What Type Of Magazine Do You Prefer On Your Bolt Action Rifle?

[Uncle Sauce]

Hinged for me

 

[Brian Rothhammer]

The Savage 99 and Mannlicher Schoenauer rifles have excellent magazine designs, though I have never owned either.

If you ever handle / fire a Mannlicher Schoenauer you'll _have_ to have one. Loaded with proper fitting cartridges, they will never fail.

 

[Brian Rothhammer]

I don't know, maybe a lot of hunters are like my father in law, who two weeks ago missed FOUR different cow elk, but finally got the FIFTH, after shooting a BOX of .300WM cartridges! Unbelievable!

Perhaps he needs one of these?

 

[Ragman]

I’m a hinge plate guy. I had a Smith & Wesson 1500 which utilized that type of magazine and I preferred it to any box magazine I’ve used. I actually found it easier to reload than a detachable. That being said I like all my DMs as well whether they’re metal or plastic, single stack, staggered or rotary. I have single stack plastic in my Tikka T3 and my T/C Venture. Plastic rotary in my Ruger American and metal staggered in my Browning BLR ( I know it’s not a bolt action) and none of them have let me down. Of the four my favourite is on the Ruger as it clicks in effortlessly and is flush to the stock. As for the single stacks reduced capacity, I don’t hunt dangerous game so don’t feel handicapped with only 3 rounds in the rifle.

 

[Safari Dave]

I had a failure on a plastic Ruger American magazine, but Ruger made it right, gave me a spare magazine and turned it around within in 14 days!

I can't complain on a $375 rifle!

 

[TwoTracks]

Polymer/Plastic will never work or be reliable under extreme conditions! North America, Eastern Europe, or Western Europe.

 

[CoElkHunter]

View attachment 499440
Polymer/Plastic will never work or be reliable under extreme conditions! North America, Eastern Europe, or Western Europe.

Iraq, Asscrackistan, etc. LOL

 

[VertigoBE]

I kind of like my rotary mags. Herr Schönauer did a really nice job on those...

What would be the advantages/disadvantages of the schönauer rotary magazine, compared to the mauser 98 double stack?

I’ve never held or seen from close a rotary magazine, but I have a slight suspicion that in the case of using ammo with soft lead tips, the tips will not flatten out as much in the more “controlled” rotary feed, than in a typical Mauser magazine, where there is much more movement front to back, causing the tips to flatten out.

 

[colorado]

I’m a hinge plate guy. I had a Smith & Wesson 1500 which utilized that type of magazine and I preferred it to any box magazine I’ve used. I actually found it easier to reload than a detachable. That being said I like all my DMs as well whether they’re metal or plastic, single stack, staggered or rotary. I have single stack plastic in my Tikka T3 and my T/C Venture. Plastic rotary in my Ruger American and metal staggered in my Browning BLR ( I know it’s not a bolt action) and none of them have let me down. Of the four my favourite is on the Ruger as it clicks in effortlessly and is flush to the stock. As for the single stacks reduced capacity, I don’t hunt dangerous game so don’t feel handicapped with only 3 rounds in the rifle.

Me too. My CZ550 500 Jeffery's hinged floor plate closes up like a bank vault. No worries about it opening up under recoil after 500 full power rounds through it.

 

[SaintPanzer]

What would be the advantages/disadvantages of the schönauer rotary magazine, compared to the mauser 98 double stack?

I’ve never held or seen from close a rotary magazine, but I have a slight suspicion that in the case of using ammo with soft lead tips, the tips will not flatten out as much in the more “controlled” rotary feed, than in a typical Mauser magazine, where there is much more movement front to back, causing the tips to flatten out.

Mostly, it's personal preference.

Compared to the Mauser, the Mannlicher has a much smoother action.
On the debit side, Finn Agaard mentioned the tight tolerances of the Mannlicher which led to the smoothness worked against it in sand/grit. There, he preferred the Mauser.

Also, the split bridge makes scope mounting more difficult.

What I really like is the "unloading button". One press, the rotary unspools, and the rounds just fall into your hand. Easier/safer than stroking the bolt, and no worries with a floor plate.

 

[robtattoo]

I really have no preference. I have fixed & hinged floorplates, mauser push-n-slide & DBM rifles.

My only hard no, would be Savage, Ruger & Kimber magazines.
The Savage is super reliable but it was obviously built to a budget by someone who'd read a description but never got a picture.
The Ruger is just a failure pile in a case of plastic sadness & Kimber ought to know better.
If you don't load a Kimber mag exactly right, you can't fit 3 rounds in there & if you do manage to get the third in, you've got a maybe 50/50 shot of the bolt catching the rim or just skipping over it.

 

[Brian Rothhammer]

What I really like is the "unloading button". One press, the rotary unspools, and the rounds just fall into your hand. Easier/safer than stroking the bolt, and no worries with a floor plate.

Also, it is absolutely impossible to accidentally release the magazine on a Mannlicher Schoenauer though it can easily be removed using only a bullet tip (or stick, pen...) as tool and can, for that manner, be completely disassembled with no other tool though it is rarely necessary.

 

[Brian Rothhammer]

I’ve never held or seen from close a rotary magazine, but I have a slight suspicion that in the case of using ammo with soft lead tips, the tips will not flatten out as much in the more “controlled” rotary feed, than in a typical Mauser magazine, where there is much more movement front to back, causing the tips to flatten out.

Your suspicion is correct.

The Schoenauer magazine is machined to the profile of it's intended cartridge, including bullet shape, the cartridges riding between spool and housing like pin bearings in a race.

On military (Y1903 and variants) and early sporting models (M1900, M1903, M1905, M1908, M1910) the cartridge must closely match the profile of original proprietary MS cartridges in order to feed properly. With proper fitting cartridges they are the smoothest and most reliable feed system of any bolt action rifle.

Later models (M1924, 'High Velocity' and post WW2 models) a 'guide ring' was added to the magazine to allow more flexibility in cartridge / projectile choice.

Scoenauer Magazine (6.5X54MS) as used in M1900, M1903, Y1903, Y1903/14, Y1903/14/27 ('Breda') and 'System 1930'

M1910 (9.5X57MS) on left, M1924 (.30-'06) right, with guide ring

As the cartridges are 'cradled' in their own compartment of sorts as they ride in the magazine, bullet tips are not deformed. The bolt is controlled feed.

Otto Schoenauer

 

[Brian Rothhammer]

Me too. My CZ550 500 Jeffery's hinged floor plate closes up like a bank vault. No worries about it opening up under recoil after 500 full power rounds through it.

It is absolutely impossible for recoil to cause a Schoenauer magazine to open or fail.

 

[Joker12]

For me its either a box magazine with a hinged floor plate or a blind box magazine. If its hinged it must have a sturdy foolproof release.

 

[gbflyer]

For shooting, I like the various AI pattern magazines. Preference is a blind magazine for hunting, or FLUSH Tikka for detachable. My 6x45 build that is underway will sport a HS Precision detachable setup. Come to think of it I have several floorplate models as well. I guess I like them all.

 

[VertigoBE]

Your suspicion is correct.

The Schoenauer magazine is machined to the profile of it's intended cartridge, including bullet shape, the cartridges riding between spool and housing like pin bearings in a race.

Thank you very much for this detailed writeup @Brian Rothhammer much appreciated!

 

[Brian Rothhammer]

Thank you very much for this detailed writeup @Brian Rothhammer much appreciated!

You're quite welcome, one and all.

You may find this thread to be of interest as well: https://www.africahunting.com/threa...908-m1910-m1924-m1925-or-high-velocity.47277/

 

[Bush Buck]

I have this thing about detachable magazines on bolt action hunting rifles. I don't care for them. It's mostly personal preference but the few bolt action rifles I've had feeding issues with were detachable magazine rifles. Coincidence? Probably, but I still don't like them. Give me a hinged floor plate any day. In fact, when I'm perusing the used rifle rack at gun stores all I look for are hinged floor plate rifles. If it has a removable magazine I look right past it. Not interested.

The down side is there are some really good rifles that have removable magazines. Cooper, Weatherby, Browning to name a few. My CZ550FS in 308 has a removable magazine. So does my Cooper 300H&H. Love the rifles but I'd much prefer they had hinged floor plates.

What about you? Does it matter to you either way?

I really prefer the blind magazine as seen on Kimber rifles with carbon fiber stocks - such as the Montana and Talkeetna.
I'm okay with a floor plate as long as it is it takes firm effort to open and has proven itself to be very secure.
The only separate magazine system that I have liked is the Sako 85 because you can ignore it. It top loads easily, sits flush and basically requires two hands to remove - it seems very secure.

 

[Stamp Collector]

I like a detachable box magazine best. I’ve never accidentally released one and never forget one. Worst case scenario if I did forget the magazine is that I’d have a single shot.

I like detachable magazines so that when climbing down from a stand or returning to my truck in the dark emptying the the rifle is quick and easy. If I know that I’m going to hunt the next morning I stick the mag in my coat pocket and I’m ready to go when I return.