magazine springs

[Michigunner]

Rooster,

Do you remember what model of Wilson magazines you have?

Also, when you rebuild, is it just a matter of replacing the springs?

Bill

[rooster]

I have the 8 rounders, I beleive the model number is 47d, when you buy the kits from Wilson they come with the follower and spring.  The supposedly best for the 5" 1911 is the 7 rounders although I don't own any because I need the extra round for IPSC.

[BillinPittsburgh]

Hi Bill,

The worst damage I ever did to a magazine happened to a Kel-Tec P-32 magazine that fell on the floor, out of a pocket holster that had a spare magazine pouch.  The pocket holster's magazine pouch had become excessively loose with wear.  The magazine was fully loaded, and the weight of the bullets caused it to fall feed lips first.  The feed lips were bent badly.

I now use better quality pocket holsters.

Normally when I hit the slide release and let the empty magazine drop, the base plate hits the ground first.  The feed lips are a bit safer this way, but repeatedly doing it does risk damage to magazines.  The way I see it, sacrificing a few magazines is worth it to develop a fast reload that could save my life.

As far as dirt is concerned, when I rotate my magazines, I clean the ones I am about to load and put in the gun.

[Michigunner]

Bill,

I really prefer your technique.  That's the only reasonable way.

Unfortunately, I have to practice when we go to northern Michigan in a National Forest area.

The ground is very sandy so each dropping mag would be slightly   submerged in sand.  I would need a vacuum cleaner to reload the magazine.    

It's fun to once again own a 1911 pistol.  I had forgot how comfortable they fit in your hand.  It's no wonder they remain popular to this day.

On the subject of "cocked and locked", at least it seems much safer than the light trigger of a Glock.

Bill

[BillinPittsburgh]

Hi Bill,

I do appreciate where you are coming from re:  sand.  If I am at a shooting range with a table in front of me, I drop the magazine on the table rather than the floor.  Dropping the magazine seems to be the least critical part of a quick reload.  Inserting the new magazine is more complex.

I like and carry both 1911's and Glocks.  More often than not, it is a Glock for the rock-solid reliability and because my 1911 is full-size while my Glocks are compact and subcompact.  However, the 1911 is definitely the easier gun to shoot well.  I totally agree with you about the safety issue:  more has to go wrong for a cocked and locked 1911 to discharge than for a Glock to discharge.

Here's another thing to consider re:  safety:

Part of my wife's family is from Indiana, and to get there I cross Ohio.  There, the law requires plain sight carry in a car, and I have been reading of cases of LEO's taking possession of the guns during traffic stops (they return them after the stop is over, as required by law).  With a Glock, there is a 2 in 3 chance that the LEO who takes the gun has been trained to use that brand as their duty weapon.  I'd hate for an LEO who isn't trained on 1911's to decide that he needs to "decock" the 1911.  This, however, is probably only an issue in this unique circumstance.

[Michigunner]

Bill,

I enjoyed my Glock 36 .45 Auto, but got too concerned about the light trigger.   I even had a NY-1 trigger installed.  

I read terrific books, watched videos, and knew that it would not discharge unless  the trigger was pulled.  It is a terrific system which  deserves to be the most popular gun for law enforcement,  the Glock 22 .40 S&W.

Finally, I traded for a Bushmaster AR-15 rifle.

I'm going into Ohio with my wife to some big antique show, so will finally have to face up to studying the Ohio requirements.  I carry a HK USPc .45 on the belt with a Milt Sparks 55BN.

Maybe the shirt can be tucked in during travel, and then be untucked when out of the car.

Otherwise, I'll just lock it up.

Bill

[BillinPittsburgh]

Hi Bill,

So far, my solution in Ohio has been to lock up the gun in the glove box.  My wife and I both have keys to both cars, and the passenger can always get it unlocked quickly if needed.  Carrying into a rest stop is not allowed.  So, if carrying in plain sight, you get to hope no one sees you take the gun off and then breaks into your car.

My understanding is that on the right hip is not plain sight while driving.  Something like this might be better:

http://www.action-direct.com/model10.html

I haven't tried it myself yet but this would be my choice for the open carry rule.

[skwurlntz]

I recall the army USE TO advise their soldiers to load their M16s to only 80% of capacity (16 rounds in a 20 round mag) and when they did that, most failures were eliminated. The army no longer advises this but it sure as heck doesn't hurt ...

... I'd rather be a few rounds short than have the entire mag fail on me.

I don't doubt that is what the army used to or even currently tells its soldiers.  After all, M16 mags are made and supplied by the lowest bidder.

BUT, regardless of what Wolf's site says, a quality magazine spring can stay compressed in a fully loaded magazine your entire life, and your heirs can put it in their gun the day after you are buried and it will function flawlessly.  Thats just plain and simple metallurgy that's easy to verify.

Now, it's true that there are springs made by companies that take short cuts, but there are also springs that are made with quality materials and techniques.  For what a R-9 costs, it better damn well have quality springs.

[Michigunner]

Bill,

I'll just have to leave my pistol at home.

I was planning on a belt holster on the right hip.

I can't imagine why they prohibit carry at rest stops.  I hope they get that cleared up someday.  The whole thing seems kind of dorky.  At least, they can carry sometimes.  Better than nothing, but I'll skip it.

Thanks for the heads-up on this.

Bill

[rooster]

You guys might find this helpful.  Go to www.gunlaws.com and get the travelers guide to the 50 states. It has a lot of info and it is pretty cheap.  

[Richard S]

Thanks, Rooster.  

Here's the link made hot:

http://www.gunlaws.com/travel.htm

[rooster]

Thanks Richard S, I am not computer savy.

[Fud]

regardless of what Wolf's site says, a quality magazine spring can stay compressed in a fully loaded magazine your entire life, and your heirs can put it in their gun the day after you are buried and it will function flawlessly.  Thats just plain and simple metallurgy that's easy to verify.

How can it be verified? I know that I can prove to you that when compressed for a long period of time, a spring will take a set. I've seen it happen with Para mags, S&W mags, etc.

Your reply is that they were low quality springs. Fine. And they may have been.

How can you VERIFY the opposite? How can you PROVE that "a quality magazine spring can stay compressed in a fully loaded magazine your entire life, and your heirs can put it in their gun the day after you are buried and it will function flawlessly." ?

I'm not looking to argue with you but I am interested in this because IF you are correct, you can save me a LOT of alternating of a LOT of mags every three months.

[Richard S]

Unless I am mistaken, the two leading manufacturers of gun springs in the country today are probably Wolff and ISMI.  Here are links to their web sites which contain comment on the subject of spring durability and replacement:

http://www.gunsprings.com/Resources/FAQ.htm#5

http://www.ismi-gunsprings.com/faq.html

[Michigunner]

Richard,

After reading that, I'll be rotating my carry magazines maybe each six months.  No sense taking a chance.

Bill