Heckler & Koch is no stranger to making high quality rifles, and this year the company was continuing to show off their “Competition Model” of the previously released MR556A1. The Competition model was originally debuted at the 2014 SHOT Show, and is now in full production and availability. Though marketed to the 3-gun shooting market, there are features that make the Competition model an interesting possibility as a patrol level marksman rifle.
The HK MR556A1 was released as the civilian, semi-auto version of the venerable, war-tested HK416 select fire rifle, and has had a good deal of success in the market. Heckler & Koch has been a unique friend to American law enforcement for many decades, going back to the days where the HK MP-5 was the go-to selection for many major SWAT Teams around the country.
HK MR556A1 Competition Model Specifications:
- Overall Length – 37.68″ extended; 33.90″ retracted
- Barrel Length – 16.5″
- Weight – 8.60 lbs. (without magazine)
- Width – 3.07″
- Height – 9.45″
- Caliber – 5.56mm (will fire “most” quality .223 rounds)
- Upper Receiver –
- Lower Receiver –
- Barrel – German made cold-hammer forged high quality steel, no chrome lining
- Twist Rate – 1:7, with (6) lands and grooves
- Trigger – Enhanced 2-stage, 7.64 lb. pull
- Action – Semi-automatic
- Capacity – 10/20/30-round magazines (higher and lower capacities possible)
- Manufactured in the USA with German components
- MSRP – $2947.00.
The MR556A1 Competition model includes a 14.5″ key mod, free-floating rail system so the shooter can customize accessories as they desire, without the added weight of straight Picatinny rails. There is an integral quick detach sling attachment point at the rear of the rail system. A standard SW11 hand guard screw on the bottom of the rail system at the rear allows for easy installation and removal. HK’s engineering guarantees a return to zero upon re-attachment.
The MR556A1 barrel is moderately “swagged” during the cold hammer forging. This begins a very fine tapering of the barrel towards the muzzle end. The HK engineers have found that reducing the internal barrel’s dimensions very slightly from the chamber end to the muzzle end, increases bullet trajectory, velocity, and accuracy.
The MR556A1 Competition model comes standard with an extended charging handle. This allows shooters to use longer scopes without interfering in the operation of the rifle.
The Competition model also switches out the standard MR buttstock, that has a dual sloped cheek weld design, for the more sleek Magpul CTR adjustable stock. The CTR still provides a good shooting platform, and has been a very popular selection among AR-15 shooters. It has a 6-point adjustment, and includes a friction lock feature that allows the shooter to lock the stock into place through an Allen wrench screw on the bottom of the buttstock. The CTR comes standard with a 0.30″ rubber butt pad.
MR556A1 Competition Additions
- 14″ Modular Rail System (MRS), free-floating, key-mod design
- Extended Arredondo magazine release
- Operator Suppressor Systems (OSS) innovative compensator
- Magpul CTR collapsible buttstock.
The MR556A1 uses the Heckler & Koch proprietary gas piston operating system. This famous system employs a piston with a solid operating “pusher” rod instead of the gas tube found in standard gas-impingement AR-15 rifles. The gas piston system has proven itself to be a very viable operating system, and the HK gas piston system is one of the best in the world.
Due to the enclosed design of operation, the HK gas piston system virtually eliminates malfunctions that are more common to the direct impingement gas systems because hot carbon fouling and waste gases do not enter the receiver area. This same key feature has been critical to the success of the HK416 rifles used by leading military and law enforcement customers.
The MR556A1 is produced in the USA using American and German made components.
From the Heckler & Koch press release:
“We took the basic MR556A1 and added a few tweaks and accessories to make it the ideal gun platform for competition matches — especially 3 gun competitions,” said Jason Koon, captain of HK’s Shooting Team and originator of the new rifle.
“With its inherent precision accuracy, there wasn’t much we needed to do to make this 556 rifle an excellent comp gun,” continued Koon. “It needed a longer, more comfortable handguard and a slimmer buttstock. Together with a larger magazine release and effective compensator and that’s about all you want to add.”
The Competition Model is equipped with a new, extended 14-inch handguard produced by HK’s Newington, New Hampshire manufacturing facility. A Magpul CTR buttstock replaces the standard stock and an advanced compensator developed by OSS (Operators Suppressor Systems) supersedes the conventional MR flash hider.