Heavy Metal 1
New member
I have never done a "combat reload" w/ any of my semi-auto pistols for fear of magazine damage and at the best getting it dirty. For those who do train in that manner, how have your magazines held up?
magazine drops
- Thread starter Heavy Metal 1
- Start date
I never retain mags during a reload. I drop mine free all the time. On concrete, mud, gravel, etc. Even aluminum AR15 mags.
Yeah, they look all dinged and scratched, but I've never had any problems. As far as I can tell, they never seem to fall on the feed lips. Clean them every once in a while.
Yeah, they look all dinged and scratched, but I've never had any problems. As far as I can tell, they never seem to fall on the feed lips. Clean them every once in a while.
Tactical Jackalope
New member
I've mostly trained with way, if not always.
In a full class of 500-1,000 rounds depending on the surface your magazines come in contact with, they will eventually malfunction. Dirt, sand, clay, or whatever else gets stuck between the follower and magazine walls. It happened with my guns.
You just take a magazine tool if your gun requires one and a long brush along with a rag to clean it out and keep going.
It's training to learn you gear in the worst of conditions. We should all do it.
In a full class of 500-1,000 rounds depending on the surface your magazines come in contact with, they will eventually malfunction. Dirt, sand, clay, or whatever else gets stuck between the follower and magazine walls. It happened with my guns.
You just take a magazine tool if your gun requires one and a long brush along with a rag to clean it out and keep going.
It's training to learn you gear in the worst of conditions. We should all do it.
lee n. field
New member
I (almost) always let magazines drop, unless there's some reason they don't. (Subcompact guns with short grips, magazines may hang up on my hand. The magazine disconnect on my Star impinged on the magazine and kept it from dropping. That kind of stuff).
I try to accumulate a "crapton" of magazines, just because stuff happens.
Tactical Jackalope
New member
Also wanted to note on the bunch of magazines part that Lee said. I have 20 magazines for my HK P30L and some are training magazines while others are for every day carry use.
Change springs from their source accordingly.
Change springs from their source accordingly.
That's a good point. I have a minimum rule of 6 mags per gun (three sets of one in the gun and one reload), and for most of my guns I have more than that.
I do not separate carry and training mags. In fact once or twice a year, I start my training with the loaded mags that I was carrying just to verify that they will work in the exact condition I was carrying them.
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In my experience they should be fine. l've done 24 training courses and the mags have always hit the ground (same at the range). The only issues I ever had were S&W magazines for the M&P 2.0 compact where the baseplates would slide forward, but even they didn't come off. Probably more than half of those courses were on concrete with the rest on gravel and I've yet to have a magazine break or bend, that includes Glock, HK, SIG, and S&W magazines. With polymer baseplates and/or bodies that can be easier as they often spring back in place. Even on a range where at the end of the day I looked like the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man from all of the dust the magazines, both pistol and AR, kept working. I haven't done much with mud because it's just not that muddy around here.
As many have mentioned, if it concerns you then having two sets of magazines is a great idea. I generally go a 5 magazine minimum, with 3 for the range and training and 2 for carry. That way if some get fouled or broken it's not a big deal (as mentioned you still want to shoot the carry magazines at least occasionally to ensure function). For pistols I shoot a lot I basically double that number. I've had more magazines for individual firearms before but these days money is tighter and they ended up sitting around not being used.
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As many have mentioned, if it concerns you then having two sets of magazines is a great idea. I generally go a 5 magazine minimum, with 3 for the range and training and 2 for carry. That way if some get fouled or broken it's not a big deal (as mentioned you still want to shoot the carry magazines at least occasionally to ensure function). For pistols I shoot a lot I basically double that number. I've had more magazines for individual firearms before but these days money is tighter and they ended up sitting around not being used.
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You can buy stick-on foam/rubber pads for the bottom of your mags. Mind you, the only parts of 'em you need worry a little about is the lips. Bend 'em a wee bit and they'll quit working properly. Fortunately, fine, needle nosed, pliers fix 'em in seconds. The pliers can fix some feeding issues too.
Like DMK says, mags tend to be floor plate heavy and usually don't fall lip down.
Like DMK says, mags tend to be floor plate heavy and usually don't fall lip down.
You have to clean them after a day at the range. Glock mags tend to not get as dirty due to the nice seal at the top and the small count holes. 1911s I find tend to get the dirtiest and be the most susceptible to damage.
Magazines for Polymer guns with poly followers and base plates tend to run near forever if you keep them clean no matter how many times I drop them or how dirty they get.
AR magazines either steel or polymer tend to be pretty rugged. AR10 magazines tend to get more dirty inside, mostly due to the larger opening.
Magazines for Polymer guns with poly followers and base plates tend to run near forever if you keep them clean no matter how many times I drop them or how dirty they get.
AR magazines either steel or polymer tend to be pretty rugged. AR10 magazines tend to get more dirty inside, mostly due to the larger opening.
If I don't have plenty of time to reload after firing `15 rounds, I need to work on my marksmanship, not my tactics.
Tactical reloads are fine for soldiers, LE and folks that play gun games, but your chances of needing to do a tactical reload in a SD/HD situation are far less than your chances of being hit by falling space debris.
Tactical reloads are fine for soldiers, LE and folks that play gun games, but your chances of needing to do a tactical reload in a SD/HD situation are far less than your chances of being hit by falling space debris.
Why is that relevant though? What if the OP carries magazines with less capacity? For that matter, even if you never need a reload in a defensive shooting it doesn't answer the question of whether the magazines would stand up to it.
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You should practice emergency reloads, tactical reloads and administrative reloads.
Emergency reloads - I am out of ammo..... Oh crap....
Tactical reloads - I am not out of ammo, but I am in a fight and I have to move or have a chance to top off.
Administrative reloads- at the range, at the house etc.
Quality mags should last a long time. Magazines are expendable items, if they stop working and cleaning or replacing springs is not the answer, throw them away. Some people like to use them as training mags, I see that as dangerous as they could make it into the carry rotation.
Emergency reloads - I am out of ammo..... Oh crap....
Tactical reloads - I am not out of ammo, but I am in a fight and I have to move or have a chance to top off.
Administrative reloads- at the range, at the house etc.
Quality mags should last a long time. Magazines are expendable items, if they stop working and cleaning or replacing springs is not the answer, throw them away. Some people like to use them as training mags, I see that as dangerous as they could make it into the carry rotation.
Heavy Metal 1
New member
It was primarily the mag lips that were my concern. I know I should train that way, but with the cost of good magazines I have been reluctant to do so AND more importantly I never want to introduce dirt into my weapon. I didn't know if a single drop was going to damage a magazine, but from the conversation here it looks as if that is unlikely.
Thank you for the responses. I will have to drop some coin now that I have some peace of mind.
Thank you for the responses. I will have to drop some coin now that I have some peace of mind.
HighValleyRanch
New member
In your dry practice, you can spread a quilt on the ground to practice dropping the mags as needed. I get careless and have broken a few speedloaders dropping them on my cement floor on changes.
armoredman
New member
I have dedicated range mags, and they get beat, no worries. I clean them up and they keep running. When doing a stress reload, (slide locked back), let it go, that empty is no longer your friend. Like mentioned, you can practice on carpet, or spread a blanket, or grass, shouldn't be an issue with well made mags. And buy more - they ARE an expendable item.
I disagree with that. I'm a believer of practicing one way all the time. You want myelination around your nerve pathways from repeated practice (what is often called muscle memory).
If I'm in a fight and focused on finding cover, where the threat is, who else might be there, etc, I don't want my brain trying to figure out what the best way to do a reload is, or rack a slide, or draw and present, or etc. One way, the always way.
Tavis Haley - The power of habit:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0KCSXTw5hZg
I can respect the power of habit, but there are reasons to do a tactical reload as opposed to a slide lock or emergency reload. If I have the time/distance and presence of mind, it makes sense to do a tactical reload. Doing so may prevent me from having to do an emergency reload. With practice it's possible to build more than one habit.
Now obviously Haley has more experience than me. But Haley isn't the only instructor. At some point when getting instruction we have to evaluate what works best for us. For me while I know emergency reloads may be more likely, I still practice tactical reloads.
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