What is with the hate of the SL8?

blaxsun said:
The SL8's most redeeming quality is probably that it's non-restricted, and with the AR adapter can accept LAR-15 magazines. You can run a different lower on it with an ACR folding/collapsible stock, so that's kind of a neat (and cheaper) option than the standard G36 folding stock conversion. From what I understand the trigger and barrel are pretty decent (better than the G36 apparently), so the standard SL8 stock seems to be the biggest "yuck".

In terms of overall value, does it offer any less value than an XCR, Tavor or FS2000? I think beauty is in the eye of the beholder, and you either love it or hate it (not unlike the XCR, Tavor or FS2000). It's not really fair to compare the SL8 to an AR-15 because components for an AR-15 are produced in such mass quantity that the price to an AR-15 will never be on par.

I've yet to own, fondle or shoot an SL8 - and while it doesn't necessarily hold a great deal of appeal for me - I'd certainly like to try one someday.
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Agreed. As was said above, if it was 1000$ instead of...what? about 2500$ or so, I'd be seriously thinking of getting one. Being non-restricted is a big bonus to me as well. That's why I'd buy a 1000$ SL-8 over a 1000$ AR.
The SL-8s I've seen performed very well and consistently.
 
nemesisincanada said:
The XCR comes with rails and a pretty good trigger.
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Yup. On paper it's almost perfect. I really wanted one until I looked one over in person. Ergonomics are excellent except the regular stock is s piece of crap. The new fast stock looks good. Also changing the stock to an AR one doesn't look right.

I happen to like the heavier barrel on the XCR. Like the SL8. But... The accuracy isn't as good. The design of the XCR seems to be part AK, part AR. Which makes me think the heavier barrel was made to reduce verticle stringing rather than make it a tack driver. The SL8 on the otherhand can be very accurate with the heavier barrel provided. An AR with a heavier match barrel is a precision rifle.

As for which system is more reliable? I would say the SL8. it's a G36 action which is well known for it's reliability.

If you're into hunting them the XCR is the choice of the two due to caliber conversions. Or you can just get s kel-tec RFB in 308. If you want a general all purpose non restricted then the XCR is probably your best choice.
 
You can't really go wrong with the XCR, SL8, Tavor or FS2000. They're all going to run you $2,500-$3,000 by the time you add a different stock for the XCR/SL8. Since they're all non-restricted, unless you plan to use it for hunting they all have the same intended end use. Weight, feel, ergonomics and performance are going to vary by individual.

Ergonomics: FS2000, Tavor, SL8, XCR
Weight: FS2000-Tavor, SL8, XCR
Accuracy: FS2000, SL8, XCR, Tavor
Ease-of-use: Tavor, XCR, FS2000, SL8
"Cool" Factor: Tavor, FS2000, SL8, XCR

However, the Tavor and FS2000 are both "bull pup" designs - so if that's not necessarily your thing it does narrow it down considerably. I haven't included the Swiss Arms in this list because even though it's non-restricted it's going to easily run you $1,250-$1,500 more by the time you add the top rail to mount an optic, NEA lower to accept AR magazines, etc.
 
Epoxy7 said:
It's pretty amazing how a late 1960s designed rifle is still the baseline to compare all modern firearm.
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Look at boltguns. What, aside from metalurgy, has changed since the 98 Mauser came on the scene? Additional locking lugs (ala Browning and Sako)? Synthetic stocks? A few straight pull actions? Essentially 90% of bolt action rifles are the same as a design that is well over 100 years old!

New isn't always better.
 
Colin said:
I agree with Epoxy, the stock is horrid, a proper G36 stock changes the rifle completly.
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That's right on the money. HK isn't the same company it was when they brought in the semi HK-91/93/94 to appease those of us who couldn't own the real select fire McCoys.

They went for political correctness (appearance wise) on the SL 8. They would have sold so many more if they made it look like the G-36 (even if they charge/costmore IMHO).
 
From the factory the SL8 comes with a neutered stock, muzzle is not threaded, expensive mags...

To get it back into a presentable state (good luck finding all the parts), you will end up spending 5k. That is why it does not see much love.
 
zupermann said:
That's right on the money. HK isn't the same company it was when they brought in the semi HK-91/93/94 to appease those of us who couldn't own the real select fire McCoys.

They went for political correctness (appearance wise) on the SL 8. They would have sold so many more if they made it look like the G-36 (even if they charge/costmore IMHO).
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It's not a cost thing. You can thank German law for it. Trust me, HK would prefer to just give you a G36 with a semi-auto trigger group. It would sell better and they wouldn't have had to engineer and manufacture a whole new set of parts, so they'd be able to give it to you cheaper due to economies of scale.

The reason for the differences is that there is a law in Germany that "weapons of war" cannot be sold to civilians, so they had to create a version that was neutered enough to appease the German government.
 
Gothmog said:
The ones I have handled shot very well, but handling was poor .... not a bad choice for bench shooting but I wouldn't get one for action shooting.
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A simple barrel and stock upgrade and this is a fantastic gun for 3 gun action shooting.
I put a 12.5" G36k barrel on, with the G36 folding stock conversion. Even with the shorter 12.5" barrel the rifle is still very accurate, and can easily shoot multigun matches. I would love to find a 9.25" G36c barrel.
 
polskadude said:
A simple barrel and stock upgrade and this is a fantastic gun for 3 gun action shooting.
I put a 12.5" G36k barrel on, with the G36 folding stock conversion. Even with the shorter 12.5" barrel the rifle is still very accurate, and can easily shoot multigun matches. I would love to find a 9.25" G36c barrel.
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Is there a Canadian dealer that carries G36K barrels, or did you have to get it custom exported from the US?
 
mechanik said:
The reason for the differences is that there is a law in Germany that "weapons of war" cannot be sold to civilians, so they had to create a version that was neutered enough to appease the German government.
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I heard that, but HK could've set up manufacture in the US where most of their sales (of that type) are anyway.

Or, they could've set up a US branch/subsidiary that sells semi G-36 stocks/receiver units so people can turn the Euro/German SL8's into something that resembles the real McCoy. Instead, we had to take a chance with aftermarket parts and hope they fit. High Kost (HK) needs to consider their customers more. Maybe they tried the above. I don't know....
 
blaxsun said:
How do you explain the HK MR223 A1 then?
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That I haven't looked into but I am curious to know as well. This was the reason though that the original MR556 had a different pin setup so that its upper and lower wouldn't interchange with regular ARs.
 
mechanik said:
That I haven't looked into but I am curious to know as well. This was the reason though that the original MR556 had a different pin setup so that its upper and lower wouldn't interchange with regular ARs.
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The HK MR223 A1 (German manufacturer) does not have the pin offset of the first HK MR223. This has been confirmed with actual physical versions already in members' hands.
 
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