November 17th, 2022
5minute read
Its easy to take AR-15 magazines for granted.
We pick them up, load them and do it all over again.
Lather, rinse, repeat.
Is it important to clean your AR-15 magazines? Want to know how you strip them and what are the best practices for cleaning?
The fact is, we dont give AR magazine the respect they deserve.
Magazines are an integral and important part of any firearm.
They feed the machine.
Metal mags, like this sample from SureFeed, have four components: magazine body, magazine spring, follower, and floorplate.
They deserve our respect.
Not too long after, extended 30-round magazines began to appear.
By 1980, the M16/AR-15 magazine was proposed to NATO to standardize magazines among NATO nations.
You can use the tip of a bullet to unsnap the floorplate on many metal AR magazines like this Okay Industries SureFeed magazine.
You may recall hearing the AR-15 is a STANAG magazine.
Lets take a look at how to care for them.
Remember the floorplate is under spring tension and the spring will shoot out if you are not prepared.
Run a soft dry cloth through the magazine body to remove any debris. This is also a good time to examine it for cracks and odd bends.
You dont want to poke your eye out, so wear safety glasses.
Next, work the spring back and forth gently as you pull it out of the magazine body.
When you reach the follower, confirm you keep the spring and follower connected and wiggle out the follower.
Wipe the follower with a soft dry cloth. Look it over for chips and cracks before reassembling. Replacement followers are inexpensive, yet critical. Don’t trust damaged ones.
Congrats youve successfully disassembled a metal AR magazine!
Its really that easy.
Cleaning Metal AR Magazines
Now, lets move on to maintenance.
Blow out the magazine body with canned air or use an air compressor.
you might also run a clean cloth inside the magazine body.
Do not use any lubricant.
Magpul PMAGs have five components: magazine body, magazine spring, follower, floorplate retainer and floorplate.
Mixing oil and magazines is not a good idea.
Oil attracts dust and dirt, turning into a cruddy paste that can foul the best-operating magazine.
Next, examine the spring for any breaks or odd-looking bends.
To disassemble a PMAG, press the floorplate retainer button and use your thumb to slide the floor off the magazine body. Make sure you keep your thumb over the magazine spring or else you have a face full of magazine spring.
If you find any, deep-six the spring and replace it with a new one.
Also, check the feed lips on the magazine body to ensure they are properly angled and smooth.
If they are bent, send the magazine body to AR heaven and replace it.
With the magazine disassembled, the author runs a dry clean cloth inside the magazine body using a long blade screwdriver.
The follower, too, should be free of crack and chips.
Now reassemble in reverse order.
Maggie would be proud.
Dont know who Maggie is?
See page 26 inThe M16A1 Rifle: Operation and Preventive Maintenancemanual handed out to grunts in Vietnam circa 1969.
The secret sauce of the Magpul is its anti-tilt follower.
Internal rails inside the mag keep the follower spring aligned, as well as prevent the follower from tilting.
This set-up reduces jams and malfunctions.
They are available in a range of capacities.
The design of the PMAG is slightly different than a metal G.I.
The PMAG uses a dust cover that snap over the top of the magazine to prevent dust getting inside.
I have a habit of accidentally losing these as soon as I open a new mag.
Disassembly and Cleaning of Polymer AR Magazines
Disassembling a PMAG is similar to a metal magazine.
Just press in on the floorplate retainer button and slide the floorplate off the magazine body.
Watch out for the spring as it is under compression.
The spring will slide out easily.
Clean and inspect the same as you did with the metal magazine.
Conclusion
Your magazine can make the difference between your AR running and becoming an expensive paperweight.
Remember, a happy AR magazine is a reliable AR magazine.
Keep it clean and keep it happy.
Go to forum thread
SAINTMagazines
ARSeries
