Magazine Spring Tension Over Time?

[HoosierQ]

Are magazine springs degraded by leaving them fully loaded for a long period of time? My bedside gun is a Glock 17. It is a pre-ban model so I have the two 17 rounders. During the ban, I bought 3 10-rounders and I have one of those fully loaded with 10 rounds of self defense ammo. Is that mag spring going to deteriorate over time in terms of tension and functionality? I have heard opinions on both sides.

 

[searcher451]

The chances are pretty good that you will continue to hear folks on both sides of the argument weigh in again here. I keep two magazines loaded and ready for action for a house gun (it's a Walther P1) that I keep next to the bed. I take it to the range once a year or so and run the ammo in those magazines without glitch or issue. I'll then load them up again and won't touch them for another year ... never a problem.

 

[W.E.G.]

This question has been asked a million times.

Springs deteriorate much more from repeated cycling.

Your question asks whether a spring deteriorates from continuous compression.

Generally, a spring does not appreciably deteriorate from continuous compression.

However, if the spring was a piece of junk when it was installed in the mag, it will be a piece of junk when you need it to function.

Make sure you have good-quality springs. If you can fully compress it a number of times, and it still functions normally a week later, it will probably be reliable 50 years later.

 

[strat81]

No. Springs wear out from being cycled, not from being static. Leave it loaded and your grandkids will have no problem with it.

I'll run a brand new mag for maybe 5 or 6 cycles to see if it functions with no problem. If it does, it's fit for defensive use.

 

[FullEffect1911]

+1 to W.E.G.

Couldn't have said it better myself.

 

[sqlbullet]

Cycles.

Cars driven over terrain that causes lots of cycles (bumpy roads) fatigue their springs faster than cars driven on smooth super-highways.

Magazines that are used (cycled from empty to full and back) fatigue faster than those that aren't used. Springs that fatigue from constant tension/compression, not cycles were made from an improper grade of steel for the task.

Keep your magazines full. Buy new springs for your weapon every X rounds, where X is a number you are comfortable with based on your research. For me, that will be every 10,000 rounds, or about three times in five years.