Cleaning tarnished ammo

[Arik]

Magazine springs should be/are designed to be cycled, not indefinitely compressed. Either way, imperfections in crystal lattice structure of economical steel used for manufacture of magazine springs limits the useful life of practical springs -- certainly those used in $30 magazines.

The what? Do some more research. $30 mags are typically quality mags. If you're paying more for most of them you're being ripped off. Even HK mags, which are expansive and quality, run $35 - $45.

I have compressed mags for years and when I take them out they run like new. Afterwards I load them up and they sit for years. People with 1911s have mags loaded from ww2 that still work fine

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[Muss Muggins]

Why would you need to empty a loaded mag and reload it? No reason to wear the springs, and the ammo shouldn't corrode in the mag.

Have I been away from humidity so long that I've forgotten about this? (It's possible . . . )

Stuff tends to get a little green here in the bootheel unless you're storing it in controlled conditions . . .

 

[Muss Muggins]

Magazine springs should be/are designed to be cycled, not indefinitely compressed. Either way, imperfections in crystal lattice structure of economical steel used for manufacture of magazine springs limits the useful life of practical springs -- certainly those used in $30 magazines.

Ever bend a paper clip back and forth . . .?

 

[QED]

Ever bend a paper clip back and forth . . .?

Whenever yield strength of any solid metal is substantially exceeded, shaped into a paper clip or not, plastic deformation and reduction in load bearing cross sectional area occurs rapidly which quite often leads to failure. This is hardly the mode of failure in magazine springs, which are usually not made of paper clip type material.

 

[QED]

The what? Do some more research. $30 mags are typically quality mags. If you're paying more for most of them you're being ripped off. Even HK mags, which are expansive and quality, run $35 - $45.

I have compressed mags for years and when I take them out they run like new. Afterwards I load them up and they sit for years. People with 1911s have mags loaded from ww2 that still work fine

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I never implied or suggested that $30 magazines cannot be fully compressed/loaded for several years and still function.
However, if you are implying that you can fully load such magazines and maintain them fully loaded for several years and yet obtain the same number of loading cycles thereafter as with brand new magazines -- we will agree to disagree.

 

[Arik]

I never implied or suggested that $30 magazines cannot be fully compressed/loaded for several years and still function.
However, if you are implying that you can fully load such magazines and maintain them fully loaded for several years and yet obtain the same number of loading cycles thereafter as with brand new magazines -- we will agree to disagree.

What do you mean by "same loading cycle? As in each time it's loaded and unloaded? In that case i don't know, I don't count. I have mags from 20 years ago that still work fine and I use them ...if not weekly then definitely monthly. I have battlefield mags that are original from conflicts and wars. They were made in the 60s, 70, 80s AK mags from Yugoslavia and FAL mags from Rhodesia)...and I still use them to this day. My carry mag is from the ban era. I've been using it for 7 years. Works just fine. So I suppose a new one may be loaded 500,000 times where as mine have 400,000 left.

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[Muss Muggins]

Whenever yield strength of any solid metal is substantially exceeded, shaped into a paper clip or not, plastic deformation and reduction in load bearing cross sectional area occurs rapidly which quite often leads to failure. This is hardly the mode of failure in magazine springs, which are usually not made of paper clip type material.

Do me a favor and search this subject on this forum and read the multiple threads regarding keeping your magazines loaded vs. not . . .

 

[Tom S.]

And yet the springs in my Cavalier are sagging after less than 17 years....

 

[QED]

What do you mean by "same loading cycle? As in each time it's loaded and unloaded?

Yes, a loading cycle refers to loading a magazine and then unloading, as would be done in normal operation.

In that case i don't know, I don't count. I have mags from 20 years ago that still work fine and I use them ...if not weekly then definitely monthly. I have battlefield mags that are original from conflicts and wars. They were made in the 60s, 70, 80s AK mags from Yugoslavia and FAL mags from Rhodesia)...and I still use them to this day. My carry mag is from the ban era. I've been using it for 7 years. Works just fine. So I suppose a new one may be loaded 500,000 times where as mine have 400,000 left.

Again, if your point is that a fully compressed magazine spring in a typical $30 magazine is unaffected by such continuous compression for extended periods of time, and that only "cycling" the spring "kills" the spring, we disagree. Both cycling and time under compression are factors that "kill" springs in typical pistol magazines.

 

[QED]

Do me a favor and search this subject on this forum and read the multiple threads regarding keeping your magazines loaded vs. not . . .

I'm familiar with the content of such threads; as with many threads some opinions are more valid than others. However, I have not encountered a factual explanation how mechanical failure of a paper clip that is repeatedly bent is relevant to the failure mode of pistol magazine springs. Perhaps you can enlighten me on your paper clip/magazine spring analogy.

 

[Warren Sear]

Regardless of what anyone has been told, a magazine spring will not fail from being compressed (within its design parameters). They can be left fully loaded for decades and will still work the way they are supposed to.

On the other hand, I had a ****ty High Standard magazine spring that was bad from the factory. That failed because of poor design or manufacturing.

 

[Muss Muggins]

. . . Perhaps you can enlighten me on your paper clip/magazine spring analogy.

Probably not . . .

 

[QED]

Probably not . . .

Surely not -- on a factual basis that is. Your patently baseless paper clip/pistol magazine spring failure analogy notwithstanding, here is some factual information from a manufacturer of pistol magazine springs, H.C. Wolff Co.:

"Magazine springs in semi-auto pistols are one of the most critical springs and are subject to much debate and concern. Magazines which are kept fully loaded for long periods of time, such as in law enforcement and personal/home defense applications, will generally be subject to more fatigue than the weekend shooter's magazine springs in which magazines are loaded up only when shooting. Regular replacement of magazine springs will provide the best defense agains failure from weak magazine springs."

Of course, that's just a spring manufacturer's "take" on this evidently highly "opinionated" subject. Believe what you want, including relevance of your paper clip/magazine spring analogy.

 

[Muss Muggins]

Surely not -- on a factual basis that is. Your patently baseless paper clip/pistol magazine spring failure analogy notwithstanding, here is some factual information from a manufacturer of pistol magazine springs, H.C. Wolff Co.:

"Magazine springs in semi-auto pistols are one of the most critical springs and are subject to much debate and concern. Magazines which are kept fully loaded for long periods of time, such as in law enforcement and personal/home defense applications, will generally be subject to more fatigue than the weekend shooter's magazine springs in which magazines are loaded up only when shooting. Regular replacement of magazine springs will provide the best defense agains failure from weak magazine springs."

Of course, that's just a spring manufacturer's "take" on this evidently highly "opinionated" subject. Believe what you want, including relevance of your paper clip/magazine spring analogy.

A manufacturer of magazine springs suggesting that magazine springs should be replaced regularly. Duly noted.

 

[QED]

A manufacturer of magazine springs suggesting that magazine springs should be replaced regularly. Duly noted.

Not surprisingly, you evidently missed the part about spring fatigue due to loaded magazines for extended periods of time compared to cycling the magazine every weekend. That, of course, doesn't fit your paper clip/ magazine spring failure mode baseless conjecture.

 

[Muss Muggins]

Not surprisingly, you evidently missed the part about spring fatigue due to loaded magazines for extended periods of time compared to cycling the magazine every weekend. That, of course, doesn't fit your paper clip/ magazine spring failure mode baseless conjecture.

I read the whole thing and summarized my feelings in my response. Again, your position is duly noted.

 

[QED]

I read the whole thing and summarized my feelings in my response. Again, your position is duly noted.

Your feelings are duly noted, next time inject some facts into a discussion, if possible.

 

[Muss Muggins]

Your feelings are duly noted, next time inject some facts into a discussion, if possible.

Seems kind of mean . . .

 

[QED]

Seems kind of mean . . .

Not really. I just strongly prefer dealing in facts in "technical forums" over baseless conjecture that's hardly relevant.

 

[Muss Muggins]

Not really. I just strongly prefer dealing in facts in "technical forums" over baseless conjecture that's hardly relevant.

All good and duly noted. Please point me to any statement you have made in this thread other than the advertising statement from Wolff that factually demonstrates the expected life cycle of a magazine spring. Everything I see so far in your replies is, like you have characterized my statement, just a baseless conjecture. I'm here to learn . . .