Alternate theories of magazine modification

[ForGreatJustice 1]

I think I remember reading that at one time Krebs did M14 mag modifications that involved crimping the front of the magazine to be narrow enough to fit in the well, and then replacing the follower with another one (maybe the Galil follower) that fit properly.

 

This begs the following theory of alternate magazine modification:

1) Machine a male die, and a female die. The female die could be nothing more than a piece of steel channel..and hammered on from the front and sides. The male die only has to be as "tall" as the crimp area, which is equivalent to the insertion depth of the magazine. However, it needs to fill the mag from front to back so the mag/die can be hammered into the female die from the back of the mag.

2) Crimp the front.

3) Trim the follower so that the front is narrow enough to fit in the crimped section. Or, use the Saiga follower.

4) Elevate/boost/shim the follower's overall height so that the mag spring remains in the uncrimped section of the mag.

5) Add tabs, or whatnot to the mag or the gun (pref. the gun) so that everything locks in.

 

This mag method might be more expensive in the beginning, but ultimately the process seems a lot easier than cutting away pieces of the mag and making new followers. It also produces a more appealing finished product. I think the initial tooling cost would be quickly amortized, especially considering the simple nature of the dies.

 

What say you, O brothers?