Magazine Reliability: MecGar 13-15-20 - Page 1

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Magazine Reliability: MecGar 13-15-20

Posted: 3/23/2015 12:37:13 PM EDT

Are the various Italian MecGar magazines for the HiPower, 13 or 15 or 20 round, any more or less dependable than the others?

The 13 and 15 are the same external size, but the 15 holds two more. Does that hurt reliability?

Posted: 3/23/2015 1:08:30 PM EDT

[#1]

I believe that MecGar makes the magazines supplied with a Hi Power. I only have the 13 round. 100% reliable. Visually can't tell them apart from original.

Posted: 3/23/2015 2:54:57 PM EDT

[#2]

Mec-Gar magazines are top quality! I've used both the 13 and 15 - Never had a problem.

Posted: 3/23/2015 2:56:32 PM EDT

[#3]

Mec-Gar's are GTG..

Posted: 3/23/2015 5:41:47 PM EDT

[#4]

Mec-gar mags are among the best on the market!

Posted: 3/23/2015 9:12:30 PM EDT

[#5]

I do think Mec-Gar does make the BHP magazines but I have one BHP magazine that is made by Beretta. I do not know where it came from but would like to find some more.

Vince

Posted: 3/23/2015 9:13:01 PM EDT

[#6]

Quote History

Quoted:
Mec-Gar's are GTG..

View Quote

+1

Vince

Posted: 3/23/2015 10:46:24 PM EDT

[#7]

Semi off-topic, but the .40 Mec-Gar BHP mags never ran well in my BHP. The feed geometry was a little different than the factory Browning mags and the follower didn't have the anti-tilt legs on them so rounds would occasionally nose-dive into the feed ramp. That gun had some other issues though that I couldn't nail down (slide used to lock back partway through a magazine), so I traded it for 9mm. YMMV.

Don't have any experience with the 9mm Mec-Gar mags but I've heard good things about them.

Posted: 3/24/2015 6:59:00 PM EDT

[#8]

A 13 round Mec-Gar came with the FN and is identical to the 13 round Mec-Gar mags now sold.

They are both marked MGBRHP13. The FN mag has a A after the number and the commercially sold ones have a B, whatever that is about.

I figure they will work for sure so 13 rounders is what I got.

Posted: 3/24/2015 8:33:29 PM EDT

[#9]

I have both 13's and 15's. Both work well.

Posted: 4/7/2015 11:38:10 PM EDT

[#10]

Haven't tried the 20's yet but the 13's & 15's are both equally excellent.

Posted: 4/8/2015 6:00:56 PM EDT

[#11]

The 15s use a different follower with no legs so in theory, it is more susceptible to tilting and nose-diving. And if you just take the spring and follower assembly by itself, you can see how that might happen; but in actual practice I've never had any issue.

Posted: 4/8/2015 7:21:02 PM EDT

[#12]

Quote History

Quoted:
The 15s use a different follower with no legs so in theory, it is more susceptible to tilting and nose-diving. And if you just take the spring and follower assembly by itself, you can see how that might happen; but in actual practice I've never had any issue.

View Quote

I've tried to get it to tilt with rounds in it. No dice, so I won;t be worrying about it. Having two more rounds in the same size magazine is very nice.

Posted: 4/8/2015 7:36:54 PM EDT

[#13]

I have several 15 round Mec-gars for my BHP. I haven't used them a ton - but I did run into a couple of incidences where the slide lock engaged when there was still one round left in the magazine.

I'm not sure if it was just one mag constantly doing it - or random malfunctions. My BHP is an 75th anniversary model that's pretty much a safe queen so I never bothered to number the mags.

Posted: 4/12/2015 9:58:14 PM EDT

[#14]

My 20 round Mecgar mag works great. Never had a single issue.

Posted: 4/12/2015 11:14:24 PM EDT

[#15]

I use the 15rnd MecGars as carry mags and I've got a couple of the 20s, never had any issues with any of them but I haven't run a ton of rounds through the 20s.

Posted: 4/19/2015 4:41:24 PM EDT

[#16]

I've got a pile of Mecgar 15s and 20s. All but one of my 8 20s actually hold 21 rounds. The 15 round mags are actually 15 rounds. Haven't had a malfunction yet, almost 2k rounds through them all combined. The 15s are more prone to pick up dirt if you drop them (like in USPSA competition for example) due to the holes drilled for ammunition viewing. It will be obvious that there is crap in it when you attempt to reload it though.

Posted: 4/20/2015 6:56:42 PM EDT

[#17]

Quote History

Quoted:
All but one of my 8 20s actually hold 21 rounds..

View Quote

Neat. I'll have to try it out. I carry a 15 in my HP and a 20 as a spare. If I can squeeze one more round in there, all the better.

Posted: 4/28/2015 11:54:33 AM EDT

[#18]

I have a Kareen Mk-III and owned two mec-gar 20-round mags in past. My Kareen isn't in the best of shape and the 20's were clearly NOS from a run at least 10 years old, but they did not work. Likely if I had a new mag catch they would but they just did not seat the mag high enough for the slide to grab the round consistently. 44mag as them in stock, I'm contemplating buying a couple to try out again.

The 15's work though. Love them!

Posted: 4/28/2015 5:54:14 PM EDT

[#19]

Glad I found this thread. I wanted to get some 15 rounders for the Arcus 98DAC I just ordered.

Posted: 5/3/2015 3:24:56 PM EDT

[#20]

Quote History

Quoted:
I have a Kareen Mk-III and owned two mec-gar 20-round mags in past. My Kareen isn't in the best of shape and the 20's were clearly NOS from a run at least 10 years old, but they did not work. Likely if I had a new mag catch they would but they just did not seat the mag high enough for the slide to grab the round consistently. 44mag as them in stock, I'm contemplating buying a couple to try out again.

The 15's work though. Love them!

View Quote

I've gotten all of mine from Greg Cote and they are good to go.

Posted: 5/3/2015 5:52:18 PM EDT

[#21]

$20 per at Brownells if u have c&r discount

Posted: 5/4/2015 1:26:49 PM EDT

[#22]

Quoted:
Are the various Italian MecGar magazines for the HiPower, 13 or 15 or 20 round, any more or less dependable than the others?

The 13 and 15 are the same external size, but the 15 holds two more. Does that hurt reliability?

View Quote

I have used all of the above in my HP. All work fine.

Posted: 6/4/2015 11:40:21 PM EDT

[#23]

Greg Cote indicated a while back that Mecgar was going to quit making the 20's, and they are no longer listed on Cote's site. You could email and ask him.

I have never had an issue with any Mecgar product, including their 15-round BHP magazines. They have flat out always worked for me.

[ARCHIVED THREAD] - Magazine Reliability: MecGar 13-15-20

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