National Molding makes a very interesting spring-gated plastic clip that can be used to hold gloves, water bottles and all sorts of items you want loose and accessible. Our interest is in using their Universal Retention Clips (URCs) to assist in recoverying magazines and drums that the M16/M4 rifle/carbine family REQUIRE in order to perate these weapons. The cavalier attitude that drops empty mags onto the ground is fool-hardy and is asking for one to run out of loaded magazines but if resupplied with 5.56mm ammo from ammo cans in bandoliers in 10-round stripper clips to have no empty magazines to load them into. Future M16/M4 variants should feature stripper clip loading as an option like the SKS, M14 and FN FAL have. Short of this WE MUST RETAIN MAGAZINES DURING WEAPONS HANDLING.

URCs can assist in drum/magazine retention because they are attached to MOLLE pals webbing such that they are held out at a firm 90 degree angle so all you have to do is press your drum/mag loop onto the spring-loaded gate and drop so they hook and the gate closes behind you.