What’s going on guys? It’s Hai.
Because I primarily shoot 9mm, the H&K MP5 is pretty up there if not my favorite firearm. This is just one of the smoothest, soft shooting, and overall easy-to-handle firearms. However, I’m not a die-hard fanboy, pun not intended. Although the radial delayed blowback operating system is fantastic, there are shortcomings elsewhere, at least compared to more modern options.
First and foremost, the lack of a last round bolt hold open. That just is what it is. If you want an MP5, you just gotta understand that. Another issue that I have with the MP5 is just the entire lower. At the back, we have an integrated, molded into the lower, grip. This is going to be a hit or miss depending on the user. Me personally, the grip angle of a stock MP5 is a bit too angled back for my taste but it’s something that I can deal with. Moving forward, we have the safety. With this particular lower and safety, the safety is extremely stiff and basically impossible to use with my right thumb. When I want to use the safety, I actually use my left hand. With my right hand, the safety switch is not the right shape so it only catches the edge of my thumb. This doesn’t allow me to employ any leverage. Because of this, I pretty much always leave the safety off on this MP5 because if I had to defend myself with this firearm, I wouldn’t want to put myself at a disadvantage having to deactivate this safety. Finally, we have the trigger. I think it’s universally agreed that the MP5 trigger isn’t that great. It’s pretty heavy, pretty mushy, and there’s a lot of travel. It’s functional but leaves a lot to be desired. But that’s kind of the theme with the entire MP5 lower. All of it is functional but leaves a lot to be desired.
Really, all of these problems can be fixed by hitting the aftermarket and buying new parts. I personally haven’t because I haven’t found anything that I like. That is until recently when YouTube randomly advertised to me this video, asking about a Geissele SD3G AR trigger in an MP5. I was very intrigued and after some research, it turns out that Lee Sporting, the people who made that video, actually makes aftermarket lowers that essentially allow you to run AR parts on an MP5. My mind was blown by this and I had to try this lower for myself.
Lee Sporting offers housings for the various MP5 variations out there so there should be something that fits most people’s needs. I received a comment from a viewer that does a good job of explaining the various versions of the MP5 lower attachment systems and will include it here for those who need it.
You can either buy a complete lower or a stripped lower. A complete lower comes with a grip, safety, and trigger pre-assembled. Installing the complete lower is one of the easiest installs you can do as the entire lower stays together in one piece and is held in place by only two pins. Even if you purchase the stripped lower and have to install your own parts, the lower is an AR-styled lower so installation for all the parts is basically the same as on an AR-15. Again, pretty straightforward. There are plenty of tutorials on YouTube if you need help. I do want to note that there are some requirements as far as what parts will fit in these lowers so if you are interested in a stripped lower, definitely read the description of the product. All the necessary information is laid out there.
Alright, now that we got all the informational stuff out the way, what’s actually use of this product like? In terms of shooting with it, I can’t say because I haven’t had the chance to live fire with this lower yet. I’m recovering from an injury that’s affecting my shooting hand so I’m letting that heal. It’s also raining quite a bit so I haven’t been able to get to the mountains and do anything fun. For this video, I was pretty excited to share the lower with you guys so this is more of a first impressions. I’ll come back with a more in-depth review in the near future so make sure to subscribe for that.
Now, how’s the Lee Sporting lower in terms of improving the MP5? For me, great. The Lee Sporting lower solves all the problems that I had with a stock MP5 lower. First of all, with the Magpul MOE K grip that was included in my lower, I get an overall more comfortable shooting position. Not only that but this lower actually moves the grip slightly higher and more forward. From my experience, this does help with the overall balance and feel of the gun in hand. Something interesting that I did notice was that because everything is now a bit more forward, I’m actually now able to use the side mag release button of the MP5. This was basically useless to me before because it was too far away but now that it is functional, I can do some more practical mag changes.
Something else that’s more practical is the safety. It’s actually now usable and is as easy to use as it would be on an AR. It’s light enough for me to flick with my thumb and I’m now able to use this thing without worrying about it slowing me down if the firearm is actually ever needed to be used in a defensive scenario.
In terms of the trigger, this particular lower came with the Geissele SD3G. I have this trigger in my Primary Weapons Systems AR so it’s nothing new to me. However, having it here in the MP5, it’s a night and day difference compared to the stock trigger. Obviously, trigger feel is very subjective so I don’t want to blatantly say that this is better but I will say that the Lee Sporting lower gives you more opportunity to find something that does work for you. The AR platform is extremely popular and has massive aftermarket support. There are so many options out there and this lower allows for the opportunity to use many of them. The stock MP5 lower, on the other hand, there is really only a few handful of options and as with many other MP5 specific things, the price can get pretty high. This Geissele is relatively expensive, but you don’t have to go with this. There are plenty of other options that are more budget-friendly. One thing that I do want to comment on is the minor attention to detail that went into the Geissele that Lee Sporting installed. To get the SD3G to work in this lower, you have to file some edges down for proper clearance. I knew this but didn’t expect for Lee Sporting to actually polish the hammer the way they did. This type of attention to detail is just something that I appreciate.
Overall, I’m very happy with this lower. It really improves the utility of an MP5 for me. But I know that this isn’t going to be for everyone, especially the traditionalists out there who think that the MP5 is fine the way it is and that we shouldn’t try to turn it into an AR. That’s perfectly fine and I can appreciate that. However, I personally try to make all my firearms as practical as possible for my uses. I personally love the MP5 because of the radial delayed blowback, not necessarily because of the MP5 clout. So, if I have the radial delayed blowback and can make the controls more functional for me, I’m going to do that. This lower provides me with just what I need to get that done. So, if you have a similar mindset then the Lee Sporting lower for the MP5 is definitely something that I can recommend. This thing is such a game-changer for me. It takes something that I already love in the MP5 and makes it even better. Now, if someone can ever figure out last round bolt hold open, then I’d pretty much have my perfect firearm but I don’t think that day is coming any time soon if ever so for now, we have the Lee Sporting lower.
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