I got a couple emails about these today from various websites. What's the deal with MAC? Are they a new company? Any different or better than MKE?

 

There made by Mertsav for SDS IMPORTS/MAC. IMO they are better than MKE. Better welds, fit finish, better magazines and they come with much more. Shoot just as accurate as HK if not better.

 

I received my MAC 5K this afternoon and wanted to open a thread to share my evaluation and its performance at the range. Photos and a Tech Evalwill follow tomorrow! Stand by…

Great.
Here's a Pic of my Mac

 

Do you know if this SEF trigger housing can fit SP5?

 

Not CHF barrel, so not better than MKE/POF in terms of that minor specification.

Either way, happy to see another option in the MP5 market. Hope they're successful.

 

Mine arrived yesterday. I have no complaints!

 

Reminds me of the replica Rolex!!! 🤷🏻‍♂️ some are real close to the real thing and real nice. I guess has its place.
Not a fan of mke though…out of spec!!! Or maybe more accurate to say build to a different spec than German sp5/mp5.

 

Do these come with a 3 position trigger housing?

 

The housing is three position and it requires the front takedown pin. Housing isn't neutered for the clownish HK shelf.

 

Isn't Mertsav a subcontractor for MKE?

 

I doubt it, but somebody said that on here once.

MKE doesn't need to subcontract anything.

 

I’ve been waiting forever for these! Their 2011 clone is great, even their Benelli m2 and m4 clones are great. I may even own their gerber mk2 clone as well…..

 

Did you check the bolt gap on your MAC 5K?

 

I have not. I will check it this weekend.

 

My AP5 has been great, it’s hard to imagine that MAC is any better. If it is I’ll have to pick one up.

 

It really has nothing to do with being better than the AP5. What MAC has is value. Both MAC pistols are less expensive than any AP5 and come with a lot more. Value.

 

MAC 5K with it's two older brothers...

 

So what type of fa bolt carrier denial are they using? The same as the mke with the welded in block on the bottom right, or like the HK SP5K-PDW with the little nub at the top, which you can use the rcm bolt carrier with the shaved top to clear the nub? Or they using the traditional shelf method, but obviously slightly modified to accommodate the push pin; kinda like the mke mini “shelf”, but possibly large enough to avoid the secondary block that the mkes needs.

 

Welded in block on the bottom right.

 

So I've made the leap to the dark side and ordered a MAC5 which should be getting to my FFL's hands by tomorrow.
I did a bit of research to learn more about these MAC MP5 clones and in typical fashion now days, I also ran into some misinformation as well.
So far what I think is on point is that these MP5 clones are being manufactured by Mertsav (Turkey), imported by SDS and sold in the US under the brand name of Military Arms Corp. Mertsav, a multi-manufacturing company that was founded in 1994 and really got into the game of the defense industry in 1997, is supposedly MKE's biggest subcontractor & supplier. From what little I've been able to dig up, these MP5 clones are not manufactured under HK licensing, nor HK tooling. The wording that I've ran across several times is that "These are being manufactured on modern tooling with strict adherence to original HK specifications". This may not mean anything to some but there's a possibility that as far as specs, they may be on point with the real McCoy. This is also reinforced by claims that all parts on these MP5 clones, are 100% compatible to HK parts. Materials of course may or may not be different. For example Mertsav's website advertised that there are 2 options as far as barrels for these MP5 clones. A cold hammered forged version and a steel button rifling version, which seems to be the ones coming to the US, which could have been a MAC contract preference to keep costs down. It's also unclear if Mertsav is 100% manufacturing every single component or this unit comprises on 3rd. party manufactured parts.
While researching information I found out that Mertsav, although small compared to other commercial firearms manufacturers are no slouch. They manufacture other small arms as grenade launchers, an AR based assault rifle and what shocked me the most their MMG556, which is an M249 SAW (minimi) clone which the Malaysian Army is currently holding trials for.
I'm excited for this platform and although I'm not insinuating that this clone is equal to the original and overpriced HK SP5, the price difference sure makes it an attractive contender and only time and usage will be the judge. If I happen to be off on some of the information, I apologize for me reposting it from another source and you can certainly chime in.

 

Let us know how you like it.

 

Other than auto sear compatibility, are there any other parts compatibility differences between the MAC, SP5, and MKE to worry about?

 

Everything has been a match on my MAC 5K.

 

I've got one coming in a few days. I'll give a review after first range session.

 

I had one HELLUVA time with a SiCo 36M on a tri-lug mount. It got stuck on the MAC. I had to disassemble, push/pull/beat it off. Reassembled, tried to attach it again, and it got stuck.

I couldn't even get past the lugs.

After messing with it for about 2 hours, tapping the lugs with a Dremel, and beating & twisting, the can almost fits like it is supposed to.

It sure isn't as nice as my SP5 (and I haven't even shot it yet).

My other problem was the $10 Amazon claw. I have them on my .22 and my SP5, and they work fine. HOWEVER, on the K, since it's so short, the cocking handle wouldn't go to the locked back position because it kept hitting the front corner of the claw.

After putting a 45* ledge on front left corner of the mount, the handle cleared it.

I hope it gets easier from here on out.

 

The black finish on the 3 Lug sometimes is a bit thick. I had to take a piece of fine sand paper and remove the paint. Fits like it should now. I'm running a SiCo Omega 9K.

 

I've got a MAC5 on order.
I'm new to the forum and this format. We'll both need to review these.

 

The MAC5 came in today and I hit the local indoor range.
Got it dialed in with an old Eotech pretty quick.
Had one FTfeed within the first ten rounds. 100% the next 300 or so. More accurate than these old eyes for sure.
Bolt gap was below spec but it ran really well. I'm not going to worry about it until I have to.

 

What is the bolt gap? Go ahead and grab a pair of +6 rollers and install. You don't want to shoot it outside of spec.

 

.009/.23mm
Thank you for the heads up. New platform for me but I'm learning.

 

This forum is an excellent resource.... search your questions and you will find the answers you seek. Don't hesitate to ask anything as you will find most will answer without giving any trouble.

 

Thanks grim.
I'm getting ready to place an order. Anything else you advise on picking up. Push pin for roller access should also be on the list.

 

If you haven't ordered yet, get the +6s instead of the +8s. How much the bolt gap increases depends upon the locking piece you have. Conventional wisdom is that for every +2 increase in rollers, you should get an increase of approximately 0.010mm in bolt gap.

 

You should get the old style roller retainer plate:
Roller Retainer Plate

You should probably get a couple new roller retainer pins (they recommend using a new one each time you drive the old one out):
Retainer Pin

While you are making an order, if you have the funds I would recommend getting a genuine HK extractor, 10 extractor springs, an HK ejector lever, and ejector spring.

 

Well....
After my first range session I remeasured the gap for my own sanity.
I do not have angled feeler gauges so I wasn't getting correct measurements.
It's now .011 not .009 which is obviously at the bottom of the limits.
I couldn't understand why my MAC5 was shooting so smooth and soft, a true delight.
I'm ordering the parts to increase the gap as I'm probably a few thousand rounds away from being too tight.
As stated, this is a new platform for me as I've moved from a state that didn't allow such a firearm. Retirement is bliss!
Side note....This whole anti clone thing reminds me of 1911 "clones" back in the day. Plenty of hiccups along the way. "If it ain't Colt, it's crap" mindset has certainly changed as many builders have stepped up to the plate and improved on John Brownings original design.
Do I see better SP5's coming in the near future not out of Germany? Doubtful as the original is quite expensive which would indicate hand made improvements would be even more expensive.
My personal opinion is the original HK SP5's are over priced. I'm so pleased with the MAC5 I have a hard time believing paying 3X's would get you that much value. Obviously this is a newbees perspective that may change in the future. Until then I'm happy with my purchase.

 

Well....
After my first range session I remeasured the gap for my own sanity.
I do not have angled feeler gauges so I wasn't getting correct measurements.
It's now .011 not .009 which is obviously at the bottom of the limits.
I couldn't understand why my MAC5 was shooting so smooth and soft, a true delight.
I'm ordering the parts to increase the gap as I'm probably a few thousand rounds away from being too tight.
As stated, this is a new platform for me as I've moved from a state that didn't allow such a firearm. Retirement is bliss!
Side note....This whole anti clone thing reminds me of 1911 "clones" back in the day. Plenty of hiccups along the way. "If it ain't Colt, it's crap" mindset has certainly changed as many builders have stepped up to the plate and improved on John Brownings original design.
Do I see better SP5's coming in the near future not out of Germany? Doubtful as the original is quite expensive which would indicate hand made improvements would be even more expensive.
My personal opinion is the original HK SP5's are over priced. I'm so pleased with the MAC5 I have a hard time believing paying 3X's would get you that much value. Obviously this is a newbees perspective that may change in the future. Until then I'm happy with my purchase.

If I had the extra funds I would have purchased the real deal HK SP5/K. However, I am perfectly happy with my clones as they enabled me to join into this community and learn about this platform. I am soon to be retired within a couple of years and am now able to spend more time at the range now that the kids are grown and out on their own. To be honest, I have spent more time and had more fun shooting my MAC and PTR than most of my other firearms.

 

Looks solid! How does it compare to the SP5 and Zenith in terms of fit, finish, and reliability? Any issues with parts compatibility? Curious to hear how it holds up with a high round count.

 

Excellent ! That was lucky.... I was concerned it might be too high and that +6s might be better. I am glad it worked out for you.