Magazine Magic!

[G.T.]

Hi to all! Every once and awhile, one of my elves stumbles onto an issue with Luger mags, that the resolution, is probably is better shared with a short thread!
This particular little issue is one that plagues both old original magazines, and even the new MEC-GAR mags, and that is, the spring seat hole in the magazine bottoms are not drilled far enough forward, or they are too small, or not the correct radius at the top? All this leads to the follower spring dragging on the front of the hole when the follower spring is compressed to the max! You can feel it when you completely depress the follower, it should be smooth all the way, both ways... if you feel a little chatter as the spring jumps past the front edge of the hole, you need to correct that?.. So, if you have the skills to proceed, you need to remove the magazine bottom and, in increments of .010" to .015" relieve the front of the hole, and re-radius.... A Dremel works great! Put the bottom back in and using small punches, or nails, temporally hold the bottom in for a test... feels good you say? Then re-pin and your all set... .. More Magazine Magic as it comes along! But, this is a good start... best to you all, til.....lat'r....GT...

[sheepherder]

Great tip Gerry!

I'm a visual fabricator. Maybe a member who does this mod will take a couple pics to illustrate the process???

[G.T.]

Hi to all! Well, I hope by now, all of the forum members have seen enough broken walnut/wood, magazine bottoms to make them a little leary of depressing the follower button on a nice pristine original magazine? It is not un-common for them to break about halfway between the knobs and the rear spine... ... The reason for this is that when new, the wood bottoms are designed to fit tight with the spring force pressing straight down on the bottom. As time goes on, and decades pass, the wood bottoms loosen up and shrink, sometime dramatically, with a total loss of support both front, and rear?... All that is holding the bottom in is the retaining pin itself, and the mag bottom is actually levering against itself with the pressure eventually causing a catastrophic failure and the guts come shooting out of the bottom! ....
So, assuming we are NOT going to use our better magazines for shooting, and just want to test the spring to find out if any problems exist, we need to modify our technique so that the failure doesn't occur while in our care...
The correct procedure is to cup the magazine in your off hand, and depress the follower with your strong hand, so that all the pressure from start to finish, is between the follower, and the bottom... never hold just the shell when testing the mag, either for loading or testing.. In fact, get into the habit of always holding the mag as described above.. It will save you some big crocodile tears and
a bunch of money to effect a decent repair! More later as it come along! Best to all, til...lat'r....GT...

[sheepherder]

Originally Posted by G.T.

It will save you some big crocodile tears and a bunch of money to effect a decent repair!

It takes a bunch of money to effect a decent repair???

Now I do have big crocodile tears...

[DonVoigt]

Originally Posted by sheepherder

It takes a bunch of money to effect a decent repair???

Now I do have big crocodile tears...

Maybe just a little "bunch"!

[G.T.]

Hi to all! I ‘m pretty sure most of you have had the follower button slip from your grasp and allow the follower to go thundering uncontrollably towards the top of the magazine! .......Most of the time, it has no effect on the magazine, but a profound effect on you! It’s not good for it to happen, but like stated above, we usually skate on any serious damage… But, what actually happens to the magazines over a period of inadvertent releases is a bit troublesome?
The good results occur if the follower stops, actually stop, on the intended dimples set into the magazine follower guide rails as follower stops. But over time, the stops become less pronounced, or the magazine spreads across the width and allows the follower to go right to the very top…
The first indicator this is a problem, will be the upset sheet metal at the top of the follower slot, you might even feel a pinch every once in a while, when using the mag…
The second area that will show the abuse is the back end of the feed lips as the follower puts a dent on each side right at the top, about in the middle of the exposed edge…
The third issue, and by far the worst, it that the repeated hammering of the follower can stretch the magazine from front to back making it very hard to reform to an acceptable dimension that doesn’t interfere with insertion and dropping free?...
So, what is required, to correctly re-position the follower? Start by using a 1/8” punch cut to a half moon shape and all the edges radiused, and reset the follower stops! A little squeeze here and there, and your mag will be working like new! Best to all, til…lat’r….GT....
BTW, this repair only applies to original folded sheet metal type magazines... code 122 & fxo types can only be corrected by slightly squeezing the top sides together as the stops are permanently stamped or machined in the interior of the mag shell....

[ithacaartist]

Originally Posted by G.T.

A little squeeze here and there, and your mag will be working like new! Best to all, til…lat’r….GT....

I just love it when a guy has better hints than Heloise!

[G.T.]

Hi to all! Sometimes, not very often, a problem will show up to where you can load your sheet metal type magazine and shoot it empty, and it will drop free as normal, and the very next time you load and shoot empty, it won't drop free???? Or, you can load the magazine up and it won't go in properly, even with the toggle locked back???
When a magazine exhibits symptoms like this, there is a very good chance, that the magazine is, "Loose in the seams!" the two vertical folded seams, one on each side running from top to bottom..
The proper way to diagnose this problem is to sight down the rear spine and see if it, (the rear spine flat) is perfectly square and flat along it's entire length, or, if there is a slight twist from bottom to top?
If you suspect a problem, insert the first inch of the magazine into the frame, and gently twist the remainder of the magazine in the direction you determine needed to correct the twist.. Of course this is only a temporary fix, and in order to repair permanently, you would have to re-stamp it in a forming die and press as was done originally? I do not have this capability at this time, so just about anything you can rig up hydraulically will be the next best effort... Like Eugene recently discovered... 20 to 50 ton is not overkill! Best to all, til...lat'r....GT......

[cirelaw]

You never cease to amaze me!! Thank You for sharing and teaching. We are truly blessed to have you with us! One of your most loyal fans! Eric

[Zorba]

The correct way to fix these problems is to form a committee of one, elect yourself chairman, and appoint GT to do the repair!

[G.T.]

Hello to all, by now, with the first four installment of magazine magic, you should be just as able to repair an injured Luger mag same as me? But, there are still some little quirks and issues that still might affect the reliability of your favorite P.08... This installment is about the correlation between feed lips, and feed ramps?
The feed lips on ALL original Luger magazines are soft! As a result, they become, over time, spread out for the following reasons. Stored full with max capacity of ammo, overly strong follower spring, or, just constant use and abuse? The good part of this, is they can easily be reformed. You'll need a flat nose pliers, preferably one with few or no serrations. And, you'll need a large regular type pliers to gently squeeze the top feed lip area back together when it is obviously spread out.
Again, less is more, and it is far better to err on the side of too wide, rather the too narrow? When adjusted correctly, the nose of the bullet should set (approx.) 5 to 10 degrees ABOVE the top level feed lips.
Now, this is where it gets interesting, the steeper the feed ramp, the shorter the holding part of the feed lips (over all length) need to be! An easy way to compensate for this is to slightly, and uniformly, (with flat nose pliers) bend the front part of the feed lip ahead of the seam a little bit more vertical, allowing the cartridge to set even more proud as to the angle of the feed lips! Conversely, if the feed ramp is very long, and / or, very shallow you would bent the same part of the fee lip in or hold the cartridge a little lower, a little longer? NEVER less then level... It is amazing, but with a little loving care, feeding becomes a problem of the distant past... That's why the very best advice, is find a mag that works with your particular Luger, have a shotgun wedding for them, and never let them part! .... And, so ends the Magazine magic little tid-bits of info.?? I hope it helps some of you thru and Luger woes you might encounter in the future! Best to all, til....lat'r.....GT...
BTW, I've found 50 degree ramp angle works perfectly in ever application... but, that's just me...

[lugerholsterrepair]

I'm taking my secrets of leather repair to the grave....

[cirelaw]

Jerry, You have better a real long life, please!!!

[kurusu]

I hope this gets to be a "sticky"

Thanks GT.

[cirelaw]

Last year while pushing in the attachment clip, the grip broke in 3 sharp pieces~ My hero returned it to perfect!!

[G.T.]

I don't believe I'm responsible for that repair?... I think you might have me confused for Jim Solomon (sp.?) or Don Voigt? Orrrr, maybe even Hugh?.... Orrrr, Olle??? Orrrrr, Rich or Rick! Orrrr Mike? Orrrr ?
This forum is truly blessed with talent! I make up for that with stubbornness!!!
If most of you were to see my shop, you'd bust out laughing! ... best to all, til....lat'r....GT

[lugerholsterrepair]

If most of you were to see my shop, you'd bust out laughing! No one laughs about what come out of it...Thanks for all you do Gerald.

[cirelaw]

Sorry it was last year and my post~stroke memory suggs! You still are one of my heros!

[cirelaw]

We have some of the greatest luger artisans! God Bless All Of You!!!!

[cirelaw]

While we are on the subject a luger Family made this hand loader that because of my disability works like a perfect and easy charm. It hooks on like a take down button and uses your thumb for all the compression! It should be sold commercially. Please help me track his down as he is sitting on a goldmine!! Eric