Korean M-1 carbine mags?

[B_Li_Ber_Tar_Ian]

I just picked up a Plainfield carbine but the mag was missing. Any of you folks ever tried the Korean mags from CDNN? Any trouble with feeding/reliability?

 

[rule303]

I bought a couple, they seem to work fine.

 

[451 Detonics]

I have a half dozen or so...they all work great and "lock" the bolt back when empty. The bolt will release when you remove the magazine but it does give a visual warning when you run dry

 

[B_Li_Ber_Tar_Ian]

Good deal. Any recommendations concerning 15rd vs 30rd mags?

 

[451 Detonics]

The 30 rounder will cause excessive wear and eventual failure of the mag release unless you install an M2 mag release. This is true in the military guns...the Plainfield I don't know if it would matter or not. Plus the 15 rounders are easier both on the bench and when prone.

 

[Batty67]

I purchased my AO M1 with 2 30-rounders and 8 or 9 of the Korean 15-round magazines. Prior to shooting, I tried manually cycling each mag with 5-10 FMJ rounds to see if there were any obvious problematic ones. One was: misfeeds galore and was even tough to load properly as I think the spring was very defective. Heck, since I had 8 more, I tossed it in the trash so as to not waste anymore time with it. I since have purchased 2 more 30-rounders that allow the slide to lock back, and 2 USGI 1950s era 15-rd magazines. All seem to work fine, with an occasional misfeed.

For some reason, the first SD/HD rounds I tried, Cor-Bon, jam almost 50% of the time from the 15-rd magazines, but never from the 30-rd mags. Though at over a dollar a bullet, I only test 20 or so. I have since switched SD/HD rounds to Speer JSP, that feed flawlessly from the 15-rd magazines. In general, I prefer shooting from the 15-rd magazines.

 

[mac66]

I have several of the 15 round Korean mags. I've never found a 30 round that works in a M1 carbine. Based on what some of you say, I may buy a couple of the Korean ones to try.

 

[rcmodel]

I've never found a 30 round that works in a M1 carbine.

I've never found one that doesn't.

Of course all my stash are old U.S. GI mags.

rc

 

[Snowdog]

I've purchased two 15-round Korean mags so far and they both work wonderfully. The price was right as well.

 

[USSR]

I've never found one that doesn't.

Of course all my stash are old U.S. GI mags.

+1. With 30 rounders, you've got to stay away from the commercial mags.

Don

 

[s12.aaxtell]

I picked up a couple of 15 round korean mags from CTD and the work great. My USGI 15 round mag jams quite a bit, but I will keep it more for historical reasons and shoot the snot out of the korean mags.

 

[amd6547]

I have used both 15 and 30rd Korean mags in my CMP Inland, and they all worked perfectly. I did install the M2 mag catch.

 

[Husker_Fan]

I spend some time on the carbine portion of the CMP board. The Korean mags have a very good reputation there. They seem to be the only 30 rounders that are reliable other than GI ones or AYP marked one made by FN after WWII. I only have the AYP 30 rounders and they are perfectly reliable.

 

[Quiet]

The Korean (KCI) made M-1 Carbine magazines are excellent.

KCI began making 15 round and 30 round M-1 Carbine magazines for the ROK military during the 1970s.
They were replacements for worn out USGI M-1 Carbine magazines.

The ROK military + M-1 Carbine:
1950s-1980s = active duty issue
1980s-1990s = reserve issue
2000s = SHTF reserve issue (in case of invasion from the North, they'll start issuing approx 400,000 M-1 Carbines out to the populance for civil defense)


IMO...
Aside from USGI M-1 Carbine magazines, the Korean made M-1 Carbine magazines are the best you can get.

 

[greyling22]

I need to try a couple of 30's then, I have 5 commercial 30's that I was given and I can't even load then past 10 rounds. they bind up.

 

[Tommygunn]

I agree the Korean mags are very good.
Unlike some people I have never had any problems with the 30 rounders. Even the military ones, which are considered to be the best to use for high caps, were not always completly reliable in the M-2s on full-auto. They are made straight for the upper third and the rest of the length has a curve; this is not optimal for reliable feed, but it was a compromise based on the fact the M-1/2 magwell was designed straight and was going to stay that way.
When used in a semi auto weapon the better 30s are more "forgiving" of problems that might stop a full auto.
Using the M-2 catch with its extra "finger" to support the side catch will really help if you want to use 30 round mags.

 

[Maverick223]

I have one of the 15s and a couple of the 30s (which are used only for range magazines, as they are a bit unwieldy and heavy) and all work just as well as my USGI copies. If you care about keeping it "as-issued" you can still find USGI 15s for a comparable price, and their finish is a bit better (if any remains), but for some reasonably priced 30s...that work, the Korean copies are hard to beat.