Springfield EMP WARNING!!!

[bigfatdave]

Plastic, and therein lies the problem I think. I like the JB Weld idea....probably go with that.

I'll just go on record as admitting that the JB weld idea is based largely on the way I'm imagining those mags go together and not on personal experience. Going with an epoxy putty might be better, if you want things to come apart in the future.

If you're willing to chance a magazine, the results should be interesting, if not useful. The idea of adding padding to the mag bottom might work as well, and be less of a one-way-trip.

 

[hemiram]

A friend had a gun with a mag that did it, I don't remember what gun anymore, but he took a screw with a wide but thin head, and drilled a tiny hole with a drill press into the "button", and screwed the screw into it. he used a dremel to grind down the threaded part of the screw so it was even with the bottom of the "button" The small gap under most of the screw head never caused any issues, and it solved the problem with the mags coming apart, and he could still take the mag apart to clean it. He got an impressive amount of sock lint inside that gun.

 

[oasis618]

This isn't something that should happen on a gun that is as overpriced as the EMP.

 

[wristtwister]

Can't say I disagree that an $1100 gun should work flawlessly... but they're mechanical devices. It's probably an easy fix... JB weld or pinning the slide plate on the bottom with a punch (metal mags) should fix the problem.

You might want to send both the manufacturer and the gunshop a letter outlining the facts as you see them, and see who wants to step up and do the right thing by you. I'd be pi$$ed if I had that kind of money in a gun and it was drooling it's load all over the floorboards.

Unless there's some kind of abusive actions on the gun, the manufacturer should step up and correct the problem. If they don't, just gently remind them you shoot a lot and will be certain to let everyone know both how their product works and how they dealt with the problem. Most gun companies are realistic, and fix their problems.

WT

 

[buckhorn_cortez]

I guess I don't understand why you chose to post this on a forum rather than contacting Springfield about the problem first. I just disassembled an EMP magazine (made for Springfield by Mec-Gar) - and it is difficult to get the bottom to come off of the magazine. I'm surprised you haven't damaged the bottom cap on the magazine as they do not come off easily.

If you have owned the gun for more than a year, I'd suggest replacing the magazine spring as the tension against the bottom plate helps keep the cap in place. The problem with gluing the cap onto the magazine is that you won't be able to get it off to replace the spring. If you put a slight dimple in the magazine lip on the bottom, that may provide the additional tension required to retain the cap.

However, it I had this problem, the first thing I would have done was call the manufacturer and speak with a service representative rather than posting on a forum. The manufacturer may have had additional calls on this and has a factory solution for the problem.

 

[Quack]

yet another reason why i use a modified mag as the mag in the gun.

 

[351 WINCHESTER]

Are you sure they are mec-gar magazines? I have been using them for years in other pistols and I can find no fault in them. I will go on to say that they are outstanding magazines and are oem on a lot of pistols. Now if they were promag I could understand.

In any event you should contact the maker of the pistol and give them a chance to get the problem corrected.

 

[230therapy]

As Quack said...get the magazine modified. Contact log man on the 1911 forum and he will weld weld the magazine. It increases concealment at the expense of one round of capacity.

Here are the threads:

log man's process for modifying the magazine:
http://forums.1911forum.com/showthread.php?t=289542&highlight=magazine

Check out the pictures of his shop on page 2.

 

[rtrwv]

Weld it, I have done to all my inferior plastics with good results and excellent safety record

 

[log man]

Interesting thread. Interesting because of the number of mags I have received to modify to flush, and when received I get one now and then that has the "keeper" plate upside down, this is the piece with the riveted pin that holds the base in place. Correctly fit the base will not come off, as the plate is very secure when correctly installed. However the wrong side does have a bump from the pin being riveted, and the tip of the plate is bent down instead of up, in this position, it may look okay, but the base can slide off. Oops! User error! So do be mindful of the correct assembly.

LOG

 

[Big Shrek]

Mag has a problem with the bottom sliding off...gee...wonder where I've heard that before??
Seems some other MFR has had that issue...anyway, the solution is...

Blue Loctite!!
Allows you to remove the bottom to clean the mag/replace springs/follower as needed,
yet keeps the bottom in place so your ammo won't dump at inopportune times...

 

[WYO]

User error.

It is more like a glitch that makes it unsuitable for certain applications. I had a similar problem with a Springfield XDs worn in an ankle holster. The magazine was coming unseated while wearing it that way. I figure that the ambidextrous magazine release is getting bumped by the rocker panel or is being hit by my opposite boot. The gun is great in any belt holster (IWB/OWB) I have tried and in a pocket holster. PS to log man: I have never disassembled a magazine, so that cannot be user error, only an “application” nuance or a factory problem.

Only end users are going to figure out all the nuances of the design. I highly doubt that anyone from Springfield field tested an EMP (or an XDs) in an ankle holster for a couple of years in Genesco, Illinois. I appreciate end users who put out the information that you do not read in gun magazine infomercials. Thanks to the OP.

 

[log man]

I would certainly agree! I wouldn't have thought anyone would assemble the keeper plate upside down, but I have been proven wrong! They do, and when they do, the base can be slid off with a little effort.

LOG

 

[rduckwor]

Some of the above responses are inappropriate and just plain nitpicky. The OP was reporting a personal experience with a potentially life saving weapon. Some of you treated him like he crapped on your rug.

OP: thanks for the heads up on the mag issue.

Now back to your regularly scheduled bitching, keyboard commandos.

RMD

 

[log man]

Some of the above responses are inappropriate and just plain nitpicky. The OP was reporting a personal experience with a potentially life saving weapon. Some of you treated him like he crapped on your rug.

OP: thanks for the heads up on the mag issue.

Now back to your regularly scheduled bitching, keyboard commandos.

RMD

My comments weren't meant to disparage, but to inform that the keeper plate can be installed upside down, and looks to be fine when doing so. However, the base and keeper can slip off when this has inadvertently happened. I thought it might have been a fluke when I first read about this a couple years or so ago.

Now that I have personally seen hundreds of these mags and received a few that were incorrectly assembled, the light went on. Not an insult, just a heads up to all using the stock mag.

Of course with the welded flush base, no issue.






LOG

 

[log man]

Blue Loctite!!
Allows you to remove the bottom to clean the mag/replace springs/follower as needed,
yet keeps the bottom in place so your ammo won't dump at inopportune times...

Would have never thought of that, do note Loctite will cause some plastics to become brittle, not all of course, as it comes in a plastic bottle.

Have to admit I have never used Loctite on non-metallic parts.

LOG

 

[Zaydok Allen]

Thread necromancy....... Eh

 

[Madcap_Magician]

Some of the above responses are inappropriate and just plain nitpicky. The OP was reporting a personal experience with a potentially life saving weapon. Some of you treated him like he crapped on your rug.

OP: thanks for the heads up on the mag issue.

Now back to your regularly scheduled bitching, keyboard commandos.

RMD

Ordinarily I would say that the thread necromancy here was strong, but the person who did it is also the gunsmith with the best fix for this original issue. If he has anything to say about it, I doubt he's being critical of any person. Logman is just trying to help.

 

[rduckwor]

I was not being critical of the helpful posts, but rather those who seemed to think that it was the OP's fault for using the gun in a position that wasn't appropriate or those who were butt-hurt because someone disparaged their precious EMP.

RMD

 

[marano35]

Never had that problem.

I have been carrying this in this manner as a LEO on and off duty for years and never had a problem.

 

[jjones45]

I'm sure the emp is an excellent firearm, but no gun that's this small and marketed as a ccw should have this problem IMHO. If this can happen on the ankle this could also happen in the 5:00 position. Just simply bumping a magazine a couple of times should not warrant a mag spill. I wonder do other $1100 micro 1911's have this problem. Where the op wears his bug doesn't matter at all, this is a factory magazine problem that shouldn't exist, point blank......period

 

[log man]

Again....the problem of the mag spilling is from the keeper plate being installed upside down. When in this upside down position the "pin" is the rounded side and will hold a little, but when bumped will allow the base to slide over it. When correctly assembled, you can not rub the base off. This design is similar to many other of the extended style and they all suffer from being able to be assembled incorrectly. It happens to us all.

I do agree the mag should have been originally designed as a flush base, but in the board room the newer extended style won. Even Dave Williams, the SA head pistolsmith, agrees the flush base makes more sense.

LOG

 

[Tirod]

I believe the point to logman reviving a three year old thread is that the EMP mag can be assembled wrong and that seems to be the cause of the issue.

Saying that isn't making him more sales, those who realize their reassembly error will be less likely to order his services. So, it goes to him being upfront about the issue and certainly not attempting to make it look like EMP mags are somehow less than reliable.

It's a report on an issue with a continuing impact on new owners. Assemble the mag wrong, it fails. Pay attention to which way the button goes. Then if a plastic floor plate is still not your cup of tea, hey, log man can fix it.

I'll add that I was looking over the EMP as a potential purchase but settled on the SIG P938. And in the process got mags with fixed metal floor plates. I agree - on a $1100 gun, the mag plate shouldn't be value engineered.

Apparently the EMP owners aren't making enough racket with Springfield to get that changed.

 

[short barrel]

Thanks Franc for the heads up. I always liked the looks of the EMP, but I'll take your warning seriously and stay clear of them. Ignore those negative people who watch threads just to find a wording error.

I'll add my advice. Plastic guns or magazines are the modern trend, and they work, but my guns, all my guns, are steel.

 

[log man]

The error in design is across the board in all extended 1911 style mags and for the EMP it meant one more round for 9 of 9mm in the mag, flush base is 8 of 9mm, so they went with the higher round capacity.

Springfield is actually a small company, outside resources allow it to look much bigger. Mec-Gar makes this proprietary mag for them. To now change means a new set of stamping and forming dies. If that would make a huge sales difference, perhaps, but it wouldn't. So..it is what it is.

LOG