Disclaimer: I admit I only bought this sling because I saw it on Oblivion and it looked sexy and had the ability to instantly transition to being slung from single point to out of the way across the back. So yeah….
The truth in this wondrous utility is somewhat different, however. I have previously owned the Magpul MS2 sling, so I had high hopes that this sling made some good improvements on the former. The MS2, I discovered, could be prone to having the quick-release mechanism come undone at the most inopportune times. I also found the material far too slippery for
my tastes and the hardware a bit on the clunky side.
The new MS3 sling presents an sleek and updated design with all new hardware and materials in a simpler, more effective design. The sling material is slightly wider and made of a different material that has that ‘just right’ measure of grip and ability to slide around your body. The hardware is made of a very stiff polymer that can’t be bent or twisted with the hands of mere mortals. The whole package lays very flat against your body, making it perhaps the least obtrusive single point sling on the market. The additional ability the MS3 affords is allowing for two-point attachment as well as having a slider for adjusting the length on the fly. Overall, fit and finish screams of quality through and throughout.
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The new “Para clip” sling attachments are made of the same high density polymer with a metal center section. They also have a lock-out feature that allows you to lock the sling clip closed should you so desire.
Out of the package, the sling didn’t require much adjustment to fit my body wearing plain old street clothes. I found that when wearing it in conjunction with a vest, that it was almost better if I put on the sling first, and then the vest over it. This of course is highly dependent on your vest setup. In my case, I am using a Tactical Tailor MAV with X-Harness. This has a lot more open area than a plate carrier, so it facilitates this method of carry better. Using an SKD Tactical PIG plate carrier, I had to mount the sling over the top of the carrier and adjust it to fit accordingly. Again, it depends on your rig.
Now to the nitty gritty stuff. The biggest issue I have with single point slings is that I feel they are best suited for short barreled weapons. They also (especially in the case of the Magpul MS3) do not work very well with weapons that do not have a sling mount near the pistol grip. If your sling mount is on the buttstock, you’re effectively screwed – the weapon will simply dangle too low, and in the case of really long weapons (M14, G3, FAL, SVD) it will drag the muzzle on the ground. This
is also a glaring issue when doing transitions to your sidearm – muzzle tapping the dirt is a good way to plug your barrel with foreign residue.
A two-point sling setup allows you to shove the weapon to the side while still maintaining control over the muzzle – all while being hands free. A single point only allows for being dropped vertically, or an attempt to shove to the side while you draw your sidearm – only it will flop around like a lead weight off your chest while you’re running to cover unless you maintain at least one hand on the weapon. Don’t even get me started on all the nut tapping that will additionally ensue. If there’s one way to ensure sterility, it’s with a single point sling.
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So with the aforementioned issues in mind, I purchased this sling expressly for use on my short barreled CQB length AEG’s. The first AEG I tried was my 10″ barrel VFC SCAR 16. I immediately ran into issues with the sling mounting hardware in that it didn’t really fit the built in sling mounts on the SCAR. The MS3 latched on, but it would bind badly due to the lack of clearance in the Para Clip mounts. This caused a lot of issues with trying to obtain a proper cheek weld. My solution was to use a titanium keyring sheathed in gutted paracord to attach the Para Clip to. This solved the problem immediately.
I ran into this same issue on the front end of the rifle when using the sling in its two-point configuration. The solution rested in using the Magpul RSA Railed Sling Attachment mount (you should probably factor one of these into your total purchase price if you buy this sling). The addition of the Magpul RSA solved the front end attachment issues.
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What about other weapon platforms?
I next tried out my AK’s. Again, the caveat is that this must be used with a sling attachment that is near the pistol grip. My Real Sword Type 56-2 (sidefolder) and Type 56-1 (underfolder) handled this sling just fine. In two-point configuration I was able to attach the sling, but noticed some slight binding on the front end of the hardware.
The only other rifle I found this sling fit on was my Para FAL which has nice sling swivels that rotate 360 degrees.
I tried this sling on various other AEG’s/real steel and found it will not work with any of the following systems without devising some alternate method of connecting to the weapon:
- Real Sword Type 97B
- Tokyo Marui Type 89
- H&K 94
- H&K 93
- H&K 91
- Benelli M1, M3
- Mossberg 590M w/GGG sling mounts
I do not own an AR/M4 style anything to test this out, but I suspect it would easily fit as the AR is Magpul’s primary market, and provided you have the correct sling mounts (Magpul RSA, side swivel, buffer tube sling plate, etc), attaching the MS3 should be a breeze.
In summation:
Fit and finish – Score 10.
Overall a very nicely constructed sling. The stitching is tight, the hardware feels indestructible, it looks sexy and slim.
Functionality – score 5.
I would have liked to have seen more clearance built into the Para Clips to allow this to attach to a wider variety of weapon systems. This is the primary downfall of the sling and would be a major detractor for anyone who runs something besides an AR style weapon. Ultimately I feel that this sling isn’t quite complete without the Magpul RSA adapter – which of course drives up the final cost.
Modularity – Score 5.
Modularity wise, this sling isn’t in the same league as the Vickers Combat Applications Sling (VCAS) which offers true plug-n-play modularity at a fairly comparable price. The Para Clips aren’t as easy to release or plug in as the more commonly used Fastex buckles – they also require a little finer motor skills than one might have available in a high stress situation (then again, futzing around with your sling might be the last thing you should or will be doing in a firefight). The beauty of the Vickers sling, however, is that one can buy many different unique attachments for the various weapon systems out there (and they do work very well) and have just a single sling that can plug in and interchange between them all. As an airsofter who owns a lot of different hardware, this system offers more
value to me.
In ending, I feel that this sling is still firmly in the realm of ‘theory based products’ and that it needs a little more refinement until it can be firmly placed in the realm of ‘just plain works’.
Update 11/11/3: Having now run this sling for a solid 6 months of hard use, I still firmly believe it is best suited for short barreled weapons. Ironically, I find myself using the sling more often in the 2-point configuration rather than the single-point. As a small side issue, I’ve found the quick-adjust sling loop a bit difficult to operate smooth and fast – mostly with regards to snugging the sling up tight against the body.
Update 12/12/16: After owning this sling for several years, I found it was collecting a lot of dust and simply not being used, so it has been sold. The range of weapons it could attach to was ultimately revealing itself to be limited (outside of the AR market) without buying additional hardware or making undue modifications. In the final analysis, my Blue Force Gear slings were proven to be more versatile, adaptable, and due to these factors, they wound up being used more.