I wore out my OEM extended (gen 4) mag catch.
Are there metal ones of similar dimension or is oem best for reliability.
FwiwI had a mag drop 2x during a match today. That one is the worst, but I can pull the all out if I pull and twist (extended mags).
How many rounds do you have through that gun if I may ask. I have a 2nd Gen G17 with well over 70,000 rounds through it, and it still has the factory mag release in it. I can’t recall ever wearing one out, honestly. Then again it isn’t a comp gun, and I know comp guns tend to have the begeezus beat out of them.
I would caution against using a metal one or you will start wearing out magazines. Metal on metal, plastic on plastic is a good rule to go with. Stick with just replacing the mag release with another factory one. They are far less expensive than replacing the magazines.
TXPO
I’d just like to congratulate you on your achievement. Never heard of that one before.
Not metal but I’m a big fan of the Tango Down/Vickers one. Its been on this Glock since day one (6-8k rounds and several years) and I’m pretty sure I put it on my first one as well.
I’ve only heard of mags dropping out (even able to be pulled out) on the large frame Gen4 Glocks (not to say it couldn’t happen with other frame sizes; OP didn’t mention which Gen4 Glock was involved).
Glock’s cure was to replace the mag catch; MAG CATCH SPRING; and any affected magazines. Replacing the mag catch spring was extremely important as a used spring, even if it was working in another Glock, wouldn’t work in my G30Gen4. The slightest bend in an existing spring would cause a new mag catch and new magazines to quickly begin wearing out all over again if a new spring wasn’t used.
On another forum, some other person had the same experience with his G40 or G41 (can’t remember which model he had). Unknown to me is whether Glock had a bad batch of mag catch springs or if the large-frame models where more susceptible somehow.
^^This (at least for my Gen 3’s. They are slightly longer the standard Glock mag release but not as long as the Glock extended mag release and the corner are nice and rounded instead of pointed.
Thanks guys.
Its a gen4 g23 converted to 9mm. Its my Uspsa gun right now and has had thousands of reloads.
Round count is 7500 by me, it was a police trade in.
I replaced the mag catch with the original and I could no longer pull the mags out.
Mag catch and spring issues aren’t common but do occur. Almost all I’ve see are the result of WECSOG, youtube, and “improvements.” Causes in no particular order…
use of steel mag catch with polymer mags
improper disassembly and reassembly
mag catch spring hole waller’ed out
receiver and parts stippling create weaknesses and flex points
other user modification
normal wear and tear due to extreme volume (rarest)
This is accurate info. We had several departmental Gen 4 G21s that would drop mags. These were assembled incorrectly at the factory. The brain trust that put our guns together did so by putting the bottom of the mag catch spring in and pushing it forward. He then slid in the mag catch. This saved him about 10 seconds but put a bend in the spring. I would remove the mag catch spring and roll it on a table. You’ll find out very quickly if it is bent.
The mag catch spring must be bent slightly forward to “disconnect” the mag catch spring from the mag catch (and as taught in Glock Armorers school). It’s just how much of a bend can that spring take and how often. I now will totally pull the mag catch spring out as soon as I can if/when working on the mag catch area of a Glock to hopefully alleviate any undue amount of spring bending. I also now keep a spare mag catch spring in my small parts inventory.
Thanks for the info regarding Glock’s faulty assembly process. This mag catch/mag dropping issue doesn’t get much publicity on the various gun forums.
Ive got a post on here about a year or so old, where I told about my Glock 41 that started dropping mags at about 1000 or 1100 rounds or so I think it was.
LOVED that damn gun but traded it off as it wouldnt fire 2-3 rounds w/o mag falling out. Was asking at the time if there was an “extra power” type mag catch spring that would help.
Slightly extended, not anywhere near extreme. My arthritic thumbs can find it.
GLOCK OEM EXTENDED - REVERSIBLE MAGAZINE RELEASE SP08794 GEN 4-5
https://www.ndzperformance.com/Glock-OEM-Gen-4-5-Ext-Ambi-Mag-Release-Button-p/glk-sp08794.htm
Well, its still happening, only with 2 mags.
17 mags, +2 extensions, downloaded to 18rds… never had this issue in 7500rds, just started.
2 magazines with no issue are not used for reload practice, and I Downloaded them by 5 rounds for rest of match- and seated them…robustly.
On the way:
New extended mag catch (i may be hitting the stock- hard to explain but i think the extended would be less prone to accidental hitting)
New mag catch spring
2 new mags- these will be set for practice only until this is sorted out…
Edit: switched sides on the mag catch and it still happens, even with a relatively new mag.
I think that narrows it down to carch spring or a loose frame- couldnt see any cracks in it.
Update: It looms like it was the spring.
Ill do a final update once I verify reliability with the new spring and catch.
On a side note, in an emergency, a glock mag spring straightened out and sanded to the proper diameter works in a pinch (got me through a match with no issues). I could’t source a replacement in time.
