[telackey]

Quick question only...

Is the pistol lifespan appreciably different between 1911s in these two calibers?

I will assume average shooting of 180gr LSWC @ 1100-1200fps for the 10mm, and 230gr LSWC @ 850fps.

 

[Dave T]

I would say yes it is quite different. From the people I know who have owned them and according to Colt, the reason the Delta Elite was taken off the market is they had a tendency to beat themselves to death.

The 1911 in 45 ACP has been around long enough and has enough of a track record that there is little doubt it will hold up to many years of shooting.

Consider the working pressure of the two cartridges and this becomes easier to understand. The 10mm operates at an industry standard of 37,500 psi. The 45 ACP operates at something more like 18,000 psi.

The 45 ACP is a low intensity cartridge and consequently is much easier on the guns it is fired in. The 10mm operates at slightly higher pressure than the 357 Mag.

Hope this helps.

 

[EchoFiveMike]

I very much doubt it is the pressure that matters. Pressure would only effect the barrel and breech face, and rifles handle far higher pressures all the time. The problem is recoil. Recoil battering the frame and other parts. My Delta has had no problems with over 10K rnds through it, mostly 180's and 155's at a fairly brisk pace. Changing the recoil spring periodically helps. Semper Fidelis...Ken M

 

[Sean Smith]

Personal opinion: Delta Elites got beat to death because their recoil setup was moronic. An itty-bitty plastic plug and two feeble springs?! I did a double-take when I took apart my Delta Elite for the first time and saw that crap. A single 24lb Wolff spring and one-peice steel FLGR is alot more sensible for a magnum-power-level automatic. With a proper recoil setup they don't beat themselves to peices as a matter of course.