AR15 Variants and Derivitives Picture Thread

[hitmanNo2]

23 hours ago, warspite said:

Just purchased a ViperTech HK 416D gas blowback. 

Was surprised to discover that my unit has no HK markings. Just want to ask if Umarex put a stop to ViperTech HK markings or did the latter produce blank HK 416 receivers?

Anything under the sticker on the magwell?  Though the reverse is blank.  Shame.

[LJ.NL]

Just purchased a ViperTech HK 416D gas blowback. 
Was surprised to discover that my unit has no HK markings. Just want to ask if Umarex put a stop to ViperTech HK markings or did the latter produce blank HK 416 receivers?

Congrats on your VT!

VT does indeed make blank 416 receivers, the HK markings have to be custom done afterwards (or order from a place that has it already done )

[CatgutViolin]

Second Viper Tech acquired, so now my big project can proceed.

[TheFull9]

Lovely.  I did some thinking recently and came to the conclusion the lower is just about the optimum AR setup for bb warz.

[CatgutViolin]

5 minutes ago, TheFull9 said:

Lovely.  I did some thinking recently and came to the conclusion the lower is just about the optimum AR setup for bb warz.

I never used to be a huge AR fan but this gun has changed my mind. Even with the full steel parts it's light, with minimal weight up front so it points easily. The carry handle optic felt excessively tall at first, but it's growing on me, as the heads-up shooting posture feels very natural, particularly for CQB. CAR-15 furniture is slimmer than M4 furniture and I find is easier to use.

I'm still waiting on a repro of the Kley-Zion micro dot mount, which will let me attach the red dot directly to the carry handle rather than needing the rail, but then I think it'll be basically perfect. Could see myself adding a flashlight, Gothic Serpent style, but that's it.

I then pick up the A4 with its 20" gov profile barrel, and it feels like someone took my handy little carbine and taped a boat oar to it. I've been spoiled.

[blobface]

Nice! Are these original mags or are you planning to GHK mag them? (are they even compatible with work?)

[CatgutViolin]

On 7/19/2021 at 6:39 PM, blobface said:

Nice! Are these original mags or are you planning to GHK mag them? (are they even compatible with work?)

EB-Tech mag in the M16, GHK stanag in the 733. And as for compatibility, well...

GHK mags are slightly wider than the other WA-derivative-family mags. It's an issue with stanags because, unlike with pmags, you can't just remove a millimeter off the shell and call it a day, so I had to remove some material from the inside of the VT magwell on the 733 (not looking forward to this on the M16...) to make it fit, in addition to filing the mags and bending them to square up the shells (GHK's bends are sloppy, and most bulge out a bit in the middle).

Additionally, GHK mag springs are a bit weak, so reliable lockback requires either removing the detent pin from the bolt release on the rifle, or replacing the GHK mag spring with a stronger alternative (AEG midcap 'superfeed' springs work fine)(EDIT: Superfeed springs take a set and then stop working, avoid). This can cause the guns to lock open a round early due to the design of the GHK follower (it starts to actuate as the last BB comes up), so then they need a little bit of trimming so as not to actuate the bolt catch until actually empty.

As well, the gas router rubber is just a bit too tall- it doesn't cause any obvious problems at first, but gets torn up over time and compromises the seal. There's a 3D printable jig in the Viper Tech Discord server that allows trimming them to the right height with a razor blade.

All in all I like the design and price point of GHK mags, but I'm not sure it was worth the time and effort to make them work. EB-Tech's lightweight stanags are a bit more expensive but are a solid design and require zero modification. And if I were building a more modern AR I'd probably just buy VT's own pmags and be done with it.

Edited November 1, 2021 by CatgutViolin

[CatgutViolin]

Grail gun completed.

Edited July 24, 2021 by CatgutViolin

[Bloodsword]

My retroish AR`s.

Upper one is Delta Carbine, inspired by Blackhawk Down movie. Based on Cyma CM.009D.

Lower one is a generish M4A1, based on E&L M4 Platinum.

[Bostitch]

Rebuilt my mk18 mod 1 onto one of my ICS platforms, which also doubles as the lower for my URX recce build. Also acquired a second ICS, this one a m16a3 that will be turned into a mk12 mod 0. 

[chas]

13 hours ago, Bloodsword said:

My retroish AR`s.

Upper one is Delta Carbine, inspired by Blackhawk Down movie. Based on Cyma CM.009D.

Lower one is a generish M4A1, based on E&L M4 Platinum.

Very nice.

What barrels and front sights are you using? That old grey shaed looks awesome.

[CatgutViolin]

Viper Tech based C7A2, an alternate build for the Colt LMG / Diemaco LSW above. Not quite clone correct (needs an ambi selector and the markings are all wrong) but the broad strokes are there.

[chas]

Does anyone know of an M4 barrel extension (one of those to extend your 10.3/10.5 to a 14.5), but with CW thread, +14mm?

Thanks!

[Bloodsword]

On 7/27/2021 at 12:35 PM, chas said:

Very nice.

What barrels and front sights are you using? That old grey shaed looks awesome.

Thanks.

They are E&L Steel ones.

[Dj_komodo]

New little toy came in the mail today:)

[Bostitch]

Finally picked up an nt4 for my mod 0 (WE GBBR base).

And with my mod 1 (ICS split gearbox base)..old school vs new(er) school 

[icolater]

Ghk aac blackout mpw. Custom engraved markings etc. Currently getting Cerakoted tungsten and armour black. I’ll have pictures soon. 
 

question. Are viper tech worth getting. Was about to pull the trigger on one but I’m  not sure if they are worth it as I’ve seen conflicting reviews. Thank you and god bless. 

[groundhog-shooters]

[icolater]

Ghk

[icolater]

Ghk

have a spare lower with aac 300 mpw markings if anyone is lookin. 

[Ivan le Fou]

 

[CatgutViolin]

I've been doing a little iteration on some Viper Tech builds.

VT Colt 733, real A1E1/C7 upper receiver, real furniture and charging handle, muzzle shims in lieu of the anachronistic crush washer, and a front sling swivel. This combination of features gets it screen-accurate to the one used in the film Heat.

Second, a Colt 727 upper for the same lower. This was built from VT barrel parts mounted to a real Rock River Arms A2 upper. Optic is an Aimpoint 3000 courtesy of eBay, and the sling is a DIY 'silent sling' setup styled after those used by SF in the 1990s. I also have an M203 for it but that'll be a temporary addition for games where I can effectively use grenades.

Next, an M16A2, using real Colt furniture and an issued sling, and a Bushmaster-made A2 upper. The receiver is marked as an FN-produced M16A4 on the left side, but that doesn't particularly bother me.

And lastly, because my Colt LMG package is based on the above rifle, it's now slightly reworked to use the fixed carry handle and a Norinco replica of a Colt 3x scope. The upper now isn't quite historically accurate, since fixed carry handle ones used in the USMC trials didn't have forward assists and to my knowledge weren't tested with optics, but I find the higher axis of the scope makes it much easier to get a sight picture with headgear, and more importantly the scope is designed to still permit the use of irons at shorter range, unlike the Elcan I was previously using. I might see about making some HPA-tapped STANAGs to better fit the retro styling.

Edited November 1, 2021 by CatgutViolin

[CatgutViolin]

On 9/1/2021 at 5:35 AM, icolater said:

question. Are viper tech worth getting. Was about to pull the trigger on one but I’m  not sure if they are worth it as I’ve seen conflicting reviews. Thank you and god bless. 

I'm super late to this but yes, with a caveat. You'll see a lot of conflicting info over the years because VT has improved on a yearly basis, like car models. Original 2010 guns were Inokatsus made under license; modern guns are substantially different and don't have a ton of parts compatibility with the old ones. A lot also depends on what mags you use, since they can use any WA-spec magazines and many WA-derived ones (including GHK with break-in and potentially minor modification).

Receivers are forged on original Colt dies. Internals are all hardened steel and aluminum, all CNCed. There are no cast parts, pot metal, or plastic anywhere in the gun, besides plastic furniture on the retro guns. Hop-up is good enough that this is the first airsoft gun I don't feel a need to upgrade- it uses a proprietary bucking design similar to a very thick PDI W-Hold that provides excellent accuracy and is glued from the factory for optimal seal, but it can be modded to use VSR-spec barrels and buckings instead. Tolerances are very tight; both my guns were very stiff out of the box and had an initial break-in period with sporadic malfunctions, but on the flipside they seal very well. Out of the box the gas efficiency was comparable to GHK, despite the assembled bolt carrier being about 25% heavier and the recoil spring much stronger. The more I use them, the smoother and more efficient they've gotten.

The caveat is that VT has apparently had production issues in 2021 and the QC has dropped. I've had no problems with the LMG (despite much higher round count at this point), but one significant breakage in the carbine (a nozzle component). VT's response was basically 'that shouldn't have happened', they sent me a replacement at no charge, and have modified the design to prevent breakage in the future. Others I've seen have had issues with anodizing or fitment, but VT has also sorted them out. They seem willing to stand by their product, but I'd prefer not to deal with that sort of issue in the first place given the price.

I think if you just want a skirmishable GBB AR and plan to keep it mostly stock, you may be better off with VFC if you want realistic internals and real-steel compatibility or TM if you want performance. It's when you start pricing out upgrades (forged receivers in particular) that VT starts to look like a bargain in comparison. If you want basically a real AR that shoots BBs and needs no upgrades, and are willing to risk the QC problems, I'd recommend it. I do hope VT can sort out that QC problem because it's a pretty big caveat for a gun that costs as much as they do.

Well, a number of folks have asked about VT now, so light of how little English-speaking content there is about VT in recent years, I'm putting together a video review that will go through one of these guns in-depth. Hopefully that should help.

[Norsk22771]

This is my tippmann V2 M4 HPA. Super happy with how it looks. I still kinda want to get more "tan" color with spray paint.
Inspired by TV Show "Seal Team" Clay spensors 416 DMR build

[TheFull9]

Some builds I've finished in the last year or so.  If I went by my usual social media schedule I'd end up not posting them for a couple of years which feels a waste so just overviews for now and I'll post more later.

Krytac LVOA-S

KWA LM4c

TM SOCOM