HK 416 D Tactical Rimfire: The Good & Bad

[Chopstix Kid]

My HK416D Tactical Rimfire arrived today from Adam at HKPARTS.net. He had the best price I had seen so far and as always, took the time to answer all my questions. All I can say is that this ain't anything like your Grandpappy's rimfire...

I want to preface this review with what this firearm really is; from everything I can see, it's an HK made by Walther which is why I call it how I see it... an HK416 Rimfire. Umarex is merely the importer and the warranty servicer.

Right off the get go, it becomes very apparent with it's packing and paperwork:










Nicely packaged. Not the best I have seen, but far better than an SL8:






The firearm is cleanly marked with all the prevalent markings paint-filled and the minor markings not:










German proof marks on the internals. Uncertain on why it is not on the other components. Perhaps Walther outsourced the shell casting to another country. I am not an expert on German proofing laws.






The grip has a storage compartment as does the functioning telescopic stock (4-position). The stock storage compartment appears to have a rubber seal on the butt-pad but the tolerance isn't solid enough to make it water-proof. Water resistant in rain perhaps.


















Mechanical but not functioning forward assist:




O-ring tensioned FH is good quality. I question how well the o-ring will hold up over time but being a rimfire, there really isn't must reason to remove it.






Not a solid barrel. The O.D. is a sleeve. The barrel itself is not much thicker that what you see in the photos and has some play inside the sleeve:




The faux gas block has a flip-down front sight mount and Walther does offer it as an add-on. There's also what appears to be a bayonet lug:




The detachable sights are good quality... well suited for a rimfire:






More random photos:




















Closing Summary

It's a very solid rifle. A bit lighter that its big brother but it has the same ergonomic feel. All aluminum construction and functional picatiny rails really add to its value. Far more rugged than the GSG-5.

The forward-assist and BHO are cosmetic although it does have a BHO when the mag is empty. Pulliing back on the charging handle releases it. Fuctional push-pin breakdown and dust-cover are a plus.

Very impressed with the quality of the furniture. Rugged plastic with functional and useful storage compartments.

The internals are on par for a rimfire. I did not take the time to disassemble but at a glance looks to just as much a PIA as any other.

The barrel is this firearm's weakness. The thin walls and apparent "flimsyness" of the barrel insert will really prevent this rifle from being an accurate distance shooter. I have yet to shoot it so I may be proven wrong.

You can not compare this firearm to the more traditional 10/22 or various others. Two completely different class of firearms. If you want to hunt, buy the Ruger. If you want something that can be used as a tactical trainer, then this fits the bill. I would rate this on par with the SIG rimfire... THUMBS UP!

[rob_xxx]

good write up sir! I cant wait for the range review as a follow-up!

[SDduc996]

Awesome! Thanks Joe. My boy is DEFINITELY getting one of these! He's only 14 months old right now, but I figure it'll be nice and broken in for him when he's ready.

[dwillHK]

Thanks for all the pics! I think the reason those proofs are on the internals are because those are the actual gun parts that are tested. I think the internal white metal shell containing the bolt is the actual receiver. The exterior shell is just cosmetic and there are probably some laws about putting official proofs on things that aren't proof tested. I was wondering about that O-ring myself, since apparently you are supposed to loosen the FH to take the pressure off the rear receiver pin before breaking it open as shown in the first video on this page (it shows the Colt M4 .22LR, but it looks like the same Walther internals in a different exterior shell).

http://www.colt22rimfire.com/index.php?page=videos

From what I've heard, the FH and O-ring tighten the barrel and action up to enhance accuracy, but I wouldn't think that constantly loosening and tightening the FH will be good in the long term.

The one negative for me is that you can't take the bolt out, so you have limited access to get to the bolt face and chamber for cleaning, and the only to get a bore brush in from the chamber end is to run a bore snake in through the muzzle and out the ejection port, and then attach a small brush and drag it out the barrel as shown in the video. You have to use a short bore brush since there is only about an inch of space between the open bolt and the barrel.

[planman]

Thanks for the review and the pics.

[Shattered Mind]

Thanks for all the pics! I think the reason those proofs are on the internals are because those are the actual gun parts that are tested.

Not really... the Germans are just anal about marking and numbering every single piece of a firearm. It's also why every German gun always works. Even the armory cleaning crews doing bunches of guns manage to get each guns parts back on the right gun. Interestingly enough, the only German guns I saw that screwed up right out of the box were Walther. Some of those G-22 Walther rifles were crap as were their P-22 counterparts. Makes you wonder if Walther didn't just farm the name out to some other company. I've got PPKs, P-88s, a P-99 in 40 and P-38s that are perfection in steel.

Why the major swing in quality to crap (on some recent guns)?

[c-venn]

Great pics, I almost want to buy one now. Does the Flash Hider come off if so what is the tread pitch?

[Chopstix Kid]

From what I've heard, the FH and O-ring tighten the barrel and action up to enhance accuracy, but I wouldn't think that constantly loosening and tightening the FH will be good in the long term.

Yep. That's their way of taking the "play" out of the barrel. Crap if you ask me. They really should have put a heavy barrel in it. They probably went this way for #1 cost, #2 weight.... the lack of a the heavy barrel keeps me from rating this thing as perfect.

Great pics, I almost want to buy one now. Does the Flash Hider come off if so what is the tread pitch?

Yes. FH comes off... it's shown in the photos (yes, I know there's a ton of photos). I did not guage the pitch yet.

[seven.sixtwo]

Great write up. Chop. What is the action on this thing? Simple blow back just like the 10/22? Does it get as dirty as the 10/22? (Dwill?)

[SDduc996]

I'm wondering if it would be possible to swap the barrel altogether with another barrel?