The recoil spring on my 1911 is very stiff. I would like to put a lighter recoil spring in it. what would be a good spring to replace it with?
Yea, battering will occur if you change to a light weight recoil spring, if you can find one, look into a variable weight 18lb spring for it, Wilson makes them, it’s a little easier to rack, but it won’t promote battering like a lighter weight spring, just my thoughts, I use these in my full size 1911’s all the timeWolff & Colt say factory standard for a 4" Commander 1911 in .45 is 18 lbs. I suspect the Springfield will be the same, but you'd have to ask them to be absolutely sure.
A lighter spring will make the slide cycle faster thus causing more wear and battering. Plus it'll throw brass farther away making it harder to find and retrieve if you do so.
Personally, I tend to run recoil springs a pound or two heavier than standard to reduce felt recoil and battering while making finding brass easier.
Consider trying a 18lb spring from another maker to see if it feels better to you. I'm quite fond of Wolff springs myself.
You might try a 17lb spring, maybe even a 16, but I certainly wouldn't go under that. Check carefully for signs of battering or excessive wear.
I'm "running"...I'm run the 22# flat wire spring from EGW's recoil spring kit in my 4" .45ACP Champion Operator for "hot stuff" (link: https://egwguns.com/springfield-4-guide-rod-kit-45acp-22-commander-spring ), but I mostly use their 18# flat wire spring for "regular" JHP's & FMJ's (link: https://egwguns.com/ismi-1911-comma...+1911+Commander+Flat+Wire+Recoil+Spring+18+lb ). HTH