Magazine Springs

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HDStreet

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I was told in the past not to store a loaded magazine in its maximum capacity because it would weaken the spring through time. I would think that quality rifle and pistol magazines and springs would retain their strength indefinitely when stored at their maximum capacity. I would like to hear some opinions and experiences from out there.

Thanks!!

A free people ought not only to be armed and disciplined but they should have sufficient arms and ammunition to maintain a status of independence from any who might attempt to abuse them, which include their own government - G. Washington
 
I wouldn't worry about them taking a set from staying loaded.
It's actually the compression cycles of loading / unloading or shooting that weakens a mag spring, not leaving it compressed.
(Exception being some of the the newer hi-cap double column like Glocks and others. They should have taken a lesson from John B. on his Hi-Power mag. They can't be over-compressed, and can be left fully loaded till dooms-day, but then they don't hold 17 rounds like a Glock, only 13!)

Glock didn't leave enough room for the fully compressed spring when they designed them, and they do weaken from being over-compressed beyond the springs yield point. I have some Glock 23 mags that have been fully loaded 10 - 11 years, and they are about ready for new springs.

On the other hand, I have two pre-war Colt woodsman that had fully loaded mags in them, full of old copper cased UMC .22's when I bought them from estates. I assume they had been fully loaded sometime in 1936-37 or so, and left that way for 70+ years without weakening the springs.

Also have bought GI .45 mags in WWII canvas mag pouches with WWII dated ammo in them that are still 100%. That's 60+ years.

Some of my commercial 1911 mags and my S&W Model 39 mags have been fully loaded for going on 40 years now without a spring problem.

Same with a bunch of Vietnam era M16/AR15 20 & 30 round mags I keep loaded.

Same with some Ruger Mini-14 20's & 30's that have been stored loaded 20+ years now.

These guns were all designed from the get-go to not over-compress the springs with a full mag. They just don't ever weaken even from being left loaded for a lifetime, it seems!


BTW: It IS important that you change out your carry ammo every so often, like maybe every 6 mo. to a year.
But thats to keep fresh SD ammo in your mags, not to "Save the Springs".

rc
 
Do some research on music wire springs versus chrome-silicon springs just for background. Plain music wire springs sometimes take a set upon initial use, CS often don't. It's not a rule, just an observation.

Other than that, will a spring go flat by storing it fully loaded (compressed)? If that were true, your car (which sits on chrome-silicon springs) would be flat on the ground by now.
 
We need to put this on Snopes.
Click to expand...

I agree. Or put it in a FAQ section. I'd say "Search is your friend", but I'm guilty of asking often heard questions myself, so I'll let someone else write it. :D

NO. Springs are not significantly damaged by leaving them compressed. This is why cars do not suddenly fall to the ground every now and then. Their weight keeps their springs compressed. Baha vehicles springs often go bad.

This is because they are constantly compressed, uncompressed, ad infinitum.

The motion of a spring contributes to its wear, not its static state.

Not only am I talking out of my posterior, I have personally seen my uncle pull some 1911 magazines out of a closet saying "I loaded these when I got home from Korea". I was doubtful they would work in my SA Champion. I figured the bullets would fizzle, not to mention the magazines not working in my newly made pistol.

To my surprise, we went out back and they chambered and went "Bang" just fine. Unfortunately, I failed to check what kind of mags they were (maybe GI issue?!?) but my Uncle Ralph has since passed. I'm not uncouth enough to worry about the magazines.
 
It's actually the compression cycles of loading / unloading or shooting that weakens a mag spring, not leaving it compressed.
Click to expand...

Ditto. I leave my mags loaded all of the time and the springs have lasted for many years. Having them under tension does not wear them out. I would recommend that you dedicate a couple of mags just for target practice, since that is what actually wears the mag springs/followers out. Then just leave your other defensive mags loaded, and merely test fire them with a few carry rounds when you rotate out your defensive ammo.
 
I left some Glock 29 mags loaded for well over a year. Went to the range a couple weeks ago, no problems whatsoever. Not a scientific test but it works for me. We can call it Mythbusters quality at least.
 
Car springs do wear out, I'm sure it is largely due to compression cycles and hard overload rather than static weight but they will eventually sag.
I down load by a couple rounds, partly to ease presure on the spring and partly so the mag can go in easier with the bolt/slide closed.
 
Springs

A properly designed magazine spring should be utterly unaffected either by being left loaded or cycled. (There are lots of ways to not properly design a magazine spring.)

Consider the valve springs in your car. If you're cruising the interstate they are being cycled on the order of 1,500 times per minute, 90,000 times per hour. Maybe 21,600,000 times a year. And you expect them to stand up for years of this stuff. (Don't foget you're heating them up to 200 or 300 degrees too.)

One of the ways to not design a spring properly is to not allow for the initial set while at the same time not allowing for the increase in diameter as it is compressed (If it is a coil spring.) so that after a little use the spring starts to drag on the inside of the magazine tube.
 
About 6 months ago I convinced my dad to let a couple of his guns out and give them a workout... the Browning Hipower and his Star Model B and his Colt 1911 have all been loaded for almost 20 years without being touched since he got on his Revolver kick.

The Browning had 4 loaded mags, the Star had 1 and the 1911 had 6. Fired them all and not 1 single problem.

I keep mine loaded without worry.

JOe
 
Excellent post by unspellable. Good concise examples.

Do some research on music wire springs versus chrome-silicon springs just for background. Plain music wire springs sometimes take a set upon initial use, CS often don't.
Click to expand...

For this reason, check out ISMI for your aftermarket springs if you have a need. They make chrome-silicon springs for guns. In the 1911 world, these are the springs Tripp uses and sells and work really well.
 
I've left magazines fully loaded for years and never experienced a mag related problem with a pistol.

Recently I replaced a magazine spring for the first time ever, the original mag in a 1937 S/42 Luger (Mauser) WWII bringback. Pistol worked fine, I just thought it was time. :D
 
I keep my mags loaded a couple of rounds under what their max capacity is. I've never had any problem with these magazines and they've been used a lot of the last several years. They have been through a lot of compression cycles without a problem.
I buy quality name brand mags and I think this helps a lot. I don't trust the cheap mags.
We are currently in a ammo and gun bubble. The manufacturers are turning out all of the guns and ammo that they can. The same can be said for mags. I have to wonder if the quality is still there for all of the magazines that are on the market. Are some of the companies cutting corners or ordering components from others? I have no idea. I do know that during the Clinton years we had a bunch of manufacturers cranking out every magazine they could in order to beat the Crime Bill deadline. The same can be said for those that made "Assault Weapons." Manufacturers produced everyone they could before the ban took effect. Quality was often sacrificed to produce quantity. There are still gun manufacturers that have a lousy reputation over a decade after they produced low quality rifles during this period.
I was always told to load a couple of rounds under full capacity when I was in the Marines. They've been dealing with magazine fed weapons for over a hundred years and have a bit of experience. I've also had several friends in law enforcement. They told me that they rotate their mags every week so they don't stay topped off all of the time. Now many law enforcement officers are not knowledgeable about guns but the policies come from the departments in which they work. When a weapon fails when needed all of the agencies learn of what happened. It doesn't matter if the firearm fails in NY. Your local police dept will learn what happened. Their policies regarding magazines are in place for a reason.
A friend of mine lost her father last year. He wasn't a gun guy but he did have a couple of firearms around the house. She inherited a Beretta several months ago. It had one magazine that was kept loaded for years. The weapon had very little wear on the finish and the magazine also had almost all of it's blueing despite being over 20 years old. This weapon was only shot a few times. I cleaned her Beretta and took her to the range. The pistol had a jam on the last 1 or 2 rounds every single time she shot it. This mag had been topped off for years. Compression cycles didn't ruin it. Being stored loaded ruined it.
I think that we gun owners sometimes get spoiled by our high quality Kimber, Glock, etc mags. Most of the major companies put out very good products and are very reliable. I have to ask about the guy the buys the Phoenix Arms, Lorcin, Hi Point, Llama, Astra, etc. Is the magazine quality still there? Can they stand up to being left loaded for years? Not everyone can afford a $500 handgun and I would not want to tell someone with a Hi Point to leave his mags topped off forever.
One more thing. I occaisonaly buy a used handgun and I recently sold a few handguns (to buy new stuff). The guy that bought my Hi Power has no idea who manufactured my extra mags and if they came from Browning or the bargain bin at the gun show. He has no idea if the mags were 1 year old or 12. Are the magazines of ten years ago as reliable as they are today? I don't know.
This is why I dislike blanket statements about how you can always _________. We don't know what someone else's situation is, what kind of gun they have and the age of the weapon and magazines. Not all magazines are created equal.
I think that you can probably keep a magazine fully loaded without a problem but I'm not betting my life on it. I think I'll be ok with 16 rounds in my 19 round XDM mags. I won't feel defenseless knowing that I'm a couple of rounds short of a full mag.
 
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How do you know the new spring is as good as the old German Luger one you replaced for no reason?

Fair question.

It stands to (my) reason that a new Wolff spring is as good as a 70+ year old German one. But, who knows, German engineering is not to be underestimated. I still have the old spring in case the Wolff poops out.

L S
 
Luger spring

Didn't you notice that the Wolff spring doesn't look remotely like the original factory spring in a Luger?

We've been doing lot of research into why the Luger gained a poor reputation for reliability. One of the big reasons is people messing with the recoil spring without any real idea of what they are doing. If you open up seven different shooter grade Lugers you will find eight different recoil springs with nine different specs, none of them matching the original.
 
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