Cheapest place to buy an AK mag follower?

[1KPerDay]

I bought a few polish AK mags from AIM a couple years back and finally got round to using more than one or two at a time. One works okay with about 25 or so rounds but any more and the follower jams. I imagine it's the mag body but I can't see any evidence of bending or dents. Ideas? The follower was difficult to remove. Is the mag body just garbage?

 

[Inebriated]

Swap followers with the other one?

It's probably the mag body, but trying a working follower should let you know for sure.

 

[1KPerDay]

good idea.

 

[wally]

I had a few surplus AK maks with no visible dents but places where the follower would bind. I fount that a "Chraftsman" 1/2" drive socket extension was about the perfect diameter at the socket end to "iron out" the bend. Drove it in with a mallet a few times until I could pretty much push it in by hand and presto, no more follower bind.

I got the idea after seeing an AK "armorer's kit" that had tool to reshape the magazine bodies and feed lips. I believe these kits are pretty rare and thus too expensive to buy and actually use, I know the one I saw was priced way above what value I could get from using it.


If swapping followers works, you can just file a bit off the sides of the follower that is binding.

 

[1KPerDay]

I'll try that, thanks!

 

[1KPerDay]

Well the follower won't even insert into another mag body, and a known good follower won't insert into the bad mag body. I guess it's garbage. I muscled the bad follower back into the bad mag and it feels normal when you press down the follower. 10 or 15 rounds will probably work. At the bottom it binds up.

I'm "frugal" and hate to junk anything and have repaired another non-functional AK mag with a crease in it by drilling holes and pulling out the crease, but this one is beyond my skills. The mag body looks undamaged. I guess it got squished out of square slightly or something.

 

[fireman 9731]

You can always shave down the width of the follower and try to make it work. But when good surplus AK mags are cheap and plentiful, I would just toss it and buy another.