More reliable? Maybe, and I only say maybe cause it's not completely a true G36.
More accurate? HELL NO! I'd put a stock Armalite DCM gun up against a scoped SL-8 any day, and that points out to the downside of this gun.
If H&K put the time and effort in exporting a "target" version of the G36 to begin with, they should have at least made one with close to PSG-1 like performance. 1-1.5 MOA to me is unacceptable on this sort of gun, when one could go out and spend an equal amount of money on an AR and get 0.75 MOA easily....or 0.25 MOA on a Les Baer
Now I don't know why the SL-8 can't get PSG-1 0.5 MOA accuracy, but I suspect it's the gun's assault rifle like tolerances and the barrel. When I shot one, it felt really loose, almost like my friend's AK-47. The trigger was a little creepy too, and I can imagine that it doesn't help either.
Point is, it ain't worth the money. It'll be worth the money when it becomes like a PSG-1. Then I'll pay $1600 for a Euro rifle that only holds 10 rounds in its mags.
themao