shuter Posted November 10, 2012 Share Posted November 10, 2012 Guys, in looking at caddies, I like the AP caddies because of sturdy construction and Tek Lok. Thoughts on 4 rd vs. 4x4, please? Also, thoughts on the APs vs. MM? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Matt1911 Posted November 11, 2012 Share Posted November 11, 2012 I prefer mm's due to the ease of loading. I'm just not a fan of having to bend back that spring in the ap's. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bryan 45 Posted November 11, 2012 Share Posted November 11, 2012 I just got some of the 4 round AP carriers. I've only had about 10 minutes to practice w/ them so far, but I like them. They are made well and light. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TommyD Posted November 11, 2012 Share Posted November 11, 2012 (edited) Yeah the springs on the AP's are kind of a drag to load but oh well, the 4x4's save a ton of space! Edited November 11, 2012 by TommyD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rangerguy Posted November 11, 2012 Share Posted November 11, 2012 The 4x4 hurt if you have to go prone but other than that there great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alaskapopo Posted November 11, 2012 Share Posted November 11, 2012 When i had the 4x4's sometimes the last round would hang as i was pulling 4 out of the carrier. But I dropped caddies altogether and now just use a load 2 vest and load 2 caddies by Three Gun Sfutt. Pat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveT-NV Posted November 11, 2012 Share Posted November 11, 2012 Guys, in looking at caddies, I like the AP caddies because of sturdy construction and Tek Lok. Thoughts on 4 rd vs. 4x4, please? Also, thoughts on the APs vs. MM? I have both the 4x4 AP's and the 4 round Man Mountain and I prefer the 4 round Man Mountain. I just can't seem to get the bottom 4 shells out of the AP's as well as I can the front 4 on the AP or the 4 on the Man Mountain. However, the 4x4's take up less belt space and if you are on a high round count shotgun stage, it can be tough to pack enough rounds in the 4 Round MM's to make it through the stage. Depends on how much real estate you have on your belt. That being said I believe this is totally personal preferance. If you look at the pro shooters there are guys like Keith Garcia that use the 4x4's, and he is one of, if not the, fastest shotgun reloaders around. Then there are other pro's that use the 4 round carriers or the load 2 system. If possible try both and see what works best for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
-=VILLAMOR=- Posted November 11, 2012 Share Posted November 11, 2012 The AP 4x4 are great and have never had a problem with them. They do take a little more extra work to load. As a Heavy Metal shooter with a slimmer build, the 4x4's save me a lot of space to carry my other mags. The cons are that they are hard to go prone on. So in the stages where I'll have to go prone, I either use the 4 round holders or move the 4x4's to my side. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vespid_Wasp Posted November 11, 2012 Share Posted November 11, 2012 (edited) I like the AP 4x4 because of the capacity, and they are built like a tank. It only took me a little practice to get where grabbing out of the back row is as smooth as grabbing from the front. I have 3 of them on the front of my belt, going prone on them is just fine with all of them there to distribute my body weight on. If I only had one 4x4 I'd probably put it at 9 o'clock for a weak hand load. I have been able to get through some big jungle run shotgun stages without having to resort to the somewhat slower and more cumbersome side saddle and arm band, because of the additional ammo on my belt. Edited November 11, 2012 by Vespid_Wasp Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClutchUSMC Posted November 11, 2012 Share Posted November 11, 2012 I have used both the AP and MME carries. Started with the man mountain ones because I read they were the best. I bought one of the AP ones at the pro-am in 2010 and it became the one I used most. The space savings was was great plus it was the capacity of 2 MME carriers for the price of 1.4 4x4 carriers.. I thought they were both very well made and very easy to use. Neither one made a noticeable difference in the time it took me to load. If I were buying new ones I would go with the 4x4 just because of the space and money savings. If you use teklok clips or even better els you can move them out of the way when you do need to go prone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
partyboy424 Posted November 11, 2012 Share Posted November 11, 2012 (edited) I've got small hands so I use the 3x3's. They worked great in the two matches I've used them in. However, I was squadded with a guy who had those vest 2 loaders and he was lightning fast at reloading compared to me and said that he barely had to practice with them. It was his first match using them. I may get some of those but that attach to the belt (Don't know who makes them, but saw them on 3-gun nation yesterday) and have the 3x3's as backups. Edit: These http://www.cpwsa.com/taccom.htm Edited November 11, 2012 by partyboy424 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LikesToShoot Posted November 12, 2012 Share Posted November 12, 2012 The AP 4x4 are great and have never had a problem with them. They do take a little more extra work to load. As a Heavy Metal shooter with a slimmer build, the 4x4's save me a lot of space to carry my other mags. The cons are that they are hard to go prone on. So in the stages where I'll have to go prone, I either use the 4 round holders or move the 4x4's to my side. If you get a pair of these you can adapt the the 4x4 with tec lok and remove them very easily when you know you're going to go prone. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Safariland-ELS-KIT1-2-Black-Equipment-Locking-Kits-w-2-Forks-2-Receivers-/380486358358?pt=BI_Security_Fire_Protection&hash=item5896c11556 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shuter Posted November 12, 2012 Author Share Posted November 12, 2012 Sounds like a lot of you like the ELS system over the Tek Lok, huh? The AP 4x4 are great and have never had a problem with them. They do take a little more extra work to load. As a Heavy Metal shooter with a slimmer build, the 4x4's save me a lot of space to carry my other mags. The cons are that they are hard to go prone on. So in the stages where I'll have to go prone, I either use the 4 round holders or move the 4x4's to my side. If you get a pair of these you can adapt the the 4x4 with tec lok and remove them very easily when you know you're going to go prone. http://www.ebay.com/...=item5896c11556 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shuter Posted November 12, 2012 Author Share Posted November 12, 2012 Alaska, which brand of load 2 stuff do you use? When i had the 4x4's sometimes the last round would hang as i was pulling 4 out of the carrier. But I dropped caddies altogether and now just use a load 2 vest and load 2 caddies by Three Gun Sfutt. Pat Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LikesToShoot Posted November 12, 2012 Share Posted November 12, 2012 Sounds like a lot of you like the ELS system over the Tek Lok, huh? The AP 4x4 are great and have never had a problem with them. They do take a little more extra work to load. As a Heavy Metal shooter with a slimmer build, the 4x4's save me a lot of space to carry my other mags. The cons are that they are hard to go prone on. So in the stages where I'll have to go prone, I either use the 4 round holders or move the 4x4's to my side. If you get a pair of these you can adapt the the 4x4 with tec lok and remove them very easily when you know you're going to go prone. http://www.ebay.com/...=item5896c11556 I already had things / belt setup for tec lok, if starting new I'd go ELS belt and work up from there. Live and learn! Here's the caddy already fitted with ELS. http://www.midwayusa.com/Product/297406/ap-customs-4x4-shotshell-shell-carrier-with-safariland-els-attachment-aluminum-black Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
-=VILLAMOR=- Posted November 12, 2012 Share Posted November 12, 2012 The AP 4x4 are great and have never had a problem with them. They do take a little more extra work to load. As a Heavy Metal shooter with a slimmer build, the 4x4's save me a lot of space to carry my other mags. The cons are that they are hard to go prone on. So in the stages where I'll have to go prone, I either use the 4 round holders or move the 4x4's to my side. If you get a pair of these you can adapt the the 4x4 with tec lok and remove them very easily when you know you're going to go prone. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Safariland-ELS-KIT1-2-Black-Equipment-Locking-Kits-w-2-Forks-2-Receivers-/380486358358?pt=BI_Security_Fire_Protection&hash=item5896c11556 The original AP Customs 4x4 already comes with the tec-lok. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
itommygun Posted November 12, 2012 Share Posted November 12, 2012 I used the 4x4 in my 1st match this weekend. Also used choate 6 round carriers. All worked great. Then i had to go prone, I had the 4x4 on the side and the 6round carries in front. Anyway this is all new to me. But had a great time and pulled a 7th place out if it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shuter Posted November 12, 2012 Author Share Posted November 12, 2012 So, were there issues going prone with this setup (ie, 4x4 on the side), or did it work out okay? What would you do differently, if not? Congrats on the result, btw! I used the 4x4 in my 1st match this weekend. Also used choate 6 round carriers. All worked great. Then i had to go prone, I had the 4x4 on the side and the 6round carries in front. Anyway this is all new to me. But had a great time and pulled a 7th place out if it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ClutchUSMC Posted November 12, 2012 Share Posted November 12, 2012 (edited) Going prone on any make of caddies isn't comfortable. But the AP ones are thicker as they hold 8 shells instead of 4 so it is more of a problem. That's where ELS and to a lesser extent teklok shine. You can move your caddies out of the way when you have to go prone. Edited November 12, 2012 by ClutchUSMC Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Boxerglocker Posted November 12, 2012 Share Posted November 12, 2012 When i had the 4x4's sometimes the last round would hang as i was pulling 4 out of the carrier. But I dropped caddies altogether and now just use a load 2 vest and load 2 caddies by Three Gun Sfutt. Pat I just had this very experience this last weekend. I borrowed a 4x4 from a buddy for a couple stages, we both have ELS belt systems. I'm going to stick with Carbon Arms FLS8 load 2 systems and a couple of MM 4 shell caddies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LikesToShoot Posted November 13, 2012 Share Posted November 13, 2012 The AP 4x4 are great and have never had a problem with them. They do take a little more extra work to load. As a Heavy Metal shooter with a slimmer build, the 4x4's save me a lot of space to carry my other mags. The cons are that they are hard to go prone on. So in the stages where I'll have to go prone, I either use the 4 round holders or move the 4x4's to my side. If you get a pair of these you can adapt the the 4x4 with tec lok and remove them very easily when you know you're going to go prone. http://www.ebay.com/itm/Safariland-ELS-KIT1-2-Black-Equipment-Locking-Kits-w-2-Forks-2-Receivers-/380486358358?pt=BI_Security_Fire_Protection&hash=item5896c11556 The original AP Customs 4x4 already comes with the tec-lok. Correct, that's why I wanted to convert mine so I could remove them EASILY when not needed. With the ELS it's done it seconds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
larry weeks Posted November 13, 2012 Share Posted November 13, 2012 PartyBoy: Your hands aren't too small to load 4. My hand measures 6-1/4" from base of palm to tip of finger and 3-1/4" wide across the rear set of knuckles. Rob Romero made me load 4 and and Lena Miculek spent about 5 minutes with me and showed me how. Her hands are the same width as mine with slightly longer fingers. grab the shells with your first two fingers, index the ring finger on the body of the shell caddy. Then, the trick is to move each shell and your hand to the gun, don't try to roll the shells down your hand to get them to the port. Tough to explain, easy to show. I'm not lightening fast because I don't practice enough but I'm smooth and seldom drop a shell, even when moving. Ty Gentry, Benny Hill's buddy also has very small hands and he loads 4. So, if your hands are the same size as a 16 year old girl, you can do it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tavman Posted November 14, 2012 Share Posted November 14, 2012 I run the 4x4's on an ELS belt system. I like more rounds in less real estate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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