. . . the follower stuck and the rest of the rounds fell out.

What brand and model are your magazines?

Were you using factory ammo?

Sticking followers are indeed a show stopper but I doubt the oil is what cured the problem. I have had multiple sticking followers and in every case the sticking was caused by a faulty dimension of the follower or a burr inside the mag. Once I addressed the specific physical problem the mags ran 100%.

 

Thank you for your comments..

The magazines are Remington for a 9mm Remington Recon Commander. Note that the magazines have been 100% reliable at the range, but thanks to foot surgery in September 2019 and Covid 19, since then my practice has been dryfiring, and using both a 1911 BB and 1911 Airsoft inside my own home.

 

if you lube your carry mags they will need more attention than those you dont. i wear a iwb holster and i need to clean constantly due to cotton lint a real mess. you could set aside the mag/mags that hang up and use them for range work, but youre correct, cant have a mag malfunction in the heat of battle.

 

I apply a thin coat of CLP Breakfree to the spring by soaking a small piece of paper towel and running the spring through the bit of towel.
Then I wipe off any excess.
I also apply a little to the friction surfaces of the follower.
I've found no accumulation of debris in the magazines, but then I don't drop my CCW mags in the dirt.

Some people like a dry lubricant, which is one of the very few places in firearms that a dry lube will work,

I've had excellent results with WD-40 Dry Lubricant With Teflon in some applications. I buy it at a Menard's hardware store.
I experimented with it in shotgun magazine tubes, but found a thick oil worked better.
I use Synco Super Lube with Teflon oil or that. It's a thick oil/thin grease consistency that won't run down the tube when stored muzzle up.

 

Thank you. I'd be a little leary ofcBreakfree because if some is left in the magazine, it might affect the primers. But I think the dry lube is an excellent suggestion.

 

As @dfariswheel mentions, dry-lube. I use any dry-lube spray. It usually leaves a fine coat of PTFE. It will wear away over time. It's also not oily. Use sparingly though.

I have used fine talc powder other mechanisms for a "dry lube", not sure that would work or not in a magazine. But a fine dusting of talc does become rather slippery.

 

The mags I have with followers with a lot of contact surface area with the inside of the mag tube, like Wilson's polymer followers and the CheckMate Patented Follower (CMF), I do occasionally put some very light lube on those followers.

Followers with less surface area, such as a GI follower and Chip McCormick's Devel follower, I don't lube.

If you're lubing in the tube, silicone spray may be something I'd consider, but I generally don't use anything.

 

Thank you.

 

Like jtq, I don't use anything for lube inside the magazine tubes, nor on the followers. We were instructed in the military (50 years ago) to keep the magazines clean and dry of any lube - which I have done for these past 50 years. Like Steve in Allentown said, if there is resistance in a clean and dry mag it is an indicator of a misshapen follower or a burr in the mag tube or follower that is most likely the problem. I drop mine in the dirt/gravel at range practice all the time, but keeping them clean and dry, with a spring change at recommended intervals has kept me from having difficulties as you described in you opening post.

Does my approach work for everyone and every maker of magazine? Probably not, but it has worked with Colt, Para, Kimber, MecGar, and Wilson magazines for me for the past 50 years.

 

Thank you. I was taught the same when I served one enlistment 1961 to 1963, which is why I raised the question here. Seem to me, though, that just maybe the issue isn't one or the other, but something in the middle. My main concern with lubes is contamination of the primer. I may try a light dry lube and see how that works.

 

I agree, NO lube in, or on a magazine. If the tube has a tight spot, fix it.

LOG

 

Wilson has this information in their mag instruction sheet

https://s3.amazonaws.com/wilsoncombat/files/47Series.pdf

It is not absolutely necessary to lubricate your magazine prior to assembly, however a thin film of dry graphite or light oil will provide for slightly smoother follower movement. Do not use grease, excessive amounts of lubricant or penetrating oil. This could entrap contaminates inside your magazine leading to erratic feeding behavior, or deactivate the primers of your ammunition.

 

I would relegate the sticky mags for practice duty only. CMC and Tripp mags have always been good to me, I don't lube them and I do drop them in the dirt when I practice.

Magazines are disposable. Either repair your carry magazine or get a new one.

 

Inertia feed is encouraged by lube in/on a magazine.

LOG

 

I've lubed, very sparingly, the insides of both 1911 and Hi-Power mags, and in all cases - seven or eight different mags - inertia feed resulted.

 

Thank you.

Is that good or bad? Inertia means a thing at rest will stay at rest, but I'm not sure what it means here.

 

Inertia feed is bad.

If you get lube on the feed lips they can lose control of the round, it slips out of the mag before the slide comes to pick it up.

 

Inertia feed is bad.

If you get lube on the feed lips they can lose control of the round, it slips out of the mag before the slide comes to pick it up.

Thank you. I now understand. I already knew that most double-stacked magazine followers are plastic. And that lubrication can cause plastic to deteriorate

 

Mag tubes are thin and can be easily bent, sometimes subtly so that you really can't or won't see it. What once was good to go can become a show stopper. No lube for me. Instead, regular cleaning, maintenance, and inspection for damage. Careful work will usuallty restore the mag to proper function. I address all areas of new mags before they are put into service, removing burrs and tight spots, adjusting followers/slide stop engagement tabs, etc. I periodically readjust as needed.

 

Mag tubes are thin and can be easily bent, sometimes subtly so that you really can't or won't see it. What once was good to go can become a show stopper. No lube for me. Instead, regular cleanibg, maintenance, and inspection for damage. Careful work will usuallty restore the mag to proper function. I address all areas of new mags before they are put into service, removing burrs and tight spots, adjusting followers/slide stop engagement tabs, etc. I periodically readjust as needed.

Thank you.

 

I clean my magazine tubes, followers, and springs with a dry cloth, but in all the many years I've been shooting I've never lubricated any of my magazines for any pistol 1911 or otherwise.

 

Clean is your friend.

Whatever hung your follower was probably an artifact of unloading your magazine by hand. I have had that happen to perfectly clean fresh mags. stripping mags with a finger does not replicate what your pistol is doing and sometimes we just force the follower to an improper position.

Incidentally, those same mags I have jammed manually unloading, have shot thousands of rounds in competition with zero malfunctions. I wouldn't give your experience a second thought unless it happened with actual live fire.

 

Clean is your friend.

Whatever hung your follower was probably an artifact of unloading your magazine by hand. I have had that happen to perfectly clean fresh mags. stripping mags with a finger does not replicate what your pistol is doing and sometimes we just force the follower to an improper position.

Incidentally, those same mags I have jammed manually unloading, have shot thousands of rounds in competition with zero malfunctions. I wouldn't give your experience a second thought unless it happened with actual live fire.

Thank you.

 

Grit is what will usually cause issues and lubed up mags will attract & hold grit/debris.
I lightly lube mag springs. I'll clean/wipe the mag tubes & followers with a light (BF) CLP, follow with a dry towel, inspect the tube and follower, remove any scuffs/nicks etc, reinstall.

 

We've used a product called Mag Slick for a lot of years. It's a spray on dry lube that seems to last and makes cleaning mags easier. Sheds water too.

 

Thank you. I will look for it.

 

Here, allow me to help. No magazine since WW1 needs to be lubed. Anything else?

 

If there's friction there, lube can be ok.
Just need the right stuff.

Use sparingly. Comes in spray and squeeze bottle. Really need to shake it good before use though.

Amazon.com : DuPont Teflon Non-Stick Dry-Film Lubricant, 14-Ounce : Bike Oils : Sports & Outdoors

Amazon.com : DuPont Teflon Non-Stick Dry-Film Lubricant, 14-Ounce : Bike Oils : Sports & Outdoors

www.amazon.com

You'd be surprised how a 1911 will run more smoothly and quieter with a light dusting of the Teflon spray on the moving parts.

"not needed" is a functional term. Trying various lubes is up to the owner.

 

I tend to agree with many others. I do not feel mags need any lube. I had a Beretta PX4 stop mid-stage at a match a couple of years ago. About half way down the mag, two bullets somehow lodged against each other and wouldn't allow the follower to keep pushing rounds up.

I was mid string when I got a "click". I racked the slide, pulled the trigger and got another "click". Dropped the mag and a few loose rounds came tumbling out of the pistol. Ever since that match, I have completely disassembled all mags to be used in the match, cleaned all parts with Hoppes 9, then dried all parts and reassembled. I've never encountered a mag problem since.

 

I clean my mags with crc silicon spray, the carrier is acetone which dissolve the crud, drys quickly and leaves a thin layer of silicon behind.
i disassemble the mag, spray silicon on the interior of the mag body followed with a mag brush, then followed by an old sock that acts like a mop. The spring and follower also get sprayed down and wiped off.

 

When I find a sticky follower I find it doesn’t fall freely from top to bottom of the mag freely. The mag body isn’t a equal inside width top to bottom. I sand both sides of the width of the follower evenly till it fall freely top to bottom. Mainly with steel mags with plastic followers in rifles too.

 

If you must lubricate your magazines, use a spray that deposits PTFE and drys. Dry lubricant is your friend.