M9 magazine woes

U

Unkel Gilbey

New member
Here's one for ya,

I started the required annual pistol requal that us Jarhead SNCO's are required to go through today, and had something happen to me that I've never seen before, and was wondering if this was an isolated incident, or something epidemic.

Part of our requal involves engaging the target and firing 3 shots, dropping the magazine and reloading with another with 3 rounds to finish off the string. There is a time limit involved, so anything that will minimize the time taken in magazine swapping is highly sought after. It isn't uncommon to see shooters moving their gear around (Mag pouches, holsters, web belt) to find the optimum position to facilitate quicker swaps.

One trick that I've known for years is to take that second magazine, and to 'slap' it into the pistol with a good deal of vigor. This ensures that the mag is seated, and if done smartly enough, will release the slide and strip off the top round in the mag. This basically elliminates a step in the process (I don't have to manually release the slide and then readjust my grip) and helps me get back on target quicker. I've had no problems with this until this morning.

This morning, during the second drill, as I 'swatted' the mag home, the base plate of the Beretta's mag departed, flying forward, and the 'guts' of the magazine fell out of the pistol. Imagine my surprise!

Has anyone ever heard/seen this happen before? I personaly haven't, but I figure to ask you folks. I won't even go so far as to isolate this to just military M9's either. I need to know if my 'technique' is flawed, or if I just drew a crappy mag from the armory.

Thanks in advance!

Unkel Gilbey
 
Unkel Gilbey - I would have to say it's both. Slapping a magazine hard enough to cause the slide to disengage from the slide lock is abusive to the pistol and the magazine. If you add a "crappy mag from the armory" to the mix, you will get magazine failure and a "no-go at this station".

Remember, "Fast is Slow, Slow is Smooth, Smooth is Fast!"

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Guns cause crime like spoons cause Rosie O'Donnell to be fat!

I hunt, therefore I am.
 
Both. You got "lucky" with the mag and it is "bad" technique.

Slamming might not work all the time; then what?

Using the release might be a fraction of a sec slower, but more reliable in the long run. If the slamming doesn't work, that's what you will end up doing anyway; might as well cut out the extra step?

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I concur. You have just proven that your tecnique is unreliable and unpredictable. Let the automatic slide release be a surprise when it happens, and not the usual M.O.

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"If cowardly and dishonorable men sometimes shoot unarmed men with Army pistols or guns, the evil must be prevented by the penitentiary and gallows, and not by a general deprivation of constitutional privilege." Wilson vs. State, Ark. 1878
 
Well being a former Jarhead NCO I feel I can actually add to this post. Slapping the mag works well. It is not taught at schools but if you watch the instructors fire... well you tend to pick it up. I qualified like that for 4 years and never saw a mag come apart. I would say you got a junk mag. I would continue to shoot the way your comfortable. It would only take a fraction of a second longer to release the slide if it didn't go when you seated the mag.

Hope you qualified expert!

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"some people spend an entire liftime wondering if they made a difference. Marines don't have that problem."
Semper Fi
 
Hi guys. Unkel, you've come across a topic I've been wanting to post so here goes.

I shoot a Para .45 and a small .380 regularly. Both are fairly new guns. About six months ago I was feeding in a new clip on the .380 and as I normally slapped the clip up, the receiver closed thus chambering a new round. Normally I simply push it up until it clicks and release the slide manually. This time, however, the slide released on its own. It caught me completely by surprise, so much so that I unloaded it, took it home and strip cleaned it thoroughly. However, this phenomenom still happened when I applied just a little slap to the bottom of the clip. Just for the heck of it, I tried the same force on my Para. While it took a little more force due to the mass of the clip with 10 rounds, the same thing happened! I was really surprised to say the least.

I never discussed this with anyone fearing that I'd be called a rookie but now I realize that I've seen others using the same technique while loading their weapons. (A lot of LEOs shoot IDPA at the range)

Now I'm not whamming the thing home, just applying a little slap with the heel of my free hand. Now that I'm used to it, it isn't bad BUT if I was caught unaware and stupidly had my finger on the trigger, it could be bad. :( That's why we don't put out fingers on the trigger, right? So, the question is, is this a normal event?

I appreciate your input. By the way, Unkel, I think the mag was just ready to fail anyway.

Rome
 
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