All posts tagged gun mags

Translucent Magazines vs. Windows what’s the advantage?

Lancer AR15 MagsCalifornia Legal 10rd MGLS2320-01-1If we could offer an alternative to Magpul PMAGS, off the top of my head, I can’t think of anything but Lancer Magazines.   These seem to be extremely popular with competition shooters because the Translucent body helps them know what they have left in a magazine but in the real world, I don’t think counting bullets matters that much.  There are considerable differences between something like the Magpul window 30rd AR15 magazines and the Lancer, though.  Lancer magazines have steel feed lips and the PMAGS do not.  This is something that was somewhat of an issue with the Gen 2 PMAGS in extreme cold in Afghanistan because the plastic feed lips, at high altitudes and sub zero temperatures were cracking.   The Lancer claims their magazines hold up below ZERO and up to 150 Fahrenheit so that should prevent anyone from thinking they are “plastic” magazines.

One thing you have to consider if you are looking to add to your collection is whether or not a certain brand is going to work in your gun and the mags will drop free.   There are plenty of guns out there that are setup for USGI Magazines that may have issues with other brands, Lancer Magazines, Magpul, Thermolds,  but you have to think about what AR15 magazines are being used out there and is your firearm up to modern specs and should you modify your magazine release or just change brands?   There is some truth to “out of spec” magazines not dropping free, but you really need to do some testing in each of your firearms to know for sure if it works for you.   There are 556 and 7.62 magazines from Lancer with the clear mags.  The ability to count bullets on a magazine may not mean something to you but it “may” help you to know if you got plenty left or if you need to do a tactical reload.

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Ranger plates on gun magazines? Yep, that’s why base platers matter

Wilson Combat Magazines

Wilson Combat Magazines

I’ve been around the gun community for so long that there are certain things that just start to click, and then  you feel like you’ve arrived.   I didn’t understand why people were so particular about 1911 magazines and all of the various pads and plate lengths.   We’ve been selling AR15 parts and accessories for more than 7yrs and and I never felt the need for putting ranger plates on my pmags or GI magazines until I started shooting competition events.  Just those fractions of a second difference and primarily, the ability to securely grip or clear an empty magazine was improved if you had an extended base plate.  Sometimes magazines don’t drop free because of the shooting angles you are on and this seems to be very common with some 1911s.

I have stuck with Wilson mags for my Colt and Springfield Armory guns and haven’t looked back.   Some people like the 7rd magazines but I have never had an issue with any of my Wilson Combat magazines in 8rd, especially the ETM magazines.  The Black Elite Tactical magazines seem to be the hardest one for us to keep i n stock because our distributors don’t seem to get very many of them.   There are design improvements that are primarily geared to the competition shooter. The National IDPA event ususally gets a lot of Wilson Combat supporters and I was fortunate enough to attend some of those.   45acp is a great round for shooting steel and if you need a good magazine for your 1911, stick with the best.

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Pmags coming back in stock

magpul pmagsWe have factory Glock magazines, Beretta Magazines, Sig Sauer magazines,Kahr magazines and more listed here.  Chip McCormick magazines, Speed loaders for your j-frame for fast and easy reloading, range mags and spare magazines for your CCW and target shooting purposes.   We strongly recommend that any serious shooter or CCW holder have atleast 3 magazines for each firearm that they own, and we believe it’s a good idea to have a gun holster for every handgun you own.   Make sure you rotate your gun magazines when you are using them on the range and once you match up the right ammunition with the right magazines that you have, consider buying other gun magazines as range mags to keep your primary concealed carry firearm at it’s optimum reliability.   Serious should keep spare gun springs for their guns and we highly recommend Wolff gun springs.

Butler Creek gun magazines work very well with the Ruger 10/22 which is one of our favorite 22lr rifles.  It’s been a toss up for us to recommend our vest 1911 magazines because most of our customers tell us we have the best prices on magpul pmags and gun magazines  like Chip McCormick and Wilson Combat Magazines are the most reliable and friendly to the 1911 family.  Take a look at the 1911 mags being used in the State and National IDPA competitions and you’ll see for yourself. New Factory Glock magazines are less expensive than most gun mags, and Glock factory magazines are as rock solid and durable as the firearm.   Magpul Pmags have given new life and reliability to any AR15 Carbine, M4 or A2, direct impingement or piston driven.   Stock up on Kahr magazines we have some of the best prices and join our newsletter for discounts and promos. Maglula speedloaders will give you more range time and less loading time.

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Magazine capacity and balance, don’t forget it

There was a transition away from the high capacity or should I say, Standard capacity firearms back in the late 1990’s after the AWB of 1994, but it was mostly because the cost of a gun magazine might have gone up 200% or more.   You could easily spend $1000 for a firearm and magazines depending on what it was.   Once thing that I will that will never change is balance and speed.   I think we have recently witnessed the pinnacle of the M4 Carbine accessorizing craze because now we are seeing more and more that people are wanting lighter carbines and 15 lbs AR15 variants is something that really doesn’t help you out in close quarters gun fights, speed does m ore than what optics you have in close up fighting.

When it comes to caliber and capacity, you really need to put some thought into how much weight you want in a firearm especially a handgun.   I’ve shot some double stack 45acp handguns that were so heavy that taking them in and out of  holster felt like I was wielding a ball and chain.  Throw in spare gun magazines and the bulk and weight can quickly become extreme.  The Springfield XD is a nice 45acp gun, but the balance of a 1911 or even the Sig 220 seem to handle better.   And lets not forget, the reason for a handgun is to fight your way back to a rifle, so why bother trying to carry all that handgun ammo.

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Is a 6.8 SPC worth getting?

That is a question we get quite often around here and we always throw a question back to a customer.   People call or show up wanting us to give them advice but there are a lot of liabilities in telling people what to get or do.   So much of gun accessories and firearms has to do with the job at hand and a persons gun skills.   I’ve heard people claim that you can’t shoot long range with a 5.56 gun but I see it done all the time at local gun clubs.   Sure there are instances of high wind where a 5.56 bullet isn’t going to do very well, but sometimes only a 50 bmg is going to get the job done.

Even the trusty and reliable Mini 14 is an often over looked hunting Carbine, but I’ve seen white tails taken up in Vermont with 75gr expanding rounds.   The 6.8SPC would be a more powerful round than what the military is using today but it’s not really going to solve all of your problems.  Most of my friends that own them are using them for hunting rounds and not even for Carbine training ect.  The only problem you may run into when changing uppers in with the gun magazines.  The 5.56 round is better than any handgun round if you use the right kind of ammunition and the AR15 platform gives you lots of caliber options that are really best for upgrading your gun for better hunting.

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10rd magazines for 1911s?

This is something I’ve only delved into once and it wasn’t a great experience.   Back in the early 1990’s we had all of that assault weapons ban BS and and aftermarket gun magazines were everywhere.   Some of us that owned certain firearms ended up with unreliable firearms that should have been durable.   $90 Glock magazines were not uncommon and $14.99 for a jamming Mini 14 30rd magazine from USA magazines, which I believe is been long out of existence.   Many people fell back on revolvers and there was a big upsurge back into the 1911 because it was one of those guns that was originally designed for fewer than 10rds which was what the Assault Weapons Ban limited you to.

So some of us messed around with aftermarket 10rd magazines and all of the ones I tried failed pretty quick.   We tried to make the 1911 into it’s highest capacity that we legally could, but the balance pretty much got messed up.   Gun magazines, even a few rounds bigger than standard capacity can make the gun imbalanced or make it harder holster.   There are a lot of reasons to use 10rd magazines like Wilson Combat magazines or Chip McCormick which have a good reputation in competition shooting, but they will protrude considerable.   This may cause snagging on shirts ect if you are considering using one for CCW.   If you’ve ever practiced with you’re gun, which you should have, firing 8rds and reloading is probable a better CCW than thinking a 10rd magazine is going to give you more protection.

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Tactical holsters for secondary firearms

One of the first holsters I ever purchased that was not specifically for concealed carry was an Uncle Mike’s gun holster.   It had a metal clip that that was very secure on a belt, and it was made of nylon.   It worked very well for me for several training sessions and it had a front pocket that could hold a double or single stack magazine with a velcro strap to secure it.   I never had a real problem with the holster since it is made of nylon and isn’t as harsh to lay down on as a paddle holster.  Many paddle holsters aren’t going to tolerate roll overs.

I have thought long and hard about what type of handgun to have with me as a secondary firearm and the thought came to me that it really should be all about up and close fighting and then flee the situation and clear my primary and get back into the fight with that.   I don’t carry about caliber wars between 9mm and 45acp, I will gladly fight a handgun battle with an M4 Carbine.   My secondary firearm is a  fitted with Wilson Combat magazines for a Colt 1991A1.   I carry one mag in the gun, and 2 in a vest pocket.   I don’t think over loading myself with handgun ammo is a good thing and 24rds of 45acp is good enough for me to fight my way out of a situation.

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Wolff gun magazines and Wilson Combat

I finally got to pick up a few of the Wolff gun magazines that some of my friends have raved about and I’m still trying to find out how I didn’t know about these for so long.  I guess getting stuff made in the  gun accessories and firearms industries is getting easier now and many companies can go out there and just find somebody with the tooling.   These did feel more like Chip McCormick magazines and they were fairly close in design.   The one thing I know to monitor on 1911 metal magazines are the followers which is something I’ve had problems with in the past.  Usually it was the less expensive and practically considered to be thrown GI 1911 magazines.

Something I’ve seen happen on less durable 1911 magazines it that they will not hold up very well at all if you one up the guns.  If you have an 8rd magazine and put one in the chamber and then load it back up to capacity, you are putting slightly more tension on the magazines and the cheaper mags, and the magazine springs will fail you.  Wilson Combat magazines, Wolff 1911 magazines and Chip McCormick magazines will hold up.  I had problems with Colt magazines, GI magazines and some MecGar magazines when I did this and always had 2nd round malfunctions.   I’ve learned to not on up the guns, but single stack magazines seem to handle this better than double stack.

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