Do polymer frames inherently degrade over time?

Do polymer frames inherently degrade over time? I'm not talking fuddlore like "Ha that Tupperware gun is gunna melt on your dash!". More like there 130 year old Mosins that still function fine. Will a Glock or Scar that isn't shot to shit still be gtg next century?

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  1. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    I thought plastic lasted longer than wood thought even when untreated with glass like modern gun polymer is

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Well the wood isn't the important part that the polymer is being compared to. Rather, the metal receiver is.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Well the wood isn't the important part that the polymer is being compared to. Rather, the metal receiver is.

      Sorry, that is to say that I'm wondering what the realistic lifespan of a polymer frame is.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Yes and no. Plastics do tend to weaken over time and break, especially when exposed to certain outside factors (UV light, heat, etc). The difference is that your plastic is constantly breaking down into smaller pieces of plastic that more or less last forever. That's why studies into microplastic exposure are becoming more prevalent. I guarantee you have plastic in your blood right now.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      That's a shitty comparison dipshit, wood can be grabbed from a forest and cut into a new stock. You can't cook up a polymer chemical compound like the frame I don't care how many 3d printers you have if you have the (discontinued) oem glock style polymer etc they just don't hold up the same and almost nobody with a 3d printer knows how to make shit just look for file and print and hope it doesn't print spaghetti. It's more like 1911 frame vs glock frame 30 year endurance, up exposure degrades polymer etc there are some expensive as frick gen 1 glocks around so that should give you an idea but they're more than likely safe queens. I'd say it's like a magazine, consumable item, even trigger pin holes in ar forged aluminum receivers egg out so polymer pin holes gonna be worse. The 80% rule of the atf has struck a death note to glock frames when they age out and can't be replaced, they play the long game, make your children grow up knowing less about gun rights etc. Get a steel framed pistol if you want it to last forever as like an heirloom piece.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        You are right across the board.

        Even "real" polymer frames are consumable items. A good current Glock frame will take 10s of thousands of rounds, but if you actually EDC a Glock then nature will do more to that frame than the piles of ammo will. Compound that by shooting bads for every range trip and not cleaning enough (or cleaning too much, or using inappropriate solvents to clean it), you can drastically shorten the lifespan of that frame with what amounts to "real world" usage.

        3D printing is a hobby unto itself, folks who buy printers because they want guns are in for a vicious learning curve when they find out they can't just hit "print." If you're an experienced printer who actually knows what they're doing (and hasn't just been running default profiles on a Prusa Mk3 since day one) then honestly it's not hard to print a frame really well. It's easy as frick to find existing designs, and there are a shitload. Ultimately though, it's just a disposable frame, even the really good designs printed well in the right materials won't hold up remotely as well as the real deal. The best reason to print a gun frame is for fun, if you're printing for your EDC then you're fricking asking for it.

        • 2 years ago
          Anonymous

          miserable b8, apply yourself

  2. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    I've found old toys from my childhood, many were made of low quality plastic that eventually kinda melted and became sticky. When you touch them you'll have remains on your hands. Rubber like plastic is most affected by this.
    However there are also some toys that were just fine, I guess they were made of better quality plastic?

  3. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    just dont store your guns in a safe with an ozone generator lol

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      For hundred of years ?

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        yep not at all

  4. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Plastic tends to degrade with exposure to sunlight and with exposure to some solvents. Generally speaking plastic is superior to wood with respect to standing up to negative environmental conditions, which is why it has replaced wood in modern weapons.

    • 2 years ago
      Anonymous

      Frames aren't made out of wood, buddy.

      • 2 years ago
        Anonymous

        Not anymore, he mentioned the 130 year old mosins, so comparing plastic to wood is relevant. The receiver on a scar isn't plastic but the lower is.

        https://i.imgur.com/I3ZRlUo.jpg

        Do polymer frames inherently degrade over time? I'm not talking fuddlore like "Ha that Tupperware gun is gunna melt on your dash!". More like there 130 year old Mosins that still function fine. Will a Glock or Scar that isn't shot to shit still be gtg next century?

        Steel is obviously a superior material to plastic and aluminum with respect to durability and longevity but if a weapon only needs to last one deployment, a tradeoff is made between weight and durability. The only advantage for plastic or aluminum is weight. A properly stored piece of plastic should outlast a 130 year old mosin.

  5. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    wood is made of polymers.

  6. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Polymer tends to get brittle with age but idk about the polymers modern pistols are made from. I'm sure each manufacturer uses different types of polymer and will experience different levels of degredation.

  7. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    Plenty of 60+ year old Remington Nylon 66 rifles floating around and still running just fine. They're made of the same stuff the majority of polymer frames are made of, glass-fiber reinforced nylon. Specifically, PA66.

    More typical now is glass fiber reinforced PA6 Nylon. Glocks are made with a proprietary PA6 based nylon they call "Polymer 2." Virtually all polymer firearms are made with some Nylon blend, proprietary or off-the-shelf, it's extremely well suited to the task.

    Nylon receivers will absolutely last like a motherfricker, they will stand the test of time much like a steel one, if they're stored correctly. Unlike a steel receiver, they don't show their degradation as clearly, and what constitutes proper storage is a little bit different.

    With steel, rust is probably the biggest concern of long-term storage. You can see rust, you can see a fricking pinhole that's eaten into a barrel, you can see the pitting and rusty crust of a rusted bolt or receiver quite easily. You can also often clean rust, and depending on the severity you may recover the the weapon entirely without any long-term issues at all!

    Nylon not so much. It can embrittle over time, and just about anything that "affects" it will eventually cause it to become brittle and weak. Big Offenders: UV exposure is bad, high temps are bad, ozone, Acids (even weak Sulfuric acid will murder Nylon), Diesel Fuel, Hydrogen Peroxide, and Anti-freeze.

    Gun-specific Nylon formulations are extremely UV, chemical, and heat resistant, far more than "typical" Nylon, don't sweat your lube choice.

    Put your Glonk away clean, without getting that shit on it, store it out of direct sunlight, it should last more-or-less indefinitely. If your frame appears to fade in color, swell, warp, form cracks, form texture in areas where there wasn't previously, or feels dry and brittle to the touch (it won't feel smooth and cool the way you expect of plastic, more like rubbing chalk,) then your polymer frame *MIGHT* be dying.

  8. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    more then likely it will be floating in the oceans with the rest of the plastic trash!

  9. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    The polymer used in Glock Gen1's are a good example of the durability. They were made 30+ years ago and still function fine. It is true some polymers will break down over time, but the stuff used in guns is not one of them.
    Unless you're talking about holoshits

  10. 2 years ago
    Anonymous

    I have done a lot of reading on this topic. And found some good posts by a chemical/plastics engineer on some fudd forum from the early 00s.

    The tldr is that Glock specifically did some UV testing to get Denmark to adopt the Glock 20 for their arctic patrol. They basically exposed it in a test chamber to the equivalent of 100 years of sitting out in the sun and it only lost 3% of, I forget the right term, tensile strength? Something like that.

    Results will vary depending on what plastic is used by which company. But glocks are good to go.

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