HK G3: History, Modernizing, and Custom Left-Handed~ing

In the world of battle rifles, the Heckler and Koch G3 is popular for good reason. It’s an important part of firearms history that just happens to have been designed and produced by a well-respected German manufacturer. In this video review, Ian McCollum of Forgotten Weapons talks about the original HK G3 and what he finds most fascinating about it.

History of the Heckler and Koch G3

There’s no one better to take a deep dive into the history of the Heckler and Koch G3 than Ian McCollum. Here’s a small part of what he had to say about the battle rifle’s history:

“[The Heckler and Koch G3] was the adopted German standard combat rifle. These were adopted by Germany in 1959. It’s kind of interesting…they did a bunch of testing and they actually adopted the FAL, [which is] made by FN in Belgium. And they adopted that formally as the G1 – Gewehr 1 – and then they went to try and negotiate a contract to license production in Germany—because you know no country really likes to be dependent on buying its military weapons from someone else if they can help it.

“And FN and the Belgians kind of looked at them and went, ‘You know, we’re not really comfortable giving you rights to produce a bunch of guns given the fact that you did kind of stomp in and occupy us twice in the last century.’ …ultimately, negotiations broke down, they weren’t able to license production of the FAL, and they went looking for a new gun. …what they came to was the Heckler and Koch G3.”

“This had been adopted by Spain, a very similar rifle…[it was] developed by the same people. A lot of these engineers were German engineers from Mauser…they were legally unable to do weapons development work in Germany immediately after the war, so they traveled around a bit. They first went to France. They did a bunch of experimental stuff there…but nothing that really came to anything.

“They then moved to Spain where they developed the CETME rifle. …when they were able to, the [engineers] came back to Germany, when they were able to do so and legally continue working in the arms industry. They came back…[and] formed Heckler and Koch [around] 1949, 1950. And here we have the rifle that was just what the Germans were looking for when they were not able to license the FAL. [It is] a roller delayed blowback, 308 caliber rifle—7.62 NATO—and the fact that this is technically just a delayed blowback is…unusual. …not a concept a lot of other countries decided to run with. …[So] Germany adopt[ed] the rifle in 1959.”

Want to know more? Watch the video below for a lot more information and further details on the H&K G3:

HK G3 Specs

• Manufacturer: Heckler and Koch
• Model: G3 (original, many variants)
• Caliber: 7.62x51mm NATO
• Action: Roller-delayed blowback
• Rate of fire: 500–600 rounds/min
• Designed: 1950s
• Weight:
  • 4.38 kg (9.66 lb) (G3A3)
  • 4.7 kg (10 lb) (G3A4)
  • 5.54 kg (12.2 lb) with optic (G3SG/1)
  • 4.1 kg (9.0 lb) (G3KA3)
  • 4.4 kg (9.7 lb)(G3KA4)
• Length
  • 1,025 mm (40.4 in) (G3A3)
  • 1,025 mm (40.4 in) stock extended / 840 mm (33.1 in) stock collapsed (G3A4)
  • 1,025 mm (40.4 in) (G3SG/1)
  • 895 mm (35.2 in) stock extended / 711 mm (28.0 in) stock collapsed (G3KA4)
• Barrel Length
  • 450 mm (17.7 in)
  • 315 mm (12.4 in) (G3K)
• Width: 45 mm (1.8 in)
• Height: 220 mm (8.7 in) with magazine
• Sights: Rear: rotary diopter; front: hooded post

Modernizing the HK G3

Kat Ainsworth

The G3 is a classic weapons system that’s gone through some changes over the years. It was first designed by Heckler and Koch in the 1950s and is basically the granddaddy of all kinds of H&K weapons. From a historical standpoint, it’s interesting not only because it’s a battle rifle but because it seems to have inspired so much more. In this video, the master of all things gun history, Ian McCollum of Forgotten Weapons, goes over the HK G3 and talks about the modernization it’s gone through.

How Has the HK G3 Changed?

According to Ian, there’s been a lot of change for the HK G3 over the years, but it’s the chambering that makes it so valuable as a battle rifle:

“What I find interesting here is, there have been a couple of different ways to modernize the HK G3, and I think they really make a lot of sense. We see today the 7.62 NATO cartridge kind of coming back a little bit, or…getting those sort of interested looks from a lot of military services because they are concerned about the widespread adoption of body armor that 5.56 may not be well-suited to defeating. And they look to 7.62 and say, we can have some pretty good armor-piercing 7.62 ammunition that can defeat this modern body armor in a way that maybe our current issue rifle maybe will have trouble with.”

Who modernized it best? Ian feels the Swedes have done solid work modernizing the G3:

“…I think the Swedes have done this best, [but] let’s take a look for a moment at the different priorities the different countries have had. …if we start with the Norwegians…they wanted to make the rifle more compact. They started with the AG3, which is basically just a standard G3 rifle. They then had the F1 pattern where they added an optics rail to it. They then have the F2 pattern, where they added a railed front handguard, as well as replaced the [fixed] stock with a collapsing stock. …this is a way to make the rifles more compact, which is a requirement we see fairly widespread. A lot of countries look at the G3 and they’re like, ‘well…it’s a big, long pike of a rifle.'”

Interested in finding out what other countries have done to change up the original G3 design? Check out the video below.

What do you think, is the G3 still the greatest battle rifle out there, or is there something better? Tell us in the comments section.

Specifications

• Model: G3A3
• Origin: Germany
• Type: Battle rifle
• Caliber: 7.62x51mm NATO
• Feed system: 20-round detachable box magazine
• Barrel length: 450 mm
• Rifling:4 grooves, 305 mm right-hand twist
• Action: Gas operated, roller delayed blowback
• Locking: Roller locking
• Fire selector: 0 – 1 – F
• Rate of fire: 500 – 600 rpm
• Stock type: Fixed
• Length: 1.023 mm
• Width: 45 mm with slimline grip; 58 mm with tropical grip
• Height: 220 mm with magazine
• Weight: 4.4 kg empty

Historical Details

Ian’s Customs: Left-Handed HK G3

Patti Miller

Ian McCollum from Forgotten Weapons didn’t like the G3, so he swapped out some major things and now really likes it.

We all have those weapon systems that we don’t like for one reason or another. What if you could take all the things that you don’t like, change them, and make you like them? That’s exactly what Ian McCollum from Forgotten Weapons did.

Ian had a full list of things that he didn’t like about the HK G3 or HK91. Originally, he did not like the G3, specifically, he didn’t like:
1. The controls are not ambidextrous friendly,
2. The charging handle is obnoxious for a left-handed shooter,
3. The length of pull for the stock,
4. Handling and recoil of the rifle are poor, thanks in part to the design of the stock, and
5. The trigger was squishy and bad.

After laying out all the things that he didn’t like, Ian was able to send off his G3 to get a full overhaul. He used a G3 parts kit with a receiver by Brethren Arms. They swapped out the charging handle to the left side of the receiver. In a standard G3, the bolt has a forward extension, and where it ends, there is a plug with a handle to help push the bolt carrier back.

In order to accomplish this overall change, the original notch needed to be welded close and a new notch cut on the opposite side. Obviously, this is a permanent change, and he recommends doing it before the rifle is put together but is easy to get done. Additionally, he used the charging handle from an HK23 to get more leverage and purchase for operation.

Ian went on to talk about the trigger mechanism. He said he didn’t like it and he felt that it was a squishy, heavy trigger. He had the mechanism worked over by a smith and feels that it’s better. He stressed that it’s not a top-shelf trigger, but that it’s an acceptable level of use for him.

Ian then went on to talk about the grip. The stock grip on the G3 has a thumb rest for right-handed shooters. Since he’s a left-handed shooter, the nub gets in the way for him. He swapped it out for a MagPul G3 grip, one that has a good grip angle with texturing and accepted his ambidextrous features.

On the top of the receiver, he had a Picatinny rail welded. He feels that this is the best way to mount an optic, specifically his Aimpoint CompM4. He said that the optic is small enough not to interfere with the charging handle changes. Ian went on to say that because of the mounting of the optic and the stock, he opted to remove the rear sight.

As for the stock, he did not like the length of pull and the ergonomic features. The original stock has a weird drop to its lines to make use of the sights easier. But because of that drop, the stock needed extra length to compensate. He swapped it out with a Spuhr stock that fixed a lot of the issues he had. The Spuhr has a higher cheek weld that puts the eyesight in line with the sights and the optics. He did mention that it is expensive but worth it.

In addition to the Spuhr stock, he swapped out the handguard for one by Spuhr as well. It’s a free-floating design that is lighter than the factory option and mounted a rail on the bottom for a bipod. To round out the update, he uses a standard G3 flash hider. Ian stresses that he’s not a fan of muzzle brakes in general and doesn’t want the extra weight on the end of the barrel.

To round out the review, the changes he made had him reconsider the HK G3 overall. He fixed all the ergonomic issues around the core mechanism. Ian ended the video by taking the rifle out to the range to demonstrate the ease of operation of the updated rifle. He likes the ambidextrous features and the better fit for him to shoot. He stated it’s a reliable and accurate rifle that is fairly soft to shoot.