Sneak Peek: G&G G2 Cobalt Kinetics BAMF

[pestobanana]

G&G G2 Cobalt Kinetics BAMF

G&G Canada let me get my hands on a prototype G2 Cobalt Kinetics BAMF and asked me to take it apart and give them some feedback on the rifle. It is due for release in 2020.

Externals:





Externally, basically everything on this gun is made of metal. I'm no metallurgist, but I'd presume most of to be aluminum. This is good in that aluminum makes everything feel very rigid, however the aluminum stock and pistol grip feel a bit weird at first. They feel a bit cold, something I'm not used to when I shoulder a gun.

The gun also feels much heavier than you would expect, but that is because of the fact that the externals are almost entirely made of thick metal. The handguard itself actually feels quite bulky as well. It isn't very tall due to the M-Lok instead of picatinny through most of the top of the rail, however the rail has a sideways oval shape which gives the feeling of bulk.

The trigger seats really far forward and is kind of awkward. One thing I really like though is the implementation of a 45 degree selector. 45 degree throw selectors have been catching on in the AR15 community, I actually use one on my real Colt Canada rifle and I quite like it. For those that don't know, a 45 degree selector means that disengaging the safety and selecting the semi auto position only requires you to move the selector down 45 degrees instead of all the way down to 90 degrees on a standard selector.



The finish and machine work on the receiver itself is fairly decent. The coating feels kind of grainy which I don't like, but the machine work looks pretty clean. I do kind of wish they teamed up with Radian or American Defense to recreate one of their receivers instead. The Cobalt Kinetics aesthetic is a little too... "sporty" for me, to put it nicely.

Internals:

Internally the gun is supposed to have your standard G2 internals. Brass barrel, rotary hop up unit, G&G blue dual nub rubber.



The motor is the G&G orange 25000 RPM neodymium magnet motor, quite good for a stock motor. Could honestly pass as a fairly upgraded motor.



The gearbox looks like your standard G2 gearbox. The G2 gearbox is a vast improvement over the older G&G gearboxes. Gone are the days of every G&G gearbox cracking at the front. These shells are heavily reinforced at the front, and are radiused. They do seem to be made of the same brittle metal as before, but I have yet to see a gearbox related issue from the newer shells.



The G2 gearbox features a computerized trigger board with an external control unit. It has both a stop on empty switch and a magwell detection switch. The stop on empty feature requires the use of their proprietary magazines.



The gearbox is quick spring change, but still requires the gearbox to be removed to access the sprng guide.



The gearbox has a plastic insert that holds the wire away from the motor, which is a neat addition. While this is a non issue when your wires are routed properly, it definitely helps with convenience when you have both motor wires and signal wires to deal with.

The internals are quite good for a stock gearbox. Most of the internal parts are standard, with the exception of the tappet plate. Note the cutouts at the bottom front portion of the tappet plate to make room for the gearbox reinforcement. A standard tappet plate can be made to fit by making the same cutouts.



G&G stock gears are some of the best as far as stock gears go. They are quite strong and do not break often.

Trigger assembly, note the magwell detection switch on the bottom right.



The radius job at the front of the gearbox actually looks fairly clean.



I don't like that the piston head is not ported, however it seals well and the piston looks quite durable. It has a steel rack.



The nozzle has an internal O-ring and seals well on the cylinder head. Most G&Gs do not come with an O-ring nozzle.



Whoever did the QC on the cylinder head clearly didn't do the job properly. the rubber washer was not cut properly and left a large chunk hanging off. It seems to work well otherwise, however I would recommend having a sorbo installed.



Overall Thoughts:

The quality of the construction on this gun is quite good, and there are definitely some interesting features such as the 45 degree throw selector. The ambidextrous receiver is quite nice.

While the style of this gun is definitely not for me, and the weight of the gun makes it a less practical choice for gaming, the performance and internal build quality are very good for a stock gun. It would definitely make a nice addition to the collection for someone that likes the look.

[Ourindar]

Been curious about the parts compatibility of the G2 gearbox, so I'm especially glad to see the internals part of this review for that reason alone.
Thanks!