Airsoft Vol. 13

T Y P E 7 9 - W W W . A I R S O F T W O R L D . N E T
“HAVING HANDLED MORE THAN A FEW GENUINE
EX-SOVIET UNION PSO SCOPES WE’RE CONVINCED THAT THIS
IS NO REPLICA, REGARDLESS OF WHOSE NAME IS ON THE BOX.
SUPPLIED WITH A PROTECTIVE CARRY CASE, WITH SPARE
BULBS, CLEANING KIT, SCREWDRIVER AND INSTRUCTIONS
INCLUDED THIS IS THE ONLY SCOPE THAT SHOULD BE SEEN
ON A SVD RIFLE. BEAUTIFUL OPTICAL QUALITY, THE CORRECT
RANGEFINDING RETICULE, THE WHOLE PACKAGE BASICALLY…”
- AIRSOFT WORLD
as the real things” and being “constructed
in the Izmash factory” on many forums and
discussion boards. It’s true, Real Sword make
some fantastic products and they go to great
lengths to ensure they are as realistic in terms
of build and appearance, and also in operation
as is practically possible. Whether these guns
truly share so much of their manufacturing
process with the real steel counterparts is yet
to be revealed and certainly the marketing
blurb from Real Sword could be interpreted
openly, but one thing is for sure, the SVD is a
great piece to behold, regardless of how truly
realistic it may be.
There’s a lot to take in with the SVD simply
because nearly every aspect of the gun is
worthy of note, from the packaging to the
internals, it’s a little bit special compared to the
run of the mill guns. The box, although not as
flashy as some, does the job and the protective
liner keeps the gun safe from harm on it’s
journey by way of some decent black foam.
The gun itself is delicately laid in its cut out, as
are the peripherals, of which you get plenty.
On top is a hefty tome containing operating
instructions and diagrams in a selection of
languages, something often overlooked but
always welcome to find.
Before picking it up, it’s important to ensure
everyone around you is wearing eye protection
if the gun is fitted with a battery or not... At 4ft
long the risk of poking anyone in the room in
the eye is significantly increased and because
of the skeletal stock out the back of the gun,
the majority of the weight is at the front
making it feel a little unwieldy so a sling would
certainly be a welcome addition for practical
use. The main reason the gun has some heft to
it is because it’s made from no-expense-spared
steel. The tub shaped receiver is steel, the
barrel, all 2ft of it, is steel and the bits bolted to
them are steel or real wood. There’s no monkey
metal or cheap cast alloy in sight. Like most
Soviet-era weapons, the SVD is recognisable as
something made to be operated by a human,
but not entirely “ergonomic” as we understand
the term these days. “Agricultural” is the
term used to describe this extended family
of weapons and to be fair, they are certainly
machinery. Unless you’ve got hands as hard as
the hammer that crosses the sickle, you’ll find
the defined steel edges and keen edges of the
SVD will take nips at your knuckles. This could
all be construed as a negative against the gun,
but in terms of realism, it isn’t at all. Every real
AK I’ve ever fired has been just the same, even
down to a slightly wobbly receiver cover. I’ve
never fired an SVD, but this replica is consistent
with what I’d expect.
THE REAL SWORD
SVD IS DESIGNED TIP
TO TOE AS A DESIGNATED
MARKSMAN’S RIFLE AND
CARRIES A NUMBER OF UNIQUE
FEATURES AND ENHANCEMENTS.
WWW.AIRSOFTWORLD.NET 051