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What’s a SnagMag, you ask?

What’s a SnagMag, you ask?

Today I’m bringing you a review of a product for autoloaders. Why? Because I often carry a semiauto pistol, I’m sure most of you do as well, and I’m always looking for ways to make doing so a little easier. I think I’ve found such a product, one which I didn’t even know existed until a couple of months ago. Note that I said “think”; you’ll see why in a bit.

I was recently introduced to a fellow who makes a very interesting product: the SnagMag, which is a magazine carrier for the pocket. (Disclosure: he gave me a SnagMag to review.)

To be more precise, he handed me a Glock 19 SnagMag (they don’t yet make a version to fit my preferred Steyr S9 magazines.) When I got home my wife saw it, grabbed it out of my hands, and I haven’t seen the thing since. Instead of a first-person review you’ll have to settle for the interview I did with her. That’s actually good, because a) she’s worn the thing every day since she got it, and b) she is a former holster maker who really understands concealment and holster design.

As she points out, it’s actually harder to conceal a spare magazine than the gun itself, because almost no magazine carriers hold their cargo as close to the body as does the gun’s holster. If they do they’re incredibly uncomfortable. She’s made hundreds of magazine carriers over the years, for herself and others, but almost always defaults to carrying her spare magazine in her pocket. As she admits, it’s just easier that way.

Carrying in the pocket, though, means that the magazine wallows around and collects a lot of debris. It’s not always in the same orientation and it’s not always easy to retrieve. The SnagMag is an attempt to address those problems.

The SnagMag is a thermoformed plastic magazine carrier that has a belt clip on the side, much like you’d see on a folding knife. That clip allows the SnagMag to hold a spare magazine suspended in the pocket for both concealment and easy access. The magazine butt ends up right about the level of the pocket so that it’s not easily visible and is held with very light friction.

snagmag-kydex-magazine-holder-1
Photo courtesy of SnagMag

The carrier has a hooked protrusion designed to catch on the inside lip of the pocket, holding the carrier in while allowing the magazine to be drawn out. This takes just a bit of practice, as the magazine needs to be pressed backwards slightly as it’s lifted out of the pocket. I found that it took only a few practice draws to get the movement down; my wife said the same thing. It’s a fairly natural motion that isn’t at all hard to do.

My wife works in an office, and she said that no one — not even a couple of co-workers who are also shooters — has recognized that she’s carrying a spare magazine in plain sight. It looks like she’s carrying a knife in her pocket, which is part of the SnagMag’s appeal. Only another user will look at it and see it for what it is; most people are simply going to think that you have a knife or multitool in there.

This is especially true if you have a single-stack magazine, which I’ve observed just disappears in the pocket. A double stack magazine, like that for her Glock 19, is a little more visible but still not identifiable to the uninitiated. On this score, the SnagMag is a success.

Comfort is a mixed bag. My wife reported that some of the exposed edges are rather sharp, which caused some discomfort and chafing. This is largely due to the width of the double-stack Glock magazine she carries, and partially because women’s pants generally fit tighter than do men’s. In a pair of baggy slacks, she says, you wouldn’t notice it as much, and possibly not at all. In a pair of more fitted pants, and especially with the wider magazines, it definitely becomes an issue.

A few strokes from some medium-grit sandpaper cured the worst of the pain, but the edges are still sharper than they need to be. At the price point SnagMag sells these, I feel the edges should be rounded and burnished. She was a little more charitable, but we both agree that the folks at SnagMag should address the issue.

She also pointed out that with jeans, the longer magazines tended to poke into her thigh when sitting. A shorter magazine, like those for the Glock 26, would be more comfortable (as would a single stack.) With slacks, whose pockets are cut at a slant and where the magazine rides more to the side than the front, the size wasn’t as much an issue.

snagmag-kydex-pistol-mag-holder-1
Photo courtesy of SnagMag

Bottom line: the SnagMag garners her qualified recommendation as a practical, concealable, and useful accessory. The comfort issues can be addressed with careful wardrobe selection and judicious use of some sandpaper, though we both would prefer that the manufacturer pay more attention to the finishing of those edges. Overall, she thinks it’s a great idea and indicates a willingness to buy more models to fit her other magazines.

The SnagMag is available from SnagMag.com

-=[ Grant ]=-

  • Posted by Grant Cunningham
  • On September 4, 2013

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