Disappointed with 10-rd Surefire mags

[3321sawyer 0]

I had a hard time trying to decide between factory 8-rd or Surefire 10-rd mags for my first Saiga rifle in .308 Win. Being in California, until very recently, I thought all AK variants were illegal until I stumbled accidently on the Saiga rifles on the net. I finally picked up my Saiga last week and bought 2 Surefire 10-rd mags from Carolina Shooters Supply, great place with fast shipping.

 

Both magazines did not fit my Saiga. I watched the Youtube clips on modifying a Surefire mag. I tried to file one mag for about 20 minutes, still couldn't get it to fit. I had to go buy a rotary Dremmel tool and after another 30 mins I was able to get both magazines to fit into my Saiga. However, they don't fit as perfectly as the original factory mag, even after a lot of material on the magazine catch was removed. Needless to say, I'm very disappointed with the Surefire magazines. I should have bought the original factory magazines instead. Being in California, I'm not at a great handicap with an 8-rounder vs. a 10-rounder. In my opinion, if you can't solve your problem with 8 rounds of .308 win, then you're in big trouble.

 

I'm happy with a Surefire recoil pad that I bought, it is much better than the cheap original hard plastic butt plate; but there will be no more Surefire mags for me. I'm contemplating about the .308 Surefire muzzle break, but after this business with the magazines, maybe I will pass on the muzzle break. It is kinda pricey, but if I have to spend a lot of time modifying it to get it to fit like I had to with my magazines, then it's not worth the money.

[bobsolla 7]

i would call surefire and tell them the problems you had.most people are happy with their magazines.they might do something for you.i.e.(refund,new mags that work,etc.)you shouldn`t have to modify a surefire magazine to fit in a factory saiga.good luck!

[vintagedude88 16]

Did you try loading the mag with 9rnds instead of 10? It happens with many other guns, often you have to load your mag one round less for it to fit reliably. I have three of the Surefires, and I modded the feed lips with an exacto knife copying the profile from the factory mag. They all work and fit but its always tight when the mag is fully loaded. Are you loading in the mag with the bolt closed? This could be the problem. I've also considered getting my bolt and carrier contured like my S12 so I can load a full mag while the bolt is closed.

 

If you're not happy about having one round short when you load, you can always mod the follower similer to the mod for the 8rnd mag to 10rnds shown in the tutorial. That way you can load in 10rnds and have some "cush" in the mag when loading with the bolt closed. Try that.

 

BTW in Kali too. Duh, look at my name.

[3321sawyer 0]

The empty mags did not fit with the bolt hold opened or the bolt was closed. When I was modifying the rear mag catch, I was trying the mags in with the bolt stayed open so I could have a better view of the mag.

As for loading the magazines, I usually don't load my mags to the maximal capacity; I usually stop 1-2 rounds short for maximal reliability.

[DrGonZo 157]

I bought 2 of the Surefire 10 rounders for my 308. They took a little bit of lovin from the dremmel, but they fit fine. The only issue I had with mine was the follower needed a tiny bit of filing on the sides of the front to get it to feed properly, but now they both work perfectly. My only advice would be to take your time and file a little bit off where needed, test the fit, then file again if needed. If you don't want them anymore, I would be happy to take them off your hands for whatever price you see fit. Just shoot me a PM. Look into CSSpecs' mags. He is a member of this site and he makes metal mags and a 8-10 round conversion for the factory .308 mag. You cant go wrong with his stuff.

Also, are you familiar with Raddlock? They make a magazine lock that would enable you to convert to the traditional AK setup with a pistol grip instead of the factory Monte Carlo style grip AND still be legal in CA. I also live in California and I converted my .308 to traditional configuration. Here is a vid of me shooting my rifle with the SGM muzzle break:

Edited May 3, 2010 by DrGonZo

[vintagedude88 16]

I bought 2 of the Surefire 10 rounders for my 308. They took a little bit of lovin from the dremmel, but they fit fine. The only issue I had with mine was the follower needed a tiny bit of filing on the sides of the front to get it to feed properly, but now they both work perfectly. My only advice would be to take your time and file a little bit off where needed, test the fit, then file again if needed. If you don't want them anymore, I would be happy to take them off your hands for whatever price you see fit. Just shoot me a PM. Look into CSSpecs' mags. He is a member of this site and he makes metal mags and a 8-10 round conversion for the factory .308 mag. You cant go wrong with his stuff.

Also, are you familiar with Raddlock? They make a magazine lock that would enable you to convert to the traditional AK setup with a pistol grip instead of the factory Monte Carlo style grip AND still be legal in CA. I also live in California and I converted my .308 to traditional configuration. Here is a vid of me shooting my rifle with the SGM muzzle break:

 

Some people like to keep it factory so that it can be "featureless" to maintain the mag release. Thats the way I have it for mine. However, I also have a .223 thats been converted but uses a Monsterman Grip so that it can stay featureless as well.

 

To the OP, you just have to whittle down the feed lip far enough for it to load properly. I've done so with mine and they fit without a problem. I use an exacto knife to keep from taking off too much material than necessary. It may be troublesome but honestly, all mags require some mods before they can fit right.

[DrGonZo 157]

I bought 2 of the Surefire 10 rounders for my 308. They took a little bit of lovin from the dremmel, but they fit fine. The only issue I had with mine was the follower needed a tiny bit of filing on the sides of the front to get it to feed properly, but now they both work perfectly. My only advice would be to take your time and file a little bit off where needed, test the fit, then file again if needed. If you don't want them anymore, I would be happy to take them off your hands for whatever price you see fit. Just shoot me a PM. Look into CSSpecs' mags. He is a member of this site and he makes metal mags and a 8-10 round conversion for the factory .308 mag. You cant go wrong with his stuff.

Also, are you familiar with Raddlock? They make a magazine lock that would enable you to convert to the traditional AK setup with a pistol grip instead of the factory Monte Carlo style grip AND still be legal in CA. I also live in California and I converted my .308 to traditional configuration. Here is a vid of me shooting my rifle with the SGM muzzle break:

 

Some people like to keep it factory so that it can be "featureless" to maintain the mag release. Thats the way I have it for mine. However, I also have a .223 thats been converted but uses a Monsterman Grip so that it can stay featureless as well.

 

To the OP, you just have to whittle down the feed lip far enough for it to load properly. I've done so with mine and they fit without a problem. I use an exacto knife to keep from taking off too much material than necessary. It may be troublesome but honestly, all mags require some mods before they can fit right.

 

 

 

I fully researched my options before I converted and went with the Raddlock. I just couldn't stand the factory trigger. The only option for a new trigger meant doing a full conversion and I am NOT a fan of the monsterman so I went with a pistol grip. I think rifle control is more important than a quick reload (I also enjoy the looks and conversations at the range it induces). I keep my key on a lanyard attached to the sling mount on the side of my T6 stock and it reaches the lock quite nicely and with some practice, reloads are not that much slower than with the factory release.

How did your mags turn out looking with using an exacto? My mags look nice and clean. With a dremmel, I take my time and don't use too much pressure. They look great and function perfectly. Also, my mags didn't need filing on the feed lip, they needed it on the rear tab and the sides of the follower. Do you have any pics of yours?

 

 

[SovietGinger 16]

Thats weird. I bought several 10 round Surfire mags for my 308 (NY) and they all fit perfectly out of the box.

[sofageorge 0]

I'm in Cali now... and I'm using the 10 round CSSPECS metal mag. I absolutely love it.

 

When I was in Michigan I got 3 of the surefires... and they were total crap... wouldn't even lock into the gun.

 

CSSPECS is on the forum. You can use his 10 round mags in Cali... but honestly I can't wait to get back to Michigan and use the 20 round again.

[Rhodes1968 1,638]

Something is wrong with the mag get them to replace it as Ive put hundreds of rounds though my 2 SF 10rd mags with not so much as a hiccup. I always load all my mags to capacity EXCEPT the couple of Mag-Pro that came with one of my x39s.

Edited May 8, 2010 by Rhodes1968

[quikz 1]

Well.....Im unhappy w/ the 15-rd mags for my 7.62x39 Sure Fire LLC, mags. Junk imo.

[ThirtyAughtSix 101]

Thats weird. I bought several 10 round Surfire mags for my 308 (NY) and they all fit perfectly out of the box.

 

 

Something is wrong with the mag get them to replace it as Ive put hundreds of rounds though my 2 SF 10rd mags with not so much as a hiccup. I always load all my mags to capacity EXCEPT the couple of Mag-Pro that came with one of my x39s.

 

My experience with Surefire mags has been excellent, all of them fit snugly, snap right in, and never have any sort of feeding problems as some have mentioned above. They do have a 5 year warranty, should be on a little cards included in the plastic wrap, I have about 20 of those cards kicking around somewhere. In .308 alone I have 14 Surefire mags, all of them working perfectly (12 25 rounders and 2 10 rounders). Shoot them an e-mail, hopefully they will except an altered mag for a trade in. I have been told from various people that the magwells of the S308 can vary a little with tolerances but again, with my experience with Surefire in .308 and my .410 shotgun has been nothing but good. Only reason I have some CSS mags is they look hella cool and you would think steel mags would last longer/be more reliable.

 

I don't remember but was this a brand new weapon? Just curious, maybe somebody tried to mod the magwell to accept something it wasn't designed to take...

[DrGonZo 157]

Well.....Im unhappy w/ the 15-rd mags for my 7.62x39 Sure Fire LLC, mags. Junk imo.

 

Why? What issues are you having?