Anyone that thinks a Tapco mag is the standard for a plastic/polymer AK mag obviously hasn't used one or hasn't yet had the front lug snap off.  

Yes, Tapco will replace it but you have to ship the broken one back to them and if you bought the Tapco mag because you liked the plum or orange color they came in, you are going to get a black one as a replacement.  Been there, done that.

If a Magpul is using Tapco as a standard for their AK mags, I will keep my foreign AK mags.

There is a reason that Russian and Bulgarian mags have metal in the lugs and the feed lips.

I did read your post carefully.  And I am proficient with the English language, deconstruction, critical thinking, logic and equivocations - stuff they used to teach in High School.

"By the time we're done . . . It may not meet the benchmark we chose for a true military grade magazine . . . "

I  think that  your choosing to make a magazine that is less than military  quality (your words) is   foolish.

"we also are not in the business of blindly reproducing items based upon others decades old engineering. "

I think your rejecting out of hand what has worked for decades is not a virtue.  "Old" does not mean obsolete, and it's quite possible that our father's and granfather's generations knew what they were doing.  That is not to say we haven't experienced significant advancements in material science, but please save the "old is bad, new is good" mantra for a different audience.

We have enough cheap, commercial, less-than-military quality magazines on the market already.  What we need is a military equivalent.  I'd be willing to pay a price for it that is less than a Bulgy ((10)).  I might even pay the same, for the 922 compliance.  I think the current price of ((10)) is elevated because Kvar has a monopoly.  A military equivalent magazine available will drive their price down, I suspect to below $30.   A non-military equivalent price will not affect the price of military grade, as professionals will still buy those over yours.  And the cheapskates will buy the TAPCOs.  Which leaves who as your market?  

You can't out-cheap TAPCO.  Seems to me, the only open market is a new, US Made magazine that meets or exceeds the military standard exemplified by the ((10)).

If you can do it without metal lining, great.  I'll do a drop test like K-var's  (6', cable release, muzzle, mag, stock.).   But if people expect a feature, and it isn't there, they will be suspicious and this will reduce sales.  

Anyway, good luck with it.  I'm an ak manufacturer and end user, and I have a vested interest in high quality US parts.

I bought three to try out. I have a Poly that needs US mags to be compliant.

My experience with Tapco 74 mags was underwhelming.  I have much higher hopes for Magpul.

What is the "important mission" that a plastic lugged, cam-lock magazine warrants?  

Gunplumber, what are you going after here?  Why the anger?  Why pick a fight?

I think pretty clearly Magpul is making a cheaper option magazine, its purpose is for training, etc.  Everyone expects a mag to have a service life.  These let you train at the range for cheap.  

Then Magpul is testing a second option which will cost more but be more robust.  It is ostensibly more reliable, and better suited for situations where you may need to freeze your magazine and then drop your rifle on it, like in combat.  

Are you confused that sometimes a more expensive option gives you greater features?  And, conversely, the cheaper option would not have as many features?  You are familiar with cost/benefit analysis, yes?  

MagPul, I feel, is being clear here.  If nothing else, they are constructing an American made mag (3 parts!) that will offer similar reliability/attributes to the ((10)).  If you don't like it, you have the option not to buy it.  So I can't conceive why the anger at MagPul for attempting to enter this market.  All other options remain available to you, as before, for now.  

MagPul, as an outsider to this internet "discussion," I don't think you need to repeat yourself again.  From my perspective Gunplumber is trolling a bit.

Unless Magpul introduces a reinforced magazine, I have absolutely no use for their current "Range Mag" that is easily broken.

No need to reinvent the wheel. Perhaps these magazines were aimed at the more budget conscious consumer under the Magpul name that ususally represents quality? But replacing a bad magazine with another bad magazine doesn't make much sense. Might as well buy a Bulgy waffle and call it a day.

in a 20 round version

5 pages? Isn't that enough on this beat-to-shit subject?

Magpul, even though i'm not a fan of this particular product, I think it's damn cool of y'all to participate so actively in the discussion, and maintaining a cool head about it too is class, have seen some other vendors hereabouts come unglued and start spewing over criticism.

Please consider an MOE handguard for AK's in your future R&D, i'm down for at least a couple.

DON'T!!!  This is NOT GD, please remember---HM  When the question is uncomfortable - malign the one asking it, in the hopes it will obfuscate the issue.

I'm a Magpul customer and a great supporter of the company - I use their furniture on all my ARs, and have modified their pistol grips to fit my SCARs (as well as their excellent SCAR selector).  I used their .308 mags when I had an AR-10 type.

I really do not understand the motivation behind coming out with a product that, by their own admission, does not meet the standard of a surplus mag.  Magpul has for example, a variety of AR stocks in different price ranges, with different features - but even the most economical is a quality product - it just lacks optional features.  

A cam-lock magazine (AK, FAL, etc) is not an AR mag. It is subject to much greater forces than an AR mag.  The magazine is the weakest link of any semiauto rifle.  The number one cause of failures in the various AK classes I have participated in, both as a student and as an assistant instructor, have been magazine related.  It makes no sense whatsoever to me, for a company with the quality reputation of MagPul, to come out with a  magazine with the same features as the TAPCO.  

The magpul rep stated there was an "important mission" for the all-plastic mag.  I asked what that mission was.  That's trolling?  

I suspected it was to compete with TAPCO for the bottom of the market . . . but this is not a goal I'd expect to come from Magpul, so I hoped I was wrong.  I was hoping the company standards were run objectively off product quality and not by accountants suggesting that cheap, sub-standard products are more profitable.

So asking the rep to expand on a statement he made is picking a fight?  (But his implying that those who do ask rational questions can't "read carefully". . . . that's quintessential diplomacy - eh?

Hey - if the rep says "we want a product to sell to the low-information casual user who doesn't care about anything but price", I'd be disappointed, but understand.  They are unfortunately the majority of the AK market, and the reason I stopped manufacturing AKs for resale. I couldn't bring myself to lower my quality standard to their price point.  But TAPCO already does that.  It's like when Joe of Joeken tried to sell me his visually out-of spec receivers - his selling point was "they're cheaper than Century".  I guess I didn't realize that was something to aspire to . . . .



Yes - I fail to see the benefit of aiming low.  Not just in the mag, but in the company reputation.



no, they constructed a mag they admit does not meet the attributes of the ((10)).



And from my perspective, you seem like fan boy incapable of objective analysis.

But whatever - I've asked my questions and the rep has avoided answering them - and you've accused me of trolling for daring to ask (what seems to me) to be a perfectly logical question.    So I'll just wait and see.  I have a WASR 10 in the shop in such bad shape it may not be cost effective to repair it.  It will make a great test rifle.   I really want to be wrong here . . . but I have enough experience with the AK as a manufacturer and gunsmith and hard-use end-user to be highly skeptical of any cam-lock mag that does not meet the level of construction of a ((10)).

Taken care of---Please don't quote a violation.  Thanks---HM

What's not going to fly, his analytical statements based on facts rather than opinions? I don't own any 7.62 AK's but Gunplumber hit the nail on the head, why try to fix something that isn't broke i.e. surplus steel mags.

The way I see it, this mag wasn't to contend with the Circle 10.

However with the stronger M3 polymer that they are using, I see it as a competition to metal stamped mags that are coming in now, along with the Korean contract mags, and even Tapco.  Many of the stamped steel mags I have seen coming in are bottom of the barrel.  Many are rusted, and the bodies are often dented.  The KCI mags are hit and miss as to if they work.  The two I bought don't.  I don't like the type of polymer Tapco uses, I find it way too brittle.  For me I like the AK Pmags because I don't have to sort through stamped steels that cost a bit more (if I order from an online retailer I dont get pick of the litter).  The KCI mags are a disappointment in my experience.  

I have run all ten of my AK Pmags at the range, and handed some off to my less than gentle friends.  All but 3 have scrapes and nicks.  The dummies didn't tell me how many rounds were fired.  However they, nor I, have experienced any failures with them.  So for me, they serve adequately in the niche I see them as fitting.

Never mind.

I agree with his statements completely, if you would have read back a few pages you would know that Riverine.

What's not going to fly here is calling people names in a technical forum, this isn't the place for that and will get the thread locked.

Copy on everything you said, you can't blame a man defending himself for being called a troll?
 

Agreed.  GP nailed it and I could not agree more.  The whole "let's make better than OK" attitude in regards to the MOE AK mags leaves a bad taste in my mouth.  Let's not have one off-color statement (and possible ensuing debate over it) derail the thread.
 

Hmm this thread is trying to get fully derailed so try this one: I bought a dozen of these mags and guess what happened? Nothing. They worked, flawlessly. No I didn't run them over with a steamroller in -45F weather but it's fantastic for a $12 magazine. I also own polish, Chinese and other com-bloc mags, no problemo.

Or get it locked.

jmho but this thread is getting tiresome anyway, we've already had this same scrap over in the mag thread, and really, it's just another fucking magazine, it's not the holy grail.

molehill going mountain.

no kidding man. Ever since numerous US companies tried to come out with their version your 7,62x39 mag and tailor to US market....I was always scratching my head going "why?" Comm Bloc mags that were.. are...and WILL be available are still fairly inexpensive....on  top of that they are freaking near RCH indestructible...reliable and proven for over 70 some years. Now don't get me wrong, I am ALL FOR new and innovative stuff....but answer me, why would I want to chance a 7.95$ Izhmash mag that I bought not too long ago right here on EE for a 20 or 30 (USP) mags that still have not gone the same amount of testing as the real deal mags?

is it 922 r that people are worried about? is it the weight? is it because it MMURICAN made?

not too long ago you can buy ALL DAY LONG comm-block mags for under 10 bucks. is that the times have changed and they are no longer available? just asking...

I thought "REDACTED-HM" was mild to  describe one who assigns "anger", "picking a fight", and "troll" to elicit an emotional response of "GP baaaaaaad!"  It is classic "management."  That is, when one presents a perspective the other doesn't like, accuse the one doing so of some character defect.  Thus those who support border enforcement are "racists".  Those who support traditional marriage are "homophobes".  One who is clear and unambiguous is "shouting" or a "hater".  It is a jack-in-the-box knee-jerk response for one incapable of contesting the person's position.  It is also characteristic of the left, as demonstrated by my examples.  So if "libtard response" is inappropriate, I apologize.  It was just short-hand for "irrational emotive devoid of logic and reason, as is characteristic of the left, and lacks even clever wit as a saving grace."

This whole thread sounds like some people bought a shit ton of Magpul mags and got butthurt when they found out what they bought wasnt what they expected because they probably never read into it.

I'll just put it out there again.  I bought some Tapco mags when they first came out with them just to see if they were worth the $10.00 or not (seen reports that they sell for $7.00 or so now).

The first one I locked into an AK broke off at the plastic no metal containing front lug before the rear of the mag even latched into place.  That was enough for me to decide to never waste more money on a magazine that didn't have metal in the locking lugs.

Reason I don't buy polymer mags without metal in the feed lips?

I have some .22lr AR15 uppers.  I purchased a good quantity of Blackdog Machine polymer magazines with no metal in the feed lips.  After about a year the feed lips began failing even when the magazines were not being used.  Yes, BDM replaced the mags that were returned with mags of a new design with metal feed lips but once a company's fails you lose any trust in their products (on this site in their forum there were many examples of the mags failing).

... or not.  I'd bet a lot of people pointing out the negative either bought (maybe) one or (most likely) zero.

I've got about a dozen Magpul AR magazines and one pistol grip.  As far as metal AR magazines, I've bought about 50 metal ones in the same time period and have over 100 AR magazine in my stash.  I had 8 AR15's and extra uppers, currently have 4 complete ARs and uppers in various calibers.

AK's?  I have had over 15, not exactly sure how many over.  Currently have maybe 7, with 5 for sale.  Not sure how many AK mags I have in my stash now. 50+?

I have sold hundreds of AK/AR magazines on the EE over the years from time to time to fund my gun buying.

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