Lesser of two evils

[Grumpyman]

I know that everybody says not to buy pro mag or triple k mags because they are junk, however the factory 4506 S&W ones seem to be priced out of sight if you can even find them.
So I guess my question would be if you had to choose between pro mag or triple k which would you pick?

Thanks

 

[biku324]

I had a Triple K magazine on my duty 5906 shed its floor plate as I carried the sidearm in its holster. Where or when it fell off I have no idea; my duty that day was working inside the state capitol building - hardly rough duty. I threw it and another away and will never buy another.

Had I needed my pistol, I would have been able to fire only the chambered round. I took that fairly personally.

 

[oldman10mm]

I do the gun show circuit here in NE Ohio. One of my magazine suppliers is always showing/offering standard OEM S&W 4506 magazines to me. I don't have/shoot 45 so I don't pick them up. He sells them to me for $20 and I resell them around the country for $25, no profit just covering postage and envelope. Seems like 4506 mags have become in demand.
With the gun show circuit on hold for now, the next show would be Medina in mid August and Berea at end of August. If those shows are a go, I'll pick up some 4506 mags. Don't know what his pricing will be.

 

[Liftrat]

I haven't bought a ProMag in years, so maybe their quality has improved, but the last one I bought (for a Mini-14) didn't fit well, and always gave failures to feed. OTOH, a couple of years ago, I bought a Triple K mag (with a lot of trepidation) for a Sauer 38H for a friend, and it fit and functions fine. I only bought it because the 38H factory mags are scarce, even scarcer than 4506 ones I bet. Between my experience and biku324's, I'd say six of one, half dozen of the other.

 

[clang444]

One is bad and the other is worse, take your pick in which is which.

 

[BAM-BAM]

If it's all you can find use them but range only ....... save your factory for carry .....

Oldman10mm....... has some good and great mags. I've bought a dozen or so over the years at the NE Ohio Bunch meetings. Buy with confidence.

Wouldn't mind a couple more for my 4566

 

[brucev]

Bought five ProMags for my 15-22. Held 25 rounds. Retrofitted the follower, tab and they held 33 rounds. Functioned and fired 100 % perfectly for me and everyone who used them. Gave the rifle and magazines to my brother. He and his son have had a lot of fun with them. AFAIK, he has had no problems with them. HTH. Sincerely. bruce.

 

[oldman10mm]

Not knowing much about 45s', is the 4566 mag same as 4506 mag ?

 

[lrrifleman]

I have purchased two Triple K magazines in my life, and that was three too many!

About forty years ago, I purchased one of their 1911 magazines. As I inserted the seventh round, the floorplate broke it's spot welds and fell off, dumping the spring, follower, and ammo.

Within the past two years I bought one of their Mauser HSc magazines. The magazine was a tight fit (width wise) and required removing a grip panel in order to pry the magazine out of the frame.

With Mauser magazine, I reached out to their customer service, and they never replied. If Triple K were the last magazine manufacturer on earth, I'd single load it!

 

[JohnHL]

Not knowing much about 45s', is the 4566 mag same as 4506 mag ?

Yes, Sir.

John

 

[6518John]

So I guess my question would be if you had to choose between pro mag or triple k which would you pick?

A sharp stick or a rock if I was planing on using the mags in a defense pistol.

 

[TercGen]

Honestly, neither one. Best bet is to be patient and habitually scour the auction sites and the classifieds here to try and catch a better deal on some factory mags, or bite the bullet and pay the going premium. The difference in performance is worth it for factory.

If you absolutely must buy one of these lesser brands, I would probably go with Promag and swap out the internals for S&W factory parts. I've heard some folks have had success with this, don't know if I'd trust my life to it though.

 

[rincar]

From my own point of view wait and get a factory mag or a Mec-Gar if Mec-Gar makes them. you will be happier in the long run

 

[Grumpyman]

I’ve looked at Numrich to see if I could buy the individual parts to put one together, but no luck everything is sold out.
I check MecGar and apparently they don’t make mags for 4506.

Thanks everyone for the replies.

 

[oldman10mm]

Referring back to my post #3, when I acquire some I'll pm you.

 

[Grumpyman]

Referring back to my post #3, when I acquire some I'll pm you.

Thanks...PM sent.

 

[BigBoy99]

It all boils down to is "how much do you value your life?" If your life depends up a correctly functioning magazine, spend the money and buy a S&W magazine for your gun. If you have to buy a S&W magazine which will function correctly and spend $60 for it or spend $20 for a sub-standard mage, is your life worth $40?

 

[stansdds]

The simple fact is that only S&W magazines should be trusted in the 645/4506. MecGar, for whatever reason, does not seem interested in producing magazines for the Model 39/39-2 or the 645/4506. Used factory magazines are fetching $50-$60 these days, but if the pistol is for serious use, should a higher priced, fully functional magazine even be a discussion?

I look at the magazine as an investment. It provides reliable function and other than the very first version of the Model 645 magazine, the only thing that ever seems to wear or fail is the magazine spring.

 

[Grumpyman]

The simple fact is that only S&W magazines should be trusted in the 645/4506. MecGar, for whatever reason, does not seem interested in producing magazines for the Model 39/39-2 or the 645/4506. Used factory magazines are fetching $50-$60 these days, but if the pistol is for serious use, should a higher priced, fully functional magazine even be a discussion?

I look at the magazine as an investment. It provides reliable function and other than the very first version of the Model 645 magazine, the only thing that ever seems to wear or fail is the magazine spring.

Oh I definitely agree, the only mags I’ve purchased for my 3rd gens have been factory, I’m not in any big rush so that is what I will continue to look for.

 

[quikdraw67]

I guess if I HAD to pick one, I'd go with the ProMag. I had Triple K for my 1911's and they ended up in the recycling bin. Absolute garbage. The ProMags I had for my Mini14 was not a good fit, had their share of jams. As factory 20rd Ruger mags became more available the ProMags got recycled into soup cans. I stick with OEM mags for my semi pistols and MSR's (exception, Chip McCormick mags for the 1911's). JMHO YMMV