Im buying an AR. How many mags should be sufficient?

[Extremely Pro Gun]

I am scared of gun grabbers. I am looking into the Magpul pmag magazines. Have heard great things about them. How many magazines do yall have? How many do i need. I think I want at least 4.

 

[doc2rn]

I only have 3 for mine but I can live with that

 

[Mags]

7 to start with 1 in your gun and 3 in each of your 2 mag pouches. (this might get moved to the rifle forum). Remember you can never have too many. And that was a hint you should get 2 GI M16 mag pouches.

 

[ThrottleJockey72]

First you need to decide how much ammo you are going to keep on hand, then you need to know how much ammo you can lift and carry. After these determinations have been made, then you can choose a number (average the two numbers and divide by 30). I don't have an AR, but I have over 700 rounds for my AK/SKS (the SKS is a norinco sporter and takes standard AK mags) all in mags ready to go. And I still need more mags.

 

[lamebums]

If you're scared of the magazines being banned completely along with the guns, then the easy answer is "as many as possible". I have about 15 myself, of a wide variety - including Colt 20 rounders, Pmags, but mostly aluminum GI-style mags. Those seem to be the best all around.

I'd suggest around 10? Although seven as described above also sounds reasonable.

 

[DSAPT9]

I have this problem in that I feel I need a minimum of 15 mags per firearm or I feel it is not a complete tool. I currently have two Ar-15s, two FALs and 4 Glock 19s so needless to say I have a lot of mags. I know it is a sickness but it makes me happy!

 

[MarineOne]

I think the question you need to ask yourself is "How many do I want?", not how many you need.

I would recommend at least somewhere in the 7 to 10 range. Mags will go bad with enough use and will allow you to continue enjoying your day of shooting if you end up with one or two bad mags.




Kris

 

[grunt0311]

7 is a good number. I have 6 30 round mags and a Beta C just for fun.

 

[Shung]

I have 5 AR-15 - I tried to have at least 6 mags per gun.

 

[Bishop.357]

I own 2 AKs' and have 4 30rd mags for each,my wife has a Mini-14 and has 8 20rd mags for it. I recomnd buyin' 5-10 HC mags, just enough so it won't slow you down if yer on the move but enough to sustain you in a prolonged firefight.

 

[DMK]

I like to have at least enough to shoot at a range session without reloading. I hate reloading mags at the range. So that's ten 30rd mags or fifteen 20rd mags.

Then I like a set of spares, so double that number. AR15 mags are only aluminum or plastic remember. Having lived through the AWB, some mags were hard to get (but not AR mags though).

AR mags are really cheap right now. It's worth it to buy a box of new USGI stype mags and put them away for spares, or rotate through them to reduce wear.

I have about 100 AR mags I think. About half are always loaded and stored in ammo cans.

 

[Floppy_D]

Four per weapon is my rule of thumb.

 

[71Commander]

20 or more. Only because 30 or more wasn't an oprion.

I would guess that I have about 50 and they're all loaded.

 

[rbernie]

MidwayUSA is currently selling AR-Stoner mags for $9/each. There is no reason to have less than a dozen, and (since they do tend to wear over time) it's simply prudent to have a supply of spares.

 

[CoRoMo]

I have a mixture of USGI, Tapco, and PMAG, and I have to say I like the Magpuls a lot. Ten magazines per rifle is my rule of thumb.

 

[highorder]

AIM Surplus is selling black C-products 30 round mags with anti-tilt followers for $7.95 right now.

They might even be a penny shipping item.

 

[TurboFC3S]

PMAGs are fine and all, but no reason to spend double or triple the cost of other totally reliable mags. The C-Products mags from AIM is probably what I'd get if I needed any, and get a ton of 'em. You'll never find them cheaper than they are right now. Then once you get the big stack of mags, always keep a couple hundred rounds loaded into mags and ready to go.

 

[ArmedBear]

5 million magazines is a reasonable minimum for most people.

 

[Gunfighter123]

For ALL of my semi-auto firearms , I think 6-12 mags is THE LEAST that I own !!!

 

[3pairs12]

I currently have about a dozen. I think thats a reasonable amount of mags but at $7.95 a mag I may have to bump it up by another dozen. Also don't limit yourself to only magpul mags they are good mags but so are others.

 

[Expertowgunner]

ive got enough pmags to fit in my chest rig (8) and one in the rifle plus about 4 spares. The rest are either colt, bushmaster, brownells, and one weird a$$ cammenga mag. Bought it at my work from a sales rep. In all ive got 25 and thats all i need for now. BTW a general rule for me is 10 mags a rifle and at least 5 for a pistol

 

[JonB]

Well, depends on your use.

Personally I had 2 -20 rds and 2 30 rds for a long time and that was all I needed. Basic range toy stuff. Have since added 2 more of each in Pmags. Plenty for me.

 

[c5_nc]

I had bought a 50pack of Cproducts mags just after the election for AR-15s and 10 LR-308 mags. Ironically I didn't have a AR at the time(A lot of guns just no ARs) as I was waiting for backorders. Have 3 ARs now and sold every one of those, which I came out pretty good on. The C-products ones certainly work (I actually only opened and used one of them), 100% reliable for me. Pmags just look cool and can buy them cheap enough with a C&R/Dealer account ~$12 I just went that route. Dumped the LR-308s while I could, as pmags will be out soon for half price. I think you need 20rd mags for shooting from a bench, and should have what your rifle case will hold or what you can reasonably carry, that number is probably 5-7 magazines for most people. Depending on the gun I only have 2-5 mags each now, so need a buy a few more.

 

[NWGunner]

20 or more

I have never said to myself "hmm...I think I have too many magazines". It's also good to remember the prices and availability of 30-round mags during the dark years of 1994-2004.

Once you hit triple digits in magazines for any one caliber/gun, you may want to consider slowing down. Until then, buy as many as you can. PMags are good if not indestructible, USGI in any flavor with an anti-tilt followers are probably just as reliable, but slightly less robust. I own and use both and haven't had ANY issues so far.

 

[RP88]

I have 20. I will be getting more eventually.

Start with ten or twenty and work your way up.