My pistols are loaded.

[Remington243]

What good is a home defense pistol if it isn't loaded and ready ? Lucky for the home intruder I have never had to use it.
That said. It has been a long time sense I have shot my pistols but they have always been loaded and ready. I'm wondering about the magazine springs getting memory and becoming to weal to load the last few rounds into the chamber. I have now emptied all my clips to let them relax and regain their spring tension. It has been 3 yrs. wow.. yea.. long time to have not reloaded them or shot the pistols. Will the springs recover? Or will I have to buy new clips ?

Tks.

 

[JFrank]

Perhaps you can replace the spring

 

[Bc'z]

I watched a program on pistol storage and magazine maintenance a couple years ago.
Any how they talked about having 3 mags per pistola' and rotating through them once a month unload mag#1, load #2, and so on.

 

[TIMO]

I believe once the spring takes a set. It will never recover fully. I would test them and just replace the spring if you can.

Tim

 

[ballistic64]

I believe once the spring takes a set. It will never recover fully. I would test them and just replace the spring if you can.

Tim

^^This, springs only weaken, they don't regain tension.

 

[rr2030]

I can only speak from my experience :About 10 years ago I found a 1911 magazine loaded with hard ball from when I was in high school(1972). Feeds the rounds like it is brand new, even used it in IDPA, no problems. For me, the magazine spring concern is a non issue, like global warming. BTW, when I was in high school, it was all about the premature onset of the next ice age.

 

[mongo chicago]

I attended several armorer schools roughly 17 years ago. Back then they stated that magazine spring sets were not a problem. Load em and forget about em.

 

[cem]

3 years is not a long time for magazine springs. Brownell's has had a bit someplace on their web site on the engineering facts and actual tests.

In general as noted springs will fairly quickly take a set when left loaded and can then be left loaded indefinitely but certainly decades after that by actual experience. With sustained use as in a QA firing range with continuous loading and firing the springs will weaken more or less quickly. Left alone the springs don't weaken much if at all certainly not enough to matter for a good spring in a non-corrosive atmosphere. The springs will absolutely not recover but they shouldn't need to. If they work when tested keep using them; if they don't work when tested replace them. I find that a 47D is good for a couple years or more but not forever of sustained daily practice and game including wear on the plastic follower. I do try to distinguish magazine and clip and at least to dry fire because the magazines will work after sitting loaded to full capacity for three years or thirty years but I might not.

 

[T-shooter]

What good is a home defense pistol if it isn't loaded and ready ? Lucky for the home intruder I have never had to use it.
That said. It has been a long time sense I have shot my pistols but they have always been loaded and ready. I'm wondering about the magazine springs getting memory and becoming to weal to load the last few rounds into the chamber. I have now emptied all my clips to let them relax and regain their spring tension. It has been 3 yrs. wow.. yea.. long time to have not reloaded them or shot the pistols. Will the springs recover? Or will I have to buy new clips ?

Tks.

It would be a good thing to get your pistol(s) out and make sure they are functional. You could be in for a surprise. One of mine gave me some trouble. I keep a Taurus PT100 (Beretta clone) in .40 cal as my bedroom gun. I only keep one 12 round magazine loaded (with 11 rounds + 1 in the chamber) in it and rotate out magazines every so often. After not firing it for at least a couple years, I took it out and it jammed almost every round, failure to extract usually. This pistol has been flawless in the 15 years I've had it. The problem was lint in the slide channels. I always keep guns well lubed. It was really caked up from being under the pillows or covered up. After cleaning it worked fine again. Thank God I wasn't home invaded. I would have had a single shot pistol, then a 2-1/2 lb. hammer. I keep it loaded with a round in the chamber but de-cocked with the safety on. As safe as I can make it but I can bring it into action with one hand if fighting someone off with the other.

 

[T-shooter]

I forgot to say that if your magazine springs are good quality, they probably won't loose too much tension. Still, leave your magazines 1 round less than full. And once a year empty the loaded one and replace it with your backup mag. Magazine springs are replaceable for most all common pistols.

 

[stork]

If you loaded a magazine 10 years ago & didn't fire it until yesterday, the spring would have 1 compression cycle. Numerous (VERY, VERY, numerous) compression cycles will wear out a spring.

I shoot Bullseye with 1911's, Marvel conversions, Nelson conversions, Walthers, Rugers, Hi Standards. I don't keep track of the number of 22's, but I average a little over a case (5000 rds) a year now. 15-20 years back it was 3-4 cases a year.

My main 1911 wad gun has had 78,300 reloaded rounds through it in 19 years. 5 rounds at a time, 4 magazines. 2/3 of those rounds for sustained fire (10,440 cycles) and 1/3 slow fire (5220 cycles). Still cycling all rounds dependably.

 

[Ned Ludd]

Simple fix - just shoot it and see how the mags feed. In addition to providing a useful test of general function, you'll find out whether the springs effectively feed rounds or not.

 

[dickn52]

As stated above. Don't load a mag to the max if storing. It was taught to us in Basic training for those that can remember that far back. 20 rd mags carried 18 or 19 max always.

 

[old_heli_logger]

Should have used Hobo oil

 

[TAJ45]

If you loaded a magazine 10 years ago & didn't fire it until yesterday, the spring would have 1 compression cycle. Numerous (VERY, VERY, numerous) compression cycles will wear out a spring.

I shoot Bullseye with 1911's, Marvel conversions, Nelson conversions, Walthers, Rugers, Hi Standards. I don't keep track of the number of 22's, but I average a little over a case (5000 rds) a year now. 15-20 years back it was 3-4 cases a year.

My main 1911 wad gun has had 78,300 reloaded rounds through it in 19 years. 5 rounds at a time, 4 magazines. 2/3 of those rounds for sustained fire (10,440 cycles) and 1/3 slow fire (5220 cycles). Still cycling all rounds dependably.

BE shooter, eh? Me too.

 

[watercam]

It would be good to shoot your pistols more. Marksmanship is a perishable skill particularly with pistols.

 

[TAJ45]

Absolutely. And don't forget week hand.

 

[Remington243]

Thank you everyone. Its all good info. I do plan on shooting each of my pistols with minimum capacity to make sure that the last rounds have enough spring tension to load the chamber and recycle.

Thank you

 

[Dave@MAM]

As rr2030 stated. I have some M1 Carbine magazines that have been loaded since I was a young boy. My Grandfather ordered a bunch of the rifles and mags through mailorder and started my cousins and I reloading. Some of these mags are still loaded and wrapped in cosmoline paper and function properly.

 

[WindSurgeon]

If you loaded a magazine 10 years ago & didn't fire it until yesterday, the spring would have 1 compression cycle. Numerous (VERY, VERY, numerous) compression cycles will wear out a spring.

I agree with this statement. Springs do not weaken unless they are cycled repetitively, damaged, or over stressed. If these are good quality mags, the springs should be fine. I have .45 mags from the mid 80's that still function well, yet have held ammo in them for years.