Everyone that has ever shot a 275 round drum knows that's why you shoot an AM15 or an AM180!  For maximum firepower and trigger time in a package that's easy to load, swap in and out of the gun and and great fun to shoot, nothing else comes close!  Assuming you want to write your name with the gun (and your name is longer than "JOE"), you're going to want at least one 275 round drum, and most likely a couple!  No other .22 firearm has the features and firepower of a 275 round drum.. that's more than 1/2 a brick of ammo per long burst!

The drums are transparent plastic so you can see how many rounds are left in them.  Plastic mags have always been a problem, but since the mag uses the replacable feed block as the "feed lips", you're actually feeding through a steel lip mag.  The metal drums from the original AM180's feel more solid, but when you drop them ONE TIME, they get a dink in them and its virtually impossible to get them to spin freely again.  These plastic mags will take more of a drop and will crack rather than dent, so with a little super glue you usually still have a shooter.

Plastic AM180 drums with plastic baseplates frequently have feeding issues caused by the plastic base plate flexing from the winder (spring) pushing against it to spin the drum.  If the baseplate flexes at all, it will lift off of the feedblock and cause the gun to jam from the ammo not feeding.  This drum has been upgraded to included a Tactical Innovations STAINLESS STEEL BASEPLATE ASSEMBLY that eliminates baseplate flex to ensure reliable feeding.  The STAINLESS STEEL BASEPLATE ASSEMBLY is also available individually if you already have plastic drums and want to upgrade them.

To load the drum:

1.  Removing the drum from the rifle.

2.  Remove the winder (not included with the drum) from the drum.

3.  Turning the drum upside down.

4.  Rotate baseplate until the cavity that will not hold a bullet it directly under the loading hole in the baseplate.

5.  Simply drop the bullets in one by one as you manually turn the drum until the drum is full.  As each layer is loaded, the next layer will continue to accept ammo until the drum is full.

Install the drum on the AM15 and rotate the main body of the magazine clockwise making sure that all ammo is laying flat against the next with no gaps and the ammo is against the feedblock.  Install the winder into the drum, ensuring that it is completely and securely snapped into the drum.  

Wind the winder 5 1/2 turns for a 165 round drum, 6 1/2 turns for a 220 round drum and 7 1/2 turns for a 275 round drum.

Notes:

1. Drums can be left loaded forever since without the winder installed, there is no spring pressure.

2. Buy extra drums.  They shoot fast and take a few minutes to load.  It is much better to load them at home rather than try to repeatedly load one at the range.