Been out of the 6.5 Grendel game for a while but just built another one and was wondering what are the best mags now. I did a search and didn't turn up anything helpful. Thanks for any info.

Steve...........

Most likely Elanders

17 rd Elander and 10-rd Duramag for me.

I’ve had issues with all the others it seems like but never those.

I have two of the new CPD Duramag 20 round 6.5 Grendel mags and eleven 17 round E-Lander mags.   I also have several original C Products and ASC mags.   I had one 25 round ASC mag I had to adjust the feed lip and I 24 round E-Lander which had rough welds that were dragging on the follower.  Once I filed the welds smooth the E-Lander mag has been 100% reliable.

I have never tried the D&H 6.5 Grendel mags or the Amend 2 polymer 6.5 Grendel mag.   Unfortunately lemons slip through with all the manufacturers.   I use the 17 round E-L and 20 round CPD Duramags the most.    I have a total of thirty 6.5 Grendel AR-15 mags and had to fix two and now all function reliably.

Another vote for E-lander.  I use both the 17 and 24 round sizes.  Zero problems.  Other brands were nothing BUT problems.

I still have some ASC mags somewhere that were pretty good with my last one, now if I can find them. I'll check out the E landers.

Steve.........

ASC have been good to me. The smaller elanders have worked, the standard size ones have given me issues

The ones I got from Alexander Arms worked great, but I don't know if they are even still in business...the magazines have worked that well for that long.  It has been over ten years since I bought them, and they are still going strong.

ETA:  I don't know if Alexander Arms made the magazines they used to sell, or if they had them made by another contractor..but I do know they worked great.

I had some C product magazines that were advertised as 17 round, but when received they only held 15 rounds.  I sent them back, and C-products just cut some of the bottom of the legs off the followers to get the magazines to hold 17 rounds, and sent them back.  Oddly, they work like a champ...I just thought it was an odd fix, but I Gotta admit that they work great.   At first I was pissed, but thought I would try them out...when trying them out, they worked great so I just live with them.

So far ASC magazines have worked very well for me in 6.5 Grendel and 9mm Colt style stick mags.

Genin

Now that's funny but at least it worked.

Steve........

ASC and Duramags have worked just fine for me.

I ordered some ASC mags and some 10 round E Landers and one 4 round E Lander for hunting if needed.

Steve............

I suggest you load your E-Lander mags upon receipt as they come new with stout springs.   Keep them loaded till you empty them by shooting on the range.   Keep the E-L mags loaded till the spring wears in.  To speed the process you can manually cycle the spring up and down with a wooden ruler or yard stick.   New E-L mags can be a little difficult to unload by hand.  I use a piece of plastic to push down the next to the top cartridge to relieve tension while push the top cartridge out.   Using the eraser on a pencil works good for pushing out a stubborn top cartridge even with tension relieved.


I like my E-L mags but they can be aggravating when new, especially if your unaware of their stout springs.

Thanks Vascar2 I didn't know that about E-Landers, I'll load them up as soon as they get here. It'll be a couple of weeks at least before I can get back to the Range.

Steve..............

I tried 5 Elander 24 round mags, 3/5 work well. The other two are trouble, but may loosed up over time. I just ordered a bunch of 17 round Elanders but haven't had time to give it a go.

E-Lander 17s & 10s and CPD 20s & 10s have always been reliable for me, especially with steel case.
E-Landers are heavy steel bodies with STRONG springs, I usually load em half full and give em some break in time. Some have complained of tight fits in some magwell but I’ve never had issues with an older Rock River Arms lower that was tight on gen 2 Magpuls or a PSA lower. CPD/Duramags never needed any break in.

E lander for 24rd.  

Asc for 5-10-15rd