5.56 Bulgarian Waffle Mags?

Your not going to make a rifle in 5.56 and not offer the high cap mags? Right? Or? :(

Hi:

Actually, We do manufacture several models in 5.56 caliber.
Models SA M-5, SA M-5(S), SA RPK-5(S), SA M-5(G) and SA M-5(SG) are all current manufacture and available through various retail distributors.
A five round magazine is provided with all of the above models.
Arsenal Inc does not sell accessories. Additional 5 and 10 round magazines, and other legitimate accessories such as spare or replacement parts are available from Arsenal of Bulgaria’s exclusive US parts and accessory representative, K-Var inc.
Thanks for your inquiry

Alexander Wolfe
Arsenal Inc-DPC

Thats your answer? Your kidding right? No one in there right mind goes and makes a rifle in 5.56 without the general knowledge of high cap mags for these rifles would soon be released for sale! What don't you guys talk to each other? Gimme a break! :mad:

There are apparently plenty of 5.56mm magazines in Bulgaria, with two problems.....

1) Currently there are alot of magazines over there that cannot be proven to have been made prior to the 1994 Ban.

2) The ones that can be proven, many of them had a casting problem in the mold, and they won't fit the rifles reliably. I have been told that Arsenal Inc./K-Var is trying to work with this problem, lets hope they can.

The other thing you have to remember is that there were a ton of these 5.56mm magazines available very cheaply no more than a year ago, when Arsenal first had plans the build these things. Many of these magazines were converted to fit Valmet 5.56mm rifles, and also SAR-3's from Romania. At one time, these things were being sold for as little as $10.00 each. Everyone thought that there were plenty of mags for these rifles.

You can still find the 30 round waffle magazines, and they are currently running around $20-$30.00 each, about the same as a Galil magazine.

How bout a mag adapter that allows the rifle to accept M-16 mags? The Galil series could be fitted w/ a mag adapter and reliably function using such an adapter w/ M-16 mags. Just a thought, I own an AR-15 as well and this would be great, gives me a reason to buy more mags for my AR.

Thoughts????

The Kollector

When Hesse was selling 223 AK's he had an option to purchase a M16 mag adapter for the AK, I own two of these adapter's and am going to try one in a Sam-5S which I should pick up this weekend from my FFL.
I also have a adapter for the Galil but I think it might be to big for the Sam-5S but I'll check it out for grins.

TaranScorp, great, keep us updated.

Arsenal, do you think you could make an M-16 mag adapter for the SAM-5? I personally think the Bulgarian 223/556 waffle mags make an excellent addition to the rifle for obvious reasons, but some folks aren't concered w/ the "correct" look. I myself would purchase the Bulgarian mags either way, I just really think a M-16 mag adapter would make a nice addition, not to mention the fact that sales of the rifle would probably jump even more.

Arsenal, what do you think?


The Kollector

I think an adapter would be great. I'm going to try some Galil magazines in my buddy's SA-M5S when I can.

I also heard that polymer AK-74 magazines will work with 25 rounds in them, but I haven't tried that yet.

And going back to "Thats your answer? Your kidding right? No one in there right mind goes and makes a rifle in 5.56 without the general knowledge of high cap mags for these rifles would soon be released for sale! What don't you guys talk to each other? Gimme a break!"

Robinson Arms VEPRs in 5.56mm don't use purpose built hi-caps either, they use modified AK-74 magazines, and the SAR-3 weren't "designed" to handle the DDR "Weiger" magazines, they just happened to work well with that rifle.

I have a adapter for my 5.56 Norinco! It works! :cool_smal

Who made your adapter for your Norinco?

The company was M.A.D.I. out of AZ! Don't know if there still around. I paid back then around $170 for it!

Well, tried a South African R4 steel magazine (Galil) and it's too wide up front to fit in the receiver.

I'd try some '74 magazines, but I don't have any left.

I once had a 50 rnd Galil mag and a Sar3 and I ground down on the sides of the mag and got it to fit the Sar3, it fed all but the last round. I sold the Sar and mag before I could figure out the last round problem, but am pretty sure it was the feed angle.
I thought on the Sa-M5s the magwell was wider at the front than any other AK74 so it would accommodate the Wider Bulgarian mag, and the Bulgarian mag was made wider so no soldier could fit it into a AK74 by mistake.
I'm picking up my SA-M5s this weekend and I'm going to try the two mag adapters I have and a Galil mag and a modified AK74 mag.

Oh yea, M.A.D.I. is still around, I just bought a H.A.R.K. adapter from him for a HK93 and he doesn't sell the AK adapter anymore, he still has the M16 Galil adapters though.

Did they say why don't they make it anymore? I wonder if he would do special ones? :sad_small

He said that his adapters needed fitting to each individual rifle so you had to send it to him for the fitting, but he isn't a FFL anymore so he can't accept any more rifles, so he quit making the adapters awhile ago and isn't interested in making anymore.
He told me if he found one laying around he would email me but I don't think he will.
This weekend I'll find out how well the Hesse/Vulcan AK adapter works in the SA-M5S.

Yep thats what I did! I have 2 5.56 adapters! One right now has no weapon for it so maybe I can have one of these well known gunsmiths maybe to look at it. They could make a copy of it. :huh_small

Can you email me a pic of the MADI adapter so I can compare it to my Hesse/Vulcan adapters I have, also would like to compare it to the Galil adapter.

0business0@attbi.com

I picked up my SA-M5S this weekend and about a hour ago tried to fit the adapter in but it won't go all the way in. The magwell at the front needs to be opened up, debating if I should get the Dremmel out. My Galil mag won't fit either, to wide, but I've ground down the sides on em before and got them to fit a Sar3. The orange bakelite mags lock right in just as good as the Bulgarian mag.

It strikes me that Arsenal is being "cute" with their site claim that all "regular" (whatever that means) highcap/dbl mags will fit the SAM 5. That's not entirely true, is it? How "irregular," then does that make Weigar .223s, eh? : (

TaranScorp,
Don't modify the gun, just be patient and you'll find some 5.56 mm waffle mags to fit it. I heard that Cole Distributing is sitting on a bunch of 5.56 mm waffle mags, but hasn't released them for sale yet. I have 8 waffle mags for my SAR-3 and I think I paid about $20.00 or so for each. I found some at gun shows and the rest on the gun boards. Good luck.

Cole Dist huh? Hmmmm! I wonder what there going to charge if this is true! :ak47:

Anymore info on Coles Dist?

I have five 556 waffles I bought awhile ago. I paid $10 a piece.

TaranScorp. if you try a modified Bakelite 74 mag like the 223 Vepr uses and it works let us know.
On the Hesse AR15 MAG adapter for the Stamped Hesse 223 Bulgi they used to market. They modified the bottom rear of the trunnion for the adapter to fit in the AK magwell. I looked at one at a local shop and it looked to weaken the trunnion to much on a stamped reciever rifle. Probably fine on a milled reciever though.
I called Hesse back then and had them build me their 223 without the trunnion mods or adapter. $288.00 plus shipping. Chief had waffles then for $10.00. I'm one of the few that has one of the 223 Hesse's that functions well I guess. The cheap Hesse works very well with modified 74 bakelites also
I'm interested in another 223 AK and if the SA M5 will work with converted bakelites I'll go that route instead of a 223 Vepr. pappyo

Keep in mind, if you alter a hi-cap mag so that it can no longer function in the original rilfe it was intended for, you have broken the law.

Keep in mind, if you alter a hi-cap mag so that it can no longer function in the original rilfe it was intended for, you have broken the law.

Yea, but who's gonna tell :small_gri

k-var has new OD green 223 waffle mag bodies for sale (no springs, followers, or floorplates). If you have existing high cap mags you could use the mag bodies for replacement.

Yeah I'am going to get some!