It’s a weird old world that gets daily weirder. Societal unrest, political chaos, economic volatility, terrorism, and just plain old bad boys behaving badly all conspire to synergistically make our lives a bit scary at times. Thanks to the remarkable foresight of the Founding Fathers, our government is at least supposed to respect our inalienable right to self-defense. With a veritable cornucopia of high-speed, low-drag firearms cluttering up your local firearms emporium, Century Arms has now brought us something fresh, new, and different. The AP53 looks like a Star Wars blaster and runs like a chimp after a cupcake. This is one epically cool smoke pole.

Century Arms AP53

The AP53 is an evolutionary development of the original German HK53, itself a shortened carbine version of the HK33 5.56mm assault rifle. The AP53 is a semi-auto firearm made in Turkey that transfers as a big-boned handgun. If you are a gun geek in America and you haven’t yet taken the plunge into these quality Turkish-made roller-locked firearms from Century, you have not yet lived, my friends. These things leave me all tingly.

The cold hammer-forged barrel is 8.93 inches long and tipped with a four-prong flash suppressor. The forend is the same sort used on the MP5 submachine gun. The semi-auto trigger pack rides in a four-position pictogram fire control housing just for the cool points. The rear bit is an otherwise-unremarkable buttcap. More on that later.

The gun is only 22.3 inches long and weighs 7.2 pounds. That puts the AP53 solidly in the same ballpark as the storied MP5 submachine gun. However, the AP53 fires the markedly more manly 5.56mm round. The roller-locked action is not ammo sensitive and has been combat proven around the globe. The AP53 comes with two translucent 30-round magazines, a standard HK-style diopter sight, a sling, an optics mount, and a cleaning kit. The mags even snap together for those times life goes truly pear-shaped.

The Turks make some frankly extraordinary firearms. I own several myself. The quality and engineering rival anything you might find elsewhere at a markedly lower price point. Century leads the charge in bringing these magnificent weapons into the country. The new AP53 is the very top of the heap.

Trigger Time

In its out-of-the-box handgun form, the AP53 is an undeniable powerhouse. You can run the gun off of a single-point sling attached to the buttcap at the back. Thusly configured, the AP53 hangs comfortably in the strong-side armpit ready to grab and go. Pressure forward on the sling helps mitigate the chaos. Sighting grossly over the gun or through a red dot, it is a straightforward chore to keep your rounds in a pie plate at typical CQB ranges. The trigger is a bit long and mushy, but all proper combat triggers are a bit long and mushy. This is a room-clearing beast, not a precision sniper rifle. The trigger is part of what keeps the gun safe.

The muzzle flash when fired in dim light will make you get religion. Legit, this is movie-grade. When using the AP53 in a real-deal defensive scenario, should you miss your target then the muzzle flash should still reliably set your attacker on fire.

The muzzle blast out of that stubby sub-9-inch tube will part your hair, clean your teeth, and flatten the surrounding grass. Despite all that ballistic horsepower, however, the stubby little gun really does maneuver well. It takes corners like a Bugatti and is essentially unkillable. The gun was both completely reliable during our range time together and shot unnaturally straight.

Magazine changes involve manually locking the bolt to the rear, dropping the empty mag, rocking a fresh one in place, and slapping the charging handle down so the bolt can drop into battery. This takes less time to do than to describe. If done well, it will also have you looking like an action movie star on the range.

Taking it To the Next Level

The AP53 is a great starting point to even greater things. The simplest of the lot involves fitting up a Pistol Stabilizing Brace. Our collapsible brace includes an M4-standard buffer tube with a sliding brace attachment that can be optimized for your particular anatomy. Using such a device makes the AP53 markedly more stable and controllable.

The AP53 comes with a sturdy optics mount. Once you get it set up, the gun will accept any handy tactical glass. I used an antique ACOG I bought at a Law Enforcement auction and could shoot flies off my target stand.

The muzzle is threaded 1/2×28. Twist off the flash hider, and the AP53 will accept any appropriate sound suppressor. I used a SilencerCo Velos LBP. There are certainly cheaper cans. However, the Velos LBP represents the current state-of-the-art and is unkillable. It is amazing how well this top-flight SilencerCo suppressor tames the chaos from that stubby barrel. 

If you feel really froggy and have a spare $200 sitting around, just drop the BATF Form 1 and register the gun as a short-barreled rifle. Do it via e-Forms, and the turnaround is currently averaging about three weeks. Once the Form 1 comes back approved, the world is your oyster. Length and buttstock restrictions are out the window.

The AP53 takes any buttock designed to fit the MP5. Surplus solid versions can be found for around a C-note. Gatewood Supply is a good source. 

A little aggressive comparison shopping online will land you the original sliding stock for less than $300. New-made Magpul versions are close to factory and run about half of that. Atlantic Firearms will hook you up.

Trigger Time

I shoot a lot, and I was shocked at how much fun it was running this gun with some decent glass and a sound suppressor. I could print single jagged holes at 25 meters so long as I did my part. Double taps flow forth like Rachmaninoff on crack.

The standard HK two-point sling that comes with the AP53 is more complicated than the human female. However, once you take its measure, that thing is more versatile than a spork and more rugged than a tire iron. Ringing steel with this rig will take you to a whole new place as a shooter—a good place teeming with butterflies and unicorns where supermodels bring you free adult beverages and rub your feet at the end of a hard day. That might be slightly overstating it, but I really did love shooting this gun.

Ruminations

There are lots of practical applications for the AP53. You’d be hard-pressed to find a more efficient truck gun. Should you find yourself out in the hinterlands the next time Americans decide to burn their neighborhoods to the ground, the AP53 should safely get you home. The AP53 is big, scary, and intimidating just sitting still. 

Criminals are bottom-feeding opportunists. You need not be the baddest kid on the block; you just have to seem scarier than the gun-fearing community organizer next door with the “Handgun Control” bumper sticker on his car. The AP53 will indeed get you there.

This is the greatest time in all of American history to be a gun owner. Cost-effective machine guns are gone never to return, but there has never been a better selection at your local gun emporium. Century Arms ensures that law-abiding American shooters can avail themselves of some of the coolest man-portable small arms on the planet. Their top-quality Turkish-made AP53 is the apex predator.

Century Arms AP53 Stands Apart

AR-15 variants are ubiquitous and cheap. An economy of scale has pushed prices down on America’s black rifle to unprecedented levels. A no-name direct gas impingement AR will render fine service without breaking the bank. However, everybody’s got one. Some of us have several. The Century Arms AP53 is designed for the shooter of distinction who’s not satisfied with average. The MSRP is $1799.99, but that’s not out of line for a top-end black gun with these kinds of features in today’s market.

Offering compact size, prodigious capacity, truly superlative execution, and more cool points than you can stand, the Century AP53 is a rugged and attractive working gun. The AP53 is made under license on HK-standard machinery and looks factory perfect, even in good light. If you want to keep your family safe and look magnificent doing it, the AP53 is just the ticket.

Century Arms AP53 Specifications

• Type: Roller-Delayed Semiautomatic
• Caliber: 5.56x45mm
• Barrel: 8.3 inches
• Overall Length: 28 in Retracted/ 30 in Extended
• Weight: 7.2 pounds
• Finish: Manganese Phosphate with Black Lacquer Paint
• Sights: Rear Diopter/Front Post/Electro-Optic
• MSRP (Gun Only): $1,799.99

Century Arms AP53 Performance