Lancer L3 Mags [Archive] - M4Carbine.net Forums

Irish10

12-19-08, 15:14

Anyone using them? I picked up a half dozen from Midway and they really don't seem as solid as the Pmags but a lot of real world testing has been done and I guess that's not the case. Comments?

Parabellum9x19mm

12-19-08, 15:49

flimsy but resilient. were it not for shortages, i would not have bought any, but i decided to try them out. good mags, but 30 rounds feels like too much. i go with 28.

lightweight, feed well, they seem to hold up...but im not gonna drive a truck over one. dollar for dollar they're no PMag, but you can buy them right now for a fair price without having to get lucky.....

mmike87

12-19-08, 22:04

Supposedly, they HAVE driven trucks over them and they DID hold up. They definitely don't feel as stout as a P-Mag - and I was skeptical - but so far I've been pretty happy with my 10.

3CTactical

12-19-08, 22:16

Mine seem to feed fine (no malfunctions over a few hundred rounds), but occassionally they fail to hold the bolt open after the last round due to the follower not fully engaging the bolt catch. This has happened with more than one magazine (I have 10) and in different rifles (three different Noveske N4 uppers on a Bushy lower, a Sundevil lower with Grant's LPK and an Arizona Armory lower with Grant's LPK. I've never had this problem with Pmags or standard USGI mags. I'm still testing them out though.

CarlosDJackal

12-19-08, 22:39

I have about a dozen of these mags and have used them in two courses (Vickers Advanced Pistol/Carbine and Pat Rogers' 3-day Carbine Operators Course). I have yet to experience any issues with any of my Lancer mags.

IMHO, they are great for use as training and practice mags. This is specially true when you need downloaded mags. Whetehr or not they are good enough for use in callouts or extended duty, I really don't know. I am not qualified to make the call one way or another. YMMV.

mac83083

12-19-08, 23:51

I ordered four of them just to try since Grant at G&R had them in stock and I like them. I haven't used them all that much yet, maybe a hundred rounds through each one. They all fell out of my range bag, along with some USGI aluminum mags and no rounds came out of the L3 mags while they did come out of the aluminum mags. But my first shipment of pmags is supposed to show up Monday so they will probably not see mych use for a while.

jchtrh

12-20-08, 03:20

I bought 6 of them this summer to try them out and I have not had a problem with them so far. I only load them with 28 also, anymore and they become hard to seed.

variablebinary

12-20-08, 04:26

Great mags. I have a ton. They are a very flexible material so they simply compress and return to their shape. PMAG's went a different route and decided on thick and rigid

Keep in mind, these mags were designed in conjunction with Colt Canada/Diemaco. They've been well tested and abused

Jay Cunningham

12-20-08, 04:28

They are a very flexible material so they simply compress and return to their shape.

Different engineering philosophies and pros and cons to either. I have ONE Lancer that I received as a sample and it is a nice magazine.

variablebinary

12-20-08, 04:43

Different engineering philosophies and pros and cons to either. I have ONE Lancer that I received as a sample and it is a nice magazine.

There is more than one way to skin a cat when it comes to making a solid mag.

My point being the PMAG solution isnt the only, or final solution

Jay Cunningham

12-20-08, 04:44

My point being the PMAG solution isnt the only, or final solution

Yes, I agree.

uspopo

12-20-08, 07:12

I have been happy with my L5 magazines and they are my first choice 'go to' mags. My local LEO/Class 2 dealer sold over 500 L5 mags to us LE officers and various local agencies out here and we have been happy with them. So for whatever reasons Magpul would not ship Pmags to a NYS Class 2/LE dealer, IMHO I feel that Lancer is just as good as the Pmag over the standard GI magazine. I still get my Pmags from Brownells though if/when they get them back in stock.

MR.J

12-20-08, 11:27

I have 15 of these and with about 2k through them i have had no problems with these mags Imho i think they are gtg.(good to go)

Irish10

12-20-08, 13:29

Sounds like most of us are on the same page and agree that they are a decent, solid mag that will hold up. People tend to buy what they recognize in terms of "the big names". Lancer isn't quite there yet but I have a feeling they will be before long. There still in stock and available at most places which tells me again that people just fly right past them looking for Pmags, etc.

variablebinary

12-20-08, 13:40

Lets put it this way, I have yet to hear anyone say a lancer mag doesnt work well...

Littlelebowski

12-20-08, 13:43

I load mine to 30 and buy them every chance I get. Outstanding mags. Wish I had them in the Corps. Same goes for PMags.

Dave L.

12-20-08, 13:44

Lets put it this way, I have yet to hear anyone say a lancer mag doesnt work well...

True! They only cost about $3 more than a P-Mag and they are available. They will dry up when the secret gets out...

Ridge_Runner_5

12-20-08, 14:25

Ive been happy with mine...
http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b100/89Sunbird/AR-15/DSC_0004-1.jpg

There is videos on AR15.com of a guy who tied a rope around his and tied it to his car and through it out the window while doing 60 down a road...lots of other crazy things like that and it still functions fine...

earthworm94

12-20-08, 15:05

With the Dealer's Price (assume you have a C&R license, no reason any gun owner shouldn't have one) of $16.99 at Midwayusa (out of stock at the moment), I think they are decent deal. I got 5 of them myself. Haven't give me any problem what so ever thus far, given the extremely low round counts right now.

MR.J

12-20-08, 16:05

True! They only cost about $3 more than a P-Mag and they are available. They will dry up when the secret gets out...

Agree,I think the the harder the P-mag is to find and more and more people start to use the lancers(with good results) i think people will start to hoard these too.

Hellfire

12-20-08, 16:12

Have had no issue with mine. I got some when they first came out, I don't feel they were worth the extra cash vs the pmag but with mags being hard to come by, I would grab them if I needed more mags, they have proven to be durable, and I have not read a thread where issues were brought up, and like I said I have had no issues with mine.

Terry

12-20-08, 16:33

I have 20 of them, and have had 0 malfunctions out of a CDD M4LE.
I have only loaded them to 28, and have only fired them twice, 56 rds each.

Bob RI

12-20-08, 22:32

I have 6 of them, about 200 rounds each through 5 of them and one of them has about 1100+ rounds through it - zero problems. I'll probably buy another 6.

Magsz

12-21-08, 00:57

nsnate02

12-21-08, 01:18

Frens

12-21-08, 02:13

what about 20 rounders? any news?

:)

LancerSystems

12-21-08, 05:49

what about 20 rounders? any news?

:)

Tooling is being completed, we're planning (hoping and praying) to have samples at SHOT.

If you're going to SHOT please stop by the booth and say hi

Scott

LancerSystems

12-21-08, 05:54

Why dont these come with anti tilt followers?

I just bought one today and im looking forward to putting it through its paces come Monday and a trip to the range.

Also, how durable are the steel feed lips? Can you leave a mag loaded for an extended period of time without worrying about feed lip creep?

The feed lips are hardened steel, you can leave them loaded, the feed lips won't creep.

The magazine's run great with the current follower design. But, we are developing an "enhanced follower" that is anti-tilt and shorter. The L5 was designed to allow only 30 rounds into the magazine, to acheive this we set the follower height to limit the amount of rounds that could be put into the magazine (same as the USGI magazine). Early feedback from users indicated they preferred to be able to load 30 rounds and have the magazine seat easily on a closed bolt and they would like to see non-tilt followers, so we developed the enhanced follower. We will be beta testing the new followers next month. We should have samples at SHOT to show off.

Have fun at the range

Magsz

12-21-08, 19:57

Lancer,

Thank you very much for your response. Im looking forward to testing the magazine out and i will report my findings here.

I will also definitely stop by at Shot to say hello!

DHC45

12-21-08, 22:18

I have quite a few but have only been using about six so far for training. Excellent magazine and the lighter weight is nice, especially with a full basic load and full kit...

Frens

12-22-08, 07:54

Lancer,
Thank you very much for your response. Im looking forward to testing the magazine out and i will report my findings here.
I will also definitely stop by at Shot to say hello!

+1

Thank You Lancer,
is always nice to see manufacturers posting on forums and taking care of their customers.

Littlelebowski

12-22-08, 08:10

I have quite a few but have only been using about six so far for training. Excellent magazine and the lighter weight is nice, especially with a full basic load and full kit...

I know they're lighter but I have a hard time imagining anyone actually noticing the weight savings.

Terry

12-22-08, 08:31

They also adapt to use with almost all gear and enhancements designed for GI issue mags.

DHC45

12-22-08, 09:48

I know they're lighter but I have a hard time imagining anyone actually noticing the weight savings.

As has been mentioned before on this forum, any weight saved on the rifle is a benefit so these mags are a few more ounces shaved off when carrying and shooting the rifle for extended periods.

Who knows, maybe I won't notice the overall weight savings, but I know I weigh in right at 300lbs with full kit, M4 basic load, M9 basic load x 2, and my go-bag. My body weight is 185 so I've been looking at weight savings on gear where I can.

POF.Ops

12-22-08, 18:30

Lancer has GREAT customer service.