Captain's Log

Where did [insert site here] go?

Mon, 16 Jan 2012 15:56:00 GMT

In an effort to reduce the 'clutter' in life it was my decision this year to pare down all of the many different websites that I have been running. If you originally typed in 'www.southeastairsoft.com', 'www.seasg.com', 'www.usapsa.com', 'www.pcairsoft.com', 'www.opironjustice.com', or 'www.tangospotted.com' and ended up at www.teamduck.com then you got here on purpose. For too many years I have been sitting on my butt and using websites as my hobby to try to do specific things (airsoft, motorcycles, events, etc). Now that I have started working on a new business as my primary time consumption I found that the time to maintain the side sites is falling. As a result the content on those sites was not getting updated and the site hits were falling off.

Where will the old site content go?

In an effort to preserve the content of the sites I will be moving everything over to this site. Some things may not move but they are items that were not really looked up anyhow. You will see all of the articles of the South East Airsoft sites moved here in the coming days. It will take some time since there were a lot of articles posted there and quite a few good posts on the forums.

Where will the USAPSA matches go?

We will try to start running the matches as Team DUCK matches instead of USAPSA. The USAPSA idea was a dream of mine that other people would be interested in helping to run the organization. As usual in the airsoft community there was little to no response since it wasn't spoon fed to the masses. My time was already becoming limited during the startup of that site with my NRA Instructor program material learning process. That site just never stood a chance.

What will happen to South East Airsoft?

It is defunct. As another dream of mine that users would participate and we would be able to get back to the greatness of the 2005 version of SEA where we were hosting games every year and gaining members every week. Instead all that happened was a bunch of backstabbing and infighting of groups. After who knows how many hours of work and lots of money it just was not going to happen the way I was wanting to see it go. The airsoft community has changed for the worse in the past few years and I am not willing to reduce the site (and the group as a whole) to the point that it appeals to the masses. As a result I just decided to shut it down and move the content to where it belongs, as part of Team DUCK.

Why move it all to DUCK?

Because in 1999 we started PC Airsoft and that eventually became Team DUCK. Since that first weekend of using our (now vintage) TM AEG's at a local paintball field to 'get to know each other' we have been fast friends with excellent support of each other in and out of the airsoft community. We moved away from the airsoft community in 2007 after the great SEA split when it was sold to the group in South Carolina for continuation. We had seen enough of the 'kiddies cheating' attitude portrayed that it was just too much (It was never the 'kiddies', it was the 'adults' that were the problem). After a couple years of doing 'our own thing' we decided to get into airsoft for a different reason. SEA was restarted and supported solely by DUCK. Any content on that site was pretty much DUCK posted or maintained so there is no reason to hide our contributions any more.

Will there be no more OIJ games?

Until there is a need to host a game like we want it hosted, we will be staying out of the hosting of games.

So in conclusion the other sites are gone. More than likely for good. If you are interested in buying the domain name of one of them let me know. I am not in the web business that much anymore so I might be willing to part with a domain if you are nice and offer up some cash. From now on Team DUCK will be the only priority we have. Some of the same features such as articles and reviews will be carried on here. As well as the USAPSA style matches. Don't think of it as losing anything, just think of it as the one stop shop for your needs. If you have any comments or suggestions we are all ears.

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Team DUCKs Tips for Airsoft Starters

Tue, 10 Jan 2012 17:50:00 GMT

We have all read the posts online 'what is the best gun', 'what gear should I get', and of course the famous 'I am starting a team and looking for members'. DUCK decided to put our collective heads together and answer some of the basic questions about airsoft and to impart a few tips for players that are getting started into the sport. This is not an end-all be-all guide to the sport, just a few pointers so by all means go out and research to your heart's content about the sport and get a second opinion.

This is also not just a guide for the questions being asked but as a general rule for players that are about to sink a good portion of funds into a kit. As a general rule do as much research as you can into a subject before investing so much as $1 into it. You will find that $200 spent on something of good quality will be better than $80 spent 3-4 times due to poor design, functionality, or usability every time.

1. What gun should I get?

This is one of the most common questions posed on an airsoft forum and to other players at a field. We will break it down into its major parts to give you an idea what is the best course of action.

What rifle/pistol do you like? Start with a basic style in mind. Other than a few rare items there is likely a replica of all grades and qualities being produced to choose from. Before picking based on looks alone we highly recommend going to a shop or a game and trying a few replicas out. You may find that the TAR you want really looks cool but magazine changes are hard to do prone. You also might find that the uber-leet sniper rifle you want has a bolt pull like prying a nickel out of your grandpas fist. Start your search off by trying out a few weapon systems and really seeing if you want to use it for a long time. Since the weapons all perform similar it is best to decide based on ergonomics instead of immediate performance. Remember that excellent tactics and a rubber knife can defeat a top end rifle and a camper every time.
Quality is a relative term. Most people talk about getting as high a quality replica as you can afford right off the bat. This might be a bit overkill for a started replica that will get used for 5000-8000 rounds before being traded off or replaced by a new or different weapon system. Remember that your tastes may change and the quality of the replica you purchase needs to match your playing needs. Granted if you can afford the Real Sword AK as a starter replica then go for it but it is almost guaranteed that in 6 months you will want to replace it with a different style, model, version, etc. We recommend something in the middle price bracket that is shooting 350fps. Most midgrade replicas shooting 400+fps have a shorter life since the more fps you have the more stress the internals on the replica are under. Most DUCK members start with a midgrade replica with solid stock performance and will do minor tweaks to get it to the level of use that we normally incur. No one runs a System PTW or high end GBBR because we mostly feel that they are not necessary to be able to enjoy the sport since we all seem to be having just as much fun with our midgrade equipment as the top end replica owners do.

2. What gear should I get?

This is the second most common question that we hear at games. People come up to DUCK and look at our gear as a team and ask us what gear they should get for themselves. We would love to do nothing more than sit around and tell you the evolution of our kits over the past 10 years but I am afraid you would be bored to death by year 2.

What role are you going to play? This is a tricky question since you are likely reading this guide as a new player and may not have a role picked out as your primary focus. Assaulters need lots of magazines, recondos need light gear with lots of gadget pockets, and snipers need only a couple magazines and some good camo. There are tons of roles we could define and none of them is better than the other. First thing to do is go to a few games with some players and let them loan you their gear. See whether or not you like the way a CIRAS fits or a DACH goes on and off. Unless you are serious about roleplaying as a SEAL or Recon you have many options to look into for gear selection so take your time and try a few sets out first hand before you buy one from China and and up not liking it. Most of DUCK has a few bins of old gear that we never use anymore because we did just that. We could have saved ourselves the trouble by borrowing a kit from someone else for a game and realizing that it really doesn't work for our play style.
Quality (again) is relative. Buying a China clone CIRAS is not a bad deal if you are not going to be diving, rolling, using the drag handle, and generally loading the vest up with 80lbs of goodies. The quality of a clone is decent enough to use for months of play and can last a long time if cared for. Granted you can always end up with a crappy one but it is more likely that the vest will outlast your interest in it.
Configurability is key. MOLLE is a good way to start so that you can change the configuration of your vest as often as you feel like it. Some best style systems like ALICE can be decently configurable but are not quite as flexible. Omega style vests are solid sewn in place and cannot be configured much if at all. As a new player it is recommended to get something with the ability to be changed around without needing a whole new rig.

3. I am starting a team and looking for members!

Shortly after getting into airsoft there is the want and need for players to start up a team by posting this on a forum. In some ways it is nice that they are looking to work with some like minded players but in others it can really be a detriment to the development of not only their understanding of the sport but their teams understanding as well. Most teams are formed from players that are around the same skill level and experience and if the person is new to the sport that is forming the team then most likely everyone on the team will be similar levels of experience. This means that you have a 'team' that is made up of people that are asking each other the questions about the sport that would be better served being asked of a veteran player or veteran team of players.

Go out to a field. Play with a lot of other players. Meet other teams and see how they operate. Play the sport for a few months or even years before you decide to start a team up. Most likely your area has a lot of teams already existing and they usually have a good variety of players in their ranks. See if you can join them or at the least socialize and work with them at games to learn from them and to get all of your questions answered with a few people's opinions or facts.

Also, having 4 acres at your grandpas farm to play on does not entitle you to become the team leader. Not many veteran players want to play on small undeveloped fields with your 'team' of 3 people so getting veteran players to join you will be hard to accomplish. If you have a place to play and want to host games then work with a veteran team and you may find that they can help you either make it a great location or they can point out why it would be near impossible to make it any good.

This has been fun. We hope to see many new players in the field in the future and we hope that everyone keeps safe and learns a lot about the sport. As always we are always available for airsoft questions over on the South East Airsoft forums if you want to ask us anything.

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Category: Airsoft

Category: Training

Element MagPul CTR Stock

Tue, 10 May 2011 20:07:00 GMT

During research for an upgrade for an AGM M4 GBBR it was noted that the Element MagPul CTR stock might be able to fit the commercial spec buffer tube that was going to be used in the upgrade. A quick run to the local airsoft store netted a new in the box CTR stock to test with.

Top – Element CTR; Bottom – MagPul MOE

First Impressions

Having handled a real steel AR-15 maxed out with MagPul MOE furniture it was noticed that the stock was an exact copy. Not a single detail was left out including the casting marks on the left side. Other than a few small items that were not exactly the same the stock was easily mistaken for the real deal. The color was a slight mismatch but when not next to a real MagPul item it was nearly impossible to know.

Top – MagPul MOE; Bottom – Element CTR

Fit and Function

Considering it takes all of 2 seconds to remove a stock from an AR pattern rifle it was not a problem to swap out the CTR stock onto several different platforms to test the fit. During testing it was fitted to a TM AEG with a slightly loose fit, a MilSpec buffer with a loose fit, an AGM GBBR buffer with a decent fit, and a commercial spec AR buffer with a tight fit (but it did fit). In all it was able to go onto many different models of replica and real steel buffers with fair fitting for the larger of them. With the smallest of the buffers it had a bit of 'slop' that allowed it to rattle around though locking and movement was still good.

Sloppy AEG Fit

Left – Element CTR; Right – MagPul MOE

The locking mechanism on the real CTR is almost impossible to move when it is in place. It is designed to keep the stock from being inadvertently changed in position and to take any 'slop' out of the stock when it is in position. The Element CTR had the locking mechanism but it is easily overpowered by the adjustment lever. In function it barely worked and seemed to be more of an aesthetic item than a functional lock.

Once in position the stock performed excellent. After several drop tests with the smallest buffer to test for slipping it was found to have kept its place with no problems. The locking bar fits positively into all of the buffer assemblies we tried and none allowed it to slip during drop tests.

Conclusion

Though an excellent choice for an airsoft replica this clone stock is not built to the same standards as the MagPul PTS equipment. For the price it would be recommended to get one of the licensed PTS parts with the tighter springs and better tolerances for AEG and MilSpec buffer tubes. Though it is nice to be able to fit the commercial AR tube it is not a necessity for most airsoft replicas.

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Category: Airsoft

Category: Review

Fast Magazine Generation 3

Sat, 09 Oct 2010 22:48:00 GMT

I am always on the lookout for new technology to add to my kit. I was intrigued by the FastMAG clones that are abundant on the market right now. The design looked amazingly simple and rugged. Being ever the one to see something first hand to judge it, I ordered a pair of them from Panhandle Airsoft for a nice low price of $20.

Initial Impressions

Pulling them out of the package, they were noticeably light. After weighing them it showed that the Molle one (the one with the two tabs at the top) was 3.5oz, the duty belt version (minus the tabs) was 3.3 oz. I had expected a bit more considering they are going to be holding onto a 1lb 12oz AGM GBBR magazine (or 1.7oz real steel magazine). The rubber straps that hold the units to the Molle or belt are pretty tight with excellent elasticity and good resistance to stretch. When released they return to their original shape immediately. The plastic was solid and resistant to flex or warping. In all the pouches seemed to be as solid as every seller was claiming. We would see how well they held up to usage.

Fit and Function

With 4 different magazine types to test with it was sure to be a good test of the function of the pouches but first they had to be fitted to a Molle carrier and belt. To start the Molle style pouch was fitted to a Chinese CIRAS clone with horrible fit. Upon closer inspection it was found that the Molle spacing was incorrect on the vest. When fitted to a Spec-Ops OATV vest they were snug and very solid. I put a fairly light AEG Star real-cap magazine into the magazine carrier and found it to be a nice fit. The magazine was fairly low in the carrier and did not stick above it much. Trying a GBBR magazine found it to protrude about 3/4" more than the AEG version. Trying the last two magazines (both real steel) they were able to slide in easily and were locked in with no problems. Overall every magazine that I could dig up was able to fit, even the Magpul Pmag fit in with no wobble and was able to be pulled back out with no difficulty.

AGM GBBR (left) Star AEG (right)

When mounting the belt version onto a 2" Uncle Mikes duty belt it fit decently snug and was able to be slid back and forth on the belt without much problem. The magazines fit the same as the previous Moll test. One thing noted was that when inserting and removing magazines that the rubber fixing strap seemed to have a lot more give to it than the ones that were being held in place by the Molle tabs. This really seemed evident when using the heavier AGM GBBR magazines more so than the lighter real steel or Star magazines.

When we stacked the belt version into the outside of the Molle carrier while attached to the Spec-Ops vest we noted that the inside carrier was a little looser on the magazine. Not enough to cause a failure to hold, but it was a bit easier to remove a magazine without twisting as much. The carriers operated flawlessly stacked together with no other detrimental attributes.

Roll in the Dirt

No test of a magazine carrier would be complete without loading them up and taking them for a drag through the Florida sand. The 4 different magazine types were loaded into the carriers and a simple obstacle course was run including a crawl through sand, a barrier climbing where the magazines would be inverted, and a roll (literally) under a fence from a brisk jog to ensure the maximum rotational speed. After 3 runs through the course the magazines were held in place without any movement. I figured it was because the rubber was likely sticky and clean still so I removed the magazines and poured the carriers full of sand and dirt, rubbed the sand around with my finger to make sure that all of the rubber had been covered, then poured the sand back out. Without cleaning the rubber surfaces off I placed the magazines back into the carrier and reran the course 3 more times. This time I could feel one of the magazines move a bit when I did the roll but it stayed in the carrier. Pretty impressive performance indeed.

6 Months Later

It is now 6 months from the time that I did my first test on these carriers. They have been in constant use since after the first review period and have been working flawless at every game that I have attended. Normally I carry a full load of AGM GBBR magazines so they are pretty heavy. They have been worn in the stacked configuration with a good amount of stress placed on the Molle side carrier due to the extra weight. Normally after 6 months of gaming almost every other weekend plus the training on the side with real steel I retire a piece of airsoft clone gear due to wear and tear but these carriers are as solid as the day they were bought.

Conclusion

Buy a set, try them out. They may not always be for you due to the open top design and hard shell however they are one of the most solid magazine carriers I have ever used. The stack ability of them makes for a versatile and functional piece of equipment. Definitely rated as one of my best purchases of the last year.

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Category: Airsoft

Category: Gear

Category: Review

Element MOE Clone Hand Guard

Sat, 09 Oct 2010 20:20:00 GMT

What can I say, I have been bitten by the Magpul bug. I recently got a real Magpul hand guard for my AR-15 and knew that I had to get one for my replica as well. With no budget to buy another full set of MOE furniture for the replica it was down to clone parts to do the job. Luckily the crew over at Panhandle Airsoft was able to supply a hand guard to satiate the hunger for MOE parts.

First Impressions

Having used the real Magpul components on my real steel AR-15 to excellent effect there were high expectations for the clone parts to meet. Though as always with clone equipment there are concerns with quality and reliability it really wasn't that tall of an order for a mere hand guard. Pretty simply it is a static piece of plastic that should do nothing more than hold its position as much as possible.

The packaging was a simple plastic bag with the hand guard and a pack of rails with nuts and screws inside. A fairly complete setup in all with 3 aluminum rails (2 shorter rails and 1 longer) plus enough nuts and screws to hold them all in place. Immediately noticeable was that the material that the upper and lower panels were made from was much shinier than the original Magpul guards. Color was pretty close to the real component, actually closer than some of the real parts match each other. The outer feeling was a bit slicker than the original guards as well even though the surface was a similar texture. The logos were slightly rounded in the impressions on the side of the upper guard. The plastic on the guards was close to the original unit with exceptions for where the rails would be mounted being thinned down to accommodate the shorter screws.

The pieces could be flexed much easier than real components, no doubt due to the material chosen for construction. How this would stack up under stress was to be seen later.

Top – MagPul MOE; Bottom – Element MOE

Fit and Function

The guards were fitted onto 3 different weapons platforms to test for uniform fit. The first being a real steel AR-15, second a custom AEG with Classic Army M4 forend, and last an AGM M4 GBBR. The AR and AGM were the tightest fits with little to no play existing on them. The AEG forend allowed for a bit of fore and aft movement due to the weaker delta spring but roll was minimal as the guards lined up with the points of the barrel nut to keep it steady. One forend we did have trouble fitting it to was a cheaper China M4 that had a plastic hand guard cap which was too thick for the guards to fit under. No fault of the guards as the cap was designed to work with a different style of guard.

Top – MagPul MOE; Bottom – Element MOE

For function testing the guard was fitted to the AGM M4 GBBR with all three rails attached. The bottom rail was the longest and had a vertical grip attached to it to test for rigidity. The two shorter rails were fitted to the upper two angled panels on the upper guard. The screws were almost too short to reach through the thicker upper guard plastic. With a bit of work they were set in place and ready to test with a flashlight mounted to one and a PEQ box to the other, both weighing around 10oz. A quick firing course was set up that included changing fire stance from left to right shoulder, firing while using the vertical grip as a steady rest (not a recommended idea in games), and turning the light on and off for indoor engagement while using the grip as a holding point while opening a door using the fire control hand. In all trying to put real stresses on the guards with situations that could come up.

To be fair the guards were expected to fail miserably due to the construction and material. As it turns out they performed flawless on all counts. If there is one gripe it is that the screws are too short for mounting the rails on the upper points. A trip to the local hardware store remedied that for around $0.80 and they were on with a nice solid grip. The slick surface begins to wear in after a few hours of usage and the shiny finish also diminishes as it wears in. Considering that these clone grips have seen much more wear than the real ones on my AR it is safe to say that they are pretty darned tough. It would not be recommended to put them on a real rifle as they do appear to be sensitive to heat and they would not work very well with the heat from the has block or gas tube but for replica usage they are an excellent and cheap alternative to the more pricey real versions.

For the "logo whores" out there, you will be happy to know that the unit comes complete with matching logos to the real steel counterpart.

Slightly rounded logo impressions. Real steel markings are much sharper

Conclusion

If you are partial to the MOE style equipment these will fit the bill perfectly. With an excellent fit and finish they are nearly indistinguishable from the real components with a bit of wear. Having used these guards for over 6 months of regular gaming it is safe to say that they will stand a lot of abuse. Cheap components don't usually exceed expectations but these are definitely an exception.

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Category: Airsoft

Category: Review

Element High Speed Motor Review

Fri, 08 Oct 2010 23:02:00 GMT

Now I have been running gas replicas for the better part of the 10+ years that I have been playing airsoft and I love them… I really do. But there is just something about the reliability of those electrics that always has me keeping one or two in my collection for those cold winter days or close quarter games where I need super reliability for every shot. Having only recently gotten into the CQB fad of replicas I found that my super short M4 was severely lacking comparative to the standard 'BB hoses' that are now the norm. Raptors Airsoft was there to remedy that problem though. They were nice enough to let me review the Element High Speed motor for the M4 (Long type V2) and to get my shorty ready for the upcoming OP: FEAR.

First Impressions

This is a very solid motor. For the first few rotations by hand I was almost sure that there was something wrong with the magnets on the inside as it was very hard to turn over. Once I applied power to it I was shocked that it spun quite as fast as it did. Turns out that the reason it is hard to turn is that the magnets are more powerful and different spacing than a regular or high torque setup that I am used to. The build quality is excellent all over. With a plastic bell housing holding a bearing for the axle it is at least as good as a Systema motor in that respect. The plastic is very heat tolerant. Application of a red hot metal pin does not cause a lot of damage, in fact it practically absorbs all of the heat immediately and retains excellent shape. This is a requirement for heat dissipation from the bearing.

The bell housing is also fully insulating brush points from the body because of the plastic material. The screws that hold the brush mounts are also insulated from the mounts with insulating washers similar to the Systema motor I was comparing it to. In all the motor was very solid and the magnets extremely powerful for the size. It was able to pick up a case of 24 drill bits through the plastic housing they were encased in.

The body of the motor is a simple metal housing with what appears to be powder coat covering all exposed pieces of it. The axle is perfectly straight and extremely rigid. It has the ability to flex and return to shape from about a .5mm bend and not have any retention of the bending perceptible. Spinning freely the motor is practically scary as it tried to jump out of my test bracket every time I flipped the switch. In all I was very impressed with the overall quality and build construction of the motor.

Testing

Testing was conducted using System standard ratio gears on 7mm bushings in a V2 gearbox using a CA polycarbonate piston. The switch was a standard TM with 16ga wires run to the motor and battery using Tamiya large connectors. The motor was housed in a M4/M16 grip.

As most of you know I love to test things until they break. Well this was no exception, but it was not the motor that broke, it was everything else! My testing was going to be a scientific measurement of rounds per second (RPS) measured at using 3 different voltages (8.4v, 9.6v, 12v), 2 different motors (a Systema High Torque and the Element High Speed… I know, apples to oranges), and 3 different springs (M90, M100, M120). I was planning to use a voltmeter and ammeter to measure amp draw and current battery voltage during the tests.

As it turns out the first test went good right up until the Element motor was hooked up. I was able to test the motors against each other using the M90 spring and 3 different voltages with no problems except I was not able to test amps draw. The Element motor exceeded the 25amp limit that my current meter had on it and let the 'magic blue smoke' out of it, leaving me with a fried meter. Still that didn't slow the testing down since I was really here to measure RPS and not amps.

Testing continued and the numbers for the two motors were virtually identical while pushing 8.4v through them.

Motor	Voltage	Spring	Rounds per second	% Difference
Element	8.4	M90	17	0%
Systema	8.4	M90	17	0%
Element	9.6	M90	25	12%
Systema	9.6	M90	22	12%
Element	12	M90	27	11%
Systema	12	M90	24	11%

In all I was expecting more of a pronounced difference in speeds at such a low spring pressure. I was wanting to see such a difference that it would be obvious that the high speed motor made a big difference.

Failures (not on the motors part)

When the battery voltage was bumped up to 9.6v the first failure occurred and the gearbox housing cracked along the front edge of the cylinder. Pieces of the cylinder head went flying along with the front half of the tappet plate. A week and a half later I finally received my replacement gearbox, this time a heavily reinforced one so that it would survive the test. I also was waiting another week for a new ammeter with a 50A shunt on it that would allow me to test the amps finally. Long story short the ammeter was a dud twice from the company and they were a pain to work with so for this review we are going to have to do without amperage results. These little setbacks and investments have pretty much sealed this as the most expensive ancillary costs that I have ever put into a review. Anyhow, back to reviewing and speed testing!

Tests Conclusion

The tests were repeated with the M100 and M120 springs with no more major setbacks. Here are the results.

Motor	Voltage	Spring	Rounds per second	% Difference
Element	8.4	M100	15	0%
Systema	8.4	M100	15	0%
Element	9.6	M100	22	13%
Systema	9.6	M100	19	13%
Element	12	M100	24	12%
Systema	12	M100	21	12%
Element	8.4	M120	12	-7%
Systema	8.4	M120	13	-7%
Element	9.6	M120	18	5%
Systema	9.6	M120	17	5%
Element	12	M120	22	10%
Systema	12	M120	20	10%

Speed

As the above chart indicates, the high speed motor compared against a high torque motor doesn't really seem to show a major difference at first. Then again 11% is a pretty big difference when you are talking about rounds per minute instead of rounds per second. At 24rps an AEG is putting 1440 rounds downrange per minute. Adding 11% onto that amount gets you 1620 rounds per minute. Coupling these well built high speed motors with other high speed components is a safe bet to get your rps through the roof. I ran this test using standard gears and standard piston to show that even in stock configuration that there is a difference between the high speed and high torque motors. As the pressure on the springs increase however the difference begins to lessen and even reverse above the M130 range in the lower voltage category (as seen in the 8.4v M120 test). Kept in the low spring pressure bracket these motors excel at what they were designed for, speed. Push them past their design limits and you will suffer drawbacks

Durability

This was something of a subjective test and cannot be quantified with a lot of accurate numbers. What I was able to gather though is that the motor is very durable and a solid performer. As a test of durability I used the motor with an M100 spring and 8.4v NiMh battery combination along with a box mag at the OP: FEAR game for 24 hours straight as a semi-support role. In 24 hours I changed the battery one time (at around 4000 rounds fired) and expended over 5500 rounds in sustained bursts (2-4 seconds). The grip never got hot and the motor was extremely efficient at using what little power it was using. After the game was over I pulled the motor out to inspect it and check for wear. In all the motor looked almost exactly like it did before the game and the many rounds pumped through it. The motor bevel gear showed minor smoothing on the faces of the gears and no rounding of the teeth. It appeared the surfaces mated quite well with the Systema gear set.

Conclusion

Overall I would have to say this is one of the most interesting reviews I have done in a while. I was expecting a bit more impressive results but it really is impressive that with minor tweaking to the same motor design that you can get more than 10% increases almost across the board with the same style of parts. For the price bracket you cannot go wrong with the Element motors as they can cost as little as half as much as their competitors yet they pack the same features and performance. In all this motor is a solid performer with excellent characteristics to build your next 'BB hose' on.

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Category: Airsoft

Category: Review

Army of Two Mask Review

Fri, 23 Jul 2010 19:45:00 GMT

As quoted by the Raptors Airsoft on Ebay here is a description of the Army of Two mask that was purchased.

These Masks are durable, light weight, and are one of the most intimidating masks on the market.

Features:

Eyes are made out of 22 gauge wire mesh to prevent a BB from Penetrating.
Foam cushion pads located inside the mask provide a comfortable fit
Spider type 5 point strap
Designed to allow for maximum airflow
Is rubber coated on the interior to avoid a "fiberglass smell"
Never fogs up because of mesh design
Mask comes matte-black so you can easily paint it.
Note:You must wear goggles or safety glasses under the mask.

I got this mask for an all indoors CQB game where full face protection is required. The only other times I have used full face masks was my MCU/2P gas mask with the protective lens cover. Considering that this game was for a summer day and 24 hours I knew I had to get something a lot cool, light, and antifog; 3 things that a gas mask is not. I have seen these masks at games before and the intimidation factor is pretty decent. First of all because you can barely see the users eyes through the mesh so it appears to be a hole in the mask where the eyes are supposed to be. Quite an interesting sight when you are not expecting it.

First Impressions

The material is almost a rubbery texture. The documentation that came with it was simple and full of 'engrish' along with a lot of Russian and Chinese characters. The mask is light (6.7oz) and flexible. There is no smell or odor apparent on it from any of the materials. The straps stretched slightly and returned to shape quite well. The back pad for the strap system is solid with the 2" webbing being folded over the elastic, holding it in place with no movement under stretching. The foam in the mask is closed cell and quite dense. When placed against the face they became barely noticeable after only a few minutes of usage. The mesh appeared to be a bit light though it appeared to be solidly mounted into the eye cups and was not able to be moved about with pressure placed on them. The overall black coloration of the material is dark and extremely dull. No fear of reflected light from this mask at all. In all it felt solid.

Wear Test

This is a simple test I devised for my gear reviews that simply looks for weaknesses with the product before fielding it for the first time. Mostly it involves running approximately a mile while wearing the gear item and performing various tasks. The mask actually performed well overall including after I started to sweat heavily in the 94 degree 90% humidity weather. It stayed pretty secure with minor movement or refitting needed. One complaint is the position of the strap over my ears. It began to rub a bit after the second half of the mile. In general though it performed much better than any gas mask I have ever tried and it much cooler than the neoprene ones that are seen around now. I am sure later on I will modify the position of the mount points and probably rebuild the strapping entirely but for light to moderate usage this mask will work perfect.

I also wore three kinds of glasses under this unit to see what would be comfortable. By far the wraparound shooting glasses were almost undetectable once the mask was in place. The rubber did not contact the frame so there was no undue pressure on them. A second set of standard prescription glasses with frames that fit into the Bolle T800 also were untouched by the foam padding and were comfortable to wear. The last set was an average size set of aviation sunglasses. They contacted the upper foam enough to put a bit of pressure on the bridge of the nose but were not entirely unusable as a little adjustment of the straps took a lot of the stress off of the glasses. In all it can fit a wide variety of glasses under the eye section. The note that the retailer has with the product recommends wearing eye protection under the mesh and after the following test you will see why. At least it is comfortable to wear them.

Shot Test

Now comes the part where I get to break things. For this test I was planning to push the eye protection portion to the breaking point in order to get an idea where this mask would be usable at. The second half of the test was to see if the material that the mask itself was made from could withstand the same punishment.

The photos with this article tell the whole story. Each shot was made at 3" away from the mask. With a .25g @ 300fps (1j) the mask dented around 2.5mm from the mesh plane and the mesh itself indented another 1.5mm from the original plane. 3 following shots were made to find the failure point for repeated shots until the bb went through the mesh. The second shot speed was .28g @ 380fps (1.9j). The first shot was a bio bb and resulted in the round completely falling apart upon impact. The dent was about 2mm with no change in overall indentation. The second shot with non-bio .28g @380fps (1.9j) ended with the round nearly penetrating the mesh. The bb was a little under 3.5mm in the mesh with a 1mm change in mesh plane indentation. The last shot was a shoe in for failure with a .43g @ 370fps (2.8j). The round made a nice clean hole in the mesh with little slowdown. It maintained enough energy to embed itself 4 layers deep in the cardboard sheets that were used as a backstop. Granted no one expects to be shot point blank with a sniper rifle at that range but finding the failing point of the eye protection was a priority.

.2g non-bio @ 300fps

.29g bio @380fps

.28g non-bio @ 380fps

.43 non-bio @ 375fps

The second test was to shoot various places on the mask with the same sniper rifle to find weak points and see if the mask could be overcome on the solid sections. The 'teeth' and 'nose' holes were easily penetrated when the bb was fired directly at them at .25g @300fps (1j). It appeared to maintain quite a bit of energy when fired through the teeth holes. It would be a good recommendation to put some mesh behind this section to beef it up. The damage holes in the upper portion of the mask were defeated by .28g @ 380fps (1.9j). The rest of the mask was unable to be defeated by everything including the .43g @ 370fps (2.8j) with up to 3 shots placed on the same spot. In fact the mask didn't have a single mark to show for all of it as the material returned to shape perfectly after every round.

3 shots point blank w/ .43g @ 375fps

Conclusion

This is a good buy for the money. At half the cost of the competing masks that are much more rigid and heavy it will be an asset to anyone that doesn't mind taking a couple minutes of time to add some better lenses and a bit more protection from direct shots around the mouth and nose holes. Even in the stock for it is adequate protection for low power CQB games (less than .2g @ 280fps - .72j) and can provide far better protection than just a neoprene mask can offer at almost any speed.

NOTE: Until the mesh is replaced it is still recommended to maintain the use of eye protection under the mask.

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Category: Airsoft

Category: Review

A&K M-Series Box Magazine Review

Wed, 21 Jul 2010 17:52:00 GMT

Everyone runs into a situation once in a while that just can't be solved with a real capacity magazine, or a mid cap, or even a hi-cap. Once in a great while you just need a drum or box magazine to get things done. Well in search of a great deal on a rarely used component (for me that is, your mileage may vary) I came across something I just HAD to try. 5000 rounds at my disposal sounded too good to be true for the low price it was selling for so I had to try one out.

First Impressions

After giggle for a few minutes when I opened the box I finally picked it up and it was light… very light in fact. It felt like it was missing some parts. Nothing rattled or made any undue noise and it appeared that all the parts were there but it just felt off. I have felt TM hi-caps with more meat than this box. Does it affect performance? Not at all, in fact it makes it much better when you fill it with 5000 rounds. The surface of the magazine is a dull olive drab color with smooth lines and a solid feel (albeit light). I took the time to slap it in my G&P bodied M4 and it looked right at home. It snapped in perfectly and had very little play. Granted the realism of this type of box magazine is minimal as there is no real equivalent to compare it to. Normally this style of box is used with something similar to the Shrike or Ares platform that uses a system akin to the M249 where a belt of ammunition feeds into the gun from the side, not as this magazine does with a standard vertical feed mechanism. It still just has a nice appearance and 'cool factor' of housing 5000 rounds.

Operation

This is a very simple design. The only moving part is a door that allows you to transfer bb's from the lower compartment into the upper compartment when 'reloading' the magazine. According to the documentation it holds 2000 rounds in the upper section and 3000 in the lower. Since I am surprisingly low on bb's I was unable to verify this claim but I was able to put EVERY bb I had in my large canister into it easily and at last estimate it was around 3500 rounds. Filling is done through a large door on the back of the box. It opens large enough to quickly fill the upper magazine portion with rounds. Once the top portion is about half full I recommend that you close the outer door and start transferring the rounds to the lower storage portion in order to fill it easier. Transferring bb's is done by rolling the magazine towards the right side and turning the knob on the back of the box to 'Open' then shaking and slowly righting the magazine to vertical again. To fill the feeding (top) section of the magazine just reverse the motion. To wind it you simple turn the wheel on the bottom of the magazine just like a standard hi-cap.

Testing

Testing was a very simple run of approx 500 rounds through the magazine. The rounds were .25 Stealth bb's, a very smooth bb that is prone to double feeds if the magazine spring has too much pressure placed on them. In this case the magazine fed perfectly through all rounds. No double feeds, no missed rounds during firing as long as the spring was still wound. It fired around 100 bb's per winding for the first 200 rounds and then was followed by much longer strings of rounds, most likely as the assembly started to break in.

Overall

As a price for the buck this magazine is a bargain. After pulling it apart it was apparent that there was plenty of room to add a servo motor for upgrading it to a motorized magazine later on and I can't wait to do that mod down the road. In all I rate this magazine extremely high on the dollars to fun scale. Pick one up today!

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Category: Airsoft

Category: Review

5KU WA NPAS Review

Sat, 20 Mar 2010 22:52:00 GMT

Overview of how the NPAS works

The NPAS system of nozzles for GBB rifles is an interesting design. Normally the nozzles that come stock in GBBRs are of a positive system meaning that the valve inside the nozzle is kept in an open state during the initial firing of the BB until the pressure in the barrel drops enough that the gas pressure overcomes the gas/spring pressure that is keeping it open. Once the valve moves forward and closes the system will begin to push the bolt carrier to the rear and begin the cycle. What the NPAS does is allow the distance and spring pressure that the valve has to move to be adjusted. When adjusted fully open the valve is further from the closed position and will allow more pressure to flow into the barrel and thus give a higher BB speed before the valve closes off. The reverse is true when the NPAS has been adjusted to an almost fully closed state. Less gas is directed into the barrel and before it begins the carrier cycle.

First Impressions

In comparison to the RA-Tech NPAS system it is easy to notice that the 5KU is not quite as smooth or refined. The molding and plastic almost appears to be cracked (as can be seen in the images) though that is simply a molding defect. The plastic itself feels a bit more brittle than the RA-Tech version as well. During the firing test the nozzle keeper cracked into two pieces due to the brittle nature of the material.

Testing

Testing was conducted at 70 degrees F. The NPAS was installed into two separate bolts. The first is a brand new AGM carrier that has less than 1,000 shots on it. The coating is still brand new in the cylinder area of the carrier. The second is an AGM carrier that has been turned .0001" over the original diameter of the cylinder then polished out with 1000 grit sandpaper and final polished to a mirror shine. This treatment generally increases consistency and overall smoothness to the firing cycle.

I used .25g Inertia BB's (mainly because I have a ton of them and they are super slick). Since this test was less about FPS and more about adjustability they would work fine. All FPS can be adjusted for weight by calculating the FPS using the TeamDUCK FPS calculator. Shot strings were 9 rounds with 10 seconds between shots. The magazine was reloaded and topped off with gas in between strings and allowed to return to ambient temperature for 5 minutes. Before the 1st shot was fired the bolt was fired through 2 strings of 25 shots in order to check for any inconsistencies and to make sure that the magazine was at operating temperature.

After the first 25 rounds were fired I found that the nozzle keeper had broken. The plastic cracked right in half (see picture). Luckily the stock AGM keeper worked fine as a replacement. The bolt carrier was fairly tight with the new oring on the nozzle, though that appeared to be a good thing when firing. According to the charts below, the tight bolt carrier outshot the smoother one in FPS though the smooth one was more consistent overall with less problems and tighter deviation.

One thing I ran into several times while firing was that the NPAS would slowly adjust itself during the shot string. This resulted in having to restart the string again to make sure it didn't move. A very small bit of blue Loc-tite would cure this problem. The only real problem that was found was that the flute valve had a tendency to get out of place during firing, resulting in a shot string to go completely awry. What appeared to be happening is that the flute was able to move into the gas opening during firing and come out of place. It was simple enough to replace it but the consistency was gone. I found that when the flute was adjusted it helped to make sure that the arms were perpendicular to the gas opening (i.e. away from the opening as much as possible) in order to keep it from slipping out the gas feed. After figuring this out and reshooting the bad strings of shots everything worked fine.

Adjustment is simple and sure. Just remove the bolt from the replica and insert the key into the nozzle opening and slowly turn it until it engages the flute valves tip. Turn the valve to clockwise to increase FPS and counterclockwise to decrease it.

In all this is a super value. Time will tell how durable it really is but for the low cost of the 5KU NPAS you can guarantee that you will be able to play at your next fields game regardless of the FPS limits.

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Category: Airsoft

Category: Review

AGM Loose Bolt Catch Fix

Thu, 11 Mar 2010 18:27:00 GMT

Symptoms

Bolt locks back seemingly at random during firing
Bolt locks back if replica is turned toward left side during firing or cycling
Bolt does not stay back if replica is shaken or jostled slightly

Cure

This is a relatively easy fix. You will need no tools or special items, just a small piece of plastic, metal, or wood about 2mm in diameter and about 2mm long. I have found that the smallest plastic zip ties that I stock seem to be the perfect fit. Please read the instructions through a couple of times before attempting this procedure.

Step 1

Remove upper receiver from replica.

Push the take down pin (rear receiver pin) out from the left side
Tip receiver up. While supporting the upper receiver push the pivot pin (the pin it is rotating on) out from the left side.

Step 2

Remove magazine catch from receiver.

Push the magazine release button as far into the receiver as possible.
Grab the catch on the opposite side and turn it counter-clockwise (lefty-loosy) until it is removed.
Remove button from left side of receiver

Step 3

Remove bolt stop housing from receiver. Pull straight up on housing and it should come out easily.

Step 4 (optional)

Remove bolt catch.

Remove pin from bolt catch. Tap or press the pin out with a small punch.
Remove the bolt catch by pulling it out straight up. You may have to rock it a tiny bit to get it out.

Step 5 (optional)

Smooth out bolt catch and bolt catch housing where the two touch. We have found some replicas have machining and casting marks that interfere with the movement of the bolt catch. Smooth it with 400 grit paper or higher.

Step 6

Reinforce spring.

When looking at the bolt catch housing you should see a small hole drilled in the left (bolt catch paddle) side of the block. In it there is a spring and a plunger.
Take your small piece of 2mm stock and insert it into the hole from the spring side. You should see the plunger stick out from the opposite side now. Do not use too much material or the plunger will not be able to compress the spring. Make sure the plunger can move freely and easily.

Step 7 (optional if you removed the bolt catch)

Replace Bolt Catch

Place bolt catch back into position on the housing.
Push the pin back into the hole in the opposite direction as before. You should see some small knurling on the shaft of the pin that will indicate the last part that should be inserted. On the replicas we have worked on the knurling is on the back (trigger mechanism) side of the housing so you will insert the smooth half of the pin first from that side.

Step 8

Verify that the newly reinforced spring and plunger will allow the bolt catch to move freely but will also hold it in the 'down' position without too much force. If the bolt catch is hard to move you will want to relieve some of the pressure from the spring by removing some of the material.

Step 9

Replace bolt catch housing. Insert it from the top of the lower receiver. Make sure your material is not going to get compressed in the process and bind the spring and plunger. Move the bolt catch from the up and down positions several times to make sure it moves easily.

Step 10

Insert the magazine release spring in the left side of the receiver.
Place the button over the spring and press down so that both are inside the receiver.
From the opposite side, insert the threaded end of the magazine catch and turn it clockwise until it has to be pulled forcefully to clear the bolt catch. Align the magazine catch with the matching slot.
Push the magazine release button to verify smooth operation.

Step 11

Replace upper receiver onto lower.

Align the pivot pin holes and press the pin through from the right side.
Align the take down pin holes and press the pin through from the right side.

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