Interesting AR brace deal

[notazombie]

I was alerted to this by a buddy who ran across this seller. by player14apple. My buddy said he's been corresponding and seller (in South Korea) claims to manufacture these for SB, although their site says made in USA. He ordered one up to compare to the one he bought from SB and says there is absolutely no difference -- they are identical.

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[.45's and .38's]

Dang seems ok

 

[notazombie]

Found it interesting that some items are described as "ABC123 style" but others are being represented as legit originals.

 

[s1xty7]

Ordered an "SBA3" to compare to my real ones. The "other colors" are unavailable so black only. I can always do a charge back, but even if that doesn't work, it's only $32.

Now I need to find another lower to test this on . . .

Thanks for the heads up.

 

[notazombie]

Let us know how it compares.

 

[s1xty7]

From the reviews, it might be late April or early May before it arrives. Hah! But I'll definitely let you know how it compares. Maybe even a few photos with an FDE original side by side and some caliper measurements. Don't have any good way of testing plastic composition or durability without destructive testing, so that probably won't happen.

 

[Josh89]

Do you need a certain tube for these?

 

[Alexx1401]

I will be interested too. That price is VERY nice

 

[notazombie]

He said it fit his mil-spec tube.

 

[wp4]

Just bought 2 sba3's



THANKS for the info! I'll Guinea pig it for everyone too

 

[Geardo]

I was alerted to this by a buddy who ran across this seller. by player14apple. My buddy said he's been corresponding and seller (in South Korea) claims to manufacture these for SB, although their site says made in USA. He ordered one up to compare to the one he bought from SB and says there is absolutely no difference -- they are identical.

I wonder if you would be legally covered by this since its not technically a SBA3?

 

[wp4]

I wondered that too, but if it's exactly identical, who would know?

Does the real sba3 have a serial number on it?

 

[Geardo]

I wondered that too, but if it's exactly identical, who would know?

Does the real sba3 have a serial number on it?

I don't know. I guess it doesn't have a ketter either, but not sure I want to support IP theifs anyway.

Watch out for counterfeit pistol braces! - AR15.COM

Firearm Discussion and Resources from AR-15, AK-47, Handguns and more! Buy, Sell, and Trade your Firearms and Gear.

www.ar15.com

 

[Stomper]

I don't know. I guess it doesn't have a ketter either, but not sure I want to support IP theifs anyway.

Watch out for counterfeit pistol braces! - AR15.COM

Firearm Discussion and Resources from AR-15, AK-47, Handguns and more! Buy, Sell, and Trade your Firearms and Gear.

www.ar15.com

I'll buy authorized kit over counterfeit or "lost cargo" stuff every day of the week.

 

[notazombie]

Hey guys, I honestly don't know if they're legit or not. No dog in the fight here. Just passing on the info.

 

[arakboss]

I wonder if you would be legally covered by this since its not technically a SBA3?

I wonder if it comes with letter from ATF. A bunch of China produce stocks and such was siezed by customs a while back. Does anybody know why the parts were siezed?

 

[GWS]

Ordered an SBA3 clone
Now I'll need a lower to put it on...

 

[xtratoy]

Went to link above and no brace found. Do you have a link to item?

 

[GWS]

Hmm
Got my shipping notice a couple days ago, I guess they've sold out.

 

[s1xty7]

Mine arrived at my PO Box a couple weeks back and I recently picked them up (ordered two). Not a lot of packaging. This is the entirety of the packaging they arrived in.



Once out of the box and the ziplock bag, here's what it looked like.





First impression: it looks and feels the part. But lets compare it to the real deal. I happen to have an FDE SBA3 on a 10.5" Anderson/PSA build so I pulled it off.

Here they are together in a few comparisons.



The real SBA3 has more casting marks. Note the circles on the rear of the rubber portion of the brace.



The thickness of the plastic around the sling attachment appears to be slightly thicker on the imitation.





Note the slight size difference in the pin/shaft/whatever you want to call it (circle in the middle of the picture). The imitation is slightly smaller.



One major difference is the straps. The imitation is softer and feels stretchier. It also looks like it may be a bit longer. The real one's material feels sturdier.



The business part of the brace is how well it interfaces with the buffer tube. I have all the measurements below, but when trying both braces on a PSA mil-spec tube, both had the slightest wiggle and felt very similar. However, the real SBA3 had more defined structure inside the tube portion of the brace.

Real SAB3:



Imitation SBA3. It might be a bit harder to see because it's darker and the grooves aren't as pronounced:



Key differences:
- Fit and finish is better on the real SBA3, although not by much.
- The rubber portion is softer on the imitation. If the real one has a stiffness of 10, the imitation is about 8.5.
- The strap on the imitation appears to be softer and possibly longer. I didn't want to undo them to compare.
- The pin/shaft/whatever for the latch appears to be slightly smaller on the imitation.
- The thickness of the plastic around the sling mount appears to be slightly thicker on the imitation. That might add a tiny amount of strength.
- The texture is slightly rougher on the imitation.

Overall, they feel very similar. The real SBA3 has more non-cleaned up casting marks, but the overall fit and finish elsewhere is smoother and more refined. The imitation doesn't show nearly as many casting marks, but the details themselves are a tiny bit rougher. If I didn't have a real SBA3 to compare to, I would be hard pressed to identify any failings in the imitation. Even if the strap is slightly softer and the groves aren't as pronounced in the inner portion of the tube, those differences don't appear to have any ill effect on the function of the brace.

Key measurements as taken with a cheap Harbor Freight analog caliper and the thousandths place is approximated where populated:

Real SBA3:
- Sling mount ID: .37"
- Cheek rest width: 1.94"
- Tube vertical height: 1.453"
- Tube horizontal width: 1.66"

Imitation SBA3:
- Sling mount ID: .36"
- Cheek rest width: 1.94"
- Tube vertical height: 1.445"
- Tube horizontal width: 1.675"

Hope that helps everyone. Let me know if there is anything more I can answer.