Magazine tube spring questions.

nefprotector · March 1, 2010, 02:05 PM

Silly questions..... Do any of you ladies and Gents keep your shotgun tubes loaded and ready to go if needed? If so How long will the tube springs last? Do they need changing more often than handgun mags?

hogdogs · March 1, 2010, 02:15 PM

A mag spring needs replaced when it weakens to the point that the last shell or two fails to fully exit the tube routinely.

Leaving a spring loaded only hurts it's power if it isn't made of true "spring wire" like you might expect on a very questionable no-branded chinese gun.

Cycling a spring is what wears one out.

I personally have never replaced a mag spring in any gun of mine. I did replace a few for a buddy who suffered a house fire but his guns were basically untouched in a safe... The heat did seem to ruin the springs in several guns... Not just the magazines... all the springs were compromised.
Brent

Slopemeno · March 1, 2010, 06:09 PM

I have one that's been loaded for about...oh, 20 of the last 29 years. Yeah, it's a little weaker, but it still works.

nefprotector · March 1, 2010, 06:23 PM

so I can just replace it with a tried and true Remington 870 spring and no more worries? Cool Thanks!

hogdogs · March 1, 2010, 06:25 PM

Or an after market unit like wolf...
Brent

**JohnKSa** · March 1, 2010, 06:28 PM

Quote:

The heat did seem to ruin the springs in several guns... Not just the magazines... all the springs were compromised.

If the springs got hot enough to be damaged then other heat-treated parts in the guns were also affected. That could result in a dangerous condition.

You need to advise him to have a well-qualified gunsmith look them over before he fires them again. Be sure that the gunsmith knows that the springs had to be replaced due to heat damage.

hogdogs · March 1, 2010, 06:37 PM

John, that was 25+ years ago and I lost track of my buddy near that long ago... We discussed that and he was as crazy as me and figured they would be okay. They didn't out right fail just he swore the internal springs (trigger and hammer etc) were weaker than he thought he remembered... the mag springs really were weakened... .22 rifle and pump guns both failed to feed the last round and .22 it actually was not reliable with the last 4-5 of the 16 or so it held.
Brent

Dfariswheel · March 1, 2010, 08:44 PM

A good quality magazine spring will last indefinitely when fully loaded.

However, the real danger is not the spring, its shot shell compression.
Plastic shells under constant pressure tend to get compressed by the spring pressure and develop bulges in the shell body between the shell head and the shot column.

You need to check the shells at least monthly and shoot up any shells that are showing signs of bulging.
You can't "rest" shells that are showing bulges. As soon as they're back in the magazine they immediately start bulging again.

You can limit the problem by buying high grade American shot shells, which seem to be made of a better plastic than the budget or foreign ammo, and down loading the magazine by one shell.

March 1, 2010, 02:05 PM	#1
nefprotector Junior member Join Date: December 3, 2009 Location: SE Alabama Posts: 701	Magazine tube spring questions. Silly questions..... Do any of you ladies and Gents keep your shotgun tubes loaded and ready to go if needed? If so How long will the tube springs last? Do they need changing more often than handgun mags?

March 1, 2010, 02:15 PM	#2
hogdogs Staff In Memoriam Join Date: October 31, 2007 Location: Western Florida panhandle Posts: 11,069	A mag spring needs replaced when it weakens to the point that the last shell or two fails to fully exit the tube routinely. Leaving a spring loaded only hurts it's power if it isn't made of true "spring wire" like you might expect on a very questionable no-branded chinese gun. Cycling a spring is what wears one out. I personally have never replaced a mag spring in any gun of mine. I did replace a few for a buddy who suffered a house fire but his guns were basically untouched in a safe... The heat did seem to ruin the springs in several guns... Not just the magazines... all the springs were compromised. Brent

March 1, 2010, 06:09 PM	#3
Slopemeno Senior Member Join Date: January 19, 2007 Posts: 2,663	I have one that's been loaded for about...oh, 20 of the last 29 years. Yeah, it's a little weaker, but it still works.

March 1, 2010, 06:23 PM	#4
nefprotector Junior member Join Date: December 3, 2009 Location: SE Alabama Posts: 701	so I can just replace it with a tried and true Remington 870 spring and no more worries? Cool Thanks!

March 1, 2010, 06:25 PM	#5
hogdogs Staff In Memoriam Join Date: October 31, 2007 Location: Western Florida panhandle Posts: 11,069	Or an after market unit like wolf... Brent

March 1, 2010, 06:37 PM	#7
hogdogs Staff In Memoriam Join Date: October 31, 2007 Location: Western Florida panhandle Posts: 11,069	John, that was 25+ years ago and I lost track of my buddy near that long ago... We discussed that and he was as crazy as me and figured they would be okay. They didn't out right fail just he swore the internal springs (trigger and hammer etc) were weaker than he thought he remembered... the mag springs really were weakened... .22 rifle and pump guns both failed to feed the last round and .22 it actually was not reliable with the last 4-5 of the 16 or so it held. Brent

March 1, 2010, 08:44 PM	#8
Dfariswheel Senior Member Join Date: May 4, 2001 Posts: 7,478	A good quality magazine spring will last indefinitely when fully loaded. However, the real danger is not the spring, its shot shell compression. Plastic shells under constant pressure tend to get compressed by the spring pressure and develop bulges in the shell body between the shell head and the shot column. You need to check the shells at least monthly and shoot up any shells that are showing signs of bulging. You can't "rest" shells that are showing bulges. As soon as they're back in the magazine they immediately start bulging again. You can limit the problem by buying high grade American shot shells, which seem to be made of a better plastic than the budget or foreign ammo, and down loading the magazine by one shell.