CETME Mag issue with H&K Mag

[Buddymack]

Hi guys, as I am trying to get my CETME ready for a testfire and going through a few things I have an issue with, I wanted to discuss along with others I am obviously conversing with on other issues, I purchased quite a few H&K mags that are steel and as I am looking at each one and trying to make sure I won't have feed issues I see that only my CETME mag that came with my gun "clicks" when inserting the mag, when I insert the H&K they go all the way in but they are not "clicking" so I can pull them right back out...
when looking into the little window that you can see were the point that the little catch is catching it would seem that it is being inserted far enough, but maybe not deep enough or that the little tang on the mag catch maybe isn't quite grabbing it...what can I do to this at the same time be able to use both mags?, can I fine tune the mags? or does it require a little more metal added and then maybe swearing off the original CETME mags?

[Mortal_Wombat]

are you giving them a solid smack with the palm of your hand to seat them?

[Buddymack]

are you giving them a solid smack with the palm of your hand to seat them?

Oh yeah! and I mean I really hit them but that is not it it is not a seating issue that is for sure it is a difference of how the magazine release tab seats in the little recess.

[nonleathal]

do either of the two types of mags fit loose in the well?

[hansellhd]

Some Cetme's will only work with a Cetme mag. The one I own is like this. Every time I use a HK mag it will jam on every other round, using the Cetme mags the rifle is flawless.
HDH.

[Planning]

are you giving them a solid smack with the palm of your hand to seat them?

if you have to give them a good solid smack with the palm of your hand to seat the mags then something is wrong. when you do this it will shove the lips of the mag up and cause the lips to curl inwards. this will cause stove piping ( usually on the 3rd round).
mags should slide in easy and set without driving them in.

if you want to continue doing it this way, you may consider buying a large rubber mallet at harbor freight to use instead of using the palm of your hand. using the hand can cause damage to the nerve ending in the palm of the hand leading to having an operation on the hand, which i understand is very painful.:eek:

or you can work on fixing the problem, not creating more problems.:rolleyes: this problem is fixable.

have a nice day!
ron

[Mortal_Wombat]

i only had to do this once on each of my aluminum mags and now i can click them all in easily and nothing broke
lol.

[Noskov]

Seems like your CETME like others (but not all) have mag preferences. I've read about some owners who found only HK steel or HK aluminum works in theirs but not CETME magazines and vice versa.

When I had my SAR-8 it would accept HK steel magazines and would also accept CETME mags, with the distinct "click" into place.

But I agree with Planning, it does sound like a fixable problem once you isolate exactly whats wrong with it.

[SA80Dan]

I've not tried steel HK mags, but had the exact same problem with HK aluminum mags. Whacking them with my hand wasn't working to seat them. What I did to solve it was put the mag on as far as it could go, then grabbing hold of the rifle and using its weight, sharply tapping it (the mag) on the floor. This method seated the mags, albeit it tight. After that, I could get them on using hand pressure alone, and found that repetitively putting them on/taking them off wore them in further. All fit pretty easily now, zero feed problems at all.

[WildBillCody]

Are the steel mags you bought factory H&K or are they the USA junky ones?

[Buddymack]

The Mags are the Original H&K issue ones that CTD sells, the ones you have to order a bunch and get some that are rusty and such...I will continue to use whatever advice I can to see what it is but it seems as though that they used the CETME mag to adjust it...I have quite a few H&K mags and of course the CETME only came with one...the one that works.

OK this is interesting I found a couple aluminum mags from another kit I got in and one fits and the other I can make fit, it seems to be a slight difference in the top of the "female" part of the magazine catch, I can relieve a little metal on some and actually get them to lock....I am thinking this may not be too healthy as some preload should be good I would think....frustrating!

[Perro Del Diablo]

remove the mag catch assembly completely
insert mag into magwell
look through window where the mag catch used to sit to see how far off it is

i didnt catch if yours was a cast, or stamped receiver, but this used to be a huge problem on the stainless steel cast receiver rifles cause they could never machine the mag catch holes in the same spot from rifle to rifle.

the mag catch assembly removes easily by removing the roll pin in the mag release button - pay attention to the disassembly - reassembly is the reverse

[Buddymack]

remove the mag catch assembly completely
insert mag into magwell
look through window where the mag catch used to sit to see how far off it is

i didnt catch if yours was a cast, or stamped receiver, but this used to be a huge problem on the stainless steel cast receiver rifles cause they could never machine the mag catch holes in the same spot from rifle to rifle.

the mag catch assembly removes easily by removing the roll pin in the mag release button - pay attention to the disassembly - reassembly is the reverse

Thanks that is a good idea! it is a stamped receiver.