How long can you store a fully loaded 30 round PMAG without the cover on the feed lips without it hurting reliability?
Im not sure about pmags, but I had full USGI mags loaded in Iraq for an entire year, if that helps.
I have had one loaded for about 10 months no problem.
I think magpul has one of the originals that has been loaded for a very long time I don’t remember the details but there was no feed lip spread. I wouldn’t think twice about leaving the mag loaded up they don’t spread.
Thanks,
I am thinking about a putting a loaded pmag in my pistol lock box along with my pistol and don’t want to have to think about flipping the cover off at 2am if something goes bump in the night. Its a shame. When I was growing up all you had to worry about was a lone burgler, now you have to worry about home invasions from a bunch of meth heads.
I left my PMAGs loaded at home for a year, dustcovers on (while I was in Afghanistan)…had more PMAGs in country, dustcovers off…haven’t had a problem with any of my mags.
ive done about 12 months with mine with no feeding problems whatsoever then i just rotate them them out with other ones i have
Maybe I am missing something, but when I have a p mag w/30 roungs in it I cant get the cover to stay on anyway. So I store them loaded with the cover off and have had no issues.
You don’t need a cover for the feed lips. It’s just to keep dust out on a Pmag. The lips are durable enough.
JRB, you sure you’re not loading 31 rounds in that?
While you may not need it, the purpose of the “dust cover” is to apply downward pressure on the stack of rounds so that they did not apply pressure to the feedlips… If you look at the dust cover geometry you can see how this works.
I have one of the first batches of windowed FDE PMags in NOVA.
it has been loaded continuously for over 2 years now.
No problems.
Sample size of 1 and all, but i note it because while my other 30 or so Pmags have shown no issues with feedlip spread, none of them have been continuously loaded for more than 1 1/2 years.
That’s odd. As already suggested, perhaps you are loading 31rds?
Can you get 31 rnds in a pmag? I dont usually count; just dump 3 20 rnd boxes out into my gun case and load two mags. I fill up one until its full and then put the rest into the other. If thats the case then one mag is getting 29 and the other 31 and Im a retard:)
Which side is the last/top round ending up on? If there’s an even number of rounds in the mag then the top round should be on the right (ejection port side) if I’m not mistaken.
I have some that have been loaded for a couple years 99.9% of the time without covers, and Ive not had any feeding issues with them. I’ve also not heard of anyone running into spread feed lips because they left the mag loaded, and didn’t put the cover on. To me the covers are a PITA, and some of them don’t want to snap on. Ive got a few laying around here that will not go onto a variety of mags purchased over time when fully loaded.
The covers are there to keep crud/dust out during storage and make people used to worrying about bending the fragile feed lips of USGI mags feel better.
As you’ve seen from other folks’ testimony here, it’s otherwise entirely unnecessary.
They do keep dust and crud out and that was a secondary purpose. When the PMAG first came out it was explained that the cover was mainly to protect the feedlips by providing a downward pressure on the ammo column so that they were not applying pressure up on the feedlips causing them to spread over time.
See the very first post in this thread here
https://www.m4carbine.net/showthread.php?t=3223
When the PMAG was brand new and everyone was wondering about it. This feature of the Impact Cover (official name of the dust cover on magpul.com) was expressly mentioned as being designed to that end.
As an aside: 3 years later it is now funny to read this thread: https://www.m4carbine.net/showthread.php?t=3118 which is the earliest thread search came up with about PMAGs.
When the PMAG first came out it was explained that the cover was mainly to protect the feedlips by providing a downward pressure on the ammo column so that they were not applying pressure up on the feedlips causing them to spread over time.
Except they don’t. I’m personally of the opinion that Magpul listed this “reason” to ease the transition of people who’d being using USGI mags forever.
Remember, when the PMAG first came out people were distrustful every which way of polymer as a magazine material.
Again, my OPINION. But I think Magpul was just being coy.
I know. What I’ve heard is that Magpul originally came out with the cover for this purpose, but after testing decided the feedlips didn’t need the cover because they won’t bend.
Edit: sorry, I only rehashed what’s already been said.
I don’t believe continously being loaded affects the mag spring nearly as much as constantly cycling does. I have had several PMags loaded in proper storage for a couple years and they still feed properly when discharged.
NCH
Or maybe they really did design it for this purpose, and only found out after real world testing that it was not really needed…