Situation.
Some weeks ago I took a look on my belt setup and realized that I needed something that gave me a quick acess combined with field proof retention, while retaining a low profile, especially with focus on snag hazard.
Normally I would have gone with hsgi tacos or similiar stuff, but I like to reduce the use of shock cord, especially on my 8 – to 11 o’clock belt position to a minimum because it’s this place where you tend to catch every piece of branches or barbed wire.
So it was clear that I was going for a kydex or molded injection, mag retention device. Preferring the ruggedness of kydex over molded injection I decided to try the Holsterwerk 556 Multimagpouch.
Best Solution
There are many kydex creators out there, but many are just kind of doing the same. Holsterwerk is a Veteran owned Business that specializes in doing all things kydex. Their mag retention device claims to be able to accept all kinds of 30 round AR15 mags, which is important because everyone who attended a class or even deployed knows that there can be a decent mix up of USGI mags, P-Mags and the countless other manufacturers solutions.
Design.
On a closer look, the Multimagpouch 556 is made of a thick sheet of kydex that is then U formed. It is cut high enough to obtain a good retention but low enough to allow everyone to get a solid grip around the magazine, this enables the user to rely on his gross motor skills, which in turn enable him to adjust the mags retention to a maximum.
Retention is archieved by two phillips screws that are protected by a thick piece of rubber. Holsterwerk uses mostly Phillips screws on its products to make them more friendly to field repairs and field conversions.
The opening of the pouch is not flared, but is pretty wide, which enhances mag compability but also makes it easier to reindex a magazine. I think this is a great solution for military applications, as a flared opening is more prone to catching mud and debris, reindexing a magazine a magazine blindly is also something that shouldn’t be your first priority.
I’ve tested the Multimag Pouches with USGI and CAA (Standard and countdown) mags and they all fit like a glove. I would advise everyone who actually doesn’t use this pouch for IPSC or cosplay, to adjust the retention to a maximum. We talked about the dangers of losing a magazine in an article before.
The retention device itself is not a pancake but a balanced construction, which on one hand, adds a little bit more bulk to the whole design, but on the other, creates a little offset, which is desired especially when using body armor or constantly skipping cardio.
Attachment.
What really stands out is the attachment method. I was first of skeptical when I saw that Holsterwerk was actually using Maxpedition TacTies, screwed into the pouch. This was particularly because of memories of broken fingernails related to gen1 MALICE clips.
I was proven wrong. The Maxpedition TacTies have a softer feel to them and they are cometely toolless in operation. They have a bit of play on a standard riggers belt, but don’t distract you from your drawing process.
You can attach Holsterwerks system to traditional MOLLE, lasercut MOLLE and even thick belts in seconds. It is possible to mount one pouch beneath each other on a MOLLE belt because of its curvature, but on the front of a platecarrier they kind of overlap each other.
This really makes this mag retention device stand out as you don’t have to remove all your pouches from the belt to mount it while also working on all industry standard mounting systems. You can change the position of your “hotmag” in matter of seconds.
Its also noteworthy that the Multimagpouch 556 is ambidextrous, you are able to insert the mags with bullets pointing left or right.
Finally the production quality is top notch, as there are no sharp edges or ridges.
Performance.
The pouches retention is somewhat unique, as the focus of the pressure is on the lower part of the pouch and not equally spread, I think that this is owed to the multi mag capability and finally it doesn’t present a problem. You may experience a small slippage of the magazine when you push it forward or backward, but this doesn’t even make noise when running.
You can even mount the pouch upside down if desired without loosing it. I won’t call this pouch “jump able”, so it would be nice to add a hole for a “jump strap” in a possible “gen2” incarnation. I would also like to see a cover for the bottom of the pouch, or even a closed version as I like my bullets clean.
Final Notes.
All in all the Holsterwerks Multimagpouch 556 is a great system for all that are looking for a belt or MOLLE mounted “hotmag” solution. At the moment iam running one on my Terra B Battle Belt and combined with Holsterwerks double pistol pouch they are a perfect match.
“Ideal for everyone who is looking for a quick acess or” hotmag” solution”
RBT
On a side note, this system is neither good for nor being designed as your primary mag pouch that you mount all over your load carriage platform, so know your tools. No kydex or injection pouch will offer the lightweight and noise reducing capabilities of a nylon pouch. But this is the way to go when you are looking for your speed reload solution.
You can buy all Holsterwerk products at “Waffenhandel Messer”.
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