Review: Magpul D60 drum

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    Dog1

    Master
    Rating - 100%
    35   0   0
    Feb 15, 2010
    2,661
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    Clark County, Indiana
    Today I was able to finally get out to the range and run the Magpul D60 drum. The Magpul D60 is a 60 round polymer drum. It is a compact and well designed drum that allows the shooter to have on tap 60 rounds in a package that is does not protrude much outside the edges of a AR15 and with the same length of a 30 round magazine.
    20160107_112036_zps2eualklk.jpg



    It has a helical ratchet drive that aids in loading, indicated by the white arrow in the photo. To load, start by rotating the ratchet lever until the follower lowers into the tower. Insert a round and release the ratchet. Repeat and continue loading. As you reach the 60 round capacity of the drum, it is advised to rotate the ratchet several times, to compress the rounds in the drum. A small clear window on the back allows the user to see the rounds and is marked 10 to 60 rounds. It can be hard to load the first couple of times, but once its been used a few times, it get's easier to load.

    20160107_112101_zps3hfadutw.jpg

    20160107_112110_zpsg4fifnfh.jpg


    To maintain the drum, the 4 large locking tabs can be popped loose and the back taken off.

    SPECIFICATIONS
    •Weight, w/Dust Cover: 20.5 oz.
    •Weight, loaded (M855 NATO): 46 oz.
    •Length, max: 7.4 in.
    •Width, max: 4.1 in.

    Once loaded, it can be inserted without locking the bolt carrier group back. Inserting an empty magazine and manually cycling thecharging handle will not activate the bolt hold open feature. Thismay or may not work for weapons with bolt hold open levers that are not Colt-spec.


    While Magpul has stated publicly that it is not intended for use with 300 Blackout, I have been told privately that it may work with some 30 caliber bullet profiles and cartridge lengths, but they could not provide info on which ones. When pressed if a 300blk version was in the works, all I got was a smile.

    Today I used my 7.5" SBR for the host weapon. The first 60 rounds was 30 year old Malaysian 55 grain surplus. Fully loaded the SBR balanced well, even with the drum.
    20160107_111352_zpsu2gmpsvw.jpg


    The drum ran without a hitch, as fast as I could pull the trigger. Next the drum was loaded with 55 grain Tula steel case. Again, no issues. Subsequent rounds fired was done with the Tula steel case. In all the drum was ran 4 times, as fast as I could empty the drum. It ran flawlessly.

    When compared to the 100 round Beta Mag, it's smaller, more maneuverable and balances better, but at reduced capacity. X Products has a 50 round drum for $245. For the price of one X Products drum, you can have 2 D60's.

    Pros-
    1. Lightweight
    2. Does not require the bolt to be locked back, with one exception-See above.
    3. Robust and well built, typical Magpul quality.
    4. Easily maintained.

    Cons-
    1. Price. Magpul said when they announced it that it would be priced at about $60-75 dollars. Right now it's priced at $129.95, Brownell's has them for $121.95.
    2. The loading ratchet takes a bit to get used to. It can be hard to load those last 10 rounds.
    3. A loading device for the tower, like what Beta Mag includes with their 100 round drum, would have been nice.
    4. It would have nice for the drum to be dual use with 300blk, owing to the proliferation of the round and it's rising popularity.

    All and all, the drum is a nice addition to the Magpul line and is worth the expense to have.

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    Link To Original Thread:
    https://www.indianagunowners.com/forums/long-guns/402617-review-magpul-d60-drum.html#post6288476
     
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