Opinion of MGI MARCK-15 Modular Weapons System?

[crasch]

What are your opinions of the MGI MARCK-15 Modular Weapons System (link is to Small Arms Review pdf) manufactured by MGI Military?

I'm interested in the gun from a emergency preparedness perspective. With the appropriate mag wells and barrels, the gun can currently accept the following magazines:

5.56 x 45 AR-15
7.62x39 AK-47
9 mm Colt style or the traditionally modified Uzi style
.45 M3 Grease Gun magazines

Note that these are unmodified standard magazines. Mag wells that accept .22LR, .308 Winchester, and many other calibers are also under development.

The upper receiver uses standard barrels and is compatible with all mil-spec lowers. Likewise the lower is compatible with all mil-spec uppers. The magwell and barrel (assuming you have the MGI Quick Barrel Change (QBC) upper) can be changed out in a few minutes without tools.

From a preparedness standpoint, the gun has the following advantages:

* reduced parts count. In addition to requiring fewer spare parts, the guns can be cannibalized to provide parts for each other.
* reduced training complexity. Aside from barrel and mag well, the gun is the same for all calibers.
* reduced cost of training. When the .22LR magwell is released, one could train with the gun very inexpensively.
* increased adaptability. In a SHTF situation, magazines and ammo are likely to scarce and catch as catch can. Therefore, a gun which can adapt to the available ammo would be useful.
* aside from the lower receiver and magwell, the gun uses standard AR-15 parts, which allows it to be used with the wide variety of AR-15 accessories that are available.
* Easy breakdown and cleaning. With the QBC upper, the gun can be broken down in minutes without tools.

Possible disadvantages:

* reduced accuracy.
* reduced repeatability
* reduced reliability

All of the above stem from the fact that a tool that is capable of multiple tasks is not optimized to be great at any of them.

Questions:

1. Has anyone here shot the gun? If so, what are your impressions of the gun's accuracy and repeatability?
2. If I were to buy the lower receiver alone, does that count as buying the gun for legal purposes? I ask because my intent is to buy the lower receivers now (in anticipation of a likely gun ban), and finish them out later.
3. As I live in CA, I plan to install a bullet button. Anyone else done this? What brand would you recommend?
4. Anyone have recommendations for a FFL holder in the Bay Area to ship the receivers to?

Thanks!

 

[PTK]

It's useful if you have a DIAS or LL. Other than that...

 

[crasch]

Why would it matter if I have a DIAS or LL? Being able to convert to full auto would be nice, but semi-automatics are still useful, yes?

 

[steve_77]

Do I have a story to tell about this MGI company...

I ordered a lower from them in 2006, sounded like a “dream lower” – with the whole AK magwell and what not, and the possibility for an .308 magwell, so placed my order and waited for at least 6 months, calling, waiting… hearing nothing - finally a nice guy (who no longer works there named Tom) interceded on my behalf, and finally in September my order was finally confirmed, I don’t exactly remember when I got the modular receiver with the .233 magwell but it was near November 06'. Being this was my second AR build - the first being a cheap Vulcan v-15 - I started ordering parts for my new rifle. Looking back I guess a red flag should have went off when I had to result to modifying an buffer tube (had to grind off 1/16” of the buffer tube opening) so that the buffer retainer would fit and work properly. I bushed this aside, as well as the movement / play when the rifle was fully assembled (with the DPMS .223 flat top varmint upper) – much more play than my Vulcan v15.

Well I set off to the range – there are few ranges in southern California , but long story short the gun would always jam on me, FTE, Fail To Chamber, Fail To Feed -- I thought it was the cheap DPMS parts on this nice MGI lower – so got a nice trigger and tried again - same problems, and over the rest of the 2007 year I tried numerous magazines, ammo, chrome bolt, different lubes and even a "accu-wedge" thing - nothing seemed to help. So I put my DMPS upper back on the Vulcan (which worked flawlessly), and decided to send the receiver back to MGI thinking that perhaps I got a pre-production lower or something was just not right with it.

Well after tying to get a hold of these people for at least a month or two (as they barely ever answer the phone there and nobody ever returned my calls/emails) which should have send up another flag, but I finally go in touch with them and sent in my complete lower with installed parts, with a detailed description of the problem I was having, indicating what uppers (yes plural) I tried, took pictures (thank goodness) and by march 08 I sent in my little used receiver.

Weeks then months go by and nothing… finally in July 08 (or there a bouts’ as I stopped keeping track as its just hard to get a hold of anybody at MGI) I get them on the phone and ask what’s up, and apparently they – “hadn’t even looked at it yet” – infuriated I ask them to forget it and give me my lower and parts back.

The cycle then continued – and I resort to start recording my conversations with the folk at MGI, I get them on the phone in mid August and ask again for my stuff back, finally I get my internal parts back – my Jard trigger, pins and such – but no receiver or magwell. I keep calling daily… leaving messages asking about my receiver. Then I got Em and they said they couldn’t find my lower, a week goes by until I get them on the phone again now they say they shipped it out – but nothing arrives. Now its September and I'm pissed, as I finally received something I open it up and find out it’s a check for $249 after I shelled out at least $500 (not including tax and shipping for the lower) they then claimed that my receiver was at first “defective’” then claimed my receiver and magwell was “in horrible condition“ when they received it – so again I ask for a full refund or the receiver back (and I say “ill send you your $249 check if you give me the receiver and magwell back” – both legally DROS’d to me . I ask about the “guarantee” on their web page and they said they’ll get back to me as most everyone is out in the field – and that they would call me ASAP when the owner Mack Gwinn got back into the office.

I didn’t hold my breath, but contacted a few lawyers, DHS, and ATF, and such but found out there was little to get them on if I took them to small claims court. A lawyer friend suggested a civil suit which I'm still mounting against this company. But to this day - March 2009 haven’t heard anything from MGI about getting a full reimbursement. I called two days ago and was surprised to get them on the phone and started to press them on the issue and there like ‘no the $249 is all you get’ – they then go on to tell me they “supposedly” destroyed the receiver (most likely they sold it to some other unsuspecting person), things quickly got nasty and they hung up.

This is by far the most horrible company I've ever dealt with – during my research I’ve found numerous instances from various people that have dealt with this company, and the owner. And there’s a bit more I cant say here – at least for now.

I still have the Vulcan v-15, and the DPMS upper and they continue to function flawlessly - which is the one thing I got out of all this – stick to what works. Did I really need a modular lower anyway?? I did eventually succumb to picking up (due to impending California state restrictions) 2 Patriot Ordinance lowers which are of impeccable quality as well as piston driven uppers to complete my collection.

But yeah I got burned by MGI (we’ll see what happens) but just want to caution people to do their due diligence before getting involved in any company that offers something that’s sounds too good to be true. I’d never thought I'd have to go through such a horrific experience with MGI – and it’s not even over yet.

Don’t get me wrong – the modular lower is a great idea, just wish it was a well respected company that you can actually get in touch with, and responses from; a company that actually stands behind the quality of their products that brought this “neat” modular lower to market.

Not this MGI company – that has no respect for its customers, and offer no support for their own products.

 

[Quiet]

I just picked up a MGI lower reciever. Took about a week from time I order to getting it. Ordered it through a third-party vendor.
I'm not in a big rush to build it up, due to all the panic buying driving up cost and availability of AR parts.

The 5.45x39mm AK74 mag wells are out and available.

I've seen/handled the 9mm/.40S&W Glock mag well and .45ACP Glock mag well, last year at a gun show. Should have bought them then, since they are not readily available.

 

[skeet king]

Ur preety much combining the m16 gas system with a paddlemag ejector and the 7.62x39 cartdridge

I'm not buying it

 

[jayjaynow]

Mack Gwinn had his brokerage license suspended

"All units are personally test fired by
MGI staff before shipping and are guaranteed
to function with your standard barrels."

That’s what MGI says. After having my check cashed by MGi, they ignored my emails and vmail messages for several months. After several months they finally shipped the mgi upper to me. I also ordered a barrel from them. After installing the barrel I found it was very loose. I contacted MGI to see if there was an adjustment to be made. They told me there were no adjustments to be made and that the upper probably had a “BAD CAM”. I had to then pay $30.00 to ship back a product that they admit they never tested. I was told a technician would look at it. Two weeks later I contacted LeeAnn at MGI. She confirmed that the upper and barrel had been received in good shape and that there were no technicians to fix it. They were all at gun shows. Selling products that don’t exist. That’s right, LeeAnn has been working there since March 2011 and they have had no production runs since before she started. My rifle upper and barrel is still sitting there in Maine several months later. I get an email occassionaly telling me “next week” or “next month”.
Let me be real clear about MGI. They don’t, won’t, can’t fix products that they ship to you that don’t work. They have no qualified technicians. They can’t replace the product as they have no products and have had no products since before March of this year (2011). That didn’t keep MGI from cashing my check however. You’ll now notice that they admit on their website that they have 0 stock of pretty much everything. The part about MGI staff testing every unit before shipping is total fraud. But hey, what do you expect from a company, run by a guy who had his real estate brokers license suspended for ……money issues. This is from the North Carolina state website regarding Macks former business as a real estate Broker.

MACK W. GWINN, III (Fayetteville) – By Consent, the Commission revoked Mr. Gwinn’s broker license effective December 1, 1999. In an audit of Mr. Gwinn’s trust account during 1999, the Commission found that Mr. Gwinn had failed to keep proper records of the funds he held for others and failed to maintain those funds in a trust account. The Commission further found that Mr. Gwinn had failed to account for and remit the funds of others in his possession.

MGI is a fraud that lies constantly to it’s customers. Buyer beware.

 

[sansone]

thanks for sharing, enjoyed reading the story, sorry about your troubles