[Litigator123]

I had an SL-8 converted (costmetically) to a G36 by Tom Bostic. Results were fantastic. No changes to the interals. Cut the barrel down a bit and added a long 4 prong flash hider and demiled stock etc. Other than that , pure SL-8.

I already know it WILL NOT feed steel case ammo - have no idea why.

Now, I tried Silver Bear ammo. While it cycled flawlessly, it had the most unusual results. At 15 yards, the bullets were tumbling so badly that they literally hit the paper sideways. I brought back the paper with 7 or so bullet shaped holes and 2 or 3 actual round holes. Another G36 owner at my range said his does the same thing. I gave the same rounds to another shooter with an AR and they fired perfectly.

WHY?????????????? What could be causing this only in the SL8????????????? It fires any brass cased ammo flawlessly and with pinpoint accuracy.

 

[Chopstix Kid]

What is the bullet grain? SL8's have a 1:7 twist barrel so it typically prefers a heavier round, 75gr ideally. If you had something lighter, say 55gr, the AR owner may have had a 1:9 twist barrel which would theoretically make a 55gr round perform better than a 1:7 twist barrel.

 

[S5TIIOwner]

An over stabilized bullet shouldn't cause key holing.
Have you checked your prongs for copper marks from bullet strikes? Russian ammo is super weak.

 

[aziroc]

An over stabilized bullet shouldn't cause key holing.
Have you checked your prongs for copper marks from bullet strikes? Russian ammo is super weak.

iid check this. i shoot mostly 55gr stuff at paper and ive never had an issue with it.

 

[Litigator123]

An over stabilized bullet shouldn't cause key holing.
Have you checked your prongs for copper marks from bullet strikes? Russian ammo is super weak.

Yes, but if it were only the weak load then the weapon wouldn't cycle well, and furthermore, why did it only happen with the G36? M4 platform didn't do it.

Does anyone else shoot silver bear with their SL8/G36?

 

[Chopstix Kid]

Was the other G36 a factory gun or a conversion with conversion barrel. Could also be bad crowning or a flash hider that is not dead on bore center. When the FH was pinned, the muzzle could have also been damaged.

 

[Litigator123]

Was the other G36 a factory gun or a conversion with conversion barrel. Could also be bad crowning or a flash hider that is not dead on bore center. When the FH was pinned, the muzzle could have also been damaged.

The exact same defect on two separate rifles? And wouldn't that error affect ALL ammunition , not just Silver Bear. This ONLY happens with Silver Bear. It must have at least something to do with THAT ammo and THAT gun. But what? How can the same rifle be a tac driver with say American Eagle and throwing the bullets sideways at 15 yards with Silver Bear?

 

[LCSO264]

I have no idea what would cause this, but I think it is an ammo issue.

 

[straightgrain]

Comparing the SL8 function with an AR is not really instructive. They are nominally the same caliber. After that, not much is the same. I would venture to say that the powder used in the Silver Bear ammo is not sufficient for the proper functioning of the SL8. It could very easily have sufficient energy to cycle the action *without* having enough energy to stabilize the bullet. I still have no clue why folks insist on putting [email protected] gas in a Porsche...

 

[Litigator123]

Comparing the SL8 function with an AR is not really instructive. They are nominally the same caliber. After that, not much is the same. I would venture to say that the powder used in the Silver Bear ammo is not sufficient for the proper functioning of the SL8. It could very easily have sufficient energy to cycle the action *without* having enough energy to stabilize the bullet. I still have no clue why folks insist on putting [email protected] gas in a Porsche...

OK, so the ammo has just enough energy to cycle the weapon perfectly, but thereafter fails miserably thereafter - tumbling the round at 15 yds? Then that same round cycles an AR and shoots perfectly? Why would an SL8 take more energy or force to shoot than a similarly weighted AR? Am I the only fascinated by this? Once the round is ignited (leaving aside the recoil and reloading aspect) how different is an AR from the SL8. You have a bullet being propelled out the barrel by the force of the explosion. What is so different between the rifles? (barrel twist?) IDK


Why put cheap gas in a Porsche? Well, primarily so I can drive it more. (obviously) secondarily, b/c it's supposed to be built for it. I put regular gas in my BMW why? It's built for it! Says so in the manual.
If the HK is to be held up as the preeminent firearm in its class, it shouldn't be that picky about ammo. (right?) The design should be robust enough and forgiving enough to handle various sorts of ammo. It obviously isn't. The list of ammo this SL8 won't shoot is growing. Although no one seems to know why.

 

[S5TIIOwner]

How far did your cases eject in the Russian ammo that cycled perfectly?

 

[Litigator123]

How far did your cases eject in the Russian ammo that cycled perfectly?

I didn't note exactly where it was chucking them, but I didn't note any blurps or dribble outs FWIW.

 

[S5TIIOwner]

How far is your bbl cut down?

 

[Litigator123]

How far is your bbl cut down?

I believe it was cut to just over the minimum - 18" ish

 

[dwillHK]

You say you have a long FH, but your barrel is only cut down two inches to 18"? How long is your FH?

 

[Litigator123]

It's the "long" four prong sold by Adam at HK parts.net (I think it's about 3-4") Barrel could be cut to just over 16 and thus the longer FH. Total rifle is just over 30 aol with the stock extended (for CA law)

 

[cosmos0665]

Litigator
Next time after I go out shooting I’ll try to remember and contact you so I can give you a feedback about my g36. We have similar rifles. Tom did mine too. The only difference is that I have a factory k barrel from a kit. The last time I took that out I used 55 and 62 gr ammo. I’ll pay more attention next time. The only thing I notice from the rifle is the pinging sound every time I fire it.

 

[Litigator123]

Litigator
Next time after I go out shooting I’ll try to remember and contact you so I can give you a feedback about my g36. We have similar rifles. Tom did mine too. The only difference is that I have a factory k barrel from a kit. The last time I took that out I used 55 and 62 gr ammo. I’ll pay more attention next time. The only thing I notice from the rifle is the pinging sound every time I fire it.

Yeah, I get the "ping" - kind of cool once you know what the devil it is. Have you tried Silver Bear in yours? Also, can yours fire steel case. Mine WILL NOT.

 

[Chopstix Kid]

The "ping" is created when the carrier returns to battery and the anvil hits the op-rod.

 

[cosmos0665]

Yeah, I get the "ping" - kind of cool once you know what the devil it is. Have you tried Silver Bear in yours? Also, can yours fire steel case. Mine WILL NOT.

Yes, I've used Federal, American Eagle, Remington, Fiocchi, silver/brown bear and wolf. Whatever is on sale. What happens when you use steel case?