AK Magazine Question

General Firearms Other Semi-Automatic Rifles
1

I just bought an SGL-21, what magazines should I look for and what are the ones to avoid. Couldn’t find a magazine thread in the ak sticky.

2

First things first, https://www.m4carbine.net/showthread.php?t=40068, located under the AK sticky under the title “The Kalashnikov Magazine Primer”.

  1. Avoid Tapco magazines

  2. Avoid Pro Mag magazines

  3. Avoid Tapco and Pro Mag magazines at all cost

  4. Surplus steel magazines rock but check for dents on the body first as even a small one can cause FTF’s

  5. Bulgarian Circle 10’s rock

The general rule with AK mags is the more metal the better. The US Palm AK30 appears to be a halfway decent magazine with all the early issues worked out now. Surplus steel magazines can not be beaten when it comes to price but remember that when ordering online that you can sometimes get a mixed bag. My personal favorite are the Chinese style flat-backed surplus steel http://www.aimsurplus.com/product.aspx?item=MAK47E30&name=Surplus+European+Steel+AK47+7.62x39+30rd+Magazines&groupid=15. Eastern block surplus mags work but the rib will wreck the web of you hand before you know it. Even with gloves they cause me pain so I stick to Chinese flat and Circle 10.

3

Did us palm change the locking lug reinforcing? That was a big issue with the durability of their mags.

To echo the above:

For polymer: circle 10’s
For steel: flat back style

4

To be on the safe side at this point, avoid any polymer AK mag that isnt a Bulgarian “Circle 10” Waffle pattern mag. Anything else is junk, or questionable at best.

Any metal surplus mag should do fine, as others stated, get some that arent rusted or dented

5

Any military magazine from a country that issued the AK is good to go. South Korea did not issue it, stay away from Korean mags. The US did not issue it, stay away from US mags.

Also be sure you are getting military mags even if they are from a country that issued it. I bring this up because there are clear Bulgarian magazines and Bulgarian “bullet mags” that are both commercial crap.

6

Where does one obtain the circle 10’s?
All I can find are the commercial bullet type.

7

http://www.k-var.com/shop/home.php?cat=419&sort=orderby&sort_direction=0&page=2

They’re listed as out of stock, but they are getting more in.

8

A scholar and a gentleman.
Thank you.
:thank_you2:

9

I have had very good luck with these. The ones I purchased looked almost new.

http://www.aimsurplus.com/product.aspx?item=MAK47E30&name=Surplus+European+Steel+AK47+7.62x39+30rd+Magazines&groupid=15

10

I’ve bought all of my mags from AIM.
The flat back and the ribbed.
These flat backs are not NIB.
The ribbed ones were.
The ribbed ones also had a very stiff spring in them.

11

I bought 10 flat backs from AIM also and even thought they did not come in individually vacuum sealed bags they showed absolutely no sign of wear or even marks from ever being inserted once. Minimal amounts of cosmoline and a fantastic price, I’m surprised I haven’t another set of 10 :p.

12

I picked up a bunch of the flat back mags from Aim as well. Mine weren’t sealed, but were as close to new as you could get. Interestingly enough, some of them had “made in china” stickers on them. I think these are Chinese mags made for Albania. The two countries were very tight during the Cold War.

They work great. I think they are the best buy in AK mags right now.

13

I believe Templar confirmed in another thread that the flat backs are indeed Chinese.

14

I purchased four last night, thanks crusader

15

I’ve heard many times that arsenals will eat anything you feed them, but is there any type of ammo to avoid?

16

Templar says it best…

From Templar’s write up of a recent Vickers AK class found Here.

17

I also have an SGL-21 and never had any problems with any commonly available ammunition.

I have used wolf, brown bear, silver bear, and yugo surplus and it all works well.

I have found on prices that Aim is normally the supplier to beat and 70% of the time buy my 7.62x39 from them. I also found ammunitiontogo.com has good prices as well.

18

Can you fix this link?
I’d really like to read about the class and Templar’s observations on the guns and accessories being run.
Thanks! :slight_smile:

19

http://www.topnotchtactical.com/content-product_info/product_id-2662/arsenal_ak_47_magazine_30rd_7_62x39.html

Same price as K-Var. I just called them and was told they have both the 30 and 40 rounders in stock.

20

lol, top right is a direct link to the original thread but since you asked ;).

Templar’s AAR