Battlefield-proven through two world wars and loved by so many for its historic contribution to our country, the 1911 is a tried-and-true American classic. But objectively, a handgun is only as reliable as its magazine – and the 1911 is no different. 

Oftentimes 1911s get a bad reputation for failures, but with a high-quality magazine, your 1911 will cycle properly when you need it to the most!

Here are some quality brands that make the best 1911 magazines. You can’t go wrong with any of these (listed in alphabetical order). 


RELATED: The 5 Best 1911s Available
 

Best 1911 Magazines

Considerations When Shopping

 

No matter what brand of 1911 you shoot, you'll want the highest-quality magazines you can afford to ensure smooth feeding when it counts. (Photo: Samantha Mursan/Guns.com)
 

You Get What You Pay For: You’ll want the highest-quality magazines you can afford, as low-quality magazines can attribute to a failure to feed. If your life is on the line, that’s the last thing you want. 

You Can Never Have Too Many Magazines: When you find one that works well with your 1911, stock up. Keeping a few loaded magazines around means you can swiftly reload if you need to, and if you’re worried about the springs in a loaded magazine, having extra mags will allow you to unload one, and reload one of your spares into the rotation.

Feel the Tension: Yes, tension is good! Good quality, heavy-duty springs are imperative in a magazine to allow it to function as it should. You always want the last few rounds to be tough to load, especially in a brand-new magazine. It means the quality and weight of the spring are sufficient to properly operate. A weak spring will contribute to failures to feed. 
 

Tension is good when it comes to magazines. You'll want one with good quality, heavy-duty springs to feed your 1911 as it should. (Photo: Don Summers/Guns.com)


Quality Counts: The materials that make up the magazine are important. You want your mag to feel solid and not rattle, even when empty. Lower quality magazines can be constructed from inferior material and super-thin stainless or other low-quality metal. Often these low-quality magazines come highly polished, which will make them slippery. Without a good grip, you’ll take longer to reload your 1911. The last thing you want on a reload is a fumble, right?

Buy From a Reputable Manufacturer: There are plenty of after-market magazines out there. Only buy those from brands you know and trust. Inferior equipment from an unfamiliar company may seem attractive because of the price, but it all goes back to my first point: you get what you pay for. Quality, trusted manufacturers that stand by their equipment are worth any extra pennies they may cost. You want the best performance from your 1911 – don’t trust a cheapo magazine from a no-name foreign manufacturer. 

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