Beta C-Mags

[HorseSoldier]

That hybrid mag set-up is interesting. The only picture I've ever seen of one was in a power point slide for some training the USAF was the proponent agency for. Everyone in the room, myself included, thought it was a staged photo involving an airman who did not know better (though none of us could explain how to get an AK mag into an AR mag well. Now I'm inclined to believe it was one of the VN-era mags shown in the photos.

Learn something new everyday.

[Raellus]

Wow. I've seen literally thousands of photos from Vietnam and don't recall ever seeing one of those mags. Thanks for posting them.

[HorseSoldier]

I wonder how well they worked. If it was a successful idea, I'd think that someone would have made them for the civilian AR market at some point, but the only AK/AR hybrid mags I've seen there were specifically for 7.62x39 caliber ARs (a design with some fairly notorious reliability issues, but as I understand it that is more about trying to get the geometry of 7.62x39 rounds through the AR-15 magwell than the magazines themselves).

[BigEd_3]

I can only speculate on the how successful the franken mags were. The mags MAY have had an influence (but I am leaning more towards doubt) to the US adopting the use of 30 rounds mags later in the war.

[HorseSoldier]

Any idea on the capacity? I'd think an AK mag converted to 5.56mm would be 40 to 45 rounds or thereabouts.

I'm not sure how influential the field mod'ed mags were either with the 30 round M16 mags -- I think the basic fact that an AK held 30 rounds versus the M16's 20 would be enough to have made that happen.

[BigEd_3]

I agree. But due to the poor track record the M16 had during the early stages of the war, magazines were never fully trusted either. So only 18 rounds loaded in 20 rd mags, and 25-28 rounds loaded in 30 rd mags to increase the mags reliability.

I had read about this practice and inquired about it in 2010 when I had the honor and privilage of speaking with Vietnam Veteran LRRP Cal Rollins. I learned alot from him over a two day period.

I have no clue how many rounds a AK/M16 mag would hold. I may have to do an experiment some day and fabricate a mag.