I really think its important to remember that they sued over trademark and trade dress infringement ... not patent infringement. Very different things.
Add to that the fact that ATI openly claimed it to be a MP5 lookalike:
Add to that the fact that HK can absolutely smother them in legal fees and you have a no win situation for ATI.
Love them or hate them i feel HK had the legal right to pursue this course.
Production and importation of the original design GSG-5 ceased as of Oct, 8, 2009 with
the signing of the agreement. The remaining inventory now in the USA can be sold by
ATI, all distributors and dealers. ATI currently has GSG-5's in stock.
Heckler and Koch is suing German Sports Guns and American Tactical Imports over trade dress infringements. Seems they don’t like GSG making a 22LR version of their MP5.
These cases, like when Colt sued H&K over the 416, are counter productive to the industry in general. It seems bizarre that a firm, which is a subsidiary of a German company, is suing the importers of a German made gun. They must not be able to sue for it in Germany court.
I know nothing about "trade dress infringement", but I do know that those fanciful concepts of "common sense" and "justice" have long been forgotten in intellectual property court, thanks to the efforts of Disney Corp's hard working lawyers and lobbyists.
I recently reported that H&K has licensed the production of .22 rifles patterned after the MP5, MP7 and other H&K firearms to Umarex. No doubt this is the reason they have taken legal action against ATI.
In my opinion this new stock and forend from ATI (Advanced Technology International) is a stroke of genius! There is a lot to be said for having a collapsable stock as it makes transport easier and allows younger member of the family to comfortably shoot a gun that otherwise would have too long a length of pull.
Fully extended (top). Collapsed (Bottom)
The market has been saturated with M4 style adjustable stocks, which is fine if you want a tactical looks, but a pistol grip is not as ergonomic for shotgun shooting as a traditional stock. Even for tactical / self defense use I have heard many experts argue against putting a pistol grip on a shotgun.
The stock is made from DuPont Reinforced Polymer. It is 4-position and extends from 12-3/8" to 14-3/8". It fits 12 and 20 gauge Remington 870, Maverick 88, Winchester 1200/1300 and Mossberg 500/590 shotguns.
I was offered one of these stocks for review, but I am not able to review products at present, although I think I will be buying one of these stocks in the future.
Earlier this year ATI began selling the T-14, an AR-15 style .410 shotgun that uses a standard AR-15 lower. I have been asked many times if and when just the upper on its own will be available for sale. I learnt from Suburban that AIM Surplus are now selling just the upper for $499.95.
The upper had a 20″ smoothbore barrel and is supplied with a five round magazine. Two models are available, the Classic and the Compact. The only difference between the models is the handguard length.
The American Tactical Imports / German Sport Guns Kalashnikov has finally arrived. The Kalashnikov, endorsed by General Kalashnikov himself, is a AK-47 patterned rifle chambered in .22 Long Rifle.
An American model holding a German made copy of the iconic Soviet rifle … oh the irony
Two models are available, synthetic or wood, with either with 10 or 24 round magazine. They have an overall length of 34.5″ (an inch longer than the original wood stocked Russian AK-47) and a barrel length of 16.5″. Click to expand the photos:
Synthetic model.
Wooden model 24 round magazine.
Wooden model 10 round magazine.
It was rumored that the wooden stock would be wood-looking plastic, but it is real, and looks really nice. The gas system is defiantly fake, it is a blowback operated rifle that requires high velocity .22 ammunition to cycle. You can see in the above photo that the 10 round magazine has the same AK-like size as the 24 round magazine, which is a nice touch. It appears to be compatible with the AK side mount for optics.
The MSRP is $549 for the synthetic model and $569 for the wood. I think this will be very popular rifle.
I covered the Safir T-14 / ATI AT-14 .410 AR-15 shotgun on the blog earlier this year. Mike, a reader of The Firearm Blog, emailed me photos the AT-14 he just received.
Click to expand the photos.
Two black shotugns. .410 Siaga shotgun (AK clone) left.
Annular piston system. ATI’s markings can be seen on the lower receiver.
If you have any questions I am sure Mike will be happy to answer them in the comments.
A big thanks to Mike for taking the time to strip his rifle shotgun for photos.
I can say that it feels just like holding an actual 1911, will come with a 10 round magazine and will be of fine German engineering. We have an expected MSRP of $369.00 on it but that is subject to change once we receive final importation clearance and see all the manufacturing costs. Check back with us later in the year on tat.
Yes, you did you the title correctly. American Tactical Imports are bringing the Safir Arms T-14 stateside and calling it the AT-14.
T-14 Classic
Now you are probably asking yourself why would someone want such a gun? When I first learnt about the T-14 a few months ago I asked the same question. The T-14 is very popular in Europe. Many countries, including Turkey where the T-14 is manufactured, either ban semi-automatic rifles or make it hard to own one. This gun is the closest thing the average citizen can get to owning an AR-15.
So why is ATI bringing them to the USA where AR-15s are plentiful? I wondered about this myself. First of all they could be a popular hunting arm for AR-15 enthusiast for use in shotgun only hunting areas (I don’t hunt with a shotgun, so correct me if I am wrong). Ed Friedman made a good point that with the new self defense .410 ammunition from Federal this gun could make a good self defense weapon when over penetration is a concern. A .410 slug should give similar performance to a .357 Magnum.
The gun can be seen in action in this youtube video:
ATI will be importing the Classic model and the Compact model. Both feature a A2 carry handle style upper receiver, fixed stock and 20″ barrel. The only different is the length of the handguard.
AT-14 Classic
AT-14 Compact
According to Ed a 5 round and 15 round magazine will be available. I have read that AR-15 magazines can be converted to hold 10 .410 rounds. Ed hopes to review the shotgun in an upcoming issue of Guns and Hunting.
UPDATE: The MSRP is $979 and dealer price is $800. They should be available shortly (thanks War Wolf and Todd for the info).
GSG, our favorite German manufacturer of 22-caliber-firearms-pattered-after-other-firearms-and-endoresed-by-Kalashnikov-himself, have developed a .22 1911 pistol.
Click to expand.
American Tactical Imports will be importing the GSG 1911. Like the GSG AK and the GSG MP5 this pistol will probably not be a 1911 .22 conversion but a new design build specifically for the .22 LR cartridge.
I have emailed ATI asking about specs, availability and pricing. Hopefully they will take the time to get back to me.
I can say that it feels just like holding an actual 1911, will come with a 10 round magazine and will be of fine German engineering. We have an expected MSRP of $369.00 on it but that is subject to change once we receive final importation clearence and see all the manufacturing costs. Check back with us later in the year on tat.
A while back I reported that GSG (German Sport Guns), makers of the GSG-5, announced an endorsement by General Kalashnikov and that they would name a rifle after him. It looks like the GSG .22 “Kalashnikov” is now in production.
Click to expand
Impact Guns says it features a 16.5″ barrel and 15 round magazine and has it listed for $529.99. It is not clear when it will ship.
These ATI ads have been floating around the internet. The girl looks like a stock image and rifle is not the actual .22 Kalashnikov.
The new GSG-5PK pistol is a .22 Long Rifle HV Caliber with a barrel length of 4.52″, total length of 15.275″ and a total height of 10″. It weighs in at a dainty 5.2 lbs. It has an alloy frame construction and features a magazine safety and click-adjustable target sight. At a MSRP of $549.95, the GSG-5PK pistol is the perfect partner to the original GSG-5 rifle model.
It is basically a GSG5-P (pistol) with a shortened barrel and MP5K style handguard. Some photos (click to expand):
ATI has some products to make your single shot Rossi or H&R rifle look more like an AR-15 patterned rifle.
Rossi Rifle Before
After
The above photo has the “Collapsible, six-position SHOTFORCE Buttstock with Pistol Grip and Forend Package is patterned after the Colt AR-15/M-4 style assault rifle.” installed as well as the Muzzle Mount, laser and heat shield. The Muzzle Mount is a fake muzzle break and does not extend past the end of the barrel.
Now I have no problem with people installing a pistol grip. If you prefer it ergonomically then go for it. But a head shield on a single shot rifle?
Hi, welcome to my gun blog! This blog is dedicated to all things firearms related. If you are into AR-15 and AK rifles, skeet shotguns, self defense pistols or hunting arms there will be something here for you. I hope you enjoy it.
I want this blog to appeal to a worldwide audience and so I will be focusing on firearms and shooting rather than country specific politics. There are already many great blogs defending your rights!
Hi, welcome to my gun blog! This blog is dedicated to all things firearms related. If you are into AR-15 and AK rifles, skeet shotguns, self defense pistols or hunting arms there will be something here for you. I hope you enjoy it.