Hilton Yam at 10-8 Forums is the CMC 8rd Powermag with the Tripp 7 rd kit installed.
My observation is that the CMC base has a back-up that others don't, but the addition of W/C steel or aluminum bases make them super strong. That requires a tiny file mod to the top rear of the bases to fit, very simple. The Tripp followers have a metal insert to lift the slide stop which prevents the usual wear you get with the Wilson follwers at that point. Tripp springs are 14 coils compared to 11 on the CMC and less on the W/C. I have run a lot of CMC 8rd kits in older Colt factory bodies with good results, the earlier bodies with the 1/4 in bar welds x2 on each side not the late production marked c for CMC or m for Metalform. The CMC powermag bodies are sturdier and more resistant to spreading at the feed lips than the W/C bodies over the long haul. The Tripp and Act/Novak bodies are longer than the CMC for less spring compression with 8rds. but the bases are bulky and there is no fix for the plastic which I don't trust. The Act/Novak follower design requires the top inch or so of the spring to be much smaller than the regular size which seems deficiant to me and they will not allow the use of other springs. For the Officer size mags I have found that the Metalform non removable base bodies are excellent and the design uses the side of the body rolled under to hold the steel base plate on. No way they will ever come off, but you have to service from the top only, and add CMC 8rd kits to make the most concealable strong set-up. The Act/Novak and new Wolff are all the same mags.

Billy

[Lumpy196]

Based on comments from a lot of places, I think 1911 mags should be treated like any other mag. If they work well for you, then GREAT!!

If not, then pitch them behind the berm or in your nearest waste bin.

Why? WHY? WHY?! dont people get that?


Its like theres a mentality that if you spend $1500+ on a 1911, the mags are part of the investment.

[Derek_Connor]

I have been running the 10 round power mags for the last two years in my government, nothing but pleased. Am I one of the lucky ones that has no problems with 10 rounders?

[rhino]

I've seen a buttload (that's a technical term for "a lot" of 1911s of all types being shot on a weekly basis for the last 13 years or so. That's minimal experience by some standards, but I have seen and shot a few guns over that period.

I know magazines get blamed for a lot with respect to 1911s, but I also see a lot of guns that are on the edge of malfunctioning that just happen to work okay (at least for a while) with Wilson or Power Mags. In my opinion, a 1911 that is 100% functional should work with any ammo that is within specs and any magazine that within specs. If it only runs with one kind of ammo and one brand of magazine, you probably have a problem with the gun.

Given that, I've had the best luck in terms of function with Power Mags and the exact duplicates sold by CDNN as "Mitchell" brand a few years ago (which even had Shooting Star followers). They have a good design and they've always used really strong springs. The Wilson mags of recent manufacture have good springs, but there was a time when that was not the case on a consistent basis.

In terms of the tubes themselves, I've seen zero problems with brand new Wilson mags, whereas I've encountered a few Power Mags that had feed lips too wide.

Durability is about the same, although I still give a nod to the springs in the Power Mags.

I can't comment on the Tripp mags as I've had no need to use them and thus have no direct experience.

[C4IGrant]

Who makes Novak 8 round mags? Are they really just ACT (Italy) magazines?

You are correct.



C4

[rhino]

You are correct.



C4

Grant: Do you happen to know if they have effectively addressed some of the complaints (i.e. the cracking) for sure?

Are the Novak mags made to the same QA/QC specs as the equivalent that ACT sells under their own label?

[C4IGrant]

Grant: Do you happen to know if they have effectively addressed some of the complaints (i.e. the cracking) for sure?

Are the Novak mags made to the same QA/QC specs as the equivalent that ACT sells under their own label?

I have no idea. I personally only shoot and stock the WC 47D.



C4

[rhino]

I have no idea. I personally only shoot and stock the WC 47D.
C4

Ah! Thanks anyway. I thought you might know since you have your finger on the pulse of the industry.

[Gunfighter13]

Grant: Do you happen to know if they have effectively addressed some of the complaints (i.e. the cracking) for sure?

Are the Novak mags made to the same QA/QC specs as the equivalent that ACT sells under their own label?

Novak/ACT Mags now have no issues.

Novak set the specs. As stated above the heat treatment was the issue.

I use Novak's in all my 1911's (7 and 8 round) with no signs of failure. I have one mag I have been torture testing that has over 5000 rounds through it and it is still going strong. CDNN has them real cheap.