[Colorobo]

Finally ordered a James river M1a now I need or want cheap mags. The cheaper the better. I know that cheap and good are not necessarily the same, but if anybody knows where to get them and if they work let me know. Thanks Rob

 

[charlesPOSTLEwade]

CMI are going to be your best bet
From here
http://www.44mag.com/product/m1a_m14_magazine_20_usgi/check-mate_industries

 

[Ole Silver]

Mags

Forget cheap.

You didn't buy a cheap rifle.

You need something that is gonna work.

44mag.com - CMI mags. All sizes. They are the manufacturer for SA and are current USGI. They are few bucks more than cheap, but they work!!

I'm sure many others will chime in as well.

Ole Silver

 

[Black Lions]

Congrats on your new rifle! Its a slippery slope so get enough for the next one! FRG1

I suggest http://www.44mag.com. Great service and the real deal.

 

[huntinghawk]

Please take the advice given you. There are no cheap mags that work. As advised, get some CMI mags from 44mag.

HH

 

[7.62bthp]

Half as many good ones are better than twice as many cheap ones. Your rifle is a single shot without a proper mag.

 

[honer]

Buy GI or CMI

The learning curve can be very expensive.... Buy U.S. GI issue or CMI. Listen to these people, they know what their talking about. GI spec and GI Issue are two different things.
Search the forum, lots of good info....

HonerBRSTBOMB

 

[gb2814]

44mag, can't go wrong. GI mags are an item that is popular to fake now, so unless you're going to spend the money and buy them from a very reputable seller, just go with CMI. Don't forget clips and bando's too!

 

[High Hat]

I purchased a used rifle that had a cheap off brand 20 round mag. Strange had a bunch of failure to feeds that stopped with CMI mags. If it's still in the trash I'll PM you GI2

 

[RET DEP 04]

Well then, the last 8 posts should give you an idea of which way to proceed. Keep in mind - you buy cheap, you get cheap.

Buy quality you can use instead of watching your money stacked on a shelf, unused because they don't function well.

 

[mercman]

Affirmative! Can't say this enough. Now that the AWB is expired a good CMI mag can be had for $20-25 each with some shopping. There's no reason to buy anything else. Do beware of ones that are advertised as GI, they are knockoffs.

I bought about 20-30 from Ammoman back during the ban and they work great but are blued, not parked. Stick with the CMI mags.

 

[copterdoc]

When I first got an M14, I was ignorant and bought the "best reviewed" magazines off of Midway USA.

I think they were Pro-Mag, but it doesn't really matter.

I shot with them for a few weeks. They fed and functioned well enough that I didn't have any notable failures.

One day, I had one round left on the bench, after my bolt locked open on my last mag of the day. I knew better than to drop it in the chamber, and send the bolt home, so I inserted it in the mag, without removing the mag.

Well, the bolt went home on my fingers! If I hadn't been wearing a glove, I'm sure I would have been in the emergency room.

I soon realized that the mags were not stopping the bolt by actuating the bolt stop. Rather, they were stopping the bolt with the follower.

That was the decision maker for me. Since then I have learned a bunch about identifying fake mags. I can tell a 1960's USGI from a fake now, but it isn't easy.

CMI mags, meet USGI specs, and as far as I know, nobody has faked them.

That's what I recommend that you purchase. Remove the floor plates and look at the springs and followers.

Then, someday when you find a good deal on some 1960's USGI mags at a gun show, you will have a reasonable chance of not getting ripped off.