# Magizine Clip Spring Fatigue



## ceebeeee (Aug 29, 2010)

I most times carry a Glock with me (legally I have a CHL), and keep another one in the house as a ‘home defense’ weapon. Both weapons are most times loaded, as are a spare clip or two I keep with them.
What I’ve been wondering about is will the spring in the magazine clips fatigue over time, being compressed with a full load of ammo in them? Another thought, with Glocks and other hammerless semi-autos, does the firing pin spring fatigue from being left cocked over a long period of time?
Thanks for letting me know if these concerns are real, and if so how to protect these spring. I have been around handguns most of my live, but until a couple years ago only revolvers, but 10 years or so late I joined the 21st century.


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## Growler67 (Sep 8, 2008)

The quick answer is.....NO. Take for instance a paperclip. It is a spring of sorts. When it is resting whether it actually holding anything or not, it is static and stored energy is stored. Lets say for arguements sake that you straighten it out. Then apply some work into the equation. Start bending it back and forth at it's middle. Eventually it wil fail and break into to pieces.

Like the springs in a MAGAZINE, when the metal is static it will retain it's properties regardless if that magazine is loaded or not. Springs wear out from being worked. It's a basic principle of metalurgy. Loading and unloading a magazine is what wears out the springs, not sitting around regardless of being loaded or not.

BTW, clips like moonclips are used in revolvers. Semi automatic pistols use magazines.


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## Baldy (Jun 21, 2006)

What Growler says is true. Where most problems arise is the springs from the manufacture are low in quality. When replaced with premium springs they last a long time. Your premium mags like say Wilsons are $30 bucks up. So quality does get expensive.

If you develope a feeding problem all of a sudden with a auto pistol it is more than likely the mags or the extractor. Another thing not all mags work well in different makes of the same pistol. My Wilsons do not work well in my S&W. In turn my Mec-Gars do not work well in my Kimber. Reverse everything and they run like hot butter.

My Kimber with Wilson 7rd mags has never failed me in over 8,000rds. Yes I have kept track of rounds fired. :smt1099


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## Packard (Aug 24, 2010)

Just as a point of information, "fatigue" is the wrong word. When a spring is cycled many, many times it can crack from metal fatigue. Springs generally will go from 100,000 to 10,000,000 flexes before failure due to fatigue.

The springs in magazines are basically "static" springs, and the springs are said to "fail" if they do not spring back appropriately. There are ways to improve the performance of springs by use of better materials or post processes like shot peening. I would be very surprised to learn that a properly produced spring in a magazine "fatigued" (and cracked).


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