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  1. #11
    Legacy Member Eaglelord17's Avatar
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    Solder could work, wouldn't be the best but it could work. I imagine there would be guys with those skills around back then too, thanks to copper piping still being the main choice for plumbing.

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  3. #12
    Contributing Member Flying10uk's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Eaglelord17 View Post
    Solder could work, wouldn't be the best but it could work.
    There is a product by the name of Lumiweld which is a low temperature welding process for aluminium and aluminium alloys but I'm not sure if/how well it would work in conjunction with steel. I have tried this product several times over the years with mixed results. A good feature is that a gas blow torch can be used as the heat source, rather than a gas welding torch, but the downside is, in my opinion, the process requires a fair amount of faffing around to complete.

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    All this conjecture...but an infantryman on the ground wouldn't have the time or facility...REMF yes, he has time. I too have heard lots about these and seen these sketchy pics over the years but I wouldn't use a cobbled mag in action. You search hard enough for issue gear that won't fail you...
    Regards, Jim

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    Advisory Panel Lee Enfield's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by rcathey View Post
    Weren't the original waffle mags scrapped due to rust issues? I.e., weren't they steel?
    The original waffle mags were aluminum.

    The current repros are steel.

    The waffle pattern was dropped because the horizontal indentations were found to reduce stiffness and increase flex of the sides, denting and thus stoppages.

    Don't forget the AR mags were intended to be disposable, issued pre loaded, stomped and left un-usable on the battlefield...

    I understand that 20 rd mags are still in the US system until recently so that didn't happen in reality...

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  9. #15
    Contributing Member Flying10uk's Avatar
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    The OP provided 3 "sketchy photos" of allegedly extended M16icon mags and little additional information to go with them. I don't know what he was expecting, but this being a forum and the question being asked, it seems little surprise that the OP's question produced a certain amount of "conjecture". The alternative was the OP to receive little or no response from his fellow forum members to his original question.

  10. #16
    Legacy Member RCS's Avatar
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    Thread Starter

    Franken M16/AK47 magazines

    A few years ago I saw some photos on other websites that showed AK47 magazines in M16icon rifles, the photos lacked detail. I thought possible "photo-shop" or else these really were assembled in Viet Nam and used for photos ? because neither the US Army or Colt could provide a 30 round magazine until 1970 ? I could never imagine these franken magazines would ever be used in a combat situation and wanted to know if additional information could be found and milsurps is the best forum to start looking for information.

    Now I do have a vest and two AK magazines that were brought back from Viet Nam around 1968. One of the AK magazines has a small caliber hole that entered the floor plate and made an exit though the side which locked the follower and spring all the down as the magazine must have been loaded. Interesting is that the oil bottle is North Korean.Attachment 102653Attachment 102654Attachment 102655

  11. #17
    Contributing Member Flying10uk's Avatar
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    Perhaps these mags were something that the Vietnamese "produced" themselves out of scrap/salvaged/otherwise-obtained material and sold to American soldiers as a "novelty item", who knows? I do believe that Vietnamese people are generally a resourceful and enterprising people and would/could think up a thousand and one ways to extract money from foreign soldiers stationed in their country.

    I do wonder how much of the "Vietnam War memorabilia" that currently comes out of Vietnam actually dates to the Vietnam War and how much has been produced in more recent times to satisfy a "Vietnam War collector's market".

  12. #18
    Legacy Member RCS's Avatar
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    30 round magazine

    By 1969 some of these "sterile" AR-18 magazines started to make their way to US Troops in Viet Nam. These were available before Colt 30 round magazine became available. These magazines would fit either the AR-180/18 or the M16icon. Note the markings on the envelope for this magazineAttachment 102659Attachment 102660

  13. #19
    Legacy Member old tanker's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by RCS View Post
    By 1969 some of these "sterile" AR-18 magazines started to make their way to US Troops in Viet Nam. These were available before Colt 30 round magazine became available. These magazines would fit either the AR-180/18 or the M16icon. Note the markings on the envelope for this magazineAttachment 102659Attachment 102660
    We did encounter some Navy SEALS along a couple of the rivers in our AO. One of them was carrying a Stoner 63 a belt-fed LMG, they spoke highly of it. Stoner had magazine fed version that resembled a Bren, open bolt and magazine on top, but I personally never encountered one when I was there.

    The half dozen or so "Frankenmags" like the OP asked about I saw were simply steel AK mags filed and shaped until a friction fit in the M16 mag well, no notch cut for the mag catch. There were no changes to the follower, the mag lips were filed, sanded and bent by trial and error until it fed, more or less reliably. Each one had been made by the guy who had it, or so they claimed. I never saw one out in the field or other serious use. My impression then, and now, is they were a novelty, useful on the firebase for taking "hero pictures" to impress the folks home.

    In retrospect, their existence did lay the seeds for future speculation and controversy by those who were not there.
    Last edited by old tanker; 09-06-2019 at 10:47 AM.

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  15. #20
    Contributing Member Flying10uk's Avatar
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    I do not believe that there is a great deal to speculate on or anything of particular controversy. I have stated that steel can not be welded to aluminium which is not a matter of speculation, it is a matter of fact.

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