Posted: 12/5/2009 9:14:38 AM EDT
| I have a G19 with about 3,000 rounds through it. Everything on it is factory and the gun has been great for me. I've had the gun for almost 5 years now and didn't experience any malfunctions in the first 4. I've had about half a dozen in the last year. I think part of those were due to my sister limp wristing the gun though. That was the first time I ever saw it not function. She probably had 3 FTE and maybe a double feed. I've experienced one or two of each since then as well. I've set aside 4 of my mags that I experienced problems with. I was wondering if I should replace my springs on those 4 mags or even all of my mags with the Wolff extra power mag springs? Also, should I purchase a new recoil guide rod and spring? If yes, then please suggest some brands and best place to buy from. Thanks. |
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Might as well. Glock recommends the recoil spring in 9mm Glocks be replaced every 5,000 rnds, but might as well give that a try. They're not all perfect.............the one in the gun may be not "quite right" from a metallurgical point of view, and have weakened prematurely. You never know. Easy cheap option to throw a new one in.
You generally don't see the mag springs wearing that easily................how many mags you have? I ask because........if you've got alot of mags, and run them all, then they've "shared the load" in that 3,000 rnds. If you have very few, then they've all been worked harder in those 3,000 rnds. I hope that makes sense. 
Also, knowing exactly what kind of failures you're experiencing might help indicate where the problem is. Definitely check your Extractor and Ejector for wear, chips, etc. |
| I'm doing research as I type this and now understand that a recoil assembly in need of replacement will cause stovepipes. As for experiencing a few double feeds, I thought mags were the most common reason behind that so replacing mag springs seems like the solution? The vast majority of my rounds were fired through 3 or 4 mags and then I bought 6 more in the past year but those haven't had many rounds through them at all. I've never taken my mags apart. While reading through threads on other forums right now the consensus seems to be that steel rods are superior to the factory plastic ones. |
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No, there's no proof that a steel rod for the recoil spring is any more conducive to reliability than the stock plastic one. Generally won't really matter one way or another.
Do put in a new recoil spring assembly. stock unit is much cheaper.................you can go with a metal rod, captive or non, but my best advice is to always use a factory spring on it. And in this case, we're trying to eliminate variables to diagnose the malfunctions, so because of that I'd recommend a stock recoil spring assembly. Heck, if the gun runs well then, only then you might you want to consider a metal rod.....if that's your preferrence. Just a thought. 
And it sounds as if those first 3 or 4 mags you had may have done the brunt of the work, so new springs for those may be in order. Rumor has it that you can send those mags back to Glock, and they'll put new springs in them, sometimes even replace them. Never done it myself, but a few on here have............hopefully they'll chime in. It's worth a call to Glock, perhaps. |
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Quoted:
Might as well. Glock recommends the recoil spring in 9mm Glocks be replaced every 5,000 rnds, but might as well give that a try. They're not all perfect.............the one in the gun may be not "quite right" from a metallurgical point of view, and have weakened prematurely. You never know. Easy cheap option to throw a new one in. You generally don't see the mag springs wearing that easily................how many mags you have? I ask because........if you've got alot of mags, and run them all, then they've "shared the load" in that 3,000 rnds. If you have very few, then they've all been worked harder in those 3,000 rnds. I hope that makes sense.
Also, knowing exactly what kind of failures you're experiencing might help indicate where the problem is. Definitely check your Extractor and Ejector for wear, chips, etc. I'm just curious if any of those failures happened within first 7 rounds out of a fully loaded magazine? I know some people who keep all their mags fully loaded all the time except when reloading them at the range they have these problems sometimes. I'm like you "share the load" they all get time in and out. |
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Now I must say, with modern mags that are in good condition, I've never seen any evidence that leaving them loaded for extended periods can cause problems. Mine always stay loaded, all the time. Have had mags loaded for years at a time, it never gave me any problems.
Statements by metallurgists and engineers back that up as well. I think this day in age we've done away with the myth about leaving mags loaded. Hell, folks have been known to find loaded mags of various types from WW II, and they ran and fed just fine.
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Behind a filthy weapon, and limp wristing, extraction problems can be the result of a chipped or broken extractor. We all get lazy sometimes and don't keep our weapons clean so I'd start with a complete detail strip of your slide to clean everything. If you need help with detail stripping your Glock check out Glockparts Disassembly Page. Just click "Disassembly" on the left of his home page. They give instructions with photos to help you do it. Pay careful attention to the extractor's 'claw'. Look for chips or nicks. After you've cleaned, inspected, and reassembled it, be sure to check the extractor has good spring tension on it. If in doubt, replace the Extractor Depressor Plunger Spring. |
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Now I must say, with modern mags that are in good condition, I've never seen any evidence that leaving them loaded for extended periods can cause problems. Mine always stay loaded, all the time. Have had mags loaded for years at a time, it never gave me any problems. Statements by metallurgists and engineers back that up as well. I think this day in age we've done away with the myth about leaving mags loaded. Hell, folks have been known to find loaded mags of various types from WW II, and they ran and fed just fine. Yeah I've heard of that before too I saw a 250 round American 180 in .22LR that was loaded and sitting for over 20 years being sold as is with the fully loaded 250round optional roundloader... it said guaranteed to function flawlessly. On an off shoot I also seen a brand new 1997 Honda Civic once with 200 miles need a transmission swap while working as a car porter for Carrs Honda in Chicago when I was 17 I think in my life it showed me even brand new dealer fresh stuff could manifest problems immediately. |
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Quoted: Rumor has it that you can send those mags back to Glock, and they'll put new springs in them, sometimes even replace them. Never done it myself, but a few on here have............hopefully they'll chime in. It's worth a call to Glock, perhaps. I had 6 G22 mags that had weak springs. The springs were weak enough that they weren't keeping the nose of the bullet elevated and hollow points were snagging on the front of the mag body and causing some deformation and cracking. I called Glock and they said "Send them back and we'll replace the springs if needed and if we have any laying around, we'll put some good used mag bodies on them too". 11 days later I got 6 brand new mags in the mail with a letter saying "Thank you for letting us inspect your Glock product". Oh, and the box was filled with goodies too. Magazines, calendar, pins, pens and a catalog. |
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Now I must say, with modern mags that are in good condition, I've never seen any evidence that leaving them loaded for extended periods can cause problems. Mine always stay loaded, all the time. Have had mags loaded for years at a time, it never gave me any problems. Statements by metallurgists and engineers back that up as well. I think this day in age we've done away with the myth about leaving mags loaded. Hell, folks have been known to find loaded mags of various types from WW II, and they ran and fed just fine. Yeah I've heard of that before too I saw a 250 round American 180 in .22LR that was loaded and sitting for over 20 years being sold as is with the fully loaded 250round optional roundloader... it said guaranteed to function flawlessly. On an off shoot I also seen a brand new 1997 Honda Civic once with 200 miles need a transmission swap while working as a car porter for Carrs Honda in Chicago when I was 17 I think in my life it showed me even brand new dealer fresh stuff could manifest problems immediately. What in the holy fucking hell are you talking about?  Your analogy makes no sense whatsoever.........the OP's gun is 5 years old with 3,000 rnds through it..............
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While reading through threads on other forums right now the consensus seems to be that steel rods are superior to the factory plastic ones. Material against material, polymer is more useful in that application. I have guns with plastic, and ones with metal... neither has given me any issues (well, the metal ones do need more care than a polymer one, which is self lubricating). I did get a broken Beretta 92 polymer rod from a member on BerettaForum, which I'm going to test to see if it has any effect on function (those debates turn into very annoying threads, so I just wanted to see if that one argument holds water). I did swap a metal rod in place of the stock plastic rod in my PX4. I did that for one reason, it was the only way to get a non-captured rod (well, I also got a Bedair checkered rod, which looks good ). Changing springs is so much easier on a non-captured rod. Cleaning is easier with a non-captured rod. I never had one spring away from me or take my eye out, so I really don't want a captured assembly. When/if I do get the Glock 19 I'm planning on, I don't think I'm swapping it out. It will be a complete range gun, and I'll likely only be shooting UMC bulk through it.
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The most likely causes of your described malfunctions are either; 1. the operator or 2. the ammo. I would be willing to bet a nickle the gun is as good as the day it was born. What makes you think that is the case over recoil assembly or mag springs? I don't think it's ammo as I only shoot WWB or S&B through it. As for operator error, after learning about limp wristing I came to the conclusion that that was the main reason my sister was experiencing a few malfunctions. The only time I may have done something that resulted in a stovepipe was when I was practicing shooting from the hip weak and strong handed and think I experienced a FTE. I still don't know why I experienced double feeds, though I don't recall if that only happened once or a few times. I have 4 mags set aside that I experienced issues with so next time I go to the range I'll shoot through those only and see how it goes. No harm in replacing the recoil assembly at this time though. |
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The most likely causes of your described malfunctions are either; 1. the operator or 2. the ammo. I would be willing to bet a nickle the gun is as good as the day it was born. What makes you think that is the case over recoil assembly or mag springs? I don't think it's ammo as I only shoot WWB or S&B through it. As for operator error, after learning about limp wristing I came to the conclusion that that was the main reason my sister was experiencing a few malfunctions. The only time I may have done something that resulted in a stovepipe was when I was practicing shooting from the hip weak and strong handed and think I experienced a FTE. I still don't know why I experienced double feeds, though I don't recall if that only happened once or a few times. I have 4 mags set aside that I experienced issues with so next time I go to the range I'll shoot through those only and see how it goes. No harm in replacing the recoil assembly at this time though. Indeed. Follow the advice that was already given, and report back if you have any problems. |