I got the Century MKE CORE versions of the AP5-P and the AP5 (both with a brace) to compare. ** I can really only afford to keep one, so it's a bit of a Death Match. That said, if the "winner" ever gives me trouble, I'll likely just spring for an SP5 and eat a lot of ramen for 3 months. 
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MAGS (magazines are important):
I have 6 HK mags and 2 MKE mags (though I'm only using one to test). Of the two OMAGs, I only tested one, but discarded it because of misfeeds at some point between the 28th and 32nd round...after 4 tries, I gave up on it (it seems to me the spring is just too weak--though maybe I should give it another chance now that both guns are totally broken in). I just cycled through the 6 HKs and 1 MKE, over and over.
SHOOTING IMPRESSION:
I assumed I'd like the shorter gun since it's lighter and handier (this turned out not to be the case, but I'm still wondering if it WILL matter one day in a year or two, when I get a can).
Ultimately, I like the longer AP5 with extra LOP and real-estate (though oddly, I don't really reach my hand out anywhere near the end of the handguard), despite it being noticeably heavier (it's only 1lb, but that's still like 17-20% heavier). I didn't actually notice one shooting softer than the other. They're both very soft. I DO have a Griffin micro-brake as a thread-protector on both, but can't say if it helps though I assume so (I HAVE noticed it helps enough to notice on a Glock 19 and P320); the AP5-P has a Tailhook Mod1C brace AND an SB brace (the latter is 1/2" longer, which I like). But, honestly, whether I'm shooting supported or moving and shooting, I don't notice the bigger gun being softer (if it is, it's probably less than I can notice, so it could be 10-15% softer--I THINK I'd notice a 20% difference).
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ACCURACY:
(NOTE: ammo has been almost all S&B 124 and AE 124, though I've also shot S&B 115, Blazer 115, and AE 115)
RELIABILITY:
CONCLUSION:
I am having a hard time picking a favorite.
I think I'd love the AP5-P set up super-lightweight with the SHIELD mount which I'd modify to take the full-size Holosun EPS red dot (which would co-witness). However, the longer LOP on the AP5 (due to the rear-plate placement) really makes it feel better. I KNOW I could get an UMP stock to add length to the P-model, but the AP5 also is going to make it easier to mount a light (which I think all HD guns must have). I have a workaround for the AP5-P, but it's not ideal--and the best solutions are super expensive scout mounts. So I feel like it's the smarter choice even if I don't have a real preference.
IF the AP5 had been the one that was 100% from day one, it would be an easier choice, but I think I'm still going to go with it. This will limit my suppressor choices down to the ones in the sub-6" range and nothing too heavy (whereas with the AP5-P, I figured I could run a 7.5-8" full-length one like a Wolfman at 14.5 ounces).
The guns:
![Image]()
![Image]()
Here you can see the taped shots of me walking the red dot to the right at 5Y, then once centered, I moved it to 25Y, and it was almost dead on, but maybe still .5" to .75" to the right (NOTE: the taped shot in the upper left was when I wasn't looking at the target and aimed the gun to the left a bit to check the ejection pattern--which was consistently hitting the ground at like 25ft away, going slightly forward, at 1:30 from me):
![Image]()
Then I moved the dot a bit too much and was like .25"-.5" to the left (25Y)--good enough until I check it at 50Y:
![Image]()
--
MAGS (magazines are important):
I have 6 HK mags and 2 MKE mags (though I'm only using one to test). Of the two OMAGs, I only tested one, but discarded it because of misfeeds at some point between the 28th and 32nd round...after 4 tries, I gave up on it (it seems to me the spring is just too weak--though maybe I should give it another chance now that both guns are totally broken in). I just cycled through the 6 HKs and 1 MKE, over and over.
SHOOTING IMPRESSION:
I assumed I'd like the shorter gun since it's lighter and handier (this turned out not to be the case, but I'm still wondering if it WILL matter one day in a year or two, when I get a can).
Ultimately, I like the longer AP5 with extra LOP and real-estate (though oddly, I don't really reach my hand out anywhere near the end of the handguard), despite it being noticeably heavier (it's only 1lb, but that's still like 17-20% heavier). I didn't actually notice one shooting softer than the other. They're both very soft. I DO have a Griffin micro-brake as a thread-protector on both, but can't say if it helps though I assume so (I HAVE noticed it helps enough to notice on a Glock 19 and P320); the AP5-P has a Tailhook Mod1C brace AND an SB brace (the latter is 1/2" longer, which I like). But, honestly, whether I'm shooting supported or moving and shooting, I don't notice the bigger gun being softer (if it is, it's probably less than I can notice, so it could be 10-15% softer--I THINK I'd notice a 20% difference).
--
ACCURACY:
(NOTE: ammo has been almost all S&B 124 and AE 124, though I've also shot S&B 115, Blazer 115, and AE 115)
- Both guns are crazy accurate.
- I shot groups with irons and a red-dot on both guns (at 20Y & 25Y--50Y and 100Y are coming soon). Generally, I'd shoot groups at a faster cadence than normal for me--at my fastest, it was .5 cadence, but sometimes I'd slow to a 1.5 second cadence. Average was closer to .75 than 1.0.
- I found that the AP5-P castle rear drum seemed a little easier for me to align horizontally, as sometimes due to my cheek-weld, I couldn't see the AP5's whole front-sight-hood through the rear-aperture to align it perfectly--I was using the smallest or 2nd smallest aperture (I'm assuming that's the way to be most accurate), and on one or two occasions, I got a group that was centered 1/2" to the right. IF I supported the gun and got a perfect sight-picture, it was always centered. But at 20Y, both guns shot a 30rd group within a 1.5" hole using irons or the dot (a Holosun AEMS). And, again, this is NOT going slow. At 25Y, it wasn't much bigger. Maybe 1.75"-2" tops (see pics).
- At 25Y, the iron sight holes were maybe .5" bigger than the red-dot's--it was barely noticeable as they were still obviously one hole. Oddly, I haven't had a single flyer outside of the ragged hole in any of the 12-15 groups I've shot supported or unsupported (but this will show up more at 50-100). Shooting unsupported I tend to shoot a less-defined ragged hole (I just realized a "30 round group" doesn't give as much information as a 5-10rd group might); you'd see speckles of bullet holes on the edge of the main hole. I really want to see what 50Y and 100Y looks like. I wonder if at that distance, the classic drum reticle will start to shine.
- At 5Y to 10Y, the POI is about 1" low with irons and 1.5-1.75" with the dot. Double-taps can be touching in the 5-10Y range, but often are up to 1" apart (I didn't do any double-taps past 10Y). I DID notice that I can outrun the trigger sometimes, and it won't double-tap...it just occurred to me that maybe I didn't let the trigger out enough to reset it (but I think I did)--I just pulled super fast and sometimes I'd get a hard-stop, and have to let go so it would reset.
RELIABILITY:
- Both guns were cleaned and lubed as soon as I got them. I cycled them both quite a bit, and they definitely feel smoother after cleaning and lubrication. I also put an SEF "navy"(?) style trigger housing on both as well as a Magpul ESK selector.
- I shot the AP5-P first. It was 100% through all 250rds.
- Two days later, a friend and I took the AP5 for it's "break-in". We had 2 FTEs in the first mag (HK) where an empty case would end up crushed and not ejected. It happened 2 more times in the second mag (HK)--the first of these I let fall back into the trigger housing and had to disassemble to remove (what a pain!!!). Then it didn't happen again until somewhere around round #280, in the 10th mag...and nothing else through the first 500rds. Oddly, the failures were all with DIFFERENT HK mags, but not the one MKE mag, so it wasn't likely mag related unless the springs were a bit tight.
- I took it home, cleaned it, and installed a German ejector (the ejector pin in the AP5 has a retaining clip, but the AP5-P does not--a friend doesn't have a retaining clip on his SP5 or his Zenith ejector pin, which I thought was odd--I didn't see it at first, and couldn't figure out why the pin wouldn't push out). Anyway. The next day, I returned to the range and started with the AP5, the 2nd round had an FTE with crushed brass in it, but then it shot the next 268rds (8 more mags) without a single failure. The AP5-P shot another 200rds without a single failure.
- On the third trip, I just gave both guns a small wipe down inside and around the bolt as well as added some lube. The AP5 shot 250rds without an issue, and the AP5-P shot 250rds without an issue. So at this point, the AP5-P has about 500rds and has been 100%. The AP5 has closer to 800rds, and has had 6 failures, 4 of which were in the first 2 mags, and one of which was the second round after the new ejector was installed--but it's been perfect for over 500rds now. I trust it, but I won't call it 100% reliable until I get another 8-10 mags through it with no problems.
CONCLUSION:
I am having a hard time picking a favorite.
I think I'd love the AP5-P set up super-lightweight with the SHIELD mount which I'd modify to take the full-size Holosun EPS red dot (which would co-witness). However, the longer LOP on the AP5 (due to the rear-plate placement) really makes it feel better. I KNOW I could get an UMP stock to add length to the P-model, but the AP5 also is going to make it easier to mount a light (which I think all HD guns must have). I have a workaround for the AP5-P, but it's not ideal--and the best solutions are super expensive scout mounts. So I feel like it's the smarter choice even if I don't have a real preference.
IF the AP5 had been the one that was 100% from day one, it would be an easier choice, but I think I'm still going to go with it. This will limit my suppressor choices down to the ones in the sub-6" range and nothing too heavy (whereas with the AP5-P, I figured I could run a 7.5-8" full-length one like a Wolfman at 14.5 ounces).
The guns:
Here you can see the taped shots of me walking the red dot to the right at 5Y, then once centered, I moved it to 25Y, and it was almost dead on, but maybe still .5" to .75" to the right (NOTE: the taped shot in the upper left was when I wasn't looking at the target and aimed the gun to the left a bit to check the ejection pattern--which was consistently hitting the ground at like 25ft away, going slightly forward, at 1:30 from me):
Then I moved the dot a bit too much and was like .25"-.5" to the left (25Y)--good enough until I check it at 50Y:
