Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunting Rifles RAR mag type swap... .223

My RAR .223 is one of the standard models without the cutout to install either an AR or AI type magazine kit.

I have a compact stock for the rifle to scale it down for my grandkids when they're ready - it does have the cut out for the kit installation. I have the standard rotary magazine kit for it now, but wonder why I can't buy and install the AR kit and convert the rifle.

The Ruger site has zero information and I'm not seeing kits on the gun part sites either... Ruger is out for New Years and won't be in office until the 3rd.

Anyone done this or have some useful intel..?

I have both an old style RAR .223 like yours, and a newer RAR with the AR magazine setup. The bolts are different, with the AR bolt having cutouts to clear the feed lips of the AR magazine. I keep the original one in MI and have the AR one in AZ, where I winter. I believe the receivers are different also but am not sure about that. The bolts are different for sure. It won't be a simple conversion and probably isn't practical. I can't speak to the AI conversion, except that Ruger did make a kit to convert ONLY the original rifles with the removable mag section in the belly of the stock to AI magazines. It won't work if the mag section is non-removable.

https://pacifictoolandgauge.com/rug...t-action-sa-detach-mag-bottom-metal.html


??

They’re just down the road from me, so maybe I’ll drop in on them and see what they say.

Not a lot of info, apparently, on making the conversion.

Alan,

I have one with the AR Mag in it....

Maybe getting together and you trying my stock on your rifle, will yield some answers or rule some ideas out....

If I can be of assistance, let me know...

and Happy New year my friend....

John, that's a wonderful offer, Thank You!

Let me see what Ruger will tell me - I have a compact stock with the cutout necessary for installment of either AR or AI.... AR being the one I'm interested in for the .223.

There are several threads out there on its viability and how others have done it. Receiver serial # seems to come into play here and mine is later than those. So, I think it'll work.

Install the proper magazine kit, bolt up to action, insert magazine and rock on... all for around $25 - from what I've read on those threads...

The principal reason for doing this will be to gain coal in the magazine over the rotary system... I want to run 68 - 75gr bullets seated out where they belong. Do your AR mag's give you that option?

If not, there's no reason to go to the trouble of switching systems.

Have a great New Year!

You really should use the AI magwell, and then use AI-style .223 mags such as the MDT 10-rounder that allows seating 75s out plenty long.

Ah ha! Didn't know that.
Seating long is what this is all about - thanks for the heads up!

Curious about the MDT mags as well. I read on Short Action Customs site that they would not work with a RA Magpul Hunter stock. I'm assuming it's just the stock and not the action. Do you have any experience with these, Jordan? Thanks.

Yeah, I put a RAR .223 in a Magpul Hunter and use MDT mags. I ended up grinding the rear corners down on the mags so they sit up high enough for the mag latch to catch and the case head to be caught by the bolt face. It’s not perfect, but it is functional.

A bit of a sidetrack...do the Magpul stocks work with .308-based actions that use the 1st generation rotary magazines?

It did on my .243 RAR Predator.

Yup.

Thanks guys.

Oh, and to answer your question, yeah the problem is that the stock has two tabs that hold the back of the magazine down away from the action. You could either grind out the tabs or else grind the magazine corners.

Thanks, Jordan. So you have this setup? After the stock/magazine work, did you experience any failures to feed? I know these are'nt the slickest action to begin with, I just dont want it to be any rougher than it is now.

Yeah, it’s not perfect as it sits right now. The mag is just barely high enough with the current mag latch, so if the front of the mag gets pushed down at all, feeding suffers. I think I may grind out the stock tabs and use a longer mag latch to get the mag up closer to the receiver, which will result in more positive engagement between bolt face and case head, and will get the front of the mag up into the feed ramp better.

To add to the conversation, I recieved an email from MDT stating that their metal .223 AICS magazines would work with the factory RA stock as well as the Magpul Hunter.

Before you buy the insert for the AR mags, make sure your bolt is compatible with it. I think the original full diameter ruger bolts probably wont work with an AR magazine without being machined for the purpose. The later models that come with the AR magazine are machine pretty intricately along the bolt body, to allow the shell to ride up high enough to get picked up by the bolt face. Verify this with ruger to be certain.

I had a chat with Ruger CS this morning and was told that my older rifle w/not work with the AR set up. I’ll not pursue it any further.

Thanks all