The Colt M4 .22lr & HK 416 22lr are made by Umarex. Colt licensed it's good name to an airgun company.
A year ago, I wanted a dedicated .22lr AR platform. I had no idea what I was looking at. The salesman handed me a Colt M4 Ops and a M&P 15-22. The Colt felt reassuringly heavy. It looked the part. It had the Colt logo. I chose it over the M&P 15-22.
I shot it. Having no basis for comparison I thought it was ok. I found it odd that the manual stated that removing the bolt was not necessary. I found it even more odd that there was no easy way to remove the bolt for cleaning.
To separate the Colt upper from the lower, the instruction says to loosen the flash suppressor. I loosened it, and started to push a brush through. Remember the bolt doesn't come out, so cleaning from the breech is not possible. Pushing a rod through was annoying. Even touch the bolt, and it released, slamming into the brush.
I pushed, and all of a sudden the barrel dislocated from the receiver. The flash suppressor unscrewed from the barrel.
The tension provided from the tightened down flash hider is the only thing that holds the barrel in place. I'm mechanically inclined. I figured I'd fully disassemble it and fix it.
These pictures were taken after I wiped off the amazing amount of .22lr crud that built up in the action and on the bolt. Hosing it down with Gun Scrubber, as suggested in the manual, never really got it clean.
Looks good on the outside.
This is what's on the inside.
Barrel dislocation.
Action.
The guts of the upper & action.
Scary isn't it? A pretty shroud over a pencil barrel, and a chintzy action. This is the "quality" of the Umarex product. On top of all of this:
- No last shot hold open.
- Pistol grip is proprietary & not standard AR.
- Butt stock is proprietary & not standard AR.
- Trigger is proprietary & not standard AR.
- The forward assist is just for looks.
- The dust cover is always open, it never holds closed.
I couldn't sell or trade this thing off and keep a clear conscious. A friend of mine, who is unemployed, wanted it. I gave him full disclosure, and gave it to him.
A few weeks later I bought the one I should have bought in the first place, a S&W M&P 15-22.