View Poll Results: SS or Carbon?

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  • Stainless Steel

    1 25.00%
  • Carbon Steel

    3 75.00%
Results 1 to 6 of 6

Thread: Pump Mag springs - Stainless or Carbon?

  1. #1
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
    Houston, TX
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    Pump Mag springs - Stainless or Carbon?

    In looking around for some more pump mag springs (my son is on his last one), I found the smalley part number again (C100-M1) but I noticed they come in stainless or carbon.

    Which one are you shooting?

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jan 2002
    Location
    Halifax, N.S., Canada
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    Given that the marker breach area is often wet, I would go with a stainless wave spring over a carbon steel wave spring to keep it from rusting.
    Except for the Automag in front, its usually the man behind the equipment that counts.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Nov 2012
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    Finland
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    I'm not 100% sure but I think stainless spring will tire sooner. Could the carbon option be actually spring steel(which would last longer)? Spring steel

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
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    Quote Originally Posted by Laku View Post
    I'm not 100% sure but I think stainless spring will tire sooner. Could the carbon option be actually spring steel(which would last longer)? Spring steel
    That was my initial thought. Smalley just says they are good for corrosion, and my assumption is that they simply cost more for a similar performance if all else is equal.

    Our carbon springs have been brittle, loosing a piece at a contact point after about 4-5 cases. I'm wondering if our bumper is too thin, causing too much compression, or if I have some "close to" smalley springs. I went ahead and asked for a sample from Smalley. I think I got my last batch from Rainman.

    The failure rate isn't so bad, it's just that the odds are that it happens while your playing and rarely in the staging area.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Jan 2002
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    Halifax, N.S., Canada
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    Any good quality metal can be used for making springs. The "spring" is a result of quenching and tempering the metal. This hardens it and makes it remember its new spring shape. Obviously, a harder base metal will create a harder spring.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Location
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    Quote Originally Posted by athomas View Post
    Any good quality metal can be used for making springs. The "spring" is a result of quenching and tempering the metal. This hardens it and makes it remember its new spring shape. Obviously, a harder base metal will create a harder spring.
    Yeah, all things being equal though, common stainless alloys don't do so hot as springs, with poor heat treat and stiffness characteristics. Smalley does say they have a special process though. That's another reason that I'm wondering where my old springs came from.

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