Magazine (firearm)
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Image:M16-Rifle-Magazine-LineDraw.png
A magazine (also called a mag or, commonly but incorrectly, a clip) is an ammunition storage and feeding device within or attached to a firearm. The magazine may be integral to the firearm (fixed) or removable (detachable).
The cartridges in the magazine are loaded into the firearm either automatically or manually depending on the type of gun, but almost always by a spring. Some magazines can in turn be loaded by a clip; contrary to the common misconception, 'clip' and 'magazine' are not synonymous. An example of this misuse is the use of 'banana clips' to refer to curved box magazines. Although this particular phrase is more commonly used, the proper phrase is 'banana magazine'. The belt of linked ammunition used by most machine guns, which serves as a storage but not feeding mechanism for ammunition, is also not a magazine.
The most common type of magazine is the detachable "box" type (pictured at right). However, other types are available, such as the "drum" magazine, sometimes used with the Thompson submachine gun, the "pan" magazine of the Russian DP-28 machine gun, and the fixed "tube" magazine found on many lever-action rifles and pump action shotguns.
Magazines for a particular firearm may come in different shapes and sizes. Certain magazines can be readily identified by their appearance, such as those of the AK-type assault rifles, while with others it can be more difficult to tell what gun they belong to, such as when comparing the Ruger Mini-14's magazines with AR-15/M16 magazines.
See also
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