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WA SVI 5” Railed:
(reviewed by Joe M. AKA Guevara)When I first thought of buying a Gas Blow Back (GBB) pistol I had been deliberating on what style and manufacturer I was going to invest my hard earned money in.
At first, being a 'newbie' I was after a reasonably cheap and reliable GBB, the TM (Tokyo Marui) Tactical Master was my obvious choice. I liked the look of the pistol, and it had lots of positive reviews. I can’t remember why, but I didn’t buy one and forgot about getting a GBB for a while, then I saw a WA (Western Arms) pistol at Ambush Wargames and I knew I had to have one.
After researching The WA market, and being shocked at the prices, I liked the look of the SVI series guns, their chunkiness and performance won me over. I saved up and bought a WA SVI 3.9” Two Tone. This was a lovely pistol and I loved it, but I managed to c**k it up within a few days, and I sent it to Airsoft Dynamics where it took a very long time in getting the replacement parts (WGC weren’t replying to AD’s emails). After I got it back, with the repairs and all the gubbins in the right places, (I got this done freely as back then AD was a trading partner with WGC (or something) and it was still covered with warranty) I decided that, even though I’ve waited ages for my pistol to be fixed and it was now performing flawlessly, I thought it was a little on the small side for me. So I sold it for a very nice sum indeed.
*cough* where the actual review starts *cough*
I decided that I was still interested in the WA SVI range and I just needed a larger version. Roughly at this time, the WA SVI 5” Railed came out. I couldn’t believe my luck. It seemed perfect for me, the 5” being just the right size, and subtle touches of silver over the gun which gives it a classy look. So I saved up once again and ordered the gun, with a spare magazine from Wargame Club for roughly £180, including shipping).
The gun arrived within a week and when I opened the box I was amazed at the attention to detail that WA had put into the gun. It was beautiful. After picking it up I instantly inserted the mag. My hand almost dropped as I wasn’t expecting such weight. The frame of the pistol is full metal giving most of the weight, as is the magazine. The heavy-weight slide is made out of a plastic-metal composite and is very high quality, it looks quite like metal. I could find no mould lines anywhere on the gun, I was most impressed.
I use American Eagle Winter Gas in all of the GBBs that I have owned as I like the added power it gives over HFC 134a. (I do not recommend that you use this form of gas). I gassed the mag up and filled the mag with .25 bb’s, (a preferred weight for higher quality GBBs) I warmed the mag in my hand and then slapped it in the gun. It went in with a click and I then pulled the slide back, it ran smoothly across the frame with quite a metallic sound.
The SVI range have two modes of safety. One is a grip safety where you cannot pull the trigger without a lever being pressed (so you have to grip the gun in the right way to fire). The other is a switch on either side of the gun, (ambidextrous – though it doesn’t work so well if you are left handed) you cannot pull the trigger if the switch is up.
After going into my garden, I took aim with the replica BO-MAR sights, I shot the pistol. The bb reached the other side of the garden easily and with incredible speed. The accuracy was good for a pistol of this size but some bb’s went flying off to strange angles. (WA Hop-Up isn’t too good for lighter weight bb’s) I shot the rest of the mag off but towards the end there wasn’t much power left for the bb’s, and the slide did not lock back.
This was worrying at first, but then I investigated the internals of the mag. I found out that it had ‘NLS’ (non-leak system), this was a system to stop the mag from leaking gas when fired sideway and upside-down. I figured that I wasn’t going to do much of that kinda action and I heard if you remove it, you can get much more gas in the mag.
I removed the NLS from both mags, and now I get much more shots per mag and the slide always locks back. Things were going great with my new pistol, I took it to AWA and it completely caned in the ‘Killing House’ and out during games. I was extremely pleased.
And then…
I started to have trouble with the gun where after a shot was fired, the slide would not return to the correct position, it got stuck about a cm before it got flush with the front of the frame. After researching this, I discovered that it was a oversized O-Ring, Part no. 88. These are quite common with this series of guns. I contacted Infyrana over the UKAN Forums and he sent me a correctly fitting Part no. 88 (cheers mate!).
Back then I couldn’t fully dissemble the gun so I sent it to AD once more for them to install the part. After it got it back, it was performing amazing once more, with no sticking O-rings. The gun went on performing great for quite a while.
And then…
The slide developed a hairline crack at the back, near the sights. This must have been because of the Winter Gas and a very hot day. Other people never get a broken slide, even with HFC 22! I guess I was unlucky. I ordered a new slide for the pistol from AD (I love ‘em) for £35, Yuki was in Japan at that time, so it didn’t take too long to get. At the same time I ordered a upgraded recoil and mainspring. The upgraded recoil spring would stop the slide travelling as fast as before and reduce the chances of another crack, the upgraded mainspring was for more power ;).
After getting back the pistol, with the new parts and the new slide. It was absolutely amazing. It performs better than I could have ever imagined it to. I now use .3s in my pistol. This cures the ‘flying off at odd angles’ which I mentioned earlier and increases accuracy. The Hop-Up was very hard to set for this weight, but I have finally got it perfect. The accuracy is extremely good and so is the power.
Conclusion:
Only get this gun if you have experience with GBBs and are prepared to spend a lot of time in keeping it working well and can over some of the standard issues, such as the 88-O ring. This pistol is great for skirmishing, but some may not want to skirmish with such an expensive pistol.
It has taken a while to get it all working perfectly, but in my mind it was worth it.
Scores after all modifications had been taken place.
Appearance – 5/5
Build Quality - 5/5
Power – 5/5Accuracy – 5/5
Value for Money - 4/5
Overall – 4/5 (if not 5/5)
I still may get more upgrades!
MK2 Enola Gaye Pyrotechnics:
(Reviewed by Alex AKA The dude)These new released from EG certainly have made many more improvements from the old batches.
Smoke Grenades:
These have the most drastic changes, a new formula has been created by the wiz kids at EG. The grenades them selves are a lot larger in size, they produce large volumes of thick smoke, very quickly, these are far more effective than any other striker cap smoke grenades I have seen to date. The new limited edition green smoke grenade has been produced. The main change with all the EG pyros is the striker caps themselves, they have been changed significantly.
The large yellow blob makes the striker caps ignite much easier, and less likely to fail, which was a major concern with the old ones. Although the new striker caps do jet out a lot more sparks and hot gas than the old ones, so you must take particular precautions when lighting them that they are not aimed at anyone. The increased size, also has an increase in weight, which enables a longer throw to be made.
Overall I was very impressed with the performance of the new smoke grenades from EG.
BB Grenades:
These had the same changes made to the striker caps as the smoke grenades, making them more likely to light, they were much easier to use than the old ones, although EG still haven't solved the casing issue, they are still too weak so you have to be careful when moving, lying and crawling not to lie on them, this is the major downside to them. Although the bb's did spread further than the old ones. But the bb's are still contained within those plastic bags.
There is a definite improvement on these BB Grenades
ThunderFlashes::
The MK5's also have the same striker cap changes, they seemed to be louder than the old mk5's. They work particularly well during CQB, certainly having great effects on the enemy. Although I am yet to test them at night to see if they actually provide any flash.
But these also have significant improvements made.
Many thanks go to Dan from Firefight and Rebel Troop for the permission to use his pictures of the pyros.
Maruzen APS2 SV:
(Reviewed by Matthais_31)
After wanting a sniper for quite some time, I decided to start looking into various spring rifles. The M24 immediately caught my attention and sounded like a good buy. However after months of struggling to get hold of one, I eventually gave up. I had heard a lot of good things about the APS 2 series, but didn’t really like the look of the rifles, or the cost of upgrading one.
After a while, I decided to look into getting a second hand rifle, and found an APS 2 SV, fully upgraded to 500fps with TN barrel, silencer and scope on the UKAN forums. I was willing to pay the asking price, so after talking to the owner, I eventually bought the rifle…
Looks and Ergonomics:
The APS2 SV is a nice looking rifle (although in my opinion the M24 looks a lot nicer), with a plastic stock and full metal receiver. The magazine is located further up the rifle than I expected, meaning that to reload the rifle it really needs to be taken out of your shoulder. The ergonomics of the rifle are very good, being light in weight (the M24 weighing a comparative ton), solid and relatively short. The advantage of these become very clear when on the field, making the rifle more maneuverable and easier to hold into your shoulder over a long period of time.
Performance:
I’ve had my rifle for a few weeks now, and have finally got it configured to my liking. I can now hit a head size target nearly every time from around 40m with 0.25g BBs, which I think is quite impressive! I have not had chance to try any accuracy tests over a longer distance, but I did managed to get make a 50-60m body shot on my last games day. I’m fairly confident that I could make body shots with this rifle at around 60-70m
The cocking action is not as hard as I expected (as lots of people complain about cocking without a teflon cylinder), and if I needed to I could probably fire off a shot every 3 seconds or so (although not very accurately!). Trigger pull was also another big worry for me, but the stock trigger mechanism seems very good on this rifle, with a pull of around 4 pounds. This takes a bit of getting used to, but after a while you begin to compensate. The total range of the rifle is around the 80-90m mark, but I have not been able to test this accurately yet. Seeing as most shots in woodland are made at around 60m, you should be within range to make most shots.
Upgrades:
The APS 2 Series are probably some of the most upgradeable airsoft rifles, with everything from complete re-inforced internal parts and new trigger mechanisms to custom stocks and external accessories (such as silencers, bi-pods, scopes etc.). My rifle has a re-inforced cylinder, piston set and cocking handle to take the 500fps spring, with a TN barrel, custom adjustable hop-up, silencer and a 3-9x40 Nikko Sterling Gold Crown scope. Out of all these upgrades, I would say all of them but the silencer and scope are necessary. The re-inforced parts are needed to ensure that the original parts to not break under the stress of the new stronger spring. The TN barrel isn’t strictly needed, but seeing as a sniper rifle needs to be both powerful and accurate, a TN barrel makes a lot of sense. The same goes for adjustable hop-up, as it not only allows you to use different weight BBs if you run out, but it also allows you to optimize the hop-up for your choice weight of BB to get the maximum range out of your rifle.
A silencer and scope are optional. The advantages of purchasing these are obvious, one makes your shots harder to hear/locate, and the other helps you to spot your targets and make easier adjustments to increase your accuracy (trying to configure iron sights to high degrees of accuracy can be quite difficult). The only other upgrade that I would consider getting is a bi-pod, as they help greatly to steady shots and thus increase accuracy.
Conclusion:
In conclusion, the APS 2 is a very nice rifle that performs well and is very well built. However like all sniper rifles they need a lot of work before they can become true sniper weapons (for an APS2 this cost is at least 500 pounds). Therefore, buying a good second hand rifle is a good idea! There are always snipers for sale of UKAN and Arnies Airsoft due to people thinking snipeing would be cool, but then after they have bought the rifle etc. realize that its not for them.
Before you make any purchase you should think carefully about why you want a rifle. Does it really suit your style of play? Would you be lost without the ability to go fully automatic? The best way of finding out is to either borrow a sniper rifle from someone, or just use your AEG on single/burst fire at your next skirmish. This will encourage you to sneak around more, staying concealed and only making shots when you are sure you can hit someone, as you would do if you were using a sniper rifle.
If you discover that snipeing is your thing, I think that the APS 2 would be a good choice of rifle for all the aforementioned reasons. Good luck with any purchase, and happy hunting!
Scores:
Build Quality/Ergonomics - 8/10
Accuracy - 9/10
Range - 9/10
Upgrade Potential - 10/10
Overall - 9/10
Please remember, my rifle came fully upgraded and therefore the above scores apply to the rifle once upgraded, not in stock form
NOTE: Please be aware that there is now a 328fps limit in place at most games sites, please check with your local game site before upgrading any gun, as technically a gun over 328fps should be used strictly for target shooting
ICS M4 RIS - Full Metal:
Reviewed by Alex (A.K.A The Dude)
Weight: 3340g
Length: 778mm (stock retracted)/873mm (stock extended)
Initial Velocity: ~328fps
Firing Rate: 920BB/m
Barrel Length: 375mm
Magazine Capacity: 450 rounds
This ICS M4 RIS is based on the SOPMOD M4A1 (Special Operations Peculiar Modification to the M4 Carbine) it allows for a gun to be easily customised to meet the needs of the owner through the use of an RIS kit (Rail interface kit). What does this mean for the airsoft user? Well it means you are unlikely to get bored of this gun, there are many many upgrade parts available (both internal and external) the possibilities are almost endless.
The gun itself feels very solid and robust, it seems to feel pretty similar in weight to a Maruzen L96 sniper rifle, so it isn't the easiest gun to carry around for a full game days skirmishing, although the weight is very evenly balanced. On first glance i wasn't that impressed with the ICS M4 as the metal receiver although well built seems to be a rather unusual colour... though this has now grown on me.
The gun comes with a carry handle, RIS vertical grip and a replica LAM unit battery box. Having originally thought the LAM was a rather plastic tacky looking addition to the M4, after skirmishing the weapon i realised how useful it can be as the LAM unit can house many different types of batteries ranging from 7.2v - 12v. If you try using standard mini type batteries (8.4v 600mAh) in the ICS M4 they will not last very long, the wiring in ICS guns is not as efficient as that of many other gun manufacturers therefore the larger the battery you use the better. I myself have been running my M4 on 9.6v 1700mAh batteries and two of them will last more than a full days skirmishing for those with a heavy trigger finger like myself. The 9.6v batteries also increase the rate of fire.
The hopup on the ICS M4 is flawless and does not unwind itself like the TM versions. The consistency/grouping of bb's is phenominal, even when firing a long burst on fully automatic at long range, it certainly has the best grouping of any AEG i have ever fired, and i have fired a fair few in my time. I was very impressed when chrono'ing my M4 as it was 328fps/1joule (my site limit) straight out of the box, so there was no need for any upgrades. The ICS M4 features a 'hotswap' gearbox design, this essentially means the gearbox is built in two parts. The upper half containing the spring, piston etc. and the lower containing the trigger mechanism and the gears. This means you can swap the upper gearbox in a matter of seconds to cater for your site limit, and means you can carry a selection of different power upper receivers without needing to change the complete gearbox. The prices of ICS parts are also reasonable, a top half gearbox firing at 328fps costing just £44.99 at Zero One Airsoft. The ICS M4 also features a working cocking button, on the airsoft version this decock's the weapon, by decocking your weapon you leave the spring uncompressed during storage, this prevents the loss of power and is a rather useful feature.
I have the following modifications on my ICS M4: 9.6v batteries, ICS laser (fits into ANS PEQ battery pack), Guarder red dot sight, milforce tactical 3-point sling and back up iron sights (BIUS).
Conclusion:
I have been very impressed with my ICS M4, i would recommend it to all, although the gun is heavy so probably isn't that practical for younger players. It is also quite an expensive airsoft gun to buy when the cost of batteries etc. has been taken into account. It certainly provides good competition with the more expensive Classic Army models. The grouping of the ICS M4 is great, the stock power is also very impressive. I would view it as a good investment for players who skirmish regularly as tokyo marui guns seem to wear out fairly quickly with breaking receiver tabs, gearbox casings etc.
Scores:
Build Quality/Ergonomics - 8/10
Accuracy - 9/10
Range - 9/10
Upgrade Potential - 10/10
Overall - 9/10
We have also made this video so you can see what the ICS M4 is really like, to view the video please check the media section, or Click Here
Tokyo Marui P226 - Gas Blowback:
After getting a little lonely from selling my NBB SOCOM on the forums a few weeks earlier, I began to look for another pistol on the forums. Being confined by somewhat of a budget, options were limited, but I eventually came across a P226 for £50 posted…
However, when the gun arrived, the magazine valve seemed to be somewhat broken. Long story short, I ordered a Nine-ball Hi-flow from fire-support, which is now fitted in the magazine. And so this is how our review begins…
Initial impressions:
The pistol itself is of decent weight, but around half of this weight is located in the magazine. However, this aside, it's remarkably solid. The sights are pre-painted white to aid targeting - a nice little feature over some GBB I have owned in the past. The double action trigger and decocking lever are all fully functional, but the pistol lacks a safety due to these features…at least it does to my knowledge! Not much more to say here really…
Ergonomics:
Again - not a great deal to say! Sits in my hand nicely, the textured grip reducing the amount the pistol slips around, ridges on the slide to aid racking the slide…its all pretty standard stuff to be honest!
Features:
As previously mentioned, the double action trigger and decocking lever are fully functional, adding a nice level of realism to the pistol. Everything you see can be moved and fiddled with! The decocking lever works by slowly releasing the hammer so that when it comes into contact with the gas valve, the force is not great enough to expel any gas. However, if done hastily it is possible to hit the valve with sufficient force to vent some gas, but with minimal care this can be avoided. Once the slide is racked and hammer decocked, the round can then be fired by using the double action trigger to cock the hammer again and fire the round.
The take down feature is also quite nice and simple - simply remove the magazine, flip the switch above the trigger guard and the slide just…well…slides off! Once done, the hop-up can be adjusted without the aid of tools, as per any adjustable hop-up Marui pistol.
Performance:
I did get to use the pistol with the stock valve before it broke - and it was good! After gassing up (using 134a…no green yet L) and loading, the pistol seemed to be kicking out roughly 230ish fps, giving a range of around 30 meters. Accuracy is remarkably good for a GBB, though I have yet to do any precise testing (ran out of gas!). With the hi-flow installed, everything becomes just that bit quicker, from the blowback (which was already fast for 134a) getting sharper to the shots hitting harder. For £15 it certainly seems that the upgrade was worth it!
Upgrades:
There are loads of upgrades available, including hi-flows, full metal slide/frame kits, enhanced loaders, grips, sight inserts, barrels etc. Along with this, replacement parts for several key components seem easy to come by not only on forums but also at various UK retailers. The upgrade potential on these guns is huge!
Conclusion:
The TM P226 is certainly a performer, and I have been very pleased with it so far. Things are only likely to improve if run off green gas (which I have heard it can take reliably), so I guess I should go order some! All in all a solid pistol that's hard to fault with solid performance, plenty of features and good looks
We have also made this video so you can see what the TM P226 is really like, to view the video please check the media section, or Click Here
Ambush Wargames Eversley - Site Review:
Ambush Wargames has now seperated, forming another company, Ambush Adventures. Charlie (Ambush Adventures) now runs the Chobham and Harlow sites, whilst Hustler (Ambush Wargames) runs the Eversley site, this means events can be run far more frequently for all you airsoft addicts. The Eversley site is situated in deep woodland, dense in vegetation, making it ideal for camouflage and concealment and ideal for all you airsoft snipers.
The site shows a great compromise of both long and close quarter skirmishes. It is a very large site and fairly easy to lose your bearings in long wargames, although you'll get used to it after a few trips down there. The staff are very friendly and welcoming, which makes a huge difference! Being able to keep people happy and motivated even when it is absolutely bucketing it down and the war is a complete stalemate!
Last time I visited the Eversley site there was a good mix of new players and experienced team players and I was pleased to report there was no evidence of cheating or 'teflon teddies' I will take this time to remind anyone thinking of visiting the Ambush Wargames sites that they operate a very strict anti-cheat policy, once and your out for good! If you cheat, don't even bother going! Not only will you spoil your day but you will ruin everyone else's.
Tracpac Army Patrol Boots:
(Reviewed by Alex)
The perfect christmas gift...Thinsulate lined patrol boots made by tracpac.
"The main body of the patrol boot is Leather and Condura. They are lightweight and robust boots with a synthetic oil resistant sole."
After skirmishing in old german para-trooper style boots for about five years I thought I deserved a treat. These boots are definately the most comfortable army boots I have ever tried on. The thinsulate padded lining is amazingly comfortable and keeps your feet nice and warm but still allows them to breathe.
The boots themselves retail between £30-40 which is not bad, they are cheaper than the magnum patrol boots, I purchased mine from an online ebay shop. Many people buy cheap boots thinking it won't effect how you skirmish, but after wearing hard leather boots for a days skirmishing you come home with blisters the size of golfballs! It is definately worth investing in some good quality boots. I decided to purchase boots that weren't full leather as I prefer some flexibility when kneeling or going prone that they older style full leather boots don't seem to offer. They also don't really need wearing in, they are comfortable from the start. The only bad thing about these boots is they feel quite clumpy when on, but they do feel very supportive.
Darknightsociety would recommend these Tracpac boots to anyone that wants to skirmish in comfort and style!
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