Grams Guts in .40/10mm 2011 MBX Tubes?

[SlappyMcTrigger]

All 4 mags performed flawlessly with Grams’ guts. 300 or so rounds down range with no issues even when ran dry. The slide dropped as it should and didn’t slam into the back of the follower binding up the action. I’ll continue testing and update this post as I go but so far so good. If you are having issues with the factory MBX followers/springs or if they included the improper equipment for their own magazines then Grams would appear to resolve the issue or at least they did for my application. Thanks again to all that shared their experiences and added insight. 

[CrashDodson]

On 2/10/2018 at 7:10 AM, zzt said:

Slappy, if your follower is riding too high, one of two things are wrong.  First, are you using the correct follower for your mag (Gen1 or Gen 2)?  Second, did you condition your new springs and followers? 

 

If you have Gen 2 mags you should be using the Gen 2 followers.  They are wider than the Gen 1s.  Assuming you have the correct follower installed, condition the spring by fully loading the mag and letting it sit for a week or so.  MBX's instruction say to do this.  Once I did that, all my followers sat at the correct height.  I've had no problems with the mags at all.

 

 

This is crazy.  If I forgot and left a mag full for a week with taran springs you might as well throw them away.  I make sure to never leave a full mag with my grams springs for the same reason.  With Taran springs if I left a full mag for several days I would start having feeding problems with that mag.  

[SlappyMcTrigger]

22 minutes ago, CrashDodson said:

 

 

This is crazy.  If I forgot and left a mag full for a week with taran springs you might as well throw them away.  I make sure to never leave a full mag with my grams springs for the same reason.  With Taran springs if I left a full mag for several days I would start having feeding problems with that mag.  

He is correct that MBX recommends doing this. My recollection was mine said to fully load then unload 5 times before use or the follower will ride too high. I followed the instructions provided before contacting MBX and their initial response was to leave them loaded for a week. After trying this their next suggestion was to tell me to hurry up and wait for a YouTube video explaining how to tune their “out of the box tuned” mag. The next several emails went unanswered which is why I started this thread. Who knows, maybe they’ll have a video explaining how to melt down the 9mm follower they included and recast it into the proper one. Maybe I was just too impatient. Perhaps 8 months of providing details, photos, and info would have done the trick and not the measly 7 months I gave it before giving up. I have spoken to many about my experience and will continue to do so especially now that I know I provided him the info needed to diagnose within the first 30 days and it turned out to be 100% their error.

[CrashDodson]

When MBX first came out, and they were small, their mags were the best out of the box mags you could get.  Once they started getting bigger their mags have needed tuning, for a lot of guns, out of the box.  I have found that new style SV tubes hold their shape and lip dimensions better than anything.  I have also not tried MBX since their first generation. 

[SlappyMcTrigger]

9 minutes ago, CrashDodson said:

When MBX first came out, and they were small, their mags were the best out of the box mags you could get.  Once they started getting bigger their mags have needed tuning, for a lot of guns, out of the box.  I have found that new style SV tubes hold their shape and lip dimensions better than anything.  I have also not tried MBX since their first generation. 

I’ve heard this from others as well. I have 4- SV mags on order that should be here in 12-15 months.

[CrashDodson]

Holy crap, is it taking that long just to get SV mags?

[SlappyMcTrigger]

Just now, CrashDodson said:

Holy crap, is it taking that long just to get SV mags?

No it’s because they’re shipping them with my new pistol. I can’t wait!

[zzt]

1 hour ago, CrashDodson said:

When MBX first came out, and they were small, their mags were the best out of the box mags you could get.  Once they started getting bigger their mags have needed tuning, for a lot of guns, out of the box.  I have found that new style SV tubes hold their shape and lip dimensions better than anything.  I have also not tried MBX since their first generation. 

 

I have both Gen mags in 9mm and 40.  You don't have to do any tuning at all unless you are trying to use Gen2 followers in Gen1 mags,  Personally, I like them a whole lot better that my SVI Gen1 tubes with Grams guts, and WAY better than my STI tubes with Grams guts.

 

BTW, I bought TTI guts and base pad for my SVI big stick.  I installed them, loaded the mag and let it sit for a week.  It fed fine, and continues to do so.

[CrashDodson]

Glad you have had a better experience than most.  I have had to tune feed lips on several buddies new MBX mags.

[SlappyMcTrigger]

13 minutes ago, zzt said:

I have both Gen mags in 9mm and 40.  You don't have to do any tuning at all unless you are trying to use Gen2 followers in Gen1 mags, 

And provided they send you the correct followers.

[SlappyMcTrigger]

Update:

 

Another 200 rounds down range and zero issues with the Grams followers kit. Also the salt shaker tendency has disappeared however maybe if I had the proper MBX equipment this wouldn’t have been an issue to begin with. After several compressions I’m still only able to get 20 and not the 21 I was getting with OEM kit however they were not reloadable at 21 so really the outcome is the same. Grams seem to be much more robust and considerably longer spring wise which could explain the additional longevity mentioned by others. I have only my 4 magazines to test but if you are having issues with MBX I’d recommend trying Grams because it appears to have resolved my issues.