Magazine Review Nordic Clear 48 round Pmag extender

[Alaskapopo]

I tried the clear extension today as it arrived in the mail from Brownells. It works as good as their metal coupler one but costs half as much. However I imagine the clear plastic is not as durable. But so far no complaints. It ran perfect today when I tested it.

Edited September 23, 2009 by Alaskapopo

[1bigshooter]

Is the extension 'tight' to the main magazine body?

My aluminum version has a fair bit of play between the two mag halves.

Seems to run ok so far, but have not used it extensively.

[lefty556]

On my newer Pmags, they seem to be tight. Some of the older (as in the first two or three months of production) Pmags, they fit looser. No issues either way at this time.

[Alaskapopo]

Mine is a bit loose but runs fine. On the original metal coupler I had problems until Nordic told me to loosen it a bit and now it runs fine as well.

[MikeFoley]

They work as slick as glass, and so far so good. While they don't feel indestructable, at this capacity, they seldom hit the ground, and when they do, it is falling like 4 feet. I haven't stepped on one yet, as I have never had to reload it. I think the additional round, lighter weight, and reduced cost make this a winner. I had one of the prototypes, and it has been in my bag and running with 48 in it from day one. I don't have it with me today, but I did one on a FDE Maglevel and numbered it on both sides. This is my go to mag above 28 rounds evey time.

[Alaskapopo]

They work as slick as glass, and so far so good. While they don't feel indestructable, at this capacity, they seldom hit the ground, and when they do, it is falling like 4 feet. I haven't stepped on one yet, as I have never had to reload it. I think the additional round, lighter weight, and reduced cost make this a winner. I had one of the prototypes, and it has been in my bag and running with 48 in it from day one. I don't have it with me today, but I did one on a FDE Maglevel and numbered it on both sides. This is my go to mag above 28 rounds evey time.

I agree they are awesome and cost a lot less than a custom mag from Tripps.

Pat

[Chris]

They are tough as well. According to KurtM, he loaded his up and dropped it a few times on to the garage floor from over his head. Still works...

[J-Ho]

As much as I didn't like them when I first saw them, I must say I was wrong. They work great. I had to trim the floor plate a little for it to fit right but not a big deal. I will buy more of these. It might be nice to see a couple different lengths as well.

[ERIC]

The clear looks cool but I wonder if the black one is stonger.

[Storm52]

The clear looks cool but I wonder if the black one is stonger.

Actually, clear plastic has a harder tensile strength than any with color pigment.

[Alaskapopo]

Umm I believe you may be mistaken there. Mag pul has not released the clear mags yet due to problems with durability. Also all clear AR mags in the past have been junk. The plastic also feels less durable but that is a subjective layman's opinion. But either way both systems work and the clear extension is way cheaper.

Pat

Edited September 23, 2009 by Alaskapopo

[TRUBL]

The extensions are made out of Polycarbonate.......most people know of this plastic by it's trade marked name "Lexan".

Yes, they have been loaded full and drop tested from 5 feet.....actually the only part I did break was the Magpul feed lip cover.....so no, it's not meant as a dis.....more of a the mag and the extension holds up just fine.

No....they probably will not take to well to gun solvents or bug spray. This is the main reason why Magpul has not come out with a clear mag, not durability (from drops, etc.). The PMAG as it is now....works great, durable and for the most part chemical resistant (well, not ALL chemicals).

The older PMAG extensions were designed actually to run loose....as not to clamp or 'squish' the PMAG. The new couple is tighter on the new PMAG's...a little loose on the old ones. If you PMAG works as a 30....it will work as 48.

And yes, if you abuse it like throwing it 50 feet fully loaded in a parking lot, not only will you destroy the coupler, but you will also destroy the PMAG. However, the coupler will take any shock the the PMAG will.

YEah, maybe it's a shameless plug....but you guys know me....I pretty much use and test all the neat stuff for 3 gun, and I lay it out on the line for anyones product.

Edited September 23, 2009 by TRUBL

[Alaskapopo]

The extensions are made out of Polycarbonate.......most people know of this plastic by it's trade marked name "Lexan".

Yes, they have been loaded full and drop tested from 5 feet.....actually the only part I did break was the Magpul feed lip cover.....so no, it's not meant as a dis.....more of a the mag and the extension holds up just fine.

No....they probably will not take to well to gun solvents or bug spray. This is the main reason why Magpul has not come out with a clear mag, not durability (from drops, etc.). The PMAG as it is now....works great, durable and for the most part chemical resistant (well, not ALL chemicals).

The older PMAG extensions were designed actually to run loose....as not to clamp or 'squish' the PMAG. The new couple is tighter on the new PMAG's...a little loose on the old ones. If you PMAG works as a 30....it will work as 48.

And yes, if you abuse it like throwing it 50 feet fully loaded in a parking lot, not only will you destroy the coupler, but you will also destroy the PMAG. However, the coupler will take any shock the the PMAG will.

YEah, maybe it's a shameless plug....but you guys know me....I pretty much use and test all the neat stuff for 3 gun, and I lay it out on the line for anyones product.

I was given 5 Pmags from magpul for testing and as of yet have not been able to destroy them. I am waiting for winter to try some cold weather testing. I have tossed them up in the air 25 feet and let them land with no ill effects. Mags were fully loaded. I would not try that with the clear extension. The plastic feels less durable. However for its intended purpose it will serve just fine.

Pat

Edited September 29, 2009 by Alaskapopo

[Harmon]

Umm I believe you may be mistaken there. Mag pul has not released the clear mags yet due to problems with durability. Also all clear AR mags in the past have been junk. The plastic also feels less durable but that is a subjective layman's opinion. But either way both systems work and the clear extension is way cheaper.

Pat

I spoke at length to an engineer that worked at a Chemical plant in the plastics division and he saidthat black is the strongest colored plastic because it takes less black pigment to color the plastic. Less pigment means more strength.

however an unpigmented piece of plastic will not be clear as glass. it may be cloudy in appearance and sometimes doesnt lead itself to making a good looking finisihed product. thus many polymer products are black in color.

I would not come to any definitive conclusions to the strengths of certain materials based on the products that MAGPUL offers.

[mike.45]

According to KurtM, he loaded his up and dropped it a few times on to the garage floor from over his head. Still works...

Its amazing what things his homebrew cider makes you think up and do at 1am...

[kurtm]

Hey, I am a diligent beta tester for Nordic! Who else would have taken a comp designed for a 10-22 and stuck it on an AR to torture test it only to find out that is one hell of a .223 comp? Who else takes the time to home brew beer and cider to enable "thinking "outside the box" durring test procedures?

[Smoky Bear]

I can see the shirts now.

Miller Product Testing:

"The More Beer We Drink the More Creative We Are Breaking Your Sh@t!"

[mike.45]

Good point matey, how many times have we used Traps sig line of 'Watch this......................and hold my Beer!!!!!'

Always seems a good idea at the time !!

Booking my flights to Columbus tomorrow... 4 weeks to go !!

[Tyro Shooter]

I took mine to the USPSA 3 gun Nats and used and abused it . . .and it never jambed once . . .despite the blowing Boulder City dust.

well worth it.

[mike_pinto]

Good point matey, how many times have we used Traps sig line of 'Watch this......................and hold my Beer!!!!!'

Always seems a good idea at the time !!

Booking my flights to Columbus tomorrow... 4 weeks to go !!

And the durability test we did on your 9mm. That was fun throwing it from roof to roof and watching it slide down and off the shingles. That is one tough STI!

The magazines are extremely durable. We have tested them and they have held up so far.

M

Edited October 28, 2009 by mike_pinto

[mike.45]

Hell, KittyM never said an Olympian had finger raped my 9mm...... it has to be worth an extra $5000 by now !!

[jnikoley]

From all the great reviews above, I would have to assume mine was defective......????

I can't recommend this component for any reason. Once I tightened the screws the whole assembly cracked at all corners and fractured like glass. I did not feel like I over tightened the screws. I did use blue lock tite, and perhaps there was a chemical reaction between the lock tite and the plastic. In any case, the plastic crumbled like loosely held together sawdust. I'm sending it back. I have the original pmag coupler from nordic and it works great, and highly recommend that version.

[StealthyBlagga]

From all the great reviews above, I would have to assume mine was defective......????

I can't recommend this component for any reason. Once I tightened the screws the whole assembly cracked at all corners and fractured like glass. I did not feel like I over tightened the screws. I did use blue lock tite, and perhaps there was a chemical reaction between the lock tite and the plastic. In any case, the plastic crumbled like loosely held together sawdust. I'm sending it back. I have the original pmag coupler from nordic and it works great, and highly recommend that version.

This was your mistake. NEVER USE LOCTITE ON PLASTIC. It will cause it to embrittle and break. Loctite is not needed in this application anyway.

[Alaskapopo]

From all the great reviews above, I would have to assume mine was defective......????

I can't recommend this component for any reason. Once I tightened the screws the whole assembly cracked at all corners and fractured like glass. I did not feel like I over tightened the screws. I did use blue lock tite, and perhaps there was a chemical reaction between the lock tite and the plastic. In any case, the plastic crumbled like loosely held together sawdust. I'm sending it back. I have the original pmag coupler from nordic and it works great, and highly recommend that version.

As has been pointed out don't use glue or lock tight. It will be a little loose that is the way it was designed to work. Don't worry about it.

Pat

[jnikoley]

From all the great reviews above, I would have to assume mine was defective......????

I can't recommend this component for any reason. Once I tightened the screws the whole assembly cracked at all corners and fractured like glass. I did not feel like I over tightened the screws. I did use blue lock tite, and perhaps there was a chemical reaction between the lock tite and the plastic. In any case, the plastic crumbled like loosely held together sawdust. I'm sending it back. I have the original pmag coupler from nordic and it works great, and highly recommend that version.

This was your mistake. NEVER USE LOCTITE ON PLASTIC. It will cause it to embrittle and break. Loctite is not needed in this application anyway.

Live and learn, I guess. I wouldn't have thought it would be a problem as my gunsmith uses locktite to secure the grip to frame screws on all the STI pistols he builds. I have also used locktite in this way with never a problem. BTW, I didn't mention that I was only 2 minutes into the installation when everything crumbled apart. Could locktite react with the plastic that quickly? Just curious.....