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Posted: 1/16/2003 4:42:22 AM EDT
| I just bought my first 10/22, and I have some questions about mags. I am looking .to pick up a couple 30 round mags. Which brands are good, and which should be avoided? |
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Troy did a 10/22 mag FAQ a few years back on the original board, here's some of what I saved from that: ========================== 10/22 Mag FAQ 10/22 magazines vary in design, materials, capacity, and of course cost. As this is an extremely inexpensive and popular rifle, there was a wide range of high-capacity (more than 10 round) magazines designed for it. Below are the most common types, from best to worst: CMF Products/Mitchell Arms "Teardrop" These 50-round capacity magazines have steel feedlips and are a vertically-straight teardrop shape. These mags are unique in their use of a rotary belt, like a tank track, to hold and feed the rounds. They have a removable cover than contains a handle that connects to the spring-loaded lower gear, allowing the gear to be rotated and the mag loaded. These magazines also feature a belt clip, and are made from similar plastic as the stock Ruger magazine. Butler Creek "Steel Lips" Like virtually all hi-cap 10/22 mags, the Butler Creek mags are "banana-shaped" and use flat-wound "constant force" springs. Butler Creek used both clear and smoke-colored transparent plastic for the mag bodies, and each mag has a male and female socket to allow a second mag to be connected "jungle style." These are straight-feed, single stack mags, and have steel feed lips imbedded in the tough but brittle molded plastic mag bodes. They hold 25 rounds. [Butler Creek also makes post-ban 10-round Steel Lips.] Condor Condor mags are extremely similar to the Butler Creek mags, except that the mag body is opaque black plastic. Condor mags are also banana-shaped, single-stack, straight-feed, 25-round capacity mags with steel feed lips and constant-force springs. The sockets will allow Butler Creek and Condor mags to be connected together. Butler Creek "Hot Lips" Hot Lips mags are probably the most popular of the 10/22 hi-caps, and were produced in vast quantities. They are identical to the "Steel Lips", except the substitution of a soft red plastic in place of the steel feed lips. The plastic lips flex a bit, allowing the mags to be quickly loaded with an optional speedloader, a popular option. These mags were also less expensive than the Steel Lips when new. [Butler Creek also makes post-ban 10-round Hot Lips.] Ramline (25, 30, & 50-Round Capacities) Ramline (a subdivision of Blount, owners of Speer and CCI) mags are visually very similar to Butler Creek mags. They use the familiar banana shape, the same constant-force springs, and have smoke-colored transparent plastic bodies. The 25 and 30-round versions are single-stack, and the 50-round mags are double-stack. They have sockets to allow mags to be connected to each other, but their size and location do not make them compatible with other brands. The biggest criticism of Ramline mags is that they do not use a separate material for the feed lips. Instead, the same strong but brittle plastic used in the mag body is also used for the feed lips and the locking lugs that hold the mag in place. While an appropriate plastic for the thicker mag bodies, it does not hold up well in thinner form, as required by the feed lips. After a modest amount of use, the feedlips will develop cracks, and eventually break off, rendering the magazine useless. It is also common for the rear locking lug (a small round nipple) to break off, preventing the mag from being held in place. Blount used to replace these mags under their lifetime warranty, but they are now out of stock, and can only replace them with a number of 10-round mags. A thumb-button speed loader was available as an option for Ramline mags. Eagle Industries Eagle mags are virtually identical to Ramline mags, except they are made from a brownish-yellow transparent plastic. Like the Ramline mags, Eagle mags use the same brittle plastic for the feed lips, causing the feed lips to eventually crack and break. Eagle mags are single-stack with a 25-round capacity. -Troy =========================== [edited in attempt to make the format more readable] |
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Here's some more info from another source: ========================== Six brands or types of magazines will function properly in the Norrell full auto Ruger 10/22 and are listed in order of preference: 1. Standard Ruger Magazine (10 round). Always functions perfectly except when in rare cases when the spring is not wound tight enough by the manufacturer to feed rounds. Spring tension, however, can easily be tightened with an allen wrench. 2. Eagle (30 round). Available in black and smoke and are the best 30 round magazines ever made for the Ruger 10/22. The old style Eagle amber colored magazines are not reliable. 3. Butler Creek Steel Lips (25 round) Stainless steel top piece with ejector located on the magazine. A good second choice in a high capacity magazine but only 25 rounds of firepower. 4. Ram-Line (30 round single column). Although discontinued in 1990 , the following colors will function on full auto: All clear, one clear side and one black side, all smoke and all amber. The all black colored Ram-Line 30 round single column magazines did not function properly due to the type plastic used in the injection molding process. The amber magazines were the last to be made by Ram-Line in the single column design and were acceptable but borderline due to repairs needing to be made to the original molds. 5. Butler Creek Hot Lips (25 round). Does not have an ejector located on the magazine. Utilizes the secondary ejector in the firearm. Due to its delicate lip design, this particular magazine does not appear to be suitable for long term use. 6. Bingham Steel Magazine (30 rounds). Discontinued a number of years ago; however, it will function once fitted and fine tuned. This is the same type magazine as used in many .22 sub-caliber kits such as ones for the M16, Mini-14, Thompson SMG, etc. Magazines not recommended are listed below: 1. All black Ram-line 30 round single column 2. Amber Eagle 30 round single column 3. Ramline double feed column mags (all capacities and colors) 4. Sanford/Eaton 50 round drums 5. Mitchell 50 round tear drop drums 6. Eaton 25 round stick magazines 7. Condor (Black with a steel insert. First high capacity mag ever made for the 10/22)The Sanford and Mitchell 50 round drums are not reliable and generally should not be considered of any value in the pursuit of shooting semi or full auto with the Ruger 10/22. Ram-Line 50 round magazines function with varying degrees of reliability. Only a very small percentage of the Ramline 50s will function properly over any extended period of time. Basic problem is that the magazine, due to its double column feed, will not feed rounds fast enough to keep up with the full auto action. Semi-auto shooting for most 50 rd Ramline mags is usually unreliable also. The only 50 round I have ever seen function properly is a prototype 50 round PPS-50 drum converted to fit a Ruger10/22. Section 6: REPAIR OF CRACKED MAGAZINES Since the "Crime Bill" has stopped production of magazines or feeding devices over 10 rounds in the U.S., except for law enforcement, it obviously makes good sense to make the investment and buy a supply of suitable magazines for the long term use of the full auto 10/22. Unfortunately, the magazines most suitable and available currently are made of various plastics. These plastic magazines do have their advantages; however, when a magazine splits down the seam where the two halves are joined, it can be rendered useless. If a cracked or split magazine is continued to be used it will be rendered useless. Do not throw any split magazines away. They do still have value and most can be repaired to function perfectly and not ever split again. Plastic magazines should be closely inspected before and after each shooting outing. Plastic magazines, after several thousand rounds, may crack or split at the top on the rear. A dozen or more types of plastic glues have been ried in a futile effort to bond the two halves together. We have, however, devised an effective method of permanently joining the halves together to produce a bond that is much stronger than the original factory method. Our method involves cutting or machining a groove across the split section of the magazine, inserting a stainless steel wire and totally encapsulating the wire and filling the groove with a steel epoxy. If you need more information about the process you may contact us to discuss or send the split magazines to us for repair. You will notice that on the very back of the magazine near the top, there is a nipple that sticks out. This nipple helps hold the magazine in the firearm. Eagle has inserted a steel nipple into the mold when producing their magazines. Ram-Line and several of the other plastic magazine manufacturers utilize only a plastic nipple. If the nipple is plastic it may break off during normal extended use. If the nipples breaks off, a hole can be drill and a steel pin may be inserted as an effective repair technique. ======================== |
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