Originally Posted by
JoshNC
The APC9 is very high quality. It’s made in Switzerland by B&T AG, who has been an OEM supplier to HK for MP5 barrels, optic rails, and sound suppressors. It is a very smooth shooting blowback design with a hydraulic buffer that really smoothes it out. It has a full length top picatinney rail for easy optic mounting. It has fully ambidextrous controls. The model that won the competition has a removable AR pistol grip. And it features a last round bolt hold open, which is fully ambidextrous. The ergos are better than the M16 FOW (the ambi bolt catch design is an improvement IMO), yet sufficiently similar that it will be an easy transition from the M16 FOW (and back to the M16 FOW) for end users.
It is easily suppressed and despite its straight blowback design, it doesn’t dump a ton of gas/carbon in the user’s face. The extractor design is vastly superior to that of the HK MP5. It’s highly reliable. Numbers I’ve seen from other end user testing prior to the Army competition re: MRBS and MRBF are outstanding.
It’s also far easier to support at an armorer level than the mp5. And it doesn’t require different locking pieces for suppressed vs unsuppresed use or for different bullet weights (the latter is not really a consideration in the context of mil issue).
I say all of this as a dyed in the wool mp5 fanatic. I have an all German MP5K-N and MP5-N, both select fire SMGs. If both the APC9 and MP5 were offered, both were select fire SMGs, and I could only choose one, I would take the APC9 over the MP5 without hesitation.
The APC9 is truly (IMO) the best in class current SMG on the market.
Bad ass review, I had no idea. Great to know, but honestly my pocket book wished I never asked.
PB
"Air Force / Policeman / Fireman / Man of God / Friend of mine / R.I.P. Steve Lamy"
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