Army Armament R36 AR36C GBBR

For the experienced Airsofter who wants to add some variety to their gameplay, there is little that will raise the bar quite like a GBBR. GBBRs function exactly like real rifles, feed from real capacity magazines and require a fully realistic manual of arms to operate, including use of the charging handle and bolt release catch. A split second after you pull the trigger you are thumped in the shoulder by the jarring recoil provided by the fully reciprocating bolt carrier and are greeted with a dramatic blast of gas bursting out of the ejection port. These rifles are the most realistic on the market, but will only be appreciated by those who enjoy a challenge, and really testing their skills!

The Army Armament R36 is constructed almost entirely from high density fibre reinforced polymer with a textured surface finish, matching the real rifle perfectly in feel, weight and balance. The outer barrel, flash hider, dummy piston and gas block are all constructed from alloy, as are the internals and the removable handguard 20mm rails. If you are an AR36 fan and want to take your proficiency to the next level, this is how you do it!

Starting at the front we can find a four-prong AR36C style flash hider which conceals 14mm CCW male barrel threading beneath. This means if you want to add a suppressor or tracer unit you can do it right away, with no need for extra adapters, and no worries about compatibility. The barrel itself is constructed from alloy, and beneath the handguard, we can also see a realistic mock short-stroke gas piston and a realistically designed barrel nut.

The handguard is constructed from high density polymer and has threaded inserts for the attachment of 20mm Picatinny rails, 3 of which come pre-installed at the 3, 6, and 9 o'clock positions. If you want to mount a vertical grip and tactical flashlight this bad boy is ready, but if not you can always remove the rails to reveal the slick and highly ergonomic AR36 handguard, which is a pleasure to hold even without anything mounted.

The front of the handguard has a combination hand stop/ ambidextrous sling point pre-installed, but this can also be removed if you want to save all the weight you can, or if you use a single-point sling setup. Having a hand stop on a rifle with a short front end is near essential, as it prevents you from overshooting the front of the handguard after a reload and shooting your fingers. This ain't no joke, it hurts a fair bit!

Moving rearwards we come to the front end of the AR36C 20mm Picatinny carry handle/optics rail, which provides a whopping 24.5cm long top rail, with multi-aperture iron sights built in. Whether you are mounting a micro red dot sight or a scope that can observe distant planets you should have no trouble fitting it on this rail. The front iron sight is fixed and protected with a protective ring, and the rear sight has two options for aiming; a ghost ring style aperture and an open sight style notch for low light shooting.

Within the carry handle, we can find the charging handle, which, unlike most AR36 Airsoft guns, does more than just provide access to the HOP-up unit. Speaking of which, the HOP-up is of the rotary style and can be accessed when the charging handle is locked to the rear through the charging handle slot on the top of the receiver, above the ejection port. If you have bigger fingers, a flathead screwdriver may be required to reach the adjuster wheel.

As mentioned, the charging handle on this AR36 is fully functional; providing direct control over the bolt carrier and reciprocating rearwards with each violently recoiling shot. This makes for a fantastic firing experience, but also requires a little more thought to operate than a simple AEG. When you are reloading you can't just go straight back to shooting, you have to either power stroke the charging handle or hit the bolt release button, which is inside the trigger guard. The good news is the charging handle can fold to either side and is as easily accessed by left-handed users as it is by righties.

The receiver of the R36 is constructed from high density polymer and is made up of three parts. The magazine well is a separate piece, as is the pistol grip/trigger pack, and both can be separated from the receiver proper when it comes to routine maintenance as easily as the real thing. To facilitate this, the R36 has 4 holes in the bottom of its stock which are ideally sized to hold the steel body pins and prevent them from going walkies. This is an Old school German feature which began with the G98 and continues to this day.

The fire selector switch is located on either side of the R36 and is situated directly above the pistol grip for fast and easy access from a firing grip. The selector has an ultra-short 45-degree throw between fire modes, making it quicker to get into fire and onto target than an AK or M4 platform. This selector is well designed, and unlike many ambidextrous selectors, it does not dig into your hand when in full auto mode and has a helpful extension meaning it is easily operated with gloves.

One important thing to note with the R36 is that due to its internals being based on the WE 999C, which was in turn based on the WE M4 GBBR, the fire selector cannot be put into the safe position if the rifle is not cocked. Do not force the fire selector into safe if it appears to be stuck, the rifle probably isn't cocked! Likewise, the rifle should not be cocked when it is in the safe position, as this can damage the trigger pack and cause major firing issues.

Over on the right side of the rifle, we can see the ejection port and mock brass defector, which does double duty as a locking lug for the side folding stock. There are a lot of combination parts on this rifle, aren't those Germans efficient? The rest of the AR36 receiver is relatively featureless, which is primarily down to the lack of a forward assist, and the bolt release catch being located inside the trigger guard. On an AR36 the charging handle can fulfil the role of a forward assist thanks to its reciprocating design and direct connection to the bolt carrier.

The trigger guard of the R36 is an enlarged design with plenty of space inside for gloved hands, and also contains the hidden bolt release catch. This is one of the few areas the R36 deviates from its real rifle counterpart. On a real AR36, this control can only lock the bolt open, and the charging handle is used to release the bolt. On the Army Armament, this is the opposite, and the small bolt lock button is actually a bolt release which you can hit after inserting a fresh mag to send the bolt home. Arguably more functional than the real thing, but for realism nuts, this is a slight oversight for Army Armament, but we forgive them because the rest of this rifle is so darned realistic!

The magazine release is located centrally at the rear of the magazine well, similarly to an AK rifle. This means it can be accessed from either side and is also capable of the cool-looking but magazine-damaging "mag flip" reload. We advise against this as the R36 magazines are rather heavy, and will likely break when they hit the floor. Save this for the AEGs! The mag release can also be reached from a firing grip with the trigger finger if you prefer, just make sure you don't drop that mag!

The R36's pistol grip is like other AR36 replicas; absolutely awesome. This grip seems to fit any hand size perfectly, and this is why it formed the basis for many popular M4/AR15 pistol grips such as the Magpul MOE and MIAD grips. The angle is perfect, and there are no hot points or areas that will catch your hands and cause discomfort over longer operations.

At the rear of the receiver, we come to the stock folding mechanism, which consists of one big textured button on the left side, and a hinge on the right. Pressing the button will unlock the stock, after which you can fold it to the right side of the rifle and push it over the mock brass deflector to lock it in place. The stock locks solid as a rock, and even with a violent shake, it stays firmly in place. This means you can transport the R36 in smaller gun bags and cases and allows it to be compressed down for extreme close range engagements.

Above the stock folding mechanism, we can find our receiver sling point. This sling point is ideally used with hook-type single point slings and either a paracord loop or keyring installed on the point; this will give extra flexibility and allow for a wider range of slings to be used. The final sling point is at the toe of the stock and can be used with the front sling point on the handguard if you prefer a two-point sling. The butt plate of the stock is constructed from a rubberised polymer, giving it superb gripping qualities regardless of whether you wear a tactical vest or not.

If you are interested in taking your Airsoft experience in another direction and enjoying some additional challenges in-game, the Army Armament R36 GBBR will give you the challenge you seek. Whether it is for skirmishing, a movie prop or simply back garden plinking, a GBBR provides a firing experience like no other!

Features

• Full metal construction
• 14mm CCW male threaded outer barrel
• Realistic field stripping
• Jarring recoil with each shot
• 2x 30rnd Real capacity magazines included
• Side folding stock - Great for transport, storage or CQB
• 20mm Picatinny railed carry handle
• Detachable rails on the handguard
• Front hand stop/ambidextrous sling point pre-installed
• Ambidextrous magazine release
• Ambidextrous fire selector switch
• Ambidextrous charging handle
• Ambidextrous bolt release
• Ergonomic pistol grip - The basis for many enhanced M4/AR15 grips
• Rubberised butt plate for extra grip in wet weather
• Rear sling point on the left side of the receiver
• Stock sling point at the toe of the stock
• Pin slots in the bottom of the stock - Never lose your body pins in the field!
• Based on the WE 999C GBBR - Compatibility yet to be confirmed

Package Includes

• Army Armament R36 AR36C GBBR
• Army Armament 30rnd R36 GBBR magazine x 2
• Speed loader
• User manual

Special Instructions

As it comes from the factory the R36 will likely shoot above site legal limits with Green Gas. During our tests, we found that NUPROL 1.0 provides an average FPS of approximately 350, with the first two shots being slightly above this. If you want to use Green Gas and you need to reduce the velocity you will need to source either an NPAS adjustable nozzle or velocity restrictor disks.

The two magazines provided with the R36 have mag-linking lugs on the sides. We don't recommend using these as due to the weight of the R36 magazines they are at risk of breaking.