Review: Maxim Defense CQB Stock

I try to be pretty practical about guns but sometimes I fall off the wagon and try stuff just because it looks cool. That’s the case with the Maxim Defense CQB stock.

Traditionally, AR shooters had stock options that fell into two general categories, fixed and collapsible. Fixed stocks used a rifle length buffer tube, spring and buffer while collapsible stocks used these parts in carbine length. Look at any one of the stocks on the market and most will fit into either group. The Maxim Defense stock is different. It uses a smaller buffer and spring. This use of nonstandard parts means the buffer tube can be shorter, in turn allowing a redesign on the stock system.

CQB/PDW style stocks have been around a couple of years from various manufacturers including North Eastern Arms, Battle Arms Development and Troy Industries. All offer similar product dimensions with differing shapes and shooter interfaces. I selected the Maxim after reading a couple of reviews online; however, all three brands seem to offer solid products.

Installation of the Maxim CQB stock is straight forward. Remove the existing stock, spring and buffer. Place the stock block on the rear of the receiver and screw in the new buffer tube Insert the spring system and insert the stock. Done.

Maxim offers two different spring options. The first uses a spring with a separate buffer. The second uses a one piece captured spring from JP Enterprises. I selected the captured buffer spring model.

The stock had four preset positions, with the following lengths:
5.375” closed
6.875” 1st position
8.375” 2nd position
10” fully extended

At its closed position the stock is about an inch shorter than the MAGPUL CTR that I pulled off of this gun; when extended, it is nearly the same.

Unlike the traditional collapsible stock, the Maxim CQB stock rides along a pair of rails and telescopes either towards or away from the receiver. The upside of this system is the short length. The downside is that the stock encroaches into places that it hadn’t before. For instance, with the stock closed, the safety is harder to engage because of the stock rails and the rear pivot pin cannot be removed (unless it is an extended version). Likewise with either one of the two QD stud mounting points located on the sides of the stock. For the right-handed shooter, the left location will impact your cheek, especially during prone shooting. The right location, while preferred, interferes with access to the forward assist and becomes a problem if you need to switch to your weak shoulder. In many ways this is a zero sum game with the increased accessibility coming at the price of other functionality.

I shot the Maxim CQB stock with two different 16″ 5.56mm uppers, one using a carbine and one using a mid-length gas system. It functioned with 100% reliability. I was extremely impressed. Normally when you shorten operating systems on firearms it comes at the expense of reliability. Not so in this case.

While the manual of arms for this stock is different than traditional designs, I was able to familiarize myself with it quickly. Being a right handed shooter, I kept the sling swivel on the left side and was able to accurately engage targets out to 200 yards easily. Is it as comfortable as a fixed stock? Certainly not, but it is absolutely functional.

While it may be a tad short for a 16″ upper, it would be 100% at home on a SBR.

My thoughts:

Reliable functioning. I was skeptical about how well the short spring system would work, but it functioned well
Limits access to safety when closed. While it doesn’t completely block access to the safety, it does get in the way of your thumb when the stock is closed. The other shooters I showed the stock to all commented on this
Uses nonstandard spring and buffer. A few other manufacturers make this style of CQB stock so I don’t think you’ll ever be jammed for parts, but I doubt your friend will have them bumping around in his range bag
Relocate QD studs. I liked the location of the studs until I actually shot the gun. I dropped prone with the stock fully extended and a QD stud on the left side of the receiver bounced into my face with each shot.
Consider adding thin rubber to rear of stock. As provided from the factory, the Maxiun CQB stock has an aluminum butt plate with an aggressive texture. It didn’t slip on my jacket in wet weather, however, I always like a little bit of soft rubber to prevent the rifle from moving around.
Comfortable to shoot. I wouldn’t recommend one for an across the course high power rifle match, but it works well for how compactly it closes.

The Maxim CQB Stock is available through Brownells.