Field eXpedients: MWG 90-Round Drum Loading 5.56mm Weapons

Most armies of the world have been able to successfully field drum magazines and gain a firepower volume edge over the backward U.S. Army and marines. Jim Sullivan who co-invented the AR15/M16 spoke recently on this in a PBS News Hour TV interview on September 24, 2007, "Defense Department Sticks With M16s Despite Problems"

http://www.pbs.org/newshour/bb/military/july-dec07/rifles_09-24.html

PAUL SOLMAN: Though he's now 74, Sullivan's intellectual curiosity is still his long suit. In the years since the M-16, he's debuted a new rifle, something called the Ultimax, to rave reviews. He didn't make it in or for the United States, however, but the country of Singapore. He's also invented a 100-round magazine for the Ultimax, the M-16 and M-4. It's being used by England, Germany, even famously neutral Switzerland. But the U.S. Army...

JIM SULLIVAN: Doesn't use this thing.

PAUL SOLMAN: They don't use it now?

JIM SULLIVAN: No. I mean, our Soldiers are still limited to 30-shot magazines. That's what they're trying to fight with over there in Iraq. This is emptied in full auto in three seconds. It takes him about five seconds before he can fire the next shot. That's just like a giant malfunction, OK? During that time, the man's helpless.

However, the unreliability of the C-MAG drum with two small 50 round bulges in trial U.S. use has soured many to the entire concept. Here is how they work in clean environments showing the CAPABILITY we need:

C MAG
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=inhl0fbjcdk

CL MAG
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-kPtfUtH8Ps

Since C-MAGs jam, the baby (good capability) is tossed with bath water (unreliable drums). The benefits of a drum over a belt-fed machine gun or assault rifle/carbine is that if you are moving vigorously in individual movement techniques (IMT) there's no belt to get kinked and snagged on that has to be gingerly worked around when running n' gunning. A drum is in essence a giant box magazine in a circle. The problem is that to carry a large number of rounds the spring has to be very stiff and most drums are loaded with the spring held off and then you release the spring to press the rounds up the follower adding lots of mechanical complication. The MWG employs the "KISS" principle and leaves the stiff spring alone and invests in a loading tool to exert more force to load all 90 rounds. With the SKEDCO Assault Pack, the loading tool is kept in an outer pouchette and dummy corded so it cannot be lost during field use. A small price to pay up-front for simplicity and reliability.

http://www.combatreform.com/canteencover.htm

http://www.mwgco.com
http://www.90rounder.com
MWG Company
POB 97-1643
Miami, Florida 33197
(305) 232-7344
(866) 307-1466

Drum magazines are usually used by either light/medium machine gunners to offer sustained fire to pin down the enemy for riflemen/grenadiers/SMgunners to maneuver on the enemy or to give a sub-machine gunner a large ammo supply to spray a room or trench line without having to stop and change magazines or worse be caught temporarily out of ammo. The assault rifle/carbine combines the function of a medium-range rifle for single-shot accuracy with burst or automatic fire like a sub-machine gun (SMG) to clear buildings, bunkers and trenches but has always needed a drum magazine to do the latter well. The SKEDCO Assault Pack enables EVERY SOLDIER to start battle with an unhindered 90-round ammunition supply to dominate firefights but is also based on the understanding that we don't want every Soldier burdened with drum magazines like "frying pans" all over his body ruining IMT maneuverability. The SKEDCO Assault Pack enables the MWG drum to be protected from bumps, its black color camouflaged and when its emptied, clipped to the Soldier's load bearing equipment (LBE) as he switches to NATO STANAG 4179 30-round M16/M4 magazines to sustain him in the rest of the fight. This way the Soldier rifleman/grenadier/leader etc. is still streamlined and agile to fire & maneuver upon the enemy.

http://www.skedco.com/Military/accessory-items/SK-90R-XX

SKEDCO 90 Round Magazine Cover

#SK-90R-XX

Cover for the MWG 90 Rounder high capacity magazine for the AR-15/M16/M4. Made with 1000 Denier heavy duty fabric. Comes with a front pocket for storage of magazine loader.

Available in MultiCam, ACUPAT, and Coyote Brown.

Colors

Coyote Brown
ACU
MultiCam

Product Details

90 Round Magazine Cover
SKU: SK-90R-XX
Price (MSRP): $36.32
Weight: 1.0 lb (0.45 kg)

SKEDCO Inc.
PO Box 3390
Tualatin, OR 97062 USA
Tel: 503-691-7909
Fax: 503-691-7973
http://www.skedco.com

***

P.S. notice Wiesel, the Russian blue ground attack cat taking instruction on the 90-rounder drum for future joint operations

Category:

Science & Technology

Tags:

• M16
• M4
• assault
• rifle
• carbine
• MWG
• 90-rounder
• drum
• loading
• 5.56mm
• NATO
• .223
• M16 Rifle
• M4 Carbine

[TheJGCSRT8]

@dynmicpara How do you load beta c 100 round drum magazine? The same way as this one?

[dynmicpara]

@TheJGCSRT8 Same way, into magazine well.

[Treblaine]

It seems any problems solved by a 90 round magazine, it creates several more. Plus most retailers put the disclaimer that it should only be stored with 80 rounds :(

Nice attempt and kudos for making it more reliable than the C-Mag but why not clip two mags parallel together as that has been demonstrated to be very rapid to reload.

Rifles - unlike machine guns - are designed for accuracy and manoeuvrability over firepower. 80-90 rounds would be great but not if it's as cumbersome as an M249.

[dynmicpara]

Clipping mags works but there's a time gap during reloading where there's no firing. The open end of the clipped mag could get dirty and jam the weapon when inserted. I don't think the 90 drum is anywhere near as clumbsy as the M249 LMG with 100 round pouch, why don't you TRY IT?

[raffielaffendy]

The M16 is an old design. The mwg90 is an aftermarket/afterthought magazine design to use with the M16. Until somebody design a weapon that comes with a high volume magazine, there would be no end to the critics.

[tehw000000t]

tbh reloading takes a few seconds, not much longer than firing really

after all, only noobs spray full auto like sullivan said

[ww2footage]

it can store 33 rounds of .458 SOCOM btw ...

[n4ktz]

where to get the cover?

[ihateforigners]

Oh, thanks. I'd rather have a "Shrike" though, you can youtube it if you want. It fires magzines, C-MAG, 100 round soft pouches for the SAW, 200 round box magazines for the SAW. Me, you and BlackTailFA (Mabe nomorenarrsism) should be Generals in the Military, and I'm only 14! We would the greatest!

[dynmicpara]

The C-MAG splits the ammo supply into two drums adding complexity and the MWG sticks to one drum and a larger size in exchange for simplicity...

[dynmicpara]

That's why we propose you START a mission with the drum and then go to smaller and easier to load magazines.