Plastic P-Mags VS Aluminum GI Mags for AR

[Deacon]

I haven't had much in the way of problems with G.I. mags if they have a good follower, but for my own kit, definitely pmags.

 

[henschman]

teflon-coated aluminum mags with the tan anti-tilt followers are cheaper and seem to work just as well, so I voted thataway. They also drop free a little more briskly than poly mags.

 

[SMS]

Interesting note relative to the thread. Big Green has issued official policy forbidding the use of any magazines other than the authorized NSNs (Pmags do not have one of the authorized NSNs). It's not quality driven in regards to Pmags...but it is, at least partially, as a result of other sub standard after market mags being used. Another aspect is Big Green's politics...TACOM didn't get funding to test the mag, TACOM didn't approve the mag, you can't use the mag!

TACOM LCMC MI 12-021 M4-M16 Improved Magazine and the Use of Commercial Magazines
Originator: /C=US/O=U.S.
GOVERNMENT/OU=DOD/OU=ARMY/OU=ORGANIZATIONS/L=CONUS/L=WARREN
MI/OU=TACOM/OU=TACOM SAFETYOFUSE(UC)
DTG: 301307Z Apr 12
Precedence: PRIORITY
DAC: General

//UNCLASSIFIED//
Subject: Maintenance Information (MI) Message, TACOM Life Cycle Management
Command, (TACOM LCMC) Control No. MI: 12-039, M4/M16 Improved Magazine NSN
1005-01-561-7200, Part Number: 13021312, Cage Code: 19200, Old Magazine NSN
1005-00-921-5004, Part Number: 2411362962382, Cage Code: 13629, and the use
of commercial magazines. End Items: M16A2 NSN 1005-01-128-9936, M16A3 NSN
1005-01-357-5112, M16A4 NSN 1005-01-383-2872, M4 NSN 1005-01-231-0973, and
M4A1 NSN 1005-01-382-0953.

1. Distribution:
a. This is a Maintenance Information (MI) Message. Commanders/Directors
of Army Commands (ACOM)/Army Service Component Commands (ASCC)/Direct
Reporting Units (DRU), Army National Guard (ARNG), US Army Reserve (USAR)
Command, US Navy (USN), US Air Force (USAF), US Marine Corps (USMC) and
other Service Commanders and Responsible Offices will retransmit this
message to all subordinate Commanders/Activities.
b. This message will be available on the Safety First Web Site located
on the TACOM Unique Logistics Support Applications (TULSA) portal within
twenty-four hours of transmission. Access to the Safety First Web Site
requires CAC Card authentication. You must first request access to the
Safety First Web Site. To request access click here
https://tulsa.tacom.army.mil. For assistance, email the TULSA Helpdesk at
[email protected]. The Safety First Web Site also has the
capability to email Safety and Maintenance messages directly to your inbox.
To subscribe to the mailing list, click on, E-Mail Subscriptions, on the
Navigation bar.

2. Issue: TACOM has become aware of units ordering 30 rd. commercial (i.e.
polymer, etc.) magazines for their M4/M16 family of weapons. The M4/M16 Army
authorized magazines are the following: NSN 1005-00-561-7200 (improved
magazine) and NSN 1005-00-921-5004 (older magazine; use until exhaustion).

3. User Actions: TM 9-1005-319-10, the Additional Authorized List (AAL),
states that NSN 1005-00-921-5004 is authorized, as well as NSN
1005-00-561-7200. Units may use the older magazine NSN 1005-00-921-5004
with the green follower until exhausted. The improved magazine is available
in stock, NSN 1005-00-561-7200, and has a tan follower. The improved
magazine features an improved follower and follower spring. These new
features help to reduce the risk of magazine-related stoppages. Units are only authorized to use the Army authorized magazines listed in the technical manuals. Remember; "tan-is the plan, green-start to lean, black-take it
back." Magazines with the black follower are the oldest and should be turned
in to your unit supply sergeant or local supply point.

4. Unit Commanders, contact your local TACOM LCMC Logistics Assistance
Representative (LAR) or your State Surface Maintenance Manager upon receipt
of this message for assistance. For assistance in locating your TACOM LCMC
LAR, see below.

 

[Hump66]

Pmags. Lifetime warranty.

 

[Erick]

I love the P-Mags. I think the quality is superior but the main difference to me is the self-leveling followers. They also seem to be a lot quieter without the rattle.

 

[Sooner67]

P-Mags!

 

[ef9turbo]

Pmags here. I've tried Pmags, Lancers, Tangos and GI's. I put them in that exact order.

 

[langston302]

I grew up on aluminum. Just felt cheap. I had failures on top of failures. Great for range work and training but I would never trust them in a gunfight.

I use my pmags for duty use and training. I have had extremely good luck with them. I had one double feed once but it was more my fault than the mags. See I rest my arm on the mag while I drive and I kinda may have loaded it with 31 instead of 30......so yeah....my bad.

 

[woolworh]

Pmags.

 

[Wormydog1724]

That's one thing about the pmags to be conscious of. They will hold 31 rounds. That makes them very hard to seat on a closed bolt and have seen many people drop a mag after doing a reload because it wasn't seated properly. If you're one of those people that load to 28, good for you. I don't. I want 30 in my mag. With pmags holding 31, a mag with 30 isn't any harder to seat than one with 28. One way to always know you have 30 in your pmag is to look at the last round in the mag, if it's on the right side you have 30. If its on the left side, you have 31. This is assuming you have it full. Just something to keep in mind if you are using them for a duty or where you will die if you eff up a reload.