10mm Magazine Problem

easymoney72

easymoney72

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I got my first 10mm (1026) a couple months ago. It has one magazine and I can't afford any spare magazines right now, so I bought new springs, base plate, and white follower. I fired the gun with two types of ammo and it functions fine. The problem is when I'm loading the magazine. 6 rounds load properly but when I put the 7th round in, the round that is just below the top round (6th) does a little nose dive thing. Then when I put the next round in, it gets worse, and when I put the 9th round it is just about impossible and the top few rounds are all with the tips pointed down too much, except the very top round, it is in the correct position. The gun functions because that round on top is always in the correct position. It's the rounds just below that top round that are nose dived. I tried putting the original spring and follower back in it, and it still does the same thing. Is this a common problem with these magazines? Is there an easy fix? I have used Blazer fmj, and Hornady Custom 180gr xtp. I would really like to get another magazine but the VA has stopped paying me disability until October. I am thinking about seeing if anyone has one to trade. I have a complete excellent condition 6906 slide with Novak sights. Any help with advice on how to fix this magazine will be much appreciated.
 
Rule3 said:
Do you have the mag spring in the correct orientation?
Click to expand...
That is a good question. The Wolff mag spring has a small coil on one end, and a large coil on the other end. I wasn't sure which end goes up, and which end goes down, so I tried it both ways and got the same results. I do need to know the correct orientation so I can eliminate that as a possible problem.
 
BMCM said:
The small coil goes in the follower.
Did you try running it before replacing the superior factory spring?
Put the original guts back in and try it.

Cheers
Bill
Click to expand...
Both springs do the same thing. It feeds rounds into the chamber with no problems because the top round is always positioned correctly. I will put the original spring back in it for the 3rd time and try it again.
 
The factory follower is, by design, anti-tilt so, I'm having trouble envisioning how you're having nose-dive problems while loading.
Not saying you aren't just that I'm not seeing it.

We are talking about an original factory S&W magazine here right?
 
Post a picture of your magazine disassembled with the top of the follower and spring showing as it goes into the body of the mag. Like the picture posted above.
 
Here are some pics. I am going to disassemble now to install the original spring. I will take some pics of it disassembled.

S&W oem 9rd 10mm magazine
1000020134.webp

Loaded with 6 rounds
1000020133.webp

Loaded with 9 rounds
1000020132.webp
 
This is what you should see...

0179ce57-1dde-4114-a840-41d4ec770da8.jpg
 
Original oem spring and original oem white follower, loaded with 9 rounds

1000020143.webp

1000020140.webp
 
I've tried every combination of new and original parts with the same results. I think the only thing else it could be is the magazine body.
 
tlawler said:
Cartridge O.A.L…overall length…may be a bit long.
Click to expand...
I have two boxes of factory ammo and they both do it. Blazer fmj-fp 180gr, and Hornady Custom jhp 180gr xtp. Next time I buy a box of ammo, I will get something different than what I already have and see if that works better.
 
I should have known that when I finally get my grail gun that I've wanted since the '90's and the magazines cost $150+, of course the magazine won't work right. I shouldn't have expected anything else. 🤣
 
I checked a few of my 10mm mags & basically I see the same thing you see, but to a smaller degree, & I'm saying it's "normal".

After the 6th round is loaded the mag spring is getting pretty compressed & the force on the top round has gone up quit a bit from when you started loading.

The top round is held in place mainly by the base/rim area tension & because the mouth of the magazine gets wider towards the front there's less tension at the case mouth/bullet area & the nose of the round tries to pivot up on its base from the increased force. (It's the nose of the top round pivoting up, not the second round nosing down. Push on the nose of the top round down to confirm.)

The stronger the mag spring the more it wants to pivot up. (Wolff 10% are worse. For this, & its longer length, I don't suggest buying them. Stick to their 5% spring, if you can't get S&W mag springs.)

Your magazine lips "might" be a little wider than normal but if your pistol feeds & extracts from the magazine okay I would not mess the mag lips, lest you create a different problem, plus the magazine's metal is very strong & touchy to reshape.

.
 
Last edited:
easymoney72 said:
I've tried every combination of new and original parts with the same results. I think the only thing else it could be is the magazine body.
Click to expand...
Just curious, but look at the front strap of the magazine body. Is it stamped 'ES', ES-1', or 'MS-1'?
 
BLUEDOT37 said:
I checked a few of my 10mm mags & basically I see the same thing you see, but to a smaller degree, & I'm saying it's "normal".

After the 6th round is loaded the mag spring is getting pretty compressed & the force on the top round has gone up quit a bit from when you started loading.

The top round is held in place mainly by the base/rim area tension & because the mouth of the magazine gets wider towards the front there's less tension at the case mouth/bullet area & the nose of the round tries to pivot up on its base from the increased force. (It's the nose of the top round pivoting up, not the second round nosing down. Push on the nose of the top round down to confirm.)

The stronger the mag spring the more it wants to pivot up. (Wolff 10% are worse. For this, & its longer length, I don't suggest buying them. Stick to their 5% spring, if you can't get S&W mag springs.)

Your magazine lips "might" be a little wider than normal but if your pistol feeds & extracts from the magazine okay I would not mess the mag lips, lest you create a different problem, plus the magazine's metal is very strong & touchy to reshape.

.
Click to expand...
The thought of it being normal has crossed my mind. There are a couple of things that have bothered me about it. There were a few times that I couldn't get the 8th and 9th rounds into the magazine. I mentioned that I tried every combination of parts and I flipped the spring end for end both ways in the mag body. Those times that I couldn't get all the rounds loaded was probably when I didn't have it assembled properly, so that is not an problem anymore. The biggest issue that I have, is that when the magazine is fully loaded with the rounds in that nose dived position and I start to unload the magazine, the rounds don't go fully up to the correct position at the top. It just seems like it would cause a malfunction. There are pics below to show what I'm talking about. I realize that I need to go to the range and put plenty of ammo through it and make sure it is reliable. If I go to the range and it continues to be reliable, then I will shut up about it. I only fired about 40 rounds through it so far.

Once the rounds are nose dived, they don't ever go all the way up when rounds are removed from the magazine until it gets back down to 6 or less rounds.

This is what it looks like.
1000020146.webp

This is what it should look like.
1000020147.webp
 
Rule3 said:
I found this. Not sure if it is correct??
oplophilus

Thread 'S&W 1006 magazine markings'

Hi mates, I was just taking a look at my magazines and I noticed this marking "ES" on the S&W 1006 Magazine (yellow follower), does anybody know the meaning?
Click to expand...
‘ES’ is an early 10XX-series mag body and came with a yellow follower from the factory.

At some point, S&W modified the body and these began the ‘ES-1s’. It was during the run of ES-1 mags that the white follower appeared although I’ve seen ES-1s with yellow followers.

Every MS-1-stamped mag I’ve seen had a white follower. I still have three MS-1s that are NIB unopened. I bought them from MidwayUSA in the very early 2000s. Given current pricing on 10XX-series mags, I’d have to assume a suitably motivated buyer on GB would pay beyond $150.00 for each ….. But I’m not ready to sell them yet. ;)
 
easymoney72 said:
The biggest issue that I have, is that when the magazine is fully loaded with the rounds in that nose dived position and I start to unload the magazine, the rounds don't go fully up to the correct position at the top. It just seems like it would cause a malfunction. This is what it looks like.
Click to expand...
easymoney72 said:
View attachment 870022
Click to expand...

.

Hopefully you got to the range & everything functioned as it should.

Your "this is what it looks like" picture is not normal. In fact, it's positioned too far forward & looks like the nose of the bullet is beyond the front edge of the magazine.

Whenever I manually strip rounds off the top of a magazine, like you said you did, often the next round moves.

It's also forward of the top round indentation marks which are stamped into the top outside of the magazine body to help keep the top round from moving forward.

Do you use a mag loader (UpLULA)? They help you depress the stack so you can get each round fully in & to the rear so when it come up to the top that indentation can be aligned with the cartridge's extractor groove & help hold the top round.

.

Top round indentation, 4013/1013 magazine
.



.
 
easymoney72 said:
I should have known that when I finally get my grail gun that I've wanted since the '90's and the magazines cost $150+, of course the magazine won't work right. I shouldn't have expected anything else. 🤣
Click to expand...
How does it shoot?

Every 10mm S&W I have shoots perfectly with a variety of ammo. 1006, 1026, 1076, 1086.

I haven’t notice the round orientation that you pictured, but the proof is in how it shoots.
 
BLUEDOT37 said:
.

Hopefully you got to the range & everything functioned as it should.

Your "this is what it looks like" picture is not normal. In fact, it's positioned too far forward & looks like the nose of the bullet is beyond the front edge of the magazine.

Whenever I manually strip rounds off the top of a magazine, like you said you did, often the next round moves.

It's also forward of the top round indentation marks which are stamped into the top outside of the magazine body to help keep the top round from moving forward.

Do you use a mag loader (UpLULA)? They help you depress the stack so you can get each round fully in & to the rear so when it come up to the top that indentation can be aligned with the cartridge's extractor groove & help hold the top round.

.

Top round indentation, 4013/1013 magazine
.



.
Click to expand...
I don't use a loader.
 
Astro14 said:
How does it shoot?

Every 10mm S&W I have shoots perfectly with a variety of ammo. 1006, 1026, 1076, 1086.

I haven’t notice the round orientation that you pictured, but the proof is in how it shoots.
Click to expand...
Hopefully next week I will take it to the range.
 
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