Intro

Hexmag was founded in early 2013. They actually started as a prototyping exercise in 3-D design and printing. They sold their first Hexmag March 2014. I have had a lot of different magazines in my life from issued GI mags to Magpul P-Mags. For full disclosure I have my own personal Hexmag that was given to me by a friend in August 2015 and it has had feed lip problems just after a few range sessions. I received two Hexmags in the mail for review, they both came in labeled plastic packaging and I also received some of their pre-cut grip tape. I saw that the review mags were newer than my personal Hexmag by having the stamped patent number and not just patent pending.

Per the company Hexmag, “One sheet of grip tape (46 hex shapes) is enough to cover both sides of one Hexmag magazine if you fill every hex shape of the magazine. Or 50% of two Hexmag magazines.” The tape is die-cut and self adhesive. The hexagonal surface pattern as well as the pronounced ribbing on the front and back of the magazine provides a texture that allows improved gripping ability.

The followers come in the color orange and is now offered in green, pink, light blue, red, yellow and a basic black. The colored follower allows for safer clearing of your rifle’s chamber when it is inserted into your weapon. The magazines come in 10, 15 and 30 round capacity. One of the draws for using an item like this is the reduction in weight because it is lighter than most AR-15 magazines.

Testing

I wanted to try the pre-cut grip tape that was provided so I placed it on one of the mags and kept the other slick to get a good feel on both types of grip. I found the grip tape to be un-necessary and better suited to the front and back spines of the mags if you want a better grip. Also if running a plate carrier with higher/deeper mag pouches causes the grip tape to stick a little, just something to be aware of. I took the two Hexmags and some T1 Ammunition 55 gr .223 to the range and began running them through some drills.

I did the Casino drill to start out – Good drill by the way – then worked on some reloads drills (One full mag and an empty) good exercise for weapon manipulation, after only 38 rounds through the first Hexmag and it was already showing wear on the feed lips and it had cracked down the back spine. I was shooting over concrete floors but in my opinion that should not be a problem for a battle worthy magazine. Throughout the night running a multitude of drills I could see the gradual wear on both mags.

The cracked mag began to give me trouble with an odd double-feed, when I stripped the mag the first round in the stack was in its place but the second was pointing up at an extreme angle, odd but I believe it may have been caused by the wear on the feed lips or the crack on the spine, or a combination of both. I also noticed that loaded mags did not like to lock into the magwell on a closed bolt even when there were only 7 rounds in the magazine.

When doing reloads I could feel my bolt dragging on the feed lips, it was enough to cause hiccups when doing bolt open reloads. Throughout the night I burned through mag after mag, but still experiencing a few feeding problems. I also saw increased amount of wear. On one of the Hexmags I noticed a small crater in the follower, which I have never seen before. Overall I had a good range session and I was able to incorporate some malfunction training with mag changes – Positivity.

Putting the Hexmag through some mag dumps, but still getting some training in.

Conclusion

Like I stated earlier I have had a lot of mags and one of my first was a P-Mag that I have had for over 7 years and has been on 4 deployments to Afghanistan and still works till this day. I went into this review with an open mind and looking at the Hexmags subjectively, but to my disappointment they did not hold up to my use and did not earn my seal of approval.  Even though they may look cool, it doesn’t always mean they will do what is needed by someone that shoots more than a few times a year.

I would not recommend the current Hexmags for hard use, Law Enforcement, and/or Military use. Unfortunately, the Hexmags were not Ranger proof and have a few kinks that need to be addressed. I look forward to seeing the revisions of the Hexmag and hope that they will be able to blend cool with hard use in the near future.

MSRP: $14.99 each or 5 for $72.00 via Google Shopping

Functionality: 3/5

Weight: 5/5

Durability: 1/5

Cost: 4/5

Comfort: N/A

Overall Total: 13/20

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received Hexmag via Spotter Up. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own.