XD Talk

flivver · 10-27-2009, 05:05 PM

I've got an XD45 and an XD45C. For the past couple of months, I've had them loaded to the gills, in the safe, for easy access should trouble come knocking. (I'd have 'em in the nightstand, 'cept that I've got kids in the house and can't take the risk.)

Anyway, it occurred to me that keeping the mags fully loaded was probably going to do them in early... So, I totally unloaded them, and figured I'd go for the HD shotgun if ever there were a need. However, having my XDs unloaded seems like a waste.

So, looking for opinions on how long I can expect an XD mag to last when loaded to capacity, and left that way for long periods of time. One option is to load one of them, and leave the other unloaded... and then switch 'em periodically, like weekly.

Curious what others do/think.

(Was tempted to get a revolver, though they don't do much for me, just to avoid the issue.)

Thanks.

Joeywhat · 10-27-2009, 05:07 PM

Barring the feed lips bending they'll last just about forever. Springs won't go bad anytime soon.

However the weak link in the XD is the crappy magazine. The feed lips are easily bent. I haven't heard of anyone having problems with them drifting open just leaving them loaded, though. Then again, it's not THAT old of a gun, either.

Just make sure you have carry mags, and training/range mags. Don't use mags that you beat up often for carrying...you're asking for trouble.

flivver · 10-27-2009, 06:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Joeywhat

Barring the feed lips bending they'll last just about forever. Springs won't go bad anytime soon.

Interesting... I thought it was the spring that would go bad, from being compressed all the time.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Joeywhat

However the weak link in the XD is the crappy magazine. The feed lips are easily bent. I haven't heard of anyone having problems with them drifting open just leaving them loaded, though. Then again, it's not THAT old of a gun, either.

So if being loaded doesn't bend them, then what does? Is it the act of feeding/ejecting rounds that does it?

Quote:

Originally Posted by Joeywhat

Just make sure you have carry mags, and training/range mags. Don't use mags that you beat up often for carrying...you're asking for trouble.

So maybe having two that alternate, for bed-stand duty, would be one kind... And then a third kind for carry? Seems like the carry mag would get almost as much use, from being carried on a daily basis.

**GunnBugg** · 10-27-2009, 07:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flivver

Interesting

So if being loaded doesn't bend them, then what does? Is it the act of feeding/ejecting rounds that does it?

I don't find the mags to be 'crappy' and don't know what particular feature that opinion is based on.

Springs will take a set if you leave them loaded for a while. Springs wear based on compresssion cycles.

I have one set of mags that I use in my XD45 for competition. They get dropped, thrown, flipped in the mud, and sometimes cleaned. I have not had a mag fail me since I started shooting XDs in competition about 2 yrs ago. I really don't find the mags to be troublesome. I did have to bend the feedlips back in after trying to shoot LSWCs out of though.

I will prob change the springs before next Spring's competition cycle....Around 20K in the gun,,,,, 5K per mag.

I only fuss over my 1911 mags. Those antique bastages are/can be picky about mags and mag spring pressure.

Sport45 · 10-27-2009, 11:21 PM

Quote:

how long will a mag last?

13 pulls on the trigger.

Sorry, I couldn't resist.

FrEaK_aCcIdEnT · 10-28-2009, 08:16 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sport45

13 pulls on the trigger.

Sorry, I couldn't resist.

For some of these guys you need to get technical...

Depending on the model you carry, how many rounds you have in the magazine, and how good of a shot you are...

Anywhere from about 4 to 14 seconds.

Minimum guess :10 round magazine 2.5 rounds per second on one target.
Maximum guess: 13+1 round magazine at 1 round per second on one target.

This is based on 2 seconds of pure thought on the subject. In no way is it debatable or flawed. This criteria is inline with 90% statistics. No small animals or children were harmed during the generation of this scientific data.

Please direct your questioning to the nearest wall to the South of where you are.

tARfoo · 10-28-2009, 08:25 AM

I read a while back that common practice is the load mags like you have (self-defense at-the-ready setup) at max capacity minus one round.

This serves several purposes to minimize wear and tear over the years, but most of all it helps me to perform tactical loads/reloads on a closed-side/loaded-chamber situation. A full-to-capacity maxed out mag I often find is almost impossible to tac load quickly regardless of make or model. Minus one round helps a LOT.

And if you're worried about not having that 13th round after you've popped off the first 12 in a situation, you have more things to worry about, like why you're not running towards your long gun.

flivver · 10-28-2009, 08:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tARfoo

I read a while back that common practice is the load mags like you have (self-defense at-the-ready setup) at max capacity minus one round.

This serves several purposes to minimize wear and tear over the years, but most of all it helps me to perform tactical loads/reloads on a closed-side/loaded-chamber situation. A full-to-capacity maxed out mag I often find is almost impossible to tac load quickly regardless of make or model. Minus one round helps a LOT.

And if you're worried about not having that 13th round after you've popped off the first 12 in a situation, you have more things to worry about, like why you're not running towards your long gun.

Makes sense... And to that end, that brings up something else I've been meaning to ask. On my XDC, it's hard to get the mag to seat properly when it's loaded to capacity (the 10-round mag, anyway). It gets all but about 0.25" in, and then seems to encounter resistance. Is that normal? I generally have to give it a sharp whack with the palm of my hand, to get it to lock into place -- whereas with fewer rounds in the mag, it slides right in. Again, is this normal?

**agalindo** · 10-28-2009, 09:00 AM

I have never had any problems with my mags feed lips and the mags themselves are no less prone to bending than Glock, or S&W mags

I have some S&W m59 mags that have stayed loaded for over 20 years. I'll take them to the range shoot them load them back up and store them. I do that with the mags for my XDs too.

whodat1 · 10-28-2009, 06:55 PM

I have six mags for my XD. What I do is use 4 for practice and keep two loaded with JHP in the bedroom. Every two months I rotate the HD mags out with two practice mags to keep from having the same springs compressed all the time. I also do what tARfoo mentioned and load the HD mags one shy of capacity.