Page 156 - FAT 105 4.17 MOODLE

magazine. The rounds are stripped from the clip is typically inserted into the bottom of the fire-
and loaded into the magazine, making loading arm; but with some designs it may be inserted in
much faster. The clip is removed and the maga- the side or top of the firearm. Depending on de-
zine can be inserted into the firearm and made sign, the box magazine may come in capacities
ready to fire. from 2 to 3 to 100+ rounds. The main advantage
of the box design is its simplicity. The design
OTHER MAGAZINE DESIGNS is easy to manufacture and is very reliable. The
biggest downside to the box design is that to
The detachable magazine is not restricted to
increase the capacity, the magazine must grow
one specific design or style — there are as many
in length (its dimensions are fixed width by the
magazine styles and types as there are repeat-
magazine well).
ing firearms. The magazines will differ in shape,
size, and cartridge arrangement and feeding. The drum magazine is named so because of its
The most common detachable magazine de- body’s resemblance to a drum. The main por-
signs are box, drum, helical, horizontal, rotary, tion of the body is round in shape, but there is
and tubular. also a box-shaped protrusion on the top of the
magazine. The top portion fits into the maga-
The detachable box magazine gets its name
zine well of the firearm, while the round body
from the fact that the magazine is shaped like a
hangs below. The cartridges inside the round
box. The box shape can be squarer or more elon-
part of the body are arranged in a circle that
gated like a rectangular box. Instead of being
leads to the boxed portion of the magazine
six-sided like a true box design, the magazine is
where the cartridges form a column. The drum
five-sided, with the top of the magazine being
magazine’s operating mechanism is drastically
open for loading and feeding cartridges. With
different than the box magazine. While the box
some calibers, the box design may curve to ac-
magazine uses a spring that forces a follower
commodate the taper of certain cartridges. The
to push against the rounds vertically, the drum
cartridges inside the box magazine are stacked
magazine uses a spiral (torsion) spring that is
in column(s) vertically and the magazine body

Figure 5: Various detachable box magazines.

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