How many magazines do you like to have for a given gun? Why?

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stumpers said:
I just got some more in the mail...which brings my magazine totals to:

Glock 19 - 28 mags
Glock 26 - 5 mags
AR - 24 mags

There's no upper limit. I buy new mags often to keep far ahead of wear out.

And when some of my old G19 mags seemed like they were getting too worn and on the way out...I sold them online during the height of the panic for prices I would never consider paying myself.
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Why in the world do you need 28 mags for a Glock? Oh yea, it can take awhile to hit the target........kidding:)
 
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Double Naught Spy said:
10. I figure 10 is a good lifetime supply to account for lack of future production, loss, damage, spares for range work, etc.
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LIFETIME supply?! I suppose it depends when you expect to die....

High capacity magazines (hold more than 10 rds) are like $100 bills, you really can't have too many.
 
LIFETIME supply?! I suppose it depends when you expect to die....
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I figure that with spring replacement, maybe followers, most are good for just about forever. Can't say that I have ever actually worn out a mag. I have broken a couple - won't buy those again. However, I figure 10 per platform will get me through the rest of my life without concerns of running out of mags, so maybe another 30-35 years? That isn't to say that I only have 10 per platform, but when I buy a new platform, I make sure I buy 10 mags for it.
 
It depends what role the gun plays in your line-up and how much you shoot it.

"Serious" high cap guns get 24 mags minimum.

Fun or occasional guns get 3-5, or sometimes 10 depending.
 
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Handguns ony,
I like to keep enough mags to hold a box of ammo (50)
7 mags for 7 rounds
6 mags for 8 rounds
4 mags at 12 rounds
5 mags at 10 rounds
4 mags of 13 rounds
etc.

For .22LR handguns I like to have 100 preloaded,
usually 10-10 round mags.

This makes range visits quicker and easier for tight schedules.
 
Captains1911 said:
really? And then when one breaks or wears out, you're down to one with no ability to reload....
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Oh?? No ability to reload?? Oddly enough, when MY magazines run out, I reload them with loose rounds.............not sure how it works in your world.

Oh, and for what its worth, my answer was MINIMUM, not how many would I PREFER to have on hand.

I actually have a number of guns that only have ONE mag, and heaven forbid, revolvers with NO speedloaders :what:
 
Minimum
Enough to hold a whole box of factory ammo
So all my pistols have at least 5-mags
Semi-auto rifles need only 4- 30-round mags loaded with 25-rounds each
 
I once was a magazine hoarder, but these days I'm content with just two magazines per pistol.

When I'm carrying I usually don't even have a spare magazine with me.
And I often carry one of my revolvers instead of one of my pistols.

I don't get to shoot that much these days at the range, and I'm not a soldier going off to war, and there are plenty of other things I would rather spend my money on.

If you don't get to shoot much then it takes a very long time to wear out a magazine.
 
With my collection of auto's I'd need a few thousand mag the way some here claim they need mags. I'd much rather spend my bucks on more firearms and only have 1 or 2 mags per gun than have 30/40 mags, and only 3 or 4 guns.
 
I only own a couple semi-auto pistols, I have 10 mags for each. Range time is for shooting, not loading mags.

For my ARs....um...plenty, but I don't have more than I want. ;)
 
3 is the number most agree upon for carry. After that it becomes subjective. ! to 100, it all depends on funds and requirements. Obviously if money is no object you would have enough so you never have to reload them at the range.
 
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The last thing you probably ever see me doing at the range is taking rounds out of a box and putting them into magazines. Like some others, I have many, many mags for my Glock that I shoot and carry most often.

If I go to the range with 20 or 30 loaded G19 mags, its more fun that reloading two mags every couple minutes.

Same with my AR - lots of mags already loaded before I get to the range.

I suppose low volume shooters with many different guns probably don't see the value in so many mags for one gun...
 
jcwit said:
With my collection of auto's I'd need a few thousand mag the way some here claim they need mags. I'd much rather spend my bucks on more firearms and only have 1 or 2 mags per gun than have 30/40 mags, and only 3 or 4 guns.
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I agree. These quantities are a bit ridiculous dont you think (evidently not for most). A minimum of 25 for your "serious" guns? C'mon..... I know, to each his own, but geez. Is their some contest goin on that i'm not aware of? I guess I'm just a noob, don't practice as much as I should, or something. But I only have a few mags for each firearm and I don't feel like i'm missing out on any shooting at the range or anything. Hell, Rambo only needed one to get his work done !
 
I've watched the bullseye shooters at the national matches, I've also watched the National Champion 10 years now and 9 years running, they only have a couple of mags. Course they're only allowed 5 rounds loaded at a time, but then they are experts at hitting what they shoot at.

No need to saturate the hill with lead.
 
No doubt. It's funny though, RIGHT AFTER I posted how I dont need many mags, i went into a Mcdonalds, in a city im not familiar with (im traveling), and cnn was on with the Zimmerman case deliberations going on. I had forgotten that the case was wrapping up -I went out and loaded the 5 mags i have for my SR9 and told my wife that I wish I had a few more to have loaded in case something breaks out and me and my family happen to be here in the middle of it. Pretty good example of why it is possible you might need a few mags!
 
If I go to the range with 20 or 30 loaded G19 mags,
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30 magazines at 15 rounds each = 450 rounds, for one range session....

I wish I could afford to shoot that much.
Around here ammo is just too scarce and too expensive.:(

I seldom shoot more than 50 rounds per session.


I went out and loaded the 5 mags i have for my SR9 and told my wife that I wish I had a few more to have loaded in case something breaks out and me and my family happen to be here in the middle of it.
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You don't think that 85 rounds is enough???

Actually, if you were confronted by an angry mob, it would be much better if everyone in your party was armed with a gun and a few magazines, rather than just you armed with one gun and a lot of magazines.

Just saying...
 
Twos company threes a crowd

I actually like having 3 one in the gun and two spares. Imho if you need more than that then your SOL however if its for emergencies whatever they maybe then who cares go buck wild as long as you have the other essentials.
 
Since I have 2 range bags ( thinking of a 3rd) extra mags are a plus for me. For instance, went to the range today with my lite bag and I had 2 mags for the mkIII though I have 5. Sure would like to have 10 for the sake of convenience.

You can't really have too many mags IMO. There is no such thing as having too much ammo either. I don't have a minimum. I only have what I have. Do I need more? Yes.
 
Reading this thread, I can see I've purchased too few mags and way too much ammo during the past 20 years or so.

That turned out to be a good thing. All the mags still work, too.
 
I feel like there's been a contest that I didn't know about. I have 1 pistol that has 4 mags and that is an anomaly for me because the others are all 2-3 mags each. I'd rather not spend the money frankly, and my range sessions aren't timed so reloading doesn't bother me.
My mag purchases have all been based on how many I can carry if I need to pack up and head for the hills, and 2-3 mags does it for me.
 
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