One of the fastest ways to look like an amateur is to routinely use the wrong words. Yes, slang creeps into everything, but clear communication requires using precise terms for specific objects or actions sometimes, too. Today, I would like to discuss the distinction between clip and magazine.
I thought about writing this as another Fudd Myths installment, but the subject doesn't really fit that theme. It's more a case of media-fueled public ignorance. Since I finally managed to gather everything for this post, hopefully I can demonstrate what I mean.
While this definition may be subject to some disclaimers and yeahbuts, a magazine feeds ammunition to a firearm, while a clip feeds ammunition into a magazine.
A magazine usually consists of a metal or polymer box containing a spring and a follower of some kind. When a magazine is loaded, the spring is compressed, and as the operation of the firearm pulls rounds out, that spring pressure keeps the remaining rounds pressed into position to continue the process.
These clips and mags are STANAG pattern, like those used in the AR15. A 10-round stripper clip is shown in the top left, now empty. It consists of a steel channel and a brass insert. The insert is shaped to add some spring tension, which prevents rounds from rattling. It also has tabs that keep the rounds in place until they are loaded into a magazine.
The adapter in the top right slides over the back of a magazine. Press down on the cartridges next to the strip with your thumb or another magazine to shove them into the empty mag. Repeat three times to fill a standard 30-round mag. Clips are designed to be disposable, but they can be reused until metal fatigue damages the retention tabs. While magazines are the most convenient way to reload, clips are a good solution when you have more rounds than magazine capacity. Loading loose rounds in the field is no fun.
Some rifles use a fixed internal magazine that is designed to be fed from stripper clips. Many military rifles from World Wars I & II have built-in stripper clip guides. Other rifles use an en bloc clip that is fed directly into the magazine, and the clip is ejected when the last round is fired. These Magpul PMAGs have springs with followers and base plate catches affixed to them. Others have separate pieces that tend to launch into suborbital flight if carelessly taken apart. Be careful.
Some revolvers use moon clips so cartridges designed for semi-automatic pistols can also be fired. Cartridges designed for revolvers have a prominent rim at the base to hold the round in the cylinder. The clip pictured above is a half-moon clip for .45 ACP cartridges, and two would be used to load a six-shot revolver. During World War I in particular, the US military commissioned revolvers that could use the .45 ACP ammunition from the M1911 supply chain, and moon clips were the solution to its recessed rim deisgned for magazine-fed sidearms. Other revolvers use clips to fire 9mm and .40 S&W rounds even today.
So, Glocks don't have clips, but you can load some six-shooters with clips. Has this clarified anything? Did I miss a neat exception to this general rule of clip vs. mag? Add to the conversation below, please! And don't forget to plan some group therapy at your local rifle range! Post your target and brag about your marksmanship.
