Magazines. My usage will be as follows. Laying in the safe, unloaded, until I get ready to go to the country and shoot.
Reason I ask is that I was at a local "tactical" shop today, and they had a bin full of "in the wrap" Gen2's for $8 each, total, out the door.

No.

Good price. Everythings coming down. Kinda what they are going for these days if you find a "bargain". I gave 7 bucks apiece for a dozen of em a while back.

If you're gonna have them loaded in storage, please keep the dust caps in place to relieve stress on the feed lips.

No I run tons of them. $8 a decent price for NIW.

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Use should dictate gear!

Buy em, they work.

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Still carrying my S&W 642

Good mags. I have a bunch and they are perfectly reliable. I've paid as much as $15 for some. As little as $7 for others. Prices are much lower than they were when everyone was worried about bans.

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Or something like that . . .

The gen. 2 Magpul is good to go unless you are using the newer XM855A1 enhanced performance round, this is the one with the exposed sharp metal tip. The gen.3 mags have a redesigned follower and I think feed lip design. So the gen. 2 is good for most everything but the XM855A1 round.

The only reason not to is that there is a different version that costs more that might tempt you. Nary a failure as a result of a magazine with any Pmag I've ever used. Really, the only mag failures I've ever had were with some Triple K Mags back during the AWB in 2003.

The Gen 2's will work fine unless you plan on shooting M855A1 ammo, Magpul changed the feed angle slightly on the Gen 3 so the hardened tip on A1 would not lead to excessive wear on lower receiver.

This is not the intended purpose of the dust caps. In fact, there has never been a reported failure of the feed lips due to being kept loaded without the dust cover. The purpose of the dust cover is to prevent damage to the lips and to keep debris out.

There are several differences between the two generations. This is a good article: FIRST LOOK: PMAG GEN M3 VS. ORIGINAL PMAG | Modern Service Weapons

The Gen 3 is better, but marginally so. When I look for mags I want the Gen 3. However, at $8/mag, I'd buy a bunch of Gen 2 mags and not look back.

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Freedom isn't free.

There's a company called Triple K? That's awkward...

Good price.

The Magpul Gen2 magazine is a perfectly serviceable magazine. It is of polymer construction and like all polymers is subject to a phenomenon called "creep" in which the dimensions of the magazine change when placed under constant load and kept that way. For that reason, I would keep any Magpul magazines unloaded until you are ready to shoot them.

If you want magazines that can be loaded and kept stored, loaded, for a long time without worry, look for a blackened stainless steel magazine such as this one made by C-Products and sold by CDNN (CDNN SPORTS - CDNN Sports - Huge Savings on Guns and Magazines) which costs $12. I have some of these magazines that have been loaded almost constantly since the early 1980's that are still working like they were the day they were bought.

Seems like the Gen2s don't have the cover while the Gen3s do. Of course the cover can be bought separately. I notice that the cover does push the top round down slightly so, to me anyway, it's purpose is more than just keeping debris out.

According to the date on the link supplied by Rastoff the Gen 3's have been around since around 2012......not like they are something brand new.

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LOL, good catch, I didn't notice it the first time around ! ( and apparantly, either has anyone at this company ! )

Indeed. They are not new.

The PMAG has withstood the test of time and punishment. I know little to nothing about the first gen, but the 2nd gen PMAGs have seen a lot of service. Sure, they've introduced the Gen 3, but the improvements are very small. Both are equally tough and reliable. Yes, the Gen 3 is better, but only marginally so.

I wouldn't hesitate to buy either.

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HD, I have several 30 rd. steel mags made by D&H that I keep fully loaded at all times. I also have a BOO-KOO amount of MAGPUL 30 rd. P-MAGS (GEN 2 & 3) that I also keep fully loaded at all times. When I go shoot my AR's I usually just bring 10-12. I never rotate them so it could be that some have sat longer than others. How long does it take a fully loaded P-MAG to "CREEP" as you described?

You are correct, if you leave a magazine fully loaded for a long time the cover should stop the feed lips from becoming distorted as it takes the spring pressure from the top round off them. How long would you need to store the mag fully loaded for it to cause damage to the mag I don't know.

And yet this is not the intended purpose for the cover as I stated previously. You can call Magpul and they will tell you this themselves.

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Freedom isn't free.