G&P MK.14 Mod 1 Review

[Whan]

G&P MK.14 Mod 1 Initial Review

 

History (from Wikipedia):

"The United States Navy Mark 14 Enhanced Battle Rifle (EBR) is an American selective fire military rifle chambered for the 7.62x51mm NATO cartridge. It is a variant of the M14 battle rifle… The creation of the Mark 14 Mod 0 Enhanced Battle Rifle (EBR) began in 2000 after a request by United States Navy SEALs for the creation of a more compact M14 battle rifle... The Sage EBR has a carbine variant known as the Close Quarter Battle rifle. The carbine variant is said to be called as the Chop-Mod EBR, with the barrel being made short from the original EBR rifle like the MK14 SEI Mod 1."

 

 

The MK14 the G&P is based off of is essentially another evolution of the Mk.14 Mod 0. The barrel has been chopped to 18" similar to the shorter mod. 0. There are additional lightening cuts throughout the chassis. Furthermore, the front rail system has been revised to have the bottom rail extending the entire length of the forearm, and smaller plastic handguard panels, thus creating more overall rail space. The real Mod 1 comes in a "navy grey" anodized color for the chassis. Most obviously, the stock assembly has been revised to instead use a standard AR style buffer tube and stock, in this case a CTR with ¾" riser. Typically, these rifles are seen with Tango Down vertical grips, Vltor style bipods, Surfire suppressors, and Nightforce 2.5-10x24 on a LT608 mount.

 

 

Exterior:

 

 

I received this gun courtesy of MCXL on ArniesAirsoft in essentially new condition (he had never fired the gun). The G&P Mod 1 is based off of the TM style M14, not the CA/G&G, and as such is incompatible with CA magazines. The hop up is also the TM style, which is a plus to me.

 

 

Pulling the gun out of the case, the first thing I noticed was the heft to the gun. While it only weighs 10.5 lbs (much lighter than the Kart EBR) with magazine and battery, it still felt noticeably heavier than my G&P M4. However, much of this did have to do with the gun being very front heavy. It does do a good job of matching the real weight, as it features similar construction. G&P claims that the Mod 1 is constructed of Anodized CNC aluminum, something I find easy to believe. The finish is of amazing quality, and looks like anodized aluminum. Machining is very well done, with no imperfections and rounded metal edges. The gas block, barrel, etc. are made from steel.

 

 

The selector switch clicks solidly into place, and the safety has a decent feel as well. The trigger is very nice, crisply engaging (for an AEG at least), and slightly clicking when released. The bolt pull and release are very solid, although the bolt catch does not engage or hold on its own (although it works). Attention to detail is evident, with the markings engraved where they should be, and correctly done as well.

 

 

The furniture all matches in color, and has a solid feel. The stock is a legitimate Magpul PTS CTR. All the furniture also has a very nice texture, and nothing is shiny. There is essentially no flex or wobble in the chassis. However, there are a few annoyances externally. First, the TD VFG is either too large or the bottom rail is too small, but there is some wobble, approx. 1-2mm. Secondly, the TD pistol grip is a bit loose, although this was easily fixed by tightening the Hex screw in the grip. Finally, the buffer tube is only held on by a flathead screw and as such often comes loose, creating wobble in the stock. This may be able to be fixed by buying additional Buffer tube rings to tighten the tube to the chassis, but currently is temporarily fixed with Loctite.

 

 

Performance:

The G&P Mod 1 is based off a TM Ver.7 gearbox, with 7mm bearings. It is wired to the rear with deans as standard. There is a decent amount of room in the raised CTR, enough for a mini battery. All I had on hand that would fit was an 11.1v Lipo. As such, the ROF was obviously extremely high, although not a big concern as I would be using semi-only. Trigger response is very good – no gearbox lock up. Oddly enough, the provided G&P magazine did not feed that well, although MAG midcaps worked fine. Furthermore, MAG midcaps are a bit of a tight fit, partly due to the oversized mag catch nub that doesn't always engage and lock the mag in place (solved by tapping upwards on the mag). FPS is around 350-360, estimated using .2's and a coke-can chrono (but also as stated on G&P's website).

Accuracy is good for a stock AEG. Out of the box, the hop up did not seem to engage on the first 50 bb's or so, although it was fine after that. I performed two accuracy tests, one at 30 feet, and one at 60 feet, all with iron sights.

 

First was a 30ft test shooting at a target in my garage. No wind, weapon well supported.

 

6 shot group was approximately 3.2in at max diameter.

 

Second was a 65ft test shooting across my backyard. Weapon was moderately supported (was shooting sitting down, knee raised and foot on stool, with weapon supported on my knee. Unfortunately there was a heavy wind blowing right.

 

 

25 shots fired, 17 hit a target (box + paper) approx. 8x12 inches. I'm quite sure the gun is more capable than this, as almost all misses were to the right of the target. Only one shot was low and missed the target.

 

Red circles indicate hits, just hard to see.

 

Overall performance seems solid. Given no wind and magnified optics, I probably could have scored an 8-10 inch 5 shot group at 65ft, although this is still to be seen. Rate of fire is good, as is trigger response. Hop up seems pretty consistent. Velocity is decent as well.

Upgrades will definitely be in store, as this is a standard V.7 gearbox, and thus relatively easy to find parts for. Likely, there will be a tightbore barrel, 400fps spring, and perhaps a new hop up bucking. I will update on the disassembly as well as review the internals when it comes time to upgrade the Mod 1.

 

Overall:

Is the G&P Mk14 Mod 1worth the $666 + HK shipping price? Well, yes and no. On one hand, its overall external quality is amazing, and you can see where the price is justified in the Anodized CNC chassis. Furthermore, consider that a G&P EBR kit alone can run $700, on top of a base gun price. Then, you need to install it as well. But on the other hand, the G&P EBR doesn't offer much extra in performance over already existing high end M14's, including the recently released (and cheaper) CA and G&G EBRs. Furthermore, there are some design choices, such as the stock assembly that make me facepalm.

 

In my case, given that I got it for a significantly lower price than retail, I knew I had to have it. This is the only "authentic" Mod 1 currently on the market, and the small flaws don't bother me much.

Edited December 17, 2010 by Whan

[Eugene_Stoner]

Nice! Looking into buying one myself in the new year when they have them in stock again over here.

Was thinking of swapping the Hop and barrel out for a TM hop and a Prometheus TB anyway, the stock screw is minor, im sure you could find a crosshead screw at the hardware store that would fit.

[Moosey47]

I bought one of these in September last.

I still haven't had the opportunity to play with it but I did have similar problems with the grip and the stock.

Unfortunately, on disassembly it was found that the small piece of aluminium that the grip is mounted on

had broken. It in turn sticks into the steel body with two tiny prongs which just snapped off.

Steel and alluninium don't go well together.

Anyway, the fix (thanks to Firesupport) was a drill and a new hole to mount a second screw through the

grip (which makes it much like the Kart effort)

My stock tube required a liberal wrapping of insulation tape around the thread to cure the wobble.

Nothing major, but did take the shine off a little when buying such an expensive AEG. Still love it though.

 

Now, if I could just get a game with it........................