SKS Detachable Mag Question

[model4006]

i got a promag 30 rd detachable mag for my sks. it fits on fine, but the bolt wont lock open when its empty, and every round gets shoved into the chamber at an angle and jams. am i missing something here? or is this thing just a POS? its not *most* of the time, its 100% stuck every time, scractches the coating off the case it sticks so hard. i havent tried to shoot it yet, if i cant cycle it by hand im not wasting my time at the range in the cold.

any thoughts, experience, should i just throw it away and buy a "better" one? what do you guys recommend?

 

[270Win]

From what I understand, MOST aftermarket SKS magazines are trash. The only ones with a halfway decent reputation are the polymer Tapco ones.

 

[Mojo-jo-jo]

+1 on what 270Win said. Most of the detachable SKS mags are junk. You may be able to modify the feed lips some by bending and filing on them to make it feed better, but it will probably never be very reliable.

I have a zytel one that I finally got to work OK after filing the feed lips, but ended up having to file so much that eventually one of the lips broke off. My Promag steel one works fair after modification, but isn't anywhere near as reliable as the "stock" SKS built-in 10 round mag. I really just don't use it anymore and it's sitting in a box somewhere. If I knew then what I know now, I would have never bought either of the mags.

Put simply, there is just too much variation between different makes of SKS to come up with an aftermarket detachable magazine that really works in all of them, so they put out something that sometimes works in some of them.

 

[Drakejake]

USA brand mags (20rd and 30rd) have a good reputation. They are not produced any longer but you can still find new ones in the package. Best of all are the new 20 rd polymer mags sold by Tapco for $20. Do not expect the detachable mags to be 100% reliable and you are less likely to be disappointed.

Drakejake

 

[7mmsavage]

You'll probably hear a lot more of this, those hi cap mags just don't usually work well on an SKS. I tried 3 and finally just gave up. Even the steel ones that fed ok weren't worth the effort it took to use them. It's difficult to load them with stripper clips if you leave it attached to the rifle, and loaded mags never wanted to rock onto place on my gun. I really like the way a 20 rd mag looks but I won't bother trying to use them anymore, an SKS works too good just the way it was built.

 

[Plink]

I'm an SKS fanatic and I've tried most aftermarket parts at one point or another. Detachable mags have always been problematic in my SKSes. Face it, trying to use detachable mags is trying to turn the gun into something it wasn't designed to be. It is designed to function with the fixed mag and stripper clips. It's fast to load and extremely reliable that way. An AK-47 isn't that much more money if you need detachable mags.

That said, I hear the new Tapco 20 rounders work well. I haven't tried them yet, but will be ordering some as gun show merchandise monday and I'll keep a few for myself to try out. Most any aftermarket mag, and probably most factory mags too, will need hand fitted to your particular gun. They aren't "one size fits all". That's another secret to reliability.

 

[Drakejake]

I have USA and Tapco mags. The USA work fairly well. The Tapco work very well. Using detachable mags with the SKS IS a bit awkward compared to a standard AK, for example. I have no problem with those who prefer to use the ten round internal mag loaded with stripper clips.

Drakejake

 

[66912]

If you want a SKS with detachable magazines that works, you will need to find a Norinco model D. Magazine insertion is not as fluid as the AK, but it sure is alot of fun to fire 30 consecutive rounds out of an SKS without any problems!

 

[dfaugh]

If you want a SKS with detachable magazines that works, you will need to find a Norinco model D.

Or Model M (SKS-M)....These take AK mags and are utterly reliable(5000 rounds through my SKS-M, with a wide variety of mags)....I've NEVER seen the "regular" detachable mags work....Some claim they do, but I've yet to see one that did.

 

[MechAg94]

Take off the detachable mag and put back on the 10 round original mag. It will work fine. Otherwise, get an AK.

 

[gm]

The rigid steel mags often work in the china sks version, the plastic works in the russian model because its tighter in the magwell area.Both are a tremendous waste of money.Practice with those stripper clips and you'll load it up quicker than fumbling around with a detachable.

Try the steel usa in the china or the ati plastic in the russian but dont lose that loading button for the ati,the springs are very rigid.

 

[Vaarok]

Stripper clips are ten cents and reliable. Highcaps are crap.

 

[Mr White]

I've bought several different types of hicaps for my SKSs and the only one I've found to be reliable in my Norinco and Yugo, is a Xytel mag made by Cobray. I only bought one and haven't been able to find any more.

 

[1911JMB]

SKS's are boring unless its a SKS M or D. Its a fact of life, especially if you are like me and can't stand the low capacity. I think its got a lot to do with why they were so cheap for so long.