Guy Miner
Master Loader
- Apr 6, 2006
- 17,789
- 6,036
Not long ago I had an experienced cop, who has been carrying a 1911 on duty for 20 years, turn in several magazines to me, telling me that they didn't work anymore after he dropped them doing magazine changes during training. He didn't know that they could or should be disassembled and cleaned. Former Army infantry, what can I say? :grin:
I took them apart, cleaned them, lightly lubed the insides and test fired them. Perfect.
Over this past weekend a few of us were doing some "cover and movement" drills. This included running through the snow & sand to a position of cover, then firing rapidly at several targets while our buddy moved forward in his lane. Great stuff! The magazines though were getting ejected right into the sand, mud and snow. At the range I was simply knocking the snow out of them, stuffing them with more 230 gr hardball (was using Remington factory ammo, very nice stuff) and running through the course again. Did my mags get gritty? You bet they did! They kept working though.
Back home a few hours later, I watched my Seahawks do an impressive job on the field, then disassembled the Chip McCormick mags and cleaned them.
I have No Hesitation about putting those gritty mags under hot, running water. It helps flush out all that "yuck" very quickly. Then dry them and wipe the springs down with a very light coat of Break Free/CLP. My mags are good to go. The followers slide up and down inside the magazine without a hiccup.
IF you shoot a semi-auto pistol, the magazine is an important part of that pistol, and requires maintenance too. In fact, if a pistol malfunctions there are three potential causes I look at right away:
1. Shooter induced malfunctions - yup - it's pretty easy for the shooter to induce malfunctions.
2. Bad magazines. Might be cheap junk. Maybe just worn out. Or maybe gritty & nasty and in need of a clean & lube.
3. Bad ammo. Many times its reloaded ammo that hasn't had enough attention paid to getting the cases clean, slick, completely re-sized and appropriately taper-crimped. Sometimes it's the result of trying to run a bullet that is too blunt nosed to work through the pistol.
The mags are often the cause of the problem - and can easily be fixed. Just a reminder!
Guy
I took them apart, cleaned them, lightly lubed the insides and test fired them. Perfect.
Over this past weekend a few of us were doing some "cover and movement" drills. This included running through the snow & sand to a position of cover, then firing rapidly at several targets while our buddy moved forward in his lane. Great stuff! The magazines though were getting ejected right into the sand, mud and snow. At the range I was simply knocking the snow out of them, stuffing them with more 230 gr hardball (was using Remington factory ammo, very nice stuff) and running through the course again. Did my mags get gritty? You bet they did! They kept working though.
Back home a few hours later, I watched my Seahawks do an impressive job on the field, then disassembled the Chip McCormick mags and cleaned them.
I have No Hesitation about putting those gritty mags under hot, running water. It helps flush out all that "yuck" very quickly. Then dry them and wipe the springs down with a very light coat of Break Free/CLP. My mags are good to go. The followers slide up and down inside the magazine without a hiccup.
IF you shoot a semi-auto pistol, the magazine is an important part of that pistol, and requires maintenance too. In fact, if a pistol malfunctions there are three potential causes I look at right away:
1. Shooter induced malfunctions - yup - it's pretty easy for the shooter to induce malfunctions.
2. Bad magazines. Might be cheap junk. Maybe just worn out. Or maybe gritty & nasty and in need of a clean & lube.
3. Bad ammo. Many times its reloaded ammo that hasn't had enough attention paid to getting the cases clean, slick, completely re-sized and appropriately taper-crimped. Sometimes it's the result of trying to run a bullet that is too blunt nosed to work through the pistol.
The mags are often the cause of the problem - and can easily be fixed. Just a reminder!
Guy
