Question concerning M4 magazine

[Lakotah]

Got a full length tube with a Carrier Comp spring installed. I have been told different stories about keeping it loaded. Need to know if keeping the magazine full for an extended period of time will damage/weaken the spring. Most of the time it just sits in the rack in the patrol car. I keep 6 rounds in the tube and carrier load the 7th round.
I was told by a couple people that I should unload it on my off days to keep the spring from weakening which I have been doing. Don't want it to fail when I need it. Its not a hassle to do this, just want to know which way is right? Thanks.

Can somebody give me the straight scoop on this?

[ROCKETW19]

Got a full length tube with a Carrier Comp spring installed. I have been told different stories about keeping it loaded. Need to know if keeping the magazine full for an extended period of time will damage/weaken the spring. Most of the time it just sits in the rack in the patrol car. I keep 6 rounds in the tube and carrier load the 7th round.
I was told by a couple people that I should unload it on my off days to keep the spring from weakening which I have been doing. Don't want it to fail when I need it. Its not a hassle to do this, just want to know which way is right? Thanks.

Can somebody give me the straight scoop on this?

This is only info I have read. But It seem that the spring moving back and forth is what causes it to weaken. I belive when I read this it was about the P-mags for ar15 I would guess that same info carrys over to the wolf spring carrier uses?
all my mags for all my guns are loaded never a problem. I have had my USP9mm fully loaded for 10 years still works fine.

[Unobtanium]

Got a full length tube with a Carrier Comp spring installed. I have been told different stories about keeping it loaded. Need to know if keeping the magazine full for an extended period of time will damage/weaken the spring. Most of the time it just sits in the rack in the patrol car. I keep 6 rounds in the tube and carrier load the 7th round.
I was told by a couple people that I should unload it on my off days to keep the spring from weakening which I have been doing. Don't want it to fail when I need it. Its not a hassle to do this, just want to know which way is right? Thanks.

Can somebody give me the straight scoop on this?

How have you been?

The scientific answer is that cycling the spring causes it to weaken, not leaving it compressed. However, I have seen tests that suggest otherwise. Kip's spring is made with better materials than factory springs though, and it will not take a set nearly as fast as the OEM spring will. I don't think there is a hard and fast answer here. The best thing I can say is that I would probably treat it like you do your Glock or whatever your side-arm is. If you feel comfortable leaving that loaded, then do so. If not, then don't.

In a worst-case scenario I think that you would only be cheated out of the last round. Is this good? No. But at least you know that it will go bang a good many times, as you already know, with a shotgun if you aren't shooting it, you are loading it.

BTW, Kip has revised the design of the spring in the last couple of months and if yours is giving you grief over getting 7 rounds in, the new one won't. He kept the wire the same and the length the same but removed a few coils. SLIGHTLY less tension, but in my testing it has been flawless.

[Lakotah]

Roger that. That is what I figured. I have always loaded magazines and kept them loaded. Once people started telling me different on the M4 I thought I would ask. I didn't know if there was something different with the Mag spring.
As for 6 or 7 rounds. Mine will hold about 6.5 LOL. I never worried about the 7th round. If I need 7 rounds but the time I get to 3 or 4 I hope to be fighting my way back to the patrol car to get the carbine which I have about 180 rounds in the front with me. 2 on the carbine and 4 in the CIRAS carrier. If that don't do it, well I am heading for the trunk where there are 3 ammo cans full of ammo(1 for each weapon) and my .308. If that don't do it, well, I'm screwed and will call a time out, cause I'm done playing for the day. LOL

[Unobtanium]

Roger that. That is what I figured. I have always loaded magazines and kept them loaded. Once people started telling me different on the M4 I thought I would ask. I didn't know if there was something different with the Mag spring.
As for 6 or 7 rounds. Mine will hold about 6.5 LOL. I never worried about the 7th round. If I need 7 rounds but the time I get to 3 or 4 I hope to be fighting my way back to the patrol car to get the carbine which I have about 180 rounds in the front with me. 2 on the carbine and 4 in the CIRAS carrier. If that don't do it, well I am heading for the trunk where there are 3 ammo cans full of ammo(1 for each weapon) and my .308. If that don't do it, well, I'm screwed and will call a time out, cause I'm done playing for the day. LOL

If you only DEMAND that 5-6 rounds be available, then I see no problem leaving it loaded.

With Kip's new spring I can load 7 Remignton slugs in the tube though, also took 7 rounds of Federal Flitecontrol (which tend to be kinda long).

Our of morbid curiosity, has that M4 ever been fired to resolve an issue?

*As you may have guessed, I scrapped my awesome AR build in favor of a nice 1911, which when it didn't run, I returned it and came back to the Benelli camp and show no signs of leaving again!

[texas skeeter]

If I need 7 rounds but the time I get to 3 or 4 I hope to be fighting my way back to the patrol car to get the carbine which I have about 180 rounds in the front with me. 2 on the carbine and 4 in the CIRAS carrier. If that don't do it, well I am heading for the trunk where there are 3 ammo cans full of ammo(1 for each weapon) and my .308. If that don't do it, well, I'm screwed and will call a time out, cause I'm done playing for the day. LOL

FUNNY READ!! but if the above doesnt do it, you either need to go back to the range for more practice or there were too many of them!!

[Lakotah]

Our of morbid curiosity, has that M4 ever been fired to resolve an issue?

*As you may have guessed, I scrapped my awesome AR build in favor of a nice 1911, which when it didn't run, I returned it and came back to the Benelli camp and show no signs of leaving again!

Morbid Curiousity...hahaha
No it hasn't but I average pulling it about 3 times a week. Which is pretty consistent. Due to the area, and clearing so many buildings/trailers/residences, I usually grab it in favor of the other which is my bushmaster.

We have lots of burglaries and burglaries in progress, lots of drugs. So I get to see alot of action. Work night shift. 6P-6A.
The county I work is 1200 square miles which means lots of people and lots of rural/wooded area. I average about 250miles a night while patrolling my zone. The county is broke down to 4 zones, so that is about 300 square miles of area. We average between 6 and 8 deputies per shift.
Needless to say, we stay pretty busy.

1911's are awesome. I carry a Springfield TRP off duty and my buddy cmshoot has another 1911 of mine that is getting gone through as we speak. Should have it back around March.

[Lakotah]

FUNNY READ!! but if the above doesnt do it, you either need to go back to the range for more practice or there were too many of them!!

I prefer the latter. Too many of them. hahaha.

I spend at least 2 off days a week practicing with 1 discipline or another so I get lots of range time.

[Unobtanium]

Morbid Curiousity...hahaha
No it hasn't but I average pulling it about 3 times a week. Which is pretty consistent. Due to the area, and clearing so many buildings/trailers/residences, I usually grab it in favor of the other which is my bushmaster.

We have lots of burglaries and burglaries in progress, lots of drugs. So I get to see alot of action. Work night shift. 6P-6A.
The county I work is 1200 square miles which means lots of people and lots of rural/wooded area. I average about 250miles a night while patrolling my zone. The county is broke down to 4 zones, so that is about 300 square miles of area. We average between 6 and 8 deputies per shift.
Needless to say, we stay pretty busy.

1911's are awesome. I carry a Springfield TRP off duty and my buddy cmshoot has another 1911 of mine that is getting gone through as we speak. Should have it back around March.

I bought a Wilson Combat Tactical Supergrade that gave me nothing but trouble. In the end, Wilson refunded. It was a beautiful pistol though.

That being said, I have some grips I bought for it that I have no need for. They are identical to the Black G10 starburst grips offered by wilson. Full-size, beveled bases, take-down pin cut-out and mag-release thumb relief. Just like OEM. Made by Larry Davidson who makes them for wilson. I got them b/c I don't like logos, these have no logo. Also, no ambi safety cut. Let me know if you are interested.