XM8 GBBR - The Abandoned Shark

Soon after learning of WE’s GBB G36, I began thinking about the possibility of converting one into an XM8 using AEG donor external parts and modifying the G36 to accept the new furniture.

I used the (Now long discontinued) GWS XM8 AEG kit for the externals and an ACM ISM XM8 style Insight RDS.

The first version you see in this video shows the XM8 in its fullest form, no compromises were made to change the aesthetic in favour of strength or performance. In doing so this made the frame extremely weak and floppy.
The connection of the lower receiver to the upper was only supported around the buttstock and this provided zero lockup at the front of the lower receiver.
As such I had to provide upward pressure on the magazine to allow for a positive gas seal and semi reliable cycling.

The trigger box within the lower was crudely held in place with a series of spacers and the selector switch was prone to sliding onto FA as it wasn’t using a spring and ball bearing to lock into the fire modes. The XM8 upper receiver side panels were Epoxy glued into place and the heavily stripped G36 upper receiver had no way of locking onto the lower.
The differences between the G36 and XM8 bodies are vastly different, despite using similar operating systems. Ultimately my limited engineering skills and access to only the most basic tools saw my GBB XM8 project fail.
While following examples were attempted and keeping much of the G36 as untouched as possible, I still couldn’t get an accurate looking version which would be capable of being skirmished. I decided to abandon this project.

It could be done fairly easily these days with 3D printing but I have no experience with 3D design so this isn’t something I’ll pursue. The Shark you’re seeing in this video is the closest I got to an accurate HK XM8 GBBR Build.

Thanks for watching and reading my XM8 story.

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