1911, magazine, history, gunsmithingI’ve noticed that several of my 1911 magazines have a dimple on the follower that catches the groove of the last round of .45 ACP as it is stripped out of the magazine. It doesn’t seem to affect how my gun feeds, but it makes unloading the magazine by hand a chore. What purpose does this dimple serve?
This ‘dimple’ was added to help control the round as it entered the chamber. It was designed particularly for a magazine that was already beginning to malfunction (weak spring, bad feedlips, etc).
Many newer 8 round magazines do not include this ‘dimple’.
Opinions on the purpose of the dimple vary, but in general it is supposed to help feeding that last round or when the magazine spring is a bit weaker than original spec.. Several features of a 1911 magazine help reliability, and it’s possible that in a modern 1911 magazine with modern materials a dimple isn’t needed. From what I’ve seen 8 round magazines tend to not have a dimple while many 7-round “original looking” magazines do.
The dimple helps stabilize the last round in the magazine, reducing the chance of misfeeding.
Here’s a discussion:
http://forums.1911forum.com/showthread.php?t=198802
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