Im sorry if this has "ben dun befo"....but I can only search back 6 pages on this forum.

I'd like to stay on the lookout for good mag deals on milsup steel 30 rounders. I know that Yugos are "good", but I don't know how to rate them in relation to all the other Euro bloc countries, as well as Koreans and on and on and on...

Please give me your opinion as to the "pecking order"..

If you could order by desirability, please give me a (1...2...3) list of mil-sup 30 round steel mags.

Thank you!

All metal surplus is essentially equal.  The key word is surplus.  Korean crap isn't in the equation.

It's all preference and how much they are at the time.

Yugo = has BHO follower, heavier

East European Spined = mostly the same

Chugo/Chinese Spineless = Lightest steel mag, easier to hold, harder to find, maybe more expensive now

Honestly, magazine weight is the only variable that matters to me in this.  And the winner for that are the spineless mags, but I have all types. The exact numbers can be found across many forums.

Some have countries add unique features, like the BHO, some have a nicer finish, some are rare and collectible, but all steel surplus mags perform equally.  The differences in price between them has more to do with availability, i.e., "collectibility", than it does with quality.  I like spineless mags because they're easier on the hands, but the overwhelming majority of mine are Yugos

My personal preferences and findings after owning 200+ various steel magazines from a variety of countries, this is how I would rate them if I had to take them into a fight (who cares what they cost or how rare they are at that point):

1.East German – Best fit, finish, and overall quality, stamping and welds are unmatched in quality, never had an issue
2.Chinese Polytech – Excellent fit and finish, sometimes have chrome followers and the three witness holes and spineless backs add to their appeal and functionality, never had an issue
3.Polish – Very nice fit and finish, never had an issue, nearly as well made as E.G. (have heard reports they dent more easily)
4.Russian – Fit is great, finish is more rough, stampings are more rough like the Romanian mags, never had an issue
5.Bulgarian - Very nice fit and finish, never had an issue, nearly as well made as E.G. (none of this applies unless milspec mags, most of the ones available are commercial junk with plastic followers and thinner steel)
6.Chinese Norinco – Good fit and finish, lots of sharp edges make them less desirable to me, I have actually drawn blood on the edge during a rapid mag change… but spineless is good
7.Egyptian – Good fit and sloppy thick painted finish, rougher stampings like Romanian mags, never had an issue
8.Romanian – Good fit and rough finish and rough stampings/welds, these vary the most in dimensions, so are sometimes too tight or wobbly in different guns.  Have occasionally encountered underpowered spring issues as well
9.Hungarian – Good fit and finish, stamping and welds are on par with Polish/Bulgarian mags, but I have had several 30 and 20 round mags that were difficult or impossible to load to capacity, followers hanging up or binding while loading are common as well.  They seem like they need a break in period or polishing on internals to work reliably.
10.Yugoslavian – Poor fit and good finish, stampings are nice, Have had floorplates pop off of several and some are so tight that they will not lock into any rifle without first being filed on the locking lugs.  Easy fixes but new/excellent condition mags should not need to be fixed.  I don’t find value in the bold hold open function as it slows down mag changes.

I have owned at least 5 of every mag I listed over the years and for most 20+ mags.  In this analysis I am only considering how magazines in lightly used to new condition behave.  A dented rusty heavily used mag is not indicative of anything about its origin, just that it is denty/rusted/abused…  In the end they do almost all function reliably as they should, unlike many other magazines for other rifles… (*CoughCough..ar…)  For the AK the magazines are actually a strong point of the rifle and add much to its legacy of reliability.  Just test them out before trusting your life to them

Of the steel mags I own, I "like" the Chinese ones best just for the aesthetics and ergonomics due to the lack of a sharp spine, but I mostly use my Yugo BHOs at the range because of the BHO feature. The AK I keep loaded at the house has a Chinese mag in it, though.
Now, I own far more regular eastern Euro mags (never bothered to try and tell which actual country they are from) than any other, and there's nothing wrong with them, but really nothing special either so mine are all stored away in a tote. Really, any Euro or Chinese steel mag should function 100% if it's in good shape. The only time I've really ever had function problems with any steel AK mags was if they had dents in them. Never messed with the Korean mags because there are just too many bad reports about them.

I have used Hungarian, Romanian, East German, Chinese and Bulgarian 30 rounders. The East German ones are by far the most well made and smoothest internally but I don't care for the blued finish vs. the painted.

I've had the same Hungarian mags since 1985-86 when the first SA-85s came in. Like them a lot and they are my go-to mags.  The rest of my "stash" are East German, but they are oiled and stored in plastic bags to protect against rust.

I don't like Chinese mags. No reason other than I just don't.

Of all of the Com-Bloc AK mags I have seen, handled and used over the years, the Romanian ones seemed to be the lowest quality, but they still worked just fine...

You really can't go wrong with any Com-Bloc mil-spec AK magazine, it mostly boils down to personal preference...

DD

For me, there is no real order,,,, If its inexpensive, it fits, and feeds, I will use it.

I have no real preference when it comes to brand or country of origin.

My Tapcos have been reliable, as have been the Korean mags, my european mags (dont know where they came from) and even my Plinker Tactical and Thermold mags have been good,,,,,

1. Russian slabsides, best most hardcore AK mags ever made, full 1mm steel.
2. E. German, probably the prettiest steel mags ever made, exceptional attention to detail, rock solid, these are what stays loaded and ready for emergency.
3. Russian Molot 40's
4. Chinese
5. Tie- between regular Russian and Hungarian and Polish, the Hungarian 20's are very nice and are in high demand right now.
6. Old-style top-loading drums, made by Russia and Romania.
7. Yugos, nice mags but I have no use for the BHO feature.
8. Bulgarian 40-round splice mags
9. everything else except for Koreans, and jury is still out on the new Croatian mags.

Steel commie.  That's it.

I like any steel commie mags . Collectible I don't know enough how to rate those

1- Chinese flatbacks
2-East German
3-Polish
4-Russian
5-Random surplus commie mags- Romy,Bulgy,etc
6- Yugo - I dont like the bho feature of the yugo mags




Last place-  crappy Korean garbage mags

My opinion...

1) East German-Blued finish, great quality and consistency.
2) Polish-Great quality and consistency but have a painted finish
3) Yugoslavian-Blued finish, heavy duty, I call them "bomb proof" mags
4) Hungarian-Much like the Polish mags, they also have a painted finish
5) Bulgarian-On par with the Hungarian and Polish mags

No experience with any others, the above are what I have besides a few Russian Bakelite mags.

No experience with Korean mags so I cannot say either way, they don't appear to be surplus as they are described as newly manufactured which seem to made expressly for sale in the US market. Also, its my understand that the rear locking lugs are made of plastic and held on with glue, not sure but thats what I heard. The South Korean military doesn't use the AK,  they use the Daewoo K1A1 which is their version of the M-16 and fires the 5.56 NATO round.

Yep, that's a great list. A couple comments:

Older is usually better. Old Polish, Hungarian and Romanian mags are blued and are really nice. Super duper solid. Those old Romanians are as good as any other mag ever built, don't let anyone tell you otherwise. And the Polish and Hungarians stayed nice even after they quit being blued. Very solid.

I don't believe for a second that all comblock mags are the same. They may well all function the same, but undoubtably there are those that feel much more solid, that have a better patina, and that just look and feel right. I have owned, handled, inspected and almost studied at least 1000 comblock steel mags, and there's no way in the world they're all the same. The old blued ones tend to be a tad bit wider and if you have a loose magwell they might fill it up nicely.

I could go on all night, but let me say about the Bulgarians: be really careful ordering them online. The new ones are cheap and thin and don't even have a steel follower. If you can find real, old ones, they're as nice as Polish or whatever else. But I'd guess most retailers that today sell steel Bulgarian mags are selling newer ones. Don't buy them.

 

Thanks for your opinion

See pictures below, I have one of those rare blued Polish mags you're referring to and they are equal in quality to the East German mags. However, they are rare, East German mags are still readily available for the most part.

See pictures below of some of my Hungarian "tanker" mags which are painted and I have one of those rare blued Polish mags you're talking about, they are equal in quality to the East German mags, however, they are rare as where East German are still readily available for the most part.