Floor plates vs detachable mag

[rem284]

I have used both floor plates and detachable mags.

Floor plates plus's :- usually fit nice and flush, lightweight, cannot normally be lost. Negatives:- cannot arm the rifle with full mag quickly from empty mag.

Detachable mags plus's:- Can have more than one fully loaded if you need to do a lot of shooting in a hurry. If shooting from a vehicles some companies will not allow any bullets to be in the mag(or chamber) until muzzle points out the vehicle. This is where the detachable mag wins.
Negatives: can be lost(some easier than others) Some designs are not flush fitting and it can become annoying when using them every day and they catch on things.

Again it comes down to what suits your own needs and preferences

 

[Big Mat]

Thank you all for you thoughts on the subject. This is my first deer rifle, having gotten used go detachable mags on the .22lr so though I best learn about the different mags before splashing any cash.

I've been looking at Parker hales on Guntrader which seem to fit the bill of a no nonsense solid workhorse

 

[VSS]

I've been looking at Parker hales on Guntrader which seem to fit the bill of a no nonsense solid workhorse

You won't go wrong with a P-H if you're buying on a budget. I have two, and think they're great rifles - if I do my bit and point them in the right direction

 

[enfieldspares]

I've been looking at Parker hales on Guntrader which seem to fit the bill of a no nonsense solid workhorse

As others said that (unless it is a belted magnum chambering they never feed that well on the third round or subsequent rounds P-H rifles), or a sound BSA won't go wrong. Avoid anything Voere. How desperate are you to "arm up"? You've a serious advantage living in Norfolk as you're not far from Holt's. Me? I'd give them a call, ask to speak to someone in their gunroom and be honest about your budget and etc. There are fur hundred sporting rifles in their Autumn sale. Including a few in .308 WCF here and there. Make a list of what you fancy and then ask if there is any chance at all that their gunsmith Scott Wilson could have a quick checkover, perhaps for a fee for his time, of the likely candidates.

 

[Big Mat]

As others said that (unless it is a belted magnum chambering they never feed that well on the third round or subsequent rounds P-H rifles), or a sound BSA won't go wrong. Avoid anything Voere. How desperate are you to "arm up"? You've a serious advantage living in Norfolk as you're not far from Holt's. Me? I'd give them a call, ask to speak to someone in their gunroom and be honest about your budget and etc. There are fur hundred sporting rifles in their Autumn sale. Including a few in .308 WCF here and there. Make a list of what you fancy and then ask if there is any chance at all that their gunsmith Scott Wilson could have a quick checkover, perhaps for a fee for his time, of the likely candidates.

As long as I get one in time to get a deer for Christmas dinner, that's my only time constraint. I don't expect my licence will back for at least a month yet so I'm not in a huge rush

 

[NigelM]

I have blind mag, floor plate and detachable mags on my guns. TBH I have never really thought about it, you just use them as they were designed.

The blind takes a little longer to unload, but it's not a drama. The floor plate is probably the most convenient. The detachable mag has fallen out once, so not my favourite, but I'm a bit more anal about pushing it all the way home now.

As has been said, there are far more important considerations when buying a rifle, like barrel condition and bedding, stock flexibility and trigger break. I would put all of those considerations above magazine design.

 

[Chasey]

I own floor plate, mag Tikka T3 (mag) Blaser R93 (top loader no plate) Sako 595 (Floor plate) Sako 75 III(mag) SA .17HMR (mag)


Mag= IMHO

easiest to load,

Loading a mag separate from the rifle I personally find easier. OK my T3 mag is not as nice as my Sako75 mag, but both are a lot nicer to load than trying to support the rifle whilst top feeding one handed on my Sako595 or Blaser. The Blaser being a particular pain to load top feed. (first time I tried I was struggling so much I thought I had the wrong mag insert. Got used to it now but something you have to get used to, is simply not a good design

Unloading a floor plate is just awful. I can not agree that theres no safety issue with cycling the bolt. If your cycling the bolt theres a risk of accidental discharge even if your safety has a half setting. (my ones don't) I oft unload into the cover of my drag sled to avoid loosing bullets in the dark but often wonder if I am one day going to blow a hole in my car That said I have 50% of the same issue with my Tikka T3 308. On my Sako I open the bolt slowly to 1/2 extract the round, push the round down into the mag then pop the mag. Brilliant

On my Tikka I cant push the round into the mag from the top so I have to eject one round then pop the mag. Not as good. I also like the way I can pop the mag and check how many rounds I have in it. I only ever load three so I know theres one up the spout if I only have 2 in the mag.

On the up side of floor plates I can 1/2 unload and simply push the round back down into the rifle then keeping the round down, I close the bolt on an empty chamber. Handy for climbing into high seats. As said I can do that on my Sako but not my T3

Mags can fall out. I have had this happen a few times on my Sako sliding the rifle forwards on a shooting rail. On the up side, the mag is easy to find if it does happen but if you accidentally knock a floor plate open, your searching for rounds in long grass again.

The debatable plus for floor plates is you cant forget them. I have forgot my .17HMR mag in the past but it just meant I had to single load it. PITA but not day over.

My Sako Mag is flush with the base of the rifle so I can balance the rifle on the shooting rail. My floor plates are all the same but my Tikka mag sticks out a bit so I cant do that. Sub optimal if trying to get on to the rifle with stealth and I don't like laying my rifle on its side as the windage or parallax knobs are rested on.


The R93 is an odd ball

Its a top loader like a floor plate, but has no floor plate. So to unload with out cycling it, you have to sort of pick out the rounds with your fingers. As I say, odd. Fortunately with the R93 the safety is a proper thing in that it totally de-cocks the rifle when it in safe mode. So for climbing fences or into high seats all I do is put the safety on. This is the quietest way of all my rifles and something I reely like about the 93. Only down side being the safety is a bit slow and clunky to use

In short I prefer mags.​

 

[geordieh]

You can use your Tikka t3 as a single shot top loader.Press the back of th magazine floor plate down with a knife Or something till the front of the floor plate pops out,put the empty magazine in then just drop a round on top of it and slide the bolt home.You can also use rounds that are longer than the magazine this way tor by buying a bobsled which fits into the magazine enabling it to be used as a single shot top loader

 

[Heym SR20]

I have always found with detachable magazine rifles that sooner or later they fall out. Some with a single stack can only be loaded from magazine, and with a three shot you will occasionally need another shot. Some such as the sauers have a small ejection port and difficult to single load. Most fixed magazines hold five rounds and that’s more than enough for most outings. Fill magazine and off you go.

As to safety, well that is matter of good handling and keeping rifle pointing in a safe direction whilst loading and unloading.

And if your ground involves a lot of obstacles and constant need to load and unload, forget bolt action and go for a single shot break action - so much easier!

 

[TomDeer]

I've got a Howa 1500 in .243 with the detachable magazine. The major flaw with the magazine is the exposed position of the release in front of the magazine, which really does make it prone to getting knocked out by accident. However, once you are alive to that risk you just take sensible steps to counter it. I have thought about getting a floor plate kit to fit but haven't bothered so far.

 

[kennyc]

I've got a Howa 1500 in .243 with the detachable magazine. The major flaw with the magazine is the exposed position of the release in front of the magazine, which really does make it prone to getting knocked out by accident. However, once you are alive to that risk you just take sensible steps to counter it. I have thought about getting a floor plate kit to fit but haven't bothered so far.

I went back to the floor plate on my Deer rifle, and moved the mag kit to my range rifle, I found the mag kept getting in the way, and that I preferred the ease of the floor plate, for range use the mag has been superb, but in the field the floor plate has been equally good.

 

[palo]

My Remington 204 had a floorplate and I hated it. The rounds were always getting jammed when loading and I always had to dump them out the bottom and start again. I recently bought a krg bravo chassis and mdt magazine for it and it now loads and feeds flawlessly.

 

[hendrix's rifle]

I've got both a floorplate and 2 detachable magazine rifles. The floor plate is easy to use, to unload flick the catch and put your hand under it and the rounds will fall out, never caught it and had it open accidently yet. All down to personal preference. As already stated there's the cost of the mag is your to loose it!

 

[User00003]

My Remington 204 had a floorplate and I hated it. The rounds were always getting jammed when loading and I always had to dump them out the bottom and start again. I recently bought a krg bravo chassis and mdt magazine for it and it now loads and feeds flawlessly.

The problem there is not floorplate, but ‘Remington’

 

[palo]

Your probably right.

The problem there is not floorplate, but ‘Remington’

 

[NigelM]

The problem there is not floorplate, but ‘Remington’

The old shi**y Remington opinion. Fancy a 500 yd shoot off against my three? I've got blind, floor plate or magazine, happy to go with any of them or all three.

As someone's signature says, "opinions are like arseholes, everyone has got one".

 

[ejg]

The only halfway good floorplate I had was a Remington 223, old rem 17 converted to 223. Other remingtons, Howas, Sakos, one Mauser all disappointed. I fitted proper tested and proven mil spec mags to my L579, Mauser, Howas, Tikkas, and Remingtons… perfect. Recently tried another time with a lightweight Remington in 308 two times mag loaded one failure, it will be removed and replaced by aics.
edi

 

[Jon Smith]

Best of the bunch, in my opinion, for a hunting rifle is the mag/floorplate system on the A-Bolt a removable mag to carry separately from the rifle that will top load. No sticky out bits to foul, can carry a couple loaded spare mags.

 

[Archer]

I have a Howa and use both systems.
Floorplate for high seat where limited shots will be fired but I substitute a mag for range/ammo testing where multiple rounds are fired and if stalking on foot with anyone (personal choice as I think it's easier to prove safe/ unload)

 

[palo]

I have also had a couple of ruger rifles with floorplates which were better than my Remmy but I will never use one again. The aics mag system is just so handy and 100% reliable.