Airsoft Action - January 2021

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ISSUE 121 - JANUARY 2021 - FREE

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CONTENTS

08

14

ISSUE 121 - JANUARY 2021 - FREE

ARMOURY:

VFC MK18 MOD1

ARMOURY:

BOLT PDW

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24

30

Editor: Nigel Streeter

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KIT & GEAR:

WINTER

WARMERS

34

FEATURE:

DSI MCX BUILD

64

SHOW REPORT:

MOA 2020

TECH REPORT:

VFC MEETS

LEVIATHAN

60

72

LETTER, IDEA OR

QUESTION?

Got something to say? A question for our

experts? An article or article idea?

Drop us a line and let us know. Either email the

Editor: nige@airsoft-action.co.uk, write to us at

the Calibre Publishing address above, or talk to

us on Twitter or Facebook.

FEATURE:

THE FUTURE OF

AIRSOFT SITES

THE CAGE:

ALL I WANT FOR...

Contents

JANUARY 2021

JANUARY 2021

8 ARMOURY: VFC MK18 MOD1 GBBR

Bill is a lover of shorter AR carbines and a fan

of gas blowback models, so he was keen to

check out the latest MK18 MOD1 GBBR from

VegaForceCompany (VFC). Thanks to Redwolf UK,

he was finally able to get “hands on”!

14 ARMOURY: BOLT AIRSOFT B4 PDW

B.R.S.S.

As Red Cell are setting up to look at a whole

bunch of “PDW-style” AEGs next month, Bill has

been out on the range preparing things and has

been somewhat taken with the latest model to

come from BOLT Airsoft in Taiwan!

20 ARMOURY: UMAREX KWA HK45 GBB

Having first seen this pistol in Spain, it wasn’t until

AA Legionnaire, Stewbacca, arrived in Taiwan that

he eventually added one to his armoury.

24 KIT & GEAR: LOFTED GARMENTS

Every winter we like to have a look at what’s new

from our old friends at Snugpak by including

an article on why you should look to invest in

some serious “lofted”, or insulated protection.

Continuing his look at “good gear to go”, our

in-house technical clothing “guru”, Bill, takes a

look at both new gear and that which has been

thoroughly tried and tested!

30 SHOW REPORT: MOA 2020

Airsoft Action’s Legionnaire in Taiwan, Stewbacca,

heads to the annual Military, Outdoor and Airsoft

exhibition, where he checked out the new releases

from Vega Force Company, among others.

34 FEATURE: DSI MCX BUILD

We’re very proud that amongst the team at

Airsoft Action ALL of our contributors are actively

engaged in the world of airsoft, either as a player

or within the industry proper! John “Boycie”

Turrell brings us a report of an extremely detailed

custom build he was involved in to create a very

special - and very specific - AEG!

38 SURVIVAL: IFAK

Real life military personnel carry individual first aid

kits and, as more airsofters are doing the same,

survival expert, Paul Yelland, looks at what items

should be included for airsoft.

42 RED CELL: OTHER GBB PISTOLS

Although many of the Red cell members live quite

close to one another, the recent full lockdown in

the UK meant that they were unable to meet in

person, so Bill looked to “adapt and overcome” in

order to create this month’s test report in order to

bring you the results of the test on “other GBBS”!

50 KIT & GEAR: PTS UNITY

When it comes down to licensed airsoft products

from the firearms and parts industry, PTS Syndicate

is always a company worth looking out for! Chris

from the Airsoft & Milsim New Blog brings us

news of the very latest additions to the expansive

PTS Syndicate range.

52 ACTION AIR: TAIWAN

After a short break our Legionnaire in Taiwan,

“Stewbacca”, once again pits his talents against

other local shooters - and this time he didn’t have

to travel far!

56 RELOADED: SIG AIR M17

This month in RELOADED Boycie sets his sights

on a GBB pistol model that continues to take on

greater significanace in its “real world” form, the

M17!

58 KIT & GEAR: 5.11 ALL MISSIONS PC

Airsoft Action Legionnaire and “Man Down

Under”, Ioan “Iggy” Roberts, reports from

Australia where he turns his attention to his latest

plate carrier acquisition.

60 TECH REPORT: VFC MEETS JEFFTRON

It’s all very well reporting on new technologies as

they appear but, of course, as airsofters we want

to know how these can be applied to enhance

the performance of our AEGs and GBBs to give

us the edge “in game”, don’t we? This month, in

his first report for Airsoft Action, Red Cell shooter

Jimmy Davison tells all about using the JEFFTRON

LEVIATHAN in a recent build!

64 FEATURE: THE FUTURE OF AIRSOFT

The Global Pandemic has made many of us stop

and think about what we really love when it

comes to our personal “airsoft experience”. Here

in the UK, Bill got together with a local “Site Op”

to give a vision of one possible future…

68 ARMOURY: CYMA NAM AR SERIES

As a keen collector of Vietnam War era gear and

living history enthusiast, as well as airsoft, player

Bill is constantly looking out for new period AEGs

and GBBs that are ideal for that conflict and he’s

been waiting to get hands-on the new models

from CYMA that fit right in!

72 THE CAGE: ALL I WANT FOR…

2020 has been a year that most of us would

like to forget for many reasons, but the fact is

that even during the most challenging of times

airsofters around the globe have adapted to

overcome, getting their game on whenever, and

wherever, it was safe to do so! Bill reflects on the

past year, and checks in with the AA team to find

out what they’d really, REALLY like for Christmas!

78 FEATURE: THE MP7A1

As promised at the end of Frenchie’s piece on the

Glock 18c AEP last month, this month he’s turning

his attention to the Marui MP7A1.

82 RETAIL ROUNDUP

Christmas is on the horizon, and we don’t know

about you but we are very much looking forward

to it this year! Of course it’s that time when your

nearest and dearest that wish to humour your

airsoft addiction will be asking you for little gift

ideas, so this time we’ve kept things sensible(ish!)

for all those little stocking fillers!

86 LAST POST: THAT WAS THEN…

Frenchie says: “If I have understood the vagaries

of editorial timing, Christmas should be upon us

and this should be an appropriate point to wish all

of you a Happy New Year! If I’m a month late…

Oops, belated Happy New Year!”

ULTIMA

JACKET

BLACK / DARK COYOTE / GREEN

/ SRP: £89.95

armoury

VFC MK18 MOD1 GBBR

OPR8R COOL!

LAST MONTH BILL TOOK A LOOK AT AN ALL-NEW “MK18”

AEG AND AS A LOVER OF SHORTER AR CARBINES,

FOUND IT VERY MUCH TO HIS LIKING! AS HE’S ALSO A

FAN OF GAS BLOWBACK MODELS HE WAS KEEN TO GET

HIS HANDS ON THE LATEST MK18 MOD1 GBBR FROM

VEGAFORCECOMPANY (VFC) AND, THANKS TO REDWOLF

UK, HE WAS FINALLY ABLE TO GET “HANDS ON”!

8

JANUARY 2021

armoury

VFC MK18 MOD1 GBBR

Okay, this may surprise some of you that

know me personally and know of my love

for the OPFOR role when it comes to airsoft

games but, like many of you, there is a small part

of me that still revels in the “OPR8R” cool side of

things! Although now I’m a bit older I find that the

OPFOR role suits me better, there’s still a big old pile

of Multicam and AOR1 gear in my personal locker

for those moments that I feel the need to be all

righteous!

I also have a quiet love for Short Barrelled Rifles,

or SBRs and although I own a number of full-length

ARs, for skirmish days a CQB-length AR, most usually

my L119A1 or HK416 D10RS, is still a solid option to

run out with when I’m not practising with one of my

AKs. I’m a great believer in becoming familiar with the

intricacies of different “platforms” and rolling over

the use of AEGs means that none of my beauties are

taking undue strain over time. Because of this I have

AEGs that are 10-plus years old and thanks to regular

maintenance and professional servicing, are still

running “stock” with only hop-rubbers changed for a

little performance “nudge”.

However, there’s another side to my airsoft which

is “training”, a subject that we’re currently having a

good chat about in the Airsoft Action Contributors

group; in fact there will no doubt be an article on this

in the New Year as this topic has really opened up a

very interesting topic of debate!

What do I mean by “training” and is this directly

applicable to “Sunday Skirmish Games”? The answer

is both “yes” and “no”. As I usually shoot “real” on a

weekly basis, albeit “paper punching” at my local club

and also work as Editor on PMCI, the sister publication

to AA, I’m usually on a range somewhere quite

regularly, so my firearms safety and proficiency needs

to be on point at all times. Although 2020 has been

somewhat different, it’s not unusual for me during a

normal year to attend courses in the UK, in Eastern

Europe and in the USA. I also shoot with the PMCI

USA guys when I get chance, so I need to be able to

hold my own amongst them (okay, I like to “fly the

flag” a bit when I can too!).

In strict airsoft game terms I’m not that interested

in “team training”, although I know that many of

you enjoy this immensely, however, I am ALWAYS

interested in learning new skills that will make me

more effective. I’m always happy to learn a new

skill or drill that makes me more efficient in my

manipulation, or enhances my accuracy! As an “old

guy”, it’s training on my skills and drills that often

keeps me in the game when you young ‘uns are hareing

about… Whilst we are not training for any given

scenario as the “pros” do, or indeed as a part of some

kind of twisted “evil agenda training regime”, training

is completely valid to make you a better, safer, more

accurate and effective shooter. This to me matters as

much in airsoft as it does in “real steel”.

So why do I train mostly with a GBBR and not an

AEG, you may ask? It’s a personal thing really, as I

enjoy the operation of a full-travel-bolt gas AR or

AK and to me it gets as close to training with a real

firearm as is possible. As, at the last time of looking,

I am still a resident of Her Majesty’s fine land that

means that even as a club shooter I am restricted in

the firearm models that are available to me, so the

“gasser” becomes even more important.

I believe the salient thing here is replication

of operation; we’re never going to get the same

complete action as a real firearm even with the very

best “gasser” and certainly nothing approaching

muzzle signature and true felt recoil. There’s also no

real problem to deal with in respect of heat mitigation

during handling either. I look for how the “replica”

works and if it performs in close enough a manner

to real as to make training with it worthwhile. What

I look for is not a replica to play airsoft with per se

(more on this later!), but one that will let me run the

majority of my manipulation sequences so I don’t look

a complete and utter useless twat when I shoot with

my friends in the USA and Eastern Europe! If all I need

to deal with when I shoot “real” is mainly muzzle and

recoil management, then it’s a bonus.

VFC FOR THE WIN!

Again (as many of you will know), my personal choice

of “trainer” is the VFC SR-16. In truth, the VFC SR-16

GBB hasn’t been designed and made for the mass

market, it’s been designed and made for those that

truly want a platform that operates exactly like the

real thing but that fires safe and simple 6mm BBs,

“…THE VFC SR-16 GBB HASN’T BEEN DESIGNED AND MADE FOR THE MASS MARKET,

IT’S BEEN DESIGNED AND MADE FOR THOSE THAT TRULY WANT A PLATFORM THAT

OPERATES EXACTLY LIKE THE REAL THING BUT THAT FIRES SAFE AND SIMPLE 6MM

BBS, NOT LIVE 5.56!”

www.airsoftaction.net 9

armoury

VFC MK18 MOD1 GBBR

not live 5.56! Yes, it’s been designed for the MilSim

player but also for those that want to test themselves

to the limit in any game or on the range, with reallike

operation and real-world magazine capacities…

Basically it’s been designed for people like me!

But having thoroughly enjoyed finding a MK18

AEG that is both reliable and well-priced, in the form

of the Specna Arms model I looked at last month, my

attention soon returned to GBBRs and I remembered

that VFC had a new “MK18” model in their range! A

quick call to Danny at RedWolf UK saw one shipped

down to me in the usual RedWolf-efficient way and

I was soon out on the short range giving it some

beans!

The VFC MK18 MOD 1 GBBR is patterned after

the MK18 MOD 1 used by many “operators”, most

famously by USSOCOM and, as I discussed last time, it

has come out of the Naval SOPMOD programme. In a

nutshell, just as the Special Purpose Receiver morphed

into the Special Purpose Rifle and was type-classified

as Mk 12 Mod 0/1, the complete CQBR-length carbine

has been type-classified as the Mk 18 Mod 0, or the

Mk 18 Mod 1 with a sightless gas block and fulllength

accessory rail kit.

The gas airsoft version from VFC replicates the

“real” very well indeed and although it lacks the

“trades” of a fully licenced model it’s obviously a

MK18, right down to that super “SF Bronze” 245mm

rail system on the sharp end (which interestingly IS

trademarked and may give a clue as to where the

Taiwanese manufacturer may be casting their effective

licencing efforts in the future), I certainly hope so!

Made of high-quality alloys and steel components

throughout, the VFC MK18 is exceptionally well made

- but I expect that from VFC. The gun is extremely

solid, weighing in at 2,319g feels great in hand,

all the parts fit together beautifully and the only

things I would change on this carbine are the CRANE

stock and the A2 pistol grip. Thankfully virtually any

aftermarket parts will fit, so the choice of “furniture”

can be totally down to you, the final setup as you like

it.

Essentially the VFC is as close to the real deal as

you’ll find in airsoft form and everything is nailed

down to look and feel exactly as it would on the real

thing, including the operating system. Internally the

gun runs the latest VFC GBBR system which makes it

extremely efficient and the internal construction also

ensures added durability as well, providing a recoil

impulse is solid and consistent, which makes the

shooting experience fun and immersive. Like my SR-

16, it has a full-travel “bolt carrier group (BCG)” and

once again this replicates exactly the operation of the

military carbine so your drills need

to be 100% the same. For instance,

the VFC magazines only hold 30

BBs so your reloads need to be on

point. In relation to magazines, the

grey STANAG style provided is also

the latest version from VFC, with

no visible valve on the base, which

adds to the “real feel” overall. This

version is even more reliable and

will go through more BBs with

less cooldown if you do decide to

go crazy in full auto and this is a

“gasser” where you can actually

do that without the whole deal

venting! The steel magazine housing

also adds good weight, a realistic

feel and “wear and tear” will add a

real worn look in time. In addition

to absolutely first-rate build quality

and superb

components, the MK18

also offers realistic takedown;

by splitting

the receivers

you can

remove

the

BCG for

cleaning

and

maintenance, again, just like

the real thing.

BOOMTIME!

I’m pleased to tell you

that in operation the

MK18 is, if anything,

even better than my

SR-16!

As I’m in

“C-Virus

Lockdown”, I

10

JANUARY 2021

armoury

VFC MK18 MOD1 GBBR

initially tested the carbine on my 10m short range at

home, to chrono and evaluate and in terms of power

I got a consistent 1.07 Joule/341fps on a .20g RZR

BB using green gas. With .30g RZR BBs the accuracy

was stunning at that range, ringing the steels with

each and every BB. I did take an “afternoon stroll”

up to my woodland range eventually

though and ran some drills using a mix

of the STANAG and VFC V-Mags, plus

the excellent BUISs that come fitted as

standard and once I had the hop set just

so, was again punching out the sandbags

at 30m with a dead-flat BB trajectory to

target. This carbine has some serious legs

to it! If you’re going to use it in a CQB

environment, accuracy is NOT going to be

an issue once you have it set up right!

So, this is a REALLY fine carbine and

another great addition to the VFC product

range and one that is undoubtedly going

to delight the MilSim crowd… but is

it usable as a regular “skirmish tool”?

Again, I’d have to say both “no” and

(a qualified) “yes”. In terms of holding

its own against a field of Hi-cap-fullauto

AEG players I believe that you may

struggle but only down to the sheer

weight of fire you’ll be facing. If you’re

good enough to get in close to give

some double taps with a support gun

giving you some covering fire though,

then you’re going to be living on “Planet

OPR8R” - and there is no better feeling

than that in my opinion!

Bottom line, I guess, is would I buy a

VFC MK18 GBBR myself as I already own

the SR-16 GBBR? Yup, you better believe

I would!! The MK18 is “of its time and

place” and quite apart from that, it’s a

darn fine airsoft gun! Although my days

of hard-charging “Zero Dark Thirty” style

play may be on the decline, I still love an

AR with a “soul” and the MK18 has a

very big soul. Add to this that it’s also a

fine training tool, it’s reliable and accurate

and you have a package that’s sure to

delight you every time you pick it up - and

that’s a more-than-good enough reason to own one!

My thanks again go to my good friend Ray at VFC

(https://www.vegaforce.com) for being part of this

article and also to the guys at http://uk.redwolfairsoft.

com for supplying the MK18 for T&E. AA

“IN ADDITION TO ABSOLUTELY FIRST-RATE BUILD QUALITY AND SUPERB

COMPONENTS, THE MK18 ALSO OFFERS REALISTIC TAKE-DOWN; BY SPLITTING THE

RECEIVERS YOU CAN REMOVE THE BCG FOR CLEANING AND MAINTENANCE, AGAIN,

JUST LIKE THE REAL THING.”



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armoury

BOLT AIRSOFT B4 PDW

I

have to admit that being a big guy, 6’2 and with

long old arms, I have somewhat of a “love/hate”

relationship with the current crop of Personal

Defence Weapons, or PDW models that seem to have

become dominated by the minimalist sliding stock

design. I accept that, in terms of engineering, the

sliding stock design in its now myriad forms is a thing

of beauty but as I have what is known as a “positive

ape index” (which means my arm span from fingertip

to fingertip is greater than my height), really short,

small carbines and SMGs like the old MP5 PDW are

usually uncomfortable for me to wield.

I have said many times that I love an “SBR” and,

indeed, own a number of models of that style

with 10-inch barrels, however, all of them have a

“traditional” buffer tube and sliding stock. Most

usually, these days I use a 14.5-inch carbine or an even

longer-barrelled “.308” style rifle, as these feel most

comfortable with my “ape arms”!

PDW

AS RED CELL ARE SETTING UP TO LOOK AT A WHOLE BUNCH OF “PDW-STYLE” AEGS

NEXT MONTH, BILL HAS BEEN OUT ON THE RANGE PREPARING THINGS AND HAS

BEEN SOMEWHAT TAKEN WITH THE LATEST MODEL TO COME FROM BOLT AIRSOFT IN

TAIWAN! FEATURING THEIR BRSS RECOIL SYSTEM IN A TIDY AR PACKAGE, THE B4 PDW

B.R.S.S. AEG TICKS ALL THE BOXES…

However, I do appreciate that

for physically smaller players

than I, the PDW style can be a

godsend and that in a CQB

environment this style also

comes into its own in a

major way! I know a

number of players

who totally rock

their PDWs and of

course, with effective

airsoft ranges being

somewhat more balanced

than those in the real world,

having a big old rifle gives you no

added advantage, other than that of

personal comfort in terms of manipulation.

When it comes to “tight spaces” though, this is

where the PDW style of AEG really sings, as ultimately

14

JANUARY 2021

armoury

BOLT AIRSOFT B4 PDW

this is exactly what they were designed for in their

“real steel” form! The term “PDW” actually fully

describes the military role the weapon was conceived

for, that of a compact yet effective (in terms of both

performance and accuracy) platform that can be easily

and discreetly carried by rear echelon personnel, not

as combat troops expected to regularly engage the

enemy, but as support elements who may need to

defend themselves in an actively hostile environment.

In this situation it’s all about an effective platform that

is easy to use and deploy, but which

provides sufficient firepower to

suppress an enemy until the

cavalry can arrive! Although

originally

current crop of “skeleton stock” variants leaves me

personally a little cold for a couple of major reasons.

First up there’s the physical size thing that I mentioned

earlier; they’re just TOO darn short for an old ape

like me! As I’m also all about properly aimed shots, I

also find that most of the current PDW stocks don’t

allow me to get a proper cheek-weld when lining up

iron sights. Again, I’m not a huge fan of optics on

something that’s designed to be small, compact and

deployable from concealment…

But the biggy for me - and again it’s a personal

thing I guess - is that I like to be able to fit a battery

at the start of a gameday or Op and have it last the

duration of the event and the fact is, that many

sliding stock PDWs have an absolutely TINY battery

compartment! That’s not so much of a problem

if you’re running short, fast games at a CQB site

where you can simply change out batteries in

downtime between games but if you’re playing the

part of a “CP Detail” in a longer Op (where the

PDW SHOULD be ideal), a small, limited-life

battery is not what you want!

Over the years I’ve tried

to find different

designed for a military

role, due to their

compact nature, light

weight, ease of operation

and control and their

close-range effectiveness,

PDWs are also now

popular with special

forces, tactical police units

and, more recently, PMCs

and bodyguards.

In airsoft form, where our engagement distances

are necessarily “danger close”, an SBR or PDW seems

to me to be the perfect choice for an AEG for the very

same reasons that it’s used in earnest, however, the

solutions to this

problem but as with

optics, I don’t like a PEQ-box

on a PDW for obvious reasons; I want it

small, pared to the bone effective for a

specific role - and that’s why the BOLT B4

PDW is one of the models that sings to

me.

KINETIC KOOL

Okay, so I will admit to being a big fan of BOLT, as

their AEGs are designed with the Bolt Recoil Shock

System, or BRSS, at the very heart of things. This is

the core around which other things revolve! The BRSS

is “Stage One” of any BOLT AEG design and with my

old mate Tomy Lee’s knowledge, the development

team at BOLT Airsoft have created a powerful recoil

system which uses an outstanding design, utilising

kinetic energy produced by the piston’s movement,

transferred to a recoil weight in the stock tube which


armoury

BOLT AIRSOFT B4 PDW

subsequently generates a recoil

simulation …and that is awesome!

This gives you a great recoil

“feel” without having to resort to

a full-travel-bolt gas system, which

although are becoming more

reliable still don’t quite give you

the usability of an AEG. All BOLT

BRSS models feature a reinforced

piston which actuates a

recoil mechanism in the back

end, giving you a nice “felt

nudge” in the shoulder every

time things cycle. Trust me,

this is WAY different to an EBB

system (which I also dislike to

be honest due to the way most

interact directly with the piston),

as the BRSS gives you the feeling

of some real “felt recoil” whilst

keeping you in the game, as

BOLT AEGs can still use Hi-

Cap magazines like any

other AEG,

if that’s your thing!

So, a good

recoil system

endears the B4

PDW to me

from the

get-go

but

what

else

makes

this a

standout

model for me? Well,

the B4 is (as usual) made of

really great quality materials and

components with a high-grade

alloy receiver set, PDW-style

sliding stock, buffer tube, BUIS,

outer barrel and suppressor. It also

features some really nice polymer

furniture on the front end

that looks decidedly like

it came from a company

whose name begins with a stylised “M”, a lo-drag

polymer stock plate and a nifty minimalised pistol

grip; the magazine is also an attractive 140BB polymer

design, although 300 BB Hi-Caps are also available.

So far, so samey but it’s the polymer furniture

that not only looks great but also hides what, in my

opinion, makes the B4 work so well as an all-dayfieldable

AEG. Like many older AR AEG models BOLT

have stuck to the tried and tested formula of frontwiring

the B4 and using a split foregrip to create a

usable (and indeed sizeable) battery compartment,

which pleases me greatly! Not only that but, of

course, the battery being at the front balances out

the 2,600g weight of the AEG nicely and lets the

weight in the rear get to work… At a time when

everyone seems to want to rear-wire small AEGs, so

that they can be fitted with uber-slimline M-LOK or

KeyMod rails, this is one area where actually frontwiring

works! Like that “M-design” forestock you

can still add accessory rails to the B4 if you desire

but again to me this needs to be kept “clean”,

other than perhaps mounting a taclite for low-light

environments.

KICK IT BABY!

Another tick for me that shows Tomy’s understanding

of real firearm platforms, is the additional plate

that sits between the skeleton-stock “arms”; this

16

JANUARY 2021

armoury

BOLT AIRSOFT B4 PDW

can be perfectly positioned so that you can grab a

tight cheek-weld and really get down on your irons!

“Irons” are provided as part of the B4 “package”

and to be honest these are the only thing that I’d

change out on the AEG as new (although personally

I’d probably lose the faux-suppressor too… what is

that red ring about Tomy?), as I’d prefer some lowerto-the-bore,

more slimline lo-profile flip-up sights to

keep things from catching if you’re carrying the AEG

“concealed” under a jacket, but that’s an extremely

minor gripe in an otherwise flawless PDW.

Okay, well-made, neat and compact but what of

performance? Knowing that the internals are the

latest iteration of the tried and tested BRSS and that

I’ve had a fair amount of experience with BOLT AEGs, I

was confident that out-of-the-box performance would

be impressive and indeed it was! Using .20g RZR BBs

the B4 registered a properly consistent chrono reading

of 0.96J/323fps which is absolutely perfect for me. I

did try the BOLT with a number of different brand AR

magazines, lo, mid, and hi-cap (it looks awesome and

properly “CP” with shorty P-MAGS!) and it seemed

perfectly happy to eat the fodder they provided.

With the 140 BB mid provided topped off with .25

RZRs, it was time to set the hop and get some BBs

downrange! Like all ARs the B4 has the fire selector

above and to the left of the pistol grip and with semi

engaged the BOLT cranked off BBs with a sweet jolt

in the shoulder, sending them straight downrange to

target at 30m. Cranking up to full-auto didn’t faze it

at all and on an N-Power 11.1v 30C 1450 mAh Lipo

stick, the B4 spat out BBs pleasingly, accuracy was still

bang on and if anything, the thump in the shoulder

seemed to intensify!

As you’ve probably fathomed by now, once again I

really like what BOLT have created. BOLT Airsoft have

made, to me at least, one of the nicest, most usable

“PDWs” out there, not only benefitting from their

outstanding recoil system but also through value for

money along with quality of parts and construction.

If you love your PDW but want something that will

see you happily through the longest of Ops, then the

B4 PDW could well be the one you’re looking for; it

certainly is for me!

Sincere thanks got to the guys at NUPROL (www.

nuprol.com) who distribute the BOLT brand in the UK

as always for providing the test rifle. Red cell will be

hitting the PDWs next month, so check out then how

the BOLT B4 performs against the competition! AA

“BOLT AIRSOFT HAVE MADE, TO ME AT LEAST, ONE OF THE NICEST, MOST USABLE

“PDWS” OUT THERE, NOT ONLY BENEFITTING FROM THEIR OUTSTANDING RECOIL

SYSTEM BUT ALSO THROUGH VALUE FOR MONEY ALONG WITH QUALITY OF PARTS

AND CONSTRUCTION.”


armoury

UMAREX KWA HECKLER & KOCH HK45

BEWARE THE

MAN WITH

ONE GUN!!

HAVING FIRST SEEN THIS PISTOL IN SPAIN, IT WASN’T UNTIL AA LEGIONNAIRE, STEWBACCA, ARRIVED

IN TAIWAN THAT HE EVENTUALLY ADDED ONE TO HIS ARMOURY - BUT WAS IT EVERYTHING HE

HOPED IT WOULD BE?

I

was introduced to this beast of a handgun in

Barcelona a few years ago, while I was visiting

“Handsome” Dave from my old Uni team, who had

been living and working there since not long after we

graduated. We were at his local CQB site, “Banana

Airsoft” and their original shop, northeast of the city

centre, when we got our first glance and hands on

with the KWA HK45.

I was immediately impressed with the feel of it in

my hand and the loud report and heavy recoil, even

with a lighter weight aluminium top slide. Dave went

on to buy one and during later visits I had the chance

to handle it further and appreciate his purpose-built,

foam-lined carry case and multitude of magazines he

had for his. My mind was thus made up and with my

move east to Taiwan already decided upon, now I had

my first airsoft purchase in mind as well!

And so it was, that one of the first things I did

when I received my ARC (Alien Residency Card - my

working visa/ proof of ID for living in Taiwan long

term), was head to KUI Airsoft in Zhubei and purchase

one of these …the first gun on my “wish list”. I used

the HK45 GBB exclusively for the first four months or

so of gaming in Taiwan whilst I saved up money and

decided what to supplement it with.

I first went to Action Bunker Taipei back in early

September 2017 and used their rental package,

just to tide me over and get used to the place and

playing style - as well as operating in a largely foreign

language environment - before committing to buying

my own gear and getting stuck in good and proper.

By the next visit I had my KWA H&K HK45 GBB and

two magazines to add to the mix, along with all my

own plate carrier and personal protection etc..

For a bit of a clarification, KWA is the domestically

manufactured Taiwanese derivation of Japanese made

KSC equipment, so KWA/KSC are essentially identical

(from what I have gathered), besides which country

they are manufactured in. I do wonder, however,

if the product streams are separate, or distributed

differently, or otherwise have varied quality control.

Much as I love the HK45 for its heft, aesthetics,

recoil and loud report, mine has not been as flawless

as the experiences “Handsome” Dave outlined in his

own review. In particular, having done some research

into issues with them since I started having problems,

“FOR A BIT OF A CLARIFICATION, KWA IS THE DOMESTICALLY MANUFACTURED

TAIWANESE DERIVATION OF JAPANESE MADE KSC EQUIPMENT, SO KWA/KSC ARE

ESSENTIALLY IDENTICAL (FROM WHAT I HAVE GATHERED), BESIDES WHICH COUNTRY

THEY ARE MANUFACTURED IN.”

20

JANUARY 2021

armoury


US owners certainly seem to be having the same

problems, so whether they are getting Taiwanesemade

versions, or the whole product line just has

a fault (which seems to be a mixed bag of working

perfectly, or having “bad day” type guns), I’m not

entirely sure.

I have, at this point, had mine for three years and

the last year or so mine has not seen any action as

such - being stripped down and in pieces since last

Christmas awaiting parts and my own repairs. At

least by now I literally know the HK45 - and the USP

Compact which uses effectively the same internals in

a slightly different guise or smaller external package

- inside out! Since moving to Taipei I’ve been able to

order spare parts direct through KIC Airsoft, instead

of KUI Airsoft insisting on sending guns back to their

respective local factories for any smithing or remedial

work. I’m more than capable of dealing with problems

and repairs myself after messing around with GBBs for

nearly two decades!

AIRSOFT STOVEPIPE

The main initial issue I had appears to be the

ammunition feeding protrusion just beneath the gas

feed nozzle. Apparently, the magazine springs are a

little too powerful in terms of the force they exert on

the BBs and this, in turn, causes long-term wear on

the feeding protrusion, which has to push them from

the feed lips and run them up the loading ramp, prior

to the gas nozzle above it seating behind the round as

the slide moves fully into battery ready for firing.

This problem manifested itself within the first few

months of me playing; before Christmas 2017 I had

to send it back to KWA’s facility for refurbishment,

with the culprit being damage to this protrusion just

beneath the gas nozzle. The symptoms were basically

being constant jams and failures to properly feed or

return to battery; multiple rounds would be dislodged,

one might be chambered properly while another

would fling around inside the closing chamber space,

getting mashed against the bolt face or insides of

the top slide. Essentially the airsoft equivalent of a

“stovepipe” jam, although from an additionally misfed

round rather than an already spent case but, either

way, the upshot is the same - a round in the chamber

with another obstructing the action.

Basically, the loading protrusion tends to wear

down, deform, or eventually outright break off in the

“ESSENTIALLY THE AIRSOFT EQUIVALENT OF A “STOVEPIPE” JAM, ALTHOUGH FROM

AN ADDITIONALLY MISFED ROUND RATHER THAN AN ALREADY SPENT CASE BUT,

EITHER WAY, THE UPSHOT IS THE SAME - A ROUND IN THE CHAMBER WITH ANOTHER

OBSTRUCTING THE ACTION.”


armoury


first case, to the point where it isn’t pushing the BBs

out of the magazine early enough to get them in front

of the gas nozzle by the time it reaches its resting/

closed position. Most… Vexing…! It annoyed me

most because, at the time, the HK45 was my first and

only airsoft gun so it meant I couldn’t use my own

equipment and had to bother my teammates, who

very kindly lent me their spare guns for games whilst I

resolved the issue and built my collection up.

Essentially, this is the most expensive gun I have

bought in Taiwan and turned out to be the most

annoying and unreliable to begin with despite that.

I was very impressed with its performance at first

and, admittedly, being my only gun for the first

three or four months of intensive gameplay using

four magazines and only having the pistol for all my

games, did mean it likely took a lot of punishment

early on - but even since having it fixed twice it has

continued to cause me a lot of issues.

Another issue I have noticed over the longer-term,

is that the magazines seem to wear through valves

quite quickly. In the early months I had two of them

serviced and then the other two started to exhibit

leaking issues, or a general failure to hold gas long

enough during a game day to feed and fire all rounds

in each magazine. This may have become more

pronounced as I began to use it more as a sidearm,

or last resort, when using my MP7 or G36C GBBRs

as primary guns, meaning that the HK45 and its

magazines were holstered and sat dormant for a lot

of the time. Then, when I finally did want to use it,

the gas supply tended to be unreliable and highly

frustrating!

As a result of all these woes, it has basically been

relegated to a last resort for me, as I cannot depend

on it to function properly enough to be a primary

gun, or even a loan gun to newbie friends who

won’t know how to resolve malfunctions as easily

as my experience allows me to. It is aesthetically and

functionally an awesome and enjoyable pistol to use

but, at the same time, it’s become an absolute pain

in the rear for maintenance and reliability - a very

stark contrast to Handsome Dave’s experience of his

working flawlessly with 5 magazines over many years

…hence my pondering as to whether there is a quality

or supply stream variation between KWA/KSC units.

The only other issue I have had personally, besides

the reliability and maintenance, is that I was dropping

magazines inexplicably in firefights for a while. I even

started “cupping” the bottom of the magazine with

my supporting hand to prevent it dropping to the

floor. Most of mine have dents in the bottom corners

now and I’ve had to replace a couple of the bumpers

as a result - again, no doubt worsening the gas

retention and reservoir integrity issues.

At first I imagined this was due to a weak magazine

release spring allowing the recoil impulse to actuate

the release during firing. This may have been some

cause of the issue but after the second servicing

it came back with a fresh release spring installed.

However, in the end I managed to work out that the

problem is largely anthropometric; my fingers are so

long that when I pulled the trigger completely my

trigger finger actuated the opposite side magazine

release because the lever itself has a larger contoured

operating surface compared to the other H&K guns

using a similar release style! So now I have to ensure

my supporting hand thumb gets in the way of my

firing hand’s trigger finger-tip to prevent this or adjust

my trigger press to mitigate.

Despite this, the “magazine dropping issue” seems

to persist and, at present, I am still awaiting a fresh

release paddle to replace the clearly worn previous

one. The magazine faces themselves seem to wear

down as well, which likely contributes to their looser

fit and ease of dislodging of the retaining forks of the

paddle from under the protrusions on the fronts of

the magazines themselves.

ENOUGH NEGATIVITY…

With all of that negativity out of the way, I do have to

say that the Umarex KWA HK45 is an excellent GBB

pistol, despite the issues I have had with mine. Do

bear in mind the sheer abuse most of my equipment

undergoes due to the frequency with which I play and

the local environment and related heat pushing up the

pressures it experiences.

The HK45 is, nonetheless, a very enjoyable gun to

use when it functions optimally and once I managed

to source a machined sight mount and affix a Docter

22

JANUARY 2021

armoury


red dot sight to the top slide, I began making single

shot eliminations, or achieving seemingly difficult

shots across the arena and receiving incredulous

remarks or questions of exactly what I had done to

the gun to facilitate this. Using 0.28g BLS ammunition

and having a lot of practise with pistols, was my

answer, although a large portion of the credit should

surely reside with the consistency of the action and

hop unit of the HK45 itself.

Occasionally leaky or unreliable magazines aside

(and my own inadvertent dropping of them onto the

concrete due to my long fingers or the sheer recoil

impulse actuating the magazine release), there are no

doubt far worse purchases you could make - especially

if you are intending, as most players would, to use it

purely as a sidearm, rather than your primary weapon

as I had to for months of intensive gaming. If I were

to be faced with making the same purchase again,

I would likely get a KWA USP45 as the magazine

release is smaller, like that of my KWA USP Compact

which I have never experienced the same issues with

(and I owned one of those back in the UK as well).

Hopefully I can get mine repaired and bring it

back into my frontline gear circulation once the fresh

magazine release finally arrives. If nothing else, having

to totally dismantle and repair mine taught me a great

deal about the internal operating mechanism, which

I made a reassembly video of for my own YouTube

channel (as there seemed to be little in the way of

information for putting the complicated double action

- single action – de-cocking system back together).

In closing, I’d probably re-iterate that the majority

of my experiences of the HK45 were extremely

positive and the reliability issues are most likely an

artefact of the sheer use and abuse I put all my

equipment through, and thus more of an outlier

than most people’s likely or actual experience. I have

seen many fellow players in Taiwan sporting these on

their hips and not heard the same complaints from

them thus far, and the KWA HK45 is an exceptionally

well-made and comfortable to handle, loud, heavy

recoiling and accurate pistol, which adds to its fun

factor. I made use of mine with the Docter sight

fitted for my first foray into AIPSC in Taiwan and it

performed flawlessly that day, despite my misgivings

of using it skirmishes. AA

“I BEGAN MAKING SINGLE SHOT ELIMINATIONS, OR ACHIEVING SEEMINGLY DIFFICULT

SHOTS ACROSS THE ARENA AND RECEIVING INCREDULOUS REMARKS OR QUESTIONS

OF EXACTLY WHAT I HAD DONE TO THE GUN TO FACILITATE THIS.”


KIT & GEAR

LOFTED GARMENTS

INSULATED

GEAR FOR

THE WINTER

WIN

EVERY WINTER WE LIKE TO HAVE A LOOK AT WHAT’S NEW FROM OUR OLD FRIENDS AT SNUGPAK BY

INCLUDING AN ARTICLE ON WHY YOU SHOULD LOOK TO INVEST IN SOME SERIOUS “LOFTED”, OR INSULATED

PROTECTION. CONTINUING HIS LOOK AT “GOOD GEAR TO GO”, OUR IN-HOUSE TECHNICAL CLOTHING

“GURU”, BILL, TAKES A LOOK AT BOTH NEW GEAR AND THAT WHICH HAS BEEN THOROUGHLY TRIED AND

TESTED!

I’m here writing this article this year on the first

“official” day of winter - and what do you know?

The north wind has suddenly made its presence felt

and where I live we’ve had the first proper frost of the

new season, with the possibility of snow showers in

the offing! It is most definitely time to break out the

insulated jacket for downtime and range testing days

and I truly believe that this is a crucial piece of “safe

zone” gear that every airsofter should own - for two

main reasons which I’ll recap here again.

Firstly, after a hard morning’s play you’re going to

have built up a head of steam but when you’re on an

outdoor/woodland site with no heated safe zone (in

many cases you’ll be operating from the back of the

car right now), it’s very, very easy to chill down quickly

when you stop to bomb-up or for lunch. This leads all

too quickly discomfort and on a cold, wet or snowy

winters day I’ve seen many guys leave at lunchtime as

they’ve become too chilled to continue. Secondly, in

the UK it’s often not the cold, fluffy and pretty white

stuff falling from the sky that we need to contend

with but sleet and icy rain, so you’ll totally get why I

“…SYNTHETICS RETAIN A HIGH PERCENTAGE OF THEIR INSULATIVE PROPERTIES EVEN WHEN

WET, WHEREAS WHEN DOWN GETS WET IT WILL STAY WET AND WILL ACTUALLY TRY TO USE

YOUR OWN CORE BODY HEAT TO DRY ITSELF, RESULTING IN YOU BEING EVEN COLDER!”

24

JANUARY 2021

KIT & GEAR

LOFTED GARMENTS

find an insulated jacket that doesn’t suffer too much

in the wet to be and indispensable bit of kit!

I know that I keep on about a correct and effective

layering system in your gear, but in the winter months

you really need to push up the insulation levels of

your mid-layer so it’s seriously worth considering some

form of lightweight lofted garment. Once upon a

time, everyone would have been saying “get a down

jacket” and, in certain conditions, I’d thoroughly agree

with that. These days though, I pretty much always

go for a synthetic fill rather than down, as synthetics

retain a high percentage of their insulative properties

even when wet, whereas when down gets wet it will

stay wet and will actually try to use your own core

body heat to dry itself, resulting in you being even

colder! Another benefit of a synthetic fill is that you

can compress it (and leave it compressed for extended

periods of time) without causing any damage to its

structure (although you need to dry it out at home

if you pack it away wet!). Most jackets will come

with a compression or stuff sac which can be used to

minimise its size, making it easier to store and carry

with you.

Remember, hypothermia can, ultimately, be a killer

and even in its mildest form can lead to you having

not just a bad day, but a bad time full stop! If you

really don’t want to be “that guy” who causes a

problem for everyone due to lack of forethought and

preparation, then please read on.

I know, I really do, that you could easily look at this

and say that an insulated jacket is “just another piece

of kit to buy, another expensive item of clothing that

won’t get used that much” but in fact, once you own

such a garment I think you’ll be shocked by actually

how much you do use it!

WHAT TO LOOK FOR

All the “big names” out there will offer one, if not

more, insulated jackets in their clothing range and

depending on your left-over-after-the-latest-AEG-buymoney,

then shopping around will get you something

in your price range. Although camouflage insulated

jackets are available, think about where you’ll be

wearing it. If you buy a simple block colour rather

than a camo, then you’re also going to end up with

something you can wear every day, which makes it

even better value for money.

Most good outdoor pursuits stores will now have

in stock a wide selection of both down and synthetic

insulated jackets and some of them are offering some

great gear from the top mountaineering companies as

always. I’ve noticed that there are some seriously good

bargains to be had from the likes of Black Diamond,

RAB, Mountain Equipment, Patagonia, and The North

Face and all of them this year seem to be available in

black or some really cool grey and green tones. Do

be wary of buying “names” though, as there (sadly)

is still a degree of “paying for that” depending on

where you actually make your purchase.

Good models to look for are those that are referred

to as “belay jackets”, as those are purpose designed

to stuff down into your pack for use when you need

them most, i.e. when you stop being active and

become more static. Plus their designs are (more often

than not) more technically cut to fit lower over the

small of the back and abdomen, whereas many of

the more “fashion cut” jackets are waistline cut. I still

have a very old belay pullover filled with Primaloft,

from my time working with Lowe Alpine many years

ago, and it’s a classic!

Of course, there are now many “tactical” brands

that will sell you an insulated jacket and those are

usually jazzed up with a lot of arm-velcro and different

features from the “civvy versions”, but I’ll still go back

to my old faves, Snugpak, when it comes to insulated

gear for military and tactical use. They’ve built on

the success of their best known insulated jacket,

the Softie (a UK Forces “favourite” and if what one

of my friends tells me is right, the USMC too!), to

bring some great models to their clothing collection.

The latest generation of insulated jackets are British

made in the company’s factory in West Yorkshire and

are manufactured using its exclusive Softie Premier

synthetic insulation.

SJ FOR THE WIN!

The Snugpak SJ Range is their go-to model for

tactical all-weather jackets, designed to give you

the perfect outer shell whatever conditions you’re

facing throughout the year. All four jackets in the

range benefit from Snugpak’s hi-tech Paratex Micro

outer and Paratex Light inner, keeping any moisture

away from your skin, so you stay warm, comfortable

and dry, and the Softie Premier filling has excellent

“GOOD MODELS TO LOOK FOR ARE THOSE THAT ARE REFERRED TO AS “BELAY JACKETS”,

AS THOSE ARE PURPOSE DESIGNED TO STUFF DOWN INTO YOUR PACK FOR USE WHEN YOU

NEED THEM MOST, I.E. WHEN YOU STOP BEING ACTIVE AND BECOME MORE STATIC.”


KIT & GEAR

LOFTED GARMENTS

insulating properties,

trapping heat and

maximising comfort.

The warmest jacket

in the collection

is the SJ12

(UK£184.95).

This Snugpak

design is

tailored to fit

the contours

of your body,

with a waterresistant

main zip

and a high

neck design

that keeps

out the

draughts.

The Softie

Jacket 12 is

designed for the

winter months with a

permanent, adjustable, insulated hood for extra

warmth around the head, neck and face. You’ll be

comfortable right down to -15°C. It comes in Blue,

Red, Olive, Military Black and Multicam camouflage

colours and the jacket also features Velcro patches

on the arm for military use. The SJ12 also has the

extended body and longer back I mentioned earlier.

The other models in the SJ range offer

permutations on the same theme but I’ve noticed that

there are a

couple of new models in this

season’s

worthy

Snugpak range that are

of comment, namely the

ARROWHEAD and the

TAC3.

The Arrowhead

offers a Comfort

Rating of

0°C/32°F but a

Low Rating of

-5°C/23°F and

is based on

the classic and

international

best-selling

Sleeka Elite

jacket. The new

and improved

Arrowhead is

the result of

Snugpak’s continued design and development for

military personnel and professionals and combines a

water-repellent Paratex outer material and exclusive

Softie insulation to create a warm, breathable,

windproof and lightweight jacket. The technical fit

offers enhanced thermal performance, freedom of

movement and includes a Softie insulated detachable

zip-off hood for added protection and warmth.

Worn as a cold-weather mid-layer or outer layer,

the Arrowhead is an extremely versatile piece of

insulation.

The TAC3 is a slightly simpler affair, an

intermediate-weight insulated hooded jacket,

manufactured in the UK with Swiss-made Softie

Insulation, lined with

a luxurious brushed

“Thermal Suede”

lining for extra

comfort. The

TAC3 is easily

compressible

for stowing,

with quick

re-loft and

the wind

resistant robust

outer fabric is

treated with

Durable Water

Repellent to

keep showers

and spindrift

at bay. With

a Comfort Rating of 0°C/32°F and a Low Rating of

-5°C/23°F, at just 660g/23oz (size Medium) this is

an ideal jacket to tuck away in your pack “just in

case”. Both the TAC3 and Arrowhead are available in

sizes XS to XXL and in both plain block colours and

Multicam.

STATIC COLD

One of the things with sites, ranges and training

areas is that you do spend a fair amount of time in

a cold, static position; you might be attending the

safety briefing first thing in the morning or breaking

for lunch, but it’s a rarity to find a heated outdoor

airsoft site isn’t it? For ages I’ve always had an original

Snugpak “Softie” jacket in the back of the car for

just such times, for when you want a bit of instant

warmth but a couple of years back I upgraded to

the Military Mountain Leader Smock, or MML6.

Developed by Snugpak with input from professional

navigators, mountain leaders, climbing instructors,

26

JANUARY 2021

KIT & GEAR

LOFTED GARMENTS

meteorological staff, and military personnel, the

functional MML6 has been created to support the

user in a diverse range of operational environments,

especially when exposed to extreme cold weather

and this is, by far, my favourite bit of kit that Snugpak

have ever made!

As a part of Snugpak’s “VENTURE” range, the

MML6 Softie Smock is a “flagship” garment. It’s a

tri-layer construction and uses both Paratex Micro

as a face fabric, and an internal Softie Premier fill,

encapsulated with a Paratex Light lining. Designed to

provide excellent thermal protection against the cold,

the MML6 is rated -5C to -10C; it also provides a high

degree of wind protection. The MML6 Softie Smock is

lighter than normal expedition style jackets and uses

water resistant YKK zips, making it ideal when size

and weight need to be kept to an absolute minimum.

It is ideally worn with a variety of base layers, such as

the Snugpak 2nd Skinz Coolmax base layer, to move

moisture away from the skin, keeping you dry and

regulating core temperature in extremes of cold.

The quick

drying, Paratex Micro

100% nylon material has a Durable

Water

Repellent (DWR) finish.

Water repellency can

be maintained

with a cool

tumble dry

after washing

and periodic

re-treatment

with suitable

after care

products.

The MML6

Softie

Smock will

keep you

dry in a

short, light

shower,

giving

you time

to find

a safe place to

stop and put on more

effective waterproof layers, although I have combined

it beneath a waterproof shell if it’s REALLY cold and

wet! The MML6 Softie Smock can easily be worn

under waterproof membrane hard shells in severe

weather, still allowing easy access to your essential

equipment.

Whilst not exactly cheap at UK£189.95 the

MML6 Softie Smock should be viewed as a long

term investment, especially if you act as a RO or site

marshal as well as being a player; whilst players can

easily head back inside to warm up a marshal/RO

needs to be out on site at all times that gameplay is

in progress. The MML6 easily lets you do this so in

my mind is an invaluable addition to your “tactical

wardrobe”.

LEGGING IT

Some of you that have headed off to super-cold

areas have asked me in the past about what to wear

to keep your legs as toasty as your upper body and,

again, there’s a couple of words of advice for you

here!

Although it’s true that insulated trousers and

bibs exist for extreme cold-weather environments

(Snugpak make the Sleeka Salopettes for this exact

reason), I believe that you’d be hard-pressed to

find these conditions even on the most exposed of

airsoft sites and gamedays! I do in fact own a pair of

Snugpak Sleeka Salopettes with a full leg zip and have

used these in earnest during the winter in the alps.

However, for most game days I simply use a second,

“one-size-up-from-usual” pair of GEN II VIPER Elite

trousers, with either Snugpak 2nd Skinz Coolmax

or Powerstretch leggings underneath. Remember

here that although you do need to keep yourself

comfortable, it’s your body core and extremities that

will cause you problems from heat-loss most and

some solid activity will usually keep your legs and arms

warm enough without too much additional insulation!

Whatever your budget may be though, do make

sure that in your “gear locker” you have at least

one insulated jacket! There’s some great, well-priced

models out there these days, and at least one has your

name on it! It may not be a garment that is going

to see all-year- round use but you’ll thank me the

next time those around you have teeth a-chattering

and you’re all snuggled up in your lovely new jacket,

complaining about overheating! AA


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EVENT

MOA 2020 - TAIWAN

MILITARY OUTDOOR &

AIRSOFT SHOW 2020

AIRSOFT ACTION’S LEGIONNAIRE IN TAIWAN, STEWBACCA, HEADS TO THE ANNUAL MILITARY,

OUTDOOR AND AIRSOFT EXHIBITION, WHERE HE CHECKED OUT THE NEW RELEASES FROM VEGA

FORCE COMPANY, AMONG OTHERS.

With 2020 coming to a close and the end

of what has been a pretty awful year for

basically everyone in sight, the light at

the end of the tunnel was the Military, Outdoor

and Airsoft 2020 exhibition, held once again at the

Taipei World Trade Centre in Xinyi district, right in

the shadow of Taipei 101. With the ongoing COVID

crisis basically cancelling most of this - and apparently

already some of next year’s - events in terms of gun

shows in general - Shot Show in the US and IWA

in Germany - MOA2020 has pretty much ended up

being the only show in town. Having rushed myself

last year with work and other commitments the

year before, I decided to make a full weekend of it

and book time off work to ensure I could cover the

event thoroughly and spend more time talking to

manufacturers about their products.

Possibly as a result of the previous cancellations

of IWA, a lot of Taiwanese domestic manufacturers

have resorted to individual press releases or their own

social media to raise awareness of the products they

had intended to showcase at the biggest international

event of the year. Furthermore, having talked to some

of my contacts in the industry, it seems that many

of their facilities are already extremely busy churning

out product to keep up with demand - with the likes

of the real steel ammunition shortages in the US

market and the sudden spike in shooters resorting to

airsoft guns for maintaining dry fire practice at home

(in lieu of the usual range work they can no longer

accomplish), as well as hobbyists being stuck at home

all over the world and taking the opportunity to

spend whatever excess money they have on acquiring

new releases and components for fixing up their

equipment ready for the return to the fields.

All of this activity and demand is excellent news

for the businesses at least, although it meant that

MOA2020 was much smaller than it was originally

intended to be, with many of the best known local

manufacturers deciding not to attend and focus on

production and product development. With a greatly

reduced attendance of other international businesses

and media, it’s somewhat understandable that there

is less exposure available for their investment of time

and resources into attending the show but, as always,

Airsoft Action was there!

Thus, the show itself was only a third of the

floorspace that QRF magazine’s Eric Chu had originally

booked (and announced) following the previous show

last year - and just prior to the whole fallout of the

pandemic causing all the issues! Obviously, it was

somewhat of a disappointment for all but I’d just like

to echo many people’s sentiments in extending my

sincere thanks to Eric and the QRF team, as well as the

attendees and industry in general, for supporting the

show and bringing us something to look forward to

(and report upon) despite the more muted hype and

footprint.

WHAT WAS ON OFFER

Vega Force Company - VFC - obviously dominated

the show, not just in terms of their attendance and

footprint on the floor but also in terms of the scale of

the news they had to share with regard to their 2021

planned releases and what they are working on in the

longer term with regards to collaborative efforts.

BCM LICENSE

One of the biggest bombshells dropped, was VFC

finally acquiring the much coveted authorisation from

Bravo Company USA (BCM), a leading name in the

US real steel shooting community and manufacturing

circle, regularly featured collaborating with the likes

of Larry Vickers and other well-known shooters.

With BCM wholeheartedly endorsing VFC’s products

and efforts, they have enabled them to replicate

30

JANUARY 2021

EVENT

MOA 2020 - TAIWAN

their ever-growing range of Armalite platform guns,

beginning with the MCMR GBBR. With various length

front handguards and barrels to suit and with the

Avalon system based AEGs hot on their heels, there

is plenty to look forward to for those who want

legitimate airsoft clone versions of BCM’s flagship

models, whether you run your gear from a gas can or

a battery.

On top of the initial release models that Ray Chang,

VFC’s marketing manager, had to share with us, there

will also be a fast-growing plethora of licensed BCM

components, with all the trademarks and features

authentically replicated: Vertical stub grips, handstops,

flash hiders, butt stocks, sights, pistol grips, steel bolt

carrier groups - the list is extensive and will be evergrowing

in lock-step with whatever BCM’s real steel

lines comprise in the future.

Despite this huge news, there was yet more to

talk about - having walked the floor and gotten the

majority of my photography and product background

information done on the opening Friday the 27th

of November, I took the opportunity to join Ray on

the VFC booth’s livestream desk in the last hour of

the show for my own internet debut in conference

with Bill back in the UK as everyone was shaking

themselves out of bed back in the UK to share in all

the goodies being announced.

H&K PSG-1 GGBR

Following on from the upcoming BCM range was

something which caused a furore just ahead of the

show’s opening, with photos from the show setup

on the Thursday circulating on local Facebook media

and immediately blowing up across other enthusiasts

elsewhere… The surprise advent of the Heckler &

Koch PSG-1 precision marksman’s rifle - but in GBBR

format! It builds off VFC’s existing G3 line, in terms

of magazine compatibility and using the same system

but presented in the immediately recognisable outline

with the long heavy barrel and adjustable butt stock

and wood effect pistol grip, including adjustable

trigger pad and palm rest. Although it should be

noted that the scopes will not be included in initial

sales, so users will have to source their own or await

the third-party market meeting their needs.

Another heavy hitting GBBR is their improved and

strengthened KAC M110K1 DMR platform, which

addresses a lot of the issues voiced by players in

respect of the sheer recoil impulse and worries over

long term wear and tear.

LAR/FAL

However, the star of the show for many was handed

to me in the form of the LAR (Light Automatic Rifle),

or FAL in Belgian parlance; “The right arm of the free

world” as many know it. An utterly ingrained outline

in the minds of many, with its very long barrel and

slim smooth handguards as well as its dark polymer

drop stock and pistol grip, with everything else being

full steel - in the DX premium format at least, with an

economy model also being available to ensure that

such a sought after and long-awaited platform (since

its teasing announcement and presence at last year’s

MOA inside a sealed glass case) remains available

to as many enthusiasts as possible. The external

appearance and handling are as close to the real

ones I’ve held before as you’re going to get! I got the

chance to try one out on VFC’s range, which made

use of Gunpower Inc’s target system TV screen setup

that you can shoot with BBs. The recoil and sound of

the LAR are outstanding and I’m sure it’s going to be

an immediate hit with those who favour short shorts

or cold wars, myself, Ray and Bill no doubt being first

in line!

MK48 LMG

Also joining their AEG line-up are the surprisingly

lightweight Mk48 LMG, which sports not only an


EVENT

MOA 2020 - TAIWAN

industry beating 5,500 round capacity box magazine

but also has a 1,000 round internal ammunition

storage system before you even touch any external

supply, giving you an utterly dominating presence

on the field - but in a package that is so lightweight

you can literally single hand carry and operate it (or

no doubt dual wield them if you wanted to). Also on

show was their latest addition to the Avalon based

Armalite line up, the SPR, which replicates the KAC

DMR platform with a more traditional quad rail

handguard and cover panels.

PISTOLS

Ray and I closed with a look at their latest offering for

GBB pistol fans, the M1911 Ultra Carry, a compact

format .45 which surprisingly fits even my big bear

paws very nicely, in a similar fashion to my HK USP

Compact, but with the heft and aesthetics of the

iconic 1911 platform and finished excellently with

a chrome barrel and textured side grips. Again, this

stimulated a lot of interest with friends sending

me requests for more details while I was still at the

show. Everyone who knows me knows I’m more of

a polymer wonder nine lover but this nonetheless

screamed nice aesthetic, build quality and handling to

me.

NEW KIDS ON THE BLOCK

Up next I spent a lot of time on Archwick Airsoft’s

stand. They had actually had a presence at the

previous MOA 2019 show (having reviewed my

photos) but at the time I hadn’t heard much about

them and my personal gear and interest hasn’t

really focused on sniper rifles or anything other than

GBBs so much in the past years. Nonetheless, this

year their acclaim and the community’s interest in

them have increased massively, particularly due to

their collaboration with various Western licensing,

manufacturing and distribution partners such as ASG,

Cybergun and EMG, as well as authorisation from real

steel manufacturers such as Accuracy International

and Colt to manufacture legitimate replicas of their

weapons systems.

The centrepiece of the show (and what piqued

most overseas interest, especially in the UKSF

impression and loadout community), was their Colt

Canada L119A2 GBBR, the weapon of choice for the

world renowned UK Special Air Service (SAS), with all

the appropriate markings and trimmings. Formed with

a genuine monolithic upper and built off well proven

and regarded GHK internal components for the

action, it’s bound to have all the wannabe “Christian

Craighead” guys picking one up to go with the gear

loadout he recently released on Instagram, from his

infamous solo interdiction in the Nairobi terror event.

Archwick have also been working on expanding

their range of bolt action sniper rifles, not only with

their replica Accuracy International Mk13 Mod7

but now with the advent of their SXX300 integrally

suppressed urban marksmanship platform. Building on

their experience and a wealth of customer feedback

from their earlier releases, the AW SXX series provides

dual feed magazine systems, with a bridge system

that allows more realistic magazines to be inserted

in the same location as the real steel equivalent. This

then pushes rounds through the bridging tube to the

feeding location that the VSR style internal magazines

actually operate, thus it allows ease of use with more

standard VSR compatible internal magazines. It also

allows realism enthusiasts to operate the platform

with the ammunition feeding bridge and proprietary

magazines being available, while the whole platform

is also available in two barrel length configurations

and is easily stripped down for compact transport,

which will appeal to those who use public transport to

get to games.

Further to the long gun offerings, AW have their

UCK folding stock gas pistol chassis, looking to

capitalise on the trend towards enhanced capability

sidearms with the likes of the USW, MP17 and CAA

Roni kits. In this case they made a system which

especially accommodates the Glock 18C pistol,

which most systems cannot incorporate due to the

selector lever on the rear of the slide causing fitting

issues. AW’s solution is an extended side cut, which

would admittedly perhaps be a concern in terms of

strength for real steel use, but should nonetheless

be of interest to those who cannot find a suitable

platform to put their G18C GBB pistols in. With an

additional folding charging handle being attached and

a thumb drive stock release button both on the right

side of the body allowing for ease of operation, and

an integral optics mounting rail on the top of the rear

cowling, it presents a useful force multiplier solution,

32

JANUARY 2021

EVENT

MOA 2020 - TAIWAN

which can be easily holstered and rapidly deployed

for action. I look forward to visiting and talking with

Archwick more in the near future, to bring you a more

in depth look at what they are doing and where they

came from historically.

THE BEST OF THE REST

Star Rainbow Company - SRC Airsoft - also had a

large stand and were showcasing a variety of their

product range. They tend to focus on CO2-powered

alternatives to many of the competitors’ platforms,

the likes of Pistol Calibre Carbines or gas pistols. This

year they are apparently looking to fill the void in the

WW2 market with their CO2 powered MP40 SMG.

Moving on to the smaller, or more independent,

manufacturers around the show, my friends from

Penghu Armaments Factory, based on the PengHu

islands to the West of Taiwan, effectively managed

to scare the hell out of domestic airport security by

bringing their latest heavy weapons to the show…

Twin-mounted Browning M2HB heavy machine guns

running off HPA systems, as well as the original Mk19

double internal barrel grenade launcher from last

year’s show! They also have further grenade launchers

in development, with 6-cylinder rotary launcher

prototype parts on show, as well as a Mk19 shellfeeding

launcher mock-up of a “work in progress”

system that will allow belt-feeding and launching of

grenades with powder or other payloads in the near

future; an ideal setup for big MilSim games and site

organisers.

Our friends from Northeast Airsoft, who featured

in my “The Men Behind the STEN” back in Airsoft

Action’s September Issue No. 117, were also on site

and had a stall showcasing the growing range of their

STEN GBB SMGs, with their latest MkV offering that

I saw being finalised and got to handle during my

previous visit to their facility. They are still working on

their GBB Uzi replica but, unfortunately, did not have

their work in progress on display, with many showing

an interest in seeing it brought to market as soon as

they can.

In terms of the “community”, aside from the

obvious plethora of teammates, players and contacts

from the companies not exhibiting which I got chance

to catch up with and talk shop, I spent some time on

the Friday with Jonathan of Airsoftology, helping him

film his Archwick Airsoft video and talking with them

over their offerings along with him.

Max Chiang and the IDPA Taiwan team, who

featured in my article in the December No.120 issue,

were also on site, collaborating with VFC to present

an enclosed shooting stage for people to try their

hand at IDPA, with results being tabulated for a

competition over the whole weekend and working on

increasing interest and participation.

With the majority of the newer releases covered,

I spent some time wandering around the smaller

stalls of local manufacturers and catching up with

people and, as it happened, I bumped into one of

our team’s friends from Taichung who reminded

me of the massive meetup of Taiwan based Filipino

players happening at Hill Fox Airsoft in Southwest

Taichung on the Sunday. I decided to join some of

my teammates to cover that event and make another

article about their charity efforts to raise money for

victims of Typhoon Ulysses back in their Philippines

homelands, so I tied off at the close of the second

day of MOA and returned home to prepare my

equipment.

I’d once again like to extend my thanks to Eric

Chu and the QRF team for making the show happen

despite all the adversity of this year, as well as Ray

Chang and VFC for inviting me to help out with the

Airsoft Action livestream covering their latest releases.

I look forward to visiting their Pentagon Centre a few

MRT stops away from my place in West Taipei, to do a

more in-depth feature piece on their company history

and plans in the near future. AA


feature

DSI MCX BUILD

WE’RE VERY PROUD THAT AMONGST THE TEAM AT

AIRSOFT ACTION ALL OF OUR CONTRIBUTORS ARE

ACTIVELY ENGAGED IN THE WORLD OF AIRSOFT,

EITHER AS A PLAYER OR WITHIN THE INDUSTRY

PROPER! THIS MONTH JOHN “BOYCIE” TURRELL

BRINGS IN A REPORT OF AN EXTREMELY DETAILED

CUSTOM BUILD HE WAS INVOLVED IN TO CREATE A

VERY SPECIAL - AND VERY SPECIFIC - AEG!

DSI MCX

CUSTOM BUILD

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JANUARY 2021

feature

DSI MCX BUILD

Many years ago, I met “Nick” at the Tier 1

events we both attended and we’ve kept in

touch ever since.

One night we were chatting about the new

ProForce SIG SAUER® MCX and he said that he would

like to have one to match his Dutch Dienst Speciale

Interventies (Special Intervention Service), or DSI

loadout. Nick said “…as a DSI reenactor I wanted to

have a proper replica of the MCX that is used by the

DSI. As soon as I heard that SIG SAUER would make

an airsoft version of the Virtus MCX, I contacted

John. I asked him if he would help me make a 1 on

1 replica, because I knew John is the man who could

achieve what I wanted.”

After I was shown a few pictures I said: “That

would be a good project.” and he said… “Will you

build it for me please?”

“Nick” started airsoft back in 2004 with a team

called “Blackwater CRG”, based around the (then)

popular Private Military Contractors (PMC) style of

loadout. Later he was also a founding member of the

Dutch airsoft team “Nassau03”, which re-enacted

Dutch Special Forces in airsoft MilSims in the UK,

France, Belgium and Sweden. “Nick” said “Personally,

the TIER1 MilSims (lead by a group of retired and

serving Royal Marine Commandos) held in the UK

were the best ones we attended.” However, around

2017/18 the MilSim games were not giving “Nick”

the fun he wanted from airsoft, so he decided to reenact

loadouts of the DSI.


feature

DSI MCX BUILD

THE DSI

The DSI is an elite tactical group of the Netherlands

National Police Corps, with a strength of

approximately 450 personnel that act on terror related

and high impact crimes. They draw operators from

both the Netherlands Police and Military, combining

into the four units within DSI.

“Arrest Team” operators are primarily utilized

for the arrest of armed suspects and other highrisk

situations. Part of their role is to deploy in

unmarked vehicles and provide surveillance of

potential terrorist threats. The BSB (Brigade Speciale

Beveiligingsopdrachten) of the Dutch Military Police

also deploy on this type of tasking.

The “Intervention Dept” is a mixed group drawn

from the Marine Corps, Commandos with Arrest

Team officers from the National Police Corps and the

BSB. This department is tasked with the most diverse

situations and has to switch between the arrest team

type role, into “intervention” which can include

hostage rescue etc. Within the Intervention Dept,

when the commander of the unit changes and the

position is held by a Police Officer, a Marine takes over

command and vice versa.

“Expertise and Operational Support” provide

a multitude of operational support roles, from

negotiators and drone operators to snipers.

“M Squadron” is a part of the Netherlands Marine

Corps and while not formally a part of the DSI, it falls

under the control of the DSI on joint operations.

THE BUILD

In the planning of the build I needed to find out

a number of things, like the accessories which are

shown in the reference picture I was working from but

the one thing that stood out, was that the rifle and

foregrip were of a different colour to the “standard”

SIG Black. After some research I found that the rifles

were painted with “Elite Concrete” cerakote. This was

sourced by Mark at High Calibre Coatings, in Suffolk,

UK and it would be to him the parts would go to be

coated.

The first part to source was the rail, as this is slightly

longer (by 75mm or 3”) than the rail that came on the

ProForce rifle. The rail also needed to be “suppressor

compliant”, which means it is substantially different

in shape to accommodate a suppressor inside the rail.

This particular rail is only available from SIG SAUER®.

Next would be the suppressor. This was an easy part

to find as I made a small number of mock suppressors

that resemble the one seen on the DSI rifle, under the

JTac Custom Ltd banner. Initially the standard 170mm

unit was used while the longer 235mm unit is in the

process of being made.

The outer barrel on the ProForce is the 11.5”

version and for the DSI build we needed the “SF” spec

6.75” barrel version, which is made by Virtus Training

Systems Ltd. As a temporary measure the 6.75” barrel

was replaced with an 8.5” outer barrel to give the

suppressor the appropriate amount showing outside

of the foregrip.

The standard sliding stock would need to be

replaced with a “hinged knuckle” type adaptor, which

would allow the fitment of a standard “M4” type

stock tube and Magpul CTR stock. The “knuckle” was

a part which was only available from SIG SAUER®,

“Nick” supplied the stock. Something that Nick asked

if was possible, was if the rifle could be rear wired.

With the “knuckle” and RS buffer tube, this was

going to be a challenge but was achieved. The only

drawback is that it wouldn’t be possible to hinge the

stock quickly. It can be done carefully for carriage in

a bag or similar but in order to lock the stock into

the “normal” position, it’s necessary to do this slowly

while cautiously applying some tension on the battery

connector so that the wires don’t get caught in the

knuckle and cause a short.

Sight unit: The sight that was selected and supplied

by “Nick” for this build, was the SIG® Romeo 4T

in black. This is an awesome red dot unit which

automatically turns on when you move the rifle

and will switch off when the rifle has laid still for an

amount of time. It also has a light gathering capability,

which means the battery duration on this unit is

fantastic at around 100,000 hours! This will be backed

up by the Juliet 4 magnifier on a Wilcox flip mount.

Magazines selected for this would be the VFC

“USGI” style metal mags. This will mirror the same

look as the operators in DSI use.

STRIP DOWN

The time-consuming part of the build will be the

stripping of the rifle and then the wait for cerakote.

The turn round for this is expected to be 10-14 days

but could be quicker. Whilst the receiver and rail were

away, we turned our attention to the internals. “Nick”

didn’t ask for any changes but while it was apart,

we swapped the hop rubber out for a Maple Leaf 50

36

JANUARY 2021

feature

DSI MCX BUILD

degree, ideal because Nick prefers to run semi only, at

approximately 330fps.

To go with the replaced hop rubber, Nick decided

he’d like to fit a longer inner barrel and for this we

decided on the Poseidon inner barrel, to run close to

the end of the suppressor, stopping just short of the

muzzle of the suppressor by about 15mm. Also, whilst

the body parts were away being cerakoted, the wiring

of the gearbox was changed to rear wired. This also

would present a challenge of how to get the wiring

into the real steel buffer tube.

REBUILD

After the body parts and foregrip returned from

their trip to the cerakoter, we gathered all of the

parts together and began to test fit parts, like the

outer barrel. This was a bit tighter fit than the factory

one, so we decided to skim 0.5mm from the outer

diameter of the “chamber” to ensure a smooth fit.

One of the more unique parts that Nick wanted to

be fitted was the sling point, which would attach via

a pair of QD style studs. The studs wouldn’t fit initially

as the replica has a half-blocked hole for the QD

points. This was going to need to be cleared to allow

the studs to go deep enough into the hole in order to

be able to lock into place.

The next step was to laser mark the logos and text

that appear on the DSI’s MCX. This took some time to

work out the sizes of the text and the DSI badge. Now

that the logos etc. were on the receiver and foregrip

the full reassembly could get under way. This was the

end result of all the work put in.

Just as we were to start the build process the

Covid-19 lockdown was enforced in both The

Netherlands and also the UK. This would bring about

certain delays as we had to wait for people to be

able to work in order to carry out jobs that were

sub-contracted out. Whilst this was a disadvantage

in respect of the time it would take to complete the

build, it did give us the time to make sure each step

was completed to the best level possible.

Nick said “John kept me posted throughout the

whole process and, needless to say, I am very happy

with the result. It’s an almost 100% perfect replica of

the DSI MCX!”

Our thanks go to Gerard Van Oosbree, at Dutch

Defence Press (www.dutchdefencepress.com) and

Sander Blommensteijn, aka twotwosixphotorgraphy,

for images used in this report. AA


SURVIVAL

IFAK - INDIVIDUAL FIRST AID KITS

IFAK:

INDIVIDUAL

FIRST AID KITS

REAL LIFE MILITARY PERSONNEL CARRY INDIVIDUAL FIRST AID KITS AND, AS MORE

AIRSOFTERS ARE DOING THE SAME, SURVIVAL EXPERT, PAUL YELLAND, LOOKS AT WHAT

ITEMS SHOULD BE INCLUDED FOR AIRSOFT.

First aid kits are becoming quite a common item to

carry in Airsoft. Also known as IFAK’s (Individual

First Aid Kits) there seems to be a trend to model

these kits on those carried by the real-life military. But

what is acceptable to carry and where should the line

be drawn? I am going to look at what items are really

needed in an IFAK for Airsoft - and what should be left

at home!

I read with horror on one popular Airsoft forum,

about an individual who

carries a well-packed

IFAK including a chest

decompression needle!

The qualifications of the

person who was making

this claim to carry out a

chest decompression are

probably questionable

and it worries me that

there are potentially

untrained individuals who are running around with

items such as these needles under the illusion that they

are some kind of Combat Medic in a war zone.

The other item that tends be carried by players

are Arterial Tourniquets. CAT and SOF-T are two of

the more common makes and yes, in the event of

a catastrophic haemorrhage AND with the correct

training, tourniquets can be life-saving. But there

seems to be players who are turning up to skirmishes

with these items and willing to use them without any

training at all. Looking the part for Mil-sim is one thing

“DRESSING UP AND PRETENDING

TO BE SPECIAL FORCES IS ONE

THING BUT PLAYING AT BEING A

PARAMEDIC IS AN EXTREMELY

DANGEROUS GAME INDEED.”

but practicing skills beyond your scope of training is

dangerous.

Another issue that I have picked up on is training.

The level of first aid training required for Airsoft is

very different from that of a military medic or Close

Protection Officer/PMC who are actually working in a

hostile environment.

A basic first aid course such as the one day

Emergency First Aid at Work or the full First Aid at

Work qualification is

more than suitable

to prepare anybody

involved in airsoft

for the types of

injuries or medical

emergencies that

could be encountered

on the skirmish field.

Instead of focusing

on the basic levels of

first aid training, people seem to be drawn to the

“glory courses” and I have recently seen an advert

for some kind of “Special Forces” combat medic

course. Worryingly, there was a high level of interest

being shown by people in attending this course

which claimed that it would introduce people to the

skills of a combat medic. But going back to the issue

of decompressing a chest – really? Dressing up and

pretending to be Special Forces is one thing but playing

at being a Paramedic is an extremely dangerous game

indeed!

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JANUARY 2021

SURVIVAL

IFAK - INDIVIDUAL FIRST AID KITS

WHAT TO CARRY

So, what do Airsofters really need to be carrying in

their IFAK’s? Firstly, the kit contents should reflect the

level of medical training and qualifications held by the

individual. For most, this is going to be a standard first

aid kit and should contain basic items to deal with

various wounds of different severities including bleeds,

burns, bone and joint injuries, blisters, small splinters

and eye injuries. The kit should also include any

personal medications such as Asthma inhalers, cardiac

and diabetic drugs plus auto-injectors for those that

suffer from anaphylactic reactions.

A team medic might choose to carry a larger kit with

extra items to enable them to deal with more than one

injury during an event, but the idea of the IFAK is to

self-treat (or at least have the kit readily available for

someone else to use) and in the case of the military, to

address any life threatening injuries.

COMMON TYPES OF INJURY

It is impossible to predict what accidents are going to

happen, but the most common injuries can be prepared

for. Slips, trips and falls seem to be an obvious one

to start with, resulting in sprains, strains and broken

bones. Cuts and grazes of varying degrees in severity

are common and although most are minor, it is not

beyond the realms of possibility to sustain a serious

wound that does bleed profusely. Falls from heights (it

does not need to be from very high) could lead to some

kind of injury of the back / spinal column. Bangs to the

head can cause head wounds or more serious head

injuries and using pyrotechnics can cause burns.

FIRST AID PROVISION FOR SITES

Airsoft sites should have first aid provision in place

with a well-stocked first aid kit and suitably trained

staff – depending on the sites risk assessment. Some

might argue that players do not need to carry an IFAK

because of these arrangements, however on larger sites

it can take several minutes for a site first aider / marshal

to reach a casualty with the site first aid kit. If a player

has sustained a serious laceration, for example from a

piece of broken glass or sharp piece of metal and they

are bleeding heavily, by the time a site first aider with

a first aid kit can reach the scene, the casualty could

already have lost a large amount of blood. If IFAK’s are

being carried by players, they can treat themselves or

their team-mates by applying dressings to control any

bleeding while waiting for the site staff to arrive.

Of course, this is just one extreme example, but

others can include suspected fractures, breathing

problems or cardiac conditions. Just one point that I

would like to make – if there is a serious injury onsite

during a skirmish, the game will be stopped and if the

casualty cannot be moved due to the severity of the

injury, the ambulance crew will need the site marshals

to take them to the casualties location. The crew will

not appreciate being shot at by airsoft guns, so any

visions that players might have about treating their

team-mates serious injuries whilst still ‘under fire’ are

pure delusion and fantasy.

• Disposable gloves

• CPR face shield

• Large first aid dressings

or military type

• Sterile eye pads

• Adhesive dressings

(Assorted sizes)

• Gauze swabs

• Non-adhesive dressings

• Triangular bandage

• Support bandage

(also useful for holding

dressings in place)

• Tuff-cut scissors

• Tweezers

• Wound cleansing wipes

• Micropore tape

• Foil blanket

• Prescribed medications

REALITY CHECK

The purpose of this article is to act as a reality check

when looking at what is acceptable practice for first

aid provision within Airsoft. In my following articles I

am going to be covering various first aid topics, but

these articles are no substitute for real life professional

training.

Check out my website www.airsoftmedic.com for

more first aid advice and courses. AA


RED CELL

‘OTHER’ GBB PISTOLS RANGE DAY

‘OTHER’ GBB

PISTOLS

RANGE DAY

ALTHOUGH MANY OF THE RED CELL MEMBERS LIVE QUITE CLOSE TO ONE ANOTHER, THE RECENT

FULL LOCKDOWN IN THE UK MEANT THAT THEY WERE UNABLE TO MEET IN PERSON, SO BILL LOOKED

TO “ADAPT AND OVERCOME” IN ORDER TO CREATE THIS MONTH’S TEST REPORT AND BRING YOU

THE RESULTS OF THE TEST ON “OTHER” GBB PISTOLS!

I

won’t tell you that the whole C-Virus thing isn’t a

challenge for us, and not just in relation to Red Cell

testing! However, at Airsoft Action we’re all about

solutions and not problems so we’ve endeavoured

to keep everything “business as usual”, and by the

ever-increasing number of you reading not only the

“monthly”, but also our daily website posts, we can

see that this has been of benefit to you even if at

times we’ve scratched our heads a little in how best

to achieve things, even though we’ve had frankly

stupendous support from our friends and partners

involved in the manufacture and distribution of AEGs

and GBBs!

And this is really telling when it comes to any of us

getting together at the moment; with sites closing up

now until the new year, and indeed some indoor sites

that haven’t opened their doors since spring staying

shut, “getting our game on” has never proved so

challenging! Even though the Red Cell group is largely

made up of friends who shoot and play together, even

we have had to make a call on whether or not we

should gather, and as November was “full lockdown”

in the UK we were unable to do so as planned.

However, the group is nothing but resilient, so after

a quick back and forth in our “group chat” online

we decided (it’s a bit of a “Chinese parliament”!)

that although we couldn’t meet in person, we could

still create an article for this month even in isolation!

Luckily the AA Test Pool holds a number of review

samples back for further evaluation and longer-term

testing so I was able to drop off models to members

of the group that hadn’t tried them; Jase and James

got some 226 models, Bill W-R and Jimmy had G&Gs,

whilst Chris and I looked after models we already

owned from ASG and TM. Luckily the entire group

had already tried the new ProForce M17, but as Boycie

was doing a fuller review of this in “RELOADED” this

month we included it here for fairness, as everyone

had enjoyed shooting it at our last meet in October.

So, things are a little different this month, but I

believe the information you’ll find here is perhaps

even more personal and heartfelt than that to date.

Some of the models were completely new to the

testers, whilst others of us have shot the majority

over time. We haven’t picked the models to comment

on individually as we feel they are “the best”, but

because they are all great GBB pistols that are 100%

worth owning; where a model is owned by a member

of the group we have said so to maintain complete

transparency in the testing process.

As usual all the models were tested using NP 2.0

“Green Bottle” gas and RZR .20g BBs; these were

provided to all the testers to maintain parity in testing.

As I write this at the beginning of December,

sadly some of us are looking forward to a continued

lockdown due to the C-Virus as we’re about to enter

“T3”, which is largely the same as the last few weeks

in reality. I’ve already postponed our “PDW Shoot

Day” that was set for 6th December, but we are

hopeful that after the review mid-month we will be

able to get together again, not just to shoot and test,

but to enjoy each other’s company in person rather

than virtually.

Of course I’ll be dishing out Christmas presents to

the group in the form of our new red-plaid combat

shirt “away strip” courtesy of www.invadergear.com,

42

JANUARY 2021

RED CELL


along with some new team patches! Wherever you

are all of the Red Cell crew wish you a very happy

airsoft Christmas, and we’ll be back in 2021 to rock

things along with our take on PDW AEGs!

With all the stats in the bag, it’s time to hand over

now to the Red Cell crew themselves to give you an

idea of the pistol models they had to test!

RED CELL REPORTS

Jimmy: This month I have been given the G&G GTP9;

I didn’t know much about this model, and haven’t

had a real look at it before. I have to look at this

solely as an airsoft pistol and not a replica for the fact

that it isn’t a “replica”, so I have nothing to compare

it to from the real world of pistols! That said, from

my point of view it is very familiar and carries some

characteristics of some other brands. For instance,

if hypothetically speaking H&K, CZ and Glock had a

love triangle this would be the result! I feel it has an

identity crisis, but this is a complete design and 100%

from the amazing designers of G&G. The first time I

saw this pistol I may have given it a bit of a hard time

followed with some bad press, I won’t lie; I hated the

bones of it, the look of it, and the feel of it but here’s

where it gets interesting… Oh, excuse me, I’ve just

heard the oven ping and I must go and remove my

humble pie, so please do forgive me for talking with

my mouth full!

Before I took the GTP9 to the range I sat and had a

good long look at this thing both inside and out, and

one thing that you notice and can’t get away from is

the fact this pistol is dripping with brand marks. The

G&G logo is plastered all around it someone really

wanted people to know who made it. They have

branded it in places which quite frankly don’t need

to be branded! Places where it’s not going to be seen

unless stripped which tells me G&G are very proud of

this one! Before any shooting commenced I wanted

to chrono test it and the first 10 shots out of the box

were quite impressive on the power output; using RZR

0.20g BBs the power was better than a lot of other

pistols I’ve tested with a high fps of 302 and a low

fps of 294. I proceeded to the range and released

a whole magazine with 15 at a slow pace and the

remaining 8 rapid fire and it happily emptied all of

them with equal power. With a slight adjustment to

the hop up I had the BBs shooting nice and straight

and hitting centre mass on the target every time at

a distance of 10 metres. I managed to get through 3

magazines before having to regas, as on the 4th mag

the slide wasn’t travelling far enough back to reset for

a follow up shot. After putting 100 BBs down range

I went back to the chrono and found that the fps

had dropped slightly, highest fps 290 and the lowest

fps was 284 so if we look at the earlier readings to

the recent readings we are looking at an average of

around the 290 mark. Performance wise it performed

much better than I had imagined it would and I

actually expected it to fall flat on its face; hmm, I’ll

take another slice of that pie then please… at this rate

I don’t think there’s going to be any pie left to share!

So now that we have covered all of the good stuff

let’s take a look at the little niggles I have. The trigger

is very Glock-like, but it has a fair amount of take up

with a massive 12mm before anything happens, then

it has a reset of about 6mm. It’s not a heavy pull but

it’s not what I’m used to. The magazine itself isn’t a

problem and can accommodate 27 BBs at a push,

the problem is in the loading. It is quite stiff on the

feed lips and the mag follower has to be pulled fully

down and locked in place in order to make loading

somewhat easier, and should you forget to unlock

it (like I did several times) it will render it useless

especially when you need it most but to be honest

that’s more a user error than a mag problem. I’m sure

that after a fashion you will remember to unlock it

without giving it a thought.

I must admit I have been proven wrong, and

yes, I did have to eat the whole humble pie. Out of

everything regarding the GTP9 I could only really

find them 3 little niggles which are from a personal


RED CELL


Model: G&G GTP-9

Price: iro £110.00

Age: Seven Months

Weight: 755g

Length: 21.6cm

Magazine Capacity: 27 BBs

Cold Chrono: 0.95J/320fps

Hot Chrono: 0.75J/284fps

Holster Compatibility: Y

Taclite Compatibility: Good

Suppressor Compatibility:

12mm CCW

Supplied By: www.nuprol.com

Model: G&G Piranha MK1

Price: iro £150.00

Age: New

Weight: 670g

Length: 195mm




Holster Compatibility: Good



Adapter Required

Supplied By: www.nuprol.com

Model: ASG Shadow SP-01

Price: iro £110.00

Age: 3 Years

Weight: 1079g

Length: 225mm






Suppressor Compatibility: N/A

Supplied By: www.

actionsportgames.com

Model: ASG CZ75 Classic

Price: iro £125.00

Age: 4 Years

Weight: 980g

Length: 206mm





Taclite Compatibility: N/A


Supplied By: www.

actionsportgames.com

Model: Raven R226

Price: iro £100.00

Age: New

Weight: 845g

Length: 190mm






Suppressor Compatibility: Good

Supplied By: www.rvnairsoft.

com

Model: Raven R226 RDS

Price: iro £140.00

Age: New

Weight: 845g

Length: 190mm



Hot Chrono: 0.72 J/280fps



Suppressor Compatibility: Good

Supplied By: www.rvnairsoft.

com

44

JANUARY 2021

RED CELL


Model: WE MK25

Price: iro £130.00

Age: 5+ Years

Weight: 100g

Length: 195mm







Adapter Required

Supplied By: www.weairsoft.

com

Model: KJW P226

Price: iro £110.00

Age: 5+ Years

Weight: 1127g

Length: 188mm







Supplied By: Nige.

Model: Sig ProForce M17

Price: iro £160.00

Age: New

Weight: 769g

Length: 203mm







Supplied By: www.fire-support.

co.uk

Model: Tokyo Marui USP 9mm

Price: iro £150.00

Age: 3 Years

Weight: 720g

Length: 195mm







Supplied By: www.tsairsoft.com

perspective, so it’s a win for G&G at the end of the

day. Would I go out and buy one? I shall leave you

wondering about that…

Bill (No, the other one!): The GTP9 is very light and

quick trigger response, and it’s. Gas efficient with

multiple mags of BB’s per gas fill. It has an ergonomic

design for the grip and very cleaver hop adjuster tool

built into the base of the grip to adjust the hop down

the barrel externally. The magazine has a nice lock

down feature allowing the spring to be locked down

and fully retracted allowing easier BB loading. There’s

a solid feel to this pistol, with a clean cyclic action

of the slide, and a great balance. It comes in a great

presentation box with speed loader and metal badge

with model name and serial number embossed into

it. Ambidextrous-use-friendly, this pistol was a cold

weather performer with its ceramic whirl valve to

break up any icy deposits at the nozzle. Another little

slick trick is the ambidextrous magazine release built

into the bottom of the trigger well.

The Piranha though is an interesting split slide

design with only the rear third and thin sides sliding

back. Trigger response is a little slower but slightly

more positive feel compared to GTP-9. There’s a nice

little bullet key to adjust the hop but I feel this could

be easily lost on the field; in my opinion, the GTP-9

“in grip” solution is a better idea. The valve on the

magazine is a different design and felt a lot cleaner

and more positive when filling with minimal overspray.

With two full-power magazines of BBs on one fill

of gas, this pistol is very gas efficient, and the kick

from the split slide is very impressive, and is a novel

look for a slide on a GBB pistol. It will be interesting

to compare this against the mk2. It would be nice if


RED CELL


the grip had interchangeable backstraps to adjust for

bigger or smaller hands. As with the GTP9, being able

to adjust the hop on the fly is a very handy and time

saving idea. Just FYI I did have a small mishap with

the magazine release; this was easily rectified, but

it’s certainly an area to keep an eye on when you’re

maintaining this pistol!

Chris: Being a Child of the 90s, Rainbow 6 was a

huge influence on my interest in firearms. Seeing the

USP on the front cover cemented it in my mind as a

must have pistol. I have owned 1911s, Glocks and

SIGs but the USP was always my first love in terms of

pistols. When Tokyo Marui released their USP in late

2017, I had to have one!

While the debate on owning a Tokyo Marui

product, and the “elitist” stigma attached to them

(which is worth discussion in an article all of its own!)

will go on, ignoring the perceived elitism, I can say

that this pistol is solid and reliable. Although made

from ABS plastic, the USP is solid with no creaking

loose parts and no rattling. Everything fits together

perfectly and the quality control on TMs part is evident

in the quality of materials used. This quality build,

as you would expect, results in a solid dependable

pistol that is consistent and reliable. The slide is fully

trademarked (which is also a discussion for another

article in of itself with EU legislation) and although

made from ABS plastic, the fit and finish is perfect and

feels great.

The ABS lower receiver quality is made to very

similar quality to the real steel HK pistols polymer

lower. The grip has a spiked texture front and back

which is not painful on an ungloved hand and a

reasonable grip for your hands on each side. The

trigger is a double action, when slide is cocked the

trigger moves back into position 2 and has a 4mm

take up to the wall with a nice solid break, reset is

4mm with an audible click and you’re ready to fire

again. The safety is found on the upper left side of the

frame and right-handed shooters will have no issue

activating it by pushing up with your thumb, pushing

down will de-cock the pistol. The mag releace is also

positive, but can be a bit fiddly to get used to. With

practice using your trigger finger or thumb to press it

becomes nice and easy. How does it shoot?

Using NP 1.0 Blue gas it’s certainly no slouch, and

thanks to being made from ABS there is very little

cool down so the blowback consistent for the entire

magazine. You can use green gas but personally I tend

to use it in colder months only. Range and accuracy

are as you can expect with a Marui gun, perfectly

acceptable for a pistol. Accessories and upgrades,

Conclusion, Fun, fast, reliable, light but still stable

with nostalgic styling. If you fancy something different

or are a fan of the USP I would certainly suggest you

give this reasonably priced offering from Marui a go.

Jase: So lockdown kicked in again and out went

out Red Cell meeting which was really gutting as I

LOVE a P226! So when Bill phoned me and said that

he had Sig care package for me, well, it made my day!

The pistol’s design was started in 1980 and finished

in 1983, when it was put to tender in the American

‘Joint Service Small Arms Program’, and for a pistol

that has been around for as long as I have, I think its

aged very well indeed. So in my care package from

‘The Wolf’ there was a KJ Works, WE Mk25, and the

new Raven 226. Coupled with my own custom TM

226, I had four pistols to play with!

The KJW 226 was one of the first ever airsoft

pistols that I had the pleasure of playing with and

fell in love with it and its decocking lever. Now this

was Nige’s personal pistol and was a good few years

old and had a good few rounds through it. The first

thing you notice with this particular pistol is its glossy

finish which I have to say I am not a fan of, it’s just

too shiny. The FPS was 295 on a pretty chilly British

afternoon. As I started to send plastic death down

range I didn’t get more than 5 shots in and the mag

vented from the top and bottom which meant it was

due a good service. From this little lesson we learn

that, yes lads, we need to keep on top of our toys

maintenance and mags with enough gas in them

to keep the seals in good working order. With this

gun’s test over, I knew its history well enough that it

fired well and had good efficiency when it was in full

working order.

From the KJW I moved over to Bill’s WE 226 which

was a homage to Seal Team 6. It had the best paint

work of the four guns I tested, as it just looked silky

smooth with that slight element of ‘Reaper’ to it. It

46

JANUARY 2021

RED CELL


went through the chrono at 295fps and I managed

two mags out of one fill of Nuprols finest green

vintage. With this guns special S.T.6 grips they still felt

pretty “plastic” to the bare palm. Of all the 226’s on

test with me, this one had the tightest fitting slide by

miles, it literally had no wobble to it. When it came to

hitting the steel it made light work of the task, it was

a pretty solid out of the box. Perfection.

Then I moved onto my little beauty. This silver gem

is my very own TM based, Guarder framed Mike

Cripps special. When I ordered it from Mike he had

stopped making anything other than Hi Capa race

guns but agreed to build me this custom 226 some 7

or 8 years ago now. It took time to build as we had to

source a base alloy frame from Guarder as they were

like hens teeth. Once in my workshop I was tasked

with hand polishing it to a good shine before I sent

it back to Mike for final assembly where he fitted a

Laylax barrel and bucking and mag seals. So when I

Chrono’d the gun at 295fps I wasn’t surprised, solid

numbers for a chilly day and I managed two mags

out of one refill but the gun became sluggish at the

end of the 2nd mag. In the hand it’s amazing as its

covered in one of Hogues finest soft rubber grips that

where brought over from the States by my mate Mr

Li. These where not straightforward to fit and needed

my boy Ian ‘Smudger’ to help me shoe horn them into

place but they have stood the test of time all this time

on. As for range, this will hit a steel head at 35m (if

I’ve got my game on point).

So then I picked up the last and newest 226,the

tan Raven “R”. Like all of the replica’s I handled, this

was a very good tribute to the mighty 226. I was

really enjoying the colour and matt appearance. In the

hand this gun was a treat to handle, the grips where

softer than the other two but not quite as good as

the Hogues. However, as I put the tan beauty through

the chrono it was registering pretty low, not what I

was expecting, 245fps. Right I thought, I like this little

pistol, I can’t let this continue. Off to my lockdown

workshop or as I like to call it, the kitchen table! As I

stripped it down under the bright kitchen light, I could

see the glimmer of an overly greased 226; the sticky

stuff was everywhere - and I mean everywhere. As I

went to town cleaning it up I took a peek down the

barrel… caked in the stuff. So apart came the hop and

bucking and they got a good talking-to by the dish

soap and hot water and the barrel de-greased. Once

all back together she chrono’d at 275fps and was

hitting the steal at 30m, my work was done. I can’t

comment on how the grease had got everywhere but

I’d question production as all the Raven pistols we

have reviewed in all of our previous articles had been

spot on out of the box. Not a massive issue as I always

rebuild my own hops in guns I purchase new, but for

all of you out there who don’t do your own DIY, just

be mindful to check over new purchases for things

like this.

James: So thanks to National Lockdown this month

we had no meeting, but luckily Mr Bill was kind

enough to send me a new in the box Raven R226 with

BDS for my first impressions.

So straight to it, the model I received came in

“battleship grey” with black accents and certainly

looks good! It’s also well put together with no

wobbles to be found. It comes pretty heavily greased

from the factory, so a bit of decreasing was required

before taking it to the range on a cold November

morning. Cold chrono came in at 292fps and 282fps

at the end of many rounds down range. So what’s

it like to shoot? Well, the recoil action is big! But it

still happily empties a fully loaded mag every time

on green gas in cold weather, although there was a

fair amount of gas venting to the rear of the slide at

the start of each freshly gassed mag; considering the

cold temperature and the fact that it’s brand new and

needs a bit of bedding in, overall it’s very impressive. It

has a nice weight in hand and very comfortable pistol

grip, and comes with 20mm rail upfront, a RDS and

hi-vis ironsights; all in all, a very nice package!

Bill: I’ve been lucky that I’ve shot each and every

one of the pistol models featured here and indeed

own many of them myself! After James and Jase

reported back to me I did take up the “grease issue”

with the guys at RAVEN, and this is something they

have assured me they will be looking into now

we’ve brought it to their attention. In fairness to

them though it’s a perennial problem as shipping

“metalwork” in environmentally unregulated steel

containers is a REAL problem when it comes to

possible corrosion in transit… too little and you end

up with rusty guns being delivered, and that we most

certainly don’t want! It’s a problem I’ve seen with

other manufacturers over the years, and it’s a real

balancing act to get the balance right to be fair!

It’s why I’ve learned from my time with real firearms

that when you get a new model it is probably going

to need degreasing, and I do this with my RIFs as a

matter of course… note to self, check on greasing

levels with ALL new models in the future; as Jase

rightly said, I’m comfortable with this process, but

some of you may not be! Okay, what did I look at

myself month then? A couple of “old campaigners”

is the answer in the form of two ASG CZ-licenced

models, the SP-01 Shadow and my beloved classic

CZ75!


RED CELL


The SP-01; externally this is a large but pleasing

handgun. I wear a regular size Large glove, and

although slim, the grip of the CZ filled my hand well

with some positive checkering, great ergonomics and

of course the extended beavertail. The SP-01 is full

metal so it’s also a nice weight in the hand, 1110g

as opposed to the 1088g of the real thing, but of

course there is a little extra weight in the airsoft gas

magazine. It feels substantial and solid throughout.

The finish of the CZ replicas offered by ASG has

always been spot on, and the SP-01 is no exception

to this, and if anything it’s actually even nicer than its

predecessors finished as it is in a deep, matte black

which accurately mimics the polycoat finish of the

real thing. Like the original CZ75 the breech block

and barrel of the SP-01 are finished in silver, as is the

trigger. The sights as standard are excellent too with

a simple notch to the rear and a very, very tidy red

fibre optic at the business end! In use the ASG SP-

01 is equally flawless. The action is very crisp indeed,

the slide easily moved to the rear thanks to some

deep serrations on either side of it. When cocked the

safety clicks into place firmly and solidly. The pistol

comes with a gas magazine with extended floorplate

as standard which is swift and easy to load, and this

snaps into place with a reassuring “clack”. Overall

this is a really satisfying airsoft pistol and is worthy of

a place in anyone’s armoury. It looks and feels great,

shoots consistently and extremely accurately, and

cycles perfectly on both green gas and CO2.

The CZ75 from ASG shows that their system of

licencing works perfectly as you’d be hard pressed

to distinguish the replica from the real thing! All the

dimensions are pretty spot on with the replica coming

in at 206.3mm long as opposed to the 206mm of

the current 75B; in terms of weight the real thing

tips the scales at 1000g and the replica when loaded

with its full complement of 24, .20g BBs is pretty

darn close at 984.8g. The ergonomics of the replica

also mimic those of the real thing and this is a pistol

that really does sit very comfortably in the hand. The

angle of the pistol grip (which is slightly longer than

the Hi-Power and 1911) is nigh on perfect, and the

chequered plastic grips feature the embossed CZ

logo. The controls are all quite similar to those of the

Hi-Power and the 1911 as well so if you own one

of those models the 75 will feel pretty instinctive;

the magazine release sits to the rear of the elegantly

curved trigger guard on the left-hand side, with the

safety catch to the rear above. The safety is set only

when the pistol has been cocked which means that

you can safely carry it in “Condition 1”. The overall

finish of the replica is absolutely excellent with the

body and slide being full metal in a rich matt black.

The trigger, outer barrel and “breech” are all finished

with a silver “stainless” effect which makes the

whole thing look very attractive. The trademarks,

CZ logo and “MODEL 75 CAL.9 PARA” are all very

cleanly achieved on the left of the slide and the only

real giveaway that this is a replica is a tiny ASG logo.

Loaded up with .20g RZR BBs and NP 2.0 gas the

CZ75 sends BBs downrange with astonishing accuracy

giving excellent groupings at 10 metres; the sights are

a simple front blade/rear notch affair although you

can upgrade these to “dot” sights should you wish.

The pistol does have an adjustable hop-up which

is accessed by removing the slide, and this is very

well explained in the full colour instruction manual

supplied with the pistol. Overall this is still one of my

favourite airsoft handguns, and fully lives up, even in

6mm BB form, to the claim of being one of “the best

combat handguns ever”!

As always, our thanks go to Red Cell partners

NUPROL (www.nuprol.com), VIPER (www.viperkit.

co.uk), Attack Sense Smart Targets (www.attacksense.

com) and Invader Gear (www.invadergear.com).

48

JANUARY 2021

COVERT

BOOT

BLACK / BROWN / TITANIUM

/ SRP: £49.95

KIT & GEAR

PTS UNITY

PTS UNITY

TACTICAL FAST

In association with

MICRO MOUNT

WHEN IT COMES DOWN TO LICENSED AIRSOFT PRODUCTS FROM THE FIREARMS AND PARTS INDUSTRY,

PTS SYNDICATE IS ALWAYS A COMPANY WORTH LOOKING OUT FOR! IN THE FIRST OF WHAT WE HOPE WILL

PROVE TO BE MANY COLLABORATIONS “ON PAGE”, CHRIS FROM THE AIRSOFT & MILSIM NEW BLOG BRINGS

US NEWS OF THE VERY LATEST ADDITIONS TO THE EXPANSIVE PTS SYNDICATE RANGE.

The latest new additions to the UNITY Tactical

licensed product family are the FAST Micro

Mount and Micro Riser that some of you have

been waiting for to come out. In this review, we´ll

focus on the Micro Mount first.

THE IDEA

Unity Tactical FAST is a series of optic mounts that

provide end users with a quicker sight picture than

standard height mounts. A 2.26” optical centerline

height provides faster/easier reticle acquisition while

wearing electronic earpro/communications headsets,

night vision goggles and gas masks and allows for

more rapid visual processing of the battlefield by

promoting a heads-up posture.

A heads-up posture also helps users maintain a

neutral spine position which is more comfortable

while wearing helmets, plate carriers, and other heavy

gear.

MICRO MOUNT

The PTS FAST Micro Mount is built from 6000 series

Aluminum Alloy (black anodized). The Micro Mount

is compatible with the Aimpoint® Micro (H1, H2,

T1, T2, CompM5) series and other optics with the

Aimpoint® Micro footprint such as those found on

many Sig Sauer®, Holosun®, Primary Arms®, and

Vortex Optics® platforms.

As you would expect from a licensed product,

the UNITY Tactical trademark can be found on the

right side of the mount. One small detail is missing

regarding to the “real deal”. Right under the UNITY

name – the PAT PEND| CAGE 81C38 number. Except

for this, every other marking is where it should be to

give this replica an authentic look.

Of course, there´s a reminder at the bottom that

this product is made for “Airsoft Use Only” for those

thinking to grab a cheap deal on the real deal.

The Micro Mount features built-in standard height

back up iron sights (BUIS) that keep your airsoft gun

uncluttered without reducing capability. Those of you

that run smaller gun platforms, such as PDW/SMGs,

know that rail space can become a critical thing when

mounting lasers, light/switches and sling attachment

points to it.

If your gun offers enough rail space, you´re good

to go with your preferred BUIS or you make a fusion

of both. How does this work? The front sight post

can be removed so that the rear BUIS aperture from

the Micro Mount can be used with a traditional front

sight, creating a more conventional sight radius.

As seen here on my setup, I run it with standard

old school CQB BUIS. I actually use the back sight too.

Looks cool to me - I like it but it also works well.

The Micro Mount comes with a standard rail-

50

JANUARY 2021

KIT & GEAR

PTS UNITY

grabber clamp mount for fixation but is already

designed to readily accept a drop-in American Defense

Manufacturing QD Auto-Lock Lever. This mounting

option is sold separately but not from PTS.

It´s available from the UNITY Tactical website or

straight at American Defense MFG if you want to

upgrade it for about $35.

PERFORMANCE

The Micro Mount works pretty well for me as I can tell

it for now. Got to use it for about three weeks with

my Holosun HS403B mounted on top of it. Installation

was very easy using a hex key. It sits tight and strong

on top, no wobble at all. Good workmanship right

here. Actually, that´s what I expected from it. A bit

more time in the field will tell how it really performs

then. Let´s hope that the Corona Lockdown will end

soon to get this field time rolling…

As mentioned at the beginning, this mount

provides a quicker sight picture than standard height

mounts on the market. Due to this, you have a more

“natural aiming” position while shooting and moving

towards your target. During the training sessions I

did with it so far, I really can feel a benefit out of this.

Also, the more neutral spine position which is a result

of it is comfortable.

If you run NODS and want to use your optic to aim

(instead of IR Lasers) or maybe both, this never felt

more comfortable than with the FAST Micro Mount.

As you can see in the pictures, the natural aiming

position stays the same and so the line of view is in

accord. Picking up targets during goon time becomes

a much quicker thing that way. Very much appreciated

from my point of view.

What´s more to say about it? For $60 bucks, which

is less than the half of the price from the real deal,

you get a very well made licensed replica for airsoft

use. If you feel yourself in the need to improve your

shooting/aiming device, the PTS UNITY Tactical Micro

Mount is your go to option I would recommend.

Stay tuned on our site as we take a look at the

second release from UNITY/PTS, the “Micro Riser” very

soon too.

Our sincere thank go to Chris for providing this

review for Airsoft Action and you can keep up to date

with all the great news and other reviews available

from Chris and his team by keeping an eye on www.

airsoft-milsim-news.com. AA


FEATURE

ACTION AIR - TAIWAN

THE

AFTER A SHORT BREAK OUR

LEGIONNAIRE IN TAIWAN,

“STEWBACCA”, ONCE AGAIN

PITS HIS TALENTS AGAINST

OTHER LOCAL SHOOTERS - AND

THIS TIME HE DIDN’T HAVE TO

TRAVEL FAR!

OF ACTION AIR

Having first started training in Action Air back

in early February 2020 with Setup Project

Practical Team in Western Taipei, followed by

qualifying for my competition licence towards the

tail end of March and finally competing for my first

time at the Taichung Shootfest in April, the next few

months went by in a similar blur for me. Not only

was I juggling other airsoft-related activities such

as speedsoft competition and related concerns and

general skirmishing as well, I was also managed to

squeeze in moving home yet again! This time though,

much closer to SPPT’s training place and my preferred

airsoft shop in Taipei at least!

October the 25th soon crept up on us all - I’d

managed at least keep up regular weekly training

sessions with the team and marked my 45th practise

just before the recent competition. Chris Leung and

James Zhou, who operate the shooting centre SPPT

that call “home”, decided to host a Level 1 event,

which was especially important given the dearth of

them throughout the earlier months of the year due

to everyone’s concerns over COVID transmission.

ON HOME TURF

Thus, my most recent foray into competitive shooting

with airsoft guns came to pass on home turf -

only two MRT stops from the new home with Ms.

Stewbacca. This meant we didn’t all have to get up

at silly o’clock in the morning to get there, which was

an immediate advantage in terms of being well-rested

and having a relaxed arrival. Given the limited indoor

- and upstairs - space we train in, the organisers

decided to split the competitors into two groups,

cycling the majority of Taipei Focus Action Shooters

(TFAS), who have the larger team, as well as some

of the Spring Rain (SR) and SPPT players who were

running Open Division equipment first, then the rest

of us in Production and Standard Divisions afterwards

(while the first group grabbed lunch).

Following my earlier experiences and the use of my

WE M17 for my first competition, I had since decided

to go down the route of using the CZ Shadow series

of GBB pistols from KJ Works. Despite my teammate’s

continued attempts to turn me to the HiCapa M1911

style dark side, I managed to stay true to my European

roots!

Having tried out the CZ SP01 Shadow left with me

by the Umbrella Corp guys of Hong Kong on their last

visit to Taiwan, I had gotten used to the odd manual

of arms required to use it in Production Division

(load a round, remove magazine, lower hammer in a

“THE MAJORITY OF THE TARGETS WERE TO THE LEFT END BEHIND VARIOUS

OBSCURING COVER PANELS, FORCING YOU TO MOVE THE LENGTH OF THE STAGE

TO GET EYES - AND MUZZLE - ON THEM ALL CLEARLY, WHILE ONE OF THE PAPER

TARGETS WAS ACTUALLY ON A SLIDING RAIL, RELEASED BY THE DOWNING OF ONE OF

THE POPPERS.”

52

JANUARY 2021

FEATURE

ACTION AIR - TAIWAN

controlled manner then reinsert the magazine and fire

the first shot double action) - although I had managed

to put a lot of wear on the original Shadow 1. So, for

a birthday present to myself, I splashed out for the CZ

Shadow 2 purely for competition purposes and gotten

used to the handling and shooting.

competitors present and my resultant scoring of 84/85

pts - with 9 of us competing in Production Division

overall.

Stage 2 was my last of the morning session - hence

shot third in order - and was an interesting setup none

of us could really have prepared for…

COMPETITION DAY

When the competition day rolled around, the prelunch

sessions consisted of three short stages setup

alongside each other down the length of the room,

with access to the starting points flanked by official’s

desks in each case (for dealing with the appropriate

paperwork for each stage and competitor).

Stage 1 was the largest of the three and involved

running sideways between fault lines, with a course of

fire comprising 6 mini IPSC paper targets (2 of which

had “no-shoots” obscuring them), 5 mini poppers and

the ending plate. This was to be started in “Condition

2” and had a minimum round count of 18, with 85

points available.

The majority of the targets were to the left end

behind various obscuring cover panels, forcing you to

move the length of the stage to get eyes - and muzzle

- on them all clearly, while one of the paper targets

was actually on a sliding rail, released by the downing

of one of the poppers. A further cluster of targets

was obscured at the right end, behind a blind that

needed to be pulled and held open with a toggle on a

rope, forcing you to single-hand shoot the three paper

targets in this area - one of which was the sliding one

where it came to rest and the other two were the

ones with no-shoots obscuring them. This is where I

spent the most time ensuring I got the accuracy in and

avoided penalties. I shot this stage second in order

and managed a reasonable level of accuracy, with 15

“Alphas” and 3 “Charlies” in just over 18 seconds,

which I was much happier with given the level of

The stage was basically stationary/shooting

from a narrow fault box, with a sliding door set up

on rails, with only two narrow vertical firing slots

available for use. We had to start with the door in

the central position on its rails, in Condition One,

with a minimum round count of 13, for 65 points

and comprising a course of fire of 4 mini IPSC paper

targets, 4 mini poppers and the ending. The only

other considerations being 2 no-shoot papers right in

front of the centre of the door (to obscure the firing

slots in the central position) and a final stipulation

being your gun was not allowed to hit the outside

of the aiming holes in the door, which many of us

seemed to slow our pace to ensure compliance with.

This was easily my slowest stage of the morning

and overall when you consider the lower round

count. Despite planning the stage, I still found myself

searching for targets too much through the narrow

shooting slots. I seemed to be one of the few people

using the higher one (being the tall gangly type that I

am), with most of the others squatting low or doing

some stretchy gymnastics to shoot through the lower

port. My diligence paid off at least, with an entirely

cleanly shot 13 “Alphas” for a full score of 65 points,

albeit I had to do a few make up shots to get hits

on paper as I kept plinking rounds off the obscuring


FEATURE

ACTION AIR - TAIWAN

cover on one of the left targets which cost me a

few seconds and taking my time all the way up to

22.39s. As a result I also managed to relive my first

competition by finishing the stage on my final round

- with the slide locking back to applause at my further

jammy-ness!

Stage 3 was the one I shot first in order for the

morning trio and comprised a narrow stage beginning

in Condition 3, with two vertical regions in the front

panel covers to shoot through, obscured extensively

by a patchwork of paper targets which were used to

force you to shoot from odd positions, or through a

“ladder” of gaps at each of the two firing points.

When I’d finished the course of fire - consisting of

4 mini paper targets, 3 mini poppers and the ending

plate - I’d managed all Alphas, aside from one target

that I’d put 2 shots through the Charlie zone and a

make-up shot in the Alpha, with one target having a

very close couple of Alphas I was quite happy with.

Overall, this gained me 58 of the available 60 points.

PREPARATION & PLANNING

With the first phase dealt with, our second group

broke for lunch and the organisers began the reconfiguration

of the arena for the fourth and final,

medium length stage after lunch, which took up

the entire competition space. We had an extended

lunch for a few hours while the rearrangement was

underway and the first group of shooters cycled

through the final stage prior to our return - plenty

of time to rest and replay things in our heads and

compare notes between our group, as well as prepare

ourselves for the final stage.

The “Boss Fight” final stage was fairly involved,

with three individual “fingers”, or tracks, projecting

forwards off the access path between fault lines

crossing the whole rear from left to right. Each

of these fingers had a fairly small window in the

barricades to shoot through, providing a limited view

of each zone of the whole stage and the shooter had

to begin part way along the middle finger. This section

had a “jail cell” style barricade of vertical bars which

could be shot through to hit some of the poppers on

the right if desired, as well as a flap over the main

shooting window, which had to be held open in order

to shoot single-handed to get the central region of

paper and poppers. With the ending plate only being

visible from the central and left side bays, the shooter

had to plan in which order to address the right hand

bay, as it couldn’t be tackled last, not realistically.

Being a medium length course and taking up the

same space as the previous three combined, it was

obviously going to be more involved and include

some longer shots to test accuracy - with a total of

10 mini IPSC paper targets, 3 of which had no shoot

obstructions and 9 steel poppers shared out across the

three bays. Naturally it took quite some time to arrive

at an efficient route through the targets and shooting

bays, so the queue for stage planning was long and

we all got around 3 runs in prior to shooting it live.

Suffice to say, the majority of competitors followed

a similar path to myself, shooting and moving ahead

down the middle bay from the start buzzer before

doubling back and taking on the isolated right hand

side bay before running clear to the opposite side and

finishing up on the left bay and taking the ending

plate out from there. I was more than happy with my

performance in this round, given the mess I made of

the complicated last stage in Taichung back in April

and forgetting my plan. I really felt like I nailed this

one a lot better and seemed to be higher up the pack

as a result of my performance on it, given how close

a race the other stages had been - or how slow I had

been on them while striving for accuracy (as usual).

When I finally showed clear, holstered and stepped

back I felt pretty spent given the intensity of the

planning, stage, running, reloading and attempts

to shoot it as clean as I could, all of which with the

eyes of everyone else on you and my GoPro atop my

head too. I felt much better all told though and with

“THE “BOSS FIGHT” FINAL STAGE WAS FAIRLY INVOLVED, WITH THREE INDIVIDUAL

“FINGERS”, OR TRACKS, PROJECTING FORWARDS OFF THE ACCESS PATH BETWEEN

FAULT LINES CROSSING THE WHOLE REAR FROM LEFT TO RIGHT. ”

54

JANUARY 2021

FEATURE

ACTION AIR - TAIWAN

my newer gun and gear set up, as well as being a lot

more practised with it and stage planning this time

round, I had a much better overall outcome, which

was evidently reflected in the results too.

Despite the no-shoots being used over mostly

the more distant targets, I still managed to come

away with a reasonable time of 28:54 and only got

6 Charlies (mostly on the longer, obscured targets

behind no-shoots that I was being overly cautious

of keeping clean - no innocent bystanders please!),

with 24 Alphas and no other news to speak of. My

reloading and aiming had felt more fluid and some

of my double taps had been pretty snappy, albeit

sacrificing a little accuracy in some cases. But, I felt

far improved and arguably less nervous, or at least

flustered, as I had been at my first competition due to

the final stage failures. The writing’s on the wall… or

at least the scores!

Following the breakdown of the final stage and

a bit of stop, everyone gathered to find out their

individual overall stage times and scores, which had

been tabulated and printed out and stuck on the wall,

while the Divisional winners and runners up were

being finalized, ready for announcement.

In the end I’d accrued 345 of the possible 360

points and taken a total of 85.14 seconds across all

four stages, with 63 Alphas, and just 10 Charlies, so

I was very happy with my individual shooting. I felt I

could maybe have pushed myself to be a little faster

but as I - and the IPSC motto - always say, “Diligentia”

comes before “Celeras”. At least this has given me a

solid baseline of skills to build on - and get faster at

employing in future shoots!

THE WINNERS

With the final scores tabulated, the winners and

runners up for each of the three divisions were

announced and trophies presented. Open division was

taken by Jia Yu Liu, with Jia Hua Zheng taking second

place and Bo Xian Hou in third, out of a total of 15

competitors. Standard division was won out by Yu Qi

Tsai, second place being taken by Ding Xuan Ah and

Jiao Pin Du in third, out of a total of 14 competitors.

Finally, Production division was a very close call

between first and second place, with “Patty” Pei Shan

Huang just gaining an edge over second place Yu Xi

Liu and Yao Zhong Li taking third place. My fifth place

score was around 16% behind Patty’s and 5% behind

third place, out of the total of eight competitors who

seemed quite well matched in speed and abilities from

what I saw of our rounds.

SUMMING UP

From my first competition in April and placing 5th out

of 6 shooters in the Production division (plus having

an absolute mare of a last round), I’d risen to 5th out

of 8 shooters and acquitting myself far better this time

round, without any of the obvious “I just made a hash

of that didn’t I?” moments. I certainly felt more like I

belonged there this time round, having trained hard

alongside the team for longer and getting to know

the ropes and more of the community in general.

It’s been a continuing pleasure to get involved

with Action Air in Taiwan, among all my other

shooting-related activities since getting here. Now

we’re working towards our next competition, which

should (hopefully) be in December and I’ve recently

purchased the STAGE electronic mobile app-driven

target system (from TMC in Taipei) to start measuring

my speed and progress, which is already helping in my

training since the competition.

Hopefully I can continue to....

#GoFasterTryNotToSuckQuiteSoMuch! AA


RELOADED

SIG AIR PROFORCE M17

SIG AIR

PROFORCE M17

THIS MONTH IN RELOADED BOYCIE SETS HIS SIGHTS ON A GBB PISTOL MODEL THAT CONTINUES TO

TAKE ON GREATER SIGNIFICANACE IN ITS “REAL WORLD” FORM, THE M17!

Since my first purchase of a 9mm Glock 17 - serial

number BSX397 - in the early 1990s you may

say that I am a dyed in the wool Glock fan. Well,

yes that would be fair to say, particularly as I am a left

handed shooter and the Glock was so uncomplicated

to use. My experience with real firearms goes back

to 1981 and over that time I have owned and used a

huge number of live fire pistols. One that I could never

get on well with was the SIG P226 which I always felt

had a lot of metal high up and this gave me a recoil

action which I didn’t really gel with. When Bill asked

me to review the ProForce SIG AIR M17, I knew my

prejudice from the P226 would be at the forefront of

my mind.

The first words out of my mouth when I handled

the M17 for the first time at Red Cell test day were,

to use the language of Father Ted, “Feck me Dougal,

that’s a beauty!” The feel of the grip in my hand was

immediately very comfortable and the safety catch

and slide release, both of which are ambidextrous,

were really easy to operate. The safety catch is small

enough to be unobtrusive but big enough to allow

positive operation, even with gloves on. Another

really good feature is that the M17 uses a striker fire

method which means there is no external hammer to

snag on kit or be a potential extra conduit for dirt and

water to get in to the workings of the pistol.

Unlike the P226, the M17 is a single action only

pistol, this means that you must ‘rack the slide’ in

order to cock the hammer, whereas the P226 is a

double action first shot when you pull the trigger the

hammer moves to the cocked position before falling

and firing the round. The profile of the slide, while

being quite angular, is really appealing, and atop the

slide sits a really clear set of white dot sights. The

rear of the slide has a Micro Red Dot Sight (MRDS)

ready mount which is covered by a really nice plate

which incorporates the rear sights. This plate and set

is able to be replaced by the SIG M17 adaptor plate

which will allow the fitting of a chosen MRDS. This is

particularly good as it means that a professional Law

Enforcement or Military shooter can replicate their

service weapon with this 6mm version for low cost

and much safer training, with everything other than

an empty case leaving the slide after a round is fired.

In the real world the SIG M17 can use both the

17rd magazine which sits flush with the base of the

pistol grip, or the 21 round extended magazine. A big

advantage of being a left handed shooter (yes there

are some!) is that to operate the magazine release I

use my trigger finger. This is something that I have

been very familiar with for nearly 40 years and is a

big safety point that I like. I have tried to use pistols

with either an ambidextrous or swappable magazine

release but I just can’t get on with it. In a situation

where potentially you may need to use someone else’s

“IN A RECENT POST TO THE WEBSITE WE SHARED THAT SIG HAVE ACHIEVED TWO

SIGNIFICANT MILESTONES IN THE MHS PROGRAM: THE DELIVERY OF THE 200,000TH

MHS PISTOL MANUFACTURED AT THE SIG SAUER FACILITY IN NEWINGTON, NEW

HAMPSHIRE AND THE FIRST MONTH TO HAVE MHS PISTOLS SIMULTANEOUSLY

DELIVERED TO ALL BRANCHES OF THE U.S. MILITARY!”

56

JANUARY 2021

RELOADED

SIG AIR PROFORCE M17

pistol, especially in

a moment of high

stress, I am not having to think about how to

use the mag release.

The grip of the pistol has a very comfortable

recess where your thumb sits and this is

replicated on both sides. On the front of the

trigger guard is a really positive grooved section for

those who prefer to place a finger on it as they hold

the pistol in a firing grip. Further forward on the

frame of the pistol is a section of pitcatinny rail which

will enable the fitting of a large number of accessories

such as tac lights or lasers. To “field strip” the M17

it follows exactly the same action as on the live fire

version.

FIELD STRIP

Ensure the magazine is not fitted and clear the pistol

before checking the chamber for a round. Pull the

slide back until the scallop in the slide, by the rear of

the front slide serrations, lines up and enables you to

turn the take down lever. The slide then is removed

from the front of the frame. One of the most useful

and neat things I found on the ProForce M17 is that

to alter the hop up of the 6mm, lock the slide back

and turn the ‘recoil rod’ to achieve a really positive

adjustment. This saves all the hassle that some other

pistols have in that you have to either take the slide

off to adjust the hop or use a specific key, inserted

into the faux chamber to enable the adjustment.

The trigger has quite a heavy pull when you

compare it to most 6mm pistols but this again is to

give the same feel as is present on the real firearm.

There isn’t a long pull to operate the trigger to fire the

pistol and there is a really positive reset when firing a

string of shots.

One thing I think that would be really good for SIG

to produce would be a boxed set of the P320-M17

like you can get with the real firearm. This would

include one flush fit magazine which comes with

the ProForce P320-M18 and two of the extended

magazines. It is really clear that SIG have had a lot of

input and worked very closely with VFC who OEM this

replica to produce a really fantastic training tool.

On to the test range and using NP 2.0 Green Gas

and RZR .20g BBs I

loaded the magazine

and readied the pistol.

The first thing I did

was to fire a magazine

full off BBs through the

chrono at a “deliberate”

rate of fire, keeping the

pace of one, release, two,

release, three, release

until the magazine was

empty. I’d definitely say that

green gas is the best option

in the warmer months and

for indoor use NP 3.0 could

be used if you wish (at your

own risk) over winter months when the ambient

temperature is lower

Now to have some “time on target”; using the

Virtus Training Systems Aluminium target set at a

range of approx. 7m and spaced approx. 500mm

apart it was easy to move the pistol and hit each

target without missing one from a low ready start.

So to round things up, this is an all-round great

6mm pistol. From someone who loves their Glock

(VFC licensed) and other similar platforms, the M17

has really turned my head, so much so that I actually

asked to buy the one we had for test. If I were back

shooting live pistols on a regular basis then I would be

seriously considering the purchase of the 9mm P320

M17 to use for competition. I’ll never totally give up

my like of the Glock platform but the M17 I can see

being a regular feature in my holster for training and

skirmishing use.

My thanks to Frank at Fire Support for the loan of the

pistol for the test, and please do check out all they

have to offer by visiting www.fire-support.co.uk. AA


KIT & GEAR

5.11 ALL MISSIONS PLATE CARRIER

STAYING ON

MISSION

ALTHOUGH REGULAR CONTRIBUTOR IGGY IS NOW RESIDENT IN AUSTRALIA, HE’S STILL VERY MUCH

INVOLVED IN AIRSOFT AND THE CHALLENGES THAT OUR “6MM BROTHERS AND SISTERS” ARE FACING

THERE. OF COURSE, HE’S STILL VERY MUCH FOCUSED ON GREAT KIT AND WILL CONTINUE TO BRING US

NEWS AND REVIEWS AS PART OF THE GROWING INTERNATIONAL “AA LEGION”! THIS TIME HE TURNS HIS

ATTENTION TO HIS LATEST PLATE CARRIER ACQUISITION…

I

recently bought the 5.11 All Missions Plate Carrier

and had the opportunity to use it in skirmishes,

both indoors and outdoors. In addition to the plate

carrier I opted to have two 5kg training plates, to add

to the realism and get the true feel of the product,

as it was designed to be. Also, so long as you had

weighted plates, in certain MilSim events they award

an extra “medic hit”, which means you can carry

two bandages over other players that only have the

one, so you can stay in game longer …if you can get

someone to put your bandage on you after a hit!

The 5.11 All Missions range of products are

modular. With regards to the plate carrier this

becomes truly clear as you explore it. The front and

rear panel that feature the new hex grid design come

away using hook loops and the entire back part of

the panel is Velcro. Around either side the two hex

grid cummerbunds are followed by two stretchy

cummerbunds underneath, that revel the strap as a

last option of connecting the front and rear of the

plate carrier around your body.

This means you can use the plate carrier as a heavyduty

assault vest with MOLLE pouches attached at all

angles thanks to the hex grid design, allowing you

to customise your plate carrier to suit the way you

operate best with it.

The front hex grid also features a “Kangaroo

pocket” which has a Velcro strip along the inside of

58

JANUARY 2021

KIT & GEAR

5.11 ALL MISSIONS PLATE CARRIER

it, designed for the quick release mag holder that’s

included with the purchase. This holds three STANAG

(M4 style) magazines. The Hex grids are available as

a single aftermarket item; allowing you to buy others

and build them to suit different loadouts, making

it super easy to change from mission to mission,

depending on the task.

With all hex grid parts removed the plate carrier

looks more like the 5.11 Tac-Tec version, only without

MOLLE on the lower half of the outer front and rear

plate panels. This still means you can attach Velcrobacked

pouches should you require them. That said,

the plate carrier has another Kangaroo pouch here, so

using the quick release mag holder mentioned above,

you can carry magazines easily - just in a slightly more

low-profile loadout.

This option is still available at the lowest profile

option too, once you remove the two stretchy

cummerbunds, meaning all you have is the front

and rear plate sections held around your waist by a

single strap and clip. The padded sleeves that feature

hydration tube guides for a water bladder along the

outside edge of the the shoulder can be removed

from the shoulder straps themselves, making the

whole thing into a very low-profile plate carrier.

Inside there are two thick pads on the front

and back, adding that element of comfort but

also providing a channel of airflow to avoid you

overheating under the plate carrier. The plates I got

in addition to the carrier are non-ballistic and are for

training only. They give the feel of the real thing and

certainly the weight, which means that it is a great

option for exercise too, adding 10kg to any exercise.

If I am exercising with the plate carrier, I use it in the

lowest profile option, that way it doesn’t get in the

way of any exercise but still makes me work harder.

The plates themselves are held in place by Velcro

straps, seating them perfectly over your vital organs.

There is an additional Velcro seal at the base of the

plate pocket sealing them in place.

In-game I have only used it in full loadout. I also

added two MOLLE pouches on the front, both at

45-degree angles. Initially I had them at opposite

45-degree angles until a friend advised me to put

them both on the right side as I am predominantly

right handed, therefore I would change magazine

with my left hand and it would allow both magazine

pouches to be easily accessed from the left.

The design (as stated in the name of this plate

carrier) is geared to all your needs, ready for all

missions. It comes in two colours, black and kangaroo

(a darker version of tan).

Overall, I am happy with it. It is very

accommodating and allows me to customise my plate

carrier more than ever before. The quality of 5.11 is

always very high and this latest plate carrier maintains

it; I even have a new item for exercising with,

which is an additional bonus I did not envisage. It is

comfortable and even after wearing it for some time it

still is not an issue.

It is pricey but for the fact it’s modular, allowing

you to do more than any other plate carriers, makes it

worth it. AA


TECH TALK

UMAREX VFC MEETS JEFFTRON LEVIATHAN

UMAREX VFC

MEETS JEFFTRON

LEVIATHAN

IT’S ALL VERY WELL REPORTING ON NEW PRODUCTS AND NEW TECHNOLOGIES TO HIT THE MARKET AS THEY

APPEAR BUT, OF COURSE, AS AIRSOFTERS WE WANT TO KNOW HOW THESE CAN BE APPLIED TO ENHANCE

THE PERFORMANCE OF OUR AEGS AND GBBS TO GIVE US THE EDGE “IN GAME”, DON’T WE? THIS MONTH, IN

HIS FIRST REPORT FOR AIRSOFT ACTION, RED CELL SHOOTER JIMMY DAVISON TELLS ALL ABOUT USING THE

JEFFTRON LEVIATHAN IN A RECENT BUILD!

So, back at the start of October, one eve

before the now-regular adventures of Red

Cell, myself, Marcus Ravera (All Ages Airsoft)

and John “Boycie” Turrell met up just for a general

chinwag about all and anything airsoft and part of

that chinwag brought up the subject of the Jefftron

Leviathans. John mentioned he had a nice VFC HK416

which could use a little revamping…

Marcus and I were then tasked with the job of

fitting said Leviathan and naturally we accepted that

challenge. A few weeks passed and one morning a

parcel had arrived at the shop; excited was I! Having

never had my hands on the VFC 416 before, I was

very eager to have a look at it and my initial opinion

was that of great quality. One solid piece of kit -

which is something you expect from Umarex/VFC - no

rattles or wobbles and it felt very realistic. Aesthetically

stunning I must say and I couldn’t wait to get it down

on the range and see just how well it operated. To

my dismay, we discovered a slight problem with the

trigger system and as soon as a battery was fitted

(sadly a common thing with some of the Gen1 416s

as it happened to Bill’s too, so something to watch out

for as they age!), as it went full auto with no input

from the trigger. Oh well… What does that really

matter, as its having a major upgrade anyway. This is

where Marcus takes over with the build…

TIDY WORKBENCH, TIDY MIND… OR

SOMETHING LIKE THAT!

First things first, it’s time to tidy Marcus’ bench and

get this wagon rolling… after a coffee of course!

Initial takedown of the rifle was very easy, up until

we reached the mag release and I invented a few new

words at that point (as did Marcus)! The mag catch

is unlike any I’m used to seeing, as it had the tiniest

of grub screws that went through the release button.

After managing to find an allen key which was almost

hair-like, we managed to remove it and the rest of the

strip was straight forward, with no more surprises.

I love the fact it has a quick-change spring as, from

“INITIAL TAKEDOWN OF THE RIFLE WAS VERY EASY, UP UNTIL WE REACHED THE MAG

RELEASE AND I INVENTED A FEW NEW WORDS AT THAT POINT (AS DID MARCUS)! THE

MAG CATCH IS UNLIKE ANY I’M USED TO SEEING, AS IT HAD THE TINIEST OF GRUB

SCREWS THAT WENT THROUGH THE RELEASE BUTTON.”

60

JANUARY 2021

TECH TALK


a tech point of view, it makes splitting the gearbox

so much nicer and the possibility of a deadly spring

leaving the back of the box at MACH 3 is completely

removed from the equation! Trust me, it CAN happen

and it is THAT fast!

Now inside the gearbox, we were presented with

some high quality components; it’s just a shame there

was a problem with the Mosfet. They’re an electronic

component and these things happen. It was nice

to see that there was some quality anodised parts,

a lovely red anodised cylinder which was very solid,

vented piston head which was CNC ally, cylinder

head CNC anodised, double O-ring gave a good seal,

nozzle which had an O-ring and again is made from

CNC ally. The gears I was impressed with, as you

could easily see these were machined to a very high

standard and a nice little touch with the stamping;

they were shimmed very well from the factory which

added signal wire that is needed, these tabs are made

redundant purely to allow more space and prevent any

crimping of these new wires. The slot for the trigger

to sit in needs expanding by about 2 thousandths,

in order for the trigger to operate smoothly. The

main circuit board itself is held in by small screw and

shows time and effort has been put in rather than just

thrown together. We had to add 0.1mm shim to both

the sector gear and bevel gear, which is exactly the

same as what I had to do to another VFC gearbox the

day previously. The quality of the casing in which all

this lovliness was housed was just as high in quality;

no cheap material was used on its construction.

So out with every part and bag up parts we no

longer needed. The trigger (Jefftron supply a nice

flat anodised CNC trigger), the old curved one, is

no longer needed, along with all of the wiring, the

trigger shuttle and contact and the cut off lever all

went into a little bag forever to be forgotten. The

beauty of the Leviathan means you no longer require

these actual mechanical parts.

Before fitting the new Leviathan there were a

couple of minor (but crucial) alterations we had to

perform. There are a few little tabs that sit on the

left-hand casing that keep wires where they are

supposed to be once closed together but, due to the

orientation of the board is crucial so the contact

between the cam lobe of the sector gear and the

microswitch can be made fully, which acts as the cut

of lever, or COL (as some of you might refer to it).

Once this was established, it was then a case of

routing the wires and making them so as not to

interfere with the motor head (Jefftron recommend a


STRETCH

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TECH TALK


small

dab of

superglue

to keep the

wires from

getting in

the way).

The wiring is

a tad stiff at

first but soon

becomes easier

to manipulate

into

place. I love the

fact Jefftron

have prewired

these, making fitting

so much easier. At this stage we fitted the

trigger and the sector and connected the Leviathan

to a battery and synched it with the app. The beauty

of this system is that all you need to do is connect

via Bluetooth then check the operation of the micro

switches, this also allows to adjust the pull of the

trigger via a tiny grub screw. You can either have it full

travel or down to a hair trigger with less than 1mm of

travel, which I favour on my own builds.

Once we had established these parameters it was

just a case of fitting the remaining parts back in and

closing the gearbox back up, although not before

replacing the piston head and cylinder head O-rings

and inhibiting a little lubrication in strategic places.

Using the Airtech studios gearbox tools (which might

I add are a genius design!) we closed the two halves

up and they slid together effortlessly. Everything was

buttoned up and reassembled and then it was time

for the chronograph and some range testing.

BBS DOWNRANGE

On first chrono it was pushing a .20g BB at an

average of 1.33J/380fps. “Great!” we thought, but

unfortunately, being a full auto and the UK laws

being somewhat less, Marcus had to go back to the

bench and lose a little power from the spring. Good

job it has a quick-change spring, something I believe

every AEG should have and be a standard for airsoft

manufacturers. Spring power dropped, Marcus had it

consistently sitting at 1.07 Joule/340fps. Perfect!

Having thoroughly tested it out now, I can honestly

say

THE 416 IS

working like a dream!

Trigger response is fantastic,

plus, due to the fact we have brought

trigger travel down to within 1mm, follow-up

shots are almost instantaneous and we have turned

this AEG into something that can be made very

personal to the shooter. Every airsofter loves a little

personal touch, for example a choice of scope/optics,

torches, stocks, PEQs and the like, the list is endless

right down to the colour of the gun, so why shouldn’t

we be able to personalise how the thing operates

too?

The Leviathan is one of those new products which

I believe every airsofter should have and I would

like to see manufacturers making a system like this

a standard across the board and do away with the

old-style contact system (which, let’s be fair, although

works it is a bit behind the times!). We are seeing

more and more brands installing this type of electronic

coolness but only on certain models. It should become

as common as a zipper on a jacket or laces on shoes!

Hands down, this is the best upgrade I have fitted,

or used, on an AEG to date! After having put a few

hundred rounds through the 416, the Jefftron hasn’t

shown any abnormal signs, we’ve had no error codes

(another thing I love about the Leviathans is the error

log), everything was operating perfectly. Mosfet

temperature was low, amps were low on both semi

and full auto, motor start up is giving between 40-

45 amps, average semi-auto is 23 amps and average

full-auto is 17 amps. Using a just a 7.6v battery we

have a respectable 13rps, with a reaction time of 63

milliseconds - so it’s pretty fast too!

Overall, we feel that fitting a Jefftron Leviathan will

give you a massive advantage during gameplay, giving

you the edge over your opposition and, on that note, I

can do no more than recommend it fully to you!

For more information, visit www.jefftron.net. AA

“WE ARE SEEING MORE AND MORE BRANDS INSTALLING THIS TYPE OF ELECTRONIC

COOLNESS BUT ONLY ON CERTAIN MODELS. IT SHOULD BECOME AS COMMON AS A

ZIPPER ON A JACKET OR LACES ON SHOES!”


feature

THE FUTURE OF AIRSOFT

A BRAVE

NEW...

THE GLOBAL PANDEMIC HAS MADE MANY OF US STOP AND THINK ABOUT WHAT WE REALLY LOVE

WHEN IT COMES TO OUR PERSONAL “AIRSOFT EXPERIENCE” AND, FOR MANY FORE-SIGHTED SITE

OPERATORS, THE ENFORCED “OPERATIONAL PAUSE” HAS ALLOWED THEM TO TAKE STOCK OF WHAT

THEY OFFER THE PLAYER - AND WHAT THEY CAN (IN SOME CASES QUITE LITERALLY!) BUILD ON TO

OFFER AN EVEN BETTER GAMEDAY EXPERIENCE FOR THEIR PLAYER BASE! HERE IN THE UK, BILL GOT

TOGETHER WITH A LOCAL “SITE OP” TO GIVE A VISION OF ONE POSSIBLE FUTURE…

A

while back now, at the butt-end of 2018, I had

the opportunity to actually get out with my

friends to just go and play airsoft on a cold,

crisp winter morning and I had the chance to visit a

local site I’d not played before, Imperium Airsoft. It

wasn’t a day for reporting or thinking about an article,

just a rare weekend where I had no other airsoft

commitments and just wanted to get out and get my

game on with my mates for once!

Suffice to say, I had an awesome day and saw some

guys that were really starting to get their site rolling

in a meaningful way, and I’ve been keeping tabs on

their development ever since with a view to getting

back one day to see how things had moved on. Sadly,

the good old C-Virus put a stop to that and although

friends have returned to Imperium and, indeed, the

site has been active as safety guidelines have allowed,

I’ve been unable to return yet.

However, I have spoken on and off to Site

Operator Jim and watched with interest how the

regular numbers at Imperium have grown steadily.

I’ve also had reports back from friends, both out

and out skirmishers and dedicated, hard-core-henry

MilSimmers, that they’ve played the site and come

away more than happy, which to be honest says great

things about a site and its management/marshalling

team! Normally it’s a fact that skirmishers love a site

and MilSimmers hate it - or vice versa - but in this

case, Jim and his team somehow manage to keep

everyone happy. With this in mind I asked him how he

manages to do this, set up some interview questions

about what the future holds and this is what he had

to tell me!

AA: Hi Jim! What is your ethos towards creating a

great site environment for players? How important is

the site itself physically, how do the site staff influence

things, what facilities do you believe should be in the

safe zone, and what is the importance of a good site

shop?

Jim: “First and foremost in our mind is that we

exist for the player and we want to create a great

experience for them at every opportunity, every touch

point, from the moment they make contact with us

online or by phone, to that greeting and check-in at

the gate and then throughout the day; the briefing,

the scenario or skirmishes, the team and how we

interact and engage with players and each other is

incredibly important. We have an amazing team of

guys and girls on the payroll, who love what they do

and keep the good energy flowing up till endex and

beyond, always keeping it positive, fun and friendly

but with a professional edge.

“The site itself is very important, having the right

combination of wasteland, privacy and a landlord as

a partner means we can do things that no other site

would be able to. Having vast variants of terrain is a

massive bonus; we have roads, tracks, paths, fields,

woods, valleys, bush, sand, chokepoints, concrete

structures and interesting undulating terrain with

some of the most gorgeous views over the Swale

which make you want to stop and stare. This is all

before we talk about our built HESCO structures, Iso’s,

64

JANUARY 2021

feature


static or dynamic military vehicles.

“A good safe zone should have a tea station, ample

secure nearby parking, no hills and of course clean,

flushing toilets and washing facilities. Add plenty

of player cover with benching for kit, and battery

charging, for those who don’t wish to work from

cars. A great firing range and delicious hot food is

also important (thanks Dominos!), plus a solid supply

of the essentials like pyro, bbs, and gas. We are lucky

enough to have the mobile battlefield supply station

that is Platoon Stores (https://platoonstores.co.uk),

with a fantastic selection of almost everything on

site at every gameday. Having these things are very

important, especially for the new player who isn’t as

well organised or familiar with the realities of airsoft,

compared to the veteran, old-school airsofter. The

new generation doesn’t know what they need

until they need it, hence the requirement for

caring, and a well-stocked site shop and all

the rest of it. Whereas, if you’ve been playing

10+ years you’ll be used to having near to no

facilities at a typical site - but that doesn’t mean

players don’t appreciate them. Our Safe Zone

has come on leaps and bounds in the last year

with all these things, although we will make it

far better once we get past this phase of the

pandemic.”

AA: What do you feel physical development

of the site brings to the game in terms of

structures and physical props?

Jim: “The experience on the site must

remain as immersive as possible. We are against

building anything that doesn’t feel natural or

in scenario to the player, so you won’t find a

pallet at Imperium being used for cover! You

will find yourself behind a large earthen berm,

which feel’s right and natural (but chances are

we put it there with a 14 ton excavator). The

extensive sand-filled HESCO, the

ISO containers, the static Military

vehicles, such as our Lynx Helicopter,

Saracen and Saxon APCs all add

to this Battleground environment,

without ever making it feel like a

“manufactured” arena.”

AA: You do make great use of

vehicles and mobile props from

what I’ve seen. What do you feel

this adds to the player experience?

Jim: “Imperium have a taskforce

of Military vehicles! Our 5 Ton,

MG42-wielding UI1300L Unimog,

a 15 Ton Saurer Infantry fighting

Vehicle, with its Oerlikon 20mm

Cannon (gas firing!), a 12 Ton Saurer APC (the sports

tank!), two Steyr-Puch Pinzgauers, 10 man Tactical

Off-Road Vehicles, A WOLF G-Wagon and couple of

Pickups acting as technicals. Due to the size of the

site, the terrain and the amount of roads we have,

along with our team’s shared passion for Military

Vehicles and Off-Roading, this was naturally going to

be our USP. Imperium players get a massive kick from

being dropped into battle by APC, Truck or Pickup. It

brings so much excitement and immersion to airsoft

that just takes the whole thing to the next level.

Sitting in a bunker and feeling the ground tremor as

a tank rumbles by is an amazing feeling and creates

awesome memories for players, memories that are

unique to Imperium Airsoft.”


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AA: Scenario-driven games, I know you like this

format. How do you feel this adds to the game day?

Jim: “We run a “ladder system” of events, these

are: Skirmish, Ground War, BattleSim and Milsim.

Skirmish is what you’d expect, ideal for new players or

people who just to want to get stuck in, shorter sub

1-hour games with breaks between. We still make use

of our vehicles but tend to play certain areas of the

site, it’s intense and action orientated. Next is Ground

War, this is typically full site conquest or roll back,

often with dynamic events and missions that need to

happen in addition to the main objective. In Ground

War we introduce ammo limits and restrict full-auto

fire to 2-second bursts for assault, 4-second burst on

true support weapons and we also loosely organise

players into callsigns and provide radios so they can

work together to achieve objectives. They get massive

freedom of movement so can play “their way”. We

also make extensive use of vehicles during Ground

War events and we only stop once, for an hour at

lunch. With BattleSim, it’s the next step from Ground

War and we run 6, 8 and 12-hour events, much more

organised on the callsigns, lots of taskings, lots of

role play, plenty of surprises and lots of Mechanised

Vehicular Action.

“We’ve run some great events this with our

friends from SEO Milsim and a fantastic volunteer

crew leading each team. MilSim is something we

are yet to do, the last planned one was cancelled

due to lockdown but this is going to be 24 hours,

Saturday 10am till Sunday 10am. Even the MilSims

and BattleSims have internal difficulty ladders. For

example, newer players/people who want to have

less structure and more fun, would be on a team like

Civ pop or local gang - just there to cause trouble

and have a laugh! Then another team would be a

slightly more organised Opposing force/Cartel with

straightforward but serious taskings and such, then

you get the very organised, immersive Special Forces/

Task Force teams for the guys that want to go that

way! All teams have roleplay elements at their heart

and its tongue in cheek, fun, with no big egos!”

AA: What should a really good site be offering the

player for their “game day buck”, in addition to the

above?

Jim: “The best things in life are free, right? So,

you don’t need tanks and trucks to run a great day of

airsoft - although it does really help - but you do need

your site team to be player-centric; players should feel

welcome and valued at any site they visit. As a team

we always make an effort to learn people’s names,

talk to them, find out a bit about them and help them

any way we can. We are also very lucky to have the

amazing Darwin Hamilton, of Atdarzphotography, on

our team, taking some amazing shots of all the action

at Imperium! You may not have a “Darwin” but sites

should be taking photos and providing them to their

players as a value add!”

AA: Do you have plans for the future to extend

what you offer even further?

Jim: “As demand increases we will likely run more

events, possibly evenings during the week for outdoor

CQB and a firing range but we are very keen to launch

our “Tank and Truck Driving Experience”, where you

can come and drive our machines at Imperium as a

private driving experience! As this grows, it will mean

more toys for the airsofters to enjoy as well when we

reinvest, so do checkout www.tanksntrucks.com”

Many thanks to Jim for answering my questions

and putting up with my pestering! The challenges

we’ve all been faced with when it comes to airsoft

this year really have put a lot of things in perspective

for me and from what I’ve heard, seen first-hand and

what Jim has told me, it seems to me that the best

sites are really stepping up now to give us, the players,

a better and more immersive gameday experience

than ever before!

I have run games large and small and even run a

site myself, so I know how much commitment and

dedication it takes to make a truly memorable day,

not just once but time after time, after time. I believe

that it is important for all players to realise just HOW

MUCH effort (and no little money!) goes into creating

“the best day”, one that pleases all and sets the tone

for the future.

And if what Jim has described IS the future of what

we can expect from our gamedays next year and

beyond, then I’m as excited as you are to take get

back out and you can rest assured that I’ll be returning

to Imperium Airsoft just as soon as they reopen!

Additional thanks go to Darwin Atdarzairsoft

(official site photographer at Imperium) for allowing

us to use some of his superb images in support of this

article. Please keep an eye on https://imperiumairsoft.

com for information on upcoming games and events

and take a moment to check out their social media

pages to see what they’ve been up to recently in

preparation for 2021! AA


armoury

CYMA

009 “NAM AR” SERIES

IN ASSOCIATION WITH

“NAM AR”

SERIES

AS A KEEN COLLECTOR OF VIETNAM WAR ERA GEAR AND LIVING HISTORY ENTHUSIAST AS WELL AS

AIRSOFT PLAYER BILL IS CONSTANTLY LOOKING OUT FOR NEW PERIOD AEGS AND GBBS THAT ARE

IDEAL FOR THAT CONFLICT, AND HE’S BEEN WAITING TO GET HANDS-ON THE NEW MODELS FROM

CYMA THAT FIT RIGHT IN!

Like most of you reading this, I grew up after the

Vietnam War had ended. Although I am a child

of 1964, I have no personal recollections of the

“American War” from the time but certainly, as I grew

older I learnt more, largely due to having an American

former-USAF Major as my “modern history” teacher

(he also taught us about the intricacies of American

Football, bless him!) but also thanks to the plethora

of coverage both in movies and even in comic

books (who remembers the cartoon strip “Fighting

Mann”???).

That has led me, throughout my adult life, to

learning more and more about this particular conflict,

building up both an extensive library of books written

by those who served there (both sides, not just the

USA), along with an ever-expanding collection of

equipment and uniforms, some real and some repro.

Although I haven’t been active for a while, I have

been involved with Vietnam War Living History Groups

(namely www.modernforces.com), whilst my time

living in the USA turned me into the “mule” of one

group, leading to me scouring every militaria and

“Army/Navy” within miles to source original kit to

bring it back to them in the UK!

I was also an active member of the original

international Vietnam Airsoft (VNAS) group and

played a small part in creating VNAS-UK (in fact I

still have the banner!), attending “Namsoft” games

around the UK and even running a few myself.

You may remember me as “Wild Bill” from those

groups and games but if you weren’t there man, you

wouldn’t know! After a harsh introduction into the

fact that “Namsoft” was every bit as detail-stringent

as living history (thanks Ken Cho if you’re reading this

for setting me on the right track!), my appreciation

Living History image -

Eyepro Not Required

68

JANUARY 2021

armoury

CYMA 009 “NAM AR” SERIES

of the efforts made by players to “get it right”

has continued to grow over the years.

And, of course, there’s one specific area of

this that as airsofters we ALL love and that’s

the firearms used “in country”! Again, over

the years various “M16s and XMs” of varying

quality and historical accuracy have come and

gone, although I do still own my original

Classic Army “XM” that was cut down to

“E1” (more on that later!) length. Some

have been complete “frankenguns” put

together for spare parts with real period

furniture, whilst others have been off the

shelf models that have served their purpose

and seen some action; suffice to say that my

US “Nam Armoury” is quite… extensive!

Airsoft replicas of “Nam” period rifles

and carbines has become better and better

and with the current drive in technology (in

relation to internals), they actually perform

excellently too these days! Externals have

also improved, with any Vietnam reenactors

that I know owning AEGs and

GBBs because they are “just right” and

you’ll see many of them at shows like War

& Peace or Military Odyssey.

Although I’ve owned many “M16s”

most of my living history

impressions have been

centred on MACV-SOG,

MIKE Forces and the LRRPs

(along with the occasional

bit of Stoner-wielding SEAL

action!), so the full length

M16 has never really been my

preferred model as most

of those units carried the

XM177 Carbine, or the

“CAR-15” as most vets

refer to it. That said, most

of

the Vietnam airsoft players

I know revel in the role of the lowly

“grunt” where “Mr. Colt’s Best Girl” is

most definitely their favourite choice

of replica.

What I received from Taiwangun

though, piqued my interest as I also

have impressions based on the

“Advisers” from the early days of

the Vietnam War. When they

told me they had a new

CYMA “Nam” era M16 of

course I was interested, but

what arrived was highly unexpected and very exciting.

Out of the plain box came the rifle and when I looked

closely it was not just any old M16 but a pretty nicely

achieved early war Colt Model 603/XM16E1, featuring

CYMA’s latest internals!

MASH UP!

During the late 1950s and early 1960s the way

the USA fought wars was changing, moving from

massed “force on force” set pieces to “manoeuvre

warfare”, with far more deployments taking place on

a smaller scale. Troops became mechanised and air

mobile and the rifle they used needed to reflect this.

It needed to be smaller and lighter in weight than

the ungainly and heavy M14s, L1A1s, and G3s in use

at the time by the US and other armies worldwide.

Engagement distances, especially in the jungles South

East Asia, were decreasing so the need for a high

power 7.62mm was lessened; enter the M16 and

“5.56mm”!

Although the “airsoft M16” has been covered

exhaustively I am a sucker for the more interesting

models. The Colt Model 603/XM16E1 was the first

attempt at providing an improved M-16 for the US

Army, with production running from early 1964 until

it became the Colt Model 603/M16A1 in early 1967.

The XME1 was the first model to incorporate the

“forward assist” feature and also featured the “Partial

Fence” reinforced lower receiver for the first time, and

because it was a “going from one place to another”

model, it also featured a real mash-up of components

during its production cycle.

After use with advisory and “special” units, the U.S.

Army began to issue the XM16E1 in 1965, with most

of them going to the newly raised and experimental

Airmobile Divisions and the 1st Air Cavalry Division in

particular. After many trials and tribulations the Army

finally standardised an upgrade of the XM16E1 (as the

M16A1) in 1967 and the Model 603/M16A1 remained

the primary infantry rifle of U.S. forces in Vietnam

until the end of direct U.S. ground involvement. It also

became the standard service rifle for all U.S. military

ground forces after it fully replaced the M14 service

rifle in 1970.

TICKING ALL THE BOXES

There really is a LOT of history behind the M16 and for

any airsofter having an early model in the collection

really does encompass many eras and conflicts. Yes,

of course it can be used for Vietnam themed games

but it also would be pretty correct for Cold War and

Falkland War Scenarios, as the M16 was used heavily

by UK Special Forces and the Royal Marines during


armoury


those “on/off” conflicts (again, I’ll come back to that

later!).

It’s really the attention to detail, even the tiniest of

things, that really makes the humble CYMA stand out

from the crowd though. I’ve seen many manufacturers

have a crack at an “M16VN” only to be let down

by silly things, like using the wrong pistol grip or

handguard slip ring. Although such things will only be

noticed by a true “stitch bitch”, once you see, you just

can’t un-see!

The Colt Model 603 had some pretty unique

features, which many believe were only added at a

later date when the rifle finally became the M16/

A1. Firstly, the lower receiver of the 603 had what is

known as “a partial fence”, in that it carried only an

additional reinforcing feature above the magazine

release. The upper receiver had only just received the

forward assist, in the case of the early models a more

rounded shape. The flash hider was originally still of

the three-prong style, but during the life of the 603

models could also be found with the “birdcage”, and

the slip ring was flat rather than the conical shape we

see today. The butt pad was a simple rubber affair,

although the distinctive triangular handguard was

already in place.

The CYMA, rather surprisingly and somewhat

pleasingly, follows this entire feature set down to the

smallest detail; it truly is a work of art and no little

research has gone into getting everything completely

right. The replica 603 is fully made of good quality

alloy, with only the pistol grip, butt, and handguard

being made of a very nice matt black plastic. The

metal parts, rather than just being a shoddily painted

black, are a deep black and grey mix. There are

absolutely no trademarks so it’s a blank canvas for the

re-enactor!

Internally things are no less impressive. The hop-up

adjustment is exactly where you would expect it to

be, behind the fake bolt which is accessed by pulling

back the charging handle; this benefits from the

now-common “hold back” function that means the

cover stays to the rear until you hit the bolt release

which can be fun in game! The hop is a solid metal

unit and once set stays steadfastly in place. The

rifle also benefits from CYMA’s new “E-EDITION”

configuration, that can handle higher-strength springs

and also ensures a super-snappy trigger response. This

has been achieved thanks to the new, more durable

gearbox parts such as a V2 gearbox with quick spring

change system, a steel gear set with 8mm steel

bushings and bearing spring guide, married up neatly

to a high torque neodymium motor and processor unit

with built-in MOSFET system!

This really is an impressive rifle, not just for the

money (as it’s a steal in my opinion) and even on

a 7.4V though it really does crack away; bear in

mind that most Vietnam themed airsoft games will

have strict ammo limits and you’re going to want to

stick on semi-auto anyway. The trigger is crisp and

responsive. The metal 160 BB magazine is the short

type first issued with the real 603 and feeds absolutely

flawlessly and once loaded, snaps into place with no

wobble.

I loaded the magazine up with a full complement of

my usual RZR 2.0g test BBs and got to work. The BBs

through the chrono gave me a perfectly acceptable

mean of 1.06 Joule/339fps (once again I’d asked

Taiwangun to deliver as close to 350fps as possible -

and once again they delivered!). Setting targets out to

50 metres I was able to get reasonable groupings on

semi-auto, with things opening out marginally when

I switched the selector up to full. My thought is that

with a bit of fettling you could really have a very, very

accurate rifle on your hands here, although it’s good

to go straight out of the box.

SHORT(ER) AND SWEET(ER)!

Now, as much as I love this take on the venerable

M16 rifle, CYMA have actually created a series with

the same internal components and in said series you

also have the XM177E1 and E2 carbine variants to

choose from! This of course interests me greatly (given

my specific historical interests) and both are as unique

as the 603!

The Colt Model 609 (along with the Model 610

for the USAF, known simply as the XM177/ GAU-5A)

was the first Colt carbine to see wide scale production

and adoption by the US military with the designation

XM177E1. This model was produced from late 1966

through until early 1967 and proved somewhat

problematical due to the 10-inch barrel having a

negative bearing on reliability, along with causing

accuracy issues, even with the distinctive 4.5-inch

moderator.

“THE CYMA, RATHER SURPRISINGLY AND SOMEWHAT PLEASINGLY, FOLLOWS THIS

ENTIRE FEATURE SET DOWN TO THE SMALLEST DETAIL; IT TRULY IS A WORK OF

ART AND NO LITTLE RESEARCH HAS GONE INTO GETTING EVERYTHING COMPLETELY

RIGHT.”

70

JANUARY 2021

armoury


The XM177E2 was basically the same carbine with

a 11.5-inch barrel and this, the Colt Model 629,

was fielded by the US Military during the Vietnam

conflict, most extensively by Special Operations Forces

including the “recon teams” of MACV-SOG and the

USN SEALs. The E2 had a number of changes and

improvements made to it, which included lengthening

the barrel and making changes the moderator to

make it more effective, along with giving underslung

grenade launcher compatibility. Both the CYMA

“XMs” are also things of beauty and if you look

closely you’ll find small details, like the change in

handguard slip ring, that make them sing to me!

But there’s a final model in the line-up that I find

REALLY interesting, even more so in a way than the

“Nam” models …and that’s the CM.009D.

This is an unusual carbine in that it looks nothing

more than an XM with a longer barrel but if you’re a

gun-bunny like me, then it’s going to jump out as the

Model 653/4! This was the final “all A1 Component”

model in the Colt 600 Series and the second carbine

model created with the now almost-standard 14.5-

inch barrel. This model was almost exclusively used by

USSF, the Rangers and USN SEALs, although there are

couple of instances where it can be seen in use by UK

Forces too!

Over the years in various uniform reference books

for the Falklands War, there’s a picture of a splendid

chap called Hugh McManners, author of the book

“Falklands Commando” and who was among the first

of the British Special Forces to land on the Falkland

Islands …and he’s carrying what is usually referred

to as a “Colt Commando” but is, to the best of my

knowledge, a Model 653/4. The British Forces, such

as the Royal Marines liked the “M16” series (in reality

more likely to be Colt export models such as the 711

and 715), as did

the SAS from their

time in the jungles

of Borneo, so it

would make sense

that McManners,

as a member of

148 (Meiktila)

Commando Forward

Observation Battery

and who I believe

was predominantly

a forward controller

for both the SAS

and SBS in the

Falklands, would

have carried a

lighter carbine

version from the

same family!

In a nutshell these are all (with the smallest amount

of work like changing the oversized handguards on

the XMs and getting some cool “trades” engraved)

close to Living History standard replicas in terms of

look, feel and finish and the “M16” certainly works

perfectly as a “fighting AEG”. You get everything that

CYMA have always been great at, with the added

bonus of the very latest internals that until now

they’ve only offered in their more modern “tacticool

ARs”. The CYMA CM.009C MOSFET EDITION “M16”

Model 603 has a retail price of just £163.63 at

Taiwangun (at the time of writing) and this is fabulous

value for money!

Although I bought the “M16” for myself in the

first place, I think there may be a CM.009E/XM177E1

coming to me too when I can afford one and possibly

even one of those CM.009D/Model 653/4 as well to

go into my “Falklands Collection”… a man can never

have too many “collections”, right?

For more information on CYMA .009 models head

over to www.taiwangun.com. AA


THE CAGE

XMAS STOCKING

THE CAGE:

ALL I WANT FOR

CHRISTMAS!

2020 HAS BEEN A YEAR THAT MOST OF US WOULD LIKE TO FORGET FOR MANY REASONS BUT THE

FACT IS THAT, EVEN DURING THE MOST CHALLENGING OF TIMES, AIRSOFTERS AROUND THE GLOBE

HAVE ADAPTED TO OVERCOME, GETTING THEIR GAME ON WHENEVER - AND WHEREVER - IT WAS

SAFE TO DO SO! BILL REFLECTS ON THE PAST YEAR AND CHECKS IN WITH THE AA TEAM TO FIND

OUT WHAT THEY’D REALLY, REALLY LIKE FOR CHRISTMAS!

So, 2020 has been a bust for airsoft… or has

it? I’d be the first to admit that we’ve faced

challenges during 2020 that have been pretty

much above and beyond virtually anything we’ve

faced before! Yes, there have been legal issues

surrounding ownership of ROFs that put the very

future of our beloved game in to question in the past,

and those will always be with us given the seeming

“gutter press” agenda to make anything even vaguely

“gun-shaped” the domain of potential evil-doers!

But the C-Virus (as I mentally see it!) has placed a

HUGE challenge before us, threatening our ability to

gather and play airsoft, and putting manufacturers,

retailers, and site operators under immense pressure

financially! Shows have been cancelled, games have

been postponed, shops have been shut physically,

and even sites have been “mothballed” putting safety

most well and truly first.

But has this ever threatened airsoft as a whole? I

don’t believe it has, as the global airsoft community in

many ways seems stronger than ever before!

The good manufacturers have taken the “slower

tempo” to really make inroads into new technological

developments, and to ensure that new models arrive

with us almost weekly! And with these new models,

rather than the usual “scrum and glut” we see of

them at SHOT and IWA, instead they have been

released at regular intervals, allowing both we as

evaluators and you as players to check each and every

one out in detail as they arrive.

Sites have adapted too, with more focus on both

player safety and satisfaction! The good sites have

taken their enforced downtime to reassess and,

if necessary rebuild! Time has been taken for site

maintenance and improvement, and the exemplary

sites have invested further to make life easier for

their players in terms of booking, services, and

facilities! Whilst keeping player safety to the forefront

numerous site opreators I’ve spoken to have told me

that the new “quality and safety” measures that they

have put in place during the pandemic will stay, to a

degree, in place when things ease so thyat players get

a better experience for their “gameday buck”.

What of “the community”, that fragile thing that

we speak of so much? In truth I’ve seen more than

ever players in online groups actively reach out and

support their fellows, giving advice freely and honestly,

sharing ideas, and generally reaching out to those that

are having a tough time. Much of the toxicity of the

past seems to have been placed well and truly on the

72

JANUARY 2021

THE CAGE

XMAS STOCKING

back-burner, making airsoft discussion online a far

richer thing than before, and my personal wish is that

when that toxicity tries to return, we should as a true

community make it clear that this is unacceptable.

And what of the future? In my mind it is only a

matter of time before airsoft recommences fully, and

that we’re all out, together as friends and “teamies”,

enjoying our game once again! You’ll see from

Stewbaca’s report on MOA that things have already

started moving forward again, and although there is

no SHOT in January, and no IWA in March, from what

I see, along with discussions I’ve already had with

manufacturers and those in the industry proper, the

airsoft scene for 2021 is already looking MEGA!

ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS…

So, with great things to look forward to, this time

I got together with the “regulars” to ask them “if

money were no object, what airsoft goodness would

you like to see under your Christmas tree? And

realistically what do you think you’ll see airsoft-wise

under your Christmas Tree?” and this is what they told

me…

Jimmy: I’ve asked Santa for a TM416 Delta with

all the trimmings as a money no object prezzie.

Realisitcally, I wouldnt mind some Magpul furniture

for my Specna, now that would be nice! In fact it’ll

probably be socks and slippers, oh and maybe some

pants!

Callum W: A proper functioning airsoft SMLE…

Bren gun… Lewis gun… (we see a pattern here!)

Boycie: Money no object, ERG LMT .308, basically

the L129A1 with the 6x ACOG scope. Realistically the

rail I need to complete the Banshee build…

Scott: Browning M2… For vehicle mounting mostly,

having to scratch build them in a pain!

Björn: The best would be automatically activated

gentlemanly behaviour for ALL players on the field...

maybe automatic identification of hits and the lock

gun system could help!

Stewbacca: GBBR FAL/G3, maybe that Luger and/

or PPQM2 GBB I’ve been eyeing up. But that’s not out

of the realms of my means or possibilities I suppose,

things are perhaps too accessible here in Taiwan! My

wishlist is actually shrinking, probably because I keep

accumulating guns I have less space for, and more

earache from MsStewbacca about... Phased pulsed

plasma rifle in the 40kW range though?

Bill W-R: Money no object, Specna MK18, ICS CXP

ARK, Ares L85A3 and a full 5.11 UBACS loadout in

big boy size. What am I likely to get? UK army issue

deployment bag and some candy canes!

Hana: A decree on the licensing of “soft-bomb”

guns in China!

Christopher J W: TM M27 recoil, range of TM

MP5 recoils, a collection of blasters and laser guns for

all my SciFi project games and some robot horses that

we can use for the 6th Cavalry!

Stef: Tokyo Marui Mk46!

Jon: Probably a fully tricked out DMR (quick change

spring, full hop work, MOSFET, 100m accuracy etc),

a WAS RPC in Ranger Green (with AK and STANAG

pouches) and some new waterproof versions of the

Under Amour boots as they’re easily the most comfy

boots on the planet.

Stu H: Money no object ? Getting hold of my old

Romak AK again; CA Body and guts, but real wooden

grips and folding stock! Or the mythical ERG Masada!

Realistically ? Nowt…

Jase: Money no object, a real LBT 6094 with

accessories. What’s really going to be under the tree?

Nothing, lol!

HEARTFELT PLEAS

And to conclude this year, I’ve included a couple more

“heartfelt pleas” that really sum things up!

Bill W-R: Imagine this…. UBACS only available

in sizes small and medium, that latest Gucci 5.11 or

Halikon load out not available in a 32” leg? Everyday

1st world problem. No, because for the average

airsofter in the UK and the majority of the world, as

long as you don’t wear bigger than an XL then your

choice of what to wear is almost endless, from army

surplus to OPFOR, all tastes are well covered. However,

get to the larger sizes and you are now looking at a

whole new ball game.

Now before anyone says anything, yes I am of

larger build and so far this year I have lost 20kg,

however this still doesn’t allow me to squeeze into a

decent DPM or Multicam top with Velcro on the arms

to hang my favorite patches or call sign. So what is

the problem? 5.11 do sizes in the USA up to 6XL;

however they see fit to not allow them for sale here in

old blighty.

“The Fat Airsofters Association” has over two

thousand members, so the market is there and how

many players are possibly dissuaded from playing our

sport because they can’t look like everyone else on

the field. As an industry I would say they are missing

a (pardon the pun) growing market in supplying

larger players who don’t want to rely on substandard

products from overseas retailers on your favorite

auction sites or app. Now I am not saying that we are

ridiculed for our size as the community is way above

that in my personal experience, but oh how I wish

I could throw on some tacticool ripstop trousers, a


Airsoft & MilSim News Blog

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Airsoft & MilSim News Blog

@airsoftmilsimnewsblog

AWARD WINNER

WWW.AIRSOFT-MILSIM-NEWS.COM

If you have any old kit or gear tucked away in a

cupboard, garage or shed that you have thought about

sticking on eBay, or a forum to get rid of it, then why

not donate it to the Pilgrim Bandits instead and Tez will

make sure any money raised from its sale will go

towards helping even more people – and you can be

sure of the undying gratitude and thanks of those who it

helps to live again.

Please contact Tez on either his mobile: 07748 800 981

or email: terry.arnett@pilgrimbandits.org

THE CAGE

XMAS STOCKING OPTICS

UBACS and a decent plate carrier and look like my

team mate next to me in some properly recognizable

camouflage pattern. So here is the challenge I set to

all the manufacturers and retailers out there. Open

your wares to the bacon buttie loving brethren!

The market is there, we know it is and some of you

already have the products available in other regions,

so come on share the love for the larger player at let

us get tacticool too.

Steve T: This is gonna seem super obvious and

a bit like a beauty pageant model asking for world

peace, but the only thing I wish for this Christmas is

for COVID to be nothing more than a memory!

I miss playing, I miss my squad, and I miss my

friends. I really hope that we can all get an effective

vaccine and get back to what we love doing the most

- shooting each other! Wishing you all health, wealth

and happiness (Oh - and I’ll take a Wolverine MTW

since you’re asking...).

So that’s it for another year, but rest assured that

everyone involved in Airsoft Action is already hard at

work for the next Issue, and are ready for a whole

new year of airsoft fun in 2021! Like Steve, we have

ALL missed being next to our friends both at home

and abroad, and all of us are looking forward to a

year of airsoft where we can once again live, learn,

and grow!

Wherever you are, the entire Airsoft Action crew

wish you the very best for 2021, and a very Happy

Christmas! AA


feature

THE MP7A1

SMALL BUT

PERFECTLY

FORMED!

AS PROMISED AT THE END OF FRENCHIE’S PIECE ON THE GLOCK 18C AEP LAST

MONTH, THIS MONTH HE’S TURNING HIS ATTENTION TO THE MARUI MP7A1.

While some question the point of the AEP

pistols, the Personal Defence Weapons

(PDW) make a more persuasive case for

their existence. It is true that there is now a choice of

gas blowback MP7s to choose from, they are prone

to all the potential drawbacks of their ilk, cost, pricey

magazines, and sometime fickle operation. I know

that there are many of you out there who love them,

and I get it, but if you’re a player who is looking for

simpler and more dependable version of the MP7, the

Marui is almost certainly the best choice.

THE MP7

The MP7, originally the HK PDW, was developed to

meet the same NATO requirement as the FN P90 – a

weapon for second-line troops whose normal duties

didn’t require them to carry a rifle. The requirement

also sought new ammunition capable of penetrating

standard soft body armour, something that existing

9mm-based weapons increasingly struggled with.

H&K developed a 4.6x30mm round, unique in that

both variants were penetrators designed, and indeed

capable of defeating soft armour at 200 metres.

Fiocchi and VBR of Belgium produce ball ammunition

in 4.6mm with VBR producing a two-part controlled

fragmentation round for the weapon.

Due to the wide use of polymers in construction,

the MP7 series can be used as pistols or as

submachine guns with the collapsible stock providing

increased stability. H&K claim that the 4.6mm round

is virtually recoilless.

The compact nature of the weapon and its ability

to defeat body armour have seen its deployment

well beyond second echelon and police roles with it

becoming a useful tool in the arsenal of many of the

world’s special forces.

THE AIRSOFT VERSION

Right, back to the airsoft version and I’ll pop this

in here simply to get it dealt with – while Chinese

factories have produced perfectly acceptable clones

of pretty much everything, I have yet to handle or

work on a clone of the PDWs which is worth the

investment. Why they seem to be problematic I don’t

know, but every example I have handled, fired, or

worked on was prone to issues from poor electrics to

inadequate range. So, while I have nothing against

Chinese guns in general, with these I would say the

original is still best.

Like the Automatic Electric Pistol (AEP) range, the

heart of the MP7A1 is its miniaturised gearbox. These

are a perfect example of Marui’s technical excellence,

and they are also really small! As with the pistols,

there are a whole raft of upgrades available, and

companies who specialise in supplying and fitting

these upgrades. Unlike the pistols, I do get the desire

to improve performance in the MP7A: as a PDW it

is more desirable that it should perform more like a

full-AEG so it can be used as a primary weapon – after

all the real thing can be depending on situation and

circumstance. Technically this is challenging because

of the size, or lack of size of the components, and I

78

JANUARY 2021

feature

THE MP7A1

have yet to meet one

that can match the 350

fps-plus of most AEGs.

That however could

simply be because I

haven’t met the right

MP7 yet, and I have an

admiration for those

that can upgrade those

tiny gearboxes and get

them running reliably

at higher fps.

In stock trim, output

is similar to the AEPs,

but slightly better – muzzle velocity is stated to be

240fps and combined with a Marui hop unit, this

should give decent, if unspectacular range. The

issue with both the compact AEGS and the AEPs is

not some much one of absolute range, it’s more to

do with how long it takes the BB to get where you

want it to be. As mentioned last month, if your

intended target sees you shooting at them, they have

a reasonable chance of being able to dodge the fire

with no suspicion of cheating required! On the other

hand, if your play style leans towards the sneaky and

subtle, these are excellent weapons being compact

and fairly quiet. They also have the advantage of not

delivering outrageous welts – an advantage if that’s

something that matters to you I suppose!

As with the AEP these rely on relatively small

batteries and I have seen a few modifications to allow

the use of LiPo packs or external battery options to

improve in-game life. Magazines are generally low to

mid capacity – Marui do manufacture wind up hi-caps,

as do the Chinese clone makers but I always found

these to feed less reliably than the lower capacity

alternatives.

If you forego upgrades, other than possibly

improving battery life, the MP7A1 is a bit like my

beloved TM shotguns – an airsoft gun that will

absolutely do the job but requires that you do some

work to get the best from it. You will need to get

closer to your target than with your tricked-out AR15

variant, you cannot easily become the equivalent of

a squad automatic weapon and dump lots of ammo

to cover advances or retreats, these are guns that

demand greater subtlety.

Given their compact size they do make great CQB

guns, an environment where range is usually a lesser

concern and where slapping a decent red-dot onto

the top rail can pay dividends as even with a rather

simple stock, the MP7 points well and comes onto

target quickly.

Like most of Marui’s guns (and the real thing) it is

made largely of ABS plastic but it’s a solid little beast

that shouldn’t cause any undue issues. With AEPs and

the compact AEGs I habitually hacked the supplied

charger off and soldered a connector onto the wires

to allow the use of a decent charger. I found this

improved the levels of charge and protected the

batteries – certainly with the pistols I never felt the

need to source alternative power sources. Were I

running the MP7A1 I might fit a compact dummy

LAM unit to hold an external battery, in part just to

make it a little easier and quicker to change batteries

in game, as removing the front end to do so is less

convenient than the “slide off, battery in” method

pioneered with the AEPs.

While I have a huge soft spot for the FN P90

(frankly I have a huge soft spot for anything FN

develops) there is no escaping the fact that the MP7

series is far more compact and easier to carry. You

can’t, sensibly, holster a P90 whereas that’s a definite

possibility with the H&K weapon. With its magazinein-grip

layout the MP7A1 is an intuitive gun to use

and the control layout will be instantly familiar to

nearly all airsofters – less thinking more shooting!

Would I personally run one as a primary weapon?

I honestly don’t know – just because I could doesn’t

necessarily mean I would, and I have used Marui’s

Tactical launchers with their dubious range extensively

in the past. As an alternative to a sidearm it’s a more

flexible option – yes AEPs are selective fire – but

stocks and red-dots make a significant difference to

the probability of hitting what you’re aiming at and

that is an advantage that’s worth something. The

larger ammo capacity of the MP7, combined with the

‘properly’ sized magazines (compared to the Glock

AEP with its stick mags) makes it overall an easier

weapon to use and if I found myself having to rely on

a secondary I would much rather it was one of these

than a pistol. AA



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TACTICAL ENOUGH TO CARRY A FULL EDC LOAD-OUT.

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KIT & GEAR

SHOP ‘TIL YOU DROP

SHOP ‘TIL

YOU DROP!!

CHRISTMAS IS ON THE HORIZON, AND WE DON’T KNOW ABOUT YOU BUT WE ARE VERY MUCH LOOKING

FORWARD TO IT THIS YEAR! OF COURSE IT’S THAT TIME WHEN YOUR NEAREST AND DEAREST THAT WISH

TO HUMOUR YOUR AIRSOFT ADDICTION WILL BE ASKING YOU FOR LITTLE GIFT IDEAS, SO THIS TIME WE’VE

KEPT THINGS SENSIBLE(ISH!) FOR ALL THOSE LITTLE STOCKING FILLERS!

Head torches are an invaluable tool; being able to go

“hands free” whilst maintaining a stable light source

means that you can go about your tasks after dark

just as easily as in daylight

PETZL

Whilst there are many brands available on the market

one has always stood out, and that is Petzl. The

TACTIKKA +RGB is a compact head torch ideal for

both recreational and professional users, offering a

choice of white or red/green/blue lighting to preserve

night vision. It’s designed for activities where stealth is

a key factor.

The TACTIKKA +RGB head torch offers versatile

lighting; proximity or focused lighting for movement,

BOOST mode for temporary access to maximum

brightness (160 lumens) and three lighting modes

(red, green or blue). It also features CONSTANT

LIGHTING technology to ensure constant brightness

over time, and a mixed beam (wide, focused or red).

This is how it is described on their website:

• CONSTANT LIGHTING: brightness does not

decrease gradually as the batteries are drained

• Several lighting modes suitable for different

situations, from proximity lighting to rapid

movement

• BOOST mode for temporary access to maximum

brightness

• Red light combining visual comfort and stealth,

red strobe light

• Automatically switches to reserve mode when

batteries are running low and then to red

lighting when the batteries are nearly empty

• Compatible with Ni-MH or lithium batteries for

greater burn time

Easy to use:

• push-button is easy to use, even with gloves

• washable headband, designed for dynamic

activities (secure and absorbent)

Specifications

• Weight: 85g

• Technology: CONSTANT LIGHTING

• Beam pattern: mixed

• Energy: 3 AAA/LR03 batteries (included)

• Battery compatibility: rechargeable Ni-MH and

lithium

• Certification(s): CE

• Watertightness: IP X4 (weather resistant)

At only 88g with the batteries fitted, and with

a comfortable, broad headband, the TACTIKKA

+RGB can be worn for extended periods of time; the

headband also offers sufficient adjustment for it to

be worn with most helmets. The torch itself can be

angled downwards to bring the beam into exactly the

position you need it to be, and angling downwards

also gives easy access to the battery compartment.

The broad, well-sized function control button,

which allows you to easily cycle between lighting

modes, is big enough to use even with gloves

on.Whilst the TACTIKKA +RGB is not the smallest

head torch on the market it’s easily stowable, and

durable enough to put up with some serious abuse.

82

DECEMBER 2020

KIT & GEAR


We’ve been using the latest version for a good while

now, and the run time is exemplary. The TACTIKKA

+RGB comes in camo, desert tan, and black. After

using Petzl head torches for many years we have great

confidence in what the brand builds, and thus far

the TACTIKKA +RGB has proved that they continue

to drive the technology forward. This product comes

with our complete recommendation!

KYDEX CUSTOMS

Sticking with light sources, protecting your taclite

from BB strikes can mean the difference between

going home happy and holding your head in your

hands when you pack up your beloved pistol light

with a shattered lens!

Our friends at Kydex Customs (www.

kydexcustomsuk.com) have a solution for you in the

form of a Replacement Torch Perspex Lens! Priced at

multiple colours and patterns, and designed as a lowprofile

medium sized waist pack, the Toke features a

5” wide belt strap equipped with genuine Duraflex

quick release buckle, sturdy Wisport zippers and side

webbing loops for optional attachments. Additionally,

there’s a zipper secured front pocket and large loop

patch for hook-and-loop customisation with tags, IDs

or morale patches, and glove friendly paracord zipper

pulls for easy and quick access to all pockets. Made

of durable 500D Cordura Nylon material, this highly

practical waist pack is perfect for all those little iems

like car keys or your phone when you’re on site!

Again available in lots of colours aand patterns, if

you eed a bit more space for your EDC items, then the

HELIKON BUSHCRAFT SATCHEL could be just what

you need! At 17 litres this useful bit of kit is made of

durable Nylon Cordura fabric, and has been designed

just UK£2.99 these replacement lenses are held in

stock in two sizes to fit Surefire X300, X300U and

X300V lights as well as Nuprol NX200 and NX300

lights, some of the more common weapon lights on

the market, and they’re made from shock resistant

clear perspex; the price is for a single replacement

lens. If you have a model of light they don’t offer a

replacement for then please reach out to them and

they can have one custom made just for you!

MILITARY1ST.CO.UK

If you’ve not checked it out, our friends at www.

military1st.co.uk have an entire section devoted to gift

ideas, and a couple of them grabbed our attention as

items we would certaiinly use ourselves!

The WISPORT TOKE WAIST PACK is available in

for active outdoor users as well as tactical users.

It features two spacious compartments fitted with

genuine garaged YKK zippers with glove friendly pulls,

concealed slots for attaching tactical gear of your

choice and detachable shoulder strap. With multiple

MOLLE panels on the sides and bottom of the bag the


KIT & GEAR


Bushcraft Satchel is a must have carry item!

Whenever you are airsofting, or indeed undertaking

any physical activity, keeping yourself hydrated should

be your priority, and not only when the temperatures

are rising! The KLEAN KANTEEN WIDE MOUTH 800ML

BOTTLE is fully compatible with most backcountry

water filters and UV

sterilisation devices.

These high-quality

liquid carriers are made

of extremely durable

18/8 food-grade

stainless steel and

were designed to be

the healthy alternative

to polycarbonate

and lined aluminium

bottles. Thanks

to its sturdy steel

construction Wide

Mouth bottles are

environmentally

friendly, toxin-free and

don’t retain or impart

flavours. Additionally,

these durable bottles

can easily be sterilised

in boiling water, so no matter what you put into them,

it’s always easy to keep your drinks fresh, crisp and

clean tasting.

And don’t think for a moment that insulated

flasks are just for old people (like Bill!), as the KLEAN

KANTEEN TKWIDE 591ML INSULATED BOTTLE with its

double-walled vacuum insulated construction keeps

contents hot for up to 17 hours and cold for up to 58

hours. Field rated, environmentally friendly and toxinfree,

these sturdy steel construction bottles are highly

durable, leakproof, long-lasting and don’t retain or

impart flavours.

TKWide Insulated Bottles can

be used as a mug, a thermos

or a bottle, and thanks to the

wide opening and slim design

they are easy to drink from,

easily accommodate ice cubes

and cleaning brushes, and are

fully compatible with most

backcountry water filters and

standard size cup holders.

let’s face it, gas for your GBBs is always going to be

welcome, and the guys at www.airsoftzone.com

sent us an early Xmas gift in the form of their latest

NIMROD gas!

This comes in four performance levels ideally for

all makes and models of GBB, and indeed different

environmental conditions!

The specifications are:

LIGHT PERFORMANCE BLUE GAS

• Best choice for hot summer days or guns with

plastic slide / without recoil.

• Pressure: 0.8 Mpa / 116 Psi / 8 Bar

• Operating range: +15 - +40°C

STANDARD PERFORMANCE GREEN GAS

• Great all-round gas for spring, summer and

autumn use, suitable for a wide range of airsoft

replicas.



PROFESSIONAL PERFORMANCE RED GAS

• Powerful Airsoft Gas for year-round use,

including the winter season. Suitable for a wide

range of airsoft pistols and rifles.

• The gas is not suitable for pistols and rifles with

plastic slides.



EXTREME PERFORMANCE BLACK GAS

• Extremely strong performance gas. Suitable

for winter use and with high-quality full metal

airsoft guns.

• The gas is not suitable for pistols and rifles with

plastic slides and “Japanese weapons”. For

high minus temperatures, we recommend nonblowback

pistols.


• Operating range: -15 - +20°C

We’ve been checking these new gasses out in

our own gassers, and thus far they’ve proved to be

AIRSOFTZONE.COM

Now if you want something

specifically for airsoft then

84

DECEMBER 2020

KIT & GEAR


effective in all our GBBs and GBBRs, with both the

Blue and Red performing well in VFC and WE full

travel bolt carbine models! You can check out more

information by visiting https://nimrodtactical.com

BIG FOOT

Protection is another vital part of airsoft for all

these days, and when Bill was visisting his local

airsoft store (All Ages Airsoft) he came across a neat

modular full face solution in the form of the Big Foot

MULTIDIMENSIONAL SPLIT MASK.

Big Foot have made some unique and interesting

mask designs in the past, but finally it seems they’ve

hit their sweet spot with this latest modular design.

Available in multiple colours (even Multicam for

the col perators out there!), and resembling an

OpsCore mandible more than a little, the hard plastic

lower mask can be worn on it’s own with goggles

or ballistic-rated glasses thaanks to a padded and

elasticated headband, or attached direct to the ARC

rails of a suitable FAST style helmet. There is a model

that also comes with goggles built-in, but it’s best

worn, in our opinion, attached to your bone dome

with your usual eyepro beneath. The mask comes with

additional inner padding as standard, but again this

can be left out for improved airflow when attached to

the helmet. We like this mask because a) it’s REALLY

well-priced, and b) it offers great levels of protection

for your lower face and nose whilst still allowing you

to run a comms headset comfortably under your

helmet as usual!

Well, that’s a wrap for out pre-Christmas look at

useful airsoft gear, but whatever you get under your

tree we hope you’ll enjoy it to the full! AA


last post

THAT WAS THEN...

THAT WAS

THEN..

THIS IS NOW...

FRENCHIE SAYS: “IF I HAVE UNDERSTOOD THE VAGARIES OF EDITORIAL TIMING, CHRISTMAS SHOULD BE

UPON US AND THIS SHOULD BE AN APPROPRIATE POINT TO WISH ALL OF YOU A HAPPY NEW YEAR! IF I’M

A MONTH LATE, OOPS, BELATED HAPPY NEW YEAR!”

January. The month named after Janus, the twofaced

Roman God. Janus is two-faced not in

the sense that you can’t trust him further than

you can throw him (all Gods are a bit slippery, let’s

face it) but rather he looks forwards and backwards

simultaneously. He is therefore the God of transitions,

which rather obviously is why the first month of

each year is named after him. As a January baby it

is therefore appropriate that I take this opportunity

to do a bit of both myself, looking back at 2020 and

forwards into 2021.

No-one will need reminding that 2020 was the year

of the pandemic, where we all learned more about

epidemiology than we ever needed, became familiar

with the wrong sort of positivity and for many of

us it was a year that saw us confined to our homes

more than at any other time in our lives. It was also

a year that saw staggering levels of additional deaths

across the globe, and while it’s easy to joke about it, it

doesn’t pay to be glib.

Although my crystal ball has been playing up lately,

I feel confident in predicting that the first quarter

of 2021 will not see a miraculous change for most

of us. Yes there are vaccines on the way but the

logistics of distributing and delivering them are utterly

mindboggling. Even if you aim for 70% inoculation

you are still contemplating some 4.9 Billion people

worldwide. That’s more than read Airsoft Action every

month…. So, while we will all probably be on the

receiving end of needles at some point, it might take

a while.

That means that the sort of restrictions we have all

become used to are most probably going to continue

for some months to come. For some of us that’ll mean

no airsofting at all, for others it may be limited but

possible with care. Here in the UK it’s been a mixed

bag with full lockdowns stopping the sport in its

tracks, followed by partial lockdowns where you could

spend fruitless hours trying to work out of games

could be played or not, which were in turn followed

by various tiers and further lockdowns which made

it possible or impossible to participate. It’s been a bit

like Schrodinger’s Airsoft – simultaneously capable of

being played and of not being played.

“ALTHOUGH MY CRYSTAL BALL HAS BEEN PLAYING UP LATELY, I FEEL CONFIDENT IN PREDICTING

THAT THE FIRST QUARTER OF 2021 WILL NOT SEE A MIRACULOUS CHANGE FOR MOST OF US. ”

86

JANUARY 2021

LAST POST

THAT WAS THEN...

Hopefully for everyone involved, 2021 will be less

restrictive, allowing retailers and site owners to make

some progress on returning to normality. I know of

some sites near me who have been closed, poised

to open, forced to not reopen by a change in policy

and who have finally had to throw in the towel

either because they simply can’t continue to carry the

burden or because their landlords have decided in the

face of uncertainty to do something else with their

property. Add to this the massive upheaval in the jobs

market with major companies closing completely and

you have to assume that there is simply less money

trundling its way around the system and reaching

retailers, techs and all the others who rely on a cut

from a less than infinite pie to make a living.

However, if you want to know what’s actually going

on, ask someone who is in the thick of it. I had a

socially distanced chat with Scott Allan of Landwarrior

and what he told me rather bore out what I suspected

about 2020.

Apparently, it started well, took a bit of a breather

as lock-down was announced and then picked up as

the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (aka ‘furlough’)

kicked in. That seems to have given airsofters the

confidence to continue spending even though the

playing situation was far from clear.

The move to the tiered system seems to have dealt

the industry a major blow as players were unsure what

they could or couldn’t do and site operators were left

in a similar conundrum. Even getting definitive advice

could be time consuming and frustrating. Given

restrictions on travel things much have been not only

confusing but a bit grim to be honest if you were

trying to run a site which attracts players from all over.

I saw similar behaviour during the banking crisis

of 2008 – there was a period of steady, possibly even

increasing sales and then as the enormity of what was

going down became all too obvious, the retail side of

the business nose-dived as players started to fear for

their livelihoods. It looks like the airsoft industry has

seen something similar although sales over the year

have largely held up.

There were specific instances of pain however

- site insurance went through the roof as insurers

calculated new risks and if you’re being cynical,

probably thought that Covid was a good excuse to

slip some tasty increases in. What?! Me? Cynical? Err,

yes actually. This cost increase, combined with only

half of a normal year’s operation and the loss of all

corporate business has had a marked negative effect

on everyone’s feelgood factor and bottom line.

Hopefully 2021 will see a progressive loosening

of restrictions and therefore easier operating

conditions both where events and retail operations are

concerned. I’m personally worried that as a country

we haven’t yet seen the last of the economic pain,

and of course the pandemic has been a wonderful

excuse for the UK government to stop mentioning

Brexit every hour, even as it looms ahead of us. Given

the lack of any meaningful agreement with the EU at

the time of writing we can only guess at the possible

knock-on effect to the industry next year. I fear that

the pain will come in the form of greater economic

instability and there are no sectors who really benefit

from uncertainty.

If I may stray close to home, Nige’s decision to

finally take Airsoft Action wholly digital and to scrap

the cover price has revitalised the magazine. It’s not

that we weren’t all keen enough, but there are things

you can do digitally that you simply cannot do in print,

and as a contributor, getting my head around this has

been liberating. Even simple things such as inserting

hyperlinks is, in the context of my writing here, a

wonderful novelty. The fact that so many players

across the planet were at times heavily restricted in

their movements makes me proud that as long as they

have a phone, they can keep up with news, reviews,

and opinions. I sincerely hope we entertained and

informed last year and can build on that this year.

So, please forgive what is, honestly, not the most

optimistic view of the near future and receding past

and I draw small comfort from the fact that if we have

all learned anything this year it is that the world you

woke up to on Monday morning can look radically

different by the time you reach Friday afternoon!

Would it be too much to ask that 2021 might bring

positive rather than negative change? AA

HERE’S TO A BRIGHTER 2021!

“HOPEFULLY 2021 WILL SEE A PROGRESSIVE LOOSENING OF RESTRICTIONS AND THEREFORE

EASIER OPERATING CONDITIONS BOTH WHERE EVENTS AND RETAIL OPERATIONS ARE

CONCERNED.”



Airsoft Action - January 2021

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