LIMITATIONS OF TESTING: I forgot to put this in at first, but I want to take a second to discuss the limitations of this testing. I think it's important in any endeavor that seeks to be objective that the person carrying out testing can demonstrate an understanding of the limitations of their testing, and can discuss how that may impact the interpretation of the results. To start, I was not able to test the HPA high ROF or .4g high ROF feeding of a few of the magazines, as seen on the spreadsheet, because those magazines were not able to fit in the 416 body of the HPA setup I had access to. I also was not able to test fitment and feeding of the magazines in several prominent airsoft receiver brands such as G&P, JG, Valken, Classic Army, and many others. My counting method was also not the most precise method possible, just in the interest of time and convenience. As a result, I allowed each magazine a margin of error of 3 or 4 BBs over or under capacity, and only took points off for major deviations from stated capacity. I did not lubricate, clean, or modify any of these magazines, with one exception that I forgot to mention. The Modify XTC midcap comes with a nub on the rear for snugly fitting magwells. I sanded that entirely off, because it was stupid and worthless and just made the magazine not fit well at all in my VFC and Krytac receivers. Other than that though, none of these magazines were modified in any way, and some people seem to think that a magazine requiring fitting is normal. I disagree, but I'm putting it under these limitations so people can decide for themselves. All of these magazines were purchased brand new, with the exception of the PTS EMAG which I had laying around and threw into the test because people wanted to know how the old Magpul PTS mags would do. Obviously it did quite well, but it is arguable that it may have done even better had the magazine been brand new. Who knows? So there's my test, look at all the data and the procedure and feel free to come to your own conclusions!
My god, you're dong the lord's work here. Thank you SO MUCH for this, you've not only helped me come to a conclusion on using PTS EPM's, but have undoubtedly saved a lot of people a lot of money and trouble. If anyone ever asks me about midcaps, this video is without a second thought my go-to recommendation.
Watching this almost 3 years after you made the video I realize how much time and effort you spent on this. And yes I watched the whole video Hey it's covid19 quarantine what else can I do.
My friend, you are awesome, thank you so much for the very extensive review! As a airsoft beginner its good to know that my cheapo plastic mags that looked so ... cheap are actually really good! I wish my pistol mag as as good as good. My CZ P-09 mag, that I only have 1 off and that every store has no stock off has dropped once at the store and again at the field. The bottom plastic cover just exploded and it seems I cant buy a replacement cover. The mag is super heavy and very hard to hold with gloves, so its super easy to drop. I actually wish there was a cheapo plastic version of it.
Honestly it would have been neat to throw in a generic high cap in these tests, a lot of people underestimate the feeding of high caps, especially for heavy BBs and High RPS.
this video couldn't be more perfectly timed! I few of my buddies just decided to purchase their first airsoft rifles, some went with CYMA AK's but the rest got Krytac MK2 rifles. this video was extremely helpful to me and my friends thank you for putting in the time, money and effort to help people find a good midcap.
This is absolutely stellar work. I truly appreciate anytime there is consistent testing applied to different options. The majority of data and verdicts are simply based on “this one time” and it doesn’t allow us to make informed purchase decisions. Years ago my elite force mags weren’t good, now I know what to purchase in the future!
Great test and like you said, a epic ammount of work! Thank you very much for putting so much of your time and money in to bringing this to us! Great video which will be relevant for a long dam time. Mike.
Nothing is relevant forever but I do think it will be relevant for a good few years. I would say your tests went beyond normal use parameters which is a good thing as it stress tests the mags which does show up issues the mags may have over time as well as any build quality issues. Over my limited time in airsoft and over the many many channels i subscribe to, you have earned a lot of respect from myself for your level headed intellegence and willingness of this channel to open a discussion unfettered by fear of reaction or sponsered agenda. Keep it up mate, it is greatly appreciated. Mike.
For how critical I am in your other vids about hijacking conversations.....I want to acknowledge just how big a contribution this is to future airsofters. The sheer amount of work involved and then compiling that mountain of info into a video that wasn't an hour long should be commended. This is of such a great help as magazine recommendations are so subjective as who out there has really taken the time and resources to troubleshoot them all. Thanks E!!!! Someone had to fall on the grenade and you sir did took it for the community. I never support channels thru patreon or whatever funding means they use but things like this need to and have to be supported.
Thank you so much for this testing! I was looking into the Elite Force 140 and this just solidified my purchase of 10 of them. But you probably saved me cause a couple other mags I was looking at were on your not recommended list. Truly a savior. Thanks again.
Couldn't thank you enough for this video and all that went into it! I came across this while searching for my first airsoft mag purchases. I will do my best to share this video with as many people as I can.
This is amazing and helps out sooooo much! I have been looking for a video like this for so long and am so glad someone was willing to put the time, money, and effort into making a free guide. Thank you again so much!
This is 100% gold. I'm fairly confident that G&P made changes to the newest batch of high rps mags. My old 3 were solid but my new 5 required lubrication to feed anything heavier than .25 without jams. I'm not sure if it was a spring change or a follower change. I also installed the restricted magazine follower by Clandestine which helped a lot.
Seth Hinshaw that's weird. I got a new one a month or two ago from RWA which didn't have these issues, feeds all but the last .3g bb flawlessly out of the box. Perhaps the change was instituted since then? That said they are still fairly expensive and I've moved from high ROF to trigger response so i don't need a mid cap that can feed so quickly, so I'll probably grab a box of E&Cs.
Seth Hinshaw I mean, $11 per midcap is a great deal, but when a box of E&Cs come to $5 per midcap (I haven't experienced the issues ehouse had except for lower than advertised capacity) I'd rather take that $30 and spend it on a gearset or a motor or a nice piston and piston head or something. And I already have a few of them, so the E&Cs are my cheap backup and loaner mags for the most part, I just need some more.
Bro, Ive been working on my hpa and aegs for a year. I now have no issues after watching this. And had brand new mags laying around that were on your best performer list. Flawless. Thanks for your actual tests you do and not just shooting opinion and hype. Gun Gamers are the truth!!!
Just an FYI, You should have tested the clear Socom Gear Lancer magazines. The tan versions are known to be junk. My whole team uses the clear Lancers due to the flawless feeding and fit. Thank you for the awesome review! The community appreciates it!
About the Hexmag magazines; for me, they’re great mags. Not only they look awesome, they feed flawlessly after I clean them. The only problem I have is I have a Hexmag in Multicam, it jammed twice in the same spot. After I cleaned it, the magazine fed every round. The rifle I use is a G&G M16A4 with a 9.6v NiMH battery, and with a full charge, my Hexmags just fed every round, sometimes every single round where no rounds fall out of the magwell.
The 2 mags I was looking at was the Evike 190rd BAMF and the 140rd 6mmProShop and after watching this I am grateful to say that I will be buying the BAMF! Thank you for the help even though this is 2 years after the date this vid was posted!
I've been using MAG brand mid caps for years now and they've worked flawlessly. I haven't had a problem with them since; they feed well, fit into most M4 AEGs, tough and durable, and have used them in CQB and Milsim Airsoft games. Would recommend them.
Your findings narrowed down my search for a better magazine. I was wondering why so many magazines I tried could not keep up with .4g bbs. Thanks so much.
Thanks for all the hard work, I look for multiple reviews before I buy stuff and was happy to see something like this from what has become one of my favorite airsoft channels. Keep up the good work!
So I tried the 2 krytac midcaps I bought from evike. I have had problems with midcaps fitment and feeding in my krytac lvoa-c since I've owned it. What I want from a midcap is that it fits and feeds higher weight bbs, .36's and '40's to be specific. I have totally scrapped using Valken bbs first off as no matter what mag I use, my AEG hates Valken bbs. I used .36 and .40 bbs from Matrix and Elite Sports. I ran 1K of each bb through each mag. The results are: The newish Krytac 150rd midcap magazine fits with a little play and wobble. These mags also feed flawlessly using those bbs and at both higher weights. I have now placed another order at evike and am switching to all krytac mags in my lvoa-c from this point on. They work as well if not better than the 2 PTS EPM mags I use and they are 5.00 cheaper each.
Own the PTS EPM, QMAG, and Elite Force mid cap. The elite force was the first mid-cap mag I bought, usually only one bb is left in the mag and about 3-5 fall out of my gun (not bad for $10). The QMAG was the second mid-cap I bought, no bb's left in the mag and about 2-3 bb's fall out, however, they are picky with guns, they fit any VFC gun nicely, but anything else, you have to slam the bottom of the mag to fit it in (G&G CM16 Raider-L and Valken Alloy MK. II were the guns I tried it on), however, if you shave the back of the top plate and the sides a bit, they'll fit. And finally, the PTS EPM, no bb's left in the mag, and only 1 bb falling out.
Hello guys. I know this feed is a but old but tour video really helped me find good mags. Ive spread the word and printed up your list and have it up for all to see. So a big thanks from 5 airsofters that no longer have mag issues!!!
Dude I can't appreciate this kind of video enough. Very informative and it'll save people, myself included, a lot of time and money. I remember all the experiences I've encountered with buying the wrong mag. I had some of those G&P poly midcaps, and they wouldn't go in my KWA magwell. I have K120 midcaps for now, but I'm definitely gonna be checking out those EPMs once the gen 2 hits
Appreciate this a lot. Probably going to purchase the MAG Metal mid caps now after seeing this. Although, disappointed to see no testing on a G&P due to it being very picky with mags, at least mine. My original plastic MAG mid caps work flawlessly, so here's hoping the metal ones do as well.
So. If you want basically a non-wind up high cap mag, theres the PTS EPM1. Its a perfectly made 250rd mid cap mag. BUT every good thing comes at a price, and this one is $30 for a mag.
Suggestion: for the sake of convenience, do you think you can color code the chart? (red = fail, green = winner, yellow = mid-pack) Also of note: the K120s are compatible with Magpul Ranger floorplates so if you do crack the stock one, you can replace it with something a bit better.
Thanks for this review, really helpful for myself and others that need to buy some more mags and are newer to actually playing airsoft. I personally got about 6-7 different midcaps when I bought my gun and have had some hits/misses. I want to take a minute to note that for me the HEXMAG didn't fit properly in my gun, a JG M4A1 S-System. It required a fair amount of effort to both lock in and remove, but once it was in, the performance was absolutely great with 0.25g BBs. So word of warning, the Hex will likely not fit in guns with a smaller clearance.
Man the original Magpul P Mags and E Mags were so damn good. One of my good friends still has 4 original P Mags and I'm so jealous. I was gutted when they announced they were stopping production of airsoft items. Best mags ever made, hands down.
Finally someone has made a vid like this, wish someone took the time to make this 1-2 years ago wen I had a HELL of a time finding mags that fit n feed my 416, finally I went with are amoeba mags n I have no complaints, all my buddies who run g&g and vfc guns share my mags n it feeds no problem
This is awesome information! Have to agree on hexmag issue. I was excited to get mine then I had to disassemble it the very first time I loaded it to clear a jam
Hey there Gun Gamers, thank you for the wonderful video, information, and fantastic spreadsheet! I am using this as my magazine selection guide. This video earned my subscription and like as well as my interest in future content. As a fellow content creator I can appreciate all of the background hours it takes to make these videos and so kudos to you and your drive! Have a wonderful rest of your evening!
If you want the best all around midcap and price isn't a factor just go with PTS EPMs or EPM1s if you can find them. Good budget options are KWA K120s, Elite Force 140 rounders and Mag 130 rounders. Lonex 190 round mid caps, Specna Arms 125 round mis caps, and Krytac 150 rounders are also very good. Not as cheap as the budget options but still fit and feed great in all of my guns.
I had the amoba mags and after about a year of use every single one of them started to split on the seam. While they worked wonderfully and that built in mag pull worked amazingly. After a year they all split to a mag. Something to consider.
True the older PTS emag 30s and pmag 30s are hella reliable. When I started playing airsoft in 2012, I bought a whole bunch of both kinds, and still use them today. I hope to upgrade to EPMs when I have some extra coin.
Great work! I picked up some elite force 140 polymer mags and they fed flawlessly. Best budget mags since they are very cheap to begin with. Before looking up this test I purchased Firepower Metal 190 from Evike and they did not feed well in the beginning 20 rounds or so and did not hold anywhere near the advertised 190 rounds. The first 20 rounds will always have double feed issues in both my stock Krytac SPR and stock classic army ASR4 in both semi and full auto. I estimated these can hold 140 rounds but only feed when there are less than 120 rounds......
I love the fact that you made a spread Sheet, thank you so much. I would appreciate if you continued adding newer magazines to it. Like mil-slim magazines that only hold 30 rounds. To see if all feed. Please do a video on evike bamf magazine.
I love my pts epms, I’ve got 14 😅 but I like the look of the classic gi mag in some of my rifles so I was looking for the best one out there. So thank you very much for this video
What i found was that the AS Midcap feeds in like eeevery gun around, also it only costs 6€, even in Germany where everything is more expensive. Good Videos anyway.
Hey thanks for the video, info in it and most of all the work put into this effort. This was extremely timely for me. I was just about to buy some more mags for an upcoming milsim event. This info will be used to decide what to buy. Keep up the good work.
Thanks for the video. Extremely informative. I've noticed with my KWA magazines that they fit incredibly loosely in my Krytac Trident SPR; so much so that I've had them drop out on the field.
I like the honesty on the loser mags. But I have two Hex Mags and I love them. Mind you I haven't tested them like you did but I just love how these mags feel and look. Mine feed amazingly btw.
I use SOCOM Troy mags and I LOVE them on my 416. I couldn't help but notice how shiny the one you used was, mine are pretty much matte, no reflection or glossy appearance like yours. I think you might have been using an older gen or something which is why it didn't perform so well. ALL 10 of my mags feed perfectly, don't flex, never fall out of my VFC 416 and MK18, Ares Amoeba, or G&G CM16. Don't know if that might be the case.
I have the guarder blue box magz and what you need to do is cutting the spring 8 coils after you loaded them 70% for around 2 weeks. The feed spring is way too hard and long for it to work properly in most guns out of the box !
Two things! First, who would keep the mags loaded for two weeks, or one week or even three days? I load mine a day before an event for example. There's no need to load sooner! Second, some people like a tight fit regarding their mag so that it stays firm and solid into the aeg.
Dude thank you so much for this and imma show all my friends this Bc I own a m16 and I’m looking for a mid cap and I don’t trust where I’m going to buy but thank you so much you have saved me hours on hours of research 🤘🏾🤘🏾🤟🏽🤟🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽🙌🏽👏🏽👏🏽
*Salute* HELLA Lot of work put into this and it looked rigorous, it covered a lot of bases most people never would including generational concerns which is absolutely critical to assessing airsoft as it is, bizarrely, a mass cottage industry where quality control is not identical from batch to batch because its just not feasible. I am a huge fan of this video and after seeing the data, etc. I'm going to go with this information as I am now starting to own and get into AR-compatible platforms specifically the Magpul PDR-C by PTS which means that the winners themselves should fit in and work well. Thank you very much for the work and if I can dare say sacrifice that went into this. I'm going to save and download this video for future reference and add its data record to any future tests I might find.
4 years later you still have the same opinions? What do your recommend for the best M4 AEG mag under $15? I’m stuck between the lancer, elite and BAMF Gen 2’s.
What a video. Love objective studies like this. Real airsoft science. Well done. Only thing I gotta mention is that only having one of each mag is pretty limiting. Could have had a bad one. Kind of an unfortunate criticism as this video is awesome, but it's something to note.
Freakin hell, now I'm convinced I've got an offspec PTS EPM. The thing feeds flawlessly at 100 rounds and under in my Krytac spr mk2 but struggles and double feeds anything above 100. It also drops freely, looking at your spreadsheet confirms my suspicions.
How long does that usually take? I've filled the mag, left it overnight, emptied rinse repeat for about 3 weeks, managed to go from feeding 85ish rounds to 100.
Great job putting the time and expense into doing this review. While this video is five years old at this point, the Elite Force MidCap, for the money, is still an excellent magazine if you are looking to play in the 140-round range. I run with the HEX and PTS EPM1 magazines for higher round count, but I always carry a few of the EF mids onto the field just in case.
Very informative. Would like to chime in about the Modify 190 midcaps though. I bought 2 of these and they only hold 142 and 148 bbs respectively. I actually broke a BB loader tying to load in the advertised 190. Also with those 140ish loaded the mag seems to start missfeeding my polar star rig half way through. Only use i can find for these is to carry as ammo cans instead of loose noisy ammo to refill my speed loader when my working mags run out, even at that the ones i own are still short 50 ish rounds off the advertised limit.
Thanks for the reply Big E. Both mags are straight out of the box new Modify XTC 190rnd part number 65101560 which do indeed correspond to the XTC's on the Modify website. Though they were purchased in Canada... Perhaps our misguided leftist politicians here in Canada have been working behind the scenes to cut down airsoft mag capacity as well as real steel! I do still have the boxes for them.. the UPC on the one reads 4713072166401 if that helps anyone to avoid what may be a bad batch.
This is amazing. I hate binning crap that doesn't work, or just doesn't work for me (don't ask me about my real steel pistol holster collection). Being new in the game, this video is a great resource for how not to waste time and money on things we can all use a few more of. Thank you.
I know what mag in getting fir the f2000. Ill get the cyma 190rd. The problem with epm's is you have to jam them in there. You shouldn't have ti force them in. That can break the mags or even the hopup chamber. You need stanags.
Mad props to your investigation I'm glad that you rated pretty much from bad to good to let the consumer know what they're really buying! 👍 But I will say the elite force magazine is cheap I agree because it advertises 140 rounds but really only carries 85 to 88 rounds in the magazine but you're right it feeds like a piece of butter melting on a pan. Smooth...
It should be noted that those Elite Force mags do not disassemble but they are so cheap it is not a critical issue. They are the standard midcap with my group. I think your research is accurate as I can confirm I had the same experience with the MAG and Matrix/EVIKE brands as well.
The issue I have with the hex mags is the hole on the side of the magazine that catches the mag catch release, it's too large for my ICS rifle. If I put any forward pressure on the magazine, either it will immediately fall out, or the EBB will drop it out. This doesn't happen with my Krytec LVOA. I tried switching mag release assemblies, but it didn't work.
I'm saddened that you had a bad experience with the K120s as I've owned 12 and other than the occasional spring stretching they have been Flawless for me. I did as well crack one base plate but in all honesty I did chuck it in a CQB Arena.
