Post by Jacko on Dec 19, 2003 16:23:50 GMT -5
(I think this thread could be useful to any type of metal body kit that's out there. Maybe just putting the name of the kit you bought in bold as you review it?)
Just got in my SR-16 HurricanE Aluminum Body set, and I have to say I'm impressed with the construction, detail and overall looks of it. Very little 'flash' (Extra metal bits sticking off of it), and it fits together very well. I haven't installed it yet, but I'll write about that when I do. Here's what you get:
Upper and Lower receiver, aluminum
Chamber unit and hop-up, plastic
New charging handle spring and armature
Body pins, metal
Looks
The color is similar to the original SR plastic body but not as shiny. The trades are very well done, in terms of their clarity and color. Thanks to Hado pointing it out to me, the trades are actually laser etched. When you read them, you're looking at bare aluminum. That raises some concerns of corrosion, but we'll see. The metal is smooth and free of burrs, and looks to be a very good paint job or a good bead blasted anodize.
Construction
The top rail is a part of the upper reciever, and not bolted on like the original TM body. That's nice, as I found my upper rail came loose if I used my metal carry handle too much. Other than that, the metal is pretty thick in places, though not much different than the original.
Installation
One very important peice of information: There are no instructions. None. If you're not familiar with taking down an M4, you may want to let someone with experience install this kit.
Upper Reciever: Now, the biggest differences between the TM and (HurricanE) HE uppers is that the TM has a feed tube built in that directs bb's into the hopup chamber. The HE has it's own hop unit that does away with this feed tube. HE gives you most of the parts you need to build the new hop unit, but you will need the hop-up sleeve, nubbin and a few of the retainer washers. It is identical to the TM version once assembled, however.
In the baggie of bits that you get with the HE kit, you'll find a small, shiny steel screw. This is what the spring for the charging handle will hook around. Screw this into the underside of the top rail.
Now, geting the forearm off the TM is pretty simple. Take off the handguards/RIS and twist the delta ring off. Unscrew the the screws that are on the top and bottom of the barrel mount. The front should now slide out. Hold onto the barrel mount as you unscrew the collar that is around it. Voila!
You'll notice a small hole above the threaded barrel on the metal kit. There's a small steel rod in the baggie that goes in there. You can glue that in, otherwise it'll fall out if the collar is removed. Screw the collar and barrel mount back on, line up the front sight and top rail, and screw the barrel mount back in. Be careful not to strip the threads like I did. Replace the handguards/RIS and you're done with the top!
Lower Reciever:The lower reciver is really easy to 'prepare' for assembly as all you have to do is put the selector switch in from the old body. All the other parts go in/on after you put the two halves together. And this is the meat of the installation, fitting the upper and lower together with a gearbox in them. Here's how you do it.
1. Slide the gearbox into the upper reciever from the rear. It should sit in the upside down reciever and move about freely. You want to make sure that the nozzle is seated in the hop-up unit.
2. Holding the gearbox in the upper, begin to slide the lower receiver onto it. You have to thread the motor wires and battery connector through their respective holes, as well as get the trigger positioned as you do so so they all come out correctly. Once you have these three items started, make sure you have the upper reciever tabs inside of the lower as you slide it down over the gearbox. You'll want to make sure that the lower clears the rear 'ears' of the upper, and as they're both seated together, slide the lower forward so the ears of the upper slide into it. Sounds confusing? It is unless you have the gun in front of you. Also, don't forget to put the bolt release button (The little thing on the left side that does nothing but rattle) or you'll have to start all over.
3. Now it's time to put the pins in. The pins I have are locking pins which means they have a bolt that screws into them. These pins are aluminum and coated with some kind of black paint. Make sure you're pressing the upper and lower toghether as you slide the pins in to help them on their way. The paint was getting scratched off my pins, so I took an emery file and took the paint off the last 1/4" of them. The rear pin went in without hesitation though the front one was a bit more difficult. However, it may be these pins and the paint that caused it.
4. Put the grip and motor back in as you normally would. No changes here.
5. Put the mag release mechanism back together and pound in the pin that is right by the selector switch. Slide the stock onto the buffer tube, hook up the battery wire, and screw the stock bolt into the rear of the gearbox. Voila, you're done!
Addendum: I realize this review is getting wordy, but a quick note: The Guarder One Peice Metal Outer barrel kit that I got (~ $100 from Combat Depot) was installed at the same time as this kit. I don't know how well it will eliminate barrel wobble in a stock gun, but together, these kits result in absolutely zero barrel wobble. None. You could chop down a tree with this SR-16. A nice feature about the Guarder barrel is that the front of it, everything past the sight post, screws off and utilizes the same threads as the common TM muzzle breaks. This means that, if you have a shorter inner barrel, you can screw the flash hider right on in front of the sight post for a short, commando look, or alternatively, replace that part of the outer barrel with a silencer that can help cover up a longer inner barrel for an SPR look. The main part of the outer barrel can also move up to about 3/4" to accomodate after-market foregrips.
Conclusion
I would recommend this kit to just about anyone who has some experience in taking down M16 or SR-16 rifles. HurricanE metal bodies tend to be less costly then the others out there today and I've been impressed so far. The only test left is to play a few games. The weight won't be a factor for me, since I'm gradually getting used to a 13 lbs. M249, but the sheer 'solid as a rock' construction makes this a gun that's simply too fine to hold.
Just got in my SR-16 HurricanE Aluminum Body set, and I have to say I'm impressed with the construction, detail and overall looks of it. Very little 'flash' (Extra metal bits sticking off of it), and it fits together very well. I haven't installed it yet, but I'll write about that when I do. Here's what you get:
Upper and Lower receiver, aluminum
Chamber unit and hop-up, plastic
New charging handle spring and armature
Body pins, metal
Looks
The color is similar to the original SR plastic body but not as shiny. The trades are very well done, in terms of their clarity and color. Thanks to Hado pointing it out to me, the trades are actually laser etched. When you read them, you're looking at bare aluminum. That raises some concerns of corrosion, but we'll see. The metal is smooth and free of burrs, and looks to be a very good paint job or a good bead blasted anodize.
Construction
The top rail is a part of the upper reciever, and not bolted on like the original TM body. That's nice, as I found my upper rail came loose if I used my metal carry handle too much. Other than that, the metal is pretty thick in places, though not much different than the original.
Installation
One very important peice of information: There are no instructions. None. If you're not familiar with taking down an M4, you may want to let someone with experience install this kit.
Upper Reciever: Now, the biggest differences between the TM and (HurricanE) HE uppers is that the TM has a feed tube built in that directs bb's into the hopup chamber. The HE has it's own hop unit that does away with this feed tube. HE gives you most of the parts you need to build the new hop unit, but you will need the hop-up sleeve, nubbin and a few of the retainer washers. It is identical to the TM version once assembled, however.
In the baggie of bits that you get with the HE kit, you'll find a small, shiny steel screw. This is what the spring for the charging handle will hook around. Screw this into the underside of the top rail.
Now, geting the forearm off the TM is pretty simple. Take off the handguards/RIS and twist the delta ring off. Unscrew the the screws that are on the top and bottom of the barrel mount. The front should now slide out. Hold onto the barrel mount as you unscrew the collar that is around it. Voila!
You'll notice a small hole above the threaded barrel on the metal kit. There's a small steel rod in the baggie that goes in there. You can glue that in, otherwise it'll fall out if the collar is removed. Screw the collar and barrel mount back on, line up the front sight and top rail, and screw the barrel mount back in. Be careful not to strip the threads like I did. Replace the handguards/RIS and you're done with the top!
Lower Reciever:The lower reciver is really easy to 'prepare' for assembly as all you have to do is put the selector switch in from the old body. All the other parts go in/on after you put the two halves together. And this is the meat of the installation, fitting the upper and lower together with a gearbox in them. Here's how you do it.
1. Slide the gearbox into the upper reciever from the rear. It should sit in the upside down reciever and move about freely. You want to make sure that the nozzle is seated in the hop-up unit.
2. Holding the gearbox in the upper, begin to slide the lower receiver onto it. You have to thread the motor wires and battery connector through their respective holes, as well as get the trigger positioned as you do so so they all come out correctly. Once you have these three items started, make sure you have the upper reciever tabs inside of the lower as you slide it down over the gearbox. You'll want to make sure that the lower clears the rear 'ears' of the upper, and as they're both seated together, slide the lower forward so the ears of the upper slide into it. Sounds confusing? It is unless you have the gun in front of you. Also, don't forget to put the bolt release button (The little thing on the left side that does nothing but rattle) or you'll have to start all over.
3. Now it's time to put the pins in. The pins I have are locking pins which means they have a bolt that screws into them. These pins are aluminum and coated with some kind of black paint. Make sure you're pressing the upper and lower toghether as you slide the pins in to help them on their way. The paint was getting scratched off my pins, so I took an emery file and took the paint off the last 1/4" of them. The rear pin went in without hesitation though the front one was a bit more difficult. However, it may be these pins and the paint that caused it.
4. Put the grip and motor back in as you normally would. No changes here.
5. Put the mag release mechanism back together and pound in the pin that is right by the selector switch. Slide the stock onto the buffer tube, hook up the battery wire, and screw the stock bolt into the rear of the gearbox. Voila, you're done!
Addendum: I realize this review is getting wordy, but a quick note: The Guarder One Peice Metal Outer barrel kit that I got (~ $100 from Combat Depot) was installed at the same time as this kit. I don't know how well it will eliminate barrel wobble in a stock gun, but together, these kits result in absolutely zero barrel wobble. None. You could chop down a tree with this SR-16. A nice feature about the Guarder barrel is that the front of it, everything past the sight post, screws off and utilizes the same threads as the common TM muzzle breaks. This means that, if you have a shorter inner barrel, you can screw the flash hider right on in front of the sight post for a short, commando look, or alternatively, replace that part of the outer barrel with a silencer that can help cover up a longer inner barrel for an SPR look. The main part of the outer barrel can also move up to about 3/4" to accomodate after-market foregrips.
Conclusion
I would recommend this kit to just about anyone who has some experience in taking down M16 or SR-16 rifles. HurricanE metal bodies tend to be less costly then the others out there today and I've been impressed so far. The only test left is to play a few games. The weight won't be a factor for me, since I'm gradually getting used to a 13 lbs. M249, but the sheer 'solid as a rock' construction makes this a gun that's simply too fine to hold.