i have an interesting question

[rbohm]

i have lorcin L380 and four magazines. when i first shot this pistol i enjoyed its accuracy, but i found that all four magazines would have a failure to feed on round number four of 7. i put about 100 rounds through the weapon, and with a couple of exceptions this was always the case. when i reloaded the magazines, i found that the first 3 rounds were easy to install, and when i would manually empty each magazine, i found that when i got to round number four, the springs were not pushing the last rounds to the top like they should have. that was a few years ago. fast forward to about a month ago, i started playing with the magazines again, and this time i found that the springs have stiffened up and that all rounds were hard to install, and that the rounds when manually removed jumped to the top of the magazine like they should. now these magazines have been loaded for that period, and it has been my experience with automotive springs that they normally weaken over time when compressed, but these have strengthened over time. am i missing something here?

by the way it didnt matter what type of round i was using, be it ball, or hollow points. as for hollow points i have run winchester silver tips and eldorado starfire rounds.

 

[GRIZ22]

Weakening of springs is due to the number of times they are flexed and released. Leaving springs compressed or free has nothing to do with wearing them out. I'm not familiar with your gun but Lorcins are not known for their quality control. It may be the ammo you are using. Maybe a round with a shorter OAL makes it work now. Just my guess.

 

[rbohm]

except that these springs strengthened over the years not weakened. and that is what puzzles me. as for the ammo it is all off the shelf new factory loads, and no off brands.

 

[Jim K]

I also have never heard of springs gaining strength with time or compression. I wonder if the magazines might have some restriction so that previously the spring was not coming up all the way. That would explain why you found the top rounds easy to load and unload since there was little spring tension on them. Why the binding stopped, I don't know, but maybe your "playing" did something to remove the restriction.

Jim

 

[mljdeckard]

Can the magazines be disassembled, can you find some Wolff replacement springs? (I bet a good gunsmith could make you some.) New, old, loose, tight, compressed, relaxe......I would just get new springs.

 

[David E]

To be blunt, the bottom line is, it's a crap gun complete with crap magazines.

Problems are part of the game when crap guns are concerned and for most, not worth the time and aggravation. Trying to fix it would be like trying to pick up a turd from the clean end.

Me, I'd dump that Lorcin in a heartbeat and buy a quality gun and never, ever look back.

 

[2RCO]

I once owned a Lorcin .380 and it had the same problem. My solution was to give it to a friend that thought he could fix it. Last we spoke about it he gave up and gave it to his uncle that is a gunsmith who he believes destroyed it.

Lorcins are Craptastic...

 

[rbohm]

jim, what you said makes sense. perhaps the magazines have freed up. i am going to have to take it out and shoot it again one of these days. David E and 2RCO as for the gun being crap, i disagree. the gun itself is fine, it is accurate and reliable, except for the magazines, but if that problem is solved, then i can trust the gun.

 

[mljdeckard]

I would STRONGLY recommend, fix the mags, but before you carry it as a defensive gun. you need to shoot 200 rounds of the ammo you are going to carry through it, error free. No jams of any kind. If you have a failure to feed, start over at zero. If it won't do it, DON'T CARRY IT.

 

[rbohm]

good advice.

 

[David E]

David E and 2RCO as for the gun being crap, i disagree. the gun itself is fine, it is accurate and reliable,

So you're the guy that got the good one !!!!

except for the magazines,

Who else makes magazines for it? You're stuck with trying to polish a turd or create your own magazines from scratch. Might as well use that time and money to buy a better gun.

but if that problem is solved then i can trust the gun.

First of all, that's a mighty big "if"

Second of all, you can trust the gun for how long until the problem reappears?

Not this kid. I'd rather buy a 100 yr old Smith and Wesson M&P .38 special for $100 than try to fix a Lorcin for defense.

 

[rbohm]

i also have an EAA witness compact in .45acp, so the lorcin is just for plinking at this point. but i would like to get it feeding reliably if i can.

and yes i am the guy that got the good one

 

[David E]

and yes i am the guy that got the good one

Then the raffle is over. No more good ones to be found !

 

[theotherwaldo]

I've wound up with a lot of cheap autoloaders through the years. One thing that was consistent was that the inside of the magazines got rough because (a) they were rarely lubed, (b) they were exposed to pocket fluff and sweat, and, (c) they were made from some cheap alloy or whatever. I found that cleaning and polishing the follower and the interior of the mag helped tremendously, as did a light rub-down with the hardest surfboard wax that I could find.

This didn't make them good guns, but they were better than they had been.

Oddly enough, I don't have a single Lorcin/Raven/whatever. They all went where they belonged - to ye olde pawnshop.

 

[hogshead]

Lorcin is Latin for junk .Sorry but true.

 

[cchris]

Lorcin is Latin for junk .Sorry but true.

Maybe so, but for $50 it seems like a good truck gun. I figure that if I was in a relationship, I'd spend $50 out at a nice restaurant. But I don't have to waste my money

 

[2RCO]

Listen life is too Short to shoot a Lorcin. Seriously,

Maybe so, but for $50 it seems like a good truck gun.

Well on a bright note for you I think I gave $70 for the one I had... They were poorly made and unreliable. There may be a couple that somehow despite being forged from scrap PortaJohns and Sewer Pipe by Blind Drunken Monkeys were decent guns but I've yet to see one. IMHO there are better options for even a truck gun. The only polite thing to do to a Lorcin is to find a scrapyard with a shredder or take it to a gun buyback. Heck donate it to a Gang Member it might save a life (this way they won't be tempted to steal a decent gun to commit a crime and the Lorcin will jam before anyone gets hurt).