Gear Review: IK-520 40 Round Magazines

    A great offering from MWG is their IK-520 40 round magazines. The mags are imported from Bulgaria and cost the same as a 40 round Magpul magazine. From MWG’s website:

    • Designed by renowned development engineer Ivan Kolev, designer of the Bulgarian high capacity polymer AK Magazine.
    • Increased Capacity
    • Durable, Steel Reinforced Polymer Construction
    • Ergonomic Waffle Design
    • Stable, Level Follower
    • Lightweight:  .4 Lbs
    • Tested full and semi auto in M4, AR-15, M16A1, M16A2 Models
    • .223 Caliber, 5.56mm

    So how do they work? Well first off I wanted to see if they locked in and fit in my SCAR, a gun well known for being picky with magazines. Some mags have a tendency to raise the bolt catch just a tad that results in damage to the firearm. The IK-520 mags locked in without raising the bolt catch:

    IMG_4386

    My friend Patrick and I took them to the range to see if they performed well and they worked great!

    IMG_4377

    His M4 pattern rifle digested all 40 rounds with ease, regardless of how fast he pulled the trigger. The bolt locked open and they performed perfectly.

    A few days later I did a few drop tests with no noticeable damage to the feed lips or expulsion of ammo from the body, so I suppose the steel reinforced lips helped in this regard.

    Lastly, I decided to put my Wrangler against a mag:

    IMG_4389

    As you can see the mag didn’t buckle or come out to bruised:

    IMG_4393

    The mag still loaded all 40 rounds fine and there was no difference when locking the mag in.

    So these are a great alternative to a PMAG and are priced the same, but for $18.95 most shooters will opt to buy the familiar Magpul brand mags.

     

    Alex C.

    Alex is a Senior Writer for The Firearm Blog and Director of TFBTV.


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