M1A magazine question.

Rocklobster

I'm the proud owner of a new Springfield SOCOM 16, and need some info. What magazines will work well? I really hope I don't need to spend fifty to sixty dollars each for a high-quality unit. I've seen ads for USGI parkerized mags for around twenty - what about those?

(Of course, I guess I shouldn't scrimp on magazines for a $1500 rifle, though, should I?)

Thank yew.


My mission is to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.
If multiculturalism is the answer, it must have been one hell of a stupid question.

gregorskiff

greetings!
conratulations on your new socom!
be careful what "USGI" mags you buy...there are some convincing fakes out there.

try going here,
http://www.m-14forum.com/

there is extensive discussion of the pros and cons on various m14 mags and links to good deals. also anything else you may want to know about john garands legacy and legends..awesome group of people there...this is where the M14/M1A experts live.

my two cents worth? i am certainly not a pro but heres my findings; usa mags?..i threw mine in the trash, thermold mags fall on my toe when i attempt to chamber a round....ouch.
i spent 35 bucks each for my 20 round 1960's vintage usgi surplus mags a couple years ago....MONEY WELL SPENT!...absolutely no problems.
cheers

Laredo Lefty

Rock,,,,,,,, I have a Socom. I have a bunch of older US M-14 mags I bought at guns shows years ago. I was able to get them for 5 bucks each in used but great cond, and 10 bucks new in the wrapper.

The older GI mags are by far the best, never a malfunction. I also have some Thermold mags. They work just fine.

I would suggest biting the bullet and getting the best. They will last you for many years.

Joe
"Never let school interfere with your education"

codenamepaul

Don't skimp on the mags. Buy the USGI only. Anything other than 20 rounder is a fake. The US gov never made anything other than 20's
I have tried a number of different ones in my M-1A and the USGI are most reliable. Stay away from the chinese ones, I could never get them to work at all.

nmyers

USGI mags are dark gray-black. They have the manufacturers code stamped on the spine. They ALWAYS have the manufacturers code stamped on the spine. If the manufacturers code is faint, or you can't find it, or there appears to be pitting under the parkerizing, walk away; I see a lot of this junk at gun shows.

I see both good USGI mags, & junk mags, for the same price: $25-30. So, only buy the good stuff. Check with Cole Distributing; they have a great reputation for quality USGI mags at a fair price.

There are different Chinese mags. The older Norinco/Polytech mags are light silver park, & have worked well for me. More recent Taiwanese mags are blued; I haven't tried them.

Neal

king999

with all due respect I must disagree with CODENAMEPAUL. I have never had any problems with the chinese mags-either communist or taiwanese. The determinantof quality is whether the retaining "lump" at the top of the spine is welded on or whether it is stamped. Welded is what you want, Also a shooting buddy who was a CIA sniper in Nam told me that there were a few, not many, 30 rd M-14 mags. It is possible that they were taiwan mfg, rather than US.
Morty

Rocklobster

Thanks for the excellent advice. I was fairly sure that USGI mags would be OK - they're always a good bet in my AR-15. Now I know how to identify them, again similarly to the AR-15 mags.

I've found a few Vietnam-era mags, new in wrapper, at $60 each. Whew. However, there seem to be lots of parked ones for around $20 - $35. Midway has Springfield OEM mags for $35. I bet they'll work well.

As always, there's plenty of good advice and help here on GB. Thanks again!


My mission is to comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable.
If multiculturalism is the answer, it must have been one hell of a stupid question.

nmyers

Springfield Armory doesn't make their own mags. They buy from USGI contractors. The last I bought from them were marked CMI (Checkmate Industries, an excellent manufacturer.)

Neal