[Jing Gong] HK416 - 2nd Gen (Hell on 56K)

[Ninja_En_Short]

Hello and welcome in this review of the last gen of Jing Gong HK416 and my very first on this forum (and in english ).

Some culture :

For those of you who don't know it (yet), the HK 416 is basically a "fixed M4A1" produced by Heckler und Koch (german manufacturer).
The gun is chambered in 5.56x45 NATO rounds like the M16 and has the same firing mechnism as well as the some bolt system and lower receiver but that's all.

The upper receiver is different and the 416 comes with a RAS that aligns itself with the receiver which is higher than the one on the M4 (about 5 to 7 mm). This is because the 416 features a short stroke gaz piston system instead of having a gaz tube, extremely similar to the G36. The result is that the gun runs way cleaner and keeps most of the internals parts cool (ever tried to take a bolt carrier of an M16 in your hands after emptying a few mags ? Bad idea). The barrel is also a cold hammer forged one and has very long lifetime, about 25 000 rounds (the Colt M4A1 is only 8 000 if I remember right).

But the best part is its reliability, you can shoot after having it burried in sand, being underwater without problem (look Future Weapon or "Over the Beach test" if you don't believe me)... an M4 would just blow in your face (and take most of it).

So yeah I'm a huge fan... I dare say that is probably the best regular infantery rifle ever build (at least in terms of quality).

Who use it ? Well according to Wikipedia (and the reports I read) :

- France (Special Air Force, RPIMA)
- Germany (GSG9 and KSK)
- Indonesia
- Netherland (Korps Commandotroepen)
- Norway (regular army)
- Poland (regular army, GROM special forces, Police)
- Slovenia (Police Special Forces)
- Turkey (regular army)
- USA (Special force, Police)
- United Kingdom (SAS, Police)


So, ready to put your M4 in its coffin ? Let's move on

Review

First things first, the box :



Just a big carboard box with a big label stating the rifle type... HK416 if you still don't noticed

What do we have inside ?



For those like me who had STAR or ARES replicas that protection rings a bell. I really don't know how it could be damaged.



In the box :

- HK416
- An-Peq with 9.6 V 1100 mAh battery mini type
- Barrel extension
- Cleaning rod
- High-Cap magazine (300 rounds), a copy of the VFC ones with a windage key... I hate high cap mags anyway
- Battery charger... advice : throw that crap away and buy a real one
- Economic 0.20 bbs... get rid of it too
- Orange cap

A few photos of the stuff :



Let's have a look on the HK416 itself :

It's a full fetal, painted aluminium, cheap are not yet anodised but I get the feeling Jing Gong will soon get to it (CYMA and Dboys do it now).

Stock at minimum and full length




Problems so far ?

It wobbles from everywhere : the upper and lower receiver don't ajust, there is about a mm that makesthe receivers wobble. Worse : the RAS turns around the barrel, I might fix that by giving the screws a few more turns on the RAS or putting some tape around the gaz rod and betweeen receivers.

The stock wobbles a little like all cheap stocks but nothing really troublesome

Speaking of the stock it's a standard M4A1 type.

The sling swivel is a fixed type but you can remove it be unscrewing the screw on the back (I did it after taking photos).
The stock tube is closed by some "stock tube butt pad" (find better if you can ).



What if I want to put my battery in the stock, LiPo or standard... well you'll have to get dirty... or at least your hands

You'll have to cut wires because of the mosfet in the RAS, don't foret to put something on the wires to identify them easily, the lastthing you want is to fry the mosfet.
A method I like and doesn't need to cut anything : place wires from the RAS to the stock, then put male mini plugs on the wires (be wary of polarity) in the RAS and plug it with the front plug, that way you'll still have wires in the front if you want an An-Peq afterwards.

There is still a problem : the piece of metal in which goes the screw is completly round, the wires can't go through, you will have to find another one or cut it.



I'm a dude, no need for puns about what's between my legs

"What does the mosfet do by the way ?"

I'm no electrician but basically the mosfet is here to regulate the current.
On the replica it makes the rate of fire more constant, prevent surges and makes the electrical circuits last longer.

Back on the stock : how do I remove it ? easy : just lift the lock as much as you can and pull.





The plate I mentionned earlier is fixed by a screw, just unscrew it and pull the plate to remove it.



I don't recommend to use the standard M4 stock with a LiPo, this is why :

I'm using a Firefox 11.1V 1200 mAh 20C ($26.5 with shipping on Ebaybanned)




See why now ?

But on the bright side the An-Peq is big enough to take it (leave the foam in so it won't wobble), it opens by just pulling the back. In fact it might be able to take 8.4V large battery.



Let's have a look on other parts, what about the sights ? These ones are really nice, the front sight is a flip up that locks in place nice and clean.
The front sight, and it usually isn't the case, also locks nicely with very little wobble. The a little difference with the real steel is that there is only round sights, the first or fourth post (don't remember) is supposed to be a triangular open top one.



You can remove the front sight by unscrewing the screw being the front sight axis.



The flash hider is a standard M4 one secured by screwing on a -14 mm and a little BTR screw.

After this let's speak about the RAS.

Let's be awfully clear : this is NOT an HK416 RAS like on the first gen and the Dboys HK416.




The grip is made of hard plastic and is a Tango Down style (not HK416 like most say) and uses the same motor screw as any M4 type lower receiver.



What about the markings ?

They are really fine and not just painted but engraved and are almost accurate. Have a look :




Well on this one the workers of JG could really use a good square.

Here comes a weird thing : on some there is a fake bolt carrier not on mine... weird



Even more weird : just try to pu one in such a space :



For magazines you might have the same problem as me : the wire are a bit in the way so you should change their place higher up.



Now that I got my hands on true tools, thank you Canadian Tire) I can truly dismount it :



And yes, that's as far as you can go because if you want to go further, you have to cut the plastic tube to disconnect the mosfet and place the wires elsewhere :



Get why now ?

I didn't take a picture bu the barrel was one of the dirtiest I've ever seen, the paper entered white and exited black. I'm not kidding on this one.

Power Test (5 shots, 10" barrel) :

410 - 413- 412 -420 - 416

Not Bad

Oh yeah... that's how I like it by the way :

[cerealmaniac]

are u going to post results of the FPS, ROF..etc?

[StrikeFreedom]

Price and where you got it from?

[KoolAidMan]

people leave that out nowadays i have no clue why its not against the rules and if they do include it it somehow ends up in the age verified section...

[Ninja_En_Short]

I don't have a chrony at home right now so I still haven't made fire tests.

I'll make some soon, I'm a bit tired so I didn't unmount it, I'll do that tomorrow.

I got it from the classified for 425$.

I'll make some update too.

[RaisinBran]

Originally Posted by KoolAidMan

people leave that out nowadays i have no clue why its not against the rules and if they do include it it somehow ends up in the age verified section...

It's against the rules to tell which retailer you got it from unless the person is a sponsoring retailer IE:Any retailer in the "Retailers" tab on the top left.

Anyway wow it comes with regular LE stock? the 1st gen came with a 416 stock...I was thinking about getting this but now it doesn't look so great after all, hoping to see you do a internal review!

[Conker]

Do your PMAGs feed? In RS, PMAGs don't fit because of the 416's magwell angle. They also don't fit in my 2008 JG HK416.

Also to my knowledge, the US "special force" unit that use it is CAG (mostly known as "Delta Force").

@RaisinBran: There's 3 HK416 versions made by JG (most other manufacturers do the same).
-Front wired one (the one in this review) with the LE stock
-Rear wired with HK417 (crane-like) stock
-Rear wired with full (M16-like) stock

[RaisinBran]

Originally Posted by Conker

Do your PMAGs feed? In RS, PMAGs don't fit because of the 416's magwell angle. They also don't fit in my 2008 JG HK416.

Also to my knowledge, the US "special force" unit that use it is CAG (mostly known as "Delta Force").

@RaisinBran: There's 3 HK416 versions made by JG (most other manufacturers do the same).
-Front wired one (the one in this review) with the LE stock
-Rear wired with HK417 (crane-like) stock
-Rear wired with full (M16-like) stock

Oh I see, thanks.

[Cuddles]

My 120 round PMAGs feed fine on mine. Don't know about the green label ones though.

[Conker]

Well mine is the A&K that I got with my ACR... anyway it's an highcap so I don't really care, but I did like the look of it on the '416 with my FDE furniture.

[Ninja_En_Short]

Still no "real" fire tests (I'll make an update of the first post when done) but the mag well is a little too small for the G&P Pmag, I have to slap it to get the mag release locked (kinda like a SPORTS procedure on RS). I will try to remove some metal in the mag well.

The green label Pmags might get in fine becase they are a little smaller than the G&P ones.