ORSIS rifles and carbines are known primarily for their accuracy and quality. Despite the relatively young age of the company, it managed to establish itself only on the good side, both in the world arms market and in the domestic one.
This year the company presented a new self-loading carbine under the name ORSIS K15 "Brother" chambered for 7, 62x51. Like any new weapon, especially from a company that boasts a very good reputation, this sample is of some interest. The carbine is positioned as a weapon for hunting, as well as for sports shooting, let's try to take a closer look at it.
Appearance and ergonomics of the ORSIS K15 "Brother" carbine
It is hard not to notice that the K15 "Brother" carbine has a lot of details borrowed from AR-like weapons. This was done not out of a great love for the developments of Eugene Stoner, but due to the fact that the market is full of a variety of additions for such rifles and carbines. So, in the weapon, the butt can be replaced, instead of the standard adjustable one, with a more convenient one for the shooter. Magazines from various manufacturers can be used, even the muzzle brake-recoil compensator can be installed not by a specific manufacturer, but by a variety of ones. That is, the owner of the weapon gets the opportunity to make the carbine more convenient for himself, gets the opportunity to choose, and this can be met infrequently. Usually, manufacturers of various add-ons to weapons choose the most popular model and produce a number of parts for it that are different from the original ones; in this case, there are already many options for individual elements on the market for new weapons.
It is impossible not to mention that the weapon is completely "two-sided", although the ejection of the spent cartridge case is carried out only on the right side. The shutter cocking handle can be moved from the left to the right side. The safety switch located above the pistol grip is duplicated on both sides. The magazine eject button can also be duplicated, but this is already available as an additional option.
In addition to two attachment strips at the top and bottom, two additional attachment strips on the sides can be installed on the forend of the ORSIS K15 "Brother" carbine. However, since the carbine is positioned as a hunting and sporting weapon, the need for these additional attachment points is unlikely to arise.
The carbine does not have open sights, which would be a disadvantage of a military weapon, but since the ORSIS K15 "Brother" is a purely civilian carbine, the case of failure of the optical sight is not so critical. In addition, no one bothers to install the folding rear sight and front sight on the long upper mounting bar, since at the moment there are a huge number of options for such sighting devices on the market, in a variety of designs.
The weapon can be made in several colors: dark gray, "desert" and green, the standard color is obviously black.
In general, the weapon externally makes a positive impression, although the standard stock looks a little out of place.
ORSIS K15 "Brother" carbine design
As with all ORSIS weapons, for the K15 "Brother" carbine, the designers have selected the optimal materials for individual units. So, all mechanisms subject to wear during operation, and structural elements that experience increased loads during firing, are made of high-strength steel. The elements with which the shooter is constantly in contact are made of plastic. Those parts of the weapon that are subject to minimal stress are made of aluminum alloys, which reduces the weight of the weapon.
The basis for the new carbine was an automation system using the energy of part of the powder gases discharged through the bore with a short piston stroke. The barrel bore is locked by turning the bolt two stops. Also, a gas regulator is provided in the design of the weapon.
The manufacturer claims the operating temperature range for the ORSIS K15 "Brother" carbine is from -50 to +50 degrees Celsius. Of course, the performance will depend largely on the owner of the weapon, who will have to not only clean the carbine in a timely manner, but also apply the appropriate lubricant for a specific temperature range. Well, you shouldn't, of course, expect miracles, you can't trample on physics, because the weapon will not work with a sharp change in temperature. That is, when the carbine is cooled down to -50 degrees Celsius and, for example, when a weapon enters a room with a temperature of +20 degrees Celsius, the carbine will be covered with a thick layer of frost and ice and by itself will not be ready to fire. Oddly enough, but such obvious things need to be indicated.
Characteristics of the ORSIS K15 "Brother" carbine
As mentioned above, the carbine can be equipped with two barrels of different length - 406 or 508 millimeters. The manufacturer recommends using a short version of the barrel for sports shooting, apparently this means the growing popularity of practical shooting, since in this case it is easier to maneuver the weapon. The long version of the barrel is proposed to be used for hunting. The length of the carbine with a long barrel is 1208 millimeters, with a short one - 1106 millimeters. The mass of the weapon without cartridges, bipods and sighting devices is 4.6 kilograms. Height without sights - 182 mm, thickness - 76 mm. The carbine is fed from detachable magazines with a capacity of 10 rounds 7, 62x51.
Pros and cons of the ORSIS K15 "Brother" carbine
The main advantage of the new weapon is its compatibility with a wide variety of add-ons that are widely represented on the modern market. And we are talking not only about sights and bipods, but also the butt, which can be replaced with a more comfortable one without any problems associated with compatibility.
Weapon flaws can also be found. First of all, it should be noted that the carbine is supplied without sights and bipods. On the one hand, this is certainly good, since the owner of the weapon is not imposed on what the manufacturer has chosen. On the other hand, even some kind of open sights would make the weapon more attractive, however, this is already on the conscience of the sellers, and not the manufacturer specifically. The selected ammunition 7, 62x51 is certainly suitable for the ORSIS K15 "Brother" carbine and most of the tasks that are set before it, but it would not be superfluous to create several options for different cartridges, which, perhaps, will be done later, the carbine is new. So far, the most popular cartridge has been chosen, which allows you to sell weapons with equal success in the markets of different countries.
Outcome
Summing up this brief acquaintance with the weapon, one cannot but say that the attitude towards this carbine is biased. The ORSIS company has perfectly established itself as a manufacturer of accurate and reliable weapons of high quality, therefore new models from this company, which, by the way, does not appear as often as we would like, in absentia can be attributed to the highest category.
True, you have to pay and pay a lot for the quality, at the moment the price for this carbine on the manufacturer's website is 200,000 Russian rubles, while it is indicated that the number of weapons at this price is limited. At such a price, many will give preference to cheaper weapons for this ammunition, which is not much of a surprise. It is quite logical to assume that the bulk of the buyers of this carbine will be those for whom it is important to fit the weapon as much as possible for themselves, for example, the same athletes. Among hunters, weapons are unlikely to gain high popularity, primarily due to the not at all "popular" cost and the absence of at least a minimal set of weapons.
In any case, we will look forward to the first reviews of the owners, among which information on the accuracy of weapons is especially interesting. At the moment, this is the only self-loading carbine in the company's catalog, in connection with which a quite natural question arises: did the ORSIS designers manage to "overcome" the automation system with maximum preservation of weapon accuracy and reliability? Let's hope that the designers, as before, coped with the task and in the near future the company will please with other versions of self-loading weapons.
Source: orsis.com.
