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Review, KCI Mags for B&T firearms (AP9, GHM9 & more)


BrianK

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The gold standard for B&T firearms are B&T branded mags. Common sense, right? But they are just shy of $50 and all plastic. I've often wondered about that. I have 6 that have cracks in their bodies and the feed lips are taking a "set" where the case head rests. So far none of that has compromised their function but I would at the very least prefer a steel feed lip area, sorta like a Lancer magazine.

Anyway, a few days ago I was on a search for mags and all 30 rnd B&T mags are sold out. But I ran across Rainier Arms and a listing for KCI mags for B&T. Looking at the pics they appeared to have reinforced feed lips so I ordered a bunch. It also helped that they are $15 less than the Swiss mags. They arrived today and yes, the feed lips are reinforced with steel. They look like a better built mag than the Swiss version, but looks account for nothing. I hope to test them tomorrow and if I have issues I'll post here. So no news will be good news. If they work I want to place another order ASAP.

BTW, and this is an assumption, they aren't listed on the KCI website yet, so I assume the mags are very new. KCI doesn't do retail sales, but I had to check the manufacturers site anyway.

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You drop a KCI Glock mag feedlips-down, and you'll bend the feedlips. 

My $0.02 on what KCI is doing.

Since you bought a bunch, try that out and see what happens.  If they bend, unload the rest to someone on GB, as "New, unopened, still in original packaging." etc.

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Thanks for the heads up. Yes, I can picture that happening even without the test. That steel has to be soft for them to form it around the working end of the magazine.

But I never, and I do mean never, drop my mags even in competition (anymore). Even though it's fractionally slower I now put the spent mag in a dump pouch, then grab the fresh one inches away. I've trained with the dump pouch because a mag' fed firearm is a slow single shot with mags that litter the countryside. Why train to fail? FWIW, others have suggested that they use their shirt as their dump pouch but I've never actually seen anyone practice that.

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  • 3 weeks later...
On 7/28/2022 at 12:32 PM, BrianK said:

The gold standard for B&T firearms are B&T branded mags. Common sense, right? But they are just shy of $50 and all plastic. I've often wondered about that. I have 6 that have cracks in their bodies and the feed lips are taking a "set" where the case head rests. So far none of that has compromised their function but I would at the very least prefer a steel feed lip area, sorta like a Lancer magazine.

Anyway, a few days ago I was on a search for mags and all 30 rnd B&T mags are sold out. But I ran across Rainier Arms and a listing for KCI mags for B&T. Looking at the pics they appeared to have reinforced feed lips so I ordered a bunch. It also helped that they are $15 less than the Swiss mags. They arrived today and yes, the feed lips are reinforced with steel. They look like a better built mag than the Swiss version, but looks account for nothing. I hope to test them tomorrow and if I have issues I'll post here. So no news will be good news. If they work I want to place another order ASAP.

BTW, and this is an assumption, they aren't listed on the KCI website yet, so I assume the mags are very new. KCI doesn't do retail sales, but I had to check the manufacturers site anyway.

How was your test?

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So far my test has been quite limited. But so far it's good. I see no functional difference between B&T mags and the KCI. They feed fine.

I did have a B&T mag buy the farm in competition this past weekend, the feed lips just wore out and that was causing malfunctions so that freed up a mag' extension. My first thought was to install it on a KCI mag'. If there is any dimensional difference between the mags it certainly doesn't show anywhere that I could find. I put the B&T follower in the KCI mag' body and it fit exactly the same as the KCI follower. Everything appears identical. The extension fit the same on the KCI as it did on the B&T. 

Now I'd like to get a manufacturer to get rid of the plastic feed lips entirely (like on a Lancer AR mag) and transition from the plastic body to steel feed lips if possible.

Frankly, for a $50 mag B&T needs to come up with something better IMO. They just aren't worth the $50 price. Based on my limited testing of the KCI so far, I'm going to order more as soon as I can.

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9 minutes ago, BrianK said:

Now I'd like to get a manufacturer to get rid of the plastic feed lips entirely (like on a Lancer AR mag)

Everyone that makes mags with steel feed lips is banking off Lancer, seeing if you'll check into them deep.  Not saying the KCIs are bad, but it's just steel feed lips, and on Glock mags, those KCI's don't make it.  The thing about the Lancer's, that I wish everyone would copy, is that the Lancer steel feed lips are hardened steel.  That's what make them what they are.  And that's why they're more $$$. 

I wish every manufacturer went that direction.

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