Extended magazines

A recent call from a client reminded me of this unfortunate magazine related incident that Danie experienced two weeks ago at the SADPA DMG Nationals.

People are always looking for extended magazines for the CZ P-series, but unfortunately, there are not a lot of options available. So people start looking wider, and from time to time we get requests for Promags or CZ Shadow magazines because they supposedly work in the P-series. Sure, they fit, but they introduce two significant risks.

Firstly, they are narrower than the P-series magazines so they can move around. Apart from feeding problems, this often allows the magazine to slip from the magazine release and fall from the pistol. The longer the magazine, the more leverage can be applied to it, forcing it from the grip of the mag release.

The next risk is one that doesn’t often play out, but as the video shows, it remains a possibility. When inserting the correct size and length magazine into a pistol, the magazine is stopped by the magazine base bumping solidly against the pistol grip. When inserting a longer magazine, it stops against the magazine catch. If it is slammed too hard, or if the magazine has suffered damage over time, the magazine can slip slightly past the catch and lock the pistol up. It is not something that happens often, but I’ve experienced it previously in my CZ75 and Shadow, and here we see another example. I never encountered it in a P-07, but I have heard reports that it may cause problems in a P-10C, prompting CZ Custom to release a magazine base that allows a positive stop when using a P-10 magazine in a P-10C.

There are valid reasons why one would use an extended magazine, but we always advise clients to test your equipment thoroughly before using it in life or death situations. Remember, the more stress you’re under, the harder you will slam the magazine home and the more likely the protruding magazine will be bumped around. The more desperately you need the extra rounds, the more desperately you need the gun to work.