How to Maintain Pistol and Rifle Magazines

By

If you shoot your firearms regularly, you probably clean them after every trip to the range. But what about your magazines? They are often neglected. This can affect a magazine’s reliability and is a frequent cause of malfunctions. If you want to keep your Beretta 9mm firing without failures to feed, it is time to learn how to maintain your magazines. Here are a few tips to help. 

The Anatomy of a Mag

A general mag, whether for a pistol or rifle, is usually comprised of a spring, base plate, and follower inside a housing. The base plate keeps everything in place, giving the proper spring tension on the follower. The follower pushes ammo up and into the firearm, usually through feed lips at the top of the housing that keep the ammo in the mag until ready. When empty, the follower engages a slide on most firearms, locking a slide or bolt back.

Identifying Your Mags

It is a good idea to identify and label your mags. Number them, put initials, or make marks to distinguish each magazine. You can keep track of the history of each mag’s performance in a logbook. For example, you can note stoppages and when you replace specific parts. If one magazine works perfectly with your DPMS AR 15 but not another, it is likely a problem with a single mag. It might be a problem with the firearm if it happens across all of your mags.

Disassembling and Cleaning

Most mags will have a floor plate or retention tab that needs to be pushed into the body of the mag. Most are easy to remove, though there are some exceptions. Your Glock 35, for example, will have a tough mag to open. Glock mags have teeth in the base plate. You will want to use a special tool that helps open the base plate. Once disassembled, cleaning the mag is not much different from cleaning your firearm. You should not need lube or oil, however.

Checking for Damage

Finally, check for damage. Magazines are disposable, so they will eventually break. There could be dents or cracks, especially if you drop them to the ground while reloading. Dents can hamper the function of the mag as ammo hits the dent. Cracks can and will break the mag apart. Feed lips can be bent or cracked, and bent feed lips are a common cause of malfunctions. Base pads can crack around the slot or cutout for the body of the mag. Check the follower for any chips or breaks. Springs can lose their strength, and the more it is then used, the faster a spring will wear out. It is worth noting that springs will not wear out if you leave a mag loaded, only when they are constantly used. Replace parts or entire mags as necessary.

About GunBroker.com

When you want to buy or sell guns online, GunBroker.com is the best place to do it. This renowned online marketplace is the ultimate destination for gun enthusiasts to browse thousands of independently listed firearms. GunBroker.com is one of the most trusted platforms for buying and selling a wide range of firearms, accessories, parts, ammunition, and other related gear. Their auction process is easy to use, making it simple to bid on the guns you want. Plus, they streamline the process, from browsing user listings to connecting with a seller or finding an FFL near you. Whether you are looking for a Beretta A400, Arisaka Type 99, 243 ammo, or anything else firearm-related, check out the user listings on GunBroker.com. If you are not sure what you want, spend some time browsing their categories. You never know what you might find.

Find magazines for your pistols and rifles from user listings at https://www.gunbroker.com/

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Holiday Gift Guide: 6 Distinctive and Worthwhile Guns for That Special Gun Enthusiast

By
Image
It’s the rare fan of firearms who doesn’t appreciate having at least one conversation piece in their collection. That can be a family heirloom, a homemade build, or a favorite shooter. However, a home-run option for a gun people will talk about is gifting your favorite gun enthusiast a high-quality but distinctive firearm. That could be an antique or vintage model, like a Dreyse M1907, or something new and unique, like the Kel Tec KSG . Give them something to talk about with one of the following distinctive gun gifts. 50 Beowulf Dreyse M1907 The Dreyse is a unique and certainly distinctive looking early automatic. Superficially, it looks quite a bit like the first ever mass-produced automatic, the FN 1900, and shares its chambering—32 ACP. However, the Dreyse features several distinct internal differences. Because this antique firearm tends to be overshadowed by the famous FN 1900, you can often find them relatively inexpensively. Despite their usually modest price, they have a reput
Read more

4 Pieces of Gear You Want for the Range

By
Image
When you are headed to the range, there are some pieces of tactical gear you will want to bring with you. They will all help with convenience, allowing you to carry more or keep your firearms close at hand. When you are doing quick transition drills at the range, you will not want to have to toss your DPMS AR 15 in the dirt so that you can draw your Glock from the table. Here is everything you should bring to your next range outing.  A Holster for Your Handgun If you are still keeping all of your guns on a table at the range, you are losing time. You want to keep your guns close to you. For pistols, that means a holster. There are plenty of different types of holsters, from shoulder holsters like in Miami Vice to leg drop holsters used by Han Solo. The most common are belt holsters, whether inside the waistband or outside. Depending on the type of holster, you might need to get one specifically meant for your gun. This means you might not be able to use the same holster f
Read more

How to Fly with Your Firearms

By
Image
Whether you are going hunting with your Beretta A300 Outlander or taking a highly specialized AR 15 to an out-of-state competition, flying with a firearm might seem complex if you have never done it before. However, there are ways you can streamline the process to make it as simple as possible. This means you will not have to arrive at the airport too much earlier than you would for a typical flight. Here are five tips you should know about packing and declaring your firearm for your next flight. Use the Right Kind of Lock First, you will need the right kind of lock. Do not use any standard, TSA-approved lock to keep your firearms safe. Instead, use a heavy-duty lock on your case. Always keep a key on your person, but do not bring extra copies in your checked luggage. Otherwise, if you use a TSA-approved lock or have copies of the key, it is entirely possible that your gun case could be empty when you grab it off the carousel at your destination. What to Do with Ammo Most often, a
Read more