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hmmjak

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I see lots of mag's that are going to be useless from the springs being compressed for too long. Betcha he has them at max capacity too and not loading them up 'short one or two' for more problem free tactical reloads.

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Didn't say weaken, but the steel coil springs could develop a memory.This is what I have been taught at a couple of classes. I'm not an engineer, nor have I slept in a Holiday Inn last night, but I am a good student who has been instructed to rotate your mags when you change you smoke detector batteries to prevent your mags from having any problems. YMMV. I think Garand enbloc clips are the exception.

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A "memory" would suggest that they do not maintain a consistent elastic deformation by being compressed for a period of time.

 

It doesn't happen. What does happen over time is that a spring that is stretched beyond it's elastic limit will experience work hardening. Once it becomes hard enough it will break. A magazine in a gun does not reach either end of the elastic limit either loaded or unloaded.

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Can you name some of the pistols? I see at least 2 Ruger semi-auto's and 3 or 4 Glocks. Could be some other SA/DA kind like a CZ or FNP.

 

I still love this pic

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Thanks for the 411...who would ever accuse the government or the NRA of teaching obsolete information? Well, that saves me a couple of hours of work every 6 months.

 

Question because we / I have strayed from the OP... over time, do the ears / lips on P-Mags or 'composite' magazines become weaker or brittle over time from having the pressures of a fully loaded mag on them?

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do the ears / lips on P-Mags or 'composite' magazines become weaker or brittle over time from having the pressures of a fully loaded mag on them?

 

The answer is yes, in part. All plastics and composites degrade over time through a process called Exudation. Exudation is what causes "New Car smell" or when you open something plastic up that's been sealed, it smells. All plastics do this continuously until they are entirely degraded. Commonly the plasticizers come out early making the plastic less able to deform and retain shape. I.E. More brittle. There is also a significant amount of front loading. 80% of what is going to come out of the plastic happens within the first few weeks or months. The challenge for folks that make plastic products is to have a plastic that's still good after the bulk of initial exudation has occurred. This is why Bakelite was such garbage. It was great right out of the mold, a year later it was brittle, two years, useless, today it's like holding a Sumarian clay pot...one wrong move and it disappears.

 

The issues is, how long does it take and does stress/pressure make it faster. The answer is, yes, pressure will accelerate the process. What does that mean though? In the case of a plastic or polymer magazine, it probably won't change appreciably in 20-30 years. It may be changed by 50 years though but it would take a laboratory to detect it. The plastics and polymers in use today are so good they will probably still be completely usable in 100 years if stored in a reasonable environment.

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Thanks for the 411...who would ever accuse the government or the NRA of teaching obsolete information? Well, that saves me a couple of hours of work every 6 months.

 

Question because we / I have strayed from the OP... over time, do the ears / lips on P-Mags or 'composite' magazines become weaker or brittle over time from having the pressures of a fully loaded mag on them?

 

In theory, yes. In practice, magpul came out with their clip on covers for storage. If you will note, when installed, they push the cartridges down so that pressure is taken off the feed lips. Lancer systems also built their polymer mags to have steel inserts to avoid this. So I would suggest that it can be an actual issue.

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In theory, yes. In practice, magpul came out with their clip on covers for storage. If you will note, when installed, they push the cartridges down so that pressure is taken off the feed lips. Lancer systems also built their polymer mags to have steel inserts to avoid this. So I would suggest that it can be an actual issue.

 

Wow, i just thought they were dust covers! Good to know, i keep them on when loaded or unloaded either way because i'm pretty sure i would lose them if i didn't.

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Can you name some of the pistols? I see at least 2 Ruger semi-auto's and 3 or 4 Glocks. Could be some other SA/DA kind like a CZ or FNP.

 

I still love this pic

 

far left bottom row is a beretta.

 

mag springs WILL weaken when stored fully compressed. ive had a glock mag loaded for over a year, and compared to a newish mag, its significantly easier to load. that being said, it still hasnt caused a malfunction or anything to warrant replacing. it does weaken some, but probably not enough to worry about.

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far left bottom row is a beretta.

 

mag springs WILL weaken when stored fully compressed. ive had a glock mag loaded for over a year, and compared to a newish mag, its significantly easier to load. that being said, it still hasnt caused a malfunction or anything to warrant replacing. it does weaken some, but probably not enough to worry about.

 

And it never occurred to you that it might be a different spring? If springs lost strength over time from compression, any car over 10 years old would be bottomed out. When was the last time you replaced a coil spring on your car? When was the last time you've known ANYONE who replaced a coil spring on a car except perhaps for some kind of racing application? Spring science is well known. Exceeding the elasticity and repeated compressions wear them out, and that's it.

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And it never occurred to you that it might be a different spring? If springs lost strength over time from compression, any car over 10 years old would be bottomed out. When was the last time you replaced a coil spring on your car? When was the last time you've known ANYONE who replaced a coil spring on a car except perhaps for some kind of racing application? Spring science is well known. Exceeding the elasticity and repeated compressions wear them out, and that's it.

They do "break in" though. When i put coil overs on my car after a couple weeks it wound up sitting a little lower then originally adjusted, but i believe there designed to do this and it has more to do with the martial of the spring then the spring itself.

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What the hell is a Sumarian clay pot? And when did we start antiquing here?

 

All kidding aside, the plastic information makes complete sense. I was not aware that the Magpul 'dust covers' remove the pressure off the ears / lips....good stuff to know. Coil springs...I have broken them when doing some hard off-roading, but they are much better then leaf springs IMHO.

 

Hey Professor, who was better, Marianne or Ginger?

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What the hell is a Sumarian clay pot? And when did we start antiquing here?

 

Well, it was a pot from the first known civilization and let me tell you, it's all fun and games until someone gets their head stuck in a Sumerian pot.

 

Hey Professor, who was better, Marianne or Ginger?

 

Ginger was a spitter and Mary Anne took it in the $#'!ter, you tell me.

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And it never occurred to you that it might be a different spring? If springs lost strength over time from compression, any car over 10 years old would be bottomed out. When was the last time you replaced a coil spring on your car? When was the last time you've known ANYONE who replaced a coil spring on a car except perhaps for some kind of racing application? Spring science is well known. Exceeding the elasticity and repeated compressions wear them out, and that's it.

 

so apparently someone pissed in your cherrios today. first off GET OFF YOUR HIGH HORSE. did i ever say mag springs will wear out disintegrate if left loaded......NO I DIDNT. i said they WILL WEAKEN. NOT WEAR OUT THE POINT OF FAILURE. i made a specific point of saying the loaded mag i had STILL FUNCTIONED PROPERLY. but had a significant LOSS IN RESISTANCE WHEN LOADING. since youre waving your spring knowledge around, why dont you just put "I KNOW EVERYTHING AND ANYTHING ABOUT SPRINGS" in your sig so EVERYONE will know who to run to when they have the slightest spring question. jesus friggin christ what the hell crawled up your a**. a spring?

 

and FYI genius, ive done more then a few coil springs, and i will guarantee the stock 34 year old spring in my TA will NOT have the same strength a brand new stock replacement has if measured. that doesnt meant it will collapse, it means it will NOT be as strong as a brand new one.

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