Ultimate Clip Loader

...so much for the naysayers.

WORKSW SPECTACULARLY WELL

I bought this loader to speed load my Ruger Mark II magazines for range target shooting. I currently have two magazines; the original Ruger magazine and a Mec-Gar aftermarket magazine. I saw a video on YouTube where this loader was demonstrated and I decided to get one since hand loading the 22 LRs into the Mark II mags is tedious. Filling the hopper and shaking them to get them lined up for mag loading worked really well. I expected the loader to then load the mags as well as it did in the video and I was really disappointed that I was having such difficulty. I got it to work a couple of times but normally the first round would hang up at the mag and prevent loading. After multiple attempts I was not having much success and was considering sending the loader back to Amazon for a refund. I'd read the TIPS section of the instructions a couple of times but really I had just glossed over it-how hard could this be? Then I decided to read it a little more carefully before condemning the loader. Under TIPS bullet point 2 (no pun intended) it covers bullets not loading into the magazine at all. So I read further and it said to make sure the bullets can drop into the mag freely. If not it said to spread the tips of the magazine to achieve this. I took an individual bullet and manually placed it on the magazine's front tips (pic included) and it took a little force to push the bullet beyond the tips and into the mag. It really wasn't much force at all, nothing you would ever notice when hand loading, but it was more than the force of gravity, which is all that pushes bullets out of the loader and into the mag (besides a little extra force exerted by the bullets stacked behind it). This was the case with both magazines. So I got a pair of pliers and spread the front tips until the round would freely drop into the mag. The original Ruger mag was made of much stronger steel than the aftermarket mag, and more difficult to bend. Once I was happy with the mag dimensions I tried the loader again and it worked perfectly. So the bottom line is I am happy with the loader after going through a learning curve. It will give me more shooting time vs. loading time when the clock is ticking down at the range.

I am rewriting this review to make it more concise. My opinion hasnt changed. I have been shooting a lot of 22 through my Ruger MK III. I have loaded about six thousand rounds, mostly copper plated but about 1000 rounds of plain lead too, with this loader. This widget makes it a breeze to load the mags quickly and easily. I can fire several hundred rounds in a session at the range and spend my time shooting, not loading. However, this is not a 'no brainer'. It takes some practice to get it to work well and at first I found it more frustrating than useful. Issues are: 1. Its behavior varies with different mags. I have 5 Mark III mags and some of them require slightly different technique. 2. Bullets sometimes drop into the magazine standing up and prevent further loading without taking the mag out and removing the bullets. 3. It collects crud on the inside from the bullet lube and lead I guess. 4. Can be reluctant to load the last round into the magazine. I think the best advice was given by another reviewer. You can't just expect to jam the mag into the loader and pump it full of bullets. You must pay attention to each round as it is loaded. After a while I got used to the feel of the mags and can work each one according to its 'personality'. On some the rounds just fall in and others need to be pumped. If the bullets fall in to the mag, you have to learn how to hold it and jiggle it just right. If they need to be pumped, that takes a bit of practice too and after a while loading the 10th round is not a problem either. Holding the loader at a 45deg angle instead of vertical and with the bullet noses pointing down seems to help the standing bullet problem. Crud hasn't caused any problems yet but at some point I will disassemble it and clean it out. I still get the occasional standing bullet but less and less often. I suspect this works better with some brands of mag than others. I got very frustrated with this thing the first time I used it, but after some practice and patience, it has made my life a lot easier and my time at the range a lot more fun. I've been shooting a brick of 22lr a day and the time just seems to fly by. I can go through a brick (525 rounds) in a couple of hours. If you are prepared to put some time into learning how to use it, this loader could be a very big help. If you are looking for a shake'n bake solution, this thing will frustrate the hell out of you. I have to say that this is about the ugliest thing I ever bought. Urine yellow??? What were they thinking? Update: When you come to clean the loader, test the gun cleaner to make sure it doesnt melt the plastic. Some cleaners have acetone in them. Update 2: I just acquired a Browning BuckMark. It loads those mags just as well as it does for the Ruger MKIII except for the 10th bullet. I could probably adjust it for the BuckMark mags but then it would be out of whack for my MKIII. I don't mind loading the last round by hand and sometimes I just shoot with 9 in the mag. Sometimes I deliberately don't take this widget to the range with me. I find if I have it, I shoot too much ammo too fast. It's just too damn easy! Forcing myself to load the mags by hand makes me slow down and put more into each shot.

Wow! MkII/MkIII magazines are fiddly to load, and can give you a sore thumb after a few hundred rounds. I've used the little red plastic loding assist devices that pull the follower button down and hold it for you. They work, and save your thumbs, but they are really no faster to use than loading without them. This device is in a whole other league. You dump the rounds in, close the door, give it a gentle wiggle to let them drop into position, then you can load the magazines by inserting them in the bottom and tilting the device to let them drop in. In practice, it take a little "pumping" as other reviewers have mentioned. But it is still extremely fast. With the 50 round capacity you could easily load 4 or 5 magazines with this device in less time that it takes to load one magazine by hand. Another reviewer who did a video review showed the device dropping an extra round out the magazine chute after loading. This can be corrected by adjusting the stop screw at the bottom of the magazine chute inwards until you find the sweet spot where the loader injects all 10 rounds but retains the rest. I used some action proving dummy rounds found here: A-Zoom 22 Lr Action Proving Dummy Rounds (12 Pack) ...to adjust and test the loader safely. I am very impressed. The device is bulky, but I can't think of any way they could have changed the design to make a significant reduction in size. Overall, this will be an incredible time saver. It works so well I have been loading those dummy rounds into mags repeatedly just because it's fun to watch a well designed machine in action.