Why don't you just hit the nearest *large* gun show? The traffic in M1911 magazines is always heavy at such shows.

 

I haven't seen quality GI mags in quantity like those for quite awhile.

Mostly you find cheap GI looking knockoffs that don't function well or the welds break under use.

 

Guess I should have bought these ten years ago; didn't realize they were so hard to come by nowadays. I agree BillD, there are a lot of crappy knockoffs out there.

 

I like Joe's: http://www.joes1911magmania.net/

 

Does SARCO still sell them?

 

I'll rummage around. I believe I have a bunch NIP.

 

There are a lot of cheap knock-offs made to look like GI mags, complete with CAGE codes on the bottom and mil-spec packaging. With most of them the feed lips look funny and the round count holes don't even line up properly. Don't buy any alleged GI mags unless you can take a good look at them outside the packaging.

 

At least 80% of the "G.I. surplus" mags sold at gun shows are foreign made junk copies.

 

drail, normally I respect your wisdom. But you are way off here. It's more like 99.85%.

Seriously, "real" GI mags dried up used 10 years ago. The fakes are abundant now to cash in, and like dsk said, crap.

If you want a good, cheap magazine, buy in volume the metalform or Checkmate magazines new. $10 each on special direct or from vendors on sale. By far your best bet and very close to quality of old, if not perhaps equal or better (and will come with a guarantee!).

 

I wouldn't trust anything but collecible wartime stuff as actual G.I. mags! I've seen lots of what purport to be G.I., with all sorts of cryptic numbers stamped on the baseplates, and almost without exception, they have looked like junk.
I know that stuff like that is made by the low bidder, so maybe they should be expected to look bad when compared to the premium mags most of us buy, but my two-for-$20 Metalform "G.I." mags look a lot better than any so-called G.I. mags I've seen at gunshows.

 

Just buy a Chip McCormick Shooting Star mag and try it for a while. For the price they are about the best thing out there and are built to tighter tolerances than the GI specs. Kamerer is correct, there really are no more "real" GI surplus mags on the market. There are LOTS of fake copies though.

 

Checkmate is making magazines with GI feed lips; I just bought 3 in stainless. If you don't need the GI markings....

Tom

 

That's an excellent point; if you want a quality mag of G.I. configuration, with flat, dimpled follower and fully tapered feedlips, I don't know that you want, or need to look further than Check-Mate.

 

The feed lips that McCormick has used forever have always fed everything I have used. Ball, hollowpoints and many thousands of 200 gr. SWC ammo. Most guns prefer a certain type of mag more than others.