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G&P M14 DMR Review


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G&P M14 DMR Review

by Slayer750

I purchased the G&P M14 DMR because I wanted a unique DMR (designated marksman's rifle) platform with a durable V7 gearbox. It comes with almost everything one needs to get started being a DM, or designated marksman. I've yet to see too many reviews on this gun, so I thought I'd take a swing a writing a review on this gun so that potential buyers can be informed about it. This is my first review, so any comments/constructive criticism is welcome, but flaming is NOT.

 

 

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Table of Contents

The Real Steel M14 DMR

First Impressions

Externals Analysis

Performance Analysis

Issues with the Gun

Final Comments

The Real Steel M14 DMR:

The real steel M14 DMR, otherwise known as "United States Rifle, 7.62 mm, M14, DMR," is a modified, semi-automatic M14 being used by the United States Marine Corps as a designated marksman's rifle. It is fitted with a lightweight polymer stock, allows the attachment of accessories, and has a built in pistol grip. EOD squads, scout snipers, and spotters currently use this weapon system. It weighs about 11 pounds without any added accessories or magazine equipped, as opposed to my G&P M14 DMR that weighs about 10 pounds with the scope, RIS, magazine and bipod. The real steel M14 DMRs are built at the USMC Precision Weapons Shop in Quantico, Virginia, but are slowly being replaced by the M39 EMR (long-barreled variant of the M14 EBR).

 

300px-USMC_M14_DMR.JPG

 

 

All info and pictures can be found HERE, at Wikipedia, and HERE, at world guns.

First Impressions:

 

I purchased my M14 DMR back in October, 2009 from Evike.com. The first thing I did after opening the box was recognize how nicely the stock is textured. I was very impressed by the rail system and the scope as well. One of the things that really stood out to me was how racking the bolt sounds. It is very crisp and makes a loud "Thwack!"

 

In the box was the gun, a midcap magazine, and a small diagram showing how to take the buttpad off of the stock to install the battery. Also in the box was an M3 style scope as well as to scope rings to attach it to the gun and the allen key used for opening, closing, and tightening of the scope rings. I believe the allen key is 7/64". I was surprised by the absence of a cleaning rod and manual. With the gun, I purchased a Harris style bipod, a King Arms bipod adapter to attach the bipod to the stock of the M14, and three extra midcap magazines by G&P.

 

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Externals Analysis:

 

The external build quality is amazing in most categories. It looks and feels great, and seems durable too, besides the safety lever (discussed later in the "Issues" section). However, due to the stock being so light and the RIS being comparatively heavy, the gun is a little unbalance as far as weight goes. Luckily, it is not nearly as front heavy as the Kart, Echo 1, and Classic Army M14 EBRs and EMRs. Because the M14 DMR has quite a long barrel, it is most suited to outdoor and open environments. However, I have used it in a CQB environment with an EOTech replica attached. While it worked, a smaller AR15 or MP5 platform is much more suited to CQB. The threading on the barrel is counterclockwise (CCW-) as opposed to G&Ps AR15s which have CW+ threading. This makes it much easier to find alternative flashhiders/suppressors. I prefer the look of the M14 style flashhider, however it does look nice with a mock suppressor.

 

The polymer products and metal used on the DMR seem to be of high quality, but some of the paint has worn away due to racking of the bolt (It's so fun!). The trades are very nice as well. It has Knights Armament trades on the RIS, Springfield trades on the receiver, and Leupold trades on the scope. All look very nice and give the gun a little bit of extra authenticity.

 

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The included scope is very nice. Is has 3.5x to 10x magnification, nice knobs for adjustment, and a knob for focus. It does not seem that the focus knob does much, if anything.

 

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One very irritating issue I've experienced with the M14 DMR is that the rear scope mount is not even with the RIS. This prevents me from placing a scope mount on the rear rail section because it causing excessive scope wobbling, making optics use very imprecise. I will discuss my solution to this issue later in the "Issues" section. Another problem I've encountered is that although the stock length is adjustable (remove portions of the buttpad), the screws that keep the stock in place seem to be too long to use when multiple portions of the buttpad are removed.

 

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The last aggravating, and game-ruining, issue I've had is that NONE of my G&P M14 midcaps (or King Arms midcaps) feed properly. While thy are finished very nicely and have a good weight to them, they misfeed horribly. As of now, I have found no solutions to this save purchasing new magazines. As with the above problems, I will continue talking about this in the "Issues" section.

 

 

Performance Analysis:

The G&P M14 DMR, when working properly, is quite an accurate gun. It has good range, decent accuracy, and is surprisingly quiet for an AEG. It also has a nice rate of fire, though I don't fire it in full-auto all too often.

 

The FPS was calculated to be at about 365 FPS. In the future, I plan to upgrade the DMR to shoot around 500 FPS with an upgraded hop-up system and inner barrel in order to use it as a true airsoft DMR. The G&P M14 DMR should be a great airsoft DMR because it is based on the much-loved Tokyo Marui style version 7 gearbox, but with reinforced internals. I plan to add an Audacity test for ROF in the future.

Accuracy Test:

At 50 feet

 

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As you can see above, the results aren't amazing. Keep in mind, though, that it was quite a windy day when I did this accuracy test. I checked online and the report said 11mph. In addition to his, I was did this test in my sideyard, which is an alley and channels the air right down it. I took ten shots, three of which were flyers. Discounting the flyers, it was a 2.75" by 2.75" grouping. With the flyers, it was a 2.75" by 4.25" grouping.

 

These are stock results, no upgrades. I may add tests at further distances later.

 

To install the battery into the gun, remove the two long screws in the buttpad and remove the sling attachment point. In the hollow stock is the wire, which you connect the battery to. Be aware that the G&P M14 DMR comes stock with deans connectors. There is a large amount of room in the stock, allowing the user to use a number of different types of batteries (small, large, lipo).

 

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The hop-up adjustment is accessed in the magwell. Turn the gun on its back and remove the magazine to access it. To replace the inner barrel, hop up rubber, and hop up nub, disassembly of the rifle is required. Disassembly for this rifle is exactly the same as any other Tokyo Marui based M14 AEG.I have not been able to skirmish this weapon nearly as much as I've wanted to due to school and the issues described earlier (and below). When I have, I hope to write a more in-depth analysis of the internal performance of the G&P M14 DMR.

 

Issues with the G&P M14 DMR:

 

As discussed earlier, I've experienced problems with mounting the scope, the safety lever, and getting my mags to feed correctly.

 

In order to mount the scope and experience no wobble, I needed to mount both scope rings onto the RIS. In order for me to see through the scope, I had to place both rings on one side (in front of the calibration knobs) of the scope so that it could be mounted back far enough. However, the scope's objective lens is still not as far back as I'd like. The way to fix this is adjust the rail's level by removing it's allen key and moving it up or down, or so the included diagram says. However, the allen key for doing this is not included and I do not, at the moment, have one, which is very irritating.

img2159mc.jpg

The issue I've had with the safety lever is that it broke off. I wasn't being rough with it, just a casual switch from safety to not safety. This small piece was not designed properly, and I am now forced to purchase a new one. The last issue I discussed was the magazine feeding problems. All four of my G&P M14 mags (the original and three extra) all experience the same issue. As I am firing, two BBs will get stuck adjacent to each other, making reliable fire impossible. I am not sure how to fix this, and have purchased three King Arms M14 midcaps, but none of them work properly either. I am not sure why this issue occurred, but I have heard of it in other cases besides mine. My best recommendation is to avoid G&P and King Arms M14 midcaps.

 

 

Final Comments:

 

Though I have experienced my fair share of issues with this rifle, it is still a nice replica. As some of you might know, I recently considered selling it, but have since changed my mind because I would like to see how it performs once being upgraded and once I get new mags that feed correctly.A quick overview of the pros and cons:Pros:cheap for what you getdurable v7 platform with reinforced internalsnice scopelarge battery spaceCons:a bit weighty and front-heavysome pieces are not of the highest quality (i.e. – safety lever)not quite the accuracy I expecteddoesn't feed properly

 

________________

 

Be sure to let me know how to improve for my next review! Feel free to post in this thread or message me if any of you have any further questions about the G&P M14 DMR. Thanks for reading!

Edited by Slayer750
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Wow. Thank you. That really makes me hopeful that I can fix these mags. Do you know of anywhere with pics of how the follower should look after modification?

 

Also, I can see this helping the King Arms mags, but maybe not the G&P mags. The feeding issues I have with the G&P mags seem to be because two BBs will get trapped next to each other in the feeding tube. Then again, modifying the follower may rectify these problems... I'll definitely give it a look!

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IIRC the rear scope rail is adjustable in height, right? Or isn't the adjustable height enough to solve the misalignment?

 

Yes, it is adjustable. However, at the time of me writing this review and taking pictures, I didn't have the proper hex key tool needed to make the necessary adjustment to the rear scope rail's height.

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Update:

1. The King Arms M14 magazines do not feed well with the G&P M14. Same with the G&P M14 magazines.

2. MAG M14 mags feed flawlessly, and feel and look great as well.

3. The rear small rail is out of spec and the scope mount wobbles when attached to it.

 

 

Otherwise still a great gun. It performs very well, and looks/feels great too. I'm not sure the DM role is for me, though, so I may be selling it soon. Shameless plug: If anyone is interested in purchasing it, PMG.

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Thats odd. My G&P mids fed flawless in my G&P M14, my rear scope mount was even with my RAS, so I didnt have any scope problems. Sorry to hear about your problems with it though. I loved my M14 to death. Great shooter and the best looking/feeling M14 I've used. Although I wish V.7 cutoff levers lasted longer. But that doesnt seem to be a problem with the G&P, its a problem with most TM styled M14s that I've delt with.

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I can line the rear rail with the main RAS, but said rear rail is too small for the included scope mounts. It's still a great gun, and I've had no deal breaking issues with it. The reason I'm considering selling it is because it doesn't really fit my play style. I like rolling fast and laying down lots of fire. I thought I would like going semi-only and staying back, but I guess I was wrong.

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Thats odd. My G&P mids fed flawless in my G&P M14, my rear scope mount was even with my RAS, so I didnt have any scope problems. Sorry to hear about your problems with it though. I loved my M14 to death. Great shooter and the best looking/feeling M14 I've used. Although I wish V.7 cutoff levers lasted longer. But that doesnt seem to be a problem with the G&P, its a problem with most TM styled M14s that I've delt with.

Guarder makes a $13 steel replacement, I've never managed to break one of them, nor do I know anyone who has. That solved the cutoff issue for me.

 

I still haven't got my G&P M14 to work properly(its been a year now, and hundreds of $$$, and in excess of 50 hours of my labor). It just doesn't like high FPS. Hence the reason I am selling the high FPS parts and going for a lower fps FA legal gun.

 

I suppose that will teach me to buy a brand new, first batch gun when a manufacturer releases a new platform.

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Guarder makes a $13 steel replacement, I've never managed to break one of them, nor do I know anyone who has. That solved the cutoff issue for me.

 

I still haven't got my G&P M14 to work properly(its been a year now, and hundreds of $$, and in excess of 50 hours of my labor). It just doesn't like high FPS. Hence the reason I am selling the high FPS parts and going for a lower fps FA legal gun.

 

I suppose that will teach me to buy a brand new, first batch gun when a manufacturer releases a new platform.

 

I've been using mine stock (365 FPS) and it makes a good field rifle. Not really my style of play, though. I seem to like up close, adrenaline pumping games. I can't really say I get that with a long rifle...

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Im looking for a M14, so would you say that this is better than a marui?

In looks it definatly is :D

 

To be honest, I have never actually handled a Marui M14, so I do not not how, in performance, they compare. However, the M14 is running strong and smoothly, especially with the MAG metal M14 mags.

 

I recently installed an M160 motor and a SP140 spring and it is shooting pretty decently. Haven't had much trigger time with it, though.

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