[pjblurton]

I'm sure this topic has been addressed before, so forgive me if this is a duplicate post.

I allways keep three mags fully loaded and I try to rotate which two go to the range with me to reduce the wear and tear on any one mag in particular.

I have, over the years heard two schools of thought on mag springs.

The first being that if you load a magazine and leave it that way, it will last forever. Its the compression / decompression that actually wears out the spring.
The second being that leaving a mag fully loaded will cause the spring to gradually weaken over time.

I subscribe to the first, but I was wondering what some of you "old salts" thought about it?

 

[McLovin]

It's my understanding that leaving them loaded is not a problem....but I'm no authority on the subject.

 

[ShipWreck]

I've brought this topic up a few times. It really is split.

Even the Wolff Springs website tells U not to leave them loaded for long periods of time.

I usually rotate mags 2-3x a year, for the guns I keep loaded all the time. I also underload by one pretty much all my mags. An old trick from the 1980s - beck when springs would wear out faster than they do now.

 

[Furyataurus]

IMO springs WANT to be "unloaded", that is UNcompressed. So leave them loaded for them to have something to work against. I've heard to load the mags with one less from full capacity as a little insurance.

 

[12131]

I've had mine fully loaded for years without being affected.

 

[Texas Armadillo]

I use a three mag rotation on the semi's I keep loaded.

One fully loaded mag in the gun, and a fully loaded mag and an empty mag near by. About every month I swap the loaded mags and the mag I removed from the gun I remove the rounds and put them in the empty mag.

This way each mag stays loaded for about two months and then rests for about a month.

I haven't broken any springs and the mags always work when I take them to the range, so I guess this system works well enough.

 

[pjblurton]

I use a three mag rotation on the semi's I keep loaded.

One fully loaded mag in the gun, and a fully loaded mag and an empty mag near by. About every month I swap the loaded mags and the mag I removed from the gun I remove the rounds and put them in the empty mag.

That's exactly the way I do it...