I am asking for your personal experiance on anything that would be generally bad or generally good. I was about to order some Magpul 30 round mags (I know, back ordered nation wide) and/or some Charles Daly mags for my D-M4. My pal tells me that Magpul is cheap junk and he would only buy HK mags (I see they are about $60 each!). I can get 3 Magpul mags for his one HK… but if the HK at $50-$60 is really buying me something… I’m not against it. I am against throwing away my pay checks on something just because it has a brand name attached to it.
So basically, if the Magpuls magazines are cheap and not also great performers… I really have no use for them. If they happen to be cheap in price and yet offer a great value because they also function great… I am all about it.
I see you guys talking about this Magpul brand over and over, and that was why I was leaning that way. But, maybe there is another brand I should be looking at to get the sweet-spot of price/quality/performance… or total value. What should I stay away from, and what should I be shopping for?
I’m no expert, and I slept in my own bed last night, but your friend sounds like an elitist jerk. Many of the guys on here swear by PMAGs. In fact, I drank so much of that kool-aid that the only AR mags I own are 30 round PMAGs. I like them because they’re at a good price point and seem to be tough as nails, not to mention kinda sexy.
+1 for PMAGs. They’re durable, reliable, and light. I currently own 5 PMAGs as well as 30 GI 30-rounders upgraded with the Magpul anti-tilt follower. If $$ is an issue, there’s nothing wrong with updated GI magazines.
As for the HK mags…I wouldn’t waste my money. You can get 2 or 3 PMAGs for the price of 1 HK mag, and they’re just as reliable.
The question to ask yourself is where did your esteemed friend gain his knowledge of PMAG’s? Does he own any? Probably not. So obviously he read some “gouge” on the net or heard too many stories in the local gun shop.
I won’t buy any other mags other than PMAG’s. If I was in desperate need then I would buy good quality G.I mags.
+1 on PMags! They are my go-to mag. The Lancer mags seem to be pretty good so far, but I’d still rather have a PMag. Also the USGI mags from Brownells and Bravo Co are GTG too. Good luck finding yours!
Have your friend take a look at the “Magpul PMag versus a Chevy Truck” video on youtube. That should motivate him to re-evaluate his feelings towards the quality of the Pmag (and they feed reliably, too ).
Here is my “test” of a Pmag >LINK< complete with bad pics.
Inside is a link to Stickman’s “test” as well. We both came to the same results, with Stick taking things one step further.
End result- I don’t buy metal magazines anymore (I have a lot of them already), unless I can find them with upgraded springs and MagPul followers for under $14 (my local cost for a PMag- when available). With that criteria in place I don’t buy many aluminum mags.
In the end, steel mags (regardless of brand) offer no benefit over PMags, and at about 3-4 times the cost. Steel mags are still susceptable to tube dings and feed-lip deformation at pressures well below the failure point for the PMag. For a while I was under the impression that the black Pmags were tougher than the other colors, but according to MagPul, that is not the case- they are all equal.
Upgraded GI mags (O-Kay brand, because I am superstitious :p) are every bit as reliable as new HK mags, and more so than well used ones due to spring life issues with the HK. I deal with steel HK mags literally every day at work. While HK mags are better than beat-up, worn-out black-follower GI mags, they are not a cost-effective approach when compared to other alternatives available today.
I do not have enough time with the Langer mags to have an opinion of them in comparison to PMags, though in my limited use (2 mags, less than 1,000 rounds) they have had no issues. The metal feed-lips seem to make some happy.
If I were offered (10) 30 round mags of any manufacturer for operational use I would have to go with Pmags. If I had the same offer for personal ownership I would take the HK mags, solely so I could sell them and buy 3-4X the number of Pmags, Lancers, or the TD offering for testing. I take anything I can if it’s free (except CProducts).
I would have to venture that your friend’s information/knowledge base is behind the curve and could do with some more recent info and experience.
Is the Pmag a subcatagory of Magpul or is it a seperate brand? I see Magpul on many various retailer websites, but I have not noticed the PMAG brand. Maybe I’m looking at the wrong retail websites…
The PMag is made by Magpul. Link
They are currently in short supply due to the post-election mag-orgy. Maybe someone else will be able to give lead time, but I wouldn’t hold my breath.
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