If one was interested in purchasing a good MP5 clone to make into an SBR, what would y'all recommed? I have a Scorpion and a 9mm SBR is quickly becoming my go to weapon. Now I want another one and I figured an MP5 would be the place to start....so what you got?

There aren't a whole lot of options out there.

Special Weapons/Coharie Arms/Whatever they call themselves now if they are still in business used to be the most widely available, and most universally hated, of the clone manufacturers. Some of their guns came out good, others came out with problems.

There was a company in Ohio that also made them - can't remember their name to save my life anymore though. I think a lot of their products were SW flats that they folded in house and built with better QC.

You can still find flats out there that you can roll yourself and do a build, but building an MP5 isn't in the same ballpark as building an AR - you need to have actual tools to build an MP5 (press, feeler gauges, welding machine, etc.).

I have a Special Weapons - it''s an older model and I haven't had any issues with it, but it's definitely not HK either. Fun as hell to shoot, probably going to SD it as one of my next gun related projects.

Nothing but good things to say about my Zenith. I've never shot or handled the real deal, but for a range toy, I can't ask for anything better (now that it wears a B&T side folder and a 5k vertical grip).

I'd look at the MPX

http://karrisguns.com/venom-skm-9mm-pistol-shock--1.aspx

Similar. 9 mm.

txyaloo said:

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CalebMcCreary06 said:

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If one was interested in purchasing a good MP5 clone to make into an SBR, what would y'all recommed? I have a Scorpion and a 9mm SBR is quickly becoming my go to weapon. Now I want another one and I figured an MP5 would be the place to start....so what you got?

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No need to buy a clone. HK is importing the real deal now.

http://www.heckler-koch.com/en/products/sport/full-size-compact/sp5k/sp5k/product-overview.html

The K is the perfect size as an SBR.

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Meh, $2,300 vs $1,600 for a Zenith.
No paddle mag release (supposedly easy to add with the plastic trigger housing).
No threaded barrel or 3 lug adapter.
Barrel shroud too small to fit a can if you have it threaded.

I'd still lean towards a Zenith/MKE.

Aggietaco said:

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txyaloo said:

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CalebMcCreary06 said:

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If one was interested in purchasing a good MP5 clone to make into an SBR, what would y'all recommed? I have a Scorpion and a 9mm SBR is quickly becoming my go to weapon. Now I want another one and I figured an MP5 would be the place to start....so what you got?

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No need to buy a clone. HK is importing the real deal now.

http://www.heckler-koch.com/en/products/sport/full-size-compact/sp5k/sp5k/product-overview.html

The K is the perfect size as an SBR.

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Meh, $2,300 vs $1,600 for a Zenith.
No paddle mag release (supposedly easy to add with the plastic trigger housing).
No threaded barrel or 3 lug adapter.
Barrel shroud too small to fit a can if you have it threaded.

I'd still lean towards a Zenith/MKE.

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The HK will also appreciate a higher rate than a clone if/when HK decides to stop importing them. Compare the prices of an original HK94/SP89 to the current clones.

The Zenith/MKE guns run well, but for not much more money, I think getting the HK roll mark is worth it. I have several clones. If new HKs were being imported 15 years ago when I got my first Bobcat, I likely would have gotten an HK instead.

txyaloo said:

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Aggietaco said:

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txyaloo said:

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CalebMcCreary06 said:

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If one was interested in purchasing a good MP5 clone to make into an SBR, what would y'all recommed? I have a Scorpion and a 9mm SBR is quickly becoming my go to weapon. Now I want another one and I figured an MP5 would be the place to start....so what you got?

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No need to buy a clone. HK is importing the real deal now.

http://www.heckler-koch.com/en/products/sport/full-size-compact/sp5k/sp5k/product-overview.html

The K is the perfect size as an SBR.

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Meh, $2,300 vs $1,600 for a Zenith.
No paddle mag release (supposedly easy to add with the plastic trigger housing).
No threaded barrel or 3 lug adapter.
Barrel shroud too small to fit a can if you have it threaded.

I'd still lean towards a Zenith/MKE.

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The HK will also appreciate a higher rate than a clone if/when HK decides to stop importing them. Compare the prices of an original HK94/SP89 to the current clones.

The Zenith/MKE guns run well, but for not much more money, I think getting the HK roll mark is worth it. I have several clones. If new HKs were being imported 15 years ago when I got my first Bobcat, I likely would have gotten an HK instead.

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Agreed that the HK will retain value better with the potential to increase, but investment ideas aside you are saving a substantial chunk of change with the Zenith (~$700 purchase, $400 B&T barrel/$200 other barrel + $450 install, $200 mag release install + $100 parts) to get to the same point.

That said, I would like to own an HK eventually.

What are your thoughts on the scorpion? I am in the same boat and really have a hankering for a 9mm sub gun to SBR. I would probably bite the bullet on the SP5K if it came with a threaded barrel, but it looks like they run about $400 on top of the premium you're already paying for the roll mark

Edit: no idea where I found a $400 barrel the other day. Looks like you can get one for less than $200

Big_Rig said:

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What are your thoughts on the scorpion? I am in the same boat and really have a hankering for a 9mm sub gun to SBR. I would probably bite the bullet on the SP5K if it came with a threaded barrel, but it looks like they run about $400 on top of the premium you're already paying for the roll mark

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If the looks of the scorpion don't bother you, it's a fantastic platform with a solid aftermarket at a great price. I just happen to think they are ugly. I struggled over a Scorpion vs. MPX vs. B&T's APC9 for a long time, finally landed on the MPX with the Sig tax and then bought the Zenith MP5k clone (partially because of the fuster cluck that was the original MPX).

Big_Rig said:

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What are your thoughts on the scorpion? I am in the same boat and really have a hankering for a 9mm sub gun to SBR. I would probably bite the bullet on the SP5K if it came with a threaded barrel, but it looks like they run about $400 on top of the premium you're already paying for the roll mark

Edit: no idea where I found a $400 barrel the other day. Looks like you can get one for less than $200

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RCM barrels are good quality and inexpensive. The problem is most people don't have the tools or skills to be able to install an HK barrel. The barrels are pressed into a trunion that is pinned into the receiver. Most people will have to send to a smith which gets expensive and time consuming when waiting for the good smiths.

Bummer. Thanks for the info. HK not having a threaded barrel from the factory is kind of a head scratcher

Big_Rig said:

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Bummer. Thanks for the info. HK not having a threaded barrel from the factory is kind of a head scratcher

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Import restrictions. That's why the SP89 originally went off the market. "Evil features" like detachable mags, paddle mag releases, and threaded barrels contribute to the gun being classified as "non-sporting" and illegal for import. Germany now has export restrictions on some firearms which may also apply.

Thanks Die Hard huh?

Glad you like it! I just bought one today

If you have to have the H&K name, get their gun, then pay more to a smith to fix it.

If you just want something that shoots and handles like an MP5, the clones are great.

Atlantic Firearms is usually a good place to shop around at your options.

Zenith has been mentioned and is good.

Mine is a POF, which is about as cheap as you can get into MP5s without really taking a quality gamble. The POF trade off however is a pretty mediocre finish on the gun. If you want it to look pretty, spend more for the Zenith. I knew I was going to carry mine around, shoot the crap out of it etc and didn't care too much, so the POF finish doesn't bother me.

Also, it amuses me to no end that Germany has some sort of moral qualms about selling some guns I'd love to have (MP7) to us lowly law abiding civilians in the US, when they were bribing arab countries with weapons to secure their votes for the '06 World Cup.

Sorry for the 3 round burst posting, but one more thought:

The CZ Scorpion is cheaper, more modular, etc than the MP5 or clones. It's more modern and frankly a better gun.

That being said, I love my MP5 for reasons that are hard to articulate. If you have to have one, you just have to have one. Sometimes that's the only logic that needs to enter into the equation.