Ar180shooter
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Ottawa, ON
After running my Swiss Arms during the July 2 OSTS Tactical Rifle 2 course, I ran into some "issues" with the Chinese made Swiss Arms cheek riser that I've been using (I'll go into this later). Now, for those of you who have looked into it, you know that the Chinese cheek riser is $29.99 from CanAm, and the genuine Swiss made cheek riser is heinously overpriced at around $250.
Now, into the comparison of the cheek rests.
Top is the Chinese made rest, bottom is the Swiss made one. Based on appearances alone, the Chinese one is actually slightly nicer looking than the Swiss one, and the matte texture on the outside is closer in appearance to the original SAN furniture than the Swiss made one, which is much sleeker and has no texture.
Top Chinese, bottom Swiss
I was also surprised to find that the construction of the two rests was completely different. I was expecting the Chiese copy to, well, be an actual copy; however, as you can see, they were based on totally different designs. This also means that the two rests have different weights, the Swiss one being much lighter than its bulkier Chinese counterpart. The Swiss one weighs approximately 110g (4oz) and the Chinese one weighs 185g (6.5oz). This might seem minor; however, on an already heavy rifle, every ounce counts.
Top Chinese, bottom Swiss
As you can see, the systems on each rest that lock it onto the stock are quite different. The Chinese one uses a series of little tabs while the Swiss one has large protrusions coming from the side of the rest body, and these secure it to the stock.
I should also note that the location of the relief hole that the take down pin fits into (the hole on the right side of the cheek piece) is not properly placed on the Chinese one, and it interferes with the stock folding. This is not an issue with the Swiss rest.
Now, on to the aforementioned "issue" I had with my knockoff cheek piece that I had during the Tactical Rifle II course. The issue was I found myself having to constantly push the rest back into place, and the rest even fell off during one of the drills.
Chinese rest after shooting 20 rounds
I've found that the rest will lift up when shooting, and if it isn't pushed back into place, it will eventually work itself off the stock. This isn't an issue if you're only shooting the rifle from a bench, but during a Service Rifle match, the cheek piece falling off could cost you.
Swiss rest after 35 rounds
For reference, the Swiss made rest stays firmly in place. I attribute this to the different locking design inherent in both rests. The Swiss one is well designed, and made for an actual firearm. The Chinese one is an airsoft part, and not a true copy of the original Swiss rest.
So which rest do I recommend?
Well... It depends.
If you're just going to be shooting the rifle from a bench, and you can push the rest back into place every couple of rounds, then the Chinese one will serve you fine. If you're Police/Military/Competition shooter, and need to know that your cheek rest is not going to fall off, dish out the money for the real Swiss one. I like to think of it this way... You have a $3700 rifle, get the proper cheek riser for it, even if it is heinously overpriced for a hunk of plastic.
Now, into the comparison of the cheek rests.
Top is the Chinese made rest, bottom is the Swiss made one. Based on appearances alone, the Chinese one is actually slightly nicer looking than the Swiss one, and the matte texture on the outside is closer in appearance to the original SAN furniture than the Swiss made one, which is much sleeker and has no texture.
Top Chinese, bottom Swiss
I was also surprised to find that the construction of the two rests was completely different. I was expecting the Chiese copy to, well, be an actual copy; however, as you can see, they were based on totally different designs. This also means that the two rests have different weights, the Swiss one being much lighter than its bulkier Chinese counterpart. The Swiss one weighs approximately 110g (4oz) and the Chinese one weighs 185g (6.5oz). This might seem minor; however, on an already heavy rifle, every ounce counts.
Top Chinese, bottom Swiss
As you can see, the systems on each rest that lock it onto the stock are quite different. The Chinese one uses a series of little tabs while the Swiss one has large protrusions coming from the side of the rest body, and these secure it to the stock.
I should also note that the location of the relief hole that the take down pin fits into (the hole on the right side of the cheek piece) is not properly placed on the Chinese one, and it interferes with the stock folding. This is not an issue with the Swiss rest.
Now, on to the aforementioned "issue" I had with my knockoff cheek piece that I had during the Tactical Rifle II course. The issue was I found myself having to constantly push the rest back into place, and the rest even fell off during one of the drills.
Chinese rest after shooting 20 rounds
I've found that the rest will lift up when shooting, and if it isn't pushed back into place, it will eventually work itself off the stock. This isn't an issue if you're only shooting the rifle from a bench, but during a Service Rifle match, the cheek piece falling off could cost you.
Swiss rest after 35 rounds
For reference, the Swiss made rest stays firmly in place. I attribute this to the different locking design inherent in both rests. The Swiss one is well designed, and made for an actual firearm. The Chinese one is an airsoft part, and not a true copy of the original Swiss rest.
So which rest do I recommend?
Well... It depends.
If you're just going to be shooting the rifle from a bench, and you can push the rest back into place every couple of rounds, then the Chinese one will serve you fine. If you're Police/Military/Competition shooter, and need to know that your cheek rest is not going to fall off, dish out the money for the real Swiss one. I like to think of it this way... You have a $3700 rifle, get the proper cheek riser for it, even if it is heinously overpriced for a hunk of plastic.
