H&K G3SG1 Review 2

	Stock Specifications
FPS	280fps (stock fps may vary)
Length:	1040mm
Weight:	3.2 Kg (heavy)
Ammo capacity:	500 rounds (Hi-Cap) 70 Round (Standard Mag)

History The G3 SG1 is a derivative version of the G3 made by H&K. Its main purpose is as a highly accurate full auto capable weapon, for use as a spotter's gun or for a sharpshooter within a squad. It chambers the 7.62x51mm round and its distinguishing features are a bipod and a rubber cheek rest mounted on the stock with a rubber back plate for comfort.

Build Tokyo Marui has produced in my mind an excellent replica of the real gun. The first noticeable thing you find upon first opening the box is how big the gun is. It is huge! In your hands, it really feels solid just as a gun should, and it weighs a hefty 3.2kg, put a scope mount and scope on as well and you're looking at 5 kg, which is not far off the real weight of the SG1 (I really do feel for those soldiers lugging this weapon about). The TM SG1 is pretty much perfect in replicating the dimensions of the gun reaching an overall length of 1.040mm, sporting an inner barrel length of 470mm, 2cm longer than the real steel gun.

The gun comes with all the gubbins you should expect with any Tokyo Marui AEG: manual, standard mag, cleaning rod and BB charger and a miniscule amount of .25g BBs. There is also an adhesive strip, which is there to replace the temporary smaller strips that are already holding the cheek piece down. Just yank it off (it takes some effort) and replace the smaller strips with the longer one. After this is on you'll have a hard job getting the cheek piece back off, so make sure you want it left on the gun.

Looks and Features The SG1 has the 'SEF' trigger group and the big selector switch to choose from Safe, Semi and Full Auto fire. The trigger guard is very big and allows for room for wearing gloves in wintertime. My first little complaint about this gun is the proportion of it. It must have been made for those people born with giant hands. I thought had big hands, but my fingers fail to reach the mag release lever or button from holding the grip. Although, as I am told, it is meant to be used with your 2nd hand, which I found a bit strange after using the M16A2, where I could just reach with my finger to the mag release with the same firing hand. The grip itself is nicely moulded and your hand fits snugly onto it, and gives a good firm grip on the gun. The receiver has no manufacture trademarks or specifications like most other AEGs, although this is true to the real gun. The receiver is a matt grey, with a darker metallic grey stock connector and a black stock, which is a bit different to the all black real steel gun, but I think it looks quite good this way. The bipod on the gun fits nicely into the grooved foregrip when folded away, and with a slide of a notch found on each leg, you can pull the bipod into its down position. Some people find it annoying for skirmishing as it can become loose and cause your hands to slip on the foregrip. I think the bipod is poorly designed but it can be quite useful when your skirmishing and want to rest the gun down and lay down some accurate fire.

Firing First thing that you need to fire is a battery, slide the butt plate down and pull off to access the inside of the stock, where there is room for a large type battery to go. I myself use an 8.4v 2500mah, which lasts for a days skirmishing, and then some more. I don't recommend you use anything other than a 8.4v battery while the gun is stock, as a lower voltage and the ROF will be slowed to a crawl, any higher and there's a chance of stripping the gears inside the gearbox of the gun. The SG1 has an eg700 motor, which sustains a good ROF of around 700-800rds per minute, which is greater than the real guns 600-700. The SG1 features a good hop-up system that is found by pulling back the functioning cocking lever, which opens the ejector port, where you can twiddle with the dial to adjust the amount of hop-up on the BB. The SG1 has a good range of about 40m, which is not bad for a stock gun. The long barrel provides good accuracy, easily being able to hit a man sized target at the guns maximum range. Putting the gun on Full Auto churns out a good ROF; although not as good as the newer eg1000 and eg1100 motors, it is still good. With a higher mah battery such as the 2500 I use, the ROF increases to something near that of an eg1000 motor (don't ask me how, but the mah of a battery also has an affect on the ROF of an AEG).

Accessories The first essential buy is a HiCap magazine, which holds a generous 500rds, ideal for skirmishing, and all I need are two to hold out for most games within a skirmish (a great way to dispense a lot of ammo though!). Another essential is a sling; you really need one if you plan on lugging this around all day, it can really give you back ache having to hold it every moment, so a sling is a useful purchase to spread out some of the load. I use a 3-9x40mm scope on my SG1 and use the Marui G3 Claw Mount. It looks the part and the SG1 really doesn't look the same without one, but it isn't really 100% useful in a skirmish situation, and the claw mount is attached to the gun at an angle so it puts the scope off centre quite bit. Quite annoying really, it's the claw mount design, and some people have had the same problem, yet others seem fine.

Summary Overall, I really like the SG1, it's a great assault/sharpshooter/support weapon, it really depends on how you want to make it, this just goes to show how versatile it is. It makes a very good woodland skirmish weapon in my opinion, one of the best I've had the pleasure of owning. It has hi capacity HiCaps, room for upgrades, plenty of accessories and looks lovely. Go buy one!

Scores

External Links:
MovieWeb page for 'Heat' - contains casting info, some nice images and the theatrical trailer
HEAT fan site - contains links, sound files, interviews and more...
SecurityArms.com - the big daddy of firearm image archives, here you can find an image for the real-steel weapon from HK
Classic Army G3 "Metal-Body" - a fitting review of the Classic Army metal body over at Airsoft Players

Appearance	5/5 - It's a lean mean fighting machine!
Build Quality	4/5 - A little body squeak
Performance	4/5 -Good ROF and range
Value for Money	4/5 - You get what you pay for
Overall Potential	4/5 - My favorite AEG, great for woodland