Magpul Industries Corporation is an American designer and manufacturer of high-tech polymer and composite firearms accessories like
M-LOK. Magpul Industries takes its name from its first product, the MagPul (Magazine Puller), an accessory for the
STANAG magazines used by
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO, ; french: Organisation du traité de l'Atlantique nord, ), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental military alliance between 30 member states – 28 European and two No ...
armed forces, which aids users in pulling
magazines
A magazine is a periodical publication, generally published on a regular schedule (often weekly or monthly), containing a variety of content. They are generally financed by advertising, purchase price, prepaid subscriptions, or by a combination ...
from pouches.
Originally based in
Boulder, Colorado, Magpul announced its intention to leave the state in 2013 when a proposed magazine capacity law would cause many of its products to become illegal in Colorado.
After passage of the law, Magpul relocated its production facilities to
Wyoming
Wyoming () is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is bordered by Montana to the north and northwest, South Dakota and Nebraska to the east, Idaho to the west, Utah to the southwest, and Colorado to the s ...
and corporate offices to
Texas
Texas (, ; Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2020, it is the second-largest U.S. state by ...
.
Background
Magpul Industries was founded in 1999 by Richard M. Fitzpatrick, a
Force Recon
Force Reconnaissance (FORECON) is one of the United States Marine Corps' special operations capable forces (SOC) which supplies military intelligence to the command element of the Marine Air-Ground Task Force (MAGTF). Force Reconnaissance compa ...
sergeant with the
US Marine Corps
The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through com ...
. The company has two divisions: Magpul Industries, which manufactures firearms accessories and Magpul Core which was founded in 2008 as Magpul Dynamics. Magpul Core provides firearms training and produces instructional videos.
Magpul primarily designs, manufactures and distributes polymer magazines, accessories and gun parts for
AR-15
An AR-15-style rifle is any lightweight semi-automatic rifle based on the Colt AR-15 design. The original ArmaLite AR-15 is a scaled-down derivative of Eugene Stoner's ArmaLite AR-10 design. The then Fairchild Engine and Airplane Corporatio ...
/
M16/
M4,
AK-47
The AK-47, officially known as the ''Avtomat Kalashnikova'' (; also known as the Kalashnikov or just AK), is a gas-operated assault rifle that is chambered for the 7.62×39mm cartridge. Developed in the Soviet Union by Russian small-arms d ...
/
AK74,
Steyr AUG, and
Heckler & Koch G36
The Heckler & Koch G36 (Gewehr 36) is a 5.56×45mm assault rifle designed in the early 1990s by German weapons manufacturer Heckler & Koch as a replacement for the heavier 7.62×51mm G3 battle rifle. It was accepted into service with the ''Bu ...
rifles, and
Remington 870
The Remington Model 870 is a pump-action shotgun manufactured by Remington Arms Company, LLC. It is widely used by the public for shooting sports, hunting and self-defense, as well as by law enforcement and military organizations worldwide.
D ...
and
Mossberg 500
The Mossberg 500 (M500) is a series of pump action shotguns manufactured by O.F. Mossberg & Sons. The 500 series comprises widely varying models of hammerless repeaters, all of which share the same basic receiver and action, but differ in bore ...
shotguns. Magpul has also expanded into
rifle chassis production for the
Remington 700
The Remington Model 700 is a series of bolt-action centerfire rifles manufactured by Remington Arms since 1962. It is a development of the Remington 721 and 722 series of rifles, which were introduced in 1948. The M24 and M40 military sniper ...
,
Ruger 10/22
The Ruger 10/22 is a series of semi-automatic rifles produced by American firearm manufacturer Sturm, Ruger & Co., chambered for the .22 Long Rifle rimfire cartridge. It uses a patented 10-round rotary magazine, though higher capacity box ma ...
and
Ruger American Rifle
The Ruger American Rifle is a family of budget-level hunting/ sporting bolt-action centerfire rifle made by Sturm, Ruger & Co., which also produces a line of rimfire rifles with similar designs called the Ruger American Rimfire.
Design
The Ru ...
, as well as magazines and accessories for
Glock pistol
Glock is a brand of polymer- framed, short recoil-operated, locked-breech semi-automatic pistols designed and produced by Austrian manufacturer Glock Ges.m.b.H. The firearm entered Austrian military and police service by 1982 after it was ...
s.
Chronology
![AR-15 Build IMG 9441 (5507550193)](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e0/AR-15_Build_IMG_9441_%285507550193%29.jpg)
1999: Richard Fitzpatrick develops the original Magpul 5.56 and introduces it at
NDIA Ndia or NDIA may refer to:
* Ndia Constituency, Kirinyaga District, Central Province, Kenya
*Alternative name for the Southern Kirinyaga dialect of the Kikuyu language
*National Defense Industrial Association, an American trade association
* Natio ...
.
2000: The Magpul 7.62 and Magpul 9mm are introduced.
2001: First Magpul patent is awarded.
2002: First official military order with 100 M93 stocks purchased for the US Marine Corps.
2003: Magpul moves out of Fitzpatrick's home to official offices and its first employee, Doug Smith, is hired.
2004: The Magpul Ranger Plate, Self Leveling Follower, and MIAD (MIssion ADaptable grip) are introduced.
2005: Additional magazine accessories are introduced, as well as the company's second stock; the PRS.
2006: Magpul receives its first official
NATO Stock Number
A NATO Stock Number, or National Stock Number (NSN) as it is known in the US, is a 13-digit numeric code used by the NATO military alliance, identifying all the 'standardized material items of supply' as they have been recognized by all member s ...
, and their products are featured in the movie
Mission: Impossible III.
2007: The PMAG 30 magazine for the
AR-15
An AR-15-style rifle is any lightweight semi-automatic rifle based on the Colt AR-15 design. The original ArmaLite AR-15 is a scaled-down derivative of Eugene Stoner's ArmaLite AR-10 design. The then Fairchild Engine and Airplane Corporatio ...
/
M16s, UBR stock, and
Masada Adaptive Combat Rifle are introduced at
SHOT Show.
2008: The MOE (Magpul Original Equipment) line,
Magpul PDR
The Magpul PDR (Personal Defense Rifle) is a prototype bullpup-style 5.56×45mm NATO carbine unveiled by Magpul Industries in 2006. Although halted in development as of 2011 it has garnered some attention, largely due to its "futuristic" appe ...
concept,
FMG9
The Magpul FMG-9 is a prototype folding submachine gun, designed by Magpul Industries in 2008. It is made out of polymer in place of metal, reducing weight.
The FMG-9 never left the prototype stage, and never saw widespread production on any lev ...
, and Magpul Massoud are introduced. The Magpul Dynamics training division is formed.
2009: The EMAG (Export MAGazine), designed to fit other
STANAG 4179-compliant weapons such as the
HK416
The Heckler & Koch HK416 is a gas-operated assault rifle chambered for the 5.56×45mm NATO cartridge. It is designed and manufactured by the German company Heckler & Koch.
Although the design is based on the AR-15 class of firearm (specific ...
and
SA80
The SA80 (Small Arms for the 1980s) is a British family of 5.56×45mm NATO service weapons used by the British Army. The L85 Rifle variant has been the standard issue service rifle of the British Armed Forces since 1987, replacing the L1A1 Se ...
is introduced, as well as several other products such as the MBUS (Magpul Back-Up Sights).
2010: Magpul wins a bid with the
UK Ministry of Defence
The Ministry of Defence (MOD or MoD) is the department responsible for implementing the defence policy set by His Majesty's Government, and is the headquarters of the British Armed Forces.
The MOD states that its principal objectives are to ...
for 1,000,000 EMAGs to be delivered over a four-year period. Several new products are introduced; including the
iPhone Field Case.
2011: The MBUS2 is introduced, and is also featured in promos for the video game
Battlefield 3
''Battlefield 3'' is a 2011 first-person shooter video game developed by DICE and published by Electronic Arts for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. It is a direct sequel to 2005's ''Battlefield 2''.
In ''Battlefield 3''s campaign, ...
. First 100,000 EMAGs of the UK Ministry of Defence contract are delivered to troops in
Afghanistan
Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...
. Magpul sponsors a truck called "Bam-Bam" in the Breslau Adventure Rallye.
2012: The PMAG 30 Gen 3 is released in fall as a synthetic magazine compatible for all
STANAG 4179-type rifles, from AR-15 rifles to weapons that previously would need EMAGs.
[New Magpul PMAG 30 GEN M3](_blank)
- Thefirearmblog.com, September 26, 2012
2015: The Hunter 700 adjustable rifle stock, designed to fit the Remington 700 short action rifle, is introduced at SHOT Show in January.
2016: Magpul was awarded an exclusive contract to manufacture magazines for the US Marine Corps.
2018: Formal announcement that units in the U.S. Army could use procurement funds to acquire PMAGs.
2021: From 11-17 January 2021, Magpul held "Magpul week", wherein they revealed a new product each day of the week. Most significantly, this included the FDC-9 and FDP-9, redesigned versions of the prototype
Magpul FMG-9, set for release in 2022.
Complete firearms
Magpul Masada
First introduced to the public at the 2007
SHOT Show, the
Magpul Masada began as an evolutionary upgrade to the AR-15/M16 rifle, but the only parts that retain commonality with the standard AR-15 and M16 rifle are the barrel, fire control group and front sight post.
In January 2008, the design of the Magpul Masada was licensed to
Bushmaster Firearms International
Bushmaster Firearms International, LLC, was an American firearm manufacturer and distributor. The company's product line revolved around semi-automatic pistol and rifle variants of the M4/AR-15 design. The company is currently defunct; it merge ...
with the civilian version of the Masada branded as the
Bushmaster ACR.
Magpul Massoud
A cancelled prototype, the Magpul Massoud was a
7.62
The 7.62 mm caliber is a nominal caliber used for a number of different cartridge (weaponry), cartridges. Historically, this class of cartridge was commonly known as .30 caliber, the imperial unit and United States customary unit, customary ...
mm caliber semi-automatic rifle with the possibility of
.300 Winchester Magnum
The .300 Winchester Magnum (also known as .300 Win Mag or .300 WM) (7.62×67mmB, 7.62x66BR) is a belted, bottlenecked magnum rifle cartridge that was introduced by the Winchester Repeating Arms Company in 1963. The .300 Winchester Magnum is a m ...
and .338 calibers. A prototype was test fired, and strongly resembles the Magpul Masada. It may use of some of the same parts as the ACR, including stocks and possibly forearms. Details of the operating system are closely guarded, however, it is believed to be a short stroke gas piston operation, and use 7.62×51mm NATO 20-round variants of the Magpul PMag. It uses a
MIL-STD-1913 rail system with monolithic receiver. The name was chosen in honor of
Ahmad Shah Massoud, the famous resistance leader of the
Afghani Northern Alliance
The Northern Alliance, officially known as the United Islamic National Front for the Salvation of Afghanistan ( prs, جبهه متحد اسلامی ملی برای نجات افغانستان ''Jabha-yi Muttahid-i Islāmi-yi Millī barāyi Nijāt ...
who was killed two days prior to the
September 11 attacks
The September 11 attacks, commonly known as 9/11, were four coordinated suicide terrorist attacks carried out by al-Qaeda against the United States on Tuesday, September 11, 2001. That morning, nineteen terrorists hijacked four commer ...
. A new prototype rifle based on the Massoud, the FOX-42 from Kinetic Research Group was in development in 2015.
Magpul PDR
The Magpul PDR is a conceptual
5.56mm caliber
personal defense weapon
Personal defense weapons (PDWs) are a class of firearms intended for self-defense and security rather than warfare and infantry. Most PDWs fire a small-caliber (less than ), centerfire bottleneck cartridge resembling a scaled-down intermedia ...
which utilizes a
bullpup design principle. The weapon uses
STANAG
In NATO, a standardization agreement (STANAG, redundantly: STANAG agreement) defines processes, procedures, terms, and conditions for common military or technical procedures or equipment between the member countries of the alliance. Each NATO st ...
magazines and fire the same type of ammunition as the M16. The purpose of the Magpul PDR is to better arm support personnel who would normally carry
M9 pistol
The Beretta M9, officially the Pistol, Semiautomatic, 9mm, M9, is the designation for the Beretta 92FS semi-automatic pistol used by the United States Armed Forces. The M9 was adopted by the United States military as their service pistol in 198 ...
s without adding any strain to current armed forces logistics with proprietary ammunition.
Magpul FMG-9
Magpul designed a folding
9mm caliber
submachine gun similar to the
ARES FMG which was first publicly unveiled at the 2008 SHOT Show. The prototype unveiled by Magpul utilized a Glock pistol as the core of the weapon. The FMG-9 never saw production, but during 2021's Magpul week, Magpul released the FDC-9 (Folding Defensive Carbine) and FDP-9 (Folding Defensive Pistol), redesigned versions of the FMG-9.
Political advocacy
Farewell to Arms Freedom Festival
In response to Colorado's House Bill 13-1224 which placed limits on magazine capacities, the group Free Colorado organized the "Farewell to Arms Freedom Festival" to raise funds for recall efforts against several Colorado politicians involved with its passage.
Magpul donated 20,000 magazines to Free Colorado for the event. Of those, one magazine was given away for free to the first 1,500 individuals over the age of 18 to arrive at the event which drew thousands of supporters.
[Patane, Matthew]
"Free Magpul Magazines Draw Thousands Ahead of Colorado Ban."
June 29, 2013. Accessed July 5, 2013
Relocation
On January 2, 2014, Magpul announced that it was moving its production, distribution and shipping operations to
Cheyenne, Wyoming
Cheyenne ( or ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Wyoming, as well as the county seat of Laramie County, Wyoming, Laramie County, with 65,132 residents, per the 2020 US Census. It is the principal city of the Cheyenne ...
and its corporate headquarters to Austin, Texas.
References
External links
* {{Official website
Firearm manufacturers of the United States