Top off your magazine?

Here is what I do. I have a high-quality, reliable "carry" mag that I keep fully loaded all the time. I also have a less reliable "trash" mag that is usually lying around unloaded. When I am ready to load my pistol I just put 1 cartridge into the "trash" mag and load it into the chamber. Then I remove the "trash" mag and replace it with the fully loaded "carry" mag. It seems like there would be very little to zero fatigue on the spring of my "carry" mag by loading the gun in this fashion. Plus, I don't have to mess with trying to force that last round into a mag in order to top off.
 
You can also lock back the slide, drop a round in the chamber, lower the slide while holding it so it dosnt slam , and tap the back of the slide home with the heal of your hand. Its a little easier on your extractor, but still not the best. Extractors are designed to have the round slide behind it from underneath as it is scooped from the magazine. I sometimes do the above "forward assist" method at the range when I'm feeling lazy but want to shoot with a full pistol. Besides 15+1 in my Glock 20, 13+1 in my Sig 229, or 7+1 in my P32 gives me an even number of double taps for my carry guns. That last single round always feels awquard after a long DT string.
 
Going by my motto, "It is better to have it and not need it than to need it and not have it", I always top off my carry gun.
 
When I had my 14 round Smith 5904 9mm on my hip daily, I did not "top it off" as 14 were likely enough...

now that I have a Beretta Mini-Cougar 8040-F .40 cal, which only holds 8 in the magazine, you betcha I top off... 9 rounds had better be enough, but just seems like so few, when the old one had 14 WITHOUT topping off!
 
Always top off. In fact, when hunting small game with a handgun and firing more rounds than I expected (four instead of one from the total of 7+1), I swapped in the spare magazine so that I was back to 7+1 and some number (3) in the spare magazine. The logic is that I wish a maximum number of rounds available before a reload.
 
Maybe I've read too many books and/or stories, but my understanding has always been that you should rack the slide and leave the mag one round short. The idea being that you could limit the chances of a malfunction. I never served in the military, but have been under the impression that this is SOP for both pistols and rifles, e.g. the AR-15. I'd love to have someone clear this up for me. :confused: geegee
 
Some purposely carry one round down to increase spring life. I do that with my Glocks. When you have a high cap mag its not a big deal to have 12 vs 13. Some just rotate their mag springs every so often.
PAT
 
I guess I'm just a little anal-retentive, but I can't even imagine not carrying a fully loaded pistol. I top off.
 
I do top off the 1911 (7+1).

I do not top off the P226. 14+1 is okay with me.

AR mags get 28 rounds each.

AK mags get 28 rounds each.

FN mags get 18 rounds each.

I have owned some firearms that "topping off" would cause failures to feed reliably.

Whatever you think you can get away with. ;)
 
I fully load all magazines. When loading a firearm for use, I generally either have a junk mag for loading the chamber without unloading the good magazine, or I top off. I thought that is why guns came with ten round mags. I rarely shoot more than 10 un-neutered magazines in a session. Just works out fine for me. :)

Only in revolvers where you need an unloaded chamber do I not fully load a gun. A shotgun is similar, I leave the chamber unloaded as I am not impressed with the safety on my shotgun.
but all my amgazine fed weapons are fine with one in the chamber and a full magazine. I change to new springs when I question reliability.
 
Jager, you've got a point with the AR mags. I've never had an AK mag have probs with 30 loaded, but I could just have been lucky.
 
Simple. If it has no safety, I don't top off. If it does, I do.

I carry either type (a forward-looking statement, as I am still waiting for my CHL). Although it does seem kinda dumb not to have a round in the chamber if you think you're going to need it in self defense. What are you suppose to say? "Hold it, Mr Muggums! Time out!! Break!!! You won't mind terribly if I rack my slide before we proceed, will you?"
 
I must be the only one who does this, but when I do carry, I carry
with the safety off, empty chamber, full mag. I must have had it
ingrained in me during my military service, where regs prohibit
carrying it in condition 1, unless you know something bad is
happening. In my defense, I've gotten the pull-and-rack technique
down pretty well, though, about a second and a half.....

ANM
 
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