Bullet21XD wrote:I'd like to know what you guys do to wear out springs. My SBE...the main gun in my arsenal is 12 or 13 years old, has suffered far more abuse, and has fired way more rounds than likely all others on this thread combined...has the original bolt spring and is still going strong.
I thought about getting a Wolff spring a few years ago just because I thought mine "should" be bad...but glad I didn't. It would have been a waste.
Corrosion over time will do it regardless of how well they are built. IMO the 1st generation Benelli's are (to-date) the most reliable autoloaders ever made, but still require routine maint. I'm not saying that as a Benelli fan-boy, I've owned many variations of an auto, but the M1/SBE1's are built tough, reliable, and simple..... Infact if I ever wear this one out, I'll look all over for another (my 3rd) H&K in box and likely pay more than a new (current) generation equivalent. However, Just like a car needs an oil change, tires or brakes every so often your gun will need some routine replacements. Think about the abuse that spring takes, now throw in the elements, moisture (snow, rain, ice) and corrosiveness of modern powders and exhaust blowing back into that tube and the fact that there's nothing helping it breath it will inevitably fail. Not because of poor craftsmanship or materials, just because if you use it, it will wear out. Again not just benellis, it'll happen no matter what flavor you chose to run....
No offense but 12-13 years is not a badge of honor... or a testament. To me, that's like saying I have a 5 year old car and being impressed you got 100,000 miles out of it.... At least I consider that gun to have lived a relatively short life... I would
expect a gun to last that long. Ive had dozens of buddies mysteriously impressed with their auto's (of all different brands) and how durable they were while they never failed to mention "and I've never ever even cleaned it". Like anything though if you chose to neglect it at some point it will fail. While you're right I don't know how much your gun has been fired, Tom Knapp's 1st m1 stopped shy of 1 million rounds..... I doubt yours was shot as much as his and I know for a fact he ran different springs. Personally it's just my personality to take a pro-active approach. I'd rather do everything in my power to see that things are functioning correctly vs. getting to another state (or country sometimes) only to find out something as stupid as a 10$ spring is making my gun, and it could happen to any auto gun, a single shot. To each their own though..... ultimately its up to you.