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Real Steel History:
The Heckler und Koch G36 assault rifle had been born as the HK-50 project in the early 1990s. The reason behind that project was that the Bundeswehr (the German army), after the cancellation of the G11 and G41 projects, was left with the outdated G3 rifle and no modern rifle, compatible with the current NATO standards at hands. So, the famous company Heckler & Koch was set to develop a new assault rifle for the both the German army and the export market. The new rifle should was to be a flexible, affordable and extremely reliable design. The G36c is an extremely compact assault rifle that is perfect for CQB or even woodland.


Ordering:
I ordered my gun Saturday morning around 1 or 2 AM from Airsoft GI. The order process was a little frustrating, it kept saying I lived in Alabama and when I changed it to Kansas it went back to Alabama, it finally stopped after a few tries. Also to the people located in California there is a sales tax of, I believe, around 10 dollars. The gun showed up at my front door on Friday so big thanks to Airsoft GI. They are a great retailer to do business with. Note: All of the new JG G36c's I have seen on the net are the new V2's, which are said to have better ROF and higher velocity there have been reports of the V2s only getting 9rps on the stock battery. And a lot of people have been confused about Echo1. They are just like UTG, they take a gun in this case Jing Gong G36c and take it out of the box, test fire it, put it in there Echo1 box, and ship them to retailers. They then provide customer service and a warranty.


First Impressions:
Once I got home I ripped the paper open and was greeted by a bluish Echo1 box that said in big letters X36C. When I opened the box I saw a stack of papers from ASGI about shipping, defects, returns, blah blah blah. It came with the manual which is pretty much just like Tokyo Marui's. It even talks about the TM tracer unit. Also included is an 8.4v battery, more on that later a trickle type wall charger, cleaning rod, magazine, and the gun with an orange plastic barrel cap. I pulled the gun out, removed the handguard and popped the battery in, I pulled the trigger, and POP POP the gun came to life. It has got a low pitched pop for the firing sound. I clicked it down to full auto and noticed how smooth the fire selector was, it glided across then locked firmly on a desired selection. I probably should have put the battery on the charger but I couldn’t resist ,I loaded the hi-cap and stepped outside, then quickly took aim at my favorite target and let off a quick burst. The rounds took flight and went straight into orbit. After adjusting the hop-up, which is stiff at first, I was consistently hitting a 3 foot tall tree stump at 150 feet. not bad for a gun that is only 28 and a quarter inches long 19” long with the stock folded. Satisfied, I then threw the battery on the charger and studied the gun a little more.

Manual
The manual actually surprised me. It didn’t have many spelling mistakes and was in very easy to read, almost no engrish. It had a lot of diagrams for the breakdown of the gun, cleaning the barrel, even trouble shooting. A good manual is a plus in my book. I don’t even use it but it will help the newbies figure out their problems instead of crowding the forums up.

Magazine:
Not much to say here, it does its job well and feeds flawlessly. It can drain the mag on a single set of winds. It’s black and doesn’t wobble at all when in the magazine well. Ill be headed to JT to pick up a hi-cap mag, from what I’ve heard they feed well. I just tested my buddy’s BE hi-cap and it didn’t fit, I think the feed nozzle doesn’t line up, oh well. I just tried a TM hi-cap in this gun and it feeds perfectly. After buying a BE hi-cap at JT, I busted out the old Dremel, and shaved off the circular walls around the feed nozzle. But it was all to no avail. It’s pretty hard to get it to fit. I did have 1 to 2 BBs feed but that was with the magazine friction fit into the magazine well, and it just didn’t cut it.


So I bought a PPA M4 magwell conversion and tested it with Airsoft Elite, and MAG midcaps. The gun swapped magwells perfectly, the finish isn’t exactly the same being the magwell is a tad grayer. MAG midcaps feed perfectly but the Airsoft Elite mags required some electrical tape to fit snugly enough to feed well, but they feed perfect now. A lot of people say M4 mags ruin the look of the gun but when I have 10 M4 mags sitting on my desk being used for 1 gun I sure as heck will try to use them more. I think M4 mags compliment the styling of the g36.

Externals:
This gun is extremely solid and has no flex at all. The plastic is slightly textured very similar to a TM only from what I noticed the TMs body was slicker. The gun isn’t creaky at all, but I will admit out of any G36 I have held the Classic Army model is the absolute strongest.


The following are all metal on the JG G36C: Front sling post, handguard rail, flash hider, hop-up cover, trigger, selector switch, front and rear sights, all the body and stock pins, and the gearbox. The gun is flat black but when held up to the light it has an amber-ish glow it’s very strange and I like it. The only different colors on the gun are of course the selector markings and the hop -up/bolt cover the latter being a deep gray.


The only problem I can see is the stock is a little stiff when trying to get unlocked when folded, this will most likely go away with time. I sprayed a little silicon lube on the hinge pin and back folding assembly and now the stuck is a lot smoother when changing configurations. With a little bit of use the stock is now perfect. It locks hard on to the side of the gun but when pressed up and out it swings perfectly into locking position.
The selector switch is made out of metal with a slight rubbery texture which makes it extremely easy to change selections. Like many HK guns there is a selector on each side, which is a big plus because I am a southpaw. The switch clicks positively into each selection. I can’t say the same for BEs G36 series, both my friends G36 and SL8 need to be held in full auto because they vibrate out of position easily.

Internals:
I haven’t cracked open the gearbox mainly because I just got it and I won’t jack with it till it breaks or I want to upgrade it. I’ve heard reports of no shims in the gun, with this type of power output that is scary and could result in a very unreliable gun. I however will reserve my opinion until I see a problem and so far the gun has been shooting flawlessly. The hop-up is very responsive and is adjusted via the G36 dial. Personally I’m not a fan of the dial adjustment but it does its job so I can’t complain. It is a direct copy of the TM. In the 1st Protocol G36 review, it was claimed the spring felt a little weak which might be because of some insane compression, I don’t know, but I can verify this upon opening the gearbox. They also tested the shimming of the gun and it was reported to have no gear grind and little play. Judging by the sound of the gun, there isn’t any gear grind or weird sounds so I think this thing will last, time will tell. I haven’t had any semi auto lock ups, where you have to switch into auto to be able to fire. That happened quite a bit with my Well R6 but that gun is a whole different story. The battery that comes with the gun is very nice and fits solidly into the handguard. I must say it is the best battery I have with an mpeg. There have been reports of it not fitting in the M4/M733 series but it fits like a charm with the G36C. The battery is an 8.4 1100 mAh NI-MH, so no memory problems. The gun is 100% TM compatible, and it is taken down just like the TM and accepts every TM compatible kit. When taken down to the gearbox I noticed a slight amount of grease on the gearbox shell. But overall the Gearbox looked extremely nice. No bad casting, no metal shavings, the cylinder was solid, which was a problem for my BE Steyr AUG. And the wiring is fairly nice 16 gauge wiring.

Performance:
This thing shoots quite far, I am consistently hitting a tree trunk from 150 feet. I did a poor mans chrono test with a Diet Coke (with Lime) and it went straight through both sides. I also shot the bottom and it pierced it (didn’t go in). But that is quite impressive.

Entrance

Exit

Bottom

Durability:
Can’t say yet but trust me this gun is going to have the crap beat out of it and we’ll see how long it lasts. Judging by how smooth the GB is running I think it will last, but only time will tell. I have shot about 1500 rounds through this gun, with not 1 miss-feed, jam, or lock up. It’s done its job so far, not only internally, but externally as well. I’ve played all day with it, going through w weeds, branches, and debris and not one scratch on it. It has also survived 2 falls one from 3 feet directly onto a tile floor (hey what are little kids for). And another off of my dresser, around 5 feet, onto a wood floor. And it’s still pumping out BBs like a little champ. So far it has lasted over 4000 rounds without a single jam. That’s not half bad


Skirmish Report:
I went to a skirmish a few weeks ago at a farm. We had 3 abandoned barns to choose from so naturally we chose the biggest. 2 others and I defended the barn while the other 6 were on assault. Near the beginning my buddy got 2 kills right off the bat. When the remaining 4 took a flanking strategy. I held them off for a few minutes making them duck their heads 120 feet away. Their BBs made it to me but by the time they did I already saw them coming and dodged them. I got the 3 out who decided to make a run for it and quickly eliminated the last man. It was the same story the whole day, I didn’t count how many kills I racked up, but I definateley had the most. I love this gun, I never was outgunned, never ran out of ammo in the middle of the firefight, and most importantly, never regretted pressing “Verify Order” when I made the decision to buy this gun.


Future Modifications:
Any gun I get I must change, so I’m thinking a larger handguard and maybe a Private Parts Magwell for M4/16 magazine compatibility.

Those are the best slippers ever

Pros & Cons:
Pros:
Affordable (135 shipped from ASGI)
Sturdy
Nice Battery (8.4 1100mah NI-MH
Hits the 330+ mark fps wise
It looks so dang sexy


Cons:
Stock is a little stiff
Some small seam lines
Heavy(some find that a pro)


Variants:
G36 variants are:
G36E- Export model with no RDS on top of the standard scope/carry handle.
G36- Normal version. Has the dual sight system with both an RDS and a magnifying scope.
G36K- Kurz, or shortened G36.
G36KE- Shortened G36E.
G36KV- Rare variant with a different scope rail, Norwegian (I think).
MG36- LMG equipped with a drum magazine.
G36C- Compact or commando
SL8- Civilian sniper rifle
SL9SD- 7.62x37 (Yes that’s 37, not 39) Caliber version of the SL8 also features a surpressor.


Conclusion:
I’ve held many different guns and even owned a few high end guns (ICS Ak74 and a TM Beta Spets), from what I have seen so far this is the best gun I have ever owned. It is truly worth every penny. If you’re a G36 fan you have got to order one of these, you’ll feel the same way I feel.

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