AK74 mags in a 5.56 Valmet...?

CobraGT

CobraGT

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So I've been thinking of picking up a Valmet in 5.56mm, but the biggest thing stopping me is the rarity and ridiculous price of mags. I tend to want to have a LOT of mags for my guns. Has anyone tried using AK74 5.45x39 mags in a 5.56 gun? Do they fit, or can they be made to fit? Will 5.56 ammo fit and feed in a 5.45 mag?

Anyone with firsthand experience?
 
5.56 rounds fit in my ak74 dewat mag shell, but it has no feed lips or follower, and I have no 5.56 Valmet handy, so beyond seeing that they physically fit, I'm still curious as to whether the mags might be made to work.
 
Galil mags will fit, BUT THEY DO NOT FEED CORRECTLY.
Just in case you were thinking of going that route.
 
Polytech .223 mags are very easy to convert but are still about $100 usd. Cheaper Bulgarian circle 10 (10) poly waffle mags available in smoke and black can be converted too but are more work. There have been reports of German Wieger .223 mags and Yugo .223 pap mags being converted too but I have never done it. Forget Norinco mags as converting them is futile. Never tried a 74 mag.
 
I did try it. 5.45 mags fit but do not feed well. Same for 7.62 in case you were wondering. The curvature of the mag is not a huge issue with our limit of 5 but the follower and the feed lips are.

Any AK mag for 5.56 will fit your valmet though and it will work just fine - you may have to import those since the demand for AK mags in Canada is pretty low and hardly anyone stocks them ;)

An AR mags adapter also exists, it requires some fitting but once done you can use your LAR mags, etc.
 
KotKotofeich said:
Any AK mag for 5.56 will fit your valmet though and it will work just fine - you may have to import those since the demand for AK mags in Canada is pretty low and hardly anyone stocks them ;)
Click to expand...

Not just ny .223 mag will fit and function well in a Valmet. Don't be fooled by this
 
I had a Valmat 78 in 5.56 a few years back and I thought my Galil mags worked in it. I have two types of 5.56 AK mags one is fatter than the other. I just measured the 5.45, 5.56, and 7.62 X39 and the 5.45 isn't just a necked down 7.62-39 its dimensions are much smaller.

The base of a 7.62 X 39 is 11.22 mm and the 5.45 is 9.92mm, a 5.56 base is 9.46 mm.
The length of the 5.56 and the 5.45 are very close, the 5.56 I measured was about 1mm longer, so the AK 74 mags should accept 5.56

I will find the box of 5.45 ammo and try them in the two types of AK mags to see if they will work, I am just curious.
These are rounds I have in my collection that I just measured with a digital caliper. There will be differences in manufactuers.
 
I bought 10 galil mags from APEX in the states and had an importer import them. They were very cheap. They fit perfectly but I haven't checked their function in my .223 Valmet. I heard that some are fine and some may have some potentially dangerous feed angle issues. I'm almost done my M71 clone conversion and then I'll play with the magazine feed.

Cheers!
 
CanAm said:
why not get some 223 ak mags?
Click to expand...

I'd love to, if I can find some affordable ones here in Canada, or from somewhere in the US that will import to Canada. Anybody have a source? I've inquired with IRG, and am waiting for confirmation one way or the other.

Just bought a 5.56 M78, and tried an AK74 mag. Didn't fit. Interestingly, 7.62x39 mags DO fit. Don't feed, of course, but look cool!
 
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