Full Magazine or Full Magazine +1

I've never had a problem with mag springs wearing out, but I only keep mags loaded for the ones I carry.

If I keep mags loaded for 2 years, I change the mag springs just to be safe.



Mag springs are just a part of ordinary maint. Maybe even a follower now & then. Cheap enough.

I've always been comfortable with 5 rounds of good ammo, even on duty.



If I were going into a known danger zone... I'd load for it, though. Extra mags, too.

 

Hey Brian, Givin' away your age with that Superman reference. LMAO, it did bring back that very same vivid memory though. My wife is notorious for pullin' the trigger after the mag is emptied and I always tell her.....Throw the gun, as an old range officer used to tell the the nubs that couldn't keep count of the rounds they had fired.

 

Haha, Nah, not quite old enough to have watched Superman live but have been an avid TV and movie fan and have seen the reruns. If I was really going to date myself I would bring up watching things like Carol Burnet, the original seasons of SnL and Dukes of Hazzard as a kid.



Oh, um, what were we talking about? Oh yeah, how many rounds we carry. I don't know for sure because I have yet to actually carry, waiting on a holster, but when I do I prefer dos XX's, er, no wait, I mean I plan on going +1. If I have a problem I will resort to the same tactic as Tig.

 

Sorry B, Dating would have been mentioning Bonanza, Gunsmoke, The Rifleman, Man from Uncle, The Avengers..... I've probably got boots as old as you. LMAO. Thanks for the memories!

 

Hahaha, I need whatever kind of boots you are getting.

 

Just Dan Posts and Tony Lamas...hell, they probably make near where you live! New heels and soles every couple of years and I'm good to go. Still have one pair I ride in that dates back to my UT Austin days and that was the mid 70's......ouch!

 

How the heck did this go from Mag's to Boot's ???

 

EZ Socom.........Not like we hadn't beaten the full mag plus one discussion to death anyway.

 

I also am a proponent of the full mag -1 theory. I was told years ago that the last round compresses the spring fully and would cause it to wear out faster than leaving 1 round out. For that reason I keep a round in the chamber(+1), but have the mag in a -1 condition. If I have a 12 round mag, then I have 12 rounds. Works for me!

 

My father brought back a .30 caliber carbine from WWII with full clips and it sat for 25 years until I got it. The clips functioned perfectly the same as in his .45 auto. The ammo was green but functional. Same for the Walther .32 PPK pistol also.

 

1 in the pipe and 1 less in the mag,I can always top it off before i go out.................

 

I always put in a full magazine and cycle the action. Seems like the process least likely to produce unwanted results. I store my loaded mags -2, old Navy training thing, may have no basis in modern metallurgy. However, firearms can be finicky things and there is always that tipping point between function and fail to function. I want to keep clear of it and storing ready service mags -2 may just do it.

 

Just Maybe some of you guys should go back to the old six-shooter's... Nothing wrong with a full mag +1... If you don't trust it, then carry a six-shooter.. And I'm not knocking the six-shooter either, when all hell brakes out, I'd take good S&W .357 any day... As i believe it's the first or second one that count's... And I'm still here, To prove it.... I do carry a 1911 and it's 8 +1 or the other 10+1... And thats right, I'm older then dirt!

 

its also what you feel comfortable with in your minds eye.......for one it may not be the same as the other....

 

I keep mine fully loaded & have never had any issues. Sig P239 .40(7+1) for 12 years, feeds all 7 & locks back every time. I trust the factory Sig mags, I dont use aftermarket mags. I also take the mags apart and measure the spring length then slightly stretch them if they come up shorter than they were when new & I don't have to pull on them very often, they hold their length well.

Hotrod

 

I really don't see any reply's below stating any problems with a full mag, plus one... I have had mag failures, Failing to lock the slide back, But it has always been with the follower, Nothing a pair of pliers coun't fix... So whats the big deal here, carry it the way you want and feel comfortable with... End of story. If I knew when I would need my firearm, Then I would not carry it, untill the day i knew I would need it. But, Thats something we never know, Right ?

 

I have seen the last one stick on diffrent guns weather its the follower or spring what the hells the diffreance,and yes all mod springs are not sapose to loose there shape, and changed and played with followers, that takes you back to the spring.........some times it just happens man.....i like 1 in the pipe and 1 less just in case..

 

i wish i could carry full mag +2......or 8 ....the more the merryer

 

I just went out and shot my .30 M1 Carbine, went through 2- 15 round mags with no problems. those 2 mags have been fully loaded for over 20 years!

I just wanted to share that bit of info, maybe it could be usefull to someone.

Hotrod

 

Just read an article in American Handgunner about a LEO who went through 14 rounds in a gunfight, assailant had 7. Both emptied their .45 cal weapons, cop won but I think he would have been happy with 14+1!



An aside, the assailant was hit 7 times at a range that the LEO describes being hit with the assailant's unburned powder. 5 hits (mostly in the extremities) put him on the ground the last two were as he tried to get up, he actually survived due to outstanding paramedic treatment and is in prison today. An additional round disabled the assailants gun, after it was empty. Total elapsed time 5-10 seconds!



After the incident and recovery from a through and through hit in the thigh the LEO went with 230 grain instead of the 185's in his duty weapon. It appears the 185 grain +P "opened up too soon" and did not penetrate well.