1911 clips/magazines?

[David Turner]

My home protection handgun is a 1911 45 ACP and I am concerned about the magazine springs. Two magazines lay in the drawer months and maybe even years on end with the springs fully compressed with 7 boolits. Should I be exercising these or replacing with some new magazines regularly?

David Turner
Michigan

[TenTea]

No.
The *exercise* is what wears them out, not the lengthy compression.

[badboyparamedic]

About once every 6 months I unload mine, wait until next day then reload them. Just one of the things I always do, not saying it is right or wrong.

[gray wolf]

Don't do anything, they will work 20 years from now just fine.
All the fussing is just because folks can't get there head around the fact that it's the cycling of the springs that weaken them.

[pdawg_shooter]

I have 1911 mags I bought (used military surplus) in the mid to late 60s. I bought 6 back then and I am still using the same six. The only time they are unloaded is when I am shooting. I then load them back up and put them back on the shelf. Never have had one fail.

[MtGun44]

Totally NOT an issue. There have been multiple cases where a 1911 was brought home from WW1
and put in the sock drawer for the next 70-80 yrs, fully loaded and cocked. The widow finds the gun
and has some friend "take care of it".

Invariably, they work 100% and the mag is fine.

Only an issue in our minds.

Bill

[Bzcraig]

Good to know this. I was under the impression it was better to trade magazines leaving some loaded and some unloaded. I will stop being concerned about it!

[wallenba]

Howdy David, longtime no see ya here! The springs will probably be OK. But I've found that jacketed hollow points left in my 1911 a long time will slowly distort the upper round into a slight oval, just from being pushed against the insides.

[W.R.Buchanan]

I have 14 mags for my Kel-Tec ranging from 10 to 30 rounds. All are loaded to the top and stay that way until unloaded by the gun or by me for drills involving mag changes.

My Glock Mags are all loaded unless I run out of ammo.

Like stated above it is the "cycling" that uses up a spring,,, not continuous compression.

As far as Clips versus Magazines,,,

a Magazine is what holds the rounds in the gun. Some are removable, some are not.

Clips hold rounds together for insertion into a magazine. IE: stripper clips, or enbloc clips. They both only hold cartridges together so they can be inserted into the magazine of a gun. Clips are not magazines and vice versa. they are completely different things.

The enbloc clip does feed rounds into the Garand Rifle however it is doing so from the magazine of that gun, so perse' this is not an exception to the accurate definition of a magazine. A clip is a clip, and a magazine is a magazine, they are never the same thing.

Unfortunately interchangable use of the two words has garbled their meaning in the eyes of the uninformed, and now we have 30 round clips being attacked as henious tools of the devil.

It is usually a good indicator of the technical knowledge level of the speaker.

Randy

[ColColt]

I suppose this will never sink into my head. I rotate mags in my 4506 every four months because it's my HD pistol and I have 6-8 of the mags. I don't know...maybe there is no problem leaving them loaded till the Rapture but, I still don't like the idea. Maybe a head thing. Another point about doing that is what is all that compression doing to the feed lips? Most magazines are made from some sort of sheet metal and the pressure of 7,8 or more rounds pushing against them seems to me would not be good for extended periods of time. I haven't done any experimentation but I have to wonder about it.

[FN in MT]

Leave them loaded...NO problem.

I was given a career Army Offciers circa 1939 , 1911A1 back in 1980. He had a dozen mags loaded with hardball that was head stamped WW 42. He stated he hadn't fired it since leaving Europe in 1945. ALL of the mags (and the ammo) worked fine.

The several I have left had their springs changed out just a few years back as I used them for Match practice and it was more of a "peace of mind" thing that they NEEDED to be changed out.

FN in MT

[MtGun44]

Only plastic mags have a problem with sitting for long terms. Note that the Pmag "dust clip"
unloads the lips. I laughed the first time I saw it and instantly realized that while it would
keep out dust, the most critical purpose is to keep the plastic lips from deforming over time when
the mag is kept loaded for a long time.

Steel mags - - - - do not sweat it.

Bill

[Bzcraig]

Only plastic mags have a problem with sitting for long terms. Note that the Pmag "dust clip"
unloads the lips. I laughed the first time I saw it and instantly realized that while it would
keep out dust, the most critical purpose is to keep the plastic lips from deforming over time when
the mag is kept loaded for a long time.

Steel mags - - - - do not sweat it.

Bill

Just had a 'duh' moment! I thought what a good and useful idea to have a dust cover but as soon as I read your post...duh!

Heading to load'em all up

[fatelk]

It is usually a good indicator of the technical knowledge level of the speaker.

For the most part I agree, but the little known historical fact is that "clip" used to be a perfectly acceptable and technically correct term for a detachable box magazine.

The big change in nomenclature came during WWII, with the two M1s. Calling a Carbine magazine a clip, or a Garand clip a magazine, could easily cause a logistical supply screw-up that could cost lives and lose battles. GIs were advised, on threat of a beating, to get them straight.

I personally have no problem with calling a pistol magazine a clip, but only around some people. Sometimes I do it just for fun, to see a reaction. :)

Also, on the mag spring thing: +1 to what everyone else said.

[rintinglen]

Totally NOT an issue. There have been multiple cases where a 1911 was brought home from WW1
and put in the sock drawer for the next 70-80 yrs, fully loaded and cocked. The widow finds the gun
and has some friend "take care of it".

Invariably, they work 100% and the mag is fine.

Only an issue in our minds.

Bill

True, true. In 1992, I helped the widow of a WWII vet who had brought home a 1911. She found while cleaning up his stuff and wanted to give it to her son, but she wanted it cleaned up first. It had sat in his footlocker with two loaded magazines since at least 1946 and had never been fired during that time. I took it home, cleaned the dried cosmoline out of it and took it to the range. Both magazines fired without glitch. I cleaned the pistol and oiled it, reloaded the two magazines and gave it back to her.
Bud and Irma were good people, bless their souls.