Travis T. owned a Springfield Hellcat Pro 9mm handgun.
One day, Travis was at the range shooting his Springfield handgun using Blazer 9mm ammo.
After about 150 rounds, Travis pulled the trigger and his magazine exploded and fell out of his gun.
The metal part of the magazine wasn’t damaged, but the plastic base plate blew up into many pieces.
Thankfully, Travis wasn’t seriously injured. His support hand was a little banged up and covered in black gunpowder.
Obviously, it sounds like Travis’s pistol had a malfunction.
Likely, the gas from the gun traveled down the magazine to the weakest point – the plastic baseplate.
It could have been a problem with the gun itself such as an obstruction in the barrel or it could have been a bad round.
Either way, Travis is lucky it wasn’t worse.
If it was me, I obviously wouldn’t shoot this gun again until it was checked out by a gunsmith.
I would also reach out to Blazer to see if they have had any reports of issues with the specific ammo.
The ammo could have been a bad batch.
Or there could have been an issue with the magazine itself.
When it comes to gun magazines there are a lot of aftermarket options.
A big decision when buying a new magazine is whether you want a metal or polymer magazine.
Considering this, here are a few benefits and drawbacks to the two types of magazines.
Metal magazines:
The majority of metal mags are made of steel or aluminum.
Steel is usually heavier than polymer, and aluminum is lighter.
If you are carrying around a lot of extra magazines, then weight will matter.
However, if you are competition shooting you might want a heavier metal mag because the weight will help the mag drop faster.
On a durability scale, steel and aluminum are going to hold up better compared to polymer.
Everyone drops their magazines, so having a metal one that will hold up can be beneficial.
One drawback to metal magazines is that they can be bent or dented over time which could affect the way the magazine feeds.
Another drawback to metal mags is that they can rust.
Moisture can get into every part of the mag and cause corrosion.
The good thing is that magazines are easily replaceable.
Polymer mags:
Polymer is a type of plastic that is very strong (although, it’s nowhere near as strong as metal).
One good thing is that the polymer won’t bend like a metal mag can.
Polymer is also considerably lighter than steel and you will notice a difference in weight between metal and polymer magazines.
Plus, some polymer magazines have windows so you can see how many rounds are in the magazine.
Another benefit of polymer magazines is that they are cheaper than metal in most cases.
Also, the polymer is quieter than metal if you drop the mag.
Yet, polymers can swell or warp in extreme temperatures, and even wear out over time.
Cleaning solutions can affect polymer magazines, so be careful using them on your polymer mags.
So which type of mag is better?:
There is no question that metal is stronger than polymer. But, it can rust where polymers can’t.
I own both metal and polymer magazines and shoot both of them regularly.
This is why I think it’s a good idea to own a variety of magazines.
If you are bugging out, you might want to carry polymer magazines since they are lighter.
But if you are competition shooting you might prefer a metal mag that drops faster.
If you are thinking about adding magazines to your collection, I would make sure to buy factory mags no matter if they are metal or polymer.
If you can’t find factory mags, consider reputable companies such as Magpul.
They make high-quality aftermarket magazines.
Whatever you choose, always be sure to clean your magazines and inspect them for dents and cracks.
