So I have a POF 5PK and I’d like the next size up, MP5 clone.
I have the opportunity to purchase another at this time, but I’m still on a budget of about 2K. Which manufacturer should I go with in terms of quality. Is there a somewhat agreed upon list of best to worst as far as manufacturers go? Say from H&K down.

Zenith or Omega is what you are looking for.  I have personal experience with Zenith and HK and both have been flawless.  I have no experience with Omega, however I hear they are good to go.

I would rate Zenith over Omega, unless you have a sear pack to drop into one.

I have read a lot of his posts but hadn’t seen that one. Good to know from a firsthand experience.

Omega can be purchased as just an upper sans lower and they do not have F/A bolt carrier blocks installed (POF & Zenith do). I would wager they fit his needs and criteria for MP5s since he already has the F/A trigger groups that uses F/A bolt carriers.

Not saying Omega isn't better over the import competition but just be aware that some people have different requirements than others in the HK/clone roller locks and give their opinion based on that accordingly.

Some deciding factors between Omega, POF, and Zenith at the moment are budget and NFA. If you just want to save money and don't mind keeping it a pistol POF wins. If you want a slightly nicer looking gun and a few extras thrown in (mags, case, sling, optic mount, etc) for a couple hundred more dollars, go Zenith. If you have a registered sear or are going the SBR route and don't want to spend more money on 922r parts, Omega will be the better option.

Time will tell if PTR and PSA will upset this balance in the future.

Yeah but his post specifically calls out reliability.

...AND price.

Omega is the MP5 that suits his business needs and his bottom line. If one wants to use that as a measuring stick for the best clone to buy, so be it.

It should be noted you also need to put in a shelf on the MKE guns as well as removing the carrier block if you are converting them to be sear hosts, otherwise if left as a pushpin lower you inadvertently manufacture a new machine gun in the eyes of the ATF.

so best price and reliability means not the best clone?

you must have something against omega

I don't know how you came to that conclusion after reading the previous replies (paying particular attention to Atlantic Firearms outline). Its pretty clear that the qualities of what a full auto rental shop looks for in a gun isn't exactly what Joe Blow would or should look for in his.

I am willing to wager the time, effort, and cost to convert an import like POF/MKE for his range usage over just using an off the shelf Omega upper didn't make sense business-wise.

How does that translate into Omega is the best clone for EVERYONE looking to buy a MP5 variant?

How does that translate into I have something against Omega for pointing all this out?

Aphex - you didnt come off as having anything against Omega and you are probably not crazy.

i only have experience with Zenith, and i love the z5rs. I know first hand how good their customer service is. the gun has been 100% reliable after about 2k rounds (round nose FMJ). the only negative i can say is that i had to put a dab of loctite on the thread protector. using the 3-lug anyway.

if youre going to spend that much money on a 9mm, get what you really want whether its $200 more or less than the others. $200 goes quick in ammo anyway :)

im sure you cannot go wrong with either of the 3.

"great fit/finish mid price point and easily convertible (sbr ready)".

the other 2 are not, the ptr is not available

So what features would a clone buyer want
1. reliability (no toad guns)
2. Price
3. convertibility either a f/a shooter or SBR.

There is only one gun on there that has all these. Even more so you can get just the receivers, which means you can stuff in HK parts w/o having to pay for a full clone gun and be closer to a real HK than the others.

Not everyone is looking for a sear host or a SBR. Many potential buyers would be happy with just a brace. Not to mention that generally you have more legal ways to carry or transport a handgun over a rifle/SBR. What the imports have over Omega is being built on HK licensed tooling. Everyone know that HK builds the best HK guns. So if you can't buy one of theirs, you might as well buy a licensed copy if having a traceable HK lineage is an important selling point.

As for your list:
1. BFV replaced the bolts on their guns with MAD built versions. So right off the bat the largest reliability liability of the MP5 design is nipped in the bud for an extra $300. This shows just how different the economy of scale is between BFV and the average shooter when spending $300 per gun is cheaper in the long run than $5 spring replacements and downtime in the armorer's cage. Also interesting you mention not wanting a Todd Bailey gun even though Omegas are built using parts from Todd Bailey companies purchased via HKparts.

2. Omega is cheaper than Zenith but not POF. Buying just the upper and part swapping with authentic Germans parts just increases the overall cost. Zenith also includes helpful extras in that price tag too.

3. I already touched on this in my opening paragraph but NFA is not an option or a selling point for everyone.

Announcing Omega as the best clone because the price to reliability ratio works in the favor of one full-auto rental shop is a bit reaching, especially when one does a little critical thinking about what goes on behind the scenes in their decision making process.

It’s OK to admit you don’t want guns related to either Bailey. The Omegas are a strong product. Doesn’t mean you have to buy one.

I have two MKEs and an Omega. If I were to buy another from either manufacturer it would be an Omega.

Thank you for the clarification about the MAD bolts. However, I feel you misunderstood me in that I was not discounting BFV input. I already went into detail on my thoughts about their reasons. I didn't suggest they bought Omegas simply because they got them cheaper than anything else off the shelf. Without hard data provided by BFV about which make and model failed at what round count I see no reason to debate this point any further.

For example: Is one gun truly better than another if it failed at 400k rounds fired instead of 395k and costs $200 less? Does this "winner" information truly matter to 97% of the people buying a MP5 clone who won't fired that many rounds in their lifetime?

I don't want a Bailey, PSA, PTR, or POF MP5. Why? Because I bought a Zenith MP5, I'm happy with it, and I'm not in the market for another one. Use this information to fit whatever narrative you are attempting to spin.

I'm one of those clients as I also bought a Zenith (and some POF mags) from you.

I purchased two Zenith from Atlantic Firearms, one came with major rust under both receiver support tabs. Zenith customer service was not helpful and Atlantic didn't even answer my email. Just FYI.

Did you try the phone?

I would agree with that statement while also admitting that my bias comes from owning several clones which hail from the Bailey empire of companies.

Adding a shelf and setting up the MKE for FA host duty is not too difficult.

I'll get back to you after test firing my new Dakota Tactical MP5/10 later today but I have little doubt that it will rank near the top!

Ya know, I just want to chime in and say that after buying my Z5RS I reached out to Zenith because.. and I'm a little embarrassed to admit this here.. the paint on the trigger was, I guess smeared/missing, in a spot where it looks like someone touched it before it was dry. I just asked to swap out the trigger but they wouldn't do it because of liability reasons and offered to send me an entirely new pack. I refused as I didn't think it was necessary.

I sent an email and in less than 24 hours they had responded to me and even sent me a pre paid RMA after I refused saying if I changed my mind to just send it in.

@ATLANTIC-FIREARMS

Are all PTR barrels being nitrided or just the MP5 clones?

I contacted Zenith due to the paddle mag feeling very stiff and not dropping the mag unless it was physically pulled.  I also mentioned the finish had a blemish.  I recieved an RMA within a matter of minutes and they came to the conclusion that the paddle mag would break in (it did), however they fixed the blem all with overnight shipping.  The customer service is outstanding IMO.