Stamping a pistol magazine

I can't think of a reason to number mags but;

A cheap electric engraving pen

or

I used to stamp numbers into stuff by using a small ball peen hammer and doing a lot of light taps on the stamp. This keeps the stamp from skating off in 9 different directions.

Starting a few years ago I ended up starting to accumulate a bunch of Glock mags for the G34 and a few others for a G19. I put my initials on the mag base in gold sharpie and I put no dot of testors orange paint on Glock 34 mag 1, one dot of orange paint on mag 2, two dots on mag 3, etc. On the other mags I put one dot of green testors on Glock 19 mag 1, two days on mag 2, etc.



So far it’s worked out ok to ID the individual mags.
Stay safe.

I just use a $2 paint pen I got from walmart to number my mags.

You're not hitting it hard enough to properly stamp it. However most magazine walls will not stand up to the force needed. Many magazines have stamping on them though????
This is done in two ways. First is they are stamped while the metal is flat during the forming process. The second way is the magazine is placed onto a solid steel mandrel that is machined to the exact tolerances of the inside of the magazine to keep it from crushing. The former is not feasible in your case, the latter is probably too much trouble for you as you'd have worked this out already if you had any machining or blacksmithing experience. Get a carbide scribe, electric engraver or a paint pen and you'll get it done with minimal fuss.

I have used cheap stamp sets by heating them up then melting an impression of the stamp into plastic parts like baseplates.

I use paint pens for metal mags.

I like initializing and numbering my mags to easily distinguish ownership, discourage magazine "loss", to easily identify any magazines that have issues, and cause I'm OCD and tend to label and number everything.

Grandpa did it too, so it must be righteous (or genetic).

Fine Figure of a Man said:

I can't think of a reason to number mags but;

A cheap electric engraving pen

or

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Silver Sharpie for blued magazines.

magic marker works for me.

I just use a silver sharpie, but with use, it will fade.

I was thinking; you used a block of wood to support the mag. wood absorbs a lot of the energy, and yields too easily.

what if instead, you found a piece of bar stock that will fit into the magazine, and fit flush with the side you want to punch... chuck that bar into a vice, slip the mag onto it, then punch it?
Being firmly supported by steel, the mag will not give way, and the punch will be much more effective, but not damaging to the mag.
I havent done magazines this way, but have worked with and stamped other sheetmetal stuff, and a good and solid anvil (or dolly, in this case) was the key.

Either that, or just an engraver.

Fine Figure of a Man said:

I can't think of a reason to number mags but;

A cheap electric engraving pen

or

View attachment 863170

Click to expand...

You number them in case they start malfunctioning so you can identify the offending mag. Electric engraving pen is the tool. Magic markers will wear off.

Nail polish or an engraving pen.

For plastic I brand the base plate with my initials and or scratch the number in it, others I stick a target paster on the base plate and use a sharpie.

Both are just so I can keep magazines identifiable from one another, if they develop any issues.



If the aesthetics of the feeding device was a priority, the Dawson engraved ones look nice.



I have also seen folks spot drill dimples in the base plate so they are numbered like dice. I have an electro chemical device that works well too, just too lazy to make the stencils and what I do works.

Cheap, fluorescent enamel fingernail polish is pretty durable and sticks to most surfaces if you clean it first with acetone, rubbing alcohol, etc.

I've used and have an electric etching pin. Will mark most any thing metal.

Fine Figure of a Man said:

I can't think of a reason to number mags but;

A cheap electric engraving pen

or

View attachment 863170

Click to expand...

yep, etcher or magic marker, silver works best

Edit: sorry for the echo

If you want to use the metal stamp cut a piece of 1/2" steel rod to fit exactly inside the mag then set on a solid surface like an anvil. Don't hit it hard enough to flatten or distort.

I have drilled some magazines to have witness holes for round count and my experience was that I was impressed how hardened the thin
metal of the magazines were to drill thru with short carbide bits. So I appreciate trying to impress a alphanumeric punch on to / in to the surface.

Electrolytic etching is both fast and neat. A DC power supply, some wires and a sponge with the conductive liquid may already be on hand at your house. Hammering your mags will result in mags that are dented.

Vibro engrave