This might help:
https://pistol-forum.com/showthread....-created-equal
"The victor is not victorious if the vanquished does not consider himself so."
― Ennius
Does the above offend? If you have paid to be here, you can click here to put it in context.
In order of preference:
1) Gen M3 (post 2016)
2) Gen M2
3) Legit tan follower GI
4) Legit green or Magpul follower GI
Those are the ONLY mags I will use and things have to get really weird for me to not be using the #1 mags. I consider every other mag to be unacceptable as I have seen too many problems with them over the years.
All AR mags are disposables / consumables.
We use a mix of Colt GI green follower mags and Gen2 PMags at work but are using Pmags going forward. We tested Lancers 5 or 6 years ago and found no real advantage over Pmags.
I’ve personally had great results with the Brownells GI mags.
I’m personally primarily going with Gen 3 Pmags going forward. The Gen 3 Coyote mags are the issued mag for both the USMC and USAF going forward.
One advantage to Gen3 Pmags, besides fixing the double feed issue is the over insertion stop. In a recent Green Ops carbine class I watched a guy on track for the fastest time in the El Prez drill over insert a Gen 2 and lock up his rifle such that it took 2 people to clear.
I live in a location where we swim in a sea of cheap AR magazines, due to the base and the number of shops selling new and slightly used mags. I regularly use all variants of the PMAG but mostly the Gen 3's and primarily the MCT mags, though many of the Black ones have been showing up around town recently. I also have a lifetime supply of GI mags of both the green follower (Colt and Okay Industries) and brown follower (Brownells)variety, all work fine. I also have about 100 of the brown metal mags with Blue followers that were designed for M855A1 before we decided to just go with M3 PMags. I like to use them for odd stuff, like 77 Gn match rounds or .300 Blkout as they work well with the heavier weights of those rounds and they are very different looking than the other mags. I have a bunch of the old Tango Down mags that were given to me by Pat Rogers during various classes and they have always worked but I have never had a need to purchase them over something else. I like the the Lancers for use with UTM rounds and the dozen or so of those that I have are only used for force on force training with those UTM rounds.
Currently if I felt the need to load up on more mags than I already have then I would likely just buy more USGI's from one of the surplus shops as here in town they average about 5 bucks a piece. "Pre owned" Pmag M3's are double that, or new in wrap gen3's triple....
"So strong is this propensity of mankind, to fall into mutual animosities, that where no substantial occasion presents itself, the most frivolous and fanciful distinctions have been sufficient to kindle their unfriendly passions, and excite their most violent conflicts." - James Madison, Federalist No 10
I have a mix of PMAGs, OKAY Industries, D&H with their own floorplate and a dozen or so BCM labeled D&H mags, and probably a few from manufacturers whose name escapes me at the moment.
I won't buy gen 2 PMAGs anymore, I have some that have grown over the years and no longer drop free, something I haven't experienced with any of the gen 3s. I picked up another 10 gen 3 MCT PMAGs the other day from the LGS, they were a little cheaper than any place online once you factor in shipping cost.