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Any .40 cal magazine problems?


liontribe

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i did a search but did not find any definite info. i am ordering a Match in .40 next week. how is the reliability with the standard length ammo? i want something that will run well with factory ammo as well as HP ammunition. i read about the troubles people are having with the 9mm mags and i don't want that kind of headache. thanks.

liontribe

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If you use factory ammo and don't modify the magazines (Stock spring, Follower, and base pad)then it will feed pretty good. You run into feed issues when you try to shoot reloaded ammo because the case isn't straight and the rounds catch on one another as the slide strips the rounds out of the magazine. You run into even more issues if you try to run reloads with after market an after market spring, follower, and base pad because the rounds are not supported as well from front to back which allows them to stack up at an angle and causes more catching on one another issues. The .40 mags usually cause nose dive issues when they screw up. Do a search for Nose Dives to see the solutions to overcome at issue.

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yeah, i knew about the nosedive troubles with some reloads and/or modified mags. this is going to be my big nightstand gun. i am planning on using factory ammo and standard 15rd mags. keep it simple for this particular gun. thanks for the info, this will be my first Match pistol. all my other tanfoglios are Limited models. i will post pics and a range report soon.

liontribe

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So far, so good for me. I have the mags with the strip stuck on the inside front of the mag. I have loaded anywhere from factory length out to 1.170" and the gun has been able to load and feed all 15 rounds each time so far. Knock on wood.

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  • 2 weeks later...

i took my new Match out to my range for it's first time. she ran flawlessly. an extra mag i bought was too wide across the front of the feedlips. it was releasing the round a tad too early and causing a nose up jam only when i used the slide release on a fresh mag. it wasn't enough to cause trouble any other time. i tuned the feedlips to match my other mag that came with the gun. it seems to be fine now as i cannot replicate the problem anymore. the spacer on these .40 mags is in the front. does it seem odd to anyone else that they didn't put the spacer in the rear of the magazine for the shorter rounds such as the 9mm and .40SW? seems like a no brainer. i hope the redesigned 9mm and .40 mags will be available soon. the gun itself is amazing, especially for the price. my wife is trying take it away from me already.

liontribe

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I would suspect that they put the spacer in the front because its easier to manufacture that way. Its all about the ease of build and least $$$ when it comes to manufacturing stuff, unfortunately.

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that is the reason i am sure. it just seems silly to me. the magazine is the heart of an autoloader. without a good mag, it is a very complex single shot pistol. that said, it does seem to work well enough. the gun itself is very accurate and really soft shooting. it digested three different brands of ball ammo and i ran some winchester bonded PDX1 180gr hollow points that i hand on hand. no problems. all in all, i am very pleased.

liontribe

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I have had no problems with my factory mags. I have not tried to modify them yet.

I hit a problem with the factory mag that came with my new 40S&W Match and with the 4 magazines I ordered from EAA.

The magazine spring pushes to the front of the magazine and catches on the top of the spacer locking the follower at the top of its motion so that frequently the magazine can't be locked in the pistol and rounds can't be loaded into the magazine. Anyone else encountered this? Possibly a change to a custom magazine spring would fix this or beveling the top edge of the spacer so the spring will slide to the rear of the magazine when the follower is depressed.

post-22649-12678986194_thumb.jpg

Edited by rockhunter
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Rock, not to highjack the thread but to answer you directly,

this was exactly what caused me to have a "moment" when I received the 9mm mags from EAA

(the nine is now a 38super), at any rate, the quickest fix is to return the mags to EAA,

they didn't argue any points with me, just kind of a shut up and return them and they

were nice enough to even return the initial shipping money the first time, not the second

time.

anyway contact Henning Wallgren or go to his website and see what he has to offer to, spend

a bit of money and get something that will not cause you "moments". I have not had any moments

with the gold team since I got the mags from Henning. goodluck.

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It looks like filing a bevel on the top of the spacer at the front of the magazine eliminates the catch point and the problem.

It only takes a few minutes with a good file and the spacers don't seem to be tempered spring steel and cut fairly easily.

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I took the front rib/spacer out of my mags.....Use a round diamond bit in a dremel and grind the 3 rivets from the outside.

Pops right out with a sharp screwdriver. Much smoother, lower friction foller movement.

I also modified the lower part of the mag with a slot to tell when there are 10 rds in the mag. Respond if anyone wnats a pic...

I load 175 SWC's to 1.140 - 1.145 and have ZERO problems.

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Rockhunter,

I have the same exact issue on a 40 mag that I recently received from Henning. I was thinking of bending the top of the spring so it wouldn't impinge on the spacer, but I think your idea of beveling it is better. What kind of angle did you put on the bevel?

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Click: post 4 - saved me from a long string of grief once I did that to all my EAA mags.

There's no way I'd use a mag design like the one in the picture above if it was messing up the way you described.

Talk to Henning and do whatever he says.

Edited by eric nielsen
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Rockhunter,

I have the same exact issue on a 40 mag that I recently received from Henning. I was thinking of bending the top of the spring so it wouldn't impinge on the spacer, but I think your idea of beveling it is better. What kind of angle did you put on the bevel?

The angle between the bevel and the spacer is about 40 degrees.

I agree I think the 10mm mags might work just as well, I have a 10mm also and might try a 10mm mag. with 40 S&W.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I have the same exact issue on a 40 mag that I recently received from Henning. I was thinking of bending the top of the spring so it wouldn't impinge on the spacer, but I think your idea of beveling it is better. What kind of angle did you put on the bevel?

Can't measure it, but about 45 deg......polish the edges also so the tip of the spring glides over the ramp u form when u grind it...

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Just take out the ribs like I described...works fine...I'll take a few pics of the mag mods to tell the # of rounds at 10 and 11...

I'd love to see some pics of your mag mods.

I guess I should have just bought 10mm mags for my .40 Match instead of the stupid .40 mags.

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