cuerno de chivo
Moderator
Which do you prefer and why?
Thanks!
Thanks!
blind magazine or hinged floorplate?
- Thread starter cuerno de chivo
- Start date
Mike Irwin
Staff
Hinged floor plate.
I've seen MANY detachable magazines somehow fail to make the trip up to hunting camp over the years... I never had that problem either my Remington or my Savage 99.
I've seen MANY detachable magazines somehow fail to make the trip up to hunting camp over the years... I never had that problem either my Remington or my Savage 99.
The hinged floorplate is a safer way to unload your rifle, the blind magazine adds a little stiffness to your stock. But you can't lose either of them!
If I were an accuracy nut and my rifle would have all the tricks, I'd go for a blind magazine, but since most rifles out-shoot me right out of the box, I go for hinged.
But then again, I could very well be the village idiot!
If I were an accuracy nut and my rifle would have all the tricks, I'd go for a blind magazine, but since most rifles out-shoot me right out of the box, I go for hinged.
But then again, I could very well be the village idiot!
I like the blind magazine for appearance, and also to avoid any possible problem with the floorplate not holding. Most are OK, but I have fixed too many that dropped open on firing to really like them. (I am not referring to the Mauser-type military floorplates, which are detachable, but not hinged, and which never fail.)
If a shooter can't unload a blind magazine rifle without chambering rounds or otherwise being dangerous, he/she should not be trusted with any rifle.
Jim
If a shooter can't unload a blind magazine rifle without chambering rounds or otherwise being dangerous, he/she should not be trusted with any rifle.
Jim
Mike Irwin
Staff
Duh. For some reason I read "blind" magazine as "detachable flush mounted" magazine.
Duh.
I still like the hinged floor plate.
Duh.
I still like the hinged floor plate.
Jim K. "If a shooter can't unload a blind magazine without chambering rounds, etc." Your quote. Many of today's rifle are push feed actions. You are almost forced to chamber a round to remove it from the magazine when the rifle is equipped with a blind magazine. Otherwise, the extractor will not engage the round to pull it out. We don't have this type of problem with a controlled feed action like the Mauser, pre-64 Winchester, Springfield 03 types, do we? This is what you get when gun compnies try to cut costs.
Of course, we all point the rifle in a safe direction when we do this. Right?
Paul B.
Of course, we all point the rifle in a safe direction when we do this. Right?
Paul B.
Paul, I think what Jim means and also what I do is to push the cartridges forward until they release from the mag and then pull the bolt back, tilt the rifle and the cartridge falls out. The cartridges do not have to be caught by the extractor and they do not have to fully enter the chamber. I just tried this with an ADL just to be sure my memory wasn't failing me.
Your point about pointing the rifle in a safe direction while doing this is still very valid - always.
Your point about pointing the rifle in a safe direction while doing this is still very valid - always.
Hinged floorplate.
Not matter who you are or how skilled, the hinged floorplate is safer. I hope that everyone else in my hunting camp has one.
The first stainless Rem M700 had a blind magazine. Had one. I thought, great, one less place for water to get into the gun. Well, if you are not careful, the water can pool in the bottom of the magazine, rather than drain on through! This, of course, is no big deal, just a mostly theoretical argument, as most such arguments are!
Mike
Not matter who you are or how skilled, the hinged floorplate is safer. I hope that everyone else in my hunting camp has one.
The first stainless Rem M700 had a blind magazine. Had one. I thought, great, one less place for water to get into the gun. Well, if you are not careful, the water can pool in the bottom of the magazine, rather than drain on through! This, of course, is no big deal, just a mostly theoretical argument, as most such arguments are!
Mike
I prefer the hinged floor plate, primarily because of the safety and convenience of unloading. I've not had the experience of a failed floor plate, but I have lost unfired rounds in the dark after failing to catch all of the rounds that dropped from the magazine. It's amazing how clumsy I am in the dark when my hands are stiff and cold and my mind is mainly on the warm fire back at camp!
And, not to sound like a commercial, but I think this is really worth mentioning. I recently chose a Browning A-bolt Stalker over a Tikka or Remington because of the ingenious magazine/floor plate mechanism that the Browning has. It utilizes a detachable magazine that clips onto the hinged floorplate. Pretty cool, really. After a hunt, I just drop the floor plate open and pop out the magazine. Saves time on both ends -- loading and unloading.
And, not to sound like a commercial, but I think this is really worth mentioning. I recently chose a Browning A-bolt Stalker over a Tikka or Remington because of the ingenious magazine/floor plate mechanism that the Browning has. It utilizes a detachable magazine that clips onto the hinged floorplate. Pretty cool, really. After a hunt, I just drop the floor plate open and pop out the magazine. Saves time on both ends -- loading and unloading.
Mr. JBGood, let me caution you about that Browning floorplate/clip. If you don't have the clip aligned properly and you try to force the clip in, you can very easily bend the retaining spring. When you do that, the clip doesn't want to stay attached to the floorplate. It just kind of hangs/wobbles there. That happened to my wifes Browning. It was very annoying. I now keep a spare magazine spring packed in our hunting gear.
I'm no longer a fan of this arrangement. Not that it is that serious, it is just that if something can go wrong, it will. It was a supreme annoyance for the duration of that hunt. It would also not take much to lose that spring. I prefer to keep everything simple.
I'm no longer a fan of this arrangement. Not that it is that serious, it is just that if something can go wrong, it will. It was a supreme annoyance for the duration of that hunt. It would also not take much to lose that spring. I prefer to keep everything simple.
Thanks for the warning Mike50! I'll keep an eye out for these problems.
I've only carried this rifle for a few days -- hunting time was cut short this year -- so I don't have much field experience with it. Think I'll try to contact Browning for suggestions/recommendations on how to avoid the problems you mentioned.
Regards.
jbgood
I've only carried this rifle for a few days -- hunting time was cut short this year -- so I don't have much field experience with it. Think I'll try to contact Browning for suggestions/recommendations on how to avoid the problems you mentioned.
Regards.
jbgood
Hi, Mike Irwin,
A "blind" magazine is one where the stock is not cut through for the magazine and there is no sign of the magazine on the bottom of the stock.
Mal H. and Paul B.
Mal has correctly interpreted what I meant. I guess I didn't think I needed to explain what I meant by "not chambering rounds".
Incidentally, Paul, Mauser first used a "push feed", and went to the "controlled feed" later. The change was made not "to prevent jamming" as the myth goes, but to prevent accidentally leaving a round in the chamber where the primer could be struck by the bullet nose of the round coming out of the magazine. This was no problem in the days of round nose, soft lead bullets, but when jacketed bullets were introduced, accidents happened and Mauser came up with a better idea.
Modern push feed rifles have feed lips designed to prevent a bullet point from coming too close to the primer of a chambered round; rechambering or rebarrelling such an action to another caliber may negate this precaution and open the way to an accident.
Jim
A "blind" magazine is one where the stock is not cut through for the magazine and there is no sign of the magazine on the bottom of the stock.
Mal H. and Paul B.
Mal has correctly interpreted what I meant. I guess I didn't think I needed to explain what I meant by "not chambering rounds".
Incidentally, Paul, Mauser first used a "push feed", and went to the "controlled feed" later. The change was made not "to prevent jamming" as the myth goes, but to prevent accidentally leaving a round in the chamber where the primer could be struck by the bullet nose of the round coming out of the magazine. This was no problem in the days of round nose, soft lead bullets, but when jacketed bullets were introduced, accidents happened and Mauser came up with a better idea.
Modern push feed rifles have feed lips designed to prevent a bullet point from coming too close to the primer of a chambered round; rechambering or rebarrelling such an action to another caliber may negate this precaution and open the way to an accident.
Jim