Heckler & Koch HK770

Thanks to somewhat more intelligent gun legislation than the rest of Europe and to their natural advantages in respect of forests and hunting areas, the Germans still have a thriving home market for firearms which helps to form a sound base for their export activities.

Introduction

Most German gunmakers, irrespective of their primary product, have an eye to this home market and ensure that they have a suitable product if only to remind people of their existence. Thus it comes about that Heckler & Koch, generally associated in most non-German minds with military firearms, has an impressive range of sporting weapons, and the HK770 is the civilian equipment of the well-known G3 military rifle.

In saying that we do not imply that it is a conversion for civil purposes; this role is played by the HK91 already discussed, but this sort of conversion is less popular in Europe than in the United States.

Design

The HK770 is a well-built sporting rifle and looks it; its military heritage is only seen in the mechanical arrangements, which include the same two-part roller-locked breech block.

The HK770 is a handsome weapon, with a graceful walnut stock, finely checkered and well finished. The receiver has a somewhat unusual steel cover over the bolt mechanism, and there is a folding cocking handle on the right side. A box magazine is inserted beneath the action; in Germany this is restricted to a model holding two rounds, to comply with various regulations, but for export, magazines holding 5 or 10 rounds can be provided. The magazine retaining catch is in the front of the trigger guard and the safety is on the left side, just above the trigger area.

The foresight is a flat-topped blade adjustable for elevation, while the rear sight is an open notch, adjustable for elevation and windage. The top surface or the ‘upper receiver’ (receiver top cover) is prepared for Heckler & Koch HK05 Claw Mount which will accept virtually any type of telescope mount.

On the range, the HK770 performs extremely well; those unaccustomed to Heckler & Koch rifles will find the recoil perhaps less than they anticipate, due largely to the buffering action of the two-part bolt in soaking up some of the recoil force. Its accuracy is reputed to be high, but my experience has been confined to a 30-meter range which is not sufficient for me to make a fair comment.

One major advantage over most semi-automatics derived from military design is that the vast production of the Heckler & Koch G3 and its allied models over the years enables this rifle to be turned out to a high standard of manufacture but at a most competitive price.

There are two parallel models to this; the HK630 is chambered for .223 Remington (5.56 mm) cartridges and the HK940 for the .30-06 cartridge. Apart from small differences in barrel length to accommodate the differing ballistics of the cartridges they are substantially the same as the HK770.

Technical specifications: HK770