Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-4957813-20140510034158/@comment-24042984-20140604125706

You could still have balance in the fixed portion of the weapon, which would help improve control the weapon, and thus potentially save the wielder's life even with the freely swinging head. Having a magazine that is stored within the weapon would help keep the weapon more symmetric, which would make it more versatile in regards to how it is utilized. It would also be safer as it would be harder to damage the magazine and harm the wielder since magazines aren't exactly armored.

Of course, there are costs to this. As you stated, internal magazine are unable to carry as much ammunition as external ones, and even with a sliding cover to reinforce the hinge, integrity could still be a problem. However, I do not think you would be able to achieve higher reload speeds with an external magazine to a meaningful extent, especially if the weapon has a automatic magazine ejection system when the weapon is opened.

Ultimately, the design would depend on your focus. Greater reliance on melee ability where handling and magazine safety matters more, or greater emphasis on ranged capabilities and preventing the situation in the first place.