Where to learn about guide rods, springs?

[mongoose33]

I've been reading about guide rods--or trying to. I've read threads here in the Don's GR forum, read his FAQ, and I'm not finding a good source of information about why I might want to change a guide rod, what benefit results, and so on.

I know that one can influence the feel of recoil by changing the spring(s), but I find nothing particular about changing the guide rod in a 9mm Service. I also know that the weight of the guide rods can be changed to some effect.

Is there a source out there that explains this?

TIA.

M.

[Don]

I am my own worst salesman when it comes to the the 9mm Service, but at least I am am honest about it! My main reason for development for the guide rod was for the XD40, but it works well in the 9mm also. I wanted to tame the snap in the .40, and I like what the heavier springs did for my shooting with the .40.
Around the same time I started my daughter shooting and was working some very light 9mm loads, and started seeing the interactions between loads and recoil springs in terms of function and flip and ejection.
And around that time there was an occasional grenading of the factory assembly at the wrong times (any time is a wrong time). So I think many of the uses in the 9mm is to have a unit that does not fail (other than spring fatigue which gives you plenty of warning).
For 9mm Service the recoil is already usually manageable, and the reasons for using a DGR may be cosmetic as well as functional. But as far as the functional part goes there have been a couple of members with arthritis that said the rod and heavier spring made shooting comfortable for them again. Good luck getting that as a medical expense as a deduction!
So, you can use the rod and get the factory feel sticking with a 18# spring, or see if the heavier spring does anything for you. Myself, I do not have a strong preference but use the 22# spring since that is what I have around most often.