One of the goals of attending IWA, for me, was to find products or vendors that were not at SHOT Show last January. While Heckler and Koch were at SHOT Show, they had some guns at IWA that were not brought to Vegas. Check out their .308 DMR dubbed the G28Z.
H&K G28Z
The G28Z features a dedicated Schmidt & Bender scope with an Aimpoint T2 mounted to the top of the scope ring.
Engraved into the upper receiver is instructions to document the number of shots. I assume they mean fired.
Some people complain about the color mismatch of the FN SCAR rifles, well the G28Z is in its own league.
How much for this rifle? Why only €9,990.
But Wait There Is More
So besides the G28Z that isn’t available to the US market, H&K showed a couple more. Here is their SP5K. Notice something different about this pistol caliber carbine? Yes, it comes with a B&T folding stock. Price is €2,500. At current exchange rates that makes this $3125.
A stocked stock SP5K a little mundane for you? Well how about this? Yes, they are still making the H&K USC!!
HK243
What really caught my eye was this RAL8000 civilian G36 called the HK243. It is chambered in .223 and from cursory observation looks like a semi-auto version of a G36.
For those not familiar with civilian G36, we never got one in the US. Instead, H&K gave us the SL8. Here is a brief explanation of the SL8 via Wikipedia.
To adapt the G36 for the civilian market, its pistol grip and folding stock have been replaced by a fixed stock with a thumbhole. The receiver has also been modified to prevent attachment of a folding stock. In addition, to comply with the Gun Control Act of 1968 SL8 rifles exported to the United States have been modified so that they will not accept staggered 20- and 30-round G36 magazines. U.S. SL8 rifles accept only a single-column, 10-round magazine. Other modifications have been made to the SL8 including a lightened trigger pull, adjustable cheekpiece and buttplate to customize the fit to the user, and a heavier, more accurate barrel. The SL8 does not come with the carry handle and built-in optics of the G36, although these can be purchased aftermarket and fitted to the weapon.American owners can modify their SL8s to accept 30-round G36 magazines and 100-round drum magazines. Doing so requires that the single-lug SL8 bolt head is replaced with a double-lug G36 bolt head, the magazine well is replaced, and the receiver is modified to permit insertion of a wider magazine body. However, such modifications to SL8 rifles (or indeed to any imported rifles) have significant implications under the 1968 Gun Control Act, which prohibits (inter alia) the assembly from imported parts of rifles that could not themselves be imported.[2]
Tom Bostic is the artist who can convert an SL8 into a G36. I have seen his work in person, a friend paid to have his SL8 converted. It is not cheap and is almost like sexual reassignment surgery regarding what is involved to turn an SL8 into a G36.
And yet German citizens, who have the proper license, can have this HK243. Below are some better pics I took at an HK distributor’s booth.
There are two versions of the “sandfarben” colored HK243. The basic version and this version with aluminum Keymod handguard.
SFP9
What else are we not getting from H&K in Germany? How about optic ready SFP9? We call them VP9 but due to B&T owning the VP9 name in Europe, H&K has to call it the SFP9.
Here is their SFP9 with a milled slide. Notice anything else different about it? It doesn’t have the lever style mag release. Instead, it is a traditional push-button magazine release.
To be honest, I did not notice the push button either until I saw this photo I took of the info card later that day. €829 for the basic pistol and €1,079 for the pistol with five adapter plates. Seems a bit pricey. €50 per optic plate.
More salt for the wound? How about an optics ready SFP9L? The SFP9L is only €30 more than the standard length SFP9. But the price is the same if you get the five adapter kit.
And finally here is the tip of the iceberg of things we don’t get from HKUSA. H&K gun gummies. They are molded to the shape of the SFP9.