[albanian]

It is very trendy to swap out springs on an auto as soon as people get them but I think it is over done. I have owned probably 20-30 auto pistols and I can only think of one of them having reliability issues that were caused by the mainspring.

I had a FM Hi Power Detective that needed more power in the mainspring because it jammed and recoiled like crazy for a 9mm. The problem was pretty obvious since 9mm shouldn't kick like that Detective did. That is the only time I have ever encountered a mainspring failure on an auto. By the number of people that replace their mainsprings, it would seem like it would be more common.

I am of the school of if it ain't broke, don't fix it. That is unless you know you are going to improve it and you know what you are doing. Just replacing springs before even shooting a gun is not prudent IMHO. Some people like to tinker with stuff all the time and some people just want reliabilty. I want the latter.

Most of the autos that I have had were used and some were old (C&R) and I still didn't have spring problems with guns as old as 60 years! Come to think of it, I have almost never encountered a mag spring problem on a high quality factory mag either. It is more common than mainspring problems but it is not like they wear out after a year or two. I have kept mags loaded for long periods and they didn't lose their spring.

I am not saying it doesn't happen because clearly it does and I have seen it. What I am saying (asking) is maybe it is not as big of an issue as some people think. For example, I have had far more problems with burrs and roughness on feedramps and chambers than any kind of spring problem. Why aren't people saying you should polish you feedramp and chamber as soon as you get a new auto? I say it but I don't always do it. It seems like it would make more of a difference than springs.

[nemesis]

If I understand your comments correctly, I believe you are referring to recoil springs rather than the mainspring. Mainsprings do serve a function during the recoil cycle as the slide normally cocks the hammer and compresses the mainspring but the force consumed is not as important as the force required to compress the recoil spring.

[Majic]

Next time get your springs straight before your little rant. :D

[Zach S]

In case you meant recoil springs, mine are rare. Of course they probably get changed more than needed (around 2k). I dont think I've ever had one of my mainspring housings apart except for one I had blasted, and the kimber polymer, which doesnt have a pin in it to retain the spring.

Magsprings have been a headache though.

[TexasRifleman]

As in most things firearm related, the world isn't as simple as your rant makes it out to be. There are more reasons for changing the recoil spring than just because it's fun to change all the parts around.

I tend to shoot downloaded 10mm for IPSC, so I go to a lower weight spring for proper function.

So if I know I am shooting my IPSC loads in a brand new gun, why would I shoot it with the factory spring and have it malfunction?

I'll give you another reason to swap out the recoil spring before ever firing the gun. I bought a 1911 last year from a large maker, and the factory recoil spring was painted orange on one end. Now, I have had that type of spring before, and after a few hundred rounds I was scraping flaked orange paint from the inside of the frame, and I didn't want to do it again.

Like I say, there are a lot of good reasons for doing what you are railing against, they just might not apply to you in particular, but certainly could to a lot of other people.

And, if you are indeed talking about the mainspring, there are reasons for changing that out as well, in particular on 1911's with trigger jobs, lighter mainspring might be in order, or if you are using particularly hard primers, I could see needing a bit more wham on the firing pin.

In the 1911 world in particular, the ability to easily change parts to meet a special situation is the main attraction of the design.