New Shield owner here with a question. I really have been a revolver guy all my life so I was wondering how often do you clean Shield magazines?? Is it a round count, every range trip, or every couple of months etc?

Never cleaned magazines . . . Not sure how you'd do it.

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Wisdom comes thru fear . . .

The bottom plate should be removable, though I've never bothered the clean mine.........bought the pistol new in December.

In my police career, I only ever cleaned mags once or twice. When I did, they weren't even "dirty". Though I do wipe the followers clean. Keep an eye on that area, if it looks like carbon or gunk is building up where you can't wipe it off, then cleaning should be done.

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MSP - Retired

I've never cleaned the mags on my Gen II Glock 23 and never had a problem. I was told to clean the mags on my M&P .380 often so those get done after each range trip.

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Old Cop
LEO (Ret.)

I wipe the follower and feed lips off everytime I clean the gun (which isn't that often). The only time I ever pull the base plate and give them a good cleaning is before they are used the first time.

It largely depends on how you treat your magazines. If you throw them down in loose dirt, mud, sand, etc., then you need to clean them often.

You only need to clean them when they are dirty!

I've never cleaned a magazine for any pistol in my whole life, either.

I wipe off the follower after shooting but only break down the magazine once a year to clean and very lightly oil the spring.

If I buy used magazines I tear them down and do a through cleaning.

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"Who Dares Wins!"

I clean them when I start having feeding issues.

I clean them after every range visit. Takes about 40 seconds per mag. Don't see a downside.

Just curious. Describe the process . . .

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Wisdom comes thru fear . . .

Stumbled across this video several months ago and saved it, but never got around to doing it. I just can't imagine the importance of cleaning a magazine unless you play in the mud alot.

How in the world can you disassemble them, clean 'em inside & out (including the spring) and reassemble them in 40 secs?
Isn't that what we're talking about, as far as 'cleaning'?

Push the pin on the baseplate in and remove it. Pull follower and spring. Wipe inside of mag with Hoppes dipped patch. Wipe follower down Follow up with 2 or 3 dry patches. Quick spritz of Dry lube to spring. Reassemble.

Less than a minute every time.

Blowback firearms (especially .22s) should have their mags cleaned from time to time. I recently did this chore with my 10/22 mags. Stuff gets in there.

Manually operated, gas, or recoil operated guns should pretty much not need cleaning unless used in nasty conditions. I've never seen a reason to clean my Glock or Shield mags except to wipe off grime from the top of the follower.

Thank you for supporting my position. There is not a manufacturer on the planet that supports any chemical of any type inside a magazine, and there is not reason on the planet to lube a magazine. Too much chance for seepage of the lube around the primers of ammunition in loaded mags.

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Wisdom comes thru fear . . .

Never gonna happen. The mag well is wiped clean and dry and I don't even put them back together for a day or so. They are bone dry when they are reassembled. And Remington dry lube has been used on mag springs for a while. AR mags especially.

Been shooting for over 25 years. I know what I'm doing.

And read the manual for Ruger 10/22's. Manual says to clean mag with solvent. I don't do that without taking them apart though. What makes a magazine different from a firearm? Are there not springs in your gun?

You wrote earlier that you reassembled in less than 40 seconds. No matter. You run your way, I'll run mine.

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Wisdom comes thru fear . . .

A .22 rimfire round doesn't have a primer hole. No chance for solvent seepage . . .

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Wisdom comes thru fear . . .

It takes less than a minute to clean them. I could put them back together but I generally don't. No rush so let sit for a day or so. But I have put them back together right after a cleaning. I use a 12 gauge shotgun patch to clean and wipe them. Dry as a bone and clean as a whistle.

Remember, Dirty Magazines can get a kid in trouble. Do your part!

That sounds like the process, but for an old crippled up arthritis guy like me, it takes 10- 15 minutes per mag.

Yes, I clean the mags about once a month if they went to the range that month. Storage mags once a year.

I wipe 'em down every time I clean the pistol. If they look dirty, which they never seem to, I take them apart and wipe the follower and inside tangs on top. I've done it a couple of times to make sure I know how to do it but they don't seem to accumulate much of anything.

X2. They are part of the feeding system of your firearm. A little maintenance goes a long ways.

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M&P9/9C/Shieldx2/Sportx2/15-22

I clean any magazine that I drop on the ground at an outdoor match before I use it on the next stage. I have a mag tube brush and I knock the dirt/sand/mud off the spring and follower on a piece of wood (or any other handy surface). So some mags get cleaned 8-10 times in a day . Mags that just hit concrete (indoor matches or ranges) I clean every couple of months in the ultrasonic cleaner to get the carbon buildup off.

I've thought about doing that with my pistol mags. What cleaner do you use with the water in the ultra sonic?

I've also sprayed the inside of the mag with brake cleaner. Totally decreases it and leaves it dry as a bone.

If your mags see abusive conditions, as mine frequently do shooting IDPA I clean them as needed.

After each match (if they haven't ended up in the mud) I take a small acid brush with Hoppes and clean the follower and wipe it down.

A full cleaning usually every 3 months or so works well for me.

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Take your time..quickly.

If I'm gonna use solvent or oil on a magazine I gotta take it apart. Cleaning the follower with Hoppes without taking it apart means the solvent probably seeps down between the follower and magazine and into the magazine.

It's why I take the grips off any gun I clean. I never used to with my old 38. When I finally did it after years of not doing it the crud and old oil that seeped in there was pretty bad. Came right off with a rag, but there's nothing under a grip that's gonna interfere with function.

So, for Jim1392, how about this suggestion: Assuming you are using fairly decent quality commercial ammunition, wait until you've put about 500 rounds down range, then clean the mags and see how dirty they are. That should give you a baseline for how often YOU feel like they need cleaning in the future.

Since it isn't hard to clean a magazine, I like to clean my self defense gun's mags about every 500 rounds just on general principle. I'm not very efficient, so it takes me several minutes each, but it isn't that big a chore.

On the other hand, I reload .45 ACP using Green Dot (long story), which is nasty dirty stuff and I don't think I've ever cleaned my 1911's mags, so....

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Jim - M&P Pro 40L/Shield 40

I didn't clean my M&P FS9 mags. Then I started having feed issues. Cleaned all my mags, feed issues went away. I clean about every 300 rounds now. It just makes sense. Like Grjfer says, the mags are part of the feed system, they need attention too.

I use the Hornady concentrate for steel, mixed with water. Since I don't use the machine for cleaning brass anymore, the solution stays in all the time. Here's what mine look like before cleaning, compare it to the picture below.

lately I've been using my M&P Shield 9 in weekly IDPA matches and 2 of the 3-8 rnd mags I have after about 100 rounds "gum up" on me to the point where they are noticably much stiffer when I press the follower down with my thumb. To disassemble the mags is a simple process. I clean them with hoppes & a small toothbrush paying attention to the inside of the mag near the top and wipe dry with paper towels, then I put the brush to the follower & scrub it down then wipe dry. The other mag is nice & loose... I still clean that as well...

My Shield is also my EDC weapon along with my 7 rnd mag and I keep it cleaned & lubed at all times.


Most of the problems people have with the bodyguard 380 are related to the mag getting dirty & the follower starts sticking. Many people dont realize that the mag follower & spring are part of the feed system and all parts must work in perfect unison.

When I thumb/hand load my mags, I can always tell when one needs to be disassembled and cleaned just by the way each round pushes the follower down and springs back. If the follower is sticking, you will see it/feel it while loading the mag.

i was going to say i haven't fully cleaned the mags on my 9c yet (1500+ rounds in the past year) as i have not had any issues, and assumed i'd follow the same for my new fs 9. Just wipe them down and keep the follower clean.
As at this stage i'm not yet carrying and only using them for the range, really didn't think about cleaning them to be honest.... but following this thread makes me think when i do use these for carry and defensive needs, i may be more thorough in my cleaning techniques.
And if that's the case, maybe i should start that habit now....

Mine see only range use so they get deep cleaned when new to remove any "preservative". I do wipe the tops of the followers after every session.

The grip tool on the FS and Compact work well to release the base. They are excellent for those of us stuck with 10 round mags.

I don't shoot comp so I just give them a quick wipe now and again. I have had them apart when I was really bored and never found enough evidence to concern myself with cleaning the insides as a rule.

I do wipe the externals with a silicone rag every now and then for smooth insertion.

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Criminals don't register guns.

I just checked a couple of my mags after reading this thread. I shoved a piece of white cloth in each & it didn't come out dirty enough to worry about. Then I gave a wipe to the spring & it was the same. I always give the followers a quick wipe after a session at the range so they were clean.

Evidently the ammo I use is clean because it only takes less than 10 minutes to thoroughly clean the whole pistol using CLP, a bore brush & cleaning wipes. I'm meticulous about a clean firearm from the inspections I performed as a Squad Leader, Platoon SGT & 1st SGT in the Army.

I'll probably make a point of at least checking all the mags periodically & cleaning when necessary. At this time the 40C is relatively new (2 years) with over a thousand rounds of American Eagle, a box or two of White Box, & at each range session some Gold Dot SD rounds & a few Hornady Critical Duty/Defense through it.

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Former USN, Retired US Army