Help me decide - Fixed Magazine options

[SSOUNN]

The hogue and others like it require drilling into the lower and I'd prefer to not do that.
The FC hook or some modified mag catch making the rifle a top loader is becoming more appealing to me.

I've also been going back and forth about the FC Hook.. May give it a chance..

[BigBamBoo]

One thing to remember when using a break open action device is that it puts a LOT of wear on the rear take down hole.

Think how many reloads would you do in your typical range outing. The take down pin is steel and the receiver is aluminum.

Next is the stress on the front take tabs on the lower receiver. All the weight of the upper flopping around over and over during the same typical range outing.

I have a buddy who has a old Fab10 lower that the above issue happened rather quickly to the lower receiver.

First was the upper lower fit begain to get extremely loose.

Then, one day, he broke it open to load and the take town tab on the right side of the lower broke off.

Good luck to all who are going to go this route. It will be interesting to hear longevity reports once these get into use.

.

[Speedkills66]

Definitely a factor in the decision.
That's why I'm leaning toward the idea of loading via ejection port or possibly using the Cross Armory PinPal.
The wear and tear on the pin/lower was one of the (many) reasons I went featureless when I did and one to overcome still.
That, and the misdeed/malfunction issue.

[74man]

If I get any wear from removing the take down pins, I will just sleeve the pin holes with steel sleeves and Press the sleeves into the take down holes. The reason I used the 80% lowers is that they are made out of 6061 aluminum which is weldable so if one of the lobes broke off I would have it welded back into place but it the upper comes loose because of pin wear I will sleeve the pin holes with steel sleeves which would be a one time fix. I went with the ARMaglock on one build for featureless along with the Liberty grip which ATTEE designed and is sold on this site, and on my other build I went with a Thordsons stock for featureless. I like both ways to make them featureless. Good Luck

[dwinters14]

If I get any wear from removing the take down pins, I will just sleeve the pin holes with steel sleeves and Press the sleeves into the take down holes. The reason I used the 80% lowers is that they are made out of 6061 aluminum which is weldable so if one of the lobes broke off I would have it welded back into place but it the upper comes loose because of pin wear I will sleeve the pin holes with steel sleeves which would be a one time fix. I went with the ARMaglock on one build for featureless along with the Liberty grip which ATTEE designed and is sold on this site, and on my other build I went with a Thordsons stock for featureless. I like both ways to make them featureless. Good Luck

Cross Armory offers a sleeve kit for the front take down pin to go along with their quick pins in the back.

[BigBamBoo]

99.5% of CA gun owners do not have the ability to sleeve the take down hole. Which means they have to pay some to do it. Which then ups the price of the break open option up to say the Thordsen price range....probably even more.

And that is the number one factor on the site....price point.

Me, I actually use my guns for shooting sports....USPSA, steel challenge, 3gun, etc., and any fixed mag system just won't work for me.

So I am featureless on my race guns....Ares SCR and Thordsen.

Everyone will have to do what works for them.

.

[Speedkills66]

The Cross Armory Pin Pal should take away the wear and sleeping issue.
I'll most likely use one of those regardless of which device I end up choosing.

[AGGRO]

What if you don't need one? I wonder what the return policy of these places are.

[JS41989]

Tagged

[EEMonty]

As I see it, going fixed mag and then using one of these new side loaders is one option. Either way, you have to go fixed mag, featureless, or register.

If you go fixed mag, using one of these side loaders allows you to not put the wear n tear on the pivots. You only have to open the action when cleaning or clearing some sort of jam.

I bought an ARMag lock when they were first available and it seems to work well on my rifle. It has not scratched the upper....yet. I am sure others might run into clearance issues. Since I only access the ARMag when I need to clean the rifle, my hope is that it will not get used very much anyway.