Do you cycle your home/personal defense ammo?

[kidicarus13]

After making sure X brand HP ammo works reliably in my carry pistol I load it and forget it. When I go to the range I shoot FMJ and then reload the same HP ammo I just unloaded. The only time I change out the ammo in my pistol is when I choose to go to a new bullet design and then I start again at the beginning.

I have personally never had HP ammo fail and I've shot near 1000 rounds with an age range of a couple of months to as old as 10-12 years. IMO people who change their HP ammo out every 6 months are the same people who use 91 octane fuel when the manufacturer recommends 85 octane fuel.

[SA Friday]

Wow, there's some really funny stuff in this thread. You guys ever test out some of these gun myths you seem to take for truth?

The only things in here that ring true are bullet set-back, ensuring function and accuracy with ammo/gun combos, and most of you needing to practice more.

Some of the other stuff is just funny. Ammo going stale, gun oil killing primers, compressed springs don't die, ammo being too loud or flashing too bright...

I rotate my mags to ensure I don't have dead mag springs. I also replace the mag springs on loaded mags about every year. They are cheap and mag springs DO die when left loaded.

I don't practice with my carry ammo. I test it works in the gun and is accurate. After that, all practice ammo is cheap fodder. There is no need to run 500 rounds of uber expensive defense ammo to determine if it works or not. You'll know in two mags, max.

Unless you are pouring 10w-30 directly into the gun from the quart bottle to lube your gun, you will never have oil kill a primer. As a matter of fact oil based products don't kill primers. Spraying wd-40 on unwanted primers to throw them away doesn't work. Bleach works. I got this from a chemist that made primers for a living.

Ammo being too loud or flashing you is complete myth. The stress level of a shooting will throw you straight into Tachi Psychi response and you are not going to hear anything or have to fight flash.

If the ammo doesn't have green crud on the ammo it's not old. Even if it does, it'll more than likely work. The military shelf life on ammo is 25 years. I know, I've shot 25 year old ammo when active and it worked just fine. Don't submerge it and you are good.

[OgenRwot]

I shoot my carry ammo about every 4-6 months or so.

[Irving]

If being compressed ruined springs, car springs wouldn't last 25 years at a time.

I guess I just haven't had any of my guns long enough to ruin them by leaving the mags loaded. Mine have been loaded for going on three years now, and have yet to have a failure related to mags.

[kwando]

For me...

Carry ammo is always tested... usually 2-5 mags to ensure it cycles. I keep two mags fully loaded, 1 in the gun, 1 extra mag that i carry. 24/7... in the past i've always shot the two mags that i keep loaded once a year, that time is coming up again, so i thought i would post the question.

[SA Friday]

If being compressed ruined springs, car springs wouldn't last 25 years at a time.

I guess I just haven't had any of my guns long enough to ruin them by leaving the mags loaded. Mine have been loaded for going on three years now, and have yet to have a failure related to mags.

Car springs are loaded, not fully compressed like a full mag. I guarantee you those mags loaded for 3 years are far from the same strength as a new mag spring. Test it. I did.

Mag springs for my carry guns get changed at least once a year. They are just too cheap to not.

[Irving]

I can't argue that mag springs are cheap.

[RobertB]

What exactly is bullet set-back?

[Colorado Osprey]

When chambering a semi-auto the bullet goes up the feed ramp and into the chamber. Some bullets partially hit the chamber wall as well. With the resistance of being chambered the bullet can travel slightly rearward into the brass causing raised pressure when fired. When loaded and emptied, loaded and emptied withth e same cartridge this can create dangerous condition possibly resulting in a Ka-Boom or a KB (rapid disassembly)

[DD977GM2]

No. All my firearms are loaded and I do change mags ever so often. I do shoot my carry ammo when i forget to change it out with FMJ.