Dropping Mags with MARS

M.A.R.S. stands for Magazine Advanced Release System. It's a drop-in aftermarket release designed by Battleline Industries and built by Rainier Arms. The M.A.R.S. design gives a right-handed shooter the same sort of advantage a left-handed shooter (well, a left-handed shooter running a pre-Gen 4 Glock) enjoys when reloading. Because it's ambidextrous (not reversible), it gives right- or left-handed shooters the ability to drop a magazine using the index finger from either side (thus avoiding the need to break their master grip).

Currently available M.A.R.S. are compatible with Gen 1 through Gen 3 Glock pistols in 9mm, .40 and .357 Sig. They're made of 6061-T6 aircraft grade aluminum and are hard coat anodized, with stainless steel hardware. The shape of its ‘control surface' appears to lend itself well to weapon manipulation and reloading.

Specs:

Material: 6061-T6 Aircraft grade aluminum

Screw: 17-4 heat treated stainless steel

Spring: Flat Wire 302 Stainless Steel

Finish: Type III Class 2 MIL-A-8625 Hard coat anodizing

Watch the following video for a little more information — if you just don't feel like you can sit through the whole thing, at least check out the half minute or so starting at about 01:35. Good info there on magazines. It retails for $66.45.

Dropping Mags with MARS

Note that this isn't a review, nor is it an endorsement — we haven't yet equipped one of our guns with it. I became aware of it first thanks to a post by Chris Tran (whose pictures you're looking at). Assuming we get the chance to put one into the hands of both a right- and a wrong- handed shooter we'll let you know how it goes and what they think about things, respectively. The M.A.R.S. certainly looks interesting, and unlike some may just be a new drop-in aftermarket part that's worth looking into.

Speaking of Tran, here's his video overview of the M.A.R.S. The music gets a little distracting, but if you can ignore that there's some good information here.

From the item description:

The ambidextrous magazine release system enables us to finally perform tactical reloads and mag-drop speed reloads.

Constructed from 6061 T-6 aluminum and is Type III Class 2 MIL-A-8625 Hard coat anodized. The spring and screw that hold the unit together are both stainless steel.

The lower edge of the activation surface is also angled upwards, which is a smart modification in that the activation surface does not bite into the top side of the user’s middle finger while gripping the pistol.

You can follow Battleline on Twitter, should you be a Twitterer and interested in doing so. Otherwise check 'em out on Facebook here.

NEXT STEP: Download Your Free Target Pack from RECOIL

For years, RECOIL magazine has treated its readers to a full-size (sometimes full color!) shooting target tucked into each big issue. Now we've compiled over 50 of our most popular targets into this one digital PDF download. From handgun drills to AR-15 practice, these 50+ targets have you covered. Print off as many as you like (ammo not included).

Get your pack of 50 Print-at-Home targets when you subscribe to the RECOIL email newsletter. We'll send you weekly updates on guns, gear, industry news, and special offers from leading manufacturers - your guide to the firearms lifestyle.

You want this. Trust Us.