Question for Steyr GB Owners

[dfletcher]

I'm picking up a Steyr GB next week - in the box with all the extras, except the factory magazines aren't part of the "face to face" deal.

GB magazines are about $200.00 a pop. As some may know a company named Rogak 1st rolled out (very poorly) the GB pistol only to stop due to quality control issues. Question is - do Rogak magazines work in the Steyr GB?

[P5Ret]

I sold my GB when mags got really hard to find and expensive. The best answer I can give on the Rogak mag's is maybe. I know guy's who tried them and they worked, and I know guys that tried them and they didn't work. Like the guns QC on the mags was pretty much hit and miss.

[Quiet]

Question is - do Rogak magazines work in the Steyr GB?

Nope.

The Rogak P18 used a proprietary magazine that is not compatible with the Styer GB.
^The exterior magazine dimensions are different, which prevents the Rogak P18 magazine from fitting into the grip of the Steyr GB.

Rogak P18 = heel magazine release system
^Bottom rear of magazine has hump/shelf projection that engages with the heel magazine release system.

Steyr GB = push button magazine release system
^Right side of magazine has cut out that engages with the push button magazine release system.

[dfletcher]

Nope.

The Rogak P18 used a proprietary magazine that is not compatible with the Styer GB.
^The exterior magazine dimensions are different, which prevents the Rogak P18 magazine from fitting into the grip of the Steyr GB.

Rogak P18 = heel magazine release system
^Bottom rear of magazine has hump/shelf projection that engages with the heel magazine release system.

Steyr GB = push button magazine release system
^Right side of magazine has cut out that engages with the push button magazine release system.

I prefer the answer behind door #2 .....

You're certain about the magazine body being too big, yes? I could do a side cut, made some Walther P88 mags out of S&W 59s that way. But if the mag body is too big that pretty much kills it.

[The Gleam]

I prefer the answer behind door #2 .....

You're certain about the magazine body being too big, yes? I could do a side cut, made some Walther P88 mags out of S&W 59s that way. But if the mag body is too big that pretty much kills it.

I'm not sure on the size, but then again I never had (or wanted) Rogak mags in my possession to try them out. Back in the mid 1990s, I stocked up on Steyr GB mags so I'm set. Providing that the bodies and feed lips are compatible, you would have to ground down the lug and cut the hole for the Steyr GB mag catch.

However, is that even feasible? Though the Rogak is junk, and the mags don't even look as well made, they're probably as hard, if not harder to find than actual Steyr GB mags, and you still have the high-cap problem because they are also 18-rounders.. unless of course you already own a couple of those turds.

In any case, at around 5:18 in the video below, my friend Ian shows the Rogak and Steyr mags side-by-side. Look at the feed rail that runs the vertical length of the magazine; on the Steyr GB it runs the full length from the feed lips to the bottom, where as the Rogak rail doesn't start until at least 1/4th inch from the feed-lips. That could obviously present a problem with interchangeability if the dead-stop on that runner on the Rogak mag would prevent it from loading fully into the Steyr, and that would be a hard thing to overcome and maintain integrity og the magazine's body/strength.

I held a Rogak in my hand more than 2 decades ago at Martin B. Rettings, and couldn't believe how visibly bad the manufacturing appeared. Did not take long to decide to pass on it, and that was before I actually owned a Steyr GB; definitely not a substitute. It truly is one of the worst looking made guns I've ever held in my hand.

[Quiet]

I prefer the answer behind door #2 .....

You're certain about the magazine body being too big, yes? I could do a side cut, made some Walther P88 mags out of S&W 59s that way. But if the mag body is too big that pretty much kills it.

From what I could remember, the Rogak magazine would not completely seat/lock in a Steyr GB, the bottom portion of the Rogak magazine would stick out.

Back in early-1990s, friend's dad owned both of them (Steyr GB and Rogak P18).
^He collected gas-operated pistols.
~Besides the Steyr GB and Rogak P18, he also had 3 IMI Desert Eagle (.357Magnum, .41Magnum, & .44Magnum), 7 H&K P-7s (2 P7, 2 P7M8, 2 P7M13, & 1 P7M10), and 2 Wildey Magnums (.45WinMag & .475WildeyMag).

[dfletcher]

Thanks all.

To cover a few of the other posts - I have a 2nd home in Oregon and a source for the Rogak mags at about $40.00 a pop. I have access to a machine shop and friend who does the work, so if the dimensions are there I'm thinking it could be done. Watched the Forgotten Weapons video, worth a shot I think.

[Quiet]

Thanks all.

To cover a few of the other posts - I have a 2nd home in Oregon and a source for the Rogak mags at about $40.00 a pop. I have access to a machine shop and friend who does the work, so if the dimensions are there I'm thinking it could be done. Worth a shot.

From what I can remember... (it's been about a quarter of a century)
I think the bottom rear of the magazine has a plastic hump/protrusion that was part of the magazine base plate.

So, it may be easier to modify then it sounds.

[dfletcher]

From what I can remember... (it's been about a quarter of a century)

I think the bottom rear of the magazine has a plastic hump/protrusion that was part of the magazine base plate.

So, it may be easier to modify then it sounds.

That's what I got from the video, although it looks like part of the magazine. In addition to removing that hump and making a side cut I may have to find a metal floorplate too.

[dfletcher]

From what I can remember... (it's been about a quarter of a century)
I think the bottom rear of the magazine has a plastic hump/protrusion that was part of the magazine base plate.

So, it may be easier to modify then it sounds.

The magazine can be made to fit and it's not very difficult.

There is a small metal tab spot welded to the low back end of the magazine body. It adds thickness to accommodate the Rogak's European style magazine release. Smooth out the tab so that it's almost eliminated, nearly blended in to the magazine body, and the mag will fully insert. Since the tab is spot welded and the quality of the Rogak mag is on par with their pistol I thought it best to leave it just slimmed down, not obliterated. The pad and its weld provide additional strength to the mag body.

I used a Steyr mag to set the exact spot on the Rogak for the 1911 style mag release. After that, a little dressing down of the rather thick plastic basepad or replacing it with a metal type (Para and Sig 226 fit) to allow it to fully seat and lock in place and it's done.

There is another alternative to getting the mag to seat. The GB frame is a fairly thin stamping. It would take about 5 minutes to relieve the frame at the heel to allow the unaltered Rogak mag to seat. The alteration would not be visible nor would it preclude using GB magazines. That wouldn't be my choice on a gun that's in basically NIB condition.

The mag body alteration took about 20 minutes total.