Ridge_Runner_5
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3 loaded, 3 empty mags for the pistol, 4 loaded, 5 empty mags for the AK.
magazine storage??
- Thread starter dalegribble
- Start date
Brotherbadger
New member
I keep 2 handgun mags loaded(nightstand gun), and 3 of my AR mags loaded. The rest stay empty.
filthy phil
New member
All are loaded. A couple dedicated range mags, which I will get replacement springs for.
Its not the long term compression that kills springs, its the repeated compression/unloading
Its not the long term compression that kills springs, its the repeated compression/unloading
Mine are loaded. Some have been loaded for over 20 years and work just fine. When I go to the range with my AR's or pistols I generally grab a handful of mags and shoot at the range. I don't waste range time loading magazines, I can do that when I get home.
It has been pretty well documented that it does not hurt a good spring to keep them loaded. If you get a bad spring it is going to eventually fail whether they are kept loaded or not. I suspect many of the failures mentioned were simply because of bad springs, not because they were kept loaded. There are too many people who keep mags loaded for years with no issues.
One thing that may help is to store down loaded by about 2 rounds. It really depends on the mag and spring. Some guns are really pushing the design limits in order to cram an extra 1-2 rounds in a magazine. A mag fully compressed might wear out somewhat sooner than one that is not right at it's limit.
Another reason is that many mag/gun combinations may not feed the 1st round reliably with a fully loaded mag. Some will not even fit in the gun with the bolt closed. I have some mags that give problems in my AR's. Some do not, but as a rule I load them -2 rounds to ensure reliable feeding of the 1st round.
It has been pretty well documented that it does not hurt a good spring to keep them loaded. If you get a bad spring it is going to eventually fail whether they are kept loaded or not. I suspect many of the failures mentioned were simply because of bad springs, not because they were kept loaded. There are too many people who keep mags loaded for years with no issues.
One thing that may help is to store down loaded by about 2 rounds. It really depends on the mag and spring. Some guns are really pushing the design limits in order to cram an extra 1-2 rounds in a magazine. A mag fully compressed might wear out somewhat sooner than one that is not right at it's limit.
Another reason is that many mag/gun combinations may not feed the 1st round reliably with a fully loaded mag. Some will not even fit in the gun with the bolt closed. I have some mags that give problems in my AR's. Some do not, but as a rule I load them -2 rounds to ensure reliable feeding of the 1st round.
carguychris
New member
IMHO this is not an apt comparison. Gun springs are not subject to the same type of loading as car springs.guruatbol said:
Speaking of which, I dispute your assertion to some degree; I bet that if you took a new car or light truck, loaded it to its exact, actual, and stated Gross Vehicle Weight Rating (GVWR), and let it sit for a year, it would return to its previous ride height. The issue is that few people know the GVWR of their vehicle, much less attempt to follow it, and except for a few small cars with unusually limited physical cargo capacity (e.g. C3 Vette convertible, 1st-gen Miata), it's generally easy to overload most car and trucks if one fills the available cargo areas with dense items.
Actually, this example backs up my assertion that comparing suspension springs to magazine springs is an apples-to-oranges comparison, as one generally CAN'T physically overload most gun magazines.
Actually mag springs are under more of a load when the mag is loaded than are coil springs on a car.
The mag spring is nearly completely compressed, while a car spring is not.
So, this lends some credibility to both our assertions. Yours that is is apples to oranges and mine that they are similar.
What I am saying is if you wish to keep your magazines ready to use in the event of emergency do as we did in our LEO department. Have enough to rotate them. We would have weapons that actually failed to feed past the third or fourth round because the post they were in had them loaded all the tie and procedure of unloading them to count the rounds every beginning of shift was not followed.
So, if you regularly rotate mags or unload the tension on the spring, you will assure that the failure will never happen. Easy and cheap insurance if you ask me. I am not quoting some statistic I read somewhere, I am telling you what I witnessed in real life.
Mel
The mag spring is nearly completely compressed, while a car spring is not.
So, this lends some credibility to both our assertions. Yours that is is apples to oranges and mine that they are similar.
What I am saying is if you wish to keep your magazines ready to use in the event of emergency do as we did in our LEO department. Have enough to rotate them. We would have weapons that actually failed to feed past the third or fourth round because the post they were in had them loaded all the tie and procedure of unloading them to count the rounds every beginning of shift was not followed.
So, if you regularly rotate mags or unload the tension on the spring, you will assure that the failure will never happen. Easy and cheap insurance if you ask me. I am not quoting some statistic I read somewhere, I am telling you what I witnessed in real life.
Mel