Frag Out! Magazine

HEL E4A box www.fragoutmag.com The HEL E4A replica is built like a tank, very handsomely and pre- cisely finished—to what extent its internal construction corresponds to the original, I do not know exac- tly, though I suspect it is less rather than more. Beyond its appearance, it copies the original mounting me- thod, which requires removing the flash hider. Next, the three screws securing the E4A base must be unscrewed, and the base itself slid onto the barrel so that the external notch rests against the bayonet lug. Subsequently, the main tube should be threaded onto the barrel threads as far as possible, and then the holes in its lower part must be aligned with the holes in the base. Now all that remains is to screw in the three screws securing the tube to the base, and it's done. Simple, right? SIGHT As a sight, I used an original Colt 3x20 scope mounted on the rifle's carry handle. This is a very simple sight with a primitive Duplex-type reticle, without any illumination, featuring only a diopter adjust- ment and stepped BDC settings for distances from 100/200 to 500 yards. Naturally, there are also tur- rets for zeroing the sight, but they move smoothly without any clicks, making adjustment difficult—espe- cially since moving the turret by one graduation shifts the point of aim by one inch. The optic is mounted in the car- ry handle using a base with a pro- truding screw that passes through the hole in the handle. From below, it is secured by a nut with a lever, connected to a spring-loaded stop. You simply tighten the nut until it stops, and that's it. Unfortunately, the return-to-zero capability is es- sentially non-existent, so after any removal and reattachment, the we- apon must be re-zeroed. The glass itself is rather dark, and the archaic reticle is inconve- nient—there are no holdover marks, and the crosshair arms are thick enough that at a distance of 300 m, they almost completely obscure an NT23P target. There is also a 4x20 version, identical in design, but the slightly higher magnification ma- kes shooting easier—not by much, but still somewhat. Unfortunately, an original is quite expensive, co- sting between 3,000 and 4,000 PLN depending on condition; by default, the 3x20 is more expensive than the 4x20 because the former is older and was the model actually used in Vietnam (the 4x20 version was produced in later years). One might be tempted to acquire a modern replica from Brownells, but that is an expense of about 2,200 PLN. A definite plus of that scope is its full visual compatibility with the original and the fact that it is reportedly made in the same Ja- panese factory as those originally signed by Colt. For those who do not mind the visual discrepancy and the fact that they are buying a Far East knockoff, there are Chi- nese copies for about 200 PLN. They differ in appearance from the original, but reportedly work reaso- nably well. RIFLE The stock is an old model with a polymer buttplate. It has no com- partment for a cleaning kit becau-

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