Airsoft Action

#STANDWITHUKRAINE

ISSUE 173

ISSN 2634-9515

TAP/CLICK THE IMAGES TO VISIT MILITARY1ST.CO.UK FOR MORE INFORMATION

8 ARMOURY: ARCTURUS AK-12U AEG

With current world events the “Kalashnikov” in all its forms has

once again become a very visible tool for oppression… unless

it’s in the hands of the “good guys”, who of course are fighting

for their freedom with the self-same platforms as their would-be

oppressors! Dan gets close with the latest version of the AK-12, the

“U”, from ARCTURUS, and overall likes what he finds!

#STANDWITHUKRAINE

Editorial Director: Bill Thomas

Deputy Editor (Asia): Stu Mortimer

Deputy Editor (USA): Dan Whedon

Graphic Design: Calibre Publishing

Ad Design: Deadshot Design

Publisher: Calibre Publishing Limited

ISSUE 173

ISSN 2634-9515

20 ARMOURY: EMG VFC TTI TR1 ‘JW2’ AEG

It’s still not unheard of for Stewbacca to field an AEG once in a

while for review purposes, and so it was that he got hands on with

the TTI TR1 AEG at VFC’s Pentagon Service Centre. Once behind

the ‘JW2’, a reference to its John Wick II origins, the latest batterypowered

battle-implement proved its worth, and he quickly realised

its utility as he now tells all!

Web: www.airsoftaction.net

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30 ARMOURY: VFC STARK ARMS SA320T

Stewbacca was more than happy to get hands on and eyes

behind VFC’s latest project replicating another custom pistol

manufacturer’s real steel efforts, in this case the Stark Arms

SA320 and SA320T, based on the SIG P320 series of pistols… and

unexpectedly our resident “comp pistoleer” discovers yet another

handgun that meets with his approval!

38 ARMOURY: VORSK VMP DEVELOPMENTS

We’ve spent quite a bit of time concentrating on the VORSK

MODULAR PLATFROM (VMP) program, but we can’t help singing

the praises of a team that have created something that is quite

unique and shows a true understanding of how gas airsoft

platforms work and can be developed through a program that is

ultimately ground-breaking!

Contents

ISSUE 173

48 RED CELL: SBR/PDW UPDATE 2025

Time is flying by, and Red Cell is accelerating towards its end-game!

When we first put the long-term testing program in place we had no

idea just how much interest it would generate, not just among players

but also within the ranks of the industry itself… has the program been

a success? As the team turn their attention to SBR/and PDW for the

final time, Bill picks up the story…

62 6MM TRAINING: THE TACTICAL CARBINE #1

It’s been a little while since we’ve been joined by our old mate and

Shooting Instructor Andy N from Calibre Range, but as many of us

prepare our gear, and more importantly our primary platforms ready

for another year of airsoft, we thought we’d ask him to look at some

specific areas that will help players both old and new elevate both their

carbine setups, and indeed their game overall! Over to Andy…

68 TECH: NIGHT GEAR SOLUTIONS

When it comes to finding the right gear then we just love speaking to

experts in their field, and then bringing you the lowdown on specific

areas of tech and equipment! More and more airsoft players are

turning to night vision products, but how do you know what to buy,

and where can you get the right advice on what you actually need

before parting with your cash? Miguel speaks to Ondrej at Night Gear

Solutions to find out more!

76 KIT & GEAR: FOOTWEAR

As we head towards what we hope will be another long, hot summer

of airsoft adventures as always we look to our personal gear lockers to

look at what needs mending, updating, or outright replacing. Whilst

not the first item on everyone’s list, good footwear is a must, so Bill

looks again at what’s important…

84 AA LEGION: TAIWAN

As we head deeper into a whole new year of airsoft we asked some

of the AA Crew to give us, and you, and idea of what we can expect

to see from them in the coming months, and as usual Stewbacca was

front and centre in providing us a reply! So, without further ado we’ll

hand things over to one of the busiest members of our team to give

his lowdown, and it certainly seems that our “Man in Taiwan” is as

busy as ever!

88 AA LEGION: PORTUGAL

Miguel has always been on point with his reports from games large

and small in his home country of Portugal, and the Portuguese airsoft

community is one that we believe has many things it can teach all of

us! As 2025 progresses we thought it would be of interest to see just

how things have kicked off when it comes to games!

96 RELOADED: ICS MK18

The march of the MK18 continues at pace, with more and more

manufacturers bringing out their own take on this stalwart ARplatform!

But there’s one AEG version that still takes the crown

according to Bill as he checks back on his original ICS model that dates

back to 2022!

INTERNATIO NAL

Manufactured by EMG Under License from

Daniel Defense INC Licensor

‧ Daniel Defense MK18 RIII 9.55-inch Handguard

‧ Daniel Defense MK18 RIII Body Lettering

‧ EMG ZETA Grip & Stock

‧ SSS.III E-Trigger & Pre-Cocking Function

‧ EBB System

‧ Master Mods Reinforced Internals

‧ Split Gearbox

‧ Gearbox QD Spring Guide Design

‧ Spring Tension Release Function

‧ Short-Stroke Trigger

ICS-181S3

IMD-181S3-1

Facebook (Global):

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Twitter (Global):

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Youtube:

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Instagram:

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ARMOURY

ARCTURUS AK-12U AEG

FREEDOM

FIGHTER

8

AIRSOFT ACTION - ISSUE 173

ARMOURY

CYBERGUN/BOLT ARCTURUS BRSS AK-12U SCAR-SC AEG

WE DO LOVE A GOOD AK AT AIRSOFT ACTION, BUT WITH CURRENT WORLD EVENTS THE

“KALASHNIKOV” IN ALL ITS FORMS HAS ONCE AGAIN BECOME A VERY VISIBLE TOOL FOR

OPPRESSION… UNLESS IT’S IN THE HANDS OF THE “GOOD GUYS”, WHO OF COURSE ARE FIGHTING

FOR THEIR FREEDOM WITH THE SELF-SAME PLATFORMS AS THEIR WOULD-BE OPPRESSORS! DAN

GETS CLOSE WITH THE LATEST VERSION OF THE AK-12, THE “U”, FROM ARCTURUS INSIDE AND OUT

AND OVERALL LIKES WHAT HE FINDS!

In late 2024, Arcturus Tactical released a new

update to their well-established AK-12 series: the

AK-12U, the “U” being for “Updated.” This new

model reflects the continuing product-improvement

process that the real steel AK-12 series produced by

Kalashnikov Group has undergone over the years.

As replicated in airsoft form, the original Arcturus

AK-12 models were based on the older 2018 era

AK-12s, and this model has subsequently undergone

rapid evolution through the crucible of war on a

pace not seen since the transformative processes the

Armalite pattern experienced during the GWOT era.

Thusly, the latest model Arcturus AK-12U represents

the relatively newer 2022 model of AK-12, which

itself has since been superseded by even newer

iterations.

Right up front, the AK-12U sports a number of

visible cosmetic changes over the older model. Gone

is the AR-style buffer tube and stock, and an all-new

grip module has replaced the previous steel trigger

“AS REPLICATED IN AIRSOFT FORM, THE ORIGINAL ARCTURUS AK-12 MODELS WERE

BASED ON THE OLDER 2018 ERA AK-12S, AND THIS MODEL HAS SUBSEQUENTLY

UNDERGONE RAPID EVOLUTION THROUGH THE CRUCIBLE OF WAR ON A PACE

NOT SEEN SINCE THE TRANSFORMATIVE PROCESSES THE ARMALITE PATTERN

EXPERIENCED DURING THE GWOT ERA”

www.airsoftaction.net 9

ARMOURY

ARCTURUS AK-12U AEG

guard and polymer grip. The rear peep sight has

been completely redesigned, freeing up even more

rail space for optics. For the most part, these are just

simple ergonomic changes which result in a slightly

reduced weight, but overall they do improve the feel

and handling of the AK-12 platform in the comfort

department.

Returning to the stock, this is now a 6-position

lightweight polymer stock with steel QD sockets. The

stock will lock solidly in both the folded and extended

positions. As with the older version, when the stock

is folded to the side, you still have access to Arcturus’

excellent quick-change-spring guide assembly. I

personally like the feel of the new stock better than

the old one as it feels more solid. The older stock

was heavier, larger, and there was no escaping the

characteristic looseness that is inherent with buffer

tube stocks.

The grip now encompasses a one-piece assembly

that integrates the magazine release into the entire

housing. The finger grooves have been omitted in lieu

of a straighter and slightly slimmer profile. This also

mimics the button release for the maintenance kit that

would be stored in the grip of the real steel model.

Here, it’s just molded into the grip and not something

you can actually depress, however. I’ve never been

a particularly big fan of grips with fingers grooves

on them myself, so even on my Arcturus PP-19-01

PE ZTAC I ended up replacing the Zentico style RK-3

with the factory slim grip from Arcturus. On the AK-

12U, I also have found I greatly prefer the feel of the

redesigned grip over the original version.

A FAMILIAR FORMAT

Moving on from here, the rest of the rifle pretty much

resembles the original AK-12 format we are all familiar

with; the receiver and most of the parts (save for the

outer barrel, which is aluminum), are still constructed

of steel and finished out in the durable QPQ finishing

process. The selector switch also remains the same,

and features the extended ledge for easier operation

with your firing hand finger.

Unique to the AK-12 series is a four-position

selector switch, which consists of safe, full auto,

two-round burst, and semi-auto. These can also be

modified via programming of the ETU. Fortuitously,

unlike the original first generation Arcturus AK-12

that had a major design fault that would allow one to

overrun the selector switch (and consequently have

to tear down the gun to reset the selector plate), the

AK-12U has a selector switch stop built in to prevent

this from happening. This was also a design revision

exhibited on the real steel version too.

The AK-12U comes with a distinctive black

muzzle brake which can be attached after removing

the orange tip. There is an indexing cap that sits

underneath, which if removed, reveals standard

14mm CCW threads. Aft of this, you have a rotational

sling loop and the hand guard assembly, which

is a two-piece polymer set consisting of an upper

and lower handguard. There are two, 1913 rail

sections that are mounted to the 9 and 3 o’clock

areas respectively. These can be removed by the end

user if they wish, but are otherwise rigid enough

for a flashlight or laser aiming module. The lower

“THE GRIP NOW ENCOMPASSES A ONE-PIECE ASSEMBLY THAT INTEGRATES THE

MAGAZINE RELEASE INTO THE ENTIRE HOUSING. THE FINGER GROOVES HAVE BEEN

OMITTED IN LIEU OF A STRAIGHTER AND SLIGHTLY SLIMMER PROFILE. THIS ALSO

MIMICS THE BUTTON RELEASE FOR THE MAINTENANCE KIT THAT WOULD BE STORED

IN THE GRIP OF THE REAL STEEL MODEL”

10


ARMOURY

ARCTURUS AK-12U AEG

handguard also features a full-length 1913 rail for

attaching vertical grips or the like.

The railed dust cover finishes it out; this is an

interesting assembly that indexes into a pair of steel

hooks and is pinned at the front via a captured

takedown lever. Underneath, is of course, where one

would install the battery for the replica.

Owing to the dimensional constraints of the AK-

12 platform and that Arcturus have also strove to

deliver a 1:1 replica, battery space is a little tighter

than what one might find on say, a basic AK-74

pattern. Consequently, larger diameter batteries such

as the Titan Power 11.1v Li-Ion’s will not fit without

disastrously crushing the cells. Ideally, one should stick

with a stick-style LiPo no larger than 15mm x 15mm in

diameter. There are a number of brands and options

in this size format, both in 7.4v and 11.1v.

The new rear sight is an improved “drum”

design that is smaller

in footprint

than the old sight. This

uses a peep aperture and

can be adjusted for both windage.

On the real rifle, rotating the large

serrated wheel would graduate the

sight in 100, 300, 600, 700, and 800

meter increments; obviously a wee

bit optimistic for airsoft purposes!

However, dialing in the sights

for your typical airsoft ranges

was not difficult and these

are

actually useful, unlike

many

airsoft irons that simply

don’t have

the means to adjust. Should one so desire, the entire

sight assembly can be removed from the dust cover in

instances where you might need even more rail space

or wish to mount an optic lower to the gun.

INTERNALLY SOUND

Arcturus offers the AK-12U model in both PE

(Performance Enhanced) and FE (Feature Enhanced)

versions. Unlike the older AK-12, there is no ME

(MOSFET Enhanced) model offered in AK-12U lineup.

The PE editions are essentially the highest grade

offering from Arcturus with all the bells and whistles,

whereas the FE models should be considered the

middle-ground option, with ME finally being the

cheapest model in the hierarchy.

As I had previously covered an Arcturus PE version

in the form of the PP-19-01 Vityaz in Airsoft

Action, and subsequently have gamed

with it extensively since, I wanted to look in

on the FE model and see how they stack up.

Digging into it, the primary key differences

between PE and ME is the gears,

motor and ETU. The PE uses

13:1 CNC’d gears paired

to a 21K Neodymium

motor, whereas the

FE runs 18:1 sintered gears

paired to a 24K Neodymium motor. The

PE is equipped with Perun’s V3 Hybrid ETU, while

the FE models use Arcturus in-house ETU design.

Aside from this, the rest of the component set is the

same throughout. You have a steel racked piston,

“DIGGING INTO IT, THE PRIMARY KEY DIFFERENCES BETWEEN PE AND ME IS

THE GEARS, MOTOR AND ETU. THE PE’S USE 13:1 CNC’D GEARS PAIRED TO A 21K

NEODYMIUM MOTOR, WHEREAS FE RUNS 18:1 SINTERED GEARS PAIRED TO A 24K

NEODYMIUM MOTOR. THE PE IS EQUIPPED WITH PERUN’S V3 HYBRID ETU, WHILE THE

FE MODELS USE ARCTURUS IN-HOUSE ETU DESIGN”


ARMOURY

ARCTURUS AK-12U AEG

O-ring air nozzle, ported POM piston head, stainless

steel cylinder, CNC steel QCS spring guide and M120

spring. There is nothing really proprietary here either,

so from the standpoint of upgrading or maintenance,

you’re absolutely not going to struggle to find suitable

parts here.

The in-house ETU is of Arcturus’ own making,

though it appears to borrow many a page from Perun,

if not maybe even is manufactured under contract by

Perun, but this is, of course, idle speculation.

From a features standpoint, there are many of

the same features one has come to expect these

days from an ETU. Active braking, pre-cocking,

adjustable trigger sensitivity, trigger reset distance,

programmable fire mode, burst, binary mode, battery

protection and an electronic fuse are all standard here.

Generally speaking, I preferred the default

fire control scheme and just made some simple

adjustments to pre-cocking, trigger sensitivity and

reset distance. The two-round burst is kind of fun,

although my hands (well trained as they are on the

standard AK selector) found the four-position selector

slightly confusing. Mainly, where I would normally

feel the semi-auto position is in fact the two-round

burst position, and I would have to correct this often

during operation. I almost wished for an option to

program safe/auto/semi/semi to replicate the standard

AK format, but this is not possible with the current

programming schema.

Incidentally, the Russians have also found that burst

modes are not quite as amazing as they sound on

paper and much like how the US military axed threeround

burst long ago, they too have omitted this on

the 2023 AK-12 version.

Now straight up, from a responsiveness standpoint

the PE versions do have better trigger response. The

13:1/21K motor combination simply nets a faster

ROF and a snappier semi-auto mode. On paper, this

translates to around 24-25 RPS with an 11.1v LiPo,

while the FE version runs at a much more sedate

(albeit, a little more realistic) 17-18 RPS. However,

semi-auto response is still quite good on the FE

version, helped no doubt by the ETU and the trigger

length-of-pull adjustment too. This latter feature

allows you to set the amount of travel on the trigger

to your preference. In conjunction with the trigger

sensitivity adjustment on the ETU, you can, in effect,

achieve a ‘hair trigger’ if so desired.

All in all, performing rapid follow-up shots with the

FE model is a relative breeze. Comparatively speaking,

the FE gearbox still has better semi-auto response than

something like LCT’s stock AK gearboxes do and you

aren’t going to really outrun the gun if you’re working

the semi-auto fast.

All that being said, as a full time tech who tunes a

lot of AEGs, I am admittedly spoiled (maybe biased!)

by what is possible with different gear and motor

combinations. Given the latitude from the customer,

I would probably still advocate for the PE model, or

taking the FE and dropping in 13:1s and a brushless

motor. But as it is, there is honestly a lot to like about

the FE gearbox from the price-point it’s offered at. It’s

a solid setup with some good components and very

little really needs changing.

As was the case with my PP-19-01, the shimming

on the AK-12U was pretty good, only a hair on the

slightly ‘too loose’ side, but far better than I see

from many manufacturers. Compression was also

again fantastic, with no leaks or blow-by. The true

quick-change-spring guide is frankly a godsend

too. Arcturus have smartly also included an anti-tilt

screw to prevent the spring guide from tilting under

compression. If there was any complaint, I would

have wished for the spring guide to use an Allen key

for installation instead of a flat-blade screwdriver. A

large Allen key is simply more stable on the tool when

trying to insert a spring.

All current production is now running the improved

GEN2 rotary TDC (Top Down Center) hop-up

chamber fitted to a 6.02 QPQ finished steel barrel.

This is unquestionably one of the best AK hop-up

chambers on the market, in my humble opinion. And

to that extent, the barrel and bucking are also quite

excellent too. While I experienced some issues with

my Vityaz being unable to lift much more than a

.28g until I dropped in a different nub, the AK-12U’s

chamber was easily capable of lifting heavier without

complaint. For most of my testing I used .32g, which

held an incredibly tight group out to the end of my 80

yard range.

Inside of the magazine well there is a plate which

is designed to prevent over-insertion of the magazine,

“ALL CURRENT PRODUCTION IS NOW RUNNING THE IMPROVED GEN2 ROTARY TDC

(TOP DOWN CENTER) HOP-UP CHAMBER FITTED TO A 6.02 QPQ FINISHED STEEL

BARREL. THIS IS UNQUESTIONABLY ONE OF THE BEST AK HOP-UP CHAMBERS ON THE

MARKET IN MY HUMBLE OPINION”

14


ARMOURY

ARCTURUS AK-12U AEG


ARMOURY

ARCTURUS AK-12U AEG

and the AK-12U FE ships with two magazines; a

30/120 round selectable midcap and a 550 round

hicap. I would have liked to have seen two midcaps,

as I’m not personal fan of the “tactical maraca”, but

getting two magazines to begin with is still a little

unusual these days.

The AK-12 is, of course, compatible with a wide

variety of magazines, including the older 74 pattern

from CYMA and Arcturus and others, TWI Molot

extended mags and more. Some

brands may require

minor

the palm swells and redesigned the handguard to

be slimmer, so I’m probably not the only one who’s

found them disagreeable. Ultimately, I would love to

see something like a replica of the L.A.C. or Zenitco

SPORT-12 handguard become available for this

platform. Obviously, these are really just AK-12 things,

and this is not a ding on Arcturus who are simply

replicating what’s present on the real platform.

Minor gripes aside, the Arcturus AK-12U is still an

excellent airsoft replica which continues to

leverage Arcturus’ forward-thinking

and design innovations. As with

the PP-19-01 I reviewed, I

still feel they are

slightly

fitting of the

locking lug to latch properly,

but overall most magazines I tried

locked in without issue. Out of

the bunch, the Arcturus AK-12

mags undoubtedly feel the nicest and have

wonderfully strong magazine springs and

a unique floor plate design that allows

you to ‘monopod’ the magazine when

you’re getting cozy with the dirt. The

only thing against them is that they are

slightly bulkier than the traditional 74 style

magazine.

CLOSING THOUGHTS

Admittedly, I’ve always held a sort of ambivalence

to the AK-12 series; I’ve generally preferred the

feel of the AK-105, especially when kitted out in

some Zenitco goodies. That perception has changed

somewhat with the AK-12U, which I have come

to develop a liking for as I’ve logged more time on

the platform. I’m still not sure how I feel about the

handguard, as I’ve had a harder time adapting to

it. The shape of the palm swells feel a bit angular

and unnatural if holding it traditionally, though this

is largely moot when using a foregrip in a modified

C-clamp grip as I believe it’s intended.

The 2023 versions look like they’ve eliminated

underpriced

considering

the feature set,

components, and high

build quality present

here.

Straight out of the

box, you’ve got an

eminently useable

AEG that does not feel

disadvantaged in the

slightest when compared

to other stock offerings.

Which is also to say, it’s

among the extremely few

brands

that I’d say you could use for a long while

without touching a thing. Suffice it to say if you are

lusting for an AK-12 platform, the Arcturus should be

at the top of the list… whether the FE or PE version,

you genuinely can’t go wrong with either!

“NOW STRAIGHT UP, FROM A RESPONSIVENESS STANDPOINT THE PE VERSIONS DO

HAVE BETTER TRIGGER RESPONSE. THE 13:1/21K MOTOR COMBINATION SIMPLY NETS

A FASTER ROF AND A SNAPPIER SEMI-AUTO MODE. ON PAPER, THIS TRANSLATES TO

AROUND 24-25 RPS WITH AN 11.1V LIPO, WHILE THE FE VERSION RUNS AT A MUCH

MORE SEDATE 17-18 RPS”

16


ARMOURY

ARCTURUS AK-12U AEG

Disclaimer: I purchased the Arcturus AK-12U from my own funds for the purpose of this review, and nothing

was arranged or furnished for review on Arcturus’ behalf. AA

“STRAIGHT OUT OF THE BOX, YOU’VE GOT AN EMINENTLY USEABLE AEG THAT DOES

NOT FEEL DISADVANTAGED IN THE SLIGHTEST WHEN COMPARED TO OTHER STOCK

OFFERINGS. WHICH IS ALSO TO SAY, IT’S AMONG THE EXTREMELY FEW BRANDS THAT

I’D SAY YOU COULD USE FOR A LONG WHILE WITHOUT TOUCHING A THING”


TAP/CLICK IMAGES FOR MORE INFORMATION

ARMOURY

EMG VFC TTI TR1 ‘JW2’ AEG

ROBUST

PRECISION

20


ARMOURY


WHILE HE’S USUALLY BEEN A GAS BLOWBACK GUN-ADDICT SINCE MOVING TO TAIWAN, IT’S STILL

NOT UNHEARD OF FOR STEWBACCA TO FIELD AN AEG ONCE IN A WHILE FOR REVIEW PURPOSES,

AND SO IT WAS THAT HE GOT HANDS ON WITH THE TTI TR1 AEG AT VFC’S PENTAGON SERVICE

CENTRE. ONCE BEHIND THE ‘JW2’, A REFERENCE TO ITS JOHN WICK II ORIGINS, THE LATEST BATTERY-

POWERED BATTLE-IMPLEMENT PROVED ITS WORTH, AND HE QUICKLY REALISED ITS UTILITY AS HE

NOW TELLS ALL!

The ‘Lightweight’ TR1 is just that; superbly

wieldy and not an encumbrance in terms of

its handling at around 2.5kg, especially when

you’re used to lugging around ‘chonkeh boi’ gas

guns and their associated magazines in your gear!

The licenced BCM KMR 13” KeyMod handguard

allows for a comfortable arm-outstretched-grip and

the related ease of pointing with your support hand;

similarly the use of a chunky BCM gunfighter pistol

grip and wide bodied Mod-1 SOPMOD butt stock

make for comfortable and controllable carrying and

movement of the rifle in your hands.

The BCM pistol grip also sports the coarse

skateboard-tape-style finish moulded into its side

panels, with smooth-finished palms swell on the rear

and lateral striations on the front strap, the overall

shape and feel being quite close to the HK416 pistol

grip if you are familiar with that feeling, albeit slightly

shorter overall and more slab sided in its presentation

rather than oval cross sectioned.

The wide butt stock has the same coarse-moulded

in texture on its large release button on its underside

which allows for ease of squeezing it in with a wraparound

grip where the palm is on the top cheekpiece

area and the fingers (whether barehanded or gloved)

get a great grip across the button allowing better

actuation of it and simultaneous movement of the

whole buttstock in or out among the five available

locking positions, allowing for a variety of body

sizes and arm lengths, or presence of body armour

or other worn equipment to be accommodated

comfortably between 808 and 894mm of

adjustment.

The wide-angled cheekpiece sections make for a

very comfortable ‘lock up’ in the hands, shoulder and

lining up the sights with your eye in a repeatable

and easy manner; in terms of sights you don’t get

anything out of the box as it’s a direct replication

of the John Wick II-use TR1 example, where the

eponymous punching bag and hero makes use of

“THE ‘LIGHTWEIGHT’ TR1 IS JUST THAT; SUPERBLY WIELDY AND NOT AN

ENCUMBRANCE IN TERMS OF ITS HANDLING AT AROUND 2.5KG, ESPECIALLY

WHEN YOU’RE USED TO LUGGING AROUND ‘CHONKEH BOI’ GAS GUNS AND THEIR

ASSOCIATED MAGAZINES IN YOUR GEAR!”


ARMOURY


an LPVO scope and a 45 degree angled red dot for

close encounters. Personally, I stuck a simple T1 style

clone red dot with an integral riser and QD lock on

the plentiful full length Picatinny rail along with upper

receiver and Keymod handguard, but of course there’s

no shortage of room for a longer optic should you

want to go for the ‘straight out of the movie’ look.

GETTING BBS DOWN

I imagine the performance would also suit such a

setup, and while only using a red dot for sighting I

nonetheless managed to reach out easily and reliably

to the 40-50m range without much effort, posting

plenty of 0.30g or 0.32g rounds through tight gaps

or multiple windows or odd angles during outings at

Linkou CQB once the HOP unit was dialled in.

This is easily adjusted thanks to the lock open faux

bolt; pulling the ambidextrous serrated wing charging

handle rearward locks the burnt bronze TTI logoadorned

bolt-shell on the right hand side slightly open

within the ejection port, allowing you ease of access

to the drum style adjustment wheel. I think I much

prefer these coaxial large wraparound drum adjusters

over the older style transverse axle mounted wheels;

much like the newer GBBR systems it allows for a

lot easier adjustment with a fingertip even if gloved,

or a flat bladed multitool in the case of the smaller

hidden drums of some GBBRs. This variant is quite

sizeable and has coarse castellations or ‘teeth’ making

adjustment easy and solid in terms of it staying in

place once set and being ease you count adjustment

steps if required.

With the HOP setting where you want it slapping

the typical bolt release paddle on the left side of the

receive will drop the faux bolt and close up the access

to it; however I found that the spring-loaded bolt

cover didn’t really latch in to the receiver properly

so always seems to stay open. There are openings

in the latch surfaces to force it open upon retracting

the charging handle, but it nonetheless doesn’t seem

to engage with the closed portions with its spring

loaded latch anyway. This isn’t a huge deal breaker

to my mind as it’s an AEG so there’s nothing much to

worry about in terms of dirt ingress with the faux bolt

closed the majority of the time and no cycling action

to consider, but a small gripe in terms of tolerances or

quality control for some perhaps.

The forward assist has no obvious function I

became aware of, but is well replicated and similarly

its receiver protrusion sports a bold white highlighted

TTI stacked ‘T’ logo as does the right side of the

magazine well slab side, with the left upper receiver

having a smaller similar one and the left mag well

slab having a subdued version along with the model

and serial number laser engraved into its surface just

above the flared fencing edge around it. The included

two piece sonic-welded, lightweight, simple and

durable STANAG AR AEG mid cap magazine holds

120 BBs and fits into the magazine well reasonably

well and fed flawlessly during my use of it.

However, I quickly defaulted to the Amarok

MAG250 sample magazines I’ve been using with

AR AEGs lately. These are a P-MAG-styled, highly

durable mid cap magazine with 250 BB capacity

and great feeding as well as a vast array of colours

and a selection of surface textures to suit many

end user’s tastes… more on Amarok to come later

from me, and from Bill as he’s been testing the new

magazines as well. Unfortunately with the handguard

being KeyMod (to maintain faithfulness to the movie

franchise rifle, despite the less common usage in

reality) I couldn’t use any of their other accessories,

not that I can talk about them for another few

months anyway…

SLICK AND LIGHT

I quite liked running the AEG slick and lightweight

nonetheless, with high capacity spring-fed magazines

it offered me more ammunition in one AEG AR

magazine than I typically carry in an entire GBBR

magazine loadout of 5-8 GBBR AR mags or similar.

I made use of a 1100mAh stick LiPo battery which

easily fits in the large space afforded by the butt stock

and empty buffer tube; a ‘Deans’ or T-Plug connector

is fitted as standard, with access to the space through

the flip down permanently affixed grippy butt-pad

which is released by squeezing in the two retainer

tabs in the finger divots just rearward of the QD

sockets and lateral sling loops. The aforementioned

rear butt-pad surface and slightly soft rubberised

texture really helps it grab gear or clothing and makes

the stock stay in place once pulled into the shoulder

“IN TERMS OF SIGHTS YOU DON’T GET ANYTHING OUT OF THE BOX AS IT’S A DIRECT

REPLICATION OF THE JOHN WICK II-USE TR1 EXAMPLE, WHERE THE EPONYMOUS

PUNCHING BAG AND HERO MAKES USE OF AN LPVO SCOPE AND A 45 DEGREE ANGLED

RED DOT FOR CLOSE ENCOUNTERS”

22


ARMOURY


“I QUITE LIKED RUNNING THE AEG SLICK AND LIGHTWEIGHT NONETHELESS, WITH HIGH

CAPACITY SPRING-FED MAGAZINES IT OFFERED ME MORE AMMUNITION IN ONE AEG

AR MAGAZINE THAN I TYPICALLY CARRY IN AN ENTIRE GBBR MAGAZINE LOADOUT OF

5-8 GBBR AR MAGS OR SIMILAR!”


ARMOURY


pocket, even if only lightly so.

The rear of the lower receiver also incorporates the

typical BCM gunfighter styled QD socket rear plate

(with licensed star logo baring variants available as

optional components) giving you a range of options

for attaching quick-detach sling solutions, and while

the KeyMod handguard doesn’t incorporate any

in its body like the slightly more up to date M-LOK

solutions, the plentiful Picatinny rail along its top

would allow end users to attach a standoff or angled

QD socket mount anywhere along it to best suit

their own setup requirements depending what other

accessories are fitted to it.

The selector switch is the standard format and left

side only, with safe, semi, auto positions at 90 degree

intervals. However, hiding inside the guts of the gun

is a GATE ASTER electronic trigger control unit, which

gives you the initiation tone when first attaching

the battery, as well as monitoring the ‘health’ of the

battery and chiming in if the power gets too low and

risks damaging it.

I’ve had a few of my LiPos balloon as a result

of excessive discharging in simpler AEGs without

MOSFET or ETU systems, or due to mechanical

damage due to a lack of suitable on-board internal

storage space; I blew through the whole 1100mAh

battery in the space of less than a whole morning’s

gaming thanks to the multiple 250 BB Amarok

magazines I was carrying at the Linkou CQB game

where I did the majority of my testing, suppressing the

OpFor while my teammates flanked and eliminated

them in force. The TR1 sent BBs sailing down the

length of the play area with ease and repeatability,

and even with just a 100m/s muzzle energy on a

“I BLEW THROUGH THE WHOLE 1100MAH BATTERY IN THE SPACE OF LESS THAN A

WHOLE MORNING’S GAMING THANKS TO THE MULTIPLE 250 BB AMAROK MAGAZINES

I WAS CARRYING AT THE LINKOU CQB GAME WHERE I DID THE MAJORITY OF MY

TESTING”

24


ARMOURY


“THE ELECTRONIC TRIGGER IS ALSO VERY RESPONSIVE, AND ITS INCORPORATED

HEAT-RESISTANT MOUNT ENSURES IT DOESN’T ENCOUNTER PROBLEMS EVEN WITH

SUCH A LIBERAL USE AND HIGH ROUND-COUNT IN A DAY’S GAMING; THE GEARBOX

ITSELF HAS THE NOW SOMEWHAT INDUSTRY-STANDARD QUICK-CHANGE SPRING

SYSTEM WITH A STEEL SPRING GUIDE, GEARS AND 8MM BEARINGS”


ARMOURY


0.20g BB, the 380mm internal barrel really sends

them on their way nicely.

The electronic trigger is also very responsive, and its

incorporated heat-resistant mount ensures it doesn’t

encounter problems even with such a liberal use and

high round-count in a day’s gaming; the gearbox

itself has the now somewhat industry-standard quickchange

spring system with a steel spring guide, gears

and 8mm bearings to ensure it is well supported,

coupled with a strengthened tappet plate reinforced

piston and CNC machined air nozzle that makes

for a very solid overall package that throws out

BBs consistently and fills you with confidence, just

chewing through magazines without skipping a beat.

Despite it being an AEG and not really making

my teeth rattle and ears ring the same as my usual

fare, it certainly had no problem getting the job done

and sending people walking back to their regen or

the dead zone, especially with the already awesome

looking front muzzle device swapped out for an

Acetech Blaster tracer unit and luminous BBs making

it easier for me to track their flight in the slightly

dimmed indoor play area.

GETTING PRACTICAL

While we don’t tend to use AEGs for IPSC stages or

drills all that often, I nonetheless took it for an outing

at team SPPT’s regular training space with a ten metre

range and the fold-out VTAC barricade I built for the

team. Using the TR1 ‘JW2’ AEG, even without any

iron sights or a red dot fitted on its first outing right

after picking it up from VPSC just before the session,

I was easily able to ‘point shoot’ popper and C-zone

steel targets thanks to the long handguard and inner

barrel which give it a natural visual pointability and

short range accuracy without the usual height-overbore

concerns that having sights on would entail.

Similarly, my teammate Rex managed to stumble

on the programmable modes option by holding

the trigger down after insertion of the battery and

selection to semi auto; firing off a shot (dry fired,

of course) and holding the trigger down for a few

seconds afterwards elicits the usual tone of the GATE

ASTER telling you that it’s ready to reprogram the ETU

from the typical SAFE-SEMI-AUTO into a variety of

semi, multi duration burst or full auto modes assigned

to the positions of the selector switch.

In practice we only use semi-auto in games anyway,

so I just let it be and used it in semi-auto-only aside

from dumping magazines on ranges to ensure

function, but every trigger pull was rapidly converted

into a BB exactly where I wanted it in short order… I

was enjoying using it a surprising amount!

Overall everyone in team Taiji who’s had hands

on with the EMG VFC TTI TR1 ‘JW2’ AEG has had

lots of good things to say, and similarly I have been

quite impressed with the performance and handling

even if it isn’t my usual preferred gas-powered noise

machine and industrial aesthetic; indeed the lines and

branding are sleek and crisp compared to some of

my more utilitarian favourites, but if you’re in the line

for a faithful movie replica, or just a good solid AEG

that has all the bells and whistles out of the box, you

should really give it a fair shake… I did, and I wasn’t

disappointed!

Many thanks to our friends at VFC and their

Pentagon Service Centre for facilitating the review

sample for me to test; I can see myself retaining it

and using it as a great testing AEG for further related

accessories and upcoming magazine solutions, given

that I don’t have another AR AEG in my inventory at

present... AA

“USING THE TR1 ‘JW2’ AEG, EVEN WITHOUT ANY IRON SIGHTS OR A RED DOT FITTED

ON ITS FIRST OUTING RIGHT AFTER PICKING IT UP FROM VPSC JUST BEFORE THE

SESSION, I WAS EASILY ABLE TO ‘POINT SHOOT’ POPPER AND C-ZONE STEEL TARGETS

THANKS TO THE LONG HANDGUARD AND INNER BARREL WHICH GIVE IT A NATURAL

VISUAL POINTABILITY”

26


ARMOURY


“OVERALL EVERYONE IN TEAM TAIJI WHO’S HAD HANDS ON WITH THE EMG VFC TTI

TR1 ‘JW2’ AEG HAS HAD LOTS OF GOOD THINGS TO SAY, AND SIMILARLY I HAVE BEEN

QUITE IMPRESSED WITH THE PERFORMANCE AND HANDLING EVEN IF IT ISN’T MY

USUAL PREFERRED GAS-POWERED NOISE MACHINE AND INDUSTRIAL AESTHETIC”


TAP/CLICK FOR MORE INFORMATION


ARMOURY

VFC STARK ARMS SA320T

STARK

CONTRAST

EVER THE LOVER OF GAS BLOWBACK GUNS IN GENERAL, BUT A FAN OF PISTOLS IN PARTICULAR,

STEWBACCA WAS MORE THAN HAPPY TO GET HANDS ON AND EYES BEHIND VFC’S LATEST PROJECT

REPLICATING ANOTHER CUSTOM PISTOL MANUFACTURER’S REAL STEEL EFFORTS, IN THIS CASE THE

STARK ARMS SA320 AND SA320T, BASED ON THE SIG P320 SERIES OF PISTOLS… AND UNEXPECTEDLY

OUR RESIDENT “COMP PISTOLEER” DISCOVERS YET ANOTHER HANDGUN THAT MEETS WITH HIS

APPROVAL!

30


ARMOURY


Back at the tail end of February I was once

again messaged by our good friends at VFC’s

Pentagon Service Centre to be informed that

“There’s an SA320 that’s been prepared that’s waiting

for you.” SA320 you say? Another case of something

I was vaguely aware of and had seen advertising

released for but hadn’t really taken a direct interest

in as my personal tastes tend to be aimed at service

weapons or other such classic platforms.

I went along on the way home after work and

found that, in fact, two pistols had been prepared

for me to choose from; the standard SA320 comes

with a gunship grey polymer frame while the SA320T

is the “tactical” variant with a slightly extended and

threaded outer barrel and a black frame, otherwise

being identical.

“TWO PISTOLS HAD BEEN PREPARED FOR ME TO CHOOSE FROM; THE STANDARD

SA320 COMES WITH A GUNSHIP GREY POLYMER FRAME WHILE THE SA320T IS THE

“TACTICAL” VARIANT WITH A SLIGHTLY EXTENDED AND THREADED OUTER BARREL

AND A BLACK FRAME, OTHERWISE BEING IDENTICAL”


ARMOURY


I opted for the tactical model to allow me to slap

an Acetech Blaster tracer unit on the end during

Wednesday night CQB games where we tend to use

pistols-only or smaller guns in general as I go straight

from the “day job” with it being close to the Police

Training Centre we play at. I also, naturally, took it

along to IPSC sessions throughout my testing and

reviewing process running it on 1,2,3,4 drill stages

on steel and practise stages on paper and steel alike,

giving it plenty of run out as well as it serving as my

sidearm for skirmishes on Sunday mornings, so I put

down plenty of BBs in a variety of environments to

gather my thoughts on it.

As it happens, I’ve been an owner of the standard

VFC SIG M18 pistol since September 2023 and

apparently started a bit of a trend among the “old

guard” core foreigner-contingent of Team Taiji. Some

of our guys had owned the peanut butter M17 service

pistol beforehand, but I didn’t like it quite as much

as the slightly more compact M18, which I of course

acquired in black as is my wont. Since then our team

leader, 2IC and now a further two of the guys in the

“core team birthday outings crew” have acquired

them as presents having had a go with mine and

taken an interest in it as something a bit different

from the otherwise standard VFC Glocks or PPQs

which seem to fill the holsters of our many of our

team.

Similarly our new girl, Ning really enjoyed using the

M18 at IPSC training for its great handling, aside from

struggling a bit with the magazine release given her

smaller hands and thus shorter thumb reach; overall

everyone that gets hands on with newer SIG pistols

seems to agree that the oval cross-section pistol grip

seems to fit everyone’s different hand sizes excellently

and just lets them wrap around them in a controlling

and comfortable manner regardless of size.

SAME, BUT NOT THE SAME

The Stark Arms SA320 series has slightly flatter sides

with a thinner slab-side moulding of the material and

inset section but retains the oval cross section at the

base, flaring out to the mouth of the magazine well

that gives a really comfortable hand retaining grip

similar to the GEN5 Glocks with the magwell indexing

the edge of your palm really nicely and the pistol

fitting in your hand even more nicely.

The texturing is a lot more aggressive all round,

with very grippy general texturing on the sides and

sunburst-beam cutouts radiating through them from

the backstrap, while the front and backstrap swell

slightly more than the standard M18, and have much

more aggressive “skateboard tape” style texture

pads moulded into them than those of the M18.

The thumb rest insets are ambidextrous and again

more textured for better handling and the magazine

button-flanks are cut away slightly more to make it

stick out slightly and be more tactile.

The trigger guard is rounded by comparison but the

trigger itself is definitely where the most noticeable

changes have been made; not only is it a much flatter

and straighter with a slight fingertip retaining flare at

its bottom, the break weight is significantly lighter,

and there are two grub screws on the trigger main

body, one in front and the other behind of the main

trigger blade which allow for fine tuning of the travel.

I did perhaps over-egg this feature somewhat as

I did with the Tril Tactical Glock kits, and really rode

the reset limit on the first adjustment, giving a very

crisp break and immediate reset, but resulting in some

dead trigger moments which got me “killed in the

streets” during a pistol firefight during one of our

skirmishes. I found myself pulling the trigger with my

finger and having to force it forward to fully reset

with my support hand thumb until I got it home to

mess around with it some more and get it working

more reliably if being slightly sloppier on the break

and reset.

Nonetheless, I love this feature and it’s easy to

access thanks to the very innovative chassis system

of the P320 and its derivatives being replicated in

the replicas. From an engineering and innovation

standpoint I’m a huge fan of this idea, where ‘the

firearm’ is the metal internal cassette that’s serialised

with a cut-out in the plastic allowing said serial

number to be visible on the right hand side. The

whole unitised working parts of the frame can be

readily pulled out and slapped into a different cheap

polymer frame with a different colour, shape, texture

or other features with utter ease; merely cycling the

action and locking it rearward to cock the internal

hammer (in the case of airsoft guns) and sweeping

“OVERALL EVERYONE THAT GETS HANDS ON WITH NEWER SIG PISTOLS SEEMS TO

AGREE THAT THE OVAL CROSS-SECTION PISTOL GRIP SEEMS TO FIT EVERYONE’S

DIFFERENT HAND SIZES EXCELLENTLY AND JUST LETS THEM WRAP AROUND THEM IN

A CONTROLLING AND COMFORTABLE MANNER REGARDLESS OF SIZE”

32


ARMOURY


“THE TRIGGER GUARD IS ROUNDED BY COMPARISON BUT THE TRIGGER ITSELF IS

DEFINITELY WHERE THE MOST NOTICEABLE CHANGES HAVE BEEN MADE; NOT ONLY IS

IT A MUCH FLATTER AND STRAIGHTER WITH A SLIGHT FINGERTIP RETAINING FLARE AT

ITS BOTTOM, THE BREAK WEIGHT IS SIGNIFICANTLY LIGHTER”


ARMOURY


the disassembly lever downward and then releasing

the slide to remove it forwards.

The disassembly lever itself can then be pulled out

to the left and voila, there’s nothing more retaining

the internal metallic cassette with all the springs,

sears and other components and it can easily be

pulled upward and forward out of the polymer frame

entirely. This allows it to be accessed easily for general

maintenance (or in my particular case tweaking of

the two grub screws to adjust the trigger travel to my

tastes), but also allows it to be used for the likes of

Flux Raider PDW/MP18 style kits which are becoming

increasingly of interest to me given their increasing

prevalence in both airsoft and real steel realms.

I see our friend Marck West of Laylax fame using

his real steel one regularly on his range videos and I’m

becoming increasingly tempted to buy a replica to try

out the new craze. I absolutely love the simplicity and

adaptability of this system and it seems to be finding

its way into other systems now like ZEV’s Glock

derivatives, so hopefully will become increasingly

common in both real steel and replica realms.

The trigger itself is also very different. The M18’s

standard more curved variant is also much heavier,

around 1.75kg average on my pull weight gauge,

whereas the SA320T is over a full kilogram lighter,

clocking at 0.6kg on average… being ridiculously light

and crisp though allowed me to run it even faster

and harder at IPSC than the M18… the trigger and

its short travel and reset being one of Ning’s favourite

aspects of using it too.

The magazine release can be readily transferred

between right or left handed use by depressing it and

using a small pin punch to unlatch the front retaining

section, the smaller triangle insert at the front of the

‘off-side’ opposite the actual button surface, which

can then be pulled out to the side and allows the

button to be fully removed from the other side and

put in the other way around and reassembled in under

a minute with practise.

There are slide-stop release levers on both sides,

although in the case of the SA320 there are no

manual safety levers at all unlike the ambidextrous

ones of the M18; not such a concern in airsoft,

however my lawyer would probably advise me not to

complete any sentences relating to the lack of safety

in real steel SIG pistols as of late…

SIGHTING IN

Another thing I really like which is also becoming

increasingly common on modern service pistols is the

inclusion from the factory of optics ready-mounting

systems; Glock’s MOS has taken a long time to

come to market and take hold, with many seeing

its plate system as inferior to some more established

alternatives, while the SIG series use the standard iron

sight to hold the plate down and four are included

with the Stark Arms models, for RMR/SRO, ACRO and

DOCTOR footplates, as well as the blank plate that

comes fitted to the pistol from the factory.

I seem to have settled on SRO clones as my red

dot of choice lately, so I fitted a black bodied replica

with a rubberised front lens protector sheet on it for

skirmishing purposes.

The slide itself feels a lot lighter as are the recoil

springs while its front and rear grip serrations are

spaced wider and angled less aggressively, which

seem to still work fine as a result of the lower spring

tension, and even with the added mass of the red

dot the cycling is very snappy in the same manner

as its M18 sibling. I did seem to have to zero the dot

very low in the case of the SA320 compared to other

dotted pistols I’ve been using, but it shoots very flat

and straight, largely thanks to its fixed barrel.

Unlike the M18, it lacks the faux-tilting Browning

action allowing for a smoother action in general and

greater accuracy because of the lack of movement

within the action overall. The steel internals also

ensure good “oomph” out of the gas system and

I have found it to be very reliable aside from the

teething issues with the trigger I caused for myself.

The HOP unit is also superbly simple to adjust.

The M18 has a similar but less mature system

requiring a tool to slide over the recoil spring guide at

the front as you pull the slide partially out of battery

to twist the rod and thereby adjust the HOP setting.

The SA320, by contrast, have larger flats that can

be easily manipulated with your finger and thumb

allowing you to take a few shots, pull the slide back

far enough to access the adjustment, but not so far

that the gas nozzle retracts and strips and chambers

“I FOUND THE WHOLE SETUP EXCELLENT AND I WAS DOUBLE TAPPING PEOPLE FROM

20M WITH RELATIVE EASE DURING SOME OF THE NIGHT GAMES, WITH THE TRACER

UNIT FITTED TO THE THREADED FIXED OUTER BARREL ALLOWING ME TO TRACK THE

ROUNDS OUT TO TARGET AND EVEN MORE READILY ZERO THE DOT”

34


ARMOURY


another BB, allowing very rapid on the fly adjustment

to really dial in your settings with ease to suit the

ammunition being used, followed by zeroing of your

red dot to suit as well.

I found the whole setup excellent and I was double

tapping people from 20m with relative ease during

some of the night games, with the tracer unit fitted to

the threaded fixed outer barrel allowing me to track

the rounds out to target and even more readily zero

the dot during preparation times; the fact the barrel is

fixed also means that fitting anything like a tracer or

suppressor doesn’t interfere with the reliable cycling

of the action as it can with other replicas that do have

tilt barrel replication, or even as with real pistols in

some cases.

Magazine-wise, the SA320 series uses the same

VFC M17/M18/P320 magazines, although the

standard one that arrives with the tactical model is

also extended with a baseplate plug that actually

extends the BB track, allowing for an impressive 30

BBs to be loaded, although occasionally it can fail to

lock open on empty as it begins to cool down or run

out of gas towards the end of a long string of firing.

The funnelling of the magazine well also aids in

smoother reloading under stress or on the clock I have

found. Under the barrel, a slightly longer dust cover

includes a four slot Picatinny accessory rail allowing

users to fit lights or other accessories; personally I took

to fitting a camera mount for selfie camera/muzzle

eye view videos during IPSC and skirmishes as well as

to provide footage towards the Popular Airsoft awards

video I produced regarding pistols.

The 85mm inner barrel gives pretty impressive

accuracy with me drilling one large inch-sized hole in

a paper target once I’d dialled everything in, and in

the tactical model you could swap it out for a 100mm

or slightly longer barrel if you felt the need as the

outer barrel extends fairly far beyond the muzzle of

the inner barrel. Similarly putting a suppressor on and

an even further extended inner barrel might be an

option for those looking for more extreme range.

All told, while it isn’t something I would usually

consider myself, the VFC SA320 and SA320T are

nonetheless an excellent option if you’re in the market

for a modern-looking, comfortable, reliable and

adaptable sidearm, and my IPSC teammate who was

also trying it out is giving serious consideration to

running one in Production Optics Division given the

excellent trigger, accuracy and optics-readiness from

the box!

Many thanks as always go to our friends at VFC

and their Pentagon Service Centre for facilitating my

review! AA

“ALL TOLD, WHILE IT ISN’T SOMETHING I WOULD USUALLY CONSIDER MYSELF, THE

VFC SA320 AND SA320T ARE NONETHELESS AN EXCELLENT OPTION IF YOU’RE IN

THE MARKET FOR A MODERN-LOOKING, COMFORTABLE, RELIABLE AND ADAPTABLE

SIDEARM”


TOKYO MARUI

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THE L119A2 IS JUST ONE POPULAR

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FANTASTIC SYSTEM - FITTED WITH

THE ANGRY GUN RAIL SYSTEM AND

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ARMOURY

VORSK VMP DEVELOPMENTS

MODULAR

PROGRAM

SUCCESS

38


ARMOURY


IT’S TRUE THAT WE’VE SPENT QUITE A BIT OF TIME CONCENTRATING ON THE VORSK MODULAR

PLATFROM (VMP) PROGRAM, BUT WE CAN’T HELP SINGING THE PRAISES OF A TEAM THAT HAVE

CREATED SOMETHING THAT IS QUITE UNIQUE AND SHOWS A TRUE UNDERSTANDING OF HOW GAS

AIRSOFT PLATFORMS WORK AND CAN BE DEVELOPED THROUGH A PROGRAM THAT IS ULTIMATELY

GROUND-BREAKING! BILL REPORTS BACK ON HIS OWN VMP-2 AND LOOKS TO THE FUTURE…

It seems a long time ago now that we had our epic

“container yard” photoshoot with the Vorsk bois

and the team from Krios Photography, and if I look

back on my notes then that is indeed way back in

ISSUE 147 (March 2023)!

The VORSK MODULAR PLATFORM (VMP) program

has literally raced on from there, and in my mind

the VMP-1 has already given many players their first

proper taste of just how much fun being in-game

with a good gas platform can be! I said at the time:

“Gas airsoft does require a different mind-set,

but I’m still of the belief that a well-set-up gas

primary platform can be a 100% viable option in all

game settings, and not just MilSim or competition

shooting, and I have to say that there are others

among the AA team that agree with me…”


ARMOURY


As

players,

most

certainly

those in

the UK

but also

further

afield,

have

embraced the VMP-1 thanks to its attractive,

functional design and in-game utility, this little

SMG/MP platform has proved to be a huge

hit, with many, many thousands

of units sold; this goes to

prove to me

that I was indeed correct in

my assumption that many

players loved the idea of

running a GBBR, but were

put off by both price and

consistency… the VMP-1,

along with the VORSK FUEL

options, solved both these

issues in one fell swoop,

a success undoubtedly for

VORSK, but also for the

players that bought into the

program (including me!).

But the VORSK team were

NEVER going to stop with just

“THE VORSK TEAM WERE NEVER GOING TO STOP WITH JUST AN SMG, AND EVEN

BACK WHEN I FIRST SAW THE VMP-1 RENDERS THERE WERE ALREADY PLANS TO

MOVE THE PROGRAM MEANINGFULLY FORWARD, TO CREATE FULL “BATTLE AND

RECON” RIFLES BASED ON THE SAME GAS SYSTEM”

40


ARMOURY


an SMG, and even back when I first saw the VMP-

1 renders there were already plans to move the

program meaningfully forward, to create full “battle

and recon” rifles based on the same gas system,

but placing it into a more “traditional” carbine/rifle

configuration.

So it was that I saw plans and 3D renders of the

VMP-2, and this moved forward to full physical mockups,

culminating in the finished preproduction

prototypes that I shot in the

depths of the VORSK skunkworks and

then saw fully-fledged along with the

rest of the airsoft world at IWA 2024…

and they looked and felt awesome!

Folk, especially those that already

owned a VMP-1 were excited as hell, and

a host of pre-orders were placed, ensuring that VMP-2

would be as much of a success as the VMP-1… and

then… we all waited…

Through absolutely no fault of the VORSK team

the three VMP-2 variants arrived late, in fact not

until the beginning of this year. We all know that

international surface shipping has been in complete

disarray for a while now, and although the container

with all the initial VMP-2s inside left the Far East on

time, it then went on a little cruise around the world’s

oceans… and kept right on cruising! I spoke to the

guys numerous times to get an update on where

the container was, and each time I asked it was in

a different dockyard at some far-flung “edge of the

empire”!

Frustration levels were high indeed, and finally I

was advised of a landing date in the

on UK shores… and finally late in February 2025 the

VMP-2s finally made it to their new homes…

I stress again, this was in no way the “fault” of

the VORSK team, or indeed anyone… we’ve all seen

what’s going on with surface shipping and it ain’t

pretty right now, and potentially could get even worse

given the global political situation; perhaps when we

see a new model advertised our wait-time is going to

be significantly longer then it has been in the past…

but most airsofters I know are far from patients

beings!

IN DA HOUSE!

As I said though, finally the VMP-2 models arrived

and were shipped onwards to stores the moment

that the container arrived at the VORSK warehouse. I

know this to be true as the guys sent me a WhatsApp

message with pictures showing this actually

happening… and so, along with many of you reading

this, the VMP-2Ds that Jase and I had ordered arrived

the week before we set off for IWA!

On February 27th we posted an update on the AA

web news that “THE VMP-2 HAS LANDED!”. Matt at

VORSK had asked me if I could get out and shoot my

2D ASAP, and I was happy to oblige, setting off one

thankfully sunny spring afternoon with the new rifle

set up and ready to roll! I reported back at that time

that:

“I’ve been playing around with various accessory

setups on the 2D as I did on the prototype, chopping

and changing different optics, bipods, and LAMs,

and the base feature set of the 2D allows you to

really personalise it! Fact is the “as new” feature

set is a great place to start as you get a

the

and

models

not-

UK for the AWOL container…

which changed again when I was

told that the “big box o’ guns” was

having a little rest in Valencia… I’d

already prepared ISSUE 170 based on

ETA so we decided to just go ahead

publish the overview of all three

that had been prepared pending their

so-imminent as it turned out arrival

fixed stock with cheek riser,

railed upper receiver, a longer six slot

M-LOK style rail with a picatinny

upper-face, suppressor-ready

muzzle device, included “irons”,

and a 20 BB magazine. This is a full-length

rifle, and as an intended DMR is restricted to safe/semi

only.

“I have always said that the DMR is the perfect

“I SAW PLANS AND 3D RENDERS OF THE VMP-2, AND THIS MOVED FORWARD TO FULL

PHYSICAL MOCK-UPS, CULMINATING IN THE FINISHED PRE-PRODUCTION PROTOTYPES

THAT I SHOT IN THE DEPTHS OF THE VORSK SKUNKWORKS AND THEN SAW FULLY-

FLEDGED ALONG WITH THE REST OF THE AIRSOFT WORLD AT IWA 2024…”


ARMOURY


place for anyone who wants to dabble in using a gasdriven

platform in-game, and from what I’ve seen so

far the VMP-2D just proves me right! But I’ve finally

got the setup how I like it, and it’s ended up more

as a bit of an old-skool battle rifle… I’ve dropped off

the bipod and big optic in favour of a foregrip and

holosight with magnifier, and at 30m it is REALLY

ringing the steels!

“It’s obviously still bedding in, but I’ve had no

issues with either the short or long magazines (from

the VMP-1) fitting and feeding perfectly, and my

initial chrono recorded .20g BBs at 1.69 Joule/427fps

although I expect this to creep up slightly when

things settle. The hop has no issue whatsoever with

.30g BBs, what I’ll probably end up using in-game,

although I believe I’ll need to make sure my secondary

is in tip-top shape so that I can still abide by site

DMR rules… the VMP-2D to me is now in the same

space as my beloved M110 GBBR, and I can see some

exciting times ahead!”

And indeed they are, as now I’m back from IWA

I’ve been able to have a couple more sessions up on

the woods range, and the 2D is thrilling to say the

shorter full-auto variant? Simple really; Jase has always

wanted to set up a proper gas DMR, and as we both

already have the VMP-1 for “close encounters” I

decided that I’d like a longer setup for in the woods,

a throwback to my love of older-style rifles like the

FAL and SLR. As “GBBR players” already we both

tend to stick to semi-auto anyway given the reduced

“realcap” magazine capacity of virtually all platforms

of this type.

And the VMP-2D is ideally placed to act as the

perfect base for both projects! VORSK describe this

model thus:

““D” for DESIGNATED MARKSMEN - boasting a

lengthy 410mm barrel and Muzzle Energy up to 1.9J

using VORSK V6 GBB Fuel, you can command the

battle-area at a distance with long-range, accurate

(semi-auto) fire”

And if the noise that a .30g BB makes when it hits

my steels at 30m is anything to go by, then the VMP-

2D certainly has the legs to reach WAY out there,

and I am really looking forward to getting it in-game

soon! But of course this is a truly MODULAR platform,

and Matt has promised me a complete drop-in upper

least; it shoots REALLY well, and using VORSK FUEL

as intended, even on chilly UK mornings! But why

did Jase and I go for the semi-auto VMP-2D over the

assembly with a shorter barrel and rail as soon as

they are available so that I can chop and change

configurations as I wish to suit different AO’s and

“WE POSTED AN UPDATE ON THE AA WEB NEWS THAT “THE VMP-2 HAS LANDED!”;

MATT AT VORSK HAD ASKED ME IF I COULD GET OUT AND SHOOT MY 2D ASAP, AND I

WAS HAPPY TO OBLIGE, SETTING OFF ONE THANKFULLY SUNNY SPRING AFTERNOON

WITH THE NEW RIFLE SET UP AND READY TO ROLL!”

42


ARMOURY


game scenarios… I’ll report back on this as soon as it

happens, but for now I’m more than happy that the

VMP-2D, with my VMP-1 as a CQB-option, will serve

me well this coming summer.

MOVING ON… AGAIN!

Again, as I said earlier, the VORSK MODULAR

PLATFORM is just the fundamental

buy into the entire family!

So what is coming next?

The VMP-2S benefits from a 7” M-LOK rail, a

20mm picatinny stock mount, and VMP folding stock,

and will be set at around 330fps/1 Joule with a Safe,

Semi-only, and Full-auto trigger group. The VMP-

2SD will have a 7” M-LOK squared rail, an integrally

suppressed outer barrel, a 20mm picatinny stock

mount with a NEW slimline metal stock, and a

NEW stubby pistol grip; this again

building block for an entire

program, with even more models to

come! Even though the VMP-1 has

provided us with a cracking little SMG/

MP it’s a fact that many out there do

prefer a more “traditional” setup, even

with their “shorties”, and at this IWA

VORSK unveiled a further THREE models

that I am certain are going to absolutely

delight players everywhere… given that

the new models also have complete

will be set to 330 fps/1 Joule with

the same Safe, Semi-only, and

Full-auto trigger group.

Now the third model is

one that has already caused

much debate among the AA

Crew that saw it at IWA, but I have to

say that I personally adore it, and I WANT ONE! The

VMP-2C is a super-shorty (think MP5K on acid!)

with a 3” perforated, round handguard, a 20mm

magazine compatibility with the existing variants, this

is a complete WIN for anyone that has, or wishes to,

picatinny stock mount, the NEW stubby pistol grip,

and a NEW enlarged charging handle… it just looks

“businesslike”, and with one of the new slimline

“IF THE NOISE THAT A .30G BB MAKES WHEN IT HITS MY STEELS AT 30M IS

ANYTHING TO GO BY, THEN THE VMP-2D CERTAINLY HAS THE LEGS TO REACH WAY

OUT THERE, AND I AM REALLY LOOKING FORWARD TO GETTING IT IN-GAME SOON!”


ARMOURY


metal stocks added (these will be available as an

accessory at a later date, as will many of the new

parts!) I can see this being a fabulous CQB tool, or a

backup to my 2D for fights between MED and pistolrange.

Once again it will be set to around 330 fps/1

Joule with a Safe, Semi-only, and Full-auto trigger

group… BUT… remember that the trigger groups

themselves are modular so in my mind you could

easily swap out the as-stock group and replace it with

a dedicated Safe, Semi-only one to make it 1200%

compliant with most CQB sites anywhere in the

world!

Am I excited by this latest development within the

architecture of the VMP program? You bet I am. As

the three models set for release hopefully later this

year will really round out that modular family, and

provide a dedicated variant for virtually every style of

airsoft-play out there. With the full modularity options

though I can see some wild and whacky combos in

the offing, and with the sheer number of accessory

parts and aftermarket options out there, it’s really just

your imagination that will hold you back from creating

something very specifically “YOU”!

I’m delighted with the VMP-2D, and I can see this

being a regular companion in the woods for some

time to come, just as the VMP-1 has been a fabulous

“partner in shenanigans” to date! As far as I’m

concerned all VORSK need to do now is to create a

pistol using the short VMP magazine and the circle

will be complete.

Will this happen? I’m certain that it will as it just

makes total sense, but in the meantime I know that

those VORSK team have more up their sleeve for the

immediate future; at IWA we also saw the VMAR,

their first AR-style GBBR, and with a new gas system

and with some striking features this is a superb new

direction, and I already know that the VMAR will also

come in a number of variants! This is still a little way

off right now, but the concept is sound, and I’ll be

talking in-depth about this model when the time is

right…

And, “behind the scenes in the skunkworx”?

Yeah, 100% more to come from VORSK… but once

again I’m sworn to secrecy so you’ll have to wait a

bit… trust me though, the VORSK bois have got the

bit firmly between their teeth and they’re far from

finished yet! AA

“VORSK UNVEILED A FURTHER THREE MODELS THAT I AM CERTAIN ARE GOING TO

ABSOLUTELY DELIGHT PLAYERS EVERYWHERE… AND GIVEN THAT THE NEW MODELS

ALSO HAVE COMPLETE MAGAZINE COMPATIBILITY WITH THE EXISTING VARIANTS,

THIS IS A COMPLETE WIN FOR ANYONE THAT HAS, OR WISHES TO, BUY INTO THE

ENTIRE FAMILY”

44


ARMOURY


VMP-2D

VMP-2MD

VMP-2M

“I KNOW THAT THOSE VORSK TEAM HAVE MORE UP THEIR SLEEVE FOR THE

IMMEDIATE FUTURE; AT IWA WE ALSO SAW THE VMAR, THEIR FIRST AR-STYLE GBBR

AND WITH A NEW GAS SYSTEM AND WITH SOME STRIKING FEATURES THIS IS A

SUPERB NEW DIRECTION”




RED CELL

SBR/PDW UPDATE 2025

RED CELL

SHORT STUFF

Image courtesy Krios Photography

48


RED CELL

SBR/PDW UPDATE 2025

TIME IS FLYING BY, AND RED CELL IS ACCELERATING TOWARDS ITS END-GAME! WHEN WE FIRST

PUT THE LONG-TERM TESTING PROGRAM IN PLACE WE HAD NO IDEA JUST HOW MUCH INTEREST IT

WOULD GENERATE, NOT JUST AMONG PLAYERS BUT ALSO WITHIN THE RANKS OF THE INDUSTRY

ITSELF… HAS THE PROGRAM BEEN A SUCCESS? AS THE TEAM TURN THEIR ATTENTION TO SBR AND

PDW FOR THE FINAL TIME. BILL PICKS UP THE STORY…


RED CELL

SBR/PDW UPDATE 2025

Four and a bit year of shooting and cataloguing

all the AEGs and GBBs that we’ve had in for test

and held onto or bought in… one pandemic,

numerous range sessions, literally thousands of BBs,

many, many bottles of gas, replacement batteries

(thank you NUPROL!) and hop rubbers/seals… a

fair bit of money spent on platforms to round out

categories… and some real commitment from the

members of Red Cell… that’s what this program

has meant in tangible terms, but it’s of course the

intangible that every member of the team is looking

at!

It’s the performance of all those AEGs and GBBs

that we’ve wanted to find out about, not just as

new but as well-seasoned warriors that have seen

a mass of action both on the field in-game and on

the range… time and again, rinse and repeat! We’ve

continued to add models to the long-term test pool

in the various categories as they’ve become available,

and indeed had to create sub-categories in some areas

to accommodate the sheer volume of what’s become

available over the past few years… and where new

models have been added, taking our initial pool of ten

models in each category up to twenty over time, these

“noobs” have been properly hammered to bring their

BB counts up to match the old campaigners, putting

even more stress on their internals!

So yeah, has this program been worthwhile? I

believe it has, as we’ve been able to update you on

how certain models have performed over time, and

it’s already allowed us to give direct feedback to

manufacturers along the way too, feedback that we

hope (and know) has been taken on board to make

what we all shoot with just that little bit more refined.

So, yes, mission success so far and with another

eight months to run before we pull together ALL of

our notes I believe that overall all the effort put in by

so many of the AA Crew will provide a wealth of data

the like of which has not been seen before!

But what of our update this month on PDW and

SBR AR models? Again, we’ve been able to finally get

the category count up to TWENTY AEG models, and

each of them in their own way have been tremendous

fun to shoot!

How do we differentiate things though?

Basically, any AR model that has a barrel sub-10”

we count, in the testing group at least, as a “Short

Barrelled Rifle”, or SBR. Breaking that down further

we further differentiate these models by stock design,

so an SBR has a standard buffer tube and multiposition

stock, whilst a PDW has the minimalist sliding

stock with smaller battery compartment instead.

I know that this is a somewhat arbitrary

differentiation but it does make things easier for us

(and hopefully for you!) in relation to categorisation…

but to make things even more difficult of course

we’re seeing AR-style platforms, both SBR and PDW,

coming more and more with “9 mil” mags rather than

“556”… ultimately though what we’re looking at in

this category is short rifles and carbines based on the

classic AR setup.

Whilst there are a few older models that I’ll look at

in more depth this month, I also asked the AA Crew

to think about what makes an SBR/PDW “sing” to

them, to focus on the utility and end-use as much

as individual models… this is ultimately how we’ll

wraps things up at the end of 2025, but I hope you’ll

continue to enjoy the ride as we move forward, ever

forward, through to the end of the year!

TEAM TALK

Bruno: Personally, I’d rather have an SBR. I’ve never

been a big fan of PDW stocks; they’re not that

comfortable, at least in airsoft. For me, SBRs have the

big plus of having a buffer tube, which allows you

to use many types of stocks that can increase battery

space. PDW stocks are quite tight on battery space.

Of course, this is just my personal opinion. If we’re

talking about GBBRs, I’d also go with a buffer tube

and stock, as it’s something I feel more comfortable

with.

Ben: Being a man of “hobbit stature” I obviously

tend to find SBRs, SMG and PDWs are my thing, that

and my general play style all mixes quite nicely. My

thoughts on regarding the Valken Kilo...as a standard

out the box SBR it’s actually quite decent, and I’ve

seen or heard of very little problem with this platform;

it’s very well styled, lightweight for those who are

either new to it all or are looking to keep weight

down and not suffer with fatigue (which help when

playing the CQB games where you’re having to keep

“ONE PANDEMIC, NUMEROUS RANGE SESSIONS, LITERALLY THOUSANDS OF BBS,

MANY, MANY BOTTLES OF GAS, REPLACEMENT BATTERIES (THANK YOU NUPROL!)

AND HOP RUBBERS/SEALS… A FAIR BIT OF MONEY SPENT ON PLATFORMS TO

ROUND OUT CATEGORIES… AND SOME REAL COMMITMENT FROM THE MEMBERS

OF RED CELL… THAT’S WHAT THIS PROGRAM HAS MEANT IN TANGIBLE TERMS”

50


RED CELL

SBR/PDW UPDATE 2025

your RIF up ready far longer than say your average

skirmish day out in the woods games), and with very

little upgrading you can turn this into quite a little

beast of its own… definitely worth it’s money in my

opinion

But if you’re looking for a true “PDW” and not

a jury-rigged AR, well there’s nothing quite like an

iconic MP5k with the PDW stock; I currently run a

JG MP5k and love it! However this platform is a little

tricky when it comes to parts of it, it feels as if it was

rush out without much thought on aftermarket part’s

for it...like it was made purposely different just to be

awkward which is really it’s only downside if you ask

me. If you’re looking to make it easy on yourself with

upgrading one and fitting a load of goods to it then I

recommend the CYMA MP5k; that’s not to put the JG

down in any way in performance but it’s more suited

to someone with patience and persistence in get what

they what from it…. so from me, if you want an AR

SBR then great, but if you want a REAL PDW then go

for the Koch!

Dan: Being more of the “hobbity stature” like Ben,

and liking my stocks short to begin with, I’ve generally

gotten along pretty well with PDW stocks. That being

said, there are definitely well designed and poorly

designed stocks insofar as ergonomics are concerned.

One of my favourites has been the various replicas of

the Troy Industries PDW stock, which would probably

be closely followed by the HK416C and those found

on the KWA Ronin T6 and QRF’s. I had bought a copy

of the Strike Industries PDW stock by EMG a few

years back, but found it to be obscenely heavy, with a

slippery and uncomfortably shaped buttplate and stiff

latching mechanism. That was quickly sold after a hot

minute.

With regard to AEG’s, you do have to contend

with the loss of battery space; which really means

you just have to get creative with where you put the

battery. Most PDW stocks do not really have room for

a battery, if at all. So in a lot of situations you will be

using a front-wired AEG. On my PDW build, I initially

started out using a PEQ-15 battery box from VFC,

which housed a decent sized 1300mah 11.1v LiPo.

Later on, I switched out to a G&P Redi-Mag and a

hollowed out PTS EPM magazine which would house

the same 11.1v 1450mah LiPo’s I used in stuff with a

normal buffer tube. I liked this setup best of all as it

cleaned up the top of the rail.

Naturally, an SBR will have the benefit of improved

battery space, better points of contact (i.e. stability)

for your fleshy bits and more adjustment room for

stock length, which taller players will find more

comfortable. You can do some external modifications

“BASICALLY, ANY AR MODEL THAT HAS A BARREL SUB-10” WE COUNT, IN THE

TESTING GROUP AT LEAST, AS A “SHORT BARRELLED RIFLE”, OR SBR. BREAKING THAT

DOWN FURTHER WE FURTHER DIFFERENTIATE THESE MODELS BY STOCK DESIGN, SO

AN SBR HAS A STANDARD BUFFER TUBE AND MULTI-POSITION STOCK, WHILST A

PDW HAS THE MINIMALIST SLIDING STOCK WITH SMALLER BATTERY COMPARTMENT”


RED CELL

SBR/PDW UPDATE 2025

ARES X-CLASS AR-091E

Price: iro UK£390.00

Age: 3 Years

Weight: 2600g

Length: 690/770mm

Magazine Capacity: 140, will accept all STANAG/AR

Cold Chrono: 1.12 Joule/348fps

Hot Chrono: 1.12 Joule/347fps

Taclite Compatibility: M-LOK

Suppressor Compatibility: 14mm CCW

Supplied By: www.iwholesales.co.uk

BOLT DD DAGGER LITE


Age: Four Years

Weight: 2760g

Length: 645-725mm

Magazine Capacity: 140, will accept most STANAG/AR



Taclite Compatibility: Standard Rail


Supplied By: www.nuprol.com

CYMA CM.097


Age: Six Years

Weight: 2770g

Length: 730/815 mm


Cold Chrono: 109 Joule/344fps




Supplied By: www.taiwangun.com

EVOLUTION RECON

Price: iro UK

Age: Five Years Six Months

Weight: 2200g

Length: 690/775mm






Supplied By: store.evolutioninternational.it

SPECNA ARMS SA-F01 FLEX


Age: Five Years

Weight: 2130g

Length: 650/740mm




Taclite Compatibility: Standard Rail Sections


Supplied By: www.gunfire.com

52


RED CELL

SBR/PDW UPDATE 2025

to change up the barrel length and thus make it so

the overall length is really not that much longer than

a PDW stocked setup. As a further evolution, replicas

of the LAW Tactical folding hinge exist, as do 1913

adapters. So you can enjoy both the benefits of a

SBR, but also the advantages of having a folding

stock assembly that actually comes out shorter than a

collapsed PDW stock does.

Given a choice between an SBR or a PDW setup,

I would say the old adage still applies: “mission

dictates the gear.” If it was a game scenario where

one was working in and out of vehicles a lot, or tight

CQB confines, then a PDW makes a lot of sense.

Similarly, for a command role where you’re not really

expecting to see so much action as much as working

a radio and a map, having a more compact replica

you can collapse the stock on and keep out of your

working space is attractive. With the right upgrades

installed neither PDW’s nor SBR’s suffer for range,

punch or accuracy. As so much else does in airsoft, it

often simply distils down to personal preference and

aesthetic choice.

Boycie: I really like SBRs as they’re nice and compact

which for me is ideal in a CQB environment.

Depending on the stock-type they can be collapsed

or folded to be really short almost to the point where

it’s basically a pistol. The shortest SBR I have run was

a special build on a KWA using a 5” barrel, custom

made foregrip and a slither stock. It ran a steady

22 or so RPS but the crack as it fired was great fun.

Currently my SBRs are an MPX and a KWA T10 with

a T6 upper on. If I had to choose one tho I would

have to go MPX. They both have their advantages

depending on the site/field and how I want to play on

the day.

Robbie: I love SBR and PDW replicas; I prefer to run

centre-line, so shorter stocks kind of rule but better

yet, SAS-style push underarm slings. I’m not really an

“AR guys” so my favorite SBR is the Suchka AKS74U

with a side folder stock. But a close behind is the

CQB KPOS Glock PDW kit, remove the stock and run

SAS-sling-style off the tail. Drive the PDW towards

the target. My issue with most SBRs and PDWs is that

people overload them with accessories even doubling

their weight, especially the AR variety…. so yeah, go

OPFOR and run lite!

Bill: All the points that the crew have made so far are

observations that I’ve made myself over time, and that

I agree with completely! When I’ve run a PDW then

it’s for a specific scenario or mission usually involving

urban and vehicle work, so that’s basically when I’m

acting as “CP” in-game, and as Robbie rightly said

for this role you just need to keep things minimalist…

for instance with the new ICS PDW (which I love!) I’ve

just set it up with a taclite and super-stubby (WADSN)

foregrip, mainly to give front-hand index point, but

also to help with the cable management of the taclite

so this doesn’t get caught up on anything. I do have

an optic fitted, a little T1-style, but this is on a QD

mount with throw lever… if I want to keep things

really pared back I can keep the optic in my pocket

and sling it on once my “IA Contact Drills” have been

completed.

The length of pull on many PDW models has been

an issue for me (and also for Stewbacca) as we both

benefit from “positive ape indexes” (look it up, it’s

real!) which means we have monkey-arms! Unless

you have a stock that unlocks to give a decent length

then you’re never going to get it shouldered properly,

so until recently I’ve always opted for the SBR-style

rather than the PDW. Again, I’ve also found battery

space to be an issue like many of you, but the newer

PDW models ARE coming with a little more space

in this respect, and indeed many manufacturers are

now offering tube-extensions for their existing PDW

designs.

At the end of the day though, as Dan said, YOU

choose what YOU like, as in-game all the models

spoken about and show here are going to let you

chuck “plastic deff” out to the reasonable ranges we

need to be achieving accurately; as some of the nowolder

models in this category have proved, they’ll also

keep on doing so for some considerable time if you

maintain and look after them!

But what of the older models? Well, I have to say

that Specna Arms have really embraced the whole

“SBR/PDW” thing, and fair play to them; they saw

an emerging trend in the player-desire-market and

filled it, initially with models like the traditionallystyled

EO4 and E12, but then carrying things forward

with the FX01 which incorporates much of their own

latest design-focus! But the other older AEGs have

“I REALLY LIKE SBRS AS THEY’RE NICE AND COMPACT WHICH FOR ME IS IDEAL IN

A CQB ENVIRONMENT. DEPENDING ON THE STOCK-TYPE THEY CAN BE COLLAPSED

OR FOLDED TO BE REALLY SHORT ALMOST TO THE POINT WHERE IT’S BASICALLY A

PISTOL”


RED CELL

SBR/PDW UPDATE 2025

HUNSTMAN TACTICAL M4 SHORT


Age: Three Years

Weight: 2122g

Length: 650/740mm






Supplied By: www.iwholesales.biz

ARCTURUS KARAMBITAT-NY04


Age: Five Years

Weight: 2500g

Length: 575mm (PDW Stock)






Supplied By: www.taiwangun.com

ICS DAGGER SSS III


Age: Four Years

Weight: 2305g

Length: 640/711mm






Supplied By: www.icsbb.com

VALKEN KILO


Age: Six Years

Weight: 2494g

Length: 620mm/700mm





Suppressor Compatibility: 14mm CCW (11mm CW to 14mm CCW

thread adapter included)

Supplied By: www.308-sniper.co.uk

KRYTAC TRIDENT MKII PDW


Age: Five Years

Weight: 2400g

Length: 535mm (PDW Stock)






Supplied By: www.landwarriorairsoft.com

54


RED CELL

SBR/PDW UPDATE 2025

performed well, and with more time on the range

thus far none of them have failed under pressure!

The newer models are taking a hammering already,

and it’s great to see some really cool AEGs from Delta

Armory and Rossi coming through, as well as some

cool additions to the HUNTSMAN AEG line… with

NUPROL dropping new models as well I can see that

we’ll have our work cut out in the coming months…

but for now I’ll hand you back to the guys…

GETTING INTO IT

Jimmy: Having owned and used the CYMA 0.97 I can

safely say that it is a super platform that now holds

a small question mark against it after extended use;

while it is a lovely carbine it is not without its flaws. In

my opinion there are two design flaws on the 0.97,

the lower receiver and the stock electronics. Not only

have I owned one but I have also had a few on the

bench all suffering from failed electronics.

CYMA have used an electronic trigger system

which is identical to something that Jefftron made a

few years back, they are very similar if not identical.

Mine very early on stopped functioning and others

I have seen either just stopped functioning or were

fried due to over-heating. I swapped mine out for

a Jefftron Leviathan V2 and never saw any issues

after that. Internally the platinum range gearboxes

are pretty solid and many people see CYMA parts as

good replacement parts over stock. Their pistons are

renowned for being very robust and I for one have

used them in many different gearboxes as upgrades.

The second flaw on the 0.97 is the lower receiver

and the way they have designed the spring guide. The

spring guide screws directly into the rear, meaning

the receiver is under stress from the spring and can

be detrimental to the receivers integrity. I have seen

several crack at the exact same spot just around where

the rear gearbox pin goes through. You may think

they were using a spring which is too strong but two

I know of were fitted with a M110 spring. I could

understand it breaking had something like an M140

or M150 but to crack on a lightweight spring shows

weakness in the design. I couldn’t wait to get one

when they first came out but now I have questions…

which is annoying as I really do like the platform!

Miguel: I remember when the “PDW” models first

appeared, still within the EDGE 1.0 range. Gunfire

and Specna Arms were kind enough to send one for

review at the time, since the ambassador program

wasn’t a thing yet, and my first thought was “what

a little beast this is”! I liked it so much that when the

first models with the Aster were available, even before

the official “birth” of the EDGE 2.0 range, I got one,

and passed the 1.0 to a teammate who still uses to

this day!

Being a highly compatible replica, it’s my main

choice for pure CQB games, since it’s a model

that lets you be more nimble in those corners and

tight locations. And of course having the Aster is a

great addition; it’s an already well known electronic

trigger that offers the players a good amount of

customizations, like a faster trigger response and burst

fire. The only downside of this model is the battery

compartment, which is small, and if you have the 1.0

model, the X-ASR protection Mosfet will leave even

less space. Specna Arms did release some extended

battery tubes, but they are hard to come by.

The only upgrade I’ve done to my E12 PDW was

changing the hop up rubber, something I’ve done to

most of my replicas. Other than that, it’s been one of

my go-to replicas for the past few years when I know

that we are playing in urban environments. It has

never failed me.

And the latest FX01; to be honest, when the PDW

or “9mm” ARs started to appear, I wasn’t that much

of a fan, I just couldn’t get my head around the long

and slick magazines… but it was one of those cases

when a new model ended up growing on me after

I got my hands on the Specna FX01. Not only is it a

practical replica for those bigger games where less

is more, but it also performs quite well for its price

range. And I also do like the Light Ops Stock that

comes with it; it does make using an optic easier

when rocking earpro. It also has some interesting

features, like a working bolt catch, easy spring change

and an M-LOK handguard.

Jimmy: I’ve had the ICS Lightway Dagger S3 in my

possession for quite some time now and it has been

heavily used in both CQB and woodland environments

with great effect. It’s never missed a beat and

performed impeccably time after time. I have a great

fondness for ICS and over the last few years they have

“I REMEMBER WHEN THE “PDW” MODELS FIRST APPEARED, STILL WITHIN THE EDGE

1.0 RANGE. GUNFIRE AND SPECNA ARMS WERE KIND ENOUGH TO SEND ONE FOR

REVIEW AT THE TIME, SINCE THE AMBASSADOR PROGRAM WASN’T A THING YET, AND

MY FIRST THOUGHT WAS “WHAT A LITTLE BEAST THIS IS””


RED CELL

SBR/PDW UPDATE 2025

G&G SR30


Age: Five Years

Weight: 2760g

Length: 700mm/770mm

Magazine Capacity: 90 (G2), will accept most STANAG/AR

Cold Chrono: 0.98/325fps




Supplied By: www.nuprol.com

SECUTOR ASTRA III


Age: Four Years

Weight: 2730g

Length: 700mm/770mm







SPECNA ARMS SA-E04


Age: Seven Years

Weight: 2600g

Length: 700/780mm

Magazine Capacity: 2 x 125 S-MAG, will accept most STANAG/AR



Taclite Compatibility: Standard Rail



SPECNA ARMS SA-E12


Age: Five Years

Weight: 2400g

Length: 620/700mm

Magazine Capacity:



Taclite Compatibility: 2 x 125 S-MAG, will accept most STANAG/

AR



SPECNA ARMS SA-FX01


Age: New

Weight: 1900g

Length: 670mm/755mm

Magazine Capacity: 200 BBs






56


RED CELL

SBR/PDW UPDATE 2025

excelled themselves producing more and more airsoft

goodness.

The Dagger makes for a formidable CQB rifle being

short and lightweight due to its polymer construction

(a different thing these days as Bill pointed out

earlier!) which allows you to manouver quickly giving

you the element of surprise. The addition of the smart

Mosfet coupled with a short stroke trigger and the set

precock function makes it lightning quick, meaning

you can get off a few shots before your opponent has

even realized what happened!

The precock function is factory set and nonadjustable;

after the first shot the piston lies in a state

of readiness and returns to the same position every

time. Included is ICS’ famous spring tension release

button so you don’t have to worry about the spring

being kept under tension at the end of the day, and

this is easily operated by simply pushing the forward

assist, a great little idea I feel and ICS have been

using this for years and if I’m not mistaken the only

manufacturer to implement this.

When I first got hands on with the Dagger it came

out of the box with a very healthy yet UK legal velocity

but over time and with a good cleaning of the barrel

and hop rubber the power started to increase slightly

to a point it was no longer safe to use for my local

sites; strange right, as this is not usually the case

and most rifles decrease in power over time. The last

chrono check I carried out was showing a 0.30g bb

300fps @ 1.38j which is crazy (and entering legally

questionable territory here in the UK!), but rest

assured the power was adjusted back down and sits

perfectly @ 1.1j which is spot on for CQB venues.

Jase: One of the test models I’ve had long-term

access to is the G&G’s Knights Armament SR30. My

first thoughts on the SR30 were “impressive”. The

immediate quality of this RIF was good. It felt solid,

really solid! Apart from the stock giving off a wee

rattle, the whole platform did not make a noise, and

this has remained the case; I wasn’t expecting this. In

the years I have been a player, I have fettled my fair

share of AEG’s from expensive to cheap so I know

what a good RIF feels like.

As a bit of a “purist” I’m pleased to see how well

G&G had engraved this SR30. Talk about a good job,

from what I can tell this is the spitting image of the

real thing. The trades are super crisp, and I’d go as far

as to say laser engraved as they look so nice. When I

compared this with photos of the real Knights SR30,

apart from the missing CTR stock and slightly different

pistol grip, this was a damn fine Knights Armament

replica. Thankfully the finish of the SR30 has stood

up well to extended use and abuse too; it still looks

bang-on!

The G&G Knights Armament SR30 has been really

nice to use too, I’ve had zero issues or gripes over

time. The SR30 comes fitted with a programmable

Mosfet as standard and it’s great to see G&G moving

this along; their “take” on this gearbox/Mosfet combo

offers really handy features! Here in the UK this

SR30 is competitively priced for a solid, well-made,

beautifully “traded” AEG. Would I recommend this

G&G SR30? It’s still a “Yes”.

Bill: Finishing up now, and a couple more models

from me! I ended up buying the KARAMBIT AT-NY04

after I’d tried their super-shorty LITE, and even though

this still has the sliding PDW-style stock the increased

rail-length makes it more comfortable for me to use.

There are also some elements of the Karambit’s

construction that I have to comment on as I REALLY

like them, especially considering the price of this

AEG; the magazine catch, bolt catch and fire selector

are ALL ambidextrous. The handguard is a very, very

nicely achieved alloy M-LOK, but it still has a top-rail

that marries up perfectly with the railed upper, and

the sliding “PDW-style” stock is solid as a rock (and

has QD sling-stud-points both left and right) although

it does suffer from the tiny battery compartment

that means you have to pick your battery carefully,

especially as it’s T-Plug wired; I found that small 11.1V

800mAh 15C works very well indeed.

It’s a great little platform to work with, with great

ergonomics and a very positive cheek weld even with

the minimalist stock. Adding a finger rest makes it

very easy to drive the muzzle from target to target,

and the overall length of the rifle makes it easy to

work with. Once the rotary hop is set, an easy control

to adjust, the Karambit puts BBs straight out to the

end of the 30m range, dead-flat-out all the way. The

microswitch trigger is light yet crisp, with very little

lag so it’s easy to get consistently accurate shots away

time after time.

“THE G&G KNIGHTS ARMAMENT SR30 HAS BEEN REALLY NICE TO USE TOO, I’VE

HAD ZERO ISSUES OR GRIPES OVER TIME. THE SR30 COMES FITTED WITH A

PROGRAMMABLE MOSFET AS STANDARD AND IT’S GREAT TO SEE G&G MOVING THIS

ALONG; THEIR “TAKE” ON THIS GEARBOX/MOSFET COMBO OFFERS REALLY HANDY

FEATURES”


RED CELL

SBR/PDW UPDATE 2025

ROSSI SENTINEL ALPHA


Age: New

Weight: 2075g

Length: 650mm/750mm

Magazine Capacity: 300 BBs, will accept most STANAG/AR

Cold Chrono: 1.01Joule/330fps





G&G CM16 BATTO


Age: Six Months

Weight: 2330g

Length: 688mm/784mm mm






Supplied By: www.guay2.com

DELTA ARMORY TALOS 3 PDW


Age: New

Weight: 2300g

Length: 560mm/650mm






Supplied By: www.patrolbase.co.uk

ICS DDM4 PDW S3

Price: iro UK£TBC

Age: New

Weight: 2478g

Length: 585mm/685mm


Cold Chrono: 1.03 Joule/334fp




Supplied By: www.icsbb.com

HUNTSMAN TACTICAL RONIN PDW


Age: New

Weight: 2100g

Length: 500mm/590mm







58


RED CELL

SBR/PDW UPDATE 2025

I won’t go into the new ICS DD PDW S3 again here

as I only just covered it in full recently, and you can

check that review out via the BACK ISSUES function

on the AA website if you’d like to. However, there’s

another new model in the mix that I must comment

on, and that’s the Huntsman Tactical PDW RONIN

M-LOK. I had the pleasure of looking at the Huntsman

M4 Short way back in Issue 144, and I have to say

that externally it’s a very tidy AEG indeed! All of the

parts have been put together with care and attention

to detail and there’s absolutely no wobbles or creaks

anywhere. The receivers fit very well indeed, and

although I would usually choose a metal-bodied

version, the strength of the polymer parts appears

excellent. There are a few very minor mould lines

visible, but really only on the underside of the buffer

tune, and everything else is crisp and precise. This is

indeed an AEG platform that has been well thought

out and designed by folk who understand the very

nature of airsoft, and where possible pitfalls may lay…

and I like it!

And whilst it’s by far one of the least expensive

AEGs in this particular mix, it continues to bang away

just as it did when new, and the polymer body has

stood up very well indeed to the rigors of multiple

ranges sessions. Taking all this on board I wanted to

add another Huntsman AEG to the mix, and as an

SBR was already in hand, I thought one of the latest

OPDW models would be a really good “add”.

Benefitting from all the good stuff that I’ve already

seen from the other Huntsman AR AEG models, the

RONIN just compresses that into a very cool and tidy

little full-metal package with a short M-LOK rail at

the front, and the PDW-style slider at the rear… plus

you get a cool-looking “linear comp” at the sharp

end that really rounds the overall look out… I’m just

getting into the RONIN, but given what I’ve seen

from the Huntsman M4 Short I’m expecting very solid

performance from it… and with eight months of

the Red Cell program still to run, there’s more than

enough time to give it a proper beasting! AA

Red Cell is supported by:



6MM TRAINING

THE TACTICAL CARBINE #1

CONFIGURING

YOUR CARBINE

62


6MM TRAINING


IT’S BEEN A LITTLE WHILE SINCE WE’VE BEEN JOINED BY OUR OLD MATE AND SHOOTING

INSTRUCTOR ANDY N FROM CALIBRE RANGE, BUT AS MANY OF US PREPARE OUR GEAR, AND

MORE IMPORTANTLY OUR PRIMARY PLATFORMS READY FOR ANOTHER YEAR OF AIRSOFT, WE

THOUGHT WE’D ASK HIM TO LOOK AT SOME SPECIFIC AREAS THAT WILL HELP PLAYERS BOTH

OLD AND NEW ELEVATE BOTH THEIR CARBINE SETUPS, AND INDEED THEIR GAME OVERALL!

By far the most common platform used today

in airsoft is the rifle, mostly the carbine. The

carbine was developed by the cavalry for use on

horseback during the early transition of firearms used

by horse-mounted soldiers; problems arose when the

rider needed to draw the rifle from the scabbard that

carried the rifle when attached to the horse, as the

rifle was just too long to draw and bring to bear. The

carbine, a shortened barrel version of the rifle, was

soon developed so that the rider had less barrel length

to remove from the scabbard.

Although the carbine suffered somewhat in muzzle

velocity and accuracy, in comparison to its longer

sibling, the trade-off was deemed acceptable and

the carbine soon also found favour with irregular/

militia groups and for use in close quarters battle.

Probably biggest asset of the carbine was its versatility

in cramped confines, and with the advent of both

vehicle and helicopter-borne troops it proved to be

very successful! Of course, now you can pretty much

see carbines used by all military and law enforcement

units all around the world.

Most airsoft rifles and carbines come pretty much

as standard (although “standards” continue to change

almost daily it would seem!) when purchased and

though by all means workable, most of us want that

little bit “extra” from our new shiny thing. It may be

power, accuracy, weight, or something to bolt onto

those rails that just cry out for accessories. So in this

article I want to look at how we can change your bogstandard

carbine into a “tactical carbine”.

Upgrades: We all love upgraded kit, none more

so than on (and in) our primary platform of choice.

The first thing most airsoft players want to do is

alter the power, increasing the distance or reach of

the platform. Keep in mind however that you will

have to keep your carbine or rifle site legal if you

want to skirmish with it, but if it’s for target and

training purposes (not shooting at people!) then go

for what you can get out of it (legally). If you are not

competent at upgrading internal components then

have a qualified airsoft-smith carry out the work for

you. Many airsoft retailers can offer you this service.

Slings: I have seen many people skirmish without

a sling attached to their primary and as I have said

before, a platform without a sling is like a rifle without

a stock. The sling is a part of the platform and should

be attached at all times.

Picture the scene if you will... you are scrambling up

a steep embankment or over loose ground and you

need two hands to steady yourself, how are you going

to carry your primary? The sling is, if you will, an extra

pair of hands. When choosing a sling make sure it can

do the job you want it to do. It should not interfere

with any other piece of equipment you are carrying,

nor should it interfere with any part of the platform.

A good resting place for your primary platform

is when it is slung in the centre of the body. This

position will give you easy access to either side of your

body and any secondary and spare magazines you

may be carrying. However some airsoft skirmishers like

to wear a combat rig that may have many pouches in

front of the body. In this case the primary should fall

to the “weak” side of the body when slung.

Modifying the sling and the attachments on the

platform itself is no bad thing as long as it does what

it is supposed to do safety and efficiently. With your

primary hanging free it is important to be aware of

your muzzle direction at all times. A classic example

arose when a friend of mine had changed from a

three-point sling to a V-sling that hung the rifle down

the centre of his body. No problems with that, apart

from that he didn’t realise that the rifle was hanging

too low and when he went into a kneeling position

whilst using his secondary, the muzzle of the primary

dug into the ground and the butt slammed into his

jaw knocking out his two front teeth! You have been

warned…

“PROBABLY BIGGEST ASSET OF THE CARBINE WAS ITS VERSATILITY IN CRAMPED

CONFINES, AND WITH THE ADVENT OF BOTH VEHICLE AND HELICOPTER-BORNE

TROOPS IT PROVED TO BE VERY SUCCESSFUL!”


6MM TRAINING


Lights and Lasers: White lights or torches and

lasers are a common sight on the skirmish field and

certainly in the CQB arena. When choosing a light

and or laser, make sure that they can be fitted to the

platform in such a way that it can be operated with

ease. Remote tail switches and the newer pressure

pads are a good thing if you fit them properly

to fit a white light? Basically anywhere you want so

long as you don’t light yourself up. Some people have

issues with the muzzle casting shadows and causing

dark areas that you can’t see into, but personally I

have never had issues with this phenomenon, neither

has anyone I have worked with. It’s how you use

the light that counts and leaving your light on long

enough to concern you with shadows cast by the

weapon is the least of your worries. Switch on, quick

observation, switch off, and move. Personally I prefer

just behind the front sight and to the side. Although

I use a red dot holographic sight on my carbine, I

can use the light to illuminate my EBS (emergency

battle sights) if my red dot goes down and I have to

transition to irons.

Sights and Optics: Non-standard sights are also a

common thing to see on any platform and for most

and electrical tape is a good friend when it comes

to tidying up stray cables and switches. Newer

pressure switches provide a tidier solution, and this

is something I’m seeing more and more; singles and

combos provide a neat solution to light and laser

activation.

The mounting position of the light is somewhat of

an issue with a lot of people; where is the best place

“MOST AIRSOFT RIFLES AND CARBINES COME PRETTY MUCH AS STANDARD

(ALTHOUGH “STANDARDS” CONTINUE TO CHANGE ALMOST DAILY IT WOULD SEEM!)

WHEN PURCHASED AND THOUGH BY ALL MEANS WORKABLE, MOST OF US WANT

THAT LITTLE BIT “EXTRA” FROM OUR NEW SHINY THING”

64


6MM TRAINING


people the first thing they change when customising a

rifle is the sight system… and herein lies a problem.

Your platform should have at least one set of

sights, the iron sights. If you change to a scope

such as a red dot or a more traditional tube scope,

then you should still retain your iron sights as a

“redundant” sight. A redundant sight is an Emergency

Battle Sight (EBS) and is used when something has

gone wrong with your main sight (smashed, battery

failure); I have seen many players that have kept their

iron (rear) sight in place, usually a rear flip-up type.

However, the rear sight is completely useless, as when

it is flipped up and put into play, if the main (now

broken) sight is in the way, and the shooter cannot

see a clear line of sight to the front sight. When

fitting a red dot or scope to your rifle make sure that

your redundant sights (EBS) have a clear line of sight

through your main sight.

Gloves: Okay, I know that gloves are not part of

your carbine, but there are a lot of contact points

on the platform, that when using a rifle a lot in a

day, such as training drills, can rub on the hands and

gloves can be a God-send. I have many a blister and

raw points on my hands due to excessive shooting

of rifles. Ill-fitting gloves will lead to ill-shooting and

gloves that are too small will just annoy you to hell.

The type of glove that you choose to wear is up

to you. In the past I have worn specialised shooting

gloves, golf gloves (although a little thin) mechanics

gloves even fitness gloves. They will protect your

hands from rubbing on the rifle due to extended use

and will also protect you from any sharp edges, such

as rail edges, charging handles and light mounts.

Magazine Carrier: As we all know, magazines

can carry in excess of 400 rounds (BBs that is!) but

at some point we need to reload. Plate carriers,

combat vests, chest rigs and webbing are the number

one choice for carrying extra equipment and spare

ammunition for the skirmisher but for common folk

like me, who shoot carbines in civilian competition,

that option is out of the window. I have to make do

with a civilian-type magazine pouch. The one I use is

an AR15 pouch made from nylon and mounted on

the belt and carries a single M4/AR15 magazine and

this has served me well when things have gotten a

little hot whilst working security detail overseas.

Magazine carriers come in all shapes and sizes;

however, it should be considered part of the

carbine too. So choose wisely checking for fit and

functionality in use.

Hardware: Extended magazine release catch,

extended bolt release catch, and charging handles are

all fine but it is important that you can operate them

correctly and safely. Extended hardware can and does

catch on other pieces of kit such as your combat vest

for instance, so purchase these things wisely also.

Ambidextrous Features: Ambidextrous hardware is

also something that we should look closely at. Again

if you add ambidextrous hardware to the rifle, do it in

a way that doesn’t interfere with safe operation and

other personal kit.

Stocks: The length of the stock on the carbine

can make a difference to your overall reach whilst

wearing different kit and most certainly body armour

or a plate carrier. A full length stock maybe a perfect

fit whilst wearing a shirt, but the reach from shoulder

to trigger can be greatly extended and uncomfortable

if you have to wear body armour. Collapsible stocks

are a good choice here as many collapsible stocks

have variable settings for reach. There are aftermarket

(short) solid stocks available but these tend to be few

and far between and can be quite expensive.

Tubes: I may be “old skool”, but bicycle inner tube

is a shooters best friend when it comes to customising

and configuration of the carbine to your own needs. I

have a small hand grip on one of my ARs and it seems

to move around in my hand when firing. I added

some layers of bicycle inner tube and not only has it

solved the problem of movement by making the grip

larger, it has also enhanced the contact of the grip in

wet conditions. I have also placed a strip of inner tube

around some of my metal magazines, also to aid in

grip when retrieving magazines in wet conditions; it

improves hand-to-magazine grip to no end.

No matter what you do to tailor your carbine to

your needs, it has to be workable for you. Forget

what others say is right or is the best thing to do,

experiment with different ideas and use what works.

Part of the fun of shooting is finding out different

methods of configuration and overcoming the

challenges of “running the gun” effectively. AA

“FORGET WHAT OTHERS SAY IS RIGHT OR IS THE BEST THING TO DO, EXPERIMENT

WITH DIFFERENT IDEAS AND USE WHAT WORKS. PART OF THE FUN OF SHOOTING IS

FINDING OUT DIFFERENT METHODS OF CONFIGURATION AND THE OVERCOMING THE

CHALLENGE OF “RUNNING THE GUN” EFFECTIVELY”


TECHNICAL

NIGHT GEAR SOLUTIONS

OWN THE

DARKNESS

WHEN IT COMES TO FINDING THE RIGHT GEAR THEN WE JUST LOVE SPEAKING TO EXPERTS IN THEIR FIELD,

AND THEN BRINGING YOU THE LOWDOWN ON SPECIFIC AREAS OF TECH AND EQUIPMENT! MORE AND

MORE AIRSOFT PLAYERS ARE TURNING TO NIGHT VISION PRODUCTS, BUT HOW DO YOU KNOW WHAT TO

BUY, AND WHERE CAN YOU GET THE RIGHT ADVICE ON WHAT YOU ACTUALLY NEED BEFORE PARTING WITH

YOUR CASH? MIGUEL SPEAKS TO ONDREJ AT NIGHT GEAR SOLUTIONS TO FIND OUT MORE!

Whether you like it or not, Night Vision gear,

be it scopes, monoculars, binoculars, or

indeed “Mil Grade” tech has become a part

of airsoft! Once upon a time it was the territory of

the hardcore MilSim player, but with the technology

becoming easier to access, and indeed dropping

dramatically in price, it’s now well within the reach of

most players, even for a simple night game.

But what are we actually talking about as there

are still huge misconceptions about what “NV” really

means. Simply put I’m talking about equipment that

lets you “see in the dark”, or in extreme low-light

conditions, and this can physically have many forms;

you can have NV gear mounted on your rifle or

carbine, you can carry it in a pouch as a scope, or you

can, with the correct mount, have it placed on your

helmet, ready to drop down when you need it; this

last one of course has a certain “cool factor” and is

totally “operator”, but whichever way you may mount

or carry it, in my opinion, it can quite literally be a

“game changer”.

But where can you find help and advice before you

buys? Recently I had a chance to speak with Ondrej

from Night Gear Solutions, and this is what he had to

tell me in answer to my questions.

AA: Hello Ondrej, so tell us how Night Gear

Solutions came to be?

NGS: Hi Miguel! First of all, I would

like to thank you for the invitation.

NGS as a company was founded

on the fact that the Night

Vision market was full of

dubious second-hand

sellers with often

illegal devices. It often happened to us that devices

with fake labels, incorrect specifications, etc. came

to our service. So I got together with a friend who

had been assembling devices for over thirteen years

at that time and I dare say that he is one of the

best technicians in the entire EU. We came up

with our first ideas for improvement, such as

our (at that time) new mounting arm for

monoculars and we gradually tried to

expand the product line. We were also

bothered with the number of classic

re-seller shops that actually

don’t know much

about the devices

in depth

and don’t

have the

necessary

tools to check

them before sale. So

we decided that

we would

assemble

each

68


TECHNICAL



TECHNICAL


device and offer presentations and try to teach the

community a little about those niche things about the

devices and the whole technology.

AA: How big is the team? And are you looking

to grow more in the future?

NGS: We are a fairly small team of night vision

enthusiasts. We are assembled of highly skilled

professionals for every position when it comes to NGS

as a company and we aim to have the perfect person

to fit each position. This is NGS as a company, but we

cooperate with more brands and great people, who

we count into our “family”. For example KOLIBRI.

works are great guys, with whom we have been

helping each other A LOT. Also few SOF and EX SOF

groups, such as WARSTAC; they are incredibly skilled

professionals, but also our good friends. If you

mean company, we are big enough for

now and as a family we always like to

welcome as many great people as we

can. Looking back at the business

side of the team, we have a

few representations abroad

for easier work, B-RDY in the

Czech Republic for example.

This is our structure and it is

made to be perfect

for everything;-

airsoft and

shooting

sessions with

our friends

and 100%

confidence

in

the

professionalism of our business partners.

AA: Tell us a bit about your products.

And in your opinion, what is the most famous

one?

NGS: Let me split our “offer” here. Firstly

the products are night vision, thermal imaging,

accessories, various gear, a few of our own inventions

(J-Arm for Wolf 14 is exclusive co-operation of NGS

and KOLIBRI.works). And we always look for new

things to add into our product line. We don’t make

any exceptions when it comes to the quality and

therefore our product line is perfectly focused on

exact items with exact level of quality.

Then there are our services which we are very

proud of. We have a lot of PRO equipment for a

complete diagnostics and check of night vision

devices, so we can offer top notch pre-purchase,

warranty and post warranty maintenance and service.

Other than that we build custom night vision along

with personal demonstration to build a perfect fit

night vision for any customer that wants one. You can

also find us attending various airsoft and shooting

events with our tent providing free of charge night

vision basics presentation, personal demonstrations, or

just a friendly chat.

From my perspective, the most famous are two

products and a few services. Our TOP product is in

fact the whole documentation that comes with

every night vision device from NGS; datasheet,

quality checklist, warranty, service book with

a one free purging in a years time. This is our

signature - because a lot of devices were resold

in the meantime and a lot of

people contacted us, that they

have for example our service

book and would

like to apply for

free purging and

cleaning and/

or ask about

some service

work that

was done and

is written in the

book. But to satisfy

the need of an answer

regarding a device, we sell a lot of

budget friendly Wolf 14 monoculars for an

excellent price, which we have made our own J-Arm

for.

The J-Arm is the thing that connects it to your

helmet mount. And these mounts were practically

non-existent before we started this project. So a lot of

airsofters and night vision beginners tend to choose

this option. After that, people tend to step-up and go

for NGS PVS-14 or our top seller binocular, Mk.II.

But, and this is a big but, this year we added quite

a few new devices and we are yet to see if they will

“OUR TOP PRODUCT IS IN FACT THE WHOLE DOCUMENTATION THAT COMES

WITH EVERY NIGHT VISION DEVICE FROM NGS; DATASHEET, QUALITY CHECKLIST,

WARRANTY, SERVICE BOOK WITH A ONE FREE PURGING IN A YEARS TIME. THIS IS

OUR SIGNATURE”

70


TECHNICAL


steal the crown. From services, #1 is the complete

night vision check, even for devices bought secondhand

or from other shops, which includes cleaning

and purging. This service took first place after we

introduced it. Before that, our TOP service was on

demand free of charge presentations for anyone

who wants to learn about NVGs (majorly shooting

and airsoft teams, MIL and LEO active duty people

etc) which people still love, but being able to check

devices for anyone and issue a certificate made us

really busy.

AA: The use of NVGs in airsoft has been

around for

a while, but

there’s been an

increase in use

in the last few

years. How do

you see that?

NGS: Yes,

night vision has

always been

popular, especially

in MilSim games.

We always

enjoyed that. But

the second-hand

devices that are in

circulation are not

always of high

quality, civilian

available, and not

always legal. No

one knew exactly

what they could

buy and basically

couldn’t be 100%

sure of what they

actually bought. That was one of the reasons why

we founded NGS. So that everyone, in this case, an

airsoft player, would have a legal device with proper

documentation. We have a lot of experience with

the fact that some second-hand sellers changed the

device’s tube or pasted it with a fake label. And this

may have discouraged a large number of players.

There was a lack of certainty about what they would

buy and whether it would be worth it.

In recent years, more and more so-called civilian

devices have finally appeared, and the mindset of

users is also changing. Before, it was mil-spec or

nothing. But mil-spec is basically the bare minimum

that devices must meet. We try to push the upper limit

of performance and quality. Everyone wanted GEN 3

devices and only now have they started to understand

the advantages of GEN2+, so more and more decent

and affordable devices are appearing at events...

which makes us very happy, because we play airsoft

often and quality force on force training at night is

simply irreplaceable.

AA: What are the

advantages for an

airsoft player/team of

using an NVG by Night

Gear Solutions in an

event?

NGS: It probably

doesn’t matter whether

it’s a specific NGS product

or not. There are more

available brands and also

quality sellers. I can say

for us that we are one of

the few who assemble

each device and devote so

much time to it and who

have the equipment to

do so. You always need

to find out as much as

possible about the seller,

after all, these devices

are not cheap and many

stores just sell them

without being able to

check the quality, which is

impossible without knowledge and specialized tools.

But if a player decides to go for NGS, he and his

team have the advantage of seeing in the dark. Of

course not in complete darkness, but the topic of

light amplification is for a longer debate; we have

the terminology listed on our website. From us,

players will receive a quality device that will meet

their conditions and they can attach, for example, a

“NIGHT VISION HAS ALWAYS BEEN POPULAR, ESPECIALLY IN MILSIM GAMES. WE

ALWAYS ENJOYED THAT. BUT THE SECOND-HAND DEVICES THAT ARE IN CIRCULATION

ARE NOT ALWAYS OF HIGH QUALITY, CIVILIAN AVAILABLE, AND NOT ALWAYS LEGAL”


TECHNICAL


fusion system to it, which will combine night vision

and thermal vision into one, we also have such things

available.

Training is important. Many people think that NVG

will give them a big advantage, but without training,

it’s like a beginner buying a tuned airsoft replica. Yes,

he will have the advantage of range and accuracy,

but an experienced player will use his experience to

balance the force. And if such an inexperienced player

gets into a fight with an experienced player who

has an equally powerful replica, he has no chance.

It’s exactly the same with NVGs. There are more and

more of them at events and players are starting to

understand how important quality training is.

AA: How does the NGS see the airsoft

community?

NGS: We are part of the airsoft community. We

love airsoft and players who are serious about it, but

still understand that it is a sport and fun. Airsoft is

simply a top hobby that all of us at NGS grew up with

and has a perfect community. That is why we have

already made many presentations about night vision

at many events and we are happy for every invitation

so that we can pass on our knowledge to other

people. We also lend NVG devices for airsoft. And the

best thing is when we can also play at these events,

because getting into a fight at night with ten other

players who have NVGs is just a lot of fun!

AA: As you know, many don’t acquire NVGs

due to the price, and they turn to more budget

friendly solutions. What’s the best way to

compete with that?

NGS: We try to keep prices as low as possible while

maintaining quality. We don’t compromise on quality.

We now have the Wolf 14 available, which is a good

budget device for under €2000. It is still an analog

GEN2+ device without of band function, like all the

others, and it is really usable. From it, one can then

upgrade to the NGS PVS-14 and higher. For someone

who wants to get into the world of night vision with

the smallest investment possible and still have a fully

usable device, it is a very convenient choice.

AA: Is there any project that Night Gear

Solutions is working on that you can share?

NGS: We are still working on new things. We have

almost finished the 2.0 version of our Mono Mount,

an alternative to the J-arm. The older version was a

very popular product and the 2.0 filled the gaps; it’s a

simple lightweight design, where the user can switch

the monocular between their eyes or completely tilt it

to the side without having to use buttons, all with one

hand.

I think I can also reveal that in the near future we

plan to include a new NGS binocular for sale, which

will be more affordable and with a lot of additional

products in the package. It will not be a worse device,

quite the opposite. It will probably be the best bino

we offer so far. Follow our Night Gear Solutions social

media, we will inform you about it there.

AA: With the constant advancements in

technology, how do you think we will see in

NVGs in the near future?

NGS: We are now in a time when technology is

moving quite a bit. It used to be that everyone wanted

GEN3 tubes. Today we have GEN2+ technology, which

has caught up with the old 3 and is often better. We

also have this written down in our terminology on

the website. A few years ago, no one even wanted

to hear about Chinese IITs and today there are brands

like NNVT that are really good. Overall, I think the

future is in the combination of night vision and

thermal imaging in one (fusion). We can see this on

devices like ENVG and clip-on fusion systems like

Jerry C5. Night vision itself is becoming the standard

today and therefore adding thermal vision to the

same device is an advantage over the enemy. NVGs

themselves will definitely be more powerful in the

future.

AA: To finish, what can we expect from Night

Gear Solutions in the years to come?

NGS: Still the same emphasis on quality and we

will try to make NVGs more accessible and cheaper.

We plan to appear more at airsoft events with our

presentations. We will, as before, try to create a larger

and more informed community. And of course, we are

still looking for ways to simplify the operation of Night

Vision.

My thanks go to Ondrej for taking the time to

speak with me, and answer my questions. If you

would like to learn more, and check out the NGS

online guides to Night Vision Devices and Terminology

just head to www.nightgearsolutions.eu AA

“IF A PLAYER DECIDES TO GO FOR NGS, HE AND HIS TEAM HAVE THE ADVANTAGE OF

SEEING IN THE DARK. OF COURSE NOT IN COMPLETE DARKNESS, BUT THE TOPIC OF

LIGHT AMPLIFICATION IS FOR A LONGER DEBATE; WE HAVE THE TERMINOLOGY LISTED

ON OUR WEBSITE”

72


TECHNICAL


“WE WILL TRY TO MAKE NVGS MORE ACCESSIBLE AND CHEAPER. WE PLAN TO

APPEAR MORE AT AIRSOFT EVENTS WITH OUR PRESENTATIONS. WE WILL, AS BEFORE,

TRY TO CREATE A LARGER AND MORE INFORMED COMMUNITY. AND OF COURSE, WE

ARE STILL LOOKING FOR WAYS TO SIMPLIFY THE OPERATION OF NIGHT VISION”


KIT & GEAR

FOOTWEAR

TAKING THE

RIGHT STEP

AS WE HEAD TOWARDS WHAT WE HOPE WILL BE ANOTHER LONG, HOT SUMMER OF AIRSOFT

ADVENTURES AS ALWAYS WE LOOK TO OUR PERSONAL GEAR LOCKERS TO LOOK AT WHAT NEEDS

MENDING, UPDATING, OR OUTRIGHT REPLACING. WHILST NOT THE FIRST ITEM ON EVERYONE’S LIST,

GOOD FOOTWEAR IS A MUST, SO BILL LOOKS AGAIN AT WHAT’S IMPORTANT…

76


KIT & GEAR

FOOTWEAR

While my airsoft adventures have spanned

over thirty years now, I did actually have

another “professional life” at one point,

and during this time I was privileged to work

directly with some of the best bootmakers in the

business, both in relation to military/tactical models

and those for outdoor pursuits. For both end uses

the requirements of the footwear are broadly

similar, and mainly to do with comfort, support,

protection, and suitability for the intended terrain.

All good bootmakers have a range of models

to cover every eventuality, from lightweight, quick

drying boots for jungle environments, sturdy boots

with great support for urban environments, and

even thermal-lined waterproof versions for the

deepest of winter months. One of the great things

about how we play though is that we’re unlikely

to be wearing our boots for more than 72 hours

straight at a MilSim, and usually it will be just a

matter of hours at our local skirmish site. Does this

however mean you can save a few bucks by buying

into cheap boots for airsoft?

My answer to this is “NO!”

Now I am going to admit openly here that I have

written about this topic before, and it’s an article

that I update every couple of years both for veteran

and newer players alike, as just like eyepro I see it

as a vitally important area of enjoying your airsoft

games safely; not looking after your feet or wearing

badly fitting boots can have severe ramifications.

Ask yourself for a moment when you consider your

choice of footwear is a boot designed for a desert

environment going to be the ideal model for Europe

or North America in the depths of winter? You

may say “Well, my desert boots are Gore-Tex lined

so they’re waterproof, and I’m only wearing them

for a short while so they’ll be fine”, but are you

analysing this closely enough?

“ALL GOOD BOOTMAKERS HAVE A RANGE OF MODELS TO COVER EVERY EVENTUALITY, FROM

LIGHTWEIGHT, QUICK DRYING BOOTS FOR JUNGLE ENVIRONMENTS, STURDY BOOTS WITH

GREAT SUPPORT FOR URBAN ENVIRONMENTS, AND EVEN THERMAL-LINED WATERPROOF

VERSIONS FOR THE DEEPEST OF WINTER MONTHS”


KIT & GEAR

FOOTWEAR

A good desert boot will inherently be made with

less insulation than a winter model, or indeed even a

temperate model, so as much as a good waterproof

technology will keep your feet dry the boot overall

will leave you with cold feet, or worse, on a winter

morning. Cuff height may also differ, as in general a

winter boot will have a higher cuff to keep out snow

and spindrift; I was at a game once where I stepped

into a water-filled pothole deeper than the height of

my desert boot cuff, and although they’re membranelined

water does tend to get in through the big hole

on the top where your foot goes in!

So why not just wear wellies? Well, two things here

really; firstly wellies are pretty much always not going

to be breathable, so although they will keep water

out, and with specialist socks be warm, but they will

also keep moisture in; someone once told me that we

have more than 250,000 sweat glands in each foot,

making them the most perspiring parts of your body.

Your body can produce as much as a pint of sweat

per day per foot, and if you’re wearing wellies most

of that will stay inside the boot! Secondly most basic

wellies offer very little support.

You’ve also got to build into this equation that

boot manufacturers make different outsole units for

different conditions; this may not on the face of it

be a major concern, but if the tread pattern of the

outsole has been designed for warm, dry conditions

how will it fare in wet grass or on wet-leaf covered

rock? Let me tell you… not very well at all, and you’re

seriously asking for a slip which could lead to a turned

ankle or worse.

WHAT MAKES A “GOOD TO GO” BOOT

In our “Hi-Speed, Lo-Drag” world of airsoft, one

of the most important things is your equipment,

especially a good pair of tactical boots. Tactical

boots for professionals need to stand up to wear for

extended periods of time; although we as airsofters

don’t particularly need this level of performance,

having it is an absolute plus. When choosing a

tactical boot, look for a style with superior support,

lightweight and durable construction, comfort, and

protection from the elements and rough terrain.

A good boot for airsoft will also provide heightened

traction in any tactical/gaming situation that you

may face. The height, midsole, outsole, heel, and

structure of the boot factor into its support level too.

Ideal tactical boot components include a 6 to 8 inch

height and a heavy-duty, yet flexible and lightweight

sole to provide traction and grip both in and out of

the woods. A good fit that doesn’t sacrifice comfort is

crucial in choosing your boots. The use of EVA foam

materials guarantees lightweight, cushioned support

in the midsole of your boots.

The best tactical boots are easy to put on and

take off at the end of the day. Many boots on the

market feature fragile side-zippers or complex laceup

closures. A good boot will feature a combination

of eyelets and D-rings in the closure system, which

allows for a personalised fit just by adjusting the

lacing pressures.

Flexible and lightweight material construction

is an essential component of a good tactical boot,

specifically to protect you from the weather. A

waterproof exterior or membrane is a crucial boot

feature to keep you protected from the elements.

By using breathable technologies waterproof boots

prevent moisture from building up and potentially

forming harmful bacteria and blisters, but also

allow for perspiration to get out. For even greater

protection in the winter months, look for boots that

are both waterproof and insulated. Insulated linings

keep warmth inside the boot so that you can stay

comfortable and protected during cold weather

games. We may all face a range of weather conditions

on any site through the year, so don’t let your boots

hold you back from enjoying the game!

When you talk about style and comfort, you

should think about only good quality boots, as they

are manufactured taking into account the best type

of materials, construction, padding, cushioning and

inner soles. Such boots provide great cushioning and

support to your feet as well as avoiding any foot

pain and discomfort that arises due to longevity of

wearing; your best friend is a good quality tactical

boot that provides you the best possible safety,

comfort, durability, and flexibility over uneven and

rough surfaces. Such boots are obviously made from

the top quality materials that offer high performance

and long-time comfort and safety for your feet.

To illustrate what I’m talking about, let’s look at

some models in more depth.

“I WAS AT A GAME ONCE WHERE I STEPPED INTO A WATER-FILLED POTHOLE DEEPER THAN

THE HEIGHT OF MY DESERT BOOT CUFF, AND ALTHOUGH THEY’RE MEMBRANE-LINED WATER

DOES TEND TO GET IN THROUGH THE BIG HOLE ON THE TOP WHERE YOUR FOOT GOES IN!”

78


KIT & GEAR

FOOTWEAR

SEASONAL CHANGE

The thought of having to break in new

boots always fills me with dread as

well, so I am always extremely careful

in my search for a new pair. One

model of boot that I found myself

returning to time and again for

general use was the Zephyr from

Lowa; having become something

of a Lowa “fanboi” after a very

positive experience with their

lightweight INNOX boots,

the Zephyr GTX were the

replacement I chose,

and since I got

my very first

pair they’ve

proved to be

excellent and

have become

a “fave” not

just with me, but with many

of the AA crew!

Now things they do wear

out, and after several years

of hard use and abuse,

even with careful and

regular maintenance

my dear old

Zephyrs needed

consigning to

the halls of

Valhalla, and I

decided it was

time to replace

them… with

another pair

of Zephyrs!

This time

though it was

the Zephyr

MK2 GTX

MID which

is a further

development of this

outstanding tactical boot; the balance

of agility, lightness and stability makes it perfect for

use

by professional users, but in my

mind it’s also a perfect boot

for airsoft!

The raised, mid-cut

styling provides the

necessary support

for moving

fast over rough

terrain but is not

restrictive in any

way. The upper

construction

consists of a

combination of

water-repellent

and tearresistant

suede

and abrasionresistant

and

breathable

CORDURA®

materials. An innovative clamping

system allows the lacing to be customised

in the forefoot and ankle area; I’m still

not 100% sure on this in relation to

long-term durability, but it does

make getting your lacing right

pretty fast and simple. The twozone

lacing system used in the

new Zephyr does mean though

that the forefoot and upper

have their own separate

adjustable lacing zones; as

a result, the boot can be

individually

adapted

to the

anatomy

of the

foot and

laced in

different

ways for

ascents and

descents. The LOWA® X-TRAC

“THE THOUGHT OF HAVING TO BREAK IN NEW BOOTS ALWAYS FILLS ME WITH DREAD AS

WELL, SO I AM ALWAYS EXTREMELY CAREFUL IN MY SEARCH FOR A NEW PAIR. ONE MODEL

OF BOOT THAT I FOUND MYSELF RETURNING TO TIME AND AGAIN FOR GENERAL USE WAS

THE ZEPHYR FROM LOWA”


KIT & GEAR

FOOTWEAR

MILITARY sole meets the

highest anti-slip standards;

slip protection depends

primarily on the design

and rubber compound

of the outsole, and the

outsole designed by

LOWA has an optimised

rubber compound to

provide good grip.

The waterproof

and highly breathable

GORE-TEX Extended

Comfort Footwear

laminate liner is

ideal for use in wet

environments, and the

two-layer PU midsole

with MONOWRAP®

frame surrounds and

supports the foot like a kind

of exoskeleton. The Zephyr MK2 GTX MID

is certified as an “occupational shoe” in accordance

with EN ISO 20347:2012, is antistatic and has a

cold and heat-insulating sole unit. Going back to

the outsole, it is not only highly

slip-resistant, but also resistant

to oil, petrol and contact

heat…. they also fit

me really well with a

slightly narrower heel

cup and wider forefoot

area and raised toe-box.

Staying lightweight

but moving into the

autumn/winter months

(in a relatively temperate

environment still) I’m still

wearing a pair of HAIX

Black Eagle Tactical 2.0

GTX Mid Boots that

are now seven years

old… with a leather

boot maintenance really

is your friend! They’re based on

advanced running technology, so this means

that they are light, dynamic, extremely slip resistant,

highly breathable and durably waterproof. The leather

uppers and GORE-TEX waterproofing will keep your

feet dry and the anti-static and anti-slip sole will keep

your feet firmly on the ground whatever the terrain.

The HAIX Climate System uses the pumping action

created during movement to allow air to circulate

with every step; moist air is released and fresh air

comes in through the vent holes at the top of the

boot. Add to this the anti-bacterial insole, and

your feet will not only feel as if they are

well protected, but will smell fresh too

even after a long game! The energy

absorbing heel also keeps

your feet cushioned

and will prevent

jarring when

walking on uneven

surfaces.

Sadly the Black

Eagles are finally

beginning to show wear and

deterioration in the later areas around the rand,

but they’ve truly been an excellent investment and

I will be sad to see these go as they’re now supercomfy.

They’re still waterproof right now, but once

that leather splits it will expose the membrane and

unfortunately that will be “Job done!”… after seven

years though I believe I’ve had my mileage out of

them!

As I mentioned earlier, last but by no means least

are the boots that I keep for full winter, my “winter

specials” if you like, otherwise known as LOWA

MOUNTIAN BOOTS! If you were to visit any

barracks in the UK I guarantee that you would

find a high number of guys wearing LOWAs

and one of the most sought after models

has been the Mountain Boot to wear

along with their MTP. I’ve put a good

number of miles under the

soles of my LOWAs

during the past few

winters, and at no

time did they feel

anything other than

sturdy and solid; the

Vibram “Tsavo” sole unit

has provided stability even on the worst

“THE HAIX CLIMATE SYSTEM USES THE PUMPING ACTION CREATED DURING MOVEMENT

TO ALLOW AIR TO CIRCULATE WITH EVERY STEP; MOIST AIR IS RELEASED AND FRESH AIR

COMES IN THROUGH THE VENT HOLES AT THE TOP OF THE BOOT”

80


KIT & GEAR

FOOTWEAR

days with a nice high cuff giving excellent support

around the ankle.

The boots are made 2.4/2.4mm full grain leather

which has moulded well to my foot and the GORE-

TEX liner has meant that my feet have stayed 100%

dry even in deep, soft snow or extreme wet weather.

Open hook lacing means that you can set up the fit

of the boot just as you like it, and once you’ve found

your “fit” then everything stays locked down and in

place; the foot is anchored solidly in place with no

movement or “sloppiness” that will cause blisters.

Certified as a “working boot” according to CE EN ISO

20347 – 2012, overall this is one heck of a boot and

I can see now why it has become the choice of the

professional user. Whilst our lives may not depend on

it, this is a fabulously well-made boot, put together

with the very best of everything.

MAX PERFORMANCE!

I’ve chosen the boots here not because they are the

cheapest out there but because in my opinion they

offer great value for money, and between them

will have you covered all year round other than in

mountainous areas in full winter and all will provide

maximum performance for your money; for “true and

deep winter” you’ll need a more specialist mountain

boot that is crampon compatible, and that’s a whole

other ballgame!

Now do bear in mind that these boot models fit my

particular foot-shape well and may not be so ideal for

you, but I hope I’ve given you an idea what to look

for when you come to buy; when it comes to buying

boots go to a specialist tactical boot fitter, or the

top outdoor shops will be able to offer a very good

service in relation to precise fitting when it comes to

the civilian models. If you’re after a dedicated military

model then your local tactical store or airsoft shop is

the place to go.

Buy right, buy once even if you are flush with cash,

but if you’re usually as broke as most airsofters I know

(including myself!) then getting it right first time is a

bonus!

My sincere thanks go to www.lowamilitaryboots.

com and www.haix.co.uk for their help in completing

this article. Check out their websites for more

information on the models featured. AA

“BUY RIGHT, BUY ONCE EVEN IF YOU ARE FLUSH WITH CASH, BUT IF YOU’RE USUALLY AS

BROKE AS MOST AIRSOFTERS I KNOW (INCLUDING MYSELF!) THEN GETTING IT RIGHT FIRST

TIME IS A BONUS!”


TAP/CLICK ANYWHERE TO

VISIT OUR WEBSITE!

AA LEGION

TAIWAN

2025 –

NEW YEAR...

NEW STU!

84


AA LEGION

TAIWAN

AS WE HEAD DEEPER INTO A WHOLE NEW YEAR OF AIRSOFT WE ASKED SOME OF THE AA CREW TO GIVE

US, AND YOU, AND IDEA OF WHAT WE CAN EXPECT TO SEE FROM THEM IN THE COMING MONTHS, AND AS

USUAL STEWBACCA WAS FRONT AND CENTRE IN PROVIDING US A REPLY! SO, WITHOUT FURTHER ADO WE’LL

HAND THINGS OVER TO ONE OF THE BUSIEST MEMBERS OF OUR TEAM TO GIVE HIS LOWDOWN, AND IT

CERTAINLY SEEMS THAT OUR “MAN IN TAIWAN” IS AS BUSY AS EVER!

So, fellow shooters, it’s well into 2025 already,

and my life in Taiwan is, as ever, becoming

increasingly equal parts busy/exciting/exhausting,

with a lot of things I can’t talk about going on

behind the scenes with regard to more official or

commercial ventures I’m becoming more involved in.

With gaining permanent residency around two years

back I’ve somewhat cut down my ‘day job’ or ‘work

work’ hours to four days a week from Wednesday to

Saturday, maintaining a good baseline income while

giving me a three day ‘weekend’ of sorts which makes

me less exhausted from the perils of the ‘education’

machine here.

Sunday mornings continue to be the essentially

weekly skirmishes (aside from certain skipped due

to all weekend events doing other aforementioned

things or covering events out of town); joining Team

Taichi what must be four years back, I forget exactly,

I’ve become one of the regulars and core foreign

members for regular shooting days, more in depth

training for squad tactics and other such skill building

practices to bring the general team capabilities up,

while as of this year a reasonable group of us have

also begun joining in with the Wednesday night

shoots at Linkou CQB not far from the day job. I head

straight there with the help of rides with passing

teammates who then take me home afterwards as

well, and it gives me more time to focus on smaller

and more portable platforms or pistols-only action

for review purposes or just practise on the tools.

Given the close range and reduced power limits of

the particular closed group who play in the evenings

there, it’s given me a good opportunity to put my IPSC

pistol skills to good use on meat targets under stress.

Speaking of IPSC, I’m still a very active member

of team SPPT here in Taipei, with our team leader

‘Mars’ Liu starting his own training ground as his

main business over a year back. Our team train every

Tuesday and Friday evening which again gives me a

further opportunity for testing new guns, pistol or

SMG and rifle alike, on Tuesdays doing ‘drill stages’.

It allows me to practice for speed on steel targets

in repeated ‘1,2,3,4 bay drills’ (or re-arrangements

of said numbers) cycling through condition 1,2,

and 3 starts; I’ve also recently taken possession of a

basically new Shadow 2 Orange thanks to our good

friend Clarence Lai, and my teammate Ou JiaCheng

has also decided to join me in Production Optics

division and the two of us went around to Clarence

and Katherine’s recently for gunsmithing, catching

up and for him to join the CLPD sponsored shooter’s

team and acquire himself a Shadow 2 Orange of his

own, joining the ranks (aside from me the crash test

dummy) of countless shooters in the Philippines, Hong

Kong, Europe and further afield running Clarence’s

signature customised Shadow 2 pistols.

GOING GLOBAL

We’re also in the process of preparing for the

extremely exciting upcoming Action Air World Shoot

to be held at the end of July in IloIlo on one of the

central islands of the Philippines! With up to 800

slots for shooters from the world over to go and

join in, we’ve applied for our positions, ordered new

personalised team uniforms, paid our entry fees,

booked our hotel, and now have to navigate the legal

documentation for registering our guns in Taiwan

and the Philippines for the purposes of travelling

with them to and from there. This can be a bit of a

nightmare at the best of times, as a lot of the Hong

Kong shooters found last Christmas trying to enter

Taiwan with guns for the Kaohsiung Level 3 TPSA

shoot!

I’ll not only be competing in the 5 day, 30 stage

long leviathan course of fire, but also reporting not

only on the event, but also the run up to it, our

“JOINING TEAM TAICHI WHAT MUST BE FOUR YEARS BACK, I FORGET EXACTLY, I’VE BECOME

ONE OF THE REGULARS AND CORE FOREIGN MEMBERS FOR REGULAR SHOOTING DAYS, MORE

IN DEPTH TRAINING FOR SQUAD TACTICS AND OTHER SUCH SKILL BUILDING PRACTICES TO

BRING THE GENERAL TEAM CAPABILITIES UP”


AA LEGION

TAIWAN

preparations, as well as a general more in depth

explanation of IPSC and Action Air prior to the big

event, as well as our teams intended expedition after

the main event to do live fire firearms training while

we’re there, which should be exciting.

The aforementioned time off ‘work-work’ at the

start of the week and permanent residency has also

allowed me to do other work and return to my design

engineer roots, with a few products I’ve designed and

been involved with already out on the market now,

or heading there soon at time of writing and lots

more exciting things to be done. So that’s bringing in

some extra income as well as leveraging my technical

capabilities and airsoft related knowledge into a very

satisfying and motivating turn of events out here away

from just the typical English-teaching monotony many

of the foreigners here are engaged in.

Of course my activities for Airsoft Action have

continued apace, with numerous sample guns from

our generous industry partners and supporters filling

my ever increasingly cramped ‘gun wall Mk VII’

adorning the walls of my office/mezzanine personal

abode; I need to re-arrange it all yet again to try

and make space as I’m heading for 70 guns in the

collection at this point and literally tripping over the

damned things along with all the prototypes of my

design efforts!

The hobby is becoming a habit, small wonder when

this year marks my 40th birthday and 20th year in

airsoft! So yeah, half my life in years has been spent

in the awesome airsoft community, and now half my

time in hours is spent doing some form of shooting or

related design, reporting, reviewing, or training.

NO FOMO HERE!

Despite always having the ‘feeling of missing out’

(in retrospect I could actually have made my way to

ShotShow this year) the opportunity on the part of

aforementioned design work client arose too late for

me to factor it in with my work schedule. Likewise

#IWAsnt in Nurnberg with the Euro crew there either,

sad times. Nonetheless I still get to cover the even

longer four-day MOA 2025 here in November again,

as well as the bi-annual TADTE Taiwan Defence Expo

coming up again this year in September; this of

course in addition to the other localised mischief I’m

getting increasingly involved with that I can’t

discuss, I’m certainly keeping myself busy.

I continue to be a die-hard gas blowback

gun user, with the general trend of Taiwan’s

mostly MilSim oriented players also

increasingly shifting towards their use on

the wider scale, with the VFC M16A2 and

M733 joining my collection and me to the

POLK 4 MilSim late last year, as well as the

VFC FAL OSW, SA320T pistol and the long

awaited PPKS coming into the fold since

the start of this year; the latter only just

returned to me along with my first dabble

into custom Kydex holsters with ‘Bean’s

Workshop’, one of the local small businesses

engaged in holster making as well as present

at MOA 2024. I took the plunge and let

Yaohui use my PPKS for a month or so to

prototype his IWB (Inside the Waist-Band;

for concealed carry use in the likes of IDPA)

holster moulds as well as two each of IWB

& OWB magazine carriers for use in various

settings; I’ve been using the PPKS at training

“I’M STILL A VERY ACTIVE MEMBER OF TEAM SPPT HERE IN TAIPEI, WITH OUR TEAM LEADER

‘MARS’ LIU STARTING HIS OWN TRAINING GROUND AS HIS MAIN BUSINESS OVER A YEAR

BACK. OUR TEAM TRAIN EVERY TUESDAY AND FRIDAY EVENING WHICH AGAIN GIVES ME A

FURTHER OPPORTUNITY FOR TESTING NEW GUNS”

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TAIWAN

since acquiring it, and the fixed barrel and additional

optional suppressor with integral barrel extension

make it surprisingly accurate and despite getting lost

in my bear mitts it’s quite comfortable and I’ve also

made use of it as a sidearm for skirmishing as well.

Most of my games since the beginning of the year

have taken place at Linkou CQB, both Wednesday

evenings and at weekends as the early months of

the year tend to be the rainy season in Taiwan. So

we keep having our plans for outdoor play dashed

by the weather and have defaulted to indoor play,

although we have had a few occasions at the Yangmei

dormitories, Xindian in the south of Taipei, and a

newer site at a mountainside area in the Southwest

of Taipei. Here I’ve made use of VFC’s FAL OSW,

MP5SD3, HK53, T91 SOC, M733, Glock 17 Gen 5s

with TrilTactical RMR slide kits, as well as their JW2

AEG paired with recently released Amarok MAG250

AEG magazines I’m also testing; Wednesday evenings

have also seen me make use of the ideal backpack

gun, Archwick’s B&T APC9SD2 with Acetech tracer

unit in the integral suppressor which makes for a great

tool in the darkened corners of the site at night.

Our group is able to hold our own in most cases

with the likes of rolling regen games in many

instances, where the game mode is basically whoever

can reach the OpFor’s regen area starting barrel

first wins! The round counts climb along with the

experience of moving in small teams to take rooms

in the killing house style gaming space, and typically

we have to wait at regen until four or six players

on our team congregate to re-enter the game as a

useful squad, and the ability to try different tactics on

the fly in the same space instead of the more typical

‘dead and out’ games we normally have to play is a

refreshing change and opportunity to work as a team

in changing situations. I have managed to collect two

bleeding headshots in the process, however, a few

weeks apart with the second landing exactly on the

centre of my brow right where the previous one was

in the process of healing… I guess that will leave a

cool scar at least, made for some good photos…

There’s still a lot to look forward to for 2025, fellow

shooters, with plenty of Sundays left to play and a

bunch of exciting products to look forward to the

release of, as well as my existing collection to enjoy;

especially the likes of the FAL, FAL OSW, FNC, and

my collection of Heckler & Kochs and of course the

vast swathe of pistols too! I look forward to bringing

you all more news from this side of the world in the

coming year as the “wild west out east” still has a lot

to give! AA

“I STILL GET TO COVER THE EVEN LONGER FOUR-DAY MOA 2025 HERE IN NOVEMBER AGAIN,

AS WELL AS THE BI-ANNUAL TADTE TAIWAN DEFENCE EXPO COMING UP AGAIN THIS YEAR IN

SEPTEMBER; THIS OF COURSE IN ADDITION TO THE OTHER LOCALISED MISCHIEF I’M GETTING

INCREASINGLY INVOLVED WITH”


AA LEGION

PORTUGAL

KICKING

THE YEAR

INTO GEAR!

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PORTUGAL

MIGUEL HAS ALWAYS BEEN ON POINT WITH HIS REPORTS FROM GAMES LARGE AND SMALL IN HIS HOME

COUNTRY OF PORTUGAL, AND THE PORTUGUESE AIRSOFT COMMUNITY IS ONE THAT WE BELIEVE HAS

MANY THINGS IT CAN TEACH ALL OF US! AS 2025 PROGRESSES WE THOUGHT IT WOULD BE OF INTEREST TO

SEE JUST HOW THINGS HAVE KICKED OFF WHEN IT COMES TO GAMES!


AA LEGION

PORTUGAL

By the time you are reading this article, we are

well into 2025, but for me, at the moment of

writing barely a month and a half has passed.

Now, that means little... because for us, airsoft is

almost non-stop! Every weekend we have either

a game or we can just go to one of our fields for

practice. And, there is one thing in particular that is

different from last year. We have EIGHT new team

members! Well, nine new team members, if we count

Sierra, our official photographer, whose photos you’ve

seen in pretty much all my articles! (Thanks Sierra!

Keep up the good work!).

Since the start of the year we haven’t stopped,

but I’m going to focus my report on two events that

although small, compared to some major events

down the line, were also fun and good tests for our

newer members! Since a few of them are completely

new to airsoft, it’s always better to start a bit slow.

They are still getting the hang of their gear, seeing

what they still need to add to their loadout or what’s

not necessary, which is quite important for when we

tackle bigger games!

But let’s jump right to the first event! And it was

none other than the anniversary of our friends, the

USAC team! This meant a little trip over to the small

town of Estreito in Oleiros where we are always

welcome. Some of us departed Friday night, while

others hit the road during the early hours of Saturday.

I was in the group that left Friday night, since there

is always a good get-together with the other players

there; there’s nothing like sharing a few adult

beverages with players that I’ve known for years.

After arriving, we geared up and headed to the

briefing area. The game was simple, in and around

the village there were several resource points, and

after capturing said point you could extract a small

card that counted as that resource, fuel, ammo, or

manpower. The goal of the game was to use the

collected resources to “buy” parts of a map that was

held by the organization, and each bought part would

offer either a bonus for any future resource that you

used (like a 50 fuel card would count as 75 fuel) or

special missions.

VILLAGE LIFE

Saturday morning, we got up and got ready to drive

to the meeting point, which was in the middle of

the town. From there, we drove with a game staff

member toward the game area. Now, one thing that’s

important to imagine is the field for this game; in a

couple of my previous game reports, I’ve talked about

this amazing field. It’s a huge field, around 14 km

from end to end, four old abandoned villages, a creek,

valleys, and hills; a dream field for any team. But,

since this was a game on the smaller side, only with a

few hand-picked teams, the game focused only in and

around one of the villages.

“SINCE THE START OF THE YEAR WE HAVEN’T STOPPED, BUT I’M GOING TO FOCUS MY

REPORT ON TWO EVENTS THAT ALTHOUGH SMALL, COMPARED TO SOME MAJOR EVENTS

DOWN THE LINE, WERE ALSO FUN AND GOOD TESTS FOR OUR NEWER MEMBERS!”

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PORTUGAL

We started on the Western part of the village

and the lowest point, so my first thought was that

we were at a disadvantage, since we were fighting

a literally uphill battle! But we also had a small

advantage; our faction was composed of mostly my

team and four members from the BTA team (where

our friends The Duchess and Geraldo are from), and

we were also all already coordinated in the same

radio frequency. So as soon as the game started, our

goal was to rush in and reach as far into the village

as possible, and control as many supply points as

we could. I guess luck was on our side, as for some

reason the enemy faction was slow to get into action,

allowing us to take position in most of the village.

And from here on... it was a complete

“slaughter”... the enemy faction never even reached

the centre of the village, where we could buy the map

parts. I don’t know if it was a mix of dis-coordination

among the teams that composed the enemy faction,

combined with our faction coordination. After we

dominated the village, I divided our faction in three

groups, East, Centre and West, and moved people

around every time a sector was in need of some

reinforcement.

Slowly I started gathering resources that each sector

brought me, and used them to buy the map parts.

Soon we held a good portion of the map, while the

enemy faction was still kept at bay, so to change

things up I decided to buy the special mission!

The mission came in a riddle, so to say, which

stated: “Follow the water, and you will find what you

are looking for”. With this info, we started scouring

the creek that passed in the western part of the

village, and after a while one of my team members

located something that looked like a person laying

on the floor. We moved in, using cover from some

members in the central sector, and got what ended up

being the USAC team’s mascot in a multicam uniform.

We brought it to safety and searched its pockets,

where we ended up finding a good pile of resource

“FROM HERE ON... IT WAS A COMPLETE “SLAUGHTER”... THE ENEMY FACTION NEVER EVEN

REACHED THE CENTRE OF THE VILLAGE, WHERE WE COULD BUY THE MAP PARTS. I DON’T

KNOW IF IT WAS A MIX OF DIS-COORDINATION AMONG THE TEAMS THAT COMPOSED THE

ENEMY FACTION…”


AA LEGION

PORTUGAL

cards.

The game progressed mostly as it started, with

the enemy faction trying to breach our defences, but

never with an attack strong enough to breach them

and take hold of important areas. So, after collecting

more resources, we bought the second and last

special mission. And this time, our goal was to “blow

up” the small bridge that passed over the creak, using

one of Ares Alpha cases.

So I gathered a small force and headed toward

the western flank, which was under attack at that

moment. Although the enemy attack wasn’t strong

to push our line, it wasn’t safe to advance towards

the mission location. Some time was needed

to activate the device, and the player would be

completely exposed during the process. So I ordered

our defensive line to push up. And with that I was

able to move toward the bridge and activate the

“bomb”, which now we had to defend it during the

countdown.

As the game reached the end, the organization

decided to offer an extra special mission to the enemy

faction. The mascot that we found early on was given

to them, which they had

to defend until the clock

ran out, just a simple

objective, to get them in

the game. As such, we

pushed to attack the area

and retrieve the objective,

but in the end we were

unable to. As we got

eliminated, there were no

more respawns. So, little

by little, we headed back

to the cars and the game

ended.

After the event,

our USAC friends

even reserved a whole

restaurant just for us, and

we even had lunch with a

representative of the City

Council… so of course I

took the chance to talk

about airsoft, and its

benefits for the region!

CARGO DROP

Let’s fast-forward one week, to the next event! We

were invited to take part of Cargo Drop, a game that

would take place in MegaCampo, which is probably

the only commercial field in Portugal. I know it might

sound a bit strange to our readers in the UK and USA

(which are the majority, I know), but here in Portugal

things run a bit differently. This field runs with a mix

of paintball and airsoft, with several built scenarios.

So, with the objective of bolstering the Airsoft

Community, they decided to team up with our friend

Pestana from ANA, and offered a more complex event

to the players. The field offers great conditions to the

players, a covered location to gear up, WCs, snack

bar, BBQ spot, HPA station, the works. And with the

light rain that persisted through the morning, it was

great to have cover over our heads at the start and

the end of the event (who cares about rain during the

game itself?!).

After gearing up, we headed toward the special

briefing area, where Pestana explained the game

module. We started the game with four different

hints, for four different locations where we could

“CONFRONTATION WITH THE ENEMY FACTION WAS FIERCE, WITH BOTH GROUPS TRYING TO

GET THE SAME OBJECTIVES, BUT, SIMILARLY TO THE EVENT IN CASTELO BRANCO, MY TEAM

WAS THE MAJORITY OF THE FACTION… WE WERE ABLE TO COORDINATE QUITE WELL AND

PUSH AND COMPLETE OUR OBJECTIVES”

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PORTUGAL

find some sort of item that had to be brought back

to our HQ/Respawn. And, with all of them, we could

progress to the next part of the game.

As the game started, we moved toward the River

and Fort sectors and quickly found two of the hinted

objectives. They were envelopes (one marked to each

faction) with a transparent sheet (acetate sheet) that

had the markings and timings of the cargo drops.

When placed over the map in our HQ, we could see

where and when the drops would be. With this in

mind, we moved to get the remaining envelopes,

located in the Wild West and in the Iraq sectors. At

this time the confrontation with the enemy faction

was fierce, with both groups trying to get the same

objectives, but, similarly to the event in Castelo

Branco, my team was the majority of the faction.

And, with the rest of the players, who were also

known to us, welcoming our guidance, we were able

to coordinate quite well and push and complete our

objectives.

With all four envelopes

in our HQ, it was time

to change tactics and

focus on certain areas

and capture the cargo

drops (a total of nine!).

There was a drop every

30m in a different spot.

But, the enemy wasn’t

going down without

a fight, and even with

them missing two of

their envelopes, they still

had information about

some objectives. So they

quickly grabbed the first

drop, which was close to

their HQ.

From here on, it was

a head on fight for

the drops, and since

each was in a different

location, we were forced

to move from sector to

sector, trying to control

and defend them while

we waited for the drop to appear, and then take it

to our HQ. At a time we held four objectives against

the enemy’s two, but we lost the next two objectives

which brought the game to a tie!

That meant that the last objective was going to

decide who “won”. And, of course, the objective

was in the middle of the game are, in the Iraq sector.

Knowing this, I ordered all available to rush to the

location, and we were able to control it pretty quickly.

The enemy was slow to react, but they did try to

attack our positions several times, but never with

success. And with that, we picked up the last drop as

soon as it dropped and took it to our HQ, ending the

event. It was now time to remove the mud from our

boots and take off our wet gear!

This was our start of 2025, a few simple games

among some team practices. But 2025 already has

some good events in the calendar! So more airsoft

is to come, and I’ll be sure to share the stories when

they happen. AA

“IT WAS A HEAD ON FIGHT FOR THE DROPS, AND SINCE EACH WAS IN A DIFFERENT

LOCATION, WE WERE FORCED TO MOVE FROM SECTOR TO SECTOR, TRYING TO CONTROL AND

DEFEND THEM WHILE WE WAITED FOR THE DROP TO APPEAR, AND THEN TAKE IT TO OUR HQ”


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VFC ICS MK18 BCM MCMR GBBR/AEG

MK18

SUPERIORITY

THE MARCH OF THE MK18 CONTINUES AT PACE, WITH MORE AND MORE MANUFACTURERS

BRINGING OUT THEIR OWN TAKE ON THIS STALWART AR-PLATFORM! BUT THERE’S ONE AEG VERSION

THAT STILL TAKES THE CROWN ACCORDING TO BILL AS HE CHECKS BACK ON HIS ORIGINAL ICS

MODEL THAT DATES BACK TO 2022!

If there’s one single model of AR that I find

myself returning to time and again it’s the

MK18 CQBR; I simply love this chunky

little platform in all its forms, right from

the MOD 0 up to the very

latest iterations, and if I had to

choose just one style of AR for

use in-game then this would

most definitely be it! In airsoft

form I believe that the MK18 is the perfect

tool, performing excellently in the woods and in

urban environments too.

Let’s face it, the MK18 was undoubtedly designed

for work “close up and personal”, but also for

medium range engagement distances; as none of

us are likely to often encounter airsoft fights over,

at the most, 50-70m with a standard AEG or GBBR

the MK18 to me is pretty much the perfect airsoft

carbine. Now we’ve talked in Red Cell this months

about “SBRs” and the MK18 most certainly

sits in this airsoft category, but the MK18 is not

featured there as quite honestly we have enough

different airsoft replicas of this platform between us

to give them their own category… it really is that

popular!

But amongst all the AEG replicas there’s one

that undoubtedly stands out for me, and that’s the

now-older and classic ICS Mk18 version, and as I’ve

“IF I HAD TO CHOOSE JUST ONE STYLE OF AR FOR USE IN-GAME THEN THIS

WOULD MOST DEFINITELY BE IT! IN AIRSOFT FORM I BELIEVE THAT THE MK18 IS

THE PERFECT TOOL, PERFORMING EXCELLENTLY IN THE WOODS AND IN URBAN

ENVIRONMENTS TOO”

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ICS MK18

noted before what a beauty this carbine is! I am still

of the belief that ICS make some of the finest, highperformance

AEGs out there, and I’ve tested many,

many of their models of all types during my long and

mutually respectful relationship with the Taiwanese

brand. I’m not going to say that ICS have never got

things a little wrong, but their AEGs impress me over

and over again, and their recent forays into both the

spring sniper market, and the GBB pistol realm have

done so as well... from what I saw at IWA they are

poised to also enter the GBBR market in the very near

future, and this excites me greatly!

But the MK18 AEG? The facts remain unchanged

that ICS collaborated with EMG ARMS in the USA,

and the ICS DD MK18 has been created under the

EMG Daniel Defense Licence and as such is 100%

fully-branded, and I do mean FULLY, even down to

the correct font in the trademarks and the DD logo on

the mock-BCG. Everything is where it should be on

both the upper and lower receivers and 9.55” RIS II

rail, right down to the NSN numbers, and along with

these the overall finish of the AEG is just splendid,

replicating the “chocolate tan” of the receivers and

furniture that I was so taken with when I first saw it

on the real models, and the “SF Bronze” of the rail

is impeccable as new; this colour also appears on

the latest ICS “DD” models that I had the pleasure

of reviewing in ISSUE 171, and I am totally looking

forward to

further

working both models up

this summer!

And I’m pleased

to report

that the

finish has stayed

almost perfect,

even though

the MK18 has

now seen some

proper “use and abuse”.. of course there are some

scrapes and lumps taken out where I’ve had it on

the range (a lot!) and in-game (full disclosure, not so

much…), and I’ve now needed to re-tighten the rail

a couple of times, but generally speaking it still looks

great… if anything even better than new now that it’s

a little “battleworn”.

Looking at the externals in detail, they are

flawless and offer some nice little features in the

way of trades. “DD” trades, a serial number on

the handguard, and plenty of real estate for all

the accessories you could ever wish for! The upper

receiver has been etched with a bullet logo containing

the calibre of the real counterpart 5.56 and toward

the rear an etched MK18, as Jimmy noted “just to

let everyone know you have good taste”. The lower

receiver has been deeply engraved with the full

Daniel Defense logo. The dual tone grip has a perfect

angle and is semi-coated in rubber which is bears

the EMG logo. Moving to the rear there’s a full-metal

five point buffer tube which houses the wiring in an

under-tray, allowing for a variety of good-sized, allday-play

batteries. A polymer stock, just like the real

DD version, with rubber cheek pad again bearing the

EMG logo is a nice touch and has minimal wobble on

the buffer tube (no one likes a wobbly stock, now do

they?).

And the furniture itself still appears to me to be a

first in the airsoft world to the best of my knowledge

as the MK18 features some super replications of the

ergonomic DD Buttstock and Pistol Grip, both of

which are colourcoded

to the

receivers, but

with a twotone

black

inset that

frankly looks

the absolute

business. On the

real civilian-spec

carbine these are

“Glass Filled

Polymer with Soft

Touch Overmolding”,

whilst on the ICS they

“AMONGST ALL THE AEG REPLICAS THERE’S ONE THAT

UNDOUBTEDLY STANDS OUT FOR ME, AND THAT’S THE

NOW-OLDER AND CLASSIC ICS MK18 VERSION, AND AS I’VE NOTED BEFORE WHAT A

BEAUTY THIS CARBINE IS! I AM STILL OF THE BELIEF THAT ICS MAKE SOME OF THE

FINEST, HIGH-PERFORMANCE AEGS OUT THERE”


RELOADED

ICS MK18

are very high-grade polymer. Once again the finish

if these parts is splendid and has stood up well, but

with the grip accommodating the motor and the

buttstock giving lots of battery space that is easily

accessed via that “twist and turn” buttpad; the

MK18 is rear-wired with Deans. ICS call their take

“ZETA” and the newly-designed “20°-Vertical” pistol

grip offers both comfort and control; the QD bottom

cap allows you to perform motor maintenance more

easily too. With the real deal “iron” sights are sold

separately, but ICS have been kind enough to fit their

excellent flip-ups as standard so that the AEG just

needs a battery to be field-ready.

I’ve stayed pretty much with the accessories I first

fitted, a NUPROL NPQ15 LIGHT/LASER BOX (PEQ-15)

that offers all the functions I need, an NP WEAPON

LIGHT, a replica XPS holosight, shorty foregrip and

some ladder rail covers. This to me is a functional,

tried and very-much-tested setup that I run on all my

MK18s, although I have upgraded the old “rats tails”

to more user-friendly WADSN pressure switches. I’ve

also been running a NUPROL “SF-style” tracer unit

for lo-light/night training and scenarios, and I this

rocks!

Depending on the power level (there are different

models for the global market!) you can choose

between 7.4v or 11.1v batteries and there is plenty

of room in the butt stock with an easy access butt

pad; just pull and twist it’s as easy as that. The

battery you choose is entirely up to you but ICS

recommend up to 360fps use a 7.4v, and over

360fps use an 11.1v; I’ve been using a 15c 1300mah

11.1v with no problems at all. As new my MK18

came in at 1.03 Joule/334fps and this has remained

pretty constant so far, and as yet I haven’t needed to

change out the hop-rubber; there’s been no degrade

in either the power level or accuracy so far which just

illustrates how good the original internals spec was,

and is.

As Jimmy said last time we looked at our MK18s:

“This is truly an out of the box high performing

rifle sporting premium quality, reliable parts, and

has a rapid response thanks to the SSSIII trigger

system and the high quality evolution motor; with

reinforced MasterMod internals to ensure longevity,

everything is nestled nice and neat in the now-iconic

split gearbox which from a techs standpoint is a joy

to work on.

Performance-wise I can’t fault it and for an out

of the box AEG it will supersede most others on

the market, pushing BBs out easily to around 70m,

and very effective at 50mtrs all thanks to the fine

tunability of the rotary hop unit, 6.03mm barrel and

the MasterMods CNC brass tension nub which will

lift 0.30g beebs with ease.

Semi-auto response is instant thanks to a short

trigger pull and great electronics and follow up shots

are lightning fast; this is due to pre-cock so that after

the first shot the piston sits fully pre-cocked. This is

where the piston sits fully rearward laying in a state

of readiness just waiting to slam forward sending the

next BB out toward your opponents.”

As a midcap player I’ve continued to run the ICS

MK18 on N-MAG 30/125 models and these have fed

flawlessly throughout the life of the AEG thus far,

which now totals some 10,000+ BBs. I’m still happily

hitting the 300x300 steels out to 70m consistently

on .30g; as I noted when I last looked at the MK18 I

prefer to shoot on semi-auto and the ROF, although

exactly where claimed at around 20 RPS on an 11.1,

is of little interest to me, but the trigger response is

still crisp and positive.

Once again I’ll come back to my original

conclusion, one that I reached back in 2022 when

the AEG was new and say “I have to commend ICS

for once again for creating something that sings

to me in every way possible… this is one AEG that

you will most definitely want to own. If you’re in

the market for a new AEG generally though, then I

would certainly take a very good look at the ICS DD

MK18; if this is the shape of things to come from ICS

in the future then I’m super-excited to see what they

come up with next!”

Of course after IWA I know where ICS are going

next, into “terra incognita” for them as they head

towards their very first GBBR! However, the fact is

that ICS have made some truly exemplary AEGs and

will continue to do so, and in my opinion, an opinion

based now on nearly three years of shooting the

platform on a regular basis, the MK18 is genuinely

one of their best, a really superior AEG! AA

“THE OVERALL FINISH OF THE AEG IS JUST SPLENDID, REPLICATING THE “CHOCOLATE

TAN” OF THE RECEIVERS AND FURNITURE THAT I WAS SO TAKEN WITH WHEN I FIRST

SAW IT ON THE REAL MODELS, AND THE “SF BRONZE” OF THE RAIL IS IMPECCABLE AS

NEW”

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ICS MK18

My sincere thanks as always go to the lovely

team at www.icsbb.com for providing the Mk18

AEGs for Jimmy and I, and it is genuinely a pleasure

to work with people that have such a passion for

airsoft!

Thanks also to AA LEGION ASSOCIATE Josh, from

www.kriosphotography.com, for working with us

on this article, and I’m looking forward to working

with him more in 2025!

“OF COURSE AFTER IWA I KNOW WHERE ICS ARE GOING NEXT, INTO “TERRA

INCOGNITA” FOR THEM AS THEY HEAD TOWARDS THEIR VERY FIRST GBBR! HOWEVER,

THE FACT IS THAT ICS HAVE MADE SOME TRULY EXEMPLARY AEGS AND WILL

CONTINUE TO DO SO”


CLICK/TAP IMAGES FOR MORE INFORMATION ON THE MILITARY1ST WEBSITE

Airsoft Action - May 2025

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Airsoft Action - May 2025

Transform your PDFs into Flipbooks and boost your revenue!

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