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Gunsmithing 700 308 sps tact 'drop in' bottom metal+det mag?

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Minuteman
Feb 16, 2011
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Midwest
I recently purchased the aforementioned remmy, much to my delight, and now i am looking to make a few modest yet functional upgrades. i'm concentrated on improving the bottom metal and round capacity by adding a 5 rnd detachable magazine (preferably 10 rnd). however i have the Hogue overmolded stock and everything i've found will require a G.smith to inlet it. is there a "drop in" version that won't require inletting?i've looked at badger, seekings precision, and surgeon and possibly the remington factory swap (?) just to name a few. i'm even considering just changing the stock over to something that is already prepped for this, although i do like the hogue. But being relatively new to this all, i've decided that maybe i should tap into the immense collective knowledge you guys have.
thanks for all the help!!!
 
I just finished (for now) installing a new Archangel Precision Stock on my 700sps Varmint. this stock comes with a 10round proprietary magazine which appears to be a modified m1a/m14 magazine. I just ordered a couple inexpensive 20round m1a mags from cheaperthandirt to see if they will function.
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The new m1a mags are supposed to be delivered this saturday. Not sure when I'll get to the range to give them a real go but I'll try cycling with dummy rounds when the mags are delivered. I'll be sure to post my findings.
 
OK I received the first of 2 different brands of M1A mags. This one is made by National Magazine and does NOT feed at all. I can clearly see the differences between the ProMag "proprietary" magazine and the M1A magazine.

As you can see the feed lip designs are very different. The M1A mag feed lips are curved inward which allow the rounds to feed double stacked where the ProMag has a straight tapered design which gradually forces the rounds to feed from double stacked to single stacked feeding to the center. The ProMag design also positions the rounds slightly higher in the mag, this allows the bolt to contact the cartridge and push it into the chamber. The double stack feed design on the M1A mag positions the rounds slightly lower and staggers the rounds to the left and right which prevents the bolt from feeding the round.
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You can see how the ProMag mag tapers the feed lips toward the top.
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The construction and finish on the National mag is also pretty poor in comparison. The steel is easy to bend and stays bent, where the ProMag magazine is made of much stronger spring steel. The finish on the National mag is a very rough parkerized finish where the ProMag is a smooth blued finish.
I'm probably gonna attempt to modify the National Mag to work in the ProMag stock since I only spent about $8 on the mag. If nothing else its a learning experience and hopefully helps anyone else who is looking into the ProMag Archangel Precision stock.
 
The ProMag is a center, single feed magazine. It has to be to put a round high enough between the factory Remington feed rails so that the bolt can strip a round from the magazine and feed it into the chamber. (See AICS Remington stocks).

An M-14 magazine is a double stack, double feed magazine. It must go into a receiver with no feed rails to get near the bolt path. Modifying the magazine and/or the Rem 700 receiver to make the two compatible will probably be far more frustrating and expensive than just buying a National Match M1-A.
 
for someone on a modest budget (such as myself) the archangel set up is a descent choice, ir has major drawbacks, but it also has a lot of features for the price of 2 magazines that some of the "pro grade" set ups use. Would I take it to war, or use it professionally ? No, but it can still be useful to those in its intended market.
 
i have wondered about these too. i buy B&C medalist stocks and take them to my local gunsmith for inletting for PTG bottom medals. he does it for 35 dollars. so finding a local small town gunsmith is sometimes great for these kind of jobs. do not expect him to have a cnc machine though