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Posted: 1/18/2003 5:44:21 PM EDT
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Most of my GI 20 rounders drop out when I hit the mag release. My 30 rounders hang up part way out of the mag well. They all appear to be in good condition. Could the 30's be swelled up? How do I fix this problem? (50) |
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this is a new one to me. I don't know how to fix it but i can say all my 30 rounders "pop" out of my Colt and my Armalite. can you see if the magazines are binding in the magwell? i would pull the upper and take out the mag release and disassemble the magazine and use just the magazine body as a gauge to see if it's dragging on the magwell. |
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do the mags look bulged? i know my mags bulge when i load 30 rounds into a 30 round magazine. so i only load 28. if you have dial calipers i would measure them to see if they are thicker than the 20 round magazines. if so you may be able to put them in a vice and compress them. be careful as i am sure you can can bend the wrong part of the magazine. |
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I just fixed 2 of my 30rd mags that weren't dropping free, one was just barely hanging in the mag well and the other I had to pull hard to get it out. I put them in a vice and slowly bent them back to normal and now they both drop free and work fine. Put the mag in the vice lengthwise (mag would be horizontal in the vice - floorplate, feed lip facing left and right in the vice). Remember you only need to put the area of the mag that goes into the magwell in the vice. Don't squeeze the mag catch in the vice uless you have to, just squeeze on either side of it. Oh, you don't need to disassemble the mag before putting it in the vice, just in case you were worried about that. -David |
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I have seen two types of mag deformations. The first being the top of the mag starts to stretch out and needs to be compressed to solve the problem. As DavidinKS described a vice will do the job fine. If a vice is not available then a C-clamp works great as well. The second is when the mag actually "diamonds" being that the if you look down at the top of the mag it no longer looks rectangular. This is a harder problem to solve but can be fixed in a vice as well. Just remember to take your time when attempting to fix the mags because to much pressure may pop the welds. Some mags I have seen are to far gone to repair, but I just put those into the "range use only" category. |
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You can also use a C-clamp (with some small pieces of wood to protect the mag) to squeeze the mag. The mag is weakest at the top rear area of the feedlips, due to the cut-out for the bolt stop. This cubic inch of the mag tends to swell with use, and can be compressed back into shape. The key is to GO SLOW, otherwise you'll pop the spot welds and trash the mag. -Troy |
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You guys are on to something here. The stripper clip guide is tight slipping over these 2 mags also. I'm going to try the thing with the vice and see what happens. From now on, I'm thinking about taking the stripper clip guide with me and check mags with them at gunshows. This along with a good visual inspection should assure that I only come home with good mags, shouldn't it? Since it would be hard to carry around three lowers to test them in. Well, actually 5 lowers now. MM419 ** UPDATE **[bounce] The mags that drop free and function as they should all average around .990" in thickness. I did what you guys suggested and using a vise salvaged two - 30 round mags that I was going to trash. Thank You! $27 bucks saved. This site and it's members ROCK![beer] |
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Thanks alot folks. I measured the good mags with calipers and my 30's were wider at the top. I did the c-clamp squish and it worked. I did check my stripper clip guide on them before I applied the clamps and they slid on fine. Maybe the guides I have are wore out. Either way, I am back in business and ready to load up. BTW, the mag well is on a Bushmaster. Thanks again for the help. |
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