quote:

Originally posted by KSGM:
The mag situation definitely sucks, especially considering they do break; I have lost four to breakage. DO NOT leave them loaded for any extended period.

I saw that G36 mag mod thing too. I actually have one of those PMAGs; maybe I'll give that a whirl.

I need to empty some mags in the gun safe. Good to know.

quote:

Originally posted by gw3971:

quote:

Originally posted by Loswsmith:
One of the biggest limitations on the 55x series are the lack of affordable magazines.

Picked up 5 from a woman who was selling her exhubbies Sig mags post divorce for $75 a pop brand new. Sorry bro....

I have been following a guy on a facebook group and he was using HK mags with minor mods to get past the mag issue.

You lucky (loving but rueful expletive)! And do you have a link for that guy modifing?

I guy on FACEBOOK. Search SIG 550/552/553/556 owners Group and scroll down to William Heddricks post. Here is one of his pics. It took a little dremel and file work.

quote:

Originally posted by gw3971:
I guy on FACEBOOK. Search SIG 550/552/553/556 owners Group and scroll down to William Heddricks post. Here is one of his pics. It took a little dremel and file work.

Any chance of a link? I searched for the group and got nothing. Thanks

I have no experience with HK G36 magazines.
Do they have reinforced feed lips?
Somebody mentioned PMags as well. My AR15 PMags are all plastic. That doesn't sound like a good alternative. Maybe I mis-read that sentence?

This is a good thread.
I never knew or thought about STGW 90 mags having a tendency to crack when left loaded for long periods of time.
I appreciate this information! I currently have nine 30 rd and six 20 rd SAN magazines.

As an aside, the Russians started using plastic magazines 1959/1960. Their magazines have thin steel liners in the feed lips and in other key areas internally. They are very durable.

quote:

Originally posted by gw3971:
I need to empty some mags in the gun safe. Good to know.

Don't just go to manually shucking the rounds out of them. One of my breakages actually occurred while I was unloading mags, in an attempt to defer breakages. I am fairly certain it's a matter of the lips not having the support of the mag well. Had I shot those rounds instead of shucking them, that mag would probably still be serviceable. Needless to say, I just prioritized shooting my Sigs, to get the other mags unloaded. Worked out for better for all people and parts involved, doing it that way.

I have ordered products from the Gun Factory in Switzerland. It's neither cheap nor convenient, but they have Sig stuff. Also, JDI Firearms seems to be getting things in lately.

What has JDI been getting lately?

I just checked their site. They still show almost all parts as back ordered.

quote:

Originally posted by Malysh:
What has JDI been getting lately?

I just checked their site. They still show almost all parts as back ordered.

Dave got in a big shipment of mags and parts but he believes it will just about cover all the back orders. I have a couple of stocks and ten more mags coming.

I haven't been keeping up but am happy to see there are dealers bringing in new Swiss pistols, since rifles are not an option. I cannot find anything in stock at the dealers in this thread, I saw several things on GB but was hoping to avoid auctions. I would love a 100% Swiss new 550 series pistol!

Classic Firearms had at least one 550p last I saw. Brace yourself for the price.

Since you didn't post the price,I was curious. There must be a few Classic Firearms. The only one that came up on my search was a local store in central PA. I have 2 rifles, so I'm covered and have no interest buying another.

Do you mind telling us the price you saw?
Thanks

https://www.classicfirearms.co...-style-pistol-pe90p/

JDI also has some aluminum lower 551 pistols.
https://www.shop.jdifirearms.c...t-SG551-16-AL-CH.htm

Classic's 9k price is ludicrous, you can almost buy a pre-ban rifle for that much! Thanks to JDI for doing us a solid by bringing these in and keeping the price within reach!

Classic Firearms and the chodebroker flippers are welcome to sit and spin on their rifles.

quote:

Originally posted by Malysh:
...This is a good thread.
I never knew or thought about STGW 90 mags having a tendency to crack when left loaded for long periods of time.
I appreciate this information! I currently have nine 30 rd and six 20 rd SAN magazines...

I've been reading about isolated instances of SAN SIG 55X mag feed lip cracks for years, probably well more than a decade now. As the platform has slowly become more prevalent with more shooters in the U.S. the reports have slowly increased, and I don't think it's isolated to just mags that have been loaded while stored.

Years ago I did a deal with a forum member for a fairly sizeable quantity of used 55X mags. 30 rounders for sure, and I can't recall for certain, but possibly 20 rounders as well. In addition, I also purchased a good quantity of 55X mag rebuild kits in the deal.

After receiving and inspecting the order I found 3 of the 30 rounders had feed lip cracks. All of the cracks were in the same location, all were on mags from the same year, and all were mags from the same Swiss manufacturer. The mags all showed definite signs of use, but nothing approaching abuse.

Are these instances of 55X mag cracked feed lips isolated to one year or time frame? Are they isolated to one manufacturer? Are they isolated to one or two bad batches of plastic? ...or, are they a reflection of a general flaw in design or material?

Years ago I posted photos detailing my mags with cracked feed lips in a previous SAN SIG 55X discussion thread here, but I haven't checked to see if it has been pruned. I'd repost the photos in this thread but they reside on an old external hard drive that is currently T.U. I need to see about either getting it repaired or recovering the data from it.

My old digital camera recently gave up the ghost, and it's currently too dark to take decent camera photos.

========================

Took a few minutes over the weekend to take some new photos. My smart phone has a so-so camera so not great quality, but I'm including an assortment of photos, using both flash and natural lighting, as the cracks are tough to pick up in some light, and at some angles.

Note that the areas around these cracks show up as lighter in color. I would strongly suggest that when inspecting 55X mags for cracks, that they are inspected in good lighting, and from several angles, as some of the cracks start out as fairly subtle to detect.

All three of these mag bodies are marked WEZ, with 1835 directly below, a 1 below that, and the calendar clock is stamped January 2003, with a circular molding mark with an L inside it . Two have the same markings on the baseplate, one marked differently.

Obviously, these mags are relegated to range use but, at this point at least, are still fully functional. I'm currently tossing around ideas on how to repair them.




























ETA: to include photos and add info

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Modern Day Savage,

My four failed mags are from three different manufacturers, were made at four different times, and consist of three 20-rounders, and one 30-rounder. Manufacturers are alemann-agch(x2), an "H" inside a hexagon shape, and "WEZ" inside a horizontal diamond. As best I can tell, years of manufacture are 1996, 2001, 2010, and 2011. The 20-rounders seem to share a part number of 12520, across both manufacturers, and the 30-rounder has a part number of 1835. All failures originate at the back of a feed lip.

That being said, I don't think there is any one manufacturer, mag capacity, or production timeframe that is best avoided.

quote:

Originally posted by KSGM:
My four failed mags are from three different manufacturers, were made at four different times, and consist of three 20-rounders, and one 30-rounder. Manufacturers are alemann-agch(x2), an "H" inside a hexagon shape, and "WEZ" inside a horizontal diamond. As best I can tell, years of manufacture are 1996, 2001, 2010, and 2011. The 20-rounders seem to share a part number of 12520, across both manufacturers, and the 30-rounder has a part number of 1835. All failures originate at the back of a feed lip.

That being said, I don't think there is any one manufacturer, mag capacity, or production timeframe that is best avoided.

Would you please post some pictures of your damaged magazine lips?

I sent the pictures to the email in your profile, Dan; I have yet to establish an account on an image-hosting site. Feel free to post them here, if you wish. As you'll see in one picture, the crack was epoxied, in attempt to save the mag. That repair extended it's life only slightly.

Dan, please post the pictures Wil has sent you.
I'd like to see those cracks. too.
Thanks,
M.