How long do magazines last..

[SMR]

Before they start to get tired and the spring starts to go bad and maybe start causing malfunctions? I'm really wanting to know especially for my everyday carry gun which is the shield 9. Last thing I need is for it not to go bang when I need it to. When I first got it I could barely handload a magazine the spring was really tight and now after a thousand rounds it's not that difficult at all and obviously the spring has softened up a little bit. so just curious how often you should change out the magazines and how often they last? And how often do you clean them or change out the spring in the magazine?

 

[Bozz10mm]

Probably no set rule. As we know, it is the repetitive loading and unloading that wears and weakens the springs. Some mag springs may wear out after a couple thousand rounds, and others may last 10k or more.

I couldn't find any springs for the Shield mags, so I bought 3 spare magazines. The 7 round variety. I'll use those 3, plus the 8 rounder for the range and target practice, and keep the other one loaded with SD ammo for daily carry.

I have a S&W model 39-2 that I bought used about 30 years ago. I had only shot a couple hundred rounds through it since then, but FTE's were not uncommon. After recently replacing the springs, I have not had any more FTE's.

Once they become available, new springs are about $8 at gunsprings.com. so, they are an economical investment every several thousand rounds.

As far as cleaning magazines, when they are brand new, I will take them apart and clean the gunk out of the inside and apply a very light coat of lube, and knock off any burrs on the follower before using them, . After that, they can go 400 or 500 rounds between cleaning. Probably much more, but I'm OCD that way.

 

[ColbyBruce]

This is a hot topic on many forums, with many folks claiming a spring does not wear or weaken with age, others claiming springs wear from use, not from sitting loaded.

I am not an engineer, nor do I have a degree in metallurgy, but I disagree with the above. A good friend of mine who does hold such degrees concurs with me. I do have common sense and two eyes. I have seen magazines fail to feed because they sat loaded for years and the springs "set", if that is the proper term. My F-I-L left his three Walther PP mags loaded for nearly twenty years and they did this.

The service techs at Glock, Inc. test mag springs by pushing down on the front of the follower. If the follower nose dives, rather than goes straight down, the techs rebuild or replace the magazine.

Magazines, by nature of hard use, were designed to be replaced due to wear. Feed lips become worn from slide movement as well as damaged from hasty insertions and dropping. Most magazines are reasonably priced, and rebuild kits are available.

I bought two Shield 9mm pistols last May and agree the magazine springs were super tight. I bought a spare mag for each gun, around $30.00 each. These went to my daughter and D-I-L. S&W Shields make excellent gifts.

 

[hobby-gunsmith]

magazines

I have been using my magazines for the Springfield XD for 8 years without a problem. First, I would not fill the mag to capacity. Load the mag with one less round from capacity. Alternate the magazines every month and unload the ones you are using and let them stand empty for a month and do the same the following month. After shooting, disassemble the magazine and use a dry patch or brush to clean the inside and outside of the mag without any solvent. Do not use any oil on the mags. They solvent may find its way to the primers of the round and you will have a failure to fire. Clean the springs, and mags with a dry rag. I use MPRO7 cleaner to degrease the follower with a brush and clean it with a rag and reassemble the mag. I use this method on all of my semi-autos and have not had a problem with any of the mags.

Nick

 

[growr]

The only time I change any springs is when they become troublesome....if they are not causing problems I leave them alone...

 

[gdnagle]

OK I'll post this here. These are not S&W answers but Magpul. A spring is a spring as long as it's not made in China.
Quote from email from Magpul:

Thank you for your inquiry. The factor that truly wears out quality springs is compression cycles, not constant compression. However, we use a high-quality stainless steel springs in our PMAGs and if one ever does happen to wear out any USGI spec spring can be swapped out for the factory one.

Regarding the question of how long, we’ve had magazines fully loaded for over four years now with no Impact/Dust Cover on and have experienced no feed lip or spring issues. With the cover installed storage life is considered indefinite. There have also been PMAGS reportedly tested to hundreds-of-thousands of rounds (military vetting), and we know positively of ones that have gone tens-of-thousands, so usable life is quite excellent too.



_____________________________________

DANIEL HUNTER TECH SUPPORT SPECIALIST



MAGPUL INDUSTRIES CORP.

[P] 303.828.3460 x144 [F] 303.828.3469

[email protected]

magpul.com | magpuldynamics.com


Note your mileage may vary and there can be flawed springs out there.

 

[Photog]

Can't speak for all brands, but I have a Colt 1911 manufactured in 1913 that made it through WWI and I still shoot it today with the original magazine and it functions flawlessly. When I bought the gun in 1974 it had been stored with a full magazine for over 35 years while it rode around on a tractor. The ammunition in the magazine was dated 1918 and it came with a sock full of extra ammo dated the same.

 

[AGoyette]

I have single stack 38 super mags that I use in my Springfield 9mm 1911. I used them heavily in competition in the 80's and 90's. We shot at least 2 matches a month. The matches lasted all day, they were that big and we had that many shooters. I can't begin to guess how many times my mags have been loaded and unloaded. I would occasionally run a mag brush in my mags. More because I thought I should than because it was necessary. I have never replaced my magazine springs. The mags are flawless. I just used them yesterday at the range trying out some new reloads. They work great in any 9mm single stack gun we put them in.

 

[model70hunter]

As long as it functions correctly and is kept free of debris like powder residue they can last a long time. I recently read an article and it stated the same as gdnagle's MagPul response.

I worked on Fort Leonard Wood, MO for 13 years. In the spring and early summer we would hit yard sales at noon. Folks on orders for overseas would really unload stuff cheap.

I bought every Colt 20 round magazine I saw and ended up with a lot. All were used, think companies repeatedly going to the rifle range. They were well used. I gave from a quarter to a buck for them.

All I used functioned correctly in my HBAR. I sold the HBAR and at some point all the magazines. I have a rough one hiding in my junk that would be 30 years in my possession and well used when I bought it. When I find it I'm gonna clean it up. Last year I bought another AR Match and one could not find magazines but when found they were in the $25-29 dollar range.

I don't need any volunteers, I soundly kicked my own rear. What was I thinking? I keep stuff, it must have been a cloudy day for my crystal ball on that decision.

I bought an old 30 round Gov surplus mag at a gun show in STL, Parsons Industries. It was 5 bucks when other old used ones were $30. It had been dipped in mud and crud and allowed to dry. I took it apart, cleaned it, dried it and wiped it with REM oil and then wiped that off. Old spring and all it works fine.

 

[Rastoff]

Before they start to get tired and the spring starts to go bad and maybe start causing malfunctions? I'm really wanting to know especially for my everyday carry gun which is the shield 9.

I'm glad to hear that you are being proactive. Too many don't take the thought or time to ensure their carry gun is in tip top shape.

It's nice to hear lots of anecdotal stories about mags that lasted decades without failure. Unfortunately, you don't know who made them or how much they were used and under what conditions. What you can glean from that is that springs rarely wear out to the point where they don't work in your mags any more.

You mentioned that your springs are softer. What is actually more likely is that the plastic followers have been smoothed out by rubbing against the mag tube. This alone will make them much easier to load. And, you're gaining experience which also makes them easier to load. While I'm sure the springs have changed a little, I doubt that it's enough to make any difference to the operation of your gun.

Things to look for when inspecting a mag:

Feed Lips-
This is the critical component of any magazine. Look for cracks or deformation where they bend. This is a point of failure.

Mag Tube-
Check it for dents or being out of square. In defensive training, practice or competition, mags are dropped on the ground. This doesn't hurt the mag at all, but they can be stepped on and kicked. So, check for deformation and dents. Any dented or out of square mag tube is cause for rejection. This can cause the spring or follower to bind which will stop the mag from feeding.

Base Plate-
Check for cracks or wear. If the base plate fails, all your rounds will spit out on the ground. That would be bad. So, just look at them and see that they are in sound condition.

Cleanliness-
Dirt is probably the number one cause of magazine failure. All it takes is one little pebble to jam up the works. They can wedge in the follower or cause undue wear on the tube. It is a good idea to disassemble your mags now and then and just wipe them out.

 

[SpringGunTunes]

I work on spring powered air rifles and similar questions come up all the time from air gunners about leaving their rifles cocked too long.
"If I leave my air rifle cocked for a week, will it lose pellet velocity?"
Studies have been done by leaving "springers" cocked for long periods of time. Chronograph numbers were taken before the event and after. And yes, velocity is lost...for a while. Leaving the springer uncocked for a day or two returns the pellet velocity to what it was before the test.
I answer them all like this...
"When you park your car, do you remove the valve covers and unload the springs on the open valves?"
Of course not. That's why they use "springs".
My suggestion is this... If you have and extra magazine or two, about twice a year take the magazine apart and leave the spring out a day or two. The spring will return to whatever spring rate that was lost from being loaded with ammo because, well, it's a spring and that's what springs do. Resiliency and elasticity are the qualities of springs.
And by the way, the valve springs in your car will never wear out to the point of not working unless you "float" the valve and bounce the spring off the seat. That bends the wire out of shape. Cycling the spring wears it out faster than anything else. So, if you shoot your firearm 1000 times a week, a magazine spring should be a maintenance/replacement item.
But 99% of shooters should never have to worry about it in a high quality firearm.
Rob

 

[4506517]

My second duty M&P 45 has had numerous worn out magazine springs. In approximately 4 years I've been through about 12-13 springs. Matter of fact just replaced on last month.

 

[SpringGunTunes]

My second duty M&P 45 has had numerous worn out magazine springs. In approximately 4 years I've been through about 12-13 springs. Matter of fact just replaced on last month.

What is the indication you get when they wear out? How do you tell the spring is bad?
How many rounds do you shoot a year through each mag? That's more than one spring every three months.
Rob

 

[shawn mccarver]

Before they start to get tired and the spring starts to go bad and maybe start causing malfunctions? I'm really wanting to know especially for my everyday carry gun which is the shield 9. Last thing I need is for it not to go bang when I need it to. When I first got it I could barely handload a magazine the spring was really tight and now after a thousand rounds it's not that difficult at all and obviously the spring has softened up a little bit. so just curious how often you should change out the magazines and how often they last? And how often do you clean them or change out the spring in the magazine?

I have never had a magazine go bad. I have changed exactly NO magazine springs in over 40 years of heavy shooting. I keep waiting for one to become lazy, but they seem to be like the energizer bunny. Jeff Cooper talked about a 1911 magazine with which he was personally familiar which was made in 1916 and which was still fully functional the last time he shot it, just a couple of years or so before he passed away. I have the same experience with a Savage .32 Auto magazine from the 1930s. No issues yet. I will let you know when, but at this rate, not likely to be a problem in my lifetime. If magazines "go bad" you could not prove it by me. Professional shooter Ross Seyfried said essentially the same thing about 1911 magazines he used in competition. Hundreds of thousands of rounds later, even the junk ones still worked. He discussed this in an article back in the 80s or 90s, I think. Do the springs lose tension? Without doubt. Do some of them get lazy? Without doubt. But, I have never experienced it. At the Glock armorer's class, students are taught a function drill, and if the weapon passes, the spring is not changed. I have never had one fail that test or in actual shooting. Apart from feed lip damage caused by careless handling, improper loading (ever seen an unfamiliar shooter ruin your perfectly good magazine by shoving the round straight down from the top through the feed lips like you might do when loading an AR mag?) or similar abuse, I just don't see magazines fail.

 

[bobelk99]

The only time I change any springs is when they become troublesome....if they are not causing problems I leave them alone...

That will work fine, as long as the problem does not occur at an inopportune time, such as when defending ones home or life.

 

[4506517]

Maybe I wasn't clear. That's about 12-13 between 3 magazines over the course of almost 4 and a half years. Not 12-13 per magazine. I usually get ABOUT one year out of each spring.

First signs are the obvious....failure to feed. You can eject the magazine from the gun and generally shake out the remaining rounds. The follower is usually stuck somewhere in the middle of the magazine body.

Apparently there have been multiple revisions to the magazine spring. The last ones I put in where a purple/magenta color.