South African Defense Force Magazines

[mistanate]

I've been filling out my magazine stash as of late, and am now heading down the road of a "collection". In pursuit of this, I've been looking at procuring some of the lesser known magazines. I scored a sweet 40-round Bird of Prey magazine this past weekend that is in great shape. I also picked up two supposed South African Defense Force magazines, but have some questions. One is the old style with folded and spot welded, and one is the new style with the flush seam in front. The one with the flush seam has a questionable "Defense Force" mark. It kind of looks like someone may have taken a very fine carbide cutter and put the Defense Force mark on it. Other differences are in the insertion stops - the ones on the newer model mag aren't as dimpled as the older ones. The font is also different on the one I believe to be a legit Defense Force mag as it's not the regular font found on all the other common mags. Can anyone with any experience with these magazines confirm this is a legit South African Defense mag? Did these mags come in both early (folded/spot welded seam) and late (flush seam) types?

 

[Vector Arms]

Yes, the South African Defense Force Acceptance Marked Magazines came in both types. Your two magazines are original IMI manufactured, 25rd magazines with the South African Defense Acceptance Mark on them.

We have similar ones that look exactly like yours, imported from South Africa, which are still in the original IMI shipping crate. They came in both the folded seam and flush seam version. The flush seam mags have the same vertical rib with 4 holes on the back just like the standard IMI 25rd magazine. They also have the larger mag insertion stops which are the exact same size as the IMI 25rd mags. The folded mag insertion stops are noticeably smaller. The acceptance marks on the folded & welded mags are partially faint, like yours, but the flush seam mags acceptance marks are crisp, like yours.

If you would like some pictures of them or if we can help you with any other magazines, parts, springs, furniture or accessories, please contact us via our business email address: directblowback@gmail.com

I hope this helps,

Thomas J Carpenter, Owner
Vector Arms
Materialized Arms