Does a cocked semi-auto have a "shelf life" for reliability?

[gunsrfun1]

I know this sounds like an oddball question, but I am curious and have not found much on the web about this.

My house gun is currently a revolver. I am thinking of replacing it with one of my striker-fired semi-autos. The odds are that it will sit in its appointed spot indefinitely without me having to use it. I will take it to the range at least once a year to fire it and "qualify" myself, but otherwise it will be sitting cocked and loaded, undisturbed.

My question: Do I need to unload it and cycle it at any regular intervals, so ensure that none of the springs take a set and reduce reliability?

Or can it be left alone for an indefinite period without impacting reliability?

Thanks

 

[nettlle]

Not so much to worry about springs but more about lube. Oil dries out over long periods of time.

 

[InTheSwamp]

Make sure is lubed properly and sleep well for a few decades.

 

[gunsrfun1]

Thanks, good points, I would definitely plan to re-lube at least once a year, but good to know.

 

[eddiememphis]

No need to leave it cocked.

A double action will fire just as quickly and pulling the hammer on a single action takes very little time- it may be enough time to properly aim and consider your target.

In the heat of the moment, picking up a cocked revolver can be difficult to aim before it goes off.

 

[gunsrfun1]

Eddie - My question refers to a striker-fired semi-auto; you may have misunderstood what I am asking. I am not asking about a revolver. You may want to re-read my original post. Thanks

 

[InTheSwamp]

No need to leave it cocked

But if you ever decided to, lube it!

 

[tark]

The springs shouldn't be a problem A spring that never moves will last a long time, whether it is compressed or not. If a spring "takes a set" it was probably overextended in one direction or another. A properly made spring will last many gazillions of compression and extension cycles. Look at the valve springs in your car's engine.

Not so much to worry about springs but more about lube. Oil dries out over long periods of time.

uh....yep! this is the biggest potential problem. Oils can dry out. Greases and other high viscosity lubricants had harden over time.

 

[Alex Clayton]

This gets beat to hell on the net every so often. Springs made correctly do NOT lose power from being compressed. What does wear them is use. There is forever some who swear this is not how it works. If a spring is not made correctly then it will fail no matter what. I have a little German made pistol that was my Grandfathers. The mag has been loaded for almost as many decades as I have been alive. Still works fine. Have one 1911 that is always left in Cond 1. Only time hammer is dropped is cleaning or shooting. Has been like that decades now. Works great. Couple auto knives that the mainspring is always under load to make them work. They still work fine.

 

[9mmepiphany]

Thanks, good points, I would definitely plan to re-lube at least once a year, but good to know.

I would suggest you think more in terms of quarterly if you're using a good grease and monthly if you're only using oil

 

[nettlle]

I use grease.

 

[Nodakdad]

Quality springs, as long has they are not cycled out of their designed range, left to sit "loaded" will outlast you. A good example are car coil springs, if they wore out by sitting being loaded you'd have to get new ones every so often.

 

[Dave DeLaurant]

Assuming the manufacturer did due diligence on suitable metallurgy and heat treatment, my understanding is that the thing that eventually destroys a good spring is fatigue rather than taking a set. There are a finite number of compression/decompression cycles a metal spring can undergo before failing. In other words, working a spring is harder on it than leaving it compressed.

However, if a spring was constructed in an 'iffy' manner, taking a set is entirely possible. It is not uncommon to find late wartime production springs from Wehrmacht smallarms suffering from this problem.

One time I left the magazine of a Raven .25 auto (bought before I knew any better) loaded for about a year and discovered that the last round would simply fall out because the follower no longer had enough spring pressure to reach the feed lips.

 

[doubleh]

If is mostly going to sit unused I would switch to dry lube. That type of lube could also improve it's trigger pull a little. Clean it thoroughly with a spray cleaner, blow out with compressed air if possible, and then apply dry lube.

 

[JTQ]

Just to show that whatever you do, you will probably be fine, I would never use a degreaser, or dry lube, and while I have used grease, old dried up grease seems like a bigger problem than old oil.

 

[The Night Rider]

No need to leave it cocked.

A double action will fire just as quickly and pulling the hammer on a single action takes very little time- it may be enough time to properly aim and consider your target.

In the heat of the moment, picking up a cocked revolver can be difficult to aim before it goes off.

Go back and actually read what he wrote he's replacing his revolver with the Striker Fired handgun

 

[The Night Rider]

Plenty of good reading here.

Search results for query: Springs

 

[eddiememphis]

Go back and actually read what he wrote he's replacing his revolver with the Striker Fired handgun

I went to public school.

 

[dweis]

First, the multiple advisements to keep the pistol lubed is the best advice. I recommend disassembly and wipe down of the rails once a month using a light oil. I use RemOil. If I have fired it I use CLP. The thicker the lube the more likely it will congeal a bit, and that can gum up the works. My nightstand gun is a Ruger Security 380. When a round is chambered the hammer is half cocked. This makes the full cock on trigger pull as easy as a striker and could prevent an accidental discharge.