20 or 30 round magazines for defense?

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Bring as much with you as you can.

Magpul 2gen 30rds two of them. (Brownells on sale $10.79)
http://www.brownells.com/magazines/...5-m16-pmag-gen-m2-moe-magazine-prod24192.aspx

Couple them with Magpul Maglink
http://store.magpul.com/product/MAG595/101
Brownells has them in stock ($17.05)
http://www.brownells.com/userdocs/products/l_100009583_5..jpg

If you want to get way out there. Magpul now has a 40rd
http://store.magpul.com/product/MAG233/PMAG

Not sure who has them in stock right now, The people I know are buying them up.
This was Magpul's answer to Washington's 30 rd magazine ban. got to love those guys at Magpul
 
I've casually been looking for some 20's but I seem to make do with the 30's. 30's are everywhere and cheap too. 20's not so much, at least in my neck of the woods.

You can always store 20 rounds in a 30 mag and no one need to be the wiser. Normally I down load mine with 28 rounds. It's easier to insert with a closed bolt.

Is it the same for 20 round mags?
 
I keep a 20 rounder in my ar when I camp. Easier to get in and out of the truck, but I always bring a couple 30s with me. For HD I see no reason why a 20 with a 30 backup wouldnt work.
 
All I have are 20's as I don't like how far the 30's hang down. To my mind they introduce an element of "unhandiness" to a rifle. As always, YMMV.
 
I keep a few 30's loaded with 25 rounds to save the springs.They are all in a vest ready to go when needed.Don't know if it's right,but it's how I do it.
 
I don't see why there's anything wrong with having more ammo capacity in a magazine.

If you can have 30, why have only 20?

All my regular AR mags are 30 rounders. I do have a couple of 20rd Pmags, but those are reserved for bench shooting only.
 
Tejicano Loco said:
In the one near home invasion I ran off there were 5 of them.
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This sounds like a very interesting story. What were the circumstances? Was it in a bad neighborhood? A suburb?

Walkalong said:
I have 20 round GI style mags (Yes, plural) ready with my AR for home defense.
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Jungle style? Couldn't that come across bad?

WVRJ said:
I keep a few 30's loaded with 25 rounds to save the springs.
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I've read that that is unnecessary. Manufacturers know that people keep loaded mags for defense, so it's fine to keep them fully loaded. What actually wears them out is being compressed over and over again.
 
I've been considering getting a 20 round P-mag to house a box of pointed soft points that I have lying around.
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That's a bad idea unless I read that wrong. You want to prove your defensive mags and ammo.


20 or 30 really doesn't matter. As long as they're reliable who cares. I keep an old Colt/UI 20 in mine because it's a little more compact, or just because I like them for some reason, maybe apparent quality, couldn't say for sure. Spares are 30. Figure if I'm needed spares things have went totally haywire.
 
magazines for defense

Two questions for you/the shooter.

How many assailants do you anticipate?

How many rounds will each assailant require to neutralize?

Take both numbers and multiply, then double or triple. In the chaos, there will not be enough or way too many. Your choice.

I saw an entry about the number of rounds used by police. My view is this is an invalid comparison. 40 and more years ago, maybe. Most of the new kids coming on a department are full of college theory and few know anything about any weapons. (For what it's worth - I was an FBI trained Firearms Instructor and saw all kinds.)
 
monotonous_iterancy said:
Oh..I guess I read you saying you keep several (plural), and I jumped to conclusions, lol.
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What would "come across bad" with jungle style? If you're worried about that you probably shouldn't be using a "military quality assault rifle with high capacity clip."
 
I have 30 rounders for shooting 3 Gun and the like and 20s for bench rest and other shooting. I have the 30s ready for SHTF but for HD I just keep a M1 Carbine with one 15 round mag in it and two more in the stock pouch.
 
Typically, I want as many rounds as I can carry without it being a hassle - which due to length is usually 30rds. Occasionally when shooting from the bench or trying to keep the SBR compact, a 20rd magazine.

For home defense, I don't really see the advantage in a 20rd. Most of us aren't going to go prone with a bad guy 15yds away inside our home since it limits your view and your mobility and even someone morbidly obese could cover that distance in a few seconds.
 
30's here. I use 5 and 10 rounders for the bench. Not sure if I even have any 20's...
 
For home defense a 20 rounder in the gun. As others have noted, it's lighter, handier, and easier to shoot prone or off of other horizontal surfaces. And I'm just used to carrying the 20 rounder, having done so off and on for years.

I keep several 30 rounders in pouches for reloads. If you get past the original 20, you need all the ammo you can get.

The 10 rounder is nice and I really like it at the range, but 10 ain't enough in an AR for defense. So the 20 lives in the gun. It seems to be the best balance between size, weight, handling and firepower.
 
justice06rr said:
I don't see why there's anything wrong with having more ammo capacity in a magazine.

If you can have 30, why have only 20?

All my regular AR mags are 30 rounders. I do have a couple of 20rd Pmags, but those are reserved for bench shooting only.
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If you can have 40 why have 30?
 
If you actually need more than one 20 round mag in a defensive encounter, odds are you're short of folks on your side, not mags.

I can see where a rancher on the Mexican border might need a car load, but otherwise, the real world is a problem inside (most likely) fifty or less yards--and very few hostile people.
 
Home defense,5 or 10 round magazines are plenty.High Cap are for offense.Some have questioned their accuracy ability and seem to make up for it with more rounds. Where are those missed rounds going? In a home situation,the range will be maybe 20 feet.Practice at the most then at maybe 30 feet. The spray and pray method is not effective. In combat,all the ammo one can carry is essential.I am not in that situation.
 
Mustard, A firefight demands maximum amount of ammunition where a home defense does not require that volume. When I was 20 and in Nam(68) I carried all I could. Our mags were 20 round mags which were loaded with 18 rounds each. Loaded mags and loose rounds came to about 800+ rounds of M193 in addition to other ordinance.i was blessed with an incrdible CO who made it clear the 16 would not be on full due to waste
 
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