The Gun Counter

Or, how I mutilated a Terrorist Interdiction Bag (TIB) from One Source Tactical for use as a Saiga 12 magazine bag, as originally posted to the Suarez forum:

Basic magazine pouches for the S-12 aren't all that difficult to come by; anything that will fit a 20 round .308 mag is about the right size. But I wanted an all in one type of bag that I could carry hiking, and leave next to my shotgun, that could also serve as a dump pouch, and maybe carry some extra items. I ordered a TIB from OST, figuring that even if it didn't work out, I could still use it as a general purpose grab and go rifle bag for my AK like it is intended to be.

Upon its arrival, I was pleased to discover that it has four internal pouches that are just about the right size for a Saiga mag. I think they'd actually be perfect as-is for an 8 round Izzy mag, but I only have 5 rounders, which drop too far down into the pouches for easy access. To remedy this, I made some foam spacers out of 4 layers of a surplus GI sleeping pad, glued together with contact cement. If I ever get some 8 rounders, I can just remove them since they aren't glued in or anything

The biggest issue I had with the bag, as originally made, is the 3 rifle magazine pouches that are inside the main compartment. They get in the way of quickly dumping a spent mag inside the pouch, so I cut them out entirely. The second issue was the supplied shoulder pad slides along the length of the shoulder strap, and therefore the bag slips around more than it needs to when you are carrying it. I thought about removing the pad entirely, but instead I stitched it to the strap at its center and end loops, which I think was the best way to go.

The other change I made was to remove the velcro from the main flap, because I just don't like the looks of that. If I want a patch on my bag, I will sew it on there. This turned out to be a mistake, because the seam that holds the velcro on, also holds on the nylon loop for the plastic clasp that ties down the flap. It's extremely difficult to get a hand needle through this nylon loop to sew it back on, I ended up heating a needle over a candle and burning through both layers of the loop so that I could sew it back on. It ended up kind of ugly and I'll probably end up sewing a patch back over it just to cover it up. But, that's a cosmetic issue that doesn't detract from the bag's utility in any way.

A couple pictures of the bag that I took during a break from hiking:





Overall I'm pretty happy with how it turned out, and as the TIB comes, I think it's a pretty good bag for the money, and thanks to whoever came up with the idea for the S-12 mag sized internal pouches, no matter what they were originally intended to be.

Nice. Now you just need to SBR that thing.

I might still SBS it, but it's more likely that I'll send it off over the winter to be chopped and have a muzzle device permanently installed, similar to what Chris has. Been talking to one Saiga smith who says it's possible to incorporate choke tube inserts, so I wouldn't be stuck with a cylinder bore at all times. I think the cylinder bore is probably ideal for defensive use, but when practicing with birdshot, the pattern grows to uselessness at all but extremely close range. The chokes would hopefully let me restrict that down to more closely match what buckshot would do out of a cylinder bore. As it is right now, #8 birdshot pretty much fills an entire target frame at 15 yards. It's a bit of a hose.

I misunderstood. Still not totally sure what I want to do with mine. My barrel is only 19 inches, but the current muzzle device is longer than it really needs to be, which exacerbates matters slightly. I'm not totally sure what I want to do with it, but I do want to make it a little shorter overall, and I want to have the gas system opened up slightly so it will cycle some of the weaker birdshot more reliably. I don't really want to SBS it not only because of the paperwork and tax, but also because I don't want to cut it WAY down and lose a lot of muzzle velocity.

Now with a touch of humor to cover up the ugliness where I took off the velcro on the flap, and had to sew the loop for the clasp back on:

Are you going to call it Abomination?

He is going to need a bayonet and a grenade launcher before he can call it that.

Nah, it takes a much bigger dude than me to wield something like Abomination.