Kriss Defiance DMK22C .22LR

[boff180]

Hi guys,

Picked this up a week ago and have managed one range visit using the open sights so far but thought I'd write a short first impressions review.
More info on this rifle can be found here:- https://kriss-usa.com/rifles/rimfire/dmk22

What is it?/
A full metal construction .22LR AR-15 platform designed in the US as a training rifle, built to full mil-spec.
The manufacturer are famous for producing innovative firearms including the unique Vector SMG.
A unique feature being the barrel is from a 10/22 and any non-carbon fibre 10/22 barrel can be fitted to the gun.
All the AR features work, including the forward assist and the rifle comes with a 15 round magazine (10 round also available) which, auto last round hold open works.
The gun is also compatible with many AR-15 .22 mags on the market, the marketing materials directly quote Black Dog and S&W MP15 mags as working.

What do you get in the box?
A proofed rifle fitted with iron sights.
1x 15 round magazine
Manual
Shotlock

What did the rifle cost?
£875 with two extra magazines (currently on back order) plus £20 shipping which the distributor charged my RFD for ordering one!

What are the sights like?
Pup-up and fully adjustable. The front post sight is adjusted for elevation and the rear sight for windage. The rear sight has to apertures which are selected by flipping over the plate... one being a wide ghost ring for rapid fire/acquisition, the other is a peep sight for accurate shooting.

What is build quality like?
Excellent, everything fits together snuggly and due to it being metal, it feels like a proper AR. As with all AR's, cleaning and maintenance is easy.

What are the magazines like?
The 15-round is very easy to load and takes little effort to reach capacity (unlike a Black Dog), due to the short stature of the magazines it is very easy to bench rest the rifle. The magazines feed reliable and drop from the mag-well upon pressing the release button. They active the last round hold-open through a notch on the back of the mag.
I also tested a variety of Black Dog/Sig-522 magazines in the rifle and can confirm these worked flawlessly. Obviously the last round bolt hold open doesn't work but sometimes that can be a luxury.
I also tested a CMMG .22LR AR-15 magazine and can confirm that this did not fit in the mil-spec mag-well. I can only assume CMMG magazines are not to mil-spec dimensions.

How did it shoot?
Shooting off iron sights at 25metres, the gun showed some accuracy potential. I intend to try it out property on the 50metre with a scope to find out how good it possibly could be if fed decent ammo. However on a standard Shoot-n-see target, I scored 13 bullseyes out of 15 shots with the other 2 in the 9 ring, with the main group producing a single ragged hole just right of the 10x.
Quick photo of the target here:-
Click Me for Image
Ammunition wise, there appears to be no need to run this gun on high velocity ammo (although I wouldn't recommend Geco), I ran 200 rounds of CCI Standard Velocity through the gun without a single issue. Considering this is a brand new gun that needs running in, that is impressive.

Anything you need to change?
As a leftie, the rifle only comes with a standard mil-spec single sided safety. Which is a pain. Luckily it is extremely quick and simple to swap this for a aftermarket ambi-safety. All you need is a 3/16th" allen key or wrench long enough to reach the screw in the bottom of the handle, the replacement part should come with everything else. Swapped mine today in under 5 minutes.
Also, the trigger is a little basic. Consistent but feels a little agricultural. In the long term I may swap this out for a drop-in match unit. The beauty of this gun being mil-spec is that they should fit without a problem.


That's all for now, hope someone found this of interest.

Andy