All rights are reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the express permission of the publisher in writing. The opinion of the writers do not necessarily reflect those of the publisher. The editor reserves the right to edit submissions prior to publication.
8 ARMOURY: BOLT AIRSOFT B4A1 ELITE DX MAS GBBR
BOLT AIRSOFT are best known for their hard-kicking BRSS recoil AEGs but over the past few years the Taiwanese team have been diligently moving into new territory, looking to the world of the GBBR to take their next step forward… and what a step it is! Bill has been following their long path to creating the MEGA AIRFLOW SYSTEM (MAS) which has now evolved into a cracking series of gas AR replicas.
18 ARMOURY: CLPD/ARES REVOLVERS
Normally our “Man in Taiwan” Stewbacca is a strong proponent and experienced user of the likes of the all mod-cons polymer-framed striker-fired service pistols such as his much loved Walther family, as well as his myriad Glock & HKs… so what happens when you throw him back into the fray with an old school wheelgun, which is very much not his wheelhouse?
26 ARMOURY: ARCTURUS VANGUARD/SA PRIME J
Every so often we get a great primary/secondary combo to get onto the field and onto the range to evaluate, and it’s hard to fit everything in even to 100 pages each month! So it is that this month we bring you a “double header” from Miguel as he looks at two very different platforms that actually complement one another perfectly!
34 ARMOURY: PROJECT STACATTO PII
After introducing PROJECT STACATTO in the last issue of AIRSOFT ACTION this time Boycie, Tim C and L’il Stu move things on by looking at optic choices, and a new model that works equally well with both “the real” and the replica version of the STACATTO P!
42 TECH: BREYTAC GRENADES
Once again we’re joined by one of our newer “Legionnaires” from the USA, a player that’s proving himself to be not just a committed MilSimjunky, but also one heck of a writer with some great insights to playing the game as he believes it should be played! This month Matt looks at “’nades”, and specifically an upgrade to the venerable Thunder B…
62 TECH: VANGUARD SOLUTIONS SPEEDLOADER PRO
Bill spends a LOT of time on the range, come rain or shine, and he’s one of those guys that will embrace technology when it helps him! A chance meeting during the summer led to him getting his hands on the latest Vanguard Speedloader, and after several months of using it he’s come away VERY impressed!
72 AA LEGION: TAIWAN
The Ding Ding Cup is a lower intensity “gateway” competition intended to get new participants interested in the competitive shooting circuit by giving them a taste of how things run, without them having to be certified or a member of a local team or training outfit as is typically the case with the more established and formalised IPSC & IDPA disciplines. What did 2025’s iteration have to offer?
88 AA LEGION SPECIAL REPORT: AAWWS III
Hailing from a mostly non-permissive environment in the UK, Stewbacca’s not often had the chance to get behind real firearms since training on them more regularly more years ago than he cares to mention, but while in the Philippines for the World Shoot, he had the opportunity to make up for some lost time, and had time to ponder on how “airsoft experiences” translated to the real thing!
50 THE AA CELL: MOST-USED PLATFORMS 2025
RED CELL has now been wrapped up, but the group that put it all together is still very much active, so without further ado let’s bring in the AA Legionnaires again in the AA CELL to carry on all the great work they’ve done over the past few years; what better way to kick this into gear then by the guys sharing their thoughts on the platforms, both AEG and GBB that they’ve used to most during the course of 2025!
66 GEAR: CYGNUS ARMORY PROTECTION
Whilst intentional “head shots” are generally frowned upon by most sensible players (unless it’s the only shot to take!), the fact is that in the heat of our “6mm battles” there’s always the chance that you’re going to take a BB to the noggin! More and more of us are resorting to helmets and “facepro” to mitigate these sometimes-painful “bleeders”, and Miguel is here to tell us about the latest from CYGNUS ARMORY!
82 AA LEGION: PORTUGAL
It’s pretty obvious to us that airsoft in Portugal works differently to many other countries, and from Miguel’s regular reports of games and events that take place there it appears almost positively unique given its strong and resilient community-oriented player-base! With EXPOAIRSOFT 2025 soon to happen, this month he illustrates this wonderful “airsoft community spirit” yet again!
98 AA LEGION SHOW REPORT: MOA EXPO 2025
It’s always a great moment when the international show season kicks off properly with the first major event on our calendar, and MOA EXPO 2025 certainly didn’t disappoint! Bill joined Stewbacca in Taipei for this year’s show, and with the able support of Anny they saw a whole host of new airsoft products, and new innovation, so it’s time to get the lowdown!
BOLT ON!
BOLT AIRSOFT ARE BEST KNOWN FOR THEIR HARD-KICKING BRSS RECOIL AEGS BUT OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS THE TAIWANESE TEAM HAVE BEEN DILIGENTLY MOVING INTO NEW TERRITORY, LOOKING TO THE WORLD OF THE GBBR TO TAKE THEIR NEXT STEP FORWARD… AND WHAT A STEP IT IS! BILL HAS BEEN FOLLOWING THEIR LONG PATH TO CREATING THE MEGA AIRFLOW SYSTEM (MAS) WHICH HAS NOW EVOLVED INTO A CRACKING SERIES OF GAS AR REPLICAS.
Anyone that’s been in airsoft for a while will know BOLT, and their Bolt Recoil Shock System (BRSS), a patented technology from the Taiwanese AEG-meisters that creates realistic recoil in battery-driven platforms, mimicking the kick of a real firearm by transferring the piston’s kinetic energy to a weight in the stock tube. The BRSS is known for providing a substantial, authentic “thump” or “kick”, making our AEGs feel much more immersive and similar to a GBB rifle.
Whilst BOLT AEGs are fabulous things to look at, and externally top-notch, let’s be honest, BOLT has not been without its share of controversy, as sometimes that “kick” was just a bit TOO much, putting such levels of stress on the other parts of the internal “OS” as to quite literally shake the platform to bits… things thankfully have moved on, and BRSS AEG platforms these days have become ever-more refined and durable, and I have a couple in my armoury that have proved to be real winners!
producing what we all now know as the MEGA AIRFLOW SYSTEM or simply MAS.
I personally first saw the MAS in the flesh when I last visited Taiwan in 2023, and even then it was a pretty fully-fledged working system; sitting with Tomy in his little boardroom in Taipei he presented me with a thoroughly modernlooking AR that looked and felt fabulous… it was only when he said “cock it” that I realised that I was looking at something new and unique, not another electric recoil carbine, but a fullyfunctional prototype of his own personal “holy grail”, the first BOLT GBBR… and did it “kick”? Oh my, yes it most certainly did!
For that point forward BOLT’s goal was to distil their all-new MAS into the best platform that they could possibly create, and looking to the wellrespected MWS platforms they tried to work out how they could make it even better, to improve component durability to perform in all conditions,
on the respected MWS ZET System, and it aimed from concept-stage forward to offer an enhanced, more durable, and ultimately more reliable version of the MWS design.
Key features of the MAS include:
• MWS compatibility: The MAS system is a clone of the Tokyo Marui MWS ZET System, meaning it shares the same platform for M4/AR-15-style gas blowback airsoft guns. This provides a wide range of aftermarket parts compatibility.
• Mega Airflow System (MAS): This proprietary system includes several enhancements to the bolt carrier and gas systems.
• Anti-bounce bolt: A new feature prevents the bolt from bouncing forward after cycling, which improves shot-to-shot consistency.
• Redesigned bolt group: The bolt carrier has
“FOR TOMY AND WILSON AT BOLT THOUGH, BOTH STILL PART
BOLD”
OF THE “OLD AND
PLAYER COMMUNITY LIKE ME, IT’S ALWAYS BEEN ABOUT “THAT KICK”, ABOUT GIVING FELLOW PLAYERS A THOROUGHLY IMMERSIVE AND SATISFYING SHOOTING EXPERIENCE, AND TO DATE THAT’S BEEN ACHIEVED BY TAKING THE AEG ROUTE”
Strong, realistic recoil: In line with BOLT Airsoft’s reputation, the MAS GBBR offers a powerful and satisfying gas blowback recoil.
• Durable construction: The rifles feature full alloy, steel, and high-strength polymer construction for durability and realistic weight.
Going into a little more depth here, the BOLT MAS GBBR comes in a number of their existing (and striking!) designs including those licenced by Daniel Defense, making use of alloy, steel, and polymer for durability and realistic weight/ feel. Internally there are numerous upgrades compared to the standard MWS system, and it’s a pretty comprehensive overhaul to say the very least!
There’s that new buffer spring to reduce wear on internal components, the anti-bounce bolt for consistent, long-term performance, a
compatibility between different manufacturers’ systems.
Again, diving deeper, what you get is currently a STANAG-style magazine that holds 35 BBs that works seamlessly in conjunction with the BOLT MAS, with a proprietary internal design that enhances recoil, gas efficiency, and reliable bolt catch function after the last shot, features which were developed to compete with and improve upon existing GBB systems… bottom line is that the new magazine works in complete harmony with the MAS’ redesigned bolt carrier and gas system to provide stronger recoil, superior gas efficiency, and higher firing rates compared to other models!
FIELD NOTES
But don’t just take my word for this! Along with my own example of the new Bolt GBBR being tested
“THE PRIMARY DIFFERENCE ABOUT THE BOLT MAS MAGAZINE IS THAT IT HAD BEEN DESIGNED FROM THE GROUND-UP AS PART OF A WHOLE-RIFLE SYSTEM THAT IS COMPATIBLE WITH THE MWS ZET GBB PLATFORM, ALLOWING CROSS-COMPATIBILITY BETWEEN DIFFERENT MANUFACTURERS’ SYSTEMS”
from Japan either by individuals (or airsoft shops on their behalf) and given the recent legal changes regarding importing anything gunpart-related in Taiwan this has caused logistical bottlenecks, magazines being a particular sticking point for many in terms of adequate supply.
“All the BOLT Daniel Defense models are officially licensed by the manufacturer, so they have the most realistic appearance with regards to trademarks, furniture and colouration of
back system, easily worn screws on the bolt, and sticking trigger mechanism, to make them more reliable as well as increasing the output power and recoil experience beyond what can be achieved within Japanese restrictions. Additionally, the magazine capacity is increased by approximately 30% in terms of green gas; the vaporisation reaction is excellent, and the gas output is greater than the MWS magazine, while the weight difference is minimal.
“I INITIALLY TOOK THE CARBINE TO MY USUAL 30M WOODLAND RANGE TO CHRONO AND TEST, AND IN TERMS OF POWER I GOT A CONSISTENT 1.03 JOULE/339FPS ON A .20G BB USING GREEN GAS, AND MOVING UP TO .30G
between the charging handle and bolt carrier group is a little wider than usual which can lead to slight misalignment and nozzle damage during the loading of BBs from the magazine feed lips. No doubt such things will be ironed out in BOLT’s usual iterative fashion over the longer term as they build a wider range of available models off their common core operating system.”
Many thanks to Ben for his valued input here, and for sharing his thoughts and experiences in
a proper hammering, and it just came back for more. Moving into the more recent cold-weather months I’ve moved up to VORSK V8, and the performance has remained unaltered, even on the chilliest of mornings.
Although the BOLT magazine undoubtedly gives the best performance given that it has been designed perfectly in tandem with the MAS, I have tried genuine MWS magazines from my testing collection in the platform, along with some of
“I HONESTLY, GENUINELY FEEL THAT TOMY AND WILSON ARE VERY CLOSE INDEED TO ACHIEVING THEIR GOAL OF “ULTIMATE RECOIL” GIVEN CURRENT TECHNOLOGY AND GAS PERFORMANCE PARAMETERS, AS THE MAS DOES INDEED HAVE “THAT KICK”!”
the newer “MWS clone mags” at my local airsoft store, and by and large all of them work well. This is absolutely brilliant news for owners and users as it means that if you get yourself a BOLT MAS rifle or carbine and already own MWS-compatible mags, then you’re all set, and conversely if you have an MWS-compatible platform from another manufacturer then the higher-performing BOLT mags should work in that too… add to this that the latest well-priced NUPROL MWS-compatible magazines that we saw at MOA should be landing early next year, and things just continue to get better!
Now I will admit that the B4A1 ELITE DX handguard that’s carried over from the BRSS model has never been my cup of tea, but swapping this out for a drop-in rail system is a super-quick fix… so yeah, I did this and then bolted-on all my usual accessories (holo sight, taclite and PEQ-15, foregrip and ladder rail covers) to create a pretty darn respectablelooking “M4-alike”.
Once set up the way I liked it, it was off to the woods with the BOLT MAS! I initially took the carbine to my usual 30m woodland range to chrono and test, and in terms of power I got a consistent 1.03 Joule/339fps on a .20g BB using green gas, and moving up to .30g BBs the accuracy was excellent throughout testing, hitting the steels each and every time. Subsequently, when running barricade drills the standard “14.5” configuration was instantly comfortable, and
“I FEEL THAT BOLT HAVE REALLY BROUGHT SOMETHING QUITE REMARKABLE TO THE GBBR ARENA, AND WITH THE DIFFERENT STYLES ALREADY ON OFFER, SOME OF WHICH STEWBACCA AND I HAD CHANCE TO GO LIVE WITH AT THE MOA EXPO RANGE DAY WITH WILSON, THERE’S SOMETHING FOR EVERY AR-ADHERENT IN THE MIX!”
manipulations straightforward… but then I have worked with “a few standard ARs” over the years…
Now that I’ve used and trained with the BOLT MAS on a regular basis I’ve actually come to like and respect it… a LOT! As I’ve run drills this feeling has only been constantly reinforced, and I honestly, genuinely feel that Tomy and Wilson are very close indeed to achieving their goal of “ultimate recoil” given current technology and gas performance parameters, as the MAS does indeed have “that kick”! There are many gas rifles and carbines out there now that “simulate” the real thing, and many of them are very, very expensive beasts; having now shot the BOLT MAS on regular basis I can tell you that it will perform as well as the best, and you’ll find the competitively-priced B4A1 ELITE DX MAS version at AIRSOFT WORLD in the UK for a touch under UK£370.00, with spare mags coming in at UK£44.95.
After much time spent with the BOLT MAS it’s an exceptional out-of-the-box GBBR, but as I’ve said before, and as with other GBBRs, I don’t believe you’ll be seeing it regularly at Sunday Skirmishes, but going head to head with hi-cap players on a normal skirmish day with a GBB and 35BB mags would certainly add a little
“something” to the day, and the range, accuracy, and reliability of the BOLT I believe makes this viable. It’s also, unlike some other GBBRs out there, gas-efficient on full-auto although with limited ammo you’ll want to make sure your drills are well up to scratch and pick your engagements with great care…
That said, ultimately I feel that BOLT have really brought something quite remarkable to the GBBR arena, and with the different styles already on offer, some of which Stewbacca and I had chance to go live with at the MOA EXPO Range Day with Wilson, there’s something for every ARadherent in the mix! The BOLT MAS models are all beautifully put together, the gas “OS” is at the top of its game, performance and accuracy are 100% solid, and the increase in component durability means that any of the variants will be an airsoft companion that will last you for many, many years if you maintain it correctly…
What more can I tell you other than to try one for yourself… be warned though, if you do try one then you’re going to be buying it!
My thanks again go again to Ben in Taiwan for being part of this article, and also to the guys at www.airsoftworld.net for facilitating delivery of the BOLT B4A1 ELITE DX MAS GBBR to me. AA
A NEW WHEELHOUSE
NORMALLY OUR “MAN IN TAIWAN” STEWBACCA IS A STRONG PROPONENT AND EXPERIENCED USER OF THE LIKES OF THE ALL MOD-CONS POLYMER-FRAMED STRIKER-FIRED SERVICE PISTOLS SUCH AS HIS MUCH LOVED WALTHER FAMILY, AS WELL AS HIS MYRIAD GLOCK & HKS… SO WHAT HAPPENS WHEN YOU THROW HIM BACK INTO THE FRAY WITH AN OLD SCHOOL WHEELGUN, WHICH IS VERY MUCH NOT HIS WHEELHOUSE?
From my earliest days interested in firearms in general, as a 1980s/90s kid I kind of skipped the old “Wild West” fascination most Americans would likely focus on given the prevalence of such things in Americana and related culture, especially given the continued prevalence of revolvers in US civilian ownership and even police service use until the likes of the Beretta M9 then the Glock forged ahead with more modern service pistols bleeding from the armed services into police and civilian use.
As a result, I never had much of a thing for revolvers, my original snub nosed .38 cap gun
revolver aside… you can almost smell the spent potassium chlorate of those purple dotted red paper strips just reading about them, can’t you? Probably time to schedule a health-check appointment if that resonates with you, fellow shooters… No, James Bond films and the iconic Walther PPK (and I guess later the P99 and PPKS I now have replicas of) were more the order of my childhood, that and a natural fixation on the Browning Hi Power due to 00Dad’s background and the UK Armed forces’ use of it.
Even when I initially got into airsoft guns around the same time I was being trained on real rifles, I just didn’t see the appeal for an old school sixshooter, despite poring over the original Marui mini catalogues I had gotten with every purchase of their springer pistols. Their admittedly cool designs of Colt Pythons in different lengths which held four BBs in each of the faux cartridges in the six chambers of the cylinder for a total of twentyfour shots before needing reloaded just didn’t have the skirmish practicality of the Glock 26 and M92F (my first two GBB pistols way back when) despite their pleasant finish.
As a result of this… bias, I suppose you would call it… I’ve never purchased an airsoft revolver and had vanishingly small contact with them in general. I guess our good friend Clarence Lai wanted to put an end to such things, and at the beginning of 2025 I got a sneak peek ‘under
“I NEVER HAD MUCH OF A THING FOR REVOLVERS, MY ORIGINAL SNUB NOSED .38 CAP GUN REVOLVER ASIDE… YOU CAN ALMOST SMELL THE SPENT POTASSIUM CHLORATE OF THOSE PURPLE DOTTED RED PAPER STRIPS JUST READING ABOUT THEM, CAN’T YOU?”
the hood’ (no venomous snake anatomy puns intended) of his collaboration with Ares’ more recent Taiwan-based operations to produce very nice replicas of Smith & Wesson model 686 based CO2 powered replica revolver platforms.
One of the other realities of revolvers of course is the power source; while the Marui offerings had a gas reservoir in the grip for normal green gas injection, the majority of other products tend to be 12g CO2 capsule-powered. In Taiwan these are usually made by Win Gun and are usually more in the 4.5mm metal pellet or air weapon category purely for export. With the exception of Max TACT and their internally regulated CO2 magazines Clarence also introduced us to, nobody in Taiwan will accept CO2 powered guns in skirmish environments, due to concerns over the hot weather creating very hot or unpredictable guns given the much higher source pressure of CO2 powered capsules or reservoirs… so I haven’t had much cause to take an interest until more recently with competitive shooting where people don’t care as much about power source as we’re shooting paper and poppers, not people.
WHEEL IT IN!
Nonetheless, I was soon furnished with an early prototype of the gorgeous satin-stainless-steel finished CLPD/Ares S&W 686 replica with carved wooden grip panels concealing the frame and CO2 capsule retention system, and more recently the even meaner looking Combat Revolver variant which features top and bottom Picatinny rails for mounting optics and accessories, as well as more contoured and comfortable in the hand rubberised stippled grip panels
“AT
as well as a dark matte surface finish aside from the accented green-bronze anodised cylinder and silver trigger, hammer and cylinder axle which gives an overall stunning aesthetic.
The realistic handling and appearance also extends to the ammunition, with brushed steel faux .357 Magnum cartridges sporting simulated copper projectiles which mimic hollow point rounds with the rubber heads that retain the lone BB in each cartridge head. An important caveat to note at this point is that my two samples were early prototypes, and iterations on the design were occurring during my initial review and testing; I would find minor issues during practical use of the revolvers at IPSC training sessions, one of which was the lack of inherent accuracy.
The latter/production versions of the cartridges have metal tubes through their cores that interface and retain the rubber cartridge heads to not only prevent them unseating which was an issue I encountered in my earlier testing causing extrusion of the rubber component under the
THE BEGINNING OF 2025 I GOT A SNEAK PEEK ‘UNDER THE HOOD’ (NO VENOMOUS SNAKE ANATOMY PUNS INTENDED) OF HIS COLLABORATION WITH ARES’ MORE RECENT TAIWAN-BASED OPERATIONS TO PRODUCE VERY NICE REPLICAS OF SMITH & WESSON MODEL 686 BASED CO2 POWERED REPLICA REVOLVER PLATFORMS”
blast pressure of the CO2 on firing which would also bind up the cylinder as a result, but also ensure a consistent and repeatable seating of the BB in each cartridge and a better interface with the gas pressure escaping down the tube into it from the release valve behind.
All of this made a marked improvement in the practical mechanical accuracy of the test guns from my earliest experiences to the production iteration. Whereas the earlier only-partialthickness metal tube/unretained rubber head system would give a wide spread of a mini IPSC target at 10m (very poor accuracy in reality, also experienced by my teammate Tobie who I loaned the earlier brushed stainless variant to as he is an ex real steel IPSC competitive shooter and revolver user from South Africa with a wealth of knowledge to share) which I managed to greatly reduce to around 50mm spread on single action only use at 10m with the later versions.
The Combat revolver variant not only has the capacity to mount a red dot sight on its top rail, but also sports ultra-high visibility collimating iron sights with fibre-optic-style plastic inserts in the front post and likewise flanking either side of the rear U notch. This makes it much more intuitive to aim, although some shooters may prefer to replace the front post with a different coloured collimator insert to give better contrast and potentially speed up
the sight alignment.
Regardless, the visibility of the front post through the rear u-notch limits the inaccuracy in sideways deflection by ensuring the front dot is only fully visible when aligned properly within the rear sight notch, giving you a more accurate result on target assuming you have the time to aim more carefully. With a red dot you can certainly speed this process up even more with the greater ease of natural target focus and sight dot overlay; an SRO clone red dot sight seems perfect given the size of the overall gun and the length of available rail space and matches the aesthetic quite well really.
DA/SA
Of course the revolvers being of the relatively modern ilk feature DA/SA operation (allowing for a longer, heavier double action trigger pull averaging at around 2 kilos or 4.5 lbs, while the
“I WAS SOON FURNISHED WITH AN EARLY PROTOTYPE OF THE GORGEOUS SATINSTAINLESS-STEEL FINISHED CLPD/ARES S&W 686 REPLICA WITH CARVED WOODEN GRIP PANELS CONCEALING THE FRAME AND CO2 CAPSULE RETENTION SYSTEM, AND MORE RECENTLY THE EVEN MEANER LOOKING COMBAT REVOLVER VARIANT”
hammer can be manually cocked for single action only operation giving a far lighter trigger pull of below 500g or 1 lb - the latter also giving you a much greater potential for mechanical accuracy) with the stock iron sights and such a light trigger trigger and no disruption from the likes of a recoil operated slide and an overall weight of 1.3kg meaning not much movement at all during single action firing.
Of course double action mode is faster for the likes of rapid-fire-use rather than deliberate and manual actuation of the hammer, however this is more likely to create timing issues with the
cylinder. Rapid firing on the earlier prototypes could lead to the cylinder double stepping or skipping a chamber, and even in single action only it can be necessary to cock the hammer most of the way to actuate the cylinder indexing with it being turned early in the cycle by the hand inside the frame, and then latched by the stopper under the cylinder in the frame.
The typical ‘crackshot’ gun play is also best avoided to prevent undue or early wear on the locking systems of the cylinder as well as the surface of the cylinder itself and the lower inside section of the frame. Rolling the cylinder along your arm at half cock, spinning and flicking the cylinder in and other such larking around is likely to add wear to the surfaces early on and likely mess with the timing of your revolver… not that I’d know anything about all that of course… Manually cocking the hammer too energetically tends to over-spool the cylinder and have it skip a chamber each time once such wear is incurred, and similarly double-action shooting can end up stopping the cylinder between chambers or skipping them entirely as well, so it’s best to maintain and care for the system and avoid amusement through mischief unless you want to be re-tuning or timing your internals too often.
Clarence also offers replacement internal components such as various rates of mainspring for the hammer, which better ensure a more consistent and higher output in warmer climates where the pressure of the CO2 might resist the vent valve’s opening upon the hammer striking it. The standard output is between 1.0 - 1.5 Joules on a .20g BB, to around 1.7 Joules on a .48g BB becoming more stable with
“THE REALISTIC HANDLING AND APPEARANCE ALSO EXTENDS
TO THE AMMUNITION, WITH BRUSHED STEEL FAUX .357 MAGNUM CARTRIDGES SPORTING SIMULATED COPPER PROJECTILES WHICH MIMIC HOLLOW POINT ROUNDS WITH THE RUBBER HEADS THAT RETAIN THE LONE BB IN EACH CARTRIDGE HEAD”
heavier ammunition as tends to be the case in general.The HOP unit operates in a similar vein, and with more consistent results from heavier ammunition, personally I’d suggest .43g BBs as I tend to use this weight with most of my guns these days, and I found they offered the best consistency on paper, giving around 90m/s of muzzle velocity and 1.6 Joules of energy; of course the BB has to blast through this at an existing initial speed as it leaves the front of the chamber and into the HOP unit before heading down the barrel.
This naturally makes it more difficult to consistently apply HOP backspin and guide the BBs as accurately as self-loading systems that repeatably chamber a BB within the HOP bucking prior to firing. Clarence also offers improved barrels which act as both outer and inner barrel
and are available in 2.5 and 3.5 inch variants with 6.01mm tightbore internal diameter.
CUSTOMISED SUPPORT
There are red dot mounting-plates for direct mounting to the original M686 or in place of the Picatinny rail of the combat edition, while there are also different wood effect custom grips that mimic real steel offerings. Similarly there are also lots of CLPD support products such as Kydex revolver holsters, and gun belt mounts for moon clip carriers (magnets on the ends of which help retain CLPD full moon clips in place for ready use in competition) which Luis of 4UAD smart airsoft deployed along with a classic M686 prototype during the Ding Ding Cup mentioned elsewhere. Only two competitors tried hard mode in this way, and while reloading was less common given
“THE COMBAT REVOLVER VARIANT NOT ONLY HAS THE CAPACITY TO MOUNT A RED DOT SIGHT ON ITS TOP RAIL, BUT ALSO SPORTS ULTRA-HIGH VISIBILITY COLLIMATING IRON SIGHTS WITH FIBRE-OPTIC-STYLE PLASTIC INSERTS IN THE FRONT POST AND LIKEWISE FLANKING EITHER SIDE OF THE REAR U NOTCH. THIS MAKES IT MUCH MORE INTUITIVE TO AIM…”
the steel challenge stationary 5 hit nature of the competition, it did showcase its usefulness overall.
CLPD also offer a cylindrical tool to help ease the installation or removal of the faux .357 Magnum cartridges from the thin full moon clip discs, these being shipped in small plastic containers with the six cartridges atop a foam liner with the moon clip itself secreted below and requiring final assembly by the end user. These of course make it a lot easier and faster to remove all the ‘spent’ cartridges simultaneously and load in the next full lot, although the cartridges can move around a little still meaning you might have to fight them a bit to line them all up with their corresponding chambers, or ensure you hold them more vertically and the cylinder of the revolver alike to try and better guide them in as they hang straighter. Ares themselves also offer a replica of a mechanical speed loader, allowing you to retain six cartridges on it and push the button on its rear to release them all once chambered.
With this already growing wealth of high-quality option parts and customised support equipment that is compatible with a wide array of existing competition belts or holster mount systems, it’s clearly the dawn of a new era looking back at old school guns and trying to make them practical for shooting sports for those who want a different challenge or to really give ‘hard mode’ a shot. Personally I only had four
moon clips giving a total of twenty four shots, so I sometimes struggled through IPSC training stages which normally need that or more shots successfully made; it really was a bit painful for me to try this new approach on the clock in more dynamic stages!
Reloading was glacial by comparison to my CLPD CZ Shadow 2 Orange of course, and naturally only having six shots on tap means you have to do a lot of reloading while addressing single arrays before moving on to the next with a partial load remaining, and missed shots are a real pain in the rear making you really aim a lot more carefully, which seemed to be Luis’ experience of the Ding Ding Cup where he was taking his time to make deliberate single shots repeatedly to avoid any misses for which a solitary make up round was available before having to reload.
So, if you want to try something very challenging and get into ‘what’s old is new again’ then maybe you can find yourself in the wheelgun wheelhouse for a change! AA
“WITH THIS ALREADY GROWING WEALTH OF HIGH-QUALITY OPTION PARTS AND CUSTOMISED SUPPORT EQUIPMENT THAT IS COMPATIBLE WITH A WIDE ARRAY OF EXISTING COMPETITION BELTS OR HOLSTER MOUNT SYSTEMS, IT’S CLEARLY THE DAWN OF A NEW ERA LOOKING BACK AT OLD SCHOOL GUNS”
PRIMARY/ SECONDARY –NO PROBLEM!
EVERY SO OFTEN WE GET A GREAT PRIMARY/SECONDARY COMBO TO GET ONTO THE FIELD AND ONTO THE RANGE TO EVALUATE, AND IT’S HARD TO FIT EVERYTHING IN EVEN TO 100 PAGES EACH MONTH! SO IT IS THAT THIS MONTH WE BRING YOU A “DOUBLE HEADER” FROM MIGUEL AS HE LOOKS AT TWO VERY DIFFERENT PLATFORMS THAT ACTUALLY COMPLEMENT ONE ANOTHER PERFECTLY!
Are you fans of Hi-Capa pistols? Trying to get a bit away from Glocks and HKs? Well then let’s take a look at the new Arcturus Hi-Capa that the good guys at Gunfire sent us, and that I’ve been testing over the past couple of months!
This is my first time interacting directly with Arcturus; sure, I’ve seen them in the field, and I’ve probably been “shot” by them, but as a user, I’ve never had the pleasure. And I said pleasure because I was really pleasantly surprised!
Arcturus Tactical is a relatively young, but increasingly respected brand in the world of airsoft. Founded around 2017, Arcturus was created by a team of industry professionals and
of electric airsoft guns (AEGs), particularly recognized for its AK and AR-15 platforms (and now with a GBB range as well).
From its beginnings, Arcturus has positioned itself as a premium but accessible brand. Its replicas are designed to appeal both to intermediate players who want a serious gun right out of the box and to experienced players who like to upgrade and tune their rifles. Unlike many entry-level brands that prioritize affordability over performance, Arcturus emphasizes durability and realism. Many of their rifles feature full-metal or reinforced polymer receivers, high-quality M-LOK handguards, and sturdy external components that feel authentic in both weight and texture. The
A TEAM OF INDUSTRY PROFESSIONALS AND
manipulation (racking, press checks and pressreleases).
Some externals such as the slide stop, magazine release and hammer kit are made from MIM (metal-injection-molding) steel, so those small, but critical controls have a firmer, more durable feel than plain polymer parts. It’s also important to mention that the magazine release can be switched to the right side, making it more user-friendly for all you left-handed airsofters. Let’s switch over to some details on the internals. The loading/nozzle and blow-back
unit (BBU) in the Vanguard follows the evolved Hi-Capa pattern, but with some Arcturus tuning. The nozzle and associated O-rings are precision parts that seal against the magazine valve, and our field-testing indicate they focused on airefficiency (better seals, shaped nozzles and tuned spring rates). That shows up as respectable FPS with great gas economy compared with cheap clones, a test done by our friends at Gunfire showed 114 BBs fired with a gas charge (using black gas).
The hop-up unit and inner barrel are standard
“THE VANGUARD PERFORMS RELIABLY, USING GREEN GAS AND .25G BBS, IT EASILY REACHED 40M, AND WITH RESPECTABLE ACCURACY AT MORE “SENSIBLE” RANGES, BUT AS WITH ALL GAS-POWERED PISTOLS, ITS CONSISTENCY DEPENDS HEAVILY ON THE QUALITY OF THE GAS USED, AMBIENT TEMPERATURE, AND REGULAR MAINTENANCE OF SEALS AND VALVES”
Hi-Capa style and is an important reason why the Vanguard accepts a lot of aftermarket hop units and barrels. Arcturus lists a carbon steel inner barrel after ENT (Enduraheat Nitride Treatment) process with a diameter of 6.03 mm, and a gas system that will allow proper operation even at temperatures below 10 degrees Celsius (but remember to use the appropriated gas). And like the hammer, the trigger and sear geometry on the Vanguard also use a mixture of MIM steel small parts and reinforced components.
On the field, the Vanguard performs reliably, using green gas and .25g BBs, it easily reached 40m, and with respectable accuracy at more “sensible” ranges, but as with all gas-powered pistols, its consistency depends heavily on the quality of the gas used, ambient temperature, and regular maintenance of seals and valves.
In short, it is a dependable, well-built, and upgrade-friendly Hi-Capa replica that performs impressively well, offering a satisfying combination of recoil, accuracy, and durability for both new and expert players, especially if we consider that this is Arcturus’ first step in gas operated replicas!
PRIMARY DRIVER
I don’t need to introduce Specna Arms to you, do I? In recent years the brand has gone from strength to strength, with regular releases and constant upgrades as standard that adoption of new technology allows… and they do like new technology! It’s easiest to say that Specna Arms have really become an “airsoft household name”, and everyone knows that these days they make some premium AEGs.
Specna Arms simply don’t stop, they keep dropping new bangers! But this isn’t a mere “tweak” to an existing line-up. No, these are the PRIME J Series, Specna’s new AK range, the brand’s latest top dog for AK replicas. Late last
year they rolled out the AR and HK PRIME series (we covered those in issues 168 and 170), and those models proved to be a very strong offering from Specna; heavily upgraded internals and exterior quality at very attractive prices, the sort of value we’ve come to expect. As an ambassador for the brand, I’ve been watching the community’s reaction to this launch, and the feedback has been overwhelmingly positive.
Alright , let’s dive into the PRIME J Series. I’ll open with something that honestly disappointed me from the start. After seeing the KPYK handguards at IWA, I expected them to appear
the more tactical AK variants. Unfortunately, that part of the rollout was pushed back, and the initial J-Series models are the same as the existing EDGE 1 and EDGE 2.0. So yes, I wanted fresh models and new furniture, and I was bummed we didn’t get them this time around.
Putting that aside, Specna sent me the SA-PJ04 to test, so here’s what I found. Externals first.
The J-Series PRIME models continue Specna’s focus
“THE J-SERIES PRIME MODELS CONTINUE SPECNA’S FOCUS ON ROBUST EXTERNAL CONSTRUCTION AND REFINED FINISHING. TOLERANCES ARE TIGHT, MATERIALS FEEL GOOD, AND FIT AND FINISH ARE SOLID; THE RIFLE LOOKS PREMIUM RIGHT FROM THE BOX WITH NO OBVIOUS GAPS OR SLOPPY MOULDING”
on robust external construction and refined finishing. Tolerances are tight, materials feel good, and fit and finish are solid; the rifle looks premium right from the box with no obvious gaps or sloppy moulding. One recurring annoyance is that the receiver cover can be annoying to close after inserting a battery; it takes a few tries to get it right, and you must ensure it’s fully seated, or it might come loose. And for you purists out there, there’s still a dovetail mount on the side for classic optics.
Now the good stuff, the internals starting with the gearbox. The AETHER V3 is a clear step up from the older Orion found in the EDGE series. It arrives well-equipped with a reinforced piston with a steel full-tooth rack, reinforced tappet plate, CNC aluminium piston head, CNC aluminium cylinder head, CNC aluminium nozzle, CNC steel cylinder, CNC steel quick-change spring guide, CNC steel 16:1 gear set and 8mm J-CAGE bearings, all housed in the new AETHER shell which appears to have addressed several of the Orion’s shortcomings; so yes, improved gearbox, check.
Among the PRIME series’ head-turners items, the one component that stole the spotlight is the Dark Matter™ 27K brushless motor. It delivers brisk speed and excellent torque, giving the replica a crisp, snappy trigger response while keeping heat build-up to a minimum. Brushless motors also draw far less current (typically 2–3× more efficient than brushed motors) so the Dark Matter™ adds both performance and battery life. Amazing motor, check.
If brushless tech isn’t your primary concern, the Aster V3 SE electronics will grab your attention. Specna refined the previous Aster and this SE iteration brings several practical upgrades (per Gunfire’s product details). No USB-Link required for basic installation/configuration, a new trigger detection algorithm, high trigger sensitivity straight out of the box, extra tamper
protection from multi-layer PCB, automatic precocking, compatibility with brushless motors, very large range for trigger sensitivity adjustment, improved cycle detection, and an adaptive active brake with multiple modes (100% / 60% / Brushless Motor / OFF). It also boasts reversepolarity immunity, trigger programming (via USBLink or Blu-Link for advanced configuration), software updates and diagnostics through the GCS app, extremely low sleep-power-draw (only 0.29 mA in deep sleep), and even a mechanical trigger lock option. Pair the Dark Matter™ 27K with the Aster V3 SE, and you’ve got a beast straight from the box. Excellent trigger unit, check.
On to accuracy and hop-up. The Magnus™ hop-up unit paired with the Helium™ bucking is another highlight. The Magnus™ is a topdown-centre (TDC) design that applies pressure directly to the top of the bucking to minimize lateral shot deviation and accommodate a range of BB weights for a flatter trajectory. The Helium™ bucking is capable of lifting heavier BBs, something I recommend if you run higher joules. All in all, great hop-up performance out of the box.
In the field, it’s what you expect, a solid replica, ready to take on any challenge.
Combine all these ingredients, AETHER V3 gearbox, Dark Matter™ 27K motor, Aster V3 SE electronics, Magnus™/Helium™ hop-up, and you end up with a seriously impressive replica straight away. And crucially, the price is more than reasonable for what you’re getting.
Final wish: the one thing that would make this release truly irresistible would be fresh models, specifically the longed-for KPYK furniture variants. Fingers crossed Specna drops those soon!
As always my thanks go to the guys at www. gunfire.com for supplying both the replicas featured here, and the two models together do make an excellent “combo package” for sure! AA
“AMONG THE PRIME SERIES’ HEAD-TURNERS ITEMS, THE ONE COMPONENT THAT STOLE THE SPOTLIGHT IS THE DARK MATTER™ 27K BRUSHLESS MOTOR. IT DELIVERS BRISK SPEED AND EXCELLENT TORQUE, GIVING THE REPLICA A CRISP, SNAPPY TRIGGER RESPONSE WHILE KEEPING HEAT BUILD-UP TO A MINIMUM”
OPTIC READY
AFTER INTRODUCING PROJECT STACATTO IN THE LAST ISSUE OF AIRSOFT ACTION THIS TIME BOYCIE, TIM C AND L’IL STU MOVE THINGS ON BY LOOKING AT OPTIC CHOICES, AND A NEW MODEL THAT WORKS EQUALLY WELL WITH BOTH “THE REAL” AND THE REPLICA VERSION OF THE STACATTO P!
During our time at Shot Show 2025, we spent a good bit of time at the Osight stand and took the time to talk with Rosy, one of the Osight staff.
Over the year so far since Shot, Rosy and I have been in contact and recently I found out that there was a new model of slide-mounted optic due to be released in September 2025 and so Rosy has been fantastic in helping me get my hands on one of the RMR footprint sight, namely the Osight C. This optic is now fitted to my fully licenced Army Armament R611-3 Staccato model P.
Before getting into the optic and its use I wanted to cover Osight’s background, and they tell me:
“With 17 years of experience in the flashlight industry, we’ve learned that success comes from truly listening to our customers. This customercentric approach has shaped our journey and inspired key innovations. Building on Olight’s foundation, Osight was officially conceived in 2021 in response to customer feedback requesting red dot optics following the “affordable-yet-quality” philosophy of its sister company Olight. Osight worked closely with consumers, sellers, and industry experts to design a revolutionary red dot optic.”
Listening to their customer concerns, on topics such as battery life, Osight introduced the Industry’s First Magnetic Charging Cover. The cover indicator allows users to monitor power levels easily. Their innovations “... empower users with tools that offer control and confidence. We are listening and innovating together, SEE THE POWER!”
Headquartered in Phoenix, Arizona, Osight (sister brand of Olight) was founded to better serve the firearms professional community. All Osight uses OAL™ stronger in hardness and more wear-resistant than 7075. OAL™ was born for firearms accessories, and their
mission is simple… to create value for their customers. They went on to say:
“We are thrilled to announce the official launch of Osight in January 2025. Osight’s vision rests on three pillars:
1. Customer-first Philosophy: Osight values customer input and strives for lifelong relationships.
2. Relentless Innovation: The company pushes boundaries to solve industry challenges.
3. Unrivaled Support: Osight offers a lifetime warranty and 30-day return policy, ensuring lasting satisfaction.
With its focus on customer-driven innovation and technology, Osight is ready to redefine the optics industry.”
The AA team this year took a number of opportunities to look at the Osight products on their stand, and we all commented on how crisp the reticle was and their innovative charging hood for sights really did show how much work Osight were putting into advancing the technology in
“BUILDING ON OLIGHT’S FOUNDATION, OSIGHT WAS OFFICIALLY CONCEIVED IN 2021 IN RESPONSE TO CUSTOMER FEEDBACK REQUESTING RED DOT OPTICS FOLLOWING THE “AFFORDABLE-YET-QUALITY” PHILOSOPHY OF ITS SISTER COMPANY OLIGHT.”
optics. I knew I needed to get “handson” and PROJECT STACATTO gave me the ideal opportunity to do so.
The package arrived at my house and when I opened it, there were two plastic “jiffy” style bags inside. My first thought was “Have I got the wrong order?” ...but no, I hadn’t!
In one sub-package was the new Osight C sight box and in the other was a really cool bronze “challenge coin”. After taking off the cellophane wrapping, I opened the box to reveal a yellow card which was a “Read Me” guide on how to fit and set up the sight.
Under that was a nice sheet of Osight stickers and beneath that the internal lid to the sight box. What I really like is the message that the lid had on it. “Thank you for being part of the Osight family. Your support is the reason we are here. Enjoy.” Some may think it’s a little cheesy but it’s nice to see/ hear of companies recognising that without the consumer, they wouldn’t have a business. It’s not all about the money, money, money.... Ooh, now that could be a good song lyric!
Key. The ‘fitting kit’ as I’ll call it is really well presented and shows how much thought that the guys at Osight put in to their products.
On lifting that cover, you see the sight. Really well supported in a piece of foam, and to the left is a box. I couldn’t resist going for the box before taking the sight out to look at it. The box contained an information sheet and a special tool for fitting the sight to the desired platform, along with two spare battery cover screws.
Under the flap which held the tool was a fantastic selection of screws in varying pitches and lengths to enable you to fit the sight to almost any mounting for the RMR footprint. The screws provided were 6-32, 4-40, 6-40 and M3 threads. This for me makes the presentation of the Osight
Taking out the RMR (Ruggedized Miniature Reflex) sight, you can immediately feel the quality of the unit. For its price point this feels much better than some of the other RMR footprint sights on the market at higher cost. I wanted to remind myself of the reticle and took the tool to undo the screw on the battery cover which enabled me to remove the piece of plastic which prevented the battery making contact with the terminal and thereby running the battery down if it was on during transit or it’s time sitting on the shelf in the shop (which I suspect wouldn’t be long). After removing the plastic cover and refitting the battery cover I turned on the sight to see a really crisp reticule.
The Osight C gives three options of reticle; you can choose from either a red 3 MOA single dot, a red 32 MOA circle or a combination of the
“THE AA TEAM THIS YEAR TOOK A NUMBER OF OPPORTUNITIES TO LOOK AT THE OSIGHT PRODUCTS ON THEIR STAND, AND WE ALL COMMENTED ON HOW CRISP THE RETICLE WAS AND THEIR INNOVATIVE CHARGING HOOD FOR SIGHTS REALLY DID SHOW HOW MUCH WORK OSIGHT WERE PUTTING INTO ADVANCING THE TECHNOLOGY IN OPTICS”
two which is the “factory setting”. An increasing number of optics in recent times are being produced with a green reticle. I’ll let Tim explain why that is.
TIM’S BIT
As Boycie says, it all about options and making any optic user friendly, and this means catering for as many different environments and user needs as possible. The human eye is actually more sensitive to green light and therefore can be the more beneficial option in certain circumstances. So what does a green reticle bring to the party?
1. Enhanced daytime visibility: The human eye is most sensitive to green wavelengths, so green dots stand out more in bright sunlight and are easier to see against bright targets like white paper or sand.
2. Reduced eye strain: Green light is perceived as being less straining on the eyes, which is beneficial for extended shooting sessions.
3. Better contrast: In environments with red or brown-toned backgrounds, such as wooded areas, green can provide a higher contrast and be easier to spot.
4. Helpful for astigmatism: Many people with astigmatism see a red dot as blurry, but a green dot may appear clearer and more defined.
There are a couple of downsides, such as blending in with the background; for example in grassy or wooded areas, a green reticule can sometimes get a little lost and be harder to see against the green background. Also (believe it or not), green light requires more energy, which can lead to a shorter battery life compared to red, especially at higher brightness settings. However, modern optics and battery efficiency are improving in this area and some users find they can use lower brightness levels with green anyway, which can offset this difference…
I don’t think it would be long until the green reticle is an option in the future.
So with Tim’s “take” let’s come back to the optic itself. Full features include:
• Large Field of View with Multi-Coated Lens: Engineered with advanced anti-reflective lens coatings, this sight maximizes light transmission for unmatched clarity, allowing you to quickly lock onto targets with pinpoint precision. The 0.95’’ × 0.75’’
“TAKING OUT THE RMR (RUGGEDIZED MINIATURE REFLEX) SIGHT, YOU CAN IMMEDIATELY FEEL THE QUALITY OF THE UNIT. FOR ITS PRICE POINT THIS FEELS MUCH BETTER THAN SOME OF THE OTHER RMR FOOTPRINT SIGHTS ON THE MARKET AT HIGHER COST”
window delivers a greater sight picture, ensuring faster target acquisition and quicker follow-up shots.
• Side-Loading Battery: Effortless battery replacement without removing the optic ensures hassle-free re-zeroing. A high-end CR1632 battery offers easy accessibility while maintaining steady performance.
• 3 MOA Dot + 32 MOA Circle: Switching between dot-and-circle, dot-only, or circle-only reticles, you can tailor your aiming solution to any shooting scenario. The sharp and bright dot-and-circle reticle provides a cutting-edge aiming experience.
• Most Common Footprint: By adopting the de facto industry standard (Ruggedized Miniature Reflex, or 407c/507c footprint), Osight C is a versatile addition to many fullsize and compact pistols. Osight picatinny mounts add even more possibilities with both high and low options that will work with most rifle applications.
• Motion Sensor Function: Motion sensor activates Osight C at the slightest movement, and powers down after 3 minutes of inactivity to conserve the battery.
Zeroing the sight is a simple process and made easier by using the aforementioned special tool included in the box. My preference is to initially co-witness the chosen reticle to the iron sights as
this means that should the worst happen and the dot go out you can still use the irons and be aiming at the same point. Once this was done it was back onto the range to see how it
performed. If you’ve read Part 1 you’ll have seen how impressed I was with the accuracy of the EMG Staccato P that we have the Osight C fitted to. The ease of picking up the reticle in the window was really good and I could make it clearer by either reducing or increasing the brightness to suit the conditions.
I would say if this was on a real duty weapon that the user would set it for the average conditions that they may face on that tour of duty.
So far, I’ve not had the time to do as much testing as I’d like but rest assured that the Staccato P and Osight C will be getting plenty of use by myself, L’il Stu, Steve and Tim over the coming months.
The pic of the Staccato P, Osight C is taken with the Dead Eye Design gun slip that I was given at Shot Show 2025… More on DED in a coming feature! AA
“IT (IS) ALL ABOUT OPTIONS AND MAKING ANY OPTIC USER FRIENDLY, AND THIS MEANS CATERING FOR AS MANY DIFFERENT ENVIRONMENTS AND USER NEEDS AS POSSIBLE. THE HUMAN EYE IS ACTUALLY MORE SENSITIVE TO GREEN LIGHT AND THEREFORE CAN BE THE MORE BENEFICIAL OPTION IN CERTAIN CIRCUMSTANCES”
“IF YOU’VE READ PART 1 YOU’LL HAVE SEEN HOW IMPRESSED I WAS WITH THE ACCURACY OF THE EMG STACCATO P THAT WE HAVE THE OSIGHT C FITTED TO. THE EASE OF PICKING UP THE RETICLE IN THE WINDOW WAS REALLY GOOD AND I COULD MAKE IT CLEARER BY EITHER REDUCING OR INCREASING THE BRIGHTNESS TO SUIT THE CONDITIONS.”
BLANK-FIRE THUNDER
ONCE AGAIN WE’RE JOINED BY ONE OF OUR NEWER “LEGIONNAIRES” FROM THE USA, A PLAYER THAT’S PROVING HIMSELF TO BE NOT JUST A COMMITTED MILSIM-JUNKY, BUT ALSO ONE HECK OF A WRITER WITH SOME GREAT INSIGHTS TO PLAYING THE GAME AS HE BELIEVES IT SHOULD BE PLAYED! THIS MONTH MATT LOOKS AT “’NADES”, AND SPECIFICALLY AN UPGRADE TO THE VENERABLE THUNDER B…
It was once posited that in the Gnostic belief there was a theory that whatever god of creation willed our world into being, although they might have wielded the power of a creator, their works, however, were very fallible because that god was an idiot. And if we live in that world, no matter what we can do, no matter if we know it or not, regardless of how perfect we can try to live our lives, we can never be perfect because at our very ferment is an inherent flaw. So, with that philosophical thought, I, Matthew Nguyen, nail this article and statement on the walls of the virtual offices of Airsoft Action before any of my editors can stop me:
“The Brey-Tac Blank Kit is not free from Original Sin.”
Before we get to that somewhat blasphemous statement for an airsoft product I bought with my own money, and would gladly buy again, let me give you some context...
There’s power in asymmetry. The ability to take out a target without exposing yourself to any response from them is the entire by-line by which grenades are used in tactical situations. Airsoft as an activity that emulates force on force, does so by emulating or having stand-ins for “reality”; our “guns” are replica BB shooters, our “missions” are games set by event organizers or field runners, and our mindset and technique are, although of the same language, applied differently of course. Situations not of the same dire context but still of, in that moment, a certain win-lose consequence.
In this case, an enemy is around a corner, or holed up in a room, or holding down a window. In most cases the situation is heavily in the favour of the enemy, and, at best, it’s a split second facedown where a hit-trade comes around (along with maybe a quick “Did I hit you first or did you hit me first?” conversation that no one likes to have. In essence, you have to risk yourself to take out the enemy.
Grenades, in real life, are a counter to this, because for all the drama of certain airsoft tools
and tips, there’s not much more to say that a grenade can’t fully explain by itself, tossed into a room and the pandemonium that that entails. In this inherent draw for airsoft to close that gap between real and simulation, that is, to make available more consistent and effective tools for gameplay, we come today to the Brey-Tac Blank Kit, an adapter meant to piggyback off the venerable Thunder-B, is one such innovation.
CONVERT FTW
Sold as a conversion kit for a Thunder-B at 59 EUR (roughly 68 USD), and 75 EUR as a whole, readyto-use grenade (roughly 86 USD) without shipping and handling or any customs fees (relevant!), the Brey-Tac Blank Kit is as it calls itself, a conversion for the long standing Thunder-B, converting it from using plastic shells and CO2 cartridges to 9mm blank PAK rounds.
It’s a simple, non-destructive, reversible conversion that takes no more than the quick disassembly of a Thunder-B, drop-in parts, a few screws, and no more than three minutes of your time. This review comes from the point of view of the “version 2” conversion kit alone; specifically three of them at the cost of 268 USD. The price discrepancy that you might notice here will be addressed later.
What comes out on the other end for your time and money in the conversion is a generally much slimmer flashbang-style, fully metal, impact grenade that still operates the same as the Thunder-B prior; prime the hammer, set the spoon, insert the 9mm blank into the chamber, screw on the “fuse” assembly that has the hammer and spoon, insert the pin, and then store until usage. When it comes time for deployment, nothing has changed, just pull the pin, and let it loose. When the grenade lands, the impact should kick off the spoon from a magnetic retainer, letting the hammer down on the firing pin and triggering the 9mm blank in the newly
“THERE’S POWER IN ASYMMETRY. THE ABILITY TO TAKE OUT A TARGET WITHOUT EXPOSING YOURSELF TO ANY RESPONSE FROM THEM IS THE ENTIRE BY-LINE BY WHICH GRENADES ARE USED IN TACTICAL SITUATIONS. AIRSOFT AS AN ACTIVITY THAT EMULATES FORCE ON FORCE, DOES SO BY EMULATING OR HAVING STAND-INS”
structure. This same argument technically could be made with a regular CO2 Thunder-B, whose sound at time can be measured as equal, however the fact that this is a 9mm cartridge with sound and energy being vented through several direct holes as opposed along a larger gap when a plastic shell breaks, I would advise a certain
however, is generally far more reliable in usage by several magnitudes than the previous examples, with only the nonreusable EG67s at equal but with their own caveat of being non-reusable.
For vanilla Thunder-Bs, their caveat in usage is that they rely on the piercing of a CO2 cartridge
“IN THIS INHERENT DRAW FOR AIRSOFT TO CLOSE THAT GAP BETWEEN REAL AND SIMULATION, THAT IS, TO MAKE AVAILABLE MORE CONSISTENT AND EFFECTIVE TOOLS FOR GAMEPLAY, WE COME TODAY TO THE BREY-TAC BLANK KIT, AN ADAPTER MEANT TO PIGGYBACK OFF THE VENERABLE THUNDER-B”
to fill the space of a plastic shell with CO2. When the pressure becomes too great, it will break the shell and thus cause the “explosion”. In this are two disposables, the CO2 cartridge, and then the shell. However, even in that usage, not all, often, goes as plan! Sometimes the firing pin of the Thunder-B is unable to fully pierce the CO2 cartridge, or perhaps the CO2 cartridge is pierced but not in a way that allows it to fully dispel from cartridge to larger plastic chamber in a predictable manner. The popular “penny” mod, where one places a few pennies to act as washers and spacers for the CO2 cartridge to thus fill in the chamber faster is a common, if not DIY solution that in itself still causes unreliable Thunder-Bs to not pop at all, or pop only minutes after they get used due to poor flow.
These same problems of unreliable deployment plague nearly every grenade except for those that are real grenades. All of them, save for Brey-Tac’s conversions. There is very little wiggle room in what happens with a 9mm blank round when a striker hits its firing pin, it will go off immediately. This reliability and the minimal action required to trigger it is what BreyTac hinges on in their design, repurposing the Thunder-B’s simple manual of arms with a new catalyst that is inherently less finicky than CO2 cartridges and then the plastic shells used.
9mm PAK cartridges can be purchased without firearms licenses or higher restrictions in most jurisdictions, and their cost, at least for us Americans, turns out to be around 25-30 USD for a box of 50 cartridges. Although this matches 12-gram CO2 cylinders at times, they come out ahead when the consideration of plastic shells needed for regular Thunder-Bs are about two dollars a piece on top of that.
MITIGATING FAILURE
One of the most infuriating parts of Airsoft is when mechanical blockers impede your ability to
play; fogged up eyepro, shredded buckings, fried electronics, crushed BBs in the hop, grenades that fail to go off. All of these are not doctrinal failures or how you play; you can be the best player on the field, but when these things happen, they are not your fault, or at least, your fault in a way that a bad push, peek, or improper timing in a fight would be.
What the Brey-Tac Blank Kit is then is getting rid of that external failure margin in a way that, in my experience, has allowed me to truly and properly and confidently use grenades in Airsoft freely and confidently without thinking “Will this grenade go off?” What I am afforded with these new conversions is the opportunity to apply grenades in ways that would open up so many tactical contexts to me (80% of the time, they work 100% of the time, but more on that soon).
I have used these grenades, have had these grenades used against me, in a month of gameplay across four all-day sessions at my local outdoor field in the situations as described previously, around corners, into windows, through doors during breaches, and at last, having the grenades turned onto me, flushed out of my firing position shooting down on attackers. They work on grass, on concrete, against walls both wood and stone. They are, by design, fulfilling their intention.
They work! (...most of the time!)
By God, they work! (Most of the time, so I don’t really worry about them like other ‘nades!)
But nothing is ever easy, and as I said at the beginning, we finally arrive at the flaws, for nothing in this world is without them.
What keeps Thunder-Bs - both converted and not converted - from going off in a player’s hand, is the spoon keeping the hammer down initially. In an unconverted grenade, the time that it takes for CO2 to fill the plastic chamber is what allows the user time to throw it.
For the Brey-Tac conversions, whose firing time is unimpeded as a blank, similar to a real round
“FOR VANILLA THUNDER-BS, THEIR CAVEAT IN USAGE IS THAT THEY RELY ON THE PIERCING OF A CO2 CARTRIDGE TO FILL THE SPACE OF A PLASTIC SHELL WITH CO2. WHEN THE PRESSURE BECOMES TOO GREAT, IT WILL BREAK THE SHELL AND THUS CAUSE THE “EXPLOSION””
in a real gun, what keeps a premature firing is the magnet affixed to the body of the grenade keeping the spoon and the pressure of the hammer in place from swinging onto the firing pin. The spoon and the hammer and the “fuse” housing are all the Thunder-B original parts, a design now a decade and beyond old, and naturally not designed with the best tolerances, and especially for blank conversion, to the detriment of the kit.
For example, the threading of the “fuse” assembly that interfaces with the conversion kit is especially fragile and can sometimes be sheared or bent even in regular usage, both while being thrown and even as simply as unscrewing the assembly to reload, causing disassembly to not be possible without further breaking the grenade.
The spoons of the Thunder-B are cheap metal, able to be by hand bent into the shape needed for the magnet to catch onto the slimmer profile of the new body, however as with any user-dependent modification nothing can be uniform, and that especially as objects thrown with haste and force, can be undone and bent: Sometimes the spoon can have too much contact with the magnet and not be jostled loose by a thrown impact, thus failing to detonate, and on the flip side, sometimes the spoon is so loosely connected to the magnet that even the handling motions after pulling the pin to throw the nade would free the spoon and have the blank go off as soon as you let go of it, or even in your hand.
This has happened to me several times in the process of handling and throwing and although the properties of the shell literally exploding in your hand is not a possibility with the aluminium body of the conversion, it is still a 9mm blank cartridge being fired in hand and vented relatively close to the body, and should one’s hand or forearm or really any body part be in contact with a vent, I would worry about the effects. However, nothing about how the conversion kit fires when otherwise away from the body fills me with concern and is generally safe to throw on the ground near people (not at, obviously), but as stated earlier and with this fault, I do advise responsibility of use and action regardless due to prior mentioned sound and flash-fire environment
“THERE IS VERY LITTLE WIGGLE ROOM IN WHAT HAPPENS WITH A 9MM BLANK ROUND WHEN A STRIKER HITS ITS FIRING PIN, IT WILL GO OFF IMMEDIATELY. THIS RELIABILITY AND THE MINIMAL ACTION REQUIRED TO TRIGGER IT IS WHAT BREY-TAC HINGES ON IN THEIR DESIGN”
considerations.
Although individual Thunder-B parts are often budget-oriented enough to replace, they do remain as the main flaw of the conversion kit, even if it’s something that would be out of Brey-Tac’s hands. However, these two halves, or perhaps better put, the origin of a fully converted grenade, are still is necessary to this product as they are for usage.
All things considered, the flaws of the Brey-Tac Conversion Kit are not squarely within Brey-Tac’s responsibility, but rather what they are building on top of. However, pulling back and talking as a regular airsofter, these are small gripes against a product that has brought definite and confident possibility back into a dimension of airsoft otherwise marred by not-good-enoughs and could-have-beens.
I recommend them; I want more people to have them so I can get them thrown at me, because even if you cannot ignore or are annoyed by these flaws. Feel free to cast stones, or your own preferred grenade, if you think you have a solution without sin.
COMMS OR NO?
Brey-Tac was provided this article prior to publication as well as questions; however, they have had no editorial oversight to the opinions expressed here and, after an initial burst of communication, went silent upon repeated requests for questions to be answered. For further transparency, my order initially was not delivered within the forecasted delivery period.
I raised the issue when an order from BreyTac, ordered within the same period to the same American state to another customer, arrived. This other customer corroborated that Brey-Tac did not correctly ship their order out and required a direct confirmation of the shipping address again, the same shipping address in the original order. Only after I sent several unanswered
emails did Brey-Tac respond and ask for the same confirmation due to the same issue, and it was not resolved prior. The same experience was corroborated by the other customer.
Due to this delay, policy and tariffs imposed by the current United States administration were applied to the package, and I had to pay $68.10 USD over expected the expected price due to Brey-Tac’s logistic choices.
Possibly due to these issues and further international policy decisions, Brey-Tac has now stopped shipping these grenades into the United States, but you can still source them elsewhere in our wide-world of airsoft, and you can find out more by visiting www.breytac.com. AA
“I RECOMMEND THEM; I WANT MORE PEOPLE TO HAVE THEM SO I CAN GET THEM THROWN AT ME, BECAUSE EVEN IF YOU CANNOT IGNORE OR ARE ANNOYED BY THESE FLAWS. FEEL FREE TO CAST STONES, OR YOUR OWN PREFERRED GRENADE, IF YOU THINK YOU HAVE A SOLUTION WITHOUT SIN”
TRUSTED PARTNERS
RED CELL HAS NOW BEEN WRAPPED UP, BUT THE GROUP THAT PUT IT ALL TOGETHER IS STILL VERY MUCH ACTIVE, SO WITHOUT FURTHER ADO LET’S BRING IN THE AA LEGIONNAIRES AGAIN IN THE AA CELL TO CARRY ON ALL THE GREAT WORK THEY’VE DONE OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS; WHAT BETTER WAY TO KICK THIS INTO GEAR THEN BY THE GUYS SHARING THEIR THOUGHTS ON THE PLATFORMS, BOTH AEG AND GBB THAT THEY’VE USED TO MOST DURING THE COURSE OF 2025! BILL KICKS THINGS OFF AS ALWAYS…
So, RED CELL is a done deal, and what a fabulous journey it has been for all involved! We’ve learned even more about both individual models and the brands behind them, and shared that knowledge with you along the way, but… BUT!... now we need to bring this all together in one place, at one time and that means us editing through over SIX HUNDRED PAGES of our findings!
Yup, it’s gonna take a while for sure…
And although the RED CELL testing program might be at an end it doesn’t mean that we’re going to stop shooting the platforms that we have, and we’re largely going to shoot the test pool to the point of failure, just to see what breaks and when, and obviously this means that we can run some maintenance and upgrade articles in the future as things inevitably break…
But what of the RED CELL group? This is certainly way too valuable and knowledgeable a group to not have them input their experience in the magazine, so as one program ends another begins, and we’re simply going to call this great bunch of testers the AA CELL. With this in place you can expect so see our regular testing reports continue, but in a different format, with a different focus.
So this month the “band is back together” to look at what they’ve used most this year; this is by no means a “Best Of…” kind of deal, but more a reflection on what has worked for the individuals of the AA CELL, what has proved for them to be a trusted and reliable “partner”, and what (if anything) they’ve needed to do to keep their own rifles, SMGs and pistols running! Over to the AA CELL!
TEAM TALK
Stewbacca:
Primary rifle wise the VFC FNC probably takes it for me, it was my favourite release of last year
and it’s stayed a firm favourite this year, I tried fielding it for POLK5 but had just been meddling with the BCG nozzle and the rear retainer fell out again during chrono so I had to use the backup M16A2 again, but managed to field it a few times since for skirmishes and the recent TaiJi MilSim on the beach again to good effect, recent testing also suggests that the stock HOP has really settled in as I was hitting the old gas can taped to the tree at 40ish metres repeatedly with it the other day at Xindian during my range day there with the guys.
It’s just a bit different, the rugged cold war old skool aesthetic suits me well I feel, and it runs on convenient magazines without looking to generic and also having great performance and being a loud clacky beast.
And for a sidearm, you’ll be hard pressed to wrestle my VFC Umarex Walther PDP away from me at this point, it’s just the most comfortable handgun I’ve used to date, points so naturally upon the draw, has a great trigger and reset for snappy follow up shots, the flared mag well and ACRO P2 clone on it look and work the business, and the IWB holster I had made by Beans Workshop out here works excellently and I even use it when skirmishing just to keep the gun protected inside my belt line to avoid snagging or dirt ingress etc.
“ALTHOUGH THE RED CELL TESTING PROGRAM MIGHT BE AT AN END IT DOESN’T MEAN THAT WE’RE GOING TO STOP SHOOTING THE PLATFORMS THAT WE HAVE, AND WE’RE LARGELY GOING TO SHOOT THE TEST POOL TO THE POINT OF FAILURE, JUST TO SEE WHAT BREAKS AND WHEN”
Ben:
I’ve not been out as much this year as one would normally like, but my go-to platforms have been my and my ASG Devil M4 I’ve used my MP5k a little more because I just love SMGs, and you can move and feel more tactical with this platform and no one can deny that you don’t look tacticool running SMG! As for my trusted ASG Devil M4...this one of my baby’s, a beast in its own class that has never let me down, and more often than not I take it as my backup gun. This beauty has got good kills and I’ve won many a fire fight with it, so I’ve got nothing but the best of memories and I wouldn’t change it for the world.
As for my sidearm this ICS Legacy pistol has not left my holster, the hyper smooth slide it’s range and accuracy are just on a level, this little sucker will be with me till I fall apart with old age! I still don’t like the safety arm sticking out so much but I’m adjusting my manipulation and handling of grip to allow a smoother and better performance with it. Also I must get myself some more mags for it as I always feel gutted once I’m out of BBs; I had a really good moment in a game with this picking off a few people at range and was doubly gutted
that I only had the one mag… and that my camera wasn’t rolling!
VFC BCM with the Gate Aster II and GATE G5 brushless motor for unparalleled reliability and performance. I’ve been using the same setup for over three years now without issue and it always comes through for me, no matter the weather. AEG summer, winter, outdoor, indoor, CQB whichever, it’s my main piece. Overall it gives solid platform with easy and
Boycie:
For me I have
two go to rifles, both AEG.
One is the KWA and the other is my . I usually take both with me and it depends on what type of play I decide on as to which I’ll choose. The RM4 I love for the “recoil” feedback and when I carry this I usually run 3 x 60rd mags in my rig, 2 spare on my belt and one in. Long gone are the spray and pray games and mostly I’ll come back in having only used 2 - 3 mags on semi only.
The 416 has had some work done on the gearbox by Marcus, (the build was featured in a previous issue) and certainly zips out the BB and I’ll go for the 416 if I decide semi only or short bursts are the way I want to play. In the VFC 416
“FOR A SIDEARM, YOU’LL BE HARD PRESSED TO WRESTLE MY VFC UMAREX WALTHER PDP AWAY FROM ME AT THIS POINT, IT’S JUST THE MOST COMFORTABLE HANDGUN I’VE USED TO DATE, POINTS SO NATURALLY UPON THE DRAW, HAS A GREAT TRIGGER AND RESET FOR SNAPPY FOLLOW UP SHOTS”
just really how the mood takes me on the day as to which I’ll use.
Bill:
For me there’s a couple of standout AEGs that I find myself returning to for game-use, and the first of those is one that I’ve talked about many times since I got it, the ICS DDM4/Mk18! Yes, I know I go on and on about Mk18s but it truly is the ideal airsoft platform, and has replaced my old GEN I VFC HK416 (although I still have that in the armoury too!) for “general use”. It’s perfect to be honest as it’s basically the same as the VFC Mk18 GBBR that I use for training, so the muscle memory is the same.
As a midcap player I’ve continued to run the ICS MK18 on N-MAG 30/125 models and these have fed flawlessly throughout the life of the AEG thus far, which now totals some 17,000+
I’ve had it on the range (a lot!) and in-game (full disclosure, not so much…), and I’ve now needed to re-tighten the rail a couple of times, but generally speaking it still looks great… if anything even better than new now that it’s a little “battleworn”. This really is a super AEG, and whilst not the cheapest out there, in my mind it’s 100% worth every penny!
Now I said “a couple”, and the other AEG that I’ve continued to work on and field is the ROSSI NEPTUNE 10.5” SAS, and I believe I’ve finally got it exactly where I want it. Every airsoft platform I work with, and most certainly those that end up full-time in my personal armoury undergo a “journey” from the point they are lifted free from the box to the point where I have them just as I like them, both in terms of look and performance, and this is most certainly true of the ROSSI although the changes have been mostly
“I’VE SPOKEN TO FRIENDS OLD AND NEW TO GARNER THE INFORMATION I NEEDED TO TAKE A STAB AT REALLY GETTING THE ROSSI INTO “OBI WAN NAIROBI” TERRITORY, AND WHILST OBVIOUSLY NOT A DIRECT REPLICATION I’M PRETTY DARN HAPPY WITH THE OVERALL BUILD”
information I needed to take a stab at really getting the ROSSI into “Obi Wan Nairobi” territory, and whilst obviously not a direct replication I’m pretty darn happy with the overall build. I have added a HOLY WARRIOR ROMEO 4-T Style RDS courtesy of Dave T as the “real” featured a SIG optic (a bit of a novelty at the time), a standard NP NX600L WEAPON LIGHT, a NPQ15 LIGHT/LASER BOX, and I’ve also added WADSN dual pressure switches to tidy everything up, although again I’ll continue to tinker with the cable management until I get this perfect. Thankfully I managed to find an FDE ERGO MOTOR GRIP from ELEMENT, but left the original motor in place as this has continued to work just fine. Internally the only real changes I’ve made are to fit a new spring and a new hop unit with 4UANTUM HOP BUCKING which has really upped the overall performance.
The ROSSI now chronos consistently at a perfectly acceptable mean of 1.0 Joule/330fps on a .20g BB with virtually no major deviation. I’m now a little over 16K BBs downrange, and this has been mostly on semi-auto, and that’s sure to test any AEG. I’ve pushed up now to .30g BBs with the ROSSI too as the new hop handles these well, giving good results for accuracy at 30-40m, and in terms of out and out range I’m now hitting targets solidly at 50m+… not too shabby for a “poor man’s L119A2”!
In terms of my secondary, much as some of the guys laugh at me, the UMAREX G17 GEN4 is till my “go too”! As an out and out “G-SERIES” fanboi, whilst the original TM “17” (which I still have!) set a benchmark for me, I find myself coming back to the Umarex/VFC Glock 17 Gen4 as my favourite when it comes to “the look” as its pretty much bob-on, and this is from someone that once shot a real G17 on a very regular basis! In airsoft form this pistol for me is everything that a proper “replica” should be; well made,
BBs.
And then there’s the trademarks that any self-respecting “gun bunny” will drool over… I’ve never been the biggest TM fan due to licencing issues (or lack of them…) and although the old G17 still rolls excellently the fact that I know the “trades” are hooky and the slide is a “plastic fantastic” puts me off a bit… the UMAREX though is of course metal where it needs to be, as well as being properly and fully licenced and “traded” right down to the magazine baseplate. Given that it’s now an “old campaigner” (somewhat like its owner!) in its own right it certainly feels like buying it in the first place was money very, very well spent!
Dan:
After spending much of last year exploring the LMG role, I decided this year to kind of get back to my roots and mainline my Real Sword SVD again. This has been my stalwart - and now oldest - AEG for 18 years now. This decision was also partly driven by some long-awaited advancements for the platform which I was very keen to try
“I RUN A FULLY-CUSTOM VFC BCM WITH THE GATE ASTER II AND GATE G5 BRUSHLESS MOTOR FOR UNPARALLELED RELIABILITY AND PERFORMANCE. I’VE BEEN USING THE SAME SETUP FOR OVER THREE YEARS NOW WITHOUT ISSUE AND IT ALWAYS COMES THROUGH FOR ME”
out. Namely, Solink began offering custom option for a short-type V5 brushless motor in reverse operation!
With Real Sword also making an appearance back on the Airsoft scene, I took the opportunity to purchase a spare gearbox shell and some additional magazines too. The gearbox itself I just wanted for a “just in case” spare as I have also permanently modified my original shell to house a Perun V3 Hybrid ETU. These two combinations took the trigger response of my SVD to a whole new level of performance. With the stock gear ratio being a very torquey 28.7:1 and running a Guarder SP140 spring, there’s only so much you can do with conventional motors to improve trigger response. Brushless, as the Mandalorian (were he an airsofter) would have said “...is the way”.
I was able to get in several games this year with the new setup and it was performing beautifully, zipping .45g’s out like nobody’s business. However, I did eventually blow the gears, but I’m also not especially surprised as it was still rocking the old school sintered sets which have had over 18 years of steady use logged on them. So I unfortunately was not able to log out the last of this year with it. JVAN is due to release some new CNC gearsets this November, and a set of those will of course be added when they are released. At that point, I daresay there isn’t anything else left to touch.
But beyond that, this SVD just feels like an old
“THIS
friend; one that I’ve shared a long and storied history with. It has become legend in our little corner of the airsoft world, having caused so much decimation that at several points it has been arbitrarily banned, then unbanned; from peeling apart entire squads of ROTC and National Guard like an onion, to schwacking a pair of sentries at 100 yards through a small square of broken window pane from inside an apartment block, to being called upon as the ‘god gun’ for that one dude who’s just not calling his hits. Awhile back, I had a guy offer me $2k on the spot if I was willing to sell it then and there. “No sir,” I had to decline, “she’ll be buried next to me.”
Matt:
As an American the AR-15 is gospel, and I am an adherent. RM4 ERG that Dan here has put together for me has been my go-to gun for years, not only because I was on the carry handleoptic gang since before I graduated college seven years ago, but because it has never failed me, and most gear I have is meant to run an AR, which this is.
I’m a heads up shooter, and putting a dot on that carry handle means I get to keep a natural, comfortable point of aim, I dabble from time to time in other platforms,
SVD JUST FEELS LIKE AN OLD FRIEND, ONE THAT I’VE SHARED A LONG AND STORIED HISTORY WITH. IT HAS BECOME LEGEND IN OUR LITTLE CORNER OF THE AIRSOFT WORLD, HAVING CAUSED SO MUCH DECIMATION THAT AT SEVERAL POINTS IT HAS BEEN ARBITRARILY BANNED, THEN UNBANNED”
while. The secret is that what makes us good. The AR platform is
already with 1,2J (just under our 1,3J limit). It’s been in my hands for over a year now, since they released the PRIME series, and it’s a great tool for field dominance!
Secondly, it’s the J82. One of the first tactical short AK that the brand launched, and I have a special love for this type of replica models. Being a CORE, it’s a lightweight replica, making it a great option for those demanding games, where it’s crucial to shed weight.
Gen 2,
Aether gearbox, GATE Aster 2 (with Bluetooth) and all new
“THERE
HAL ETU and improved internals, like a 6.03 mm brass barrel,16: 1 gears, full steel piston with 14.5 teeth, polymer sealed piston head, polymer sealed cylinder head, aluminium cylinder, sealed aluminium nozzle. was planning to transplant the J PRIME series that I got, since I was a bit disappointed with the models that were released. But, when I started using the replica as it is in the field, I was stunned by the performance, and left it as it is!
IS NO SECRET COMBINATION OR LOOPHOLE GUN THAT I SEE SO MANY NEW PEOPLE TRY TO LAWYER THEIR WAY THROUGH TO BEING BETTER THAN THOSE OF US WHO HAVE BEEN PLAYING FOR A WHILE. THE SECRET IS THAT WHAT WE HAVE JUST WORKS, AND THE PERSONAL SKILL ABOVE THAT IS WHAT MAKES US GOOD”
“THE REPLICA IS ALMOST PERFECT FOR WHAT I NEED, GREAT RANGE AND GROUPING, CRISPY TRIGGER RESPONSE AND ALREADY WITH 1,2J (JUST UNDER OUR 1,3J LIMIT). IT’S BEEN IN MY HANDS FOR OVER A YEAR NOW, SINCE THEY RELEASED THE PRIME SERIES, AND IT’S A GREAT TOOL FOR FIELD DOMINANCE!”
POWER LOADER!
BILL SPENDS A LOT OF TIME ON THE RANGE, COME RAIN OR SHINE, AND HE’S ONE OF THOSE GUYS THAT WILL EMBRACE TECHNOLOGY WHEN IT HELPS HIM! A CHANCE MEETING DURING THE SUMMER LED TO HIM GETTING HIS HANDS ON THE LATEST VANGUARD SPEEDLOADER, AND AFTER SEVERAL MONTHS OF USING IT HE’S COME AWAY VERY IMPRESSED!
Sometimes a chance meeting leads you down an unexpected path, and back at the National Airsoft Festival this summer I was kindly introduced to Mitch from www. titanforgeairsoft.com, and we had a jolly good chat about all things airsoft, and he told me that Titan Forge Airsoft was a full-spectrum UK supplier and authorized repairer of Vanguard Speedloader units.
At TitanForge, it’s pretty obvious to me that just like the AA Crew they view airsoft as more than just a game; airsoft is simply what they live and breathe every day, and if you check out their website you’ll find an extensive selection of toptier airsoft guns, gear, and accessories to help you get the absolute most from airsoft the way you like it!
This of course was all very interesting to me as I love exchanging information with like-minded souls, and I was specifically interested in the Vanguard Speedloaders as I spend a LOT of time reloading magazines of all kinds during my range days; in fact it seems sometimes to be a neverending task! Given that I have AEGs, GBBs, and GBBRs to test, and that they all have slightly different magazines I can honestly spend hours each month just filling mags! Something that would make this necessary operation easier and swifter certainly gets my vote!
Mitch kindly offered to send me out a Vanguard Speedloader Pro to try, and I’ve been using it over the past few months to really get a feel for it, and to be perfectly frank it has totally changed my range days, making mag filling a breeze and leaving me more time to “get work done” actually shooting the evaluation platforms! The spiel tells me that it is;
“Designed for the most demanding airsofters and professionals, this advanced speedloader is equipped with enhanced hardware and precision features to ensure reliable performance for years to come. Built with durability in mind, the Pro
features a reinforced pump mechanism, extended battery capacity, and an innovative BB sensor algorithm that guarantees exact BB counting.”
The Vanguard Speedloader Pro is guaranteed for a runtime of 10,000,000 BBs (yes TEN MILLION!), and the specs are impressive to say the least...
• Loading Speed: Fast, efficient reloading at 25 BBs per second.
• Settable Pressure (5N to 35N): Customize the loading pressure from 5N to 35N for a personalized experience.
• ASA Pump System with Stainless Steel Gear: Enhanced durability and smooth operation, even in the toughest conditions.
• Exact BB Counting: Advanced BB sensor algorithm stops when the set BB count is reached for precise reloading.
• OLED Display with Presets: Set up to 5 presets for quick, hassle-free counting.
• Universal Output Tube: Compatible with a wide range of magazines, including M4, AK, Tornado grenades, and Claymores, without the need for adaptors.
• Mag Discharge Tube: Quickly discharge your mags when needed for a fast reset.
• 11.1v LiPo Battery Included: Offers several months of sleep-time on a single charge, so your speedloader is always ready to go.
• Battery Deep Discharge Protection: Keeps your battery safe and extends its life.
• Standard XT60 LiPo Connector: Convenient and easy charging with the standard XT60 connector.
• Massive BB Capacity: The case holds up to 10,000 6mm BBs of any weight, reducing the need for frequent refilling.
• Reinforced Pump Mechanism: Built to withstand heavy use and ensure longlasting performance.
And if this isn’t enough, there’s settable pressure, a keylock to prevent unauthorized use,
“GIVEN THAT I HAVE AEGS, GBBS, AND GBBRS TO TEST, AND THAT THEY ALL HAVE SLIGHTLY DIFFERENT MAGAZINES I CAN HONESTLY SPEND HOURS EACH MONTH JUST FILLING MAGS! SOMETHING THAT WOULD MAKE THIS NECESSARY OPERATION EASIER AND SWIFTER CERTAINLY GETS MY VOTE!”
day and total counters, a debug mode, and an engine reversal feature in case of jams. Basically the Vanguard Speedloader Pro is way more than just a speedloader, it’s a professional-grade tool designed to make airsoft magazine loading faster, easier, and more precise.
IN OPERATION
The Vanguard Speedloader Pro is a hefty bit of kit that looks just like an ammo box, measuring 200x280x95mm and weighing in at 2500g, so it’s not really something you want to be lugging about with you! It’s best when set up in the Safe Zone or on the range table, there when you need it to bomb-up swiftly and easily.
To get things rolling obviously you need to ensure that the battery for the loader is all charged up, and then it’s just a case of simply unlatching the box (just like a real ammo box) and filling the loader up with your chosen weight of BBs… up to 10,000 of them! If you’re switching between weights of BBs then you need to ensure that the box is completely empty and then refilled… again obviously!
On top of the box is a small, knurled wheel that pretty much controls everything; tapping this will show you the state of battery charge, and then move into the setup sequence which is shown on a small illuminated screen. Rotate the wheel to scroll through the menu.
The Vanguard Speedloader PRO has an options menu item; when selected and entered you get the following menu options, SETTINGS, EXTRA and INFO, and all of the options are clearly explained in the operating manual.
When the system is locked, this is indicated by the lock symbol, and it can be unlocked by navigating the menu to “UNLOCK” and press once. Now the loader is ready to use.
Scroll up, to select a preset that’s correct for the mag you want to fill. To change the preset value, press and hold the knob until the value is
“TO GET THINGS ROLLING OBVIOUSLY YOU NEED TO ENSURE THAT THE BATTERY FOR THE LOADER IS ALL CHARGED UP, AND THEN IT’S JUST A CASE OF SIMPLY UNLATCHING THE BOX (JUST LIKE A REAL AMMO BOX) AND FILLING THE LOADER UP WITH YOUR CHOSEN WEIGHT OF BBS… UP TO 10,000 OF THEM!”
highlighted. Rotate the knob to set the desired value, then press once to confirm or hold to reset to the previous value. To load a magazine, ensure it’s empty and, if necessary, put it on the discharge tube (red), then place the magazine on the output tube (black) and hold it securely in place. Choose the desired preset and press once to start loading.
The screen will count down the exact amount of BBs and stop automatically when it reaches zero. Loading can be cancelled at any time by pressing the wheel again.
The Vanguard Speedloader Pro is equipped with a BB sensor in the form of a microswitch; although the switch is basic (I’m told), it is effectively used by the microcontroller that reads its state.
With advanced software algorithms, this sensor is monitored 1000 times a second, and this makes counting the BBs reliable and precise, and if the software detects bad counts from the switch, it will keep track of these by adding them to an error counter.
Once the error counter reaches 10000, a service message will be displayed when you turn the device on; the guys at TitanForge offer a Vanguard Health Check and Service option if this becomes necessary, and for UK£45 you get:
• Full visual inspection: Check for cracks, wear, damaged connectors and external issues.
• Battery check: Voltage and connector inspection (safe charging advice provided).
• Internal inspection & cleaning: Open, clean and remove grit, dust and old lubricant from internal gears and bearings.
• Motor & gearbox test: Functional check of drive systems and feed mechanism.
• Basic tuning: Adjustment of motor settings for optimal performance with your BB weights.
• Final QA test: Confirm feed consistency and overall operation before return to customer.
WORTH EVERY PENNY
So, am I impressed given that the Vanguard Speedloader Pro is not by any means a “cheap buy”?
Yes, I am, and with premium features like customizable pressure settings, exact BB counting, and universal magazine compatibility with adaptors for Hi-Caps, GBB mags, and even PTW mags (these are sold separately, as is the extender for very specific platforms), this speedloader is beautifully made to offer the highest standards of performance and durability… it also makes life a whole lot easier!
As an individual airsofter I believe that you’d have to have a very big wallet to justify buying one of the Vanguards (do bear in mind that there is more than one model!), but if you’re a member of a team then clubbing together would certainly provide you with an asset that everyone would be grateful for. If you run games or a site than I’d also recommend this to you as it’s the ideal tool for keeping those rentals topped off and ready to roll with minimum delay or fuss!
If you are a tech or run an airsoft shop then you’re going to love the Vanguard Speedloader Pro just because it will make your life easier, and if, like me, you’re constantly testing AEGs and GBBs then I’d also recommend the Vanguard Speedloader Pro to you unreservedly. It’ll be money well-spent, and you’ll thank me for it later!
My sincere thanks go to Mitch at www. titanforgeairsoft.com for supplying the unit to test… Now I just need to work out if I’m going to send it back to him! AA
“IF YOU ARE A TECH OR RUN AN AIRSOFT SHOP THEN YOU’RE GOING TO LOVE THE VANGUARD SPEEDLOADER PRO JUST BECAUSE IT WILL MAKE YOUR LIFE EASIER, AND IF, LIKE ME, YOU’RE CONSTANTLY TESTING AEGS AND GBBS THEN I’D ALSO RECOMMEND THE VANGUARD SPEEDLOADER PRO TO YOU UNRESERVEDLY”
PRO-LEVEL ‘PRO!
WHILST INTENTIONAL “HEAD SHOTS” ARE GENERALLY FROWNED UPON BY MOST SENSIBLE PLAYERS (UNLESS IT’S THE ONLY SHOT TO TAKE!), THE FACT IS THAT IN THE HEAT OF OUR “6MM BATTLES” THERE’S ALWAYS THE CHANCE THAT YOU’RE GOING TO TAKE A BB TO THE NOGGIN! MORE AND MORE OF US ARE RESORTING TO HELMETS AND “FACEPRO” TO MITIGATE THESE SOMETIMES-PAINFUL “BLEEDERS”, AND MIGUEL IS HERE TO TELL US ABOUT THE LATEST FROM CYGNUS ARMORY!
One of the main aspects that any airsoft players needs to take into consideration is protection. Eye protection is a must, one can play airsoft without a replica or a vest, but never without ballistic glasses, shooting glasses or even a full face mask.
But, we all know that sometimes extra protection is welcome, and here is where Cygnus joins the chat. They appeared in the airsoft world around five years ago and are located in Germany, but even while being relatively new, they attacked the market with good quality products and an ambassador program. Their flagship was their half-face masks, which appeared everywhere in just a few months. It was a light and breathable mask, with a mesh area that protected the mouth. Not only that, but it was available in a ton of different colours and patterns, something that any Airsoft player likes!
As the brand started getting traction, they also launched a few more pieces of gear here and there, boonies, hats, a helmet, covers, pouches and such. But their newest releases are what we can call unique and interesting, and these are what we will be focusing on in this review article.
FACE-OFF
First, let’s take a look at the brand new Face Warrior Defender Mask, which in my opinion is a considerable design improvement from the previous mask modes, like the Face Warrior model.
This previous model is designed to protect the mouth, and if you are using it to fully cover the nose as well, sorry, but you are using it wrong. And since I have a full beard, the part covering the area above the upper lip would cause some itching. Not only that, but the pressure in that area also made talking just a bit more complicated. Of course, you can adjust the mesh area for better comfort, and
if you don’t have a beard, it would be mostly OK, but for us rocking the natural face armour, it’s a bit of a hassle.
And here the new Defender mask comes into play. The mesh area is bigger, protecting the nose and a bigger area around the mouth, so no beard hairs sticking out and good breathing room. It’s also padded around the edges, for a better comfort during long periods. One important tip is to adjust the mesh area to your liking, don’t be afraid to bend it, the materials used can take it.
This is important for several reasons, first, the mask should fit your face well, and many of us have different face shapes, then, it’s
“ONE OF THE MAIN ASPECTS THAT ANY AIRSOFT PLAYERS NEEDS TO TAKE INTO CONSIDERATION IS PROTECTION. EYE PROTECTION IS A MUST, ONE CAN PLAY AIRSOFT WITHOUT A REPLICA OR A VEST, BUT NEVER WITHOUT BALLISTIC GLASSES, SHOOTING GLASSES OR EVEN A FULL FACE MASK”
just make sure it’s not too tight or too loose. And if you are wearing a helmet, careful with the plastic bit there, so it doesn’t cause any discomfort.
Now let’s go over the materials used.
First, the most important part, the mesh. It’s made of stainless steel and coated in carbon, making it resistant and flexible. So, like I said above, don’t be afraid to bend it. The padded area around the mesh comes with a super-soft foam, as Cygnus mention on their website. And the rest of the mask is 100% polyester, breathable and anti-fog, designed to vent heat and respiration, instead of having it travel upwards and into the eyepro, one of the main reasons for fogging.
If you are looking for a light and breathable face protection, the Cygnus Armory new Face Warrior Defender should be on top of your list. It’s a well design and well-built mask, made by those who know what the player is looking for. And, as a cherry on top of the cake, it’s available in 30 colours and patterns!
FULLY COVERED
But we are not done. Oh, no...! This year, Cygnus also launched a new helmet. The Premium Fast Helmet XP, but let’s call it the XP. Now, what makes this helmet special?
At first look, it’s your normal fast helmet, not much sticks out. But when you look at the weight, you will notice that it weighS 1650g, almost double or even triple the weight of the vast majority of helmets in the market. But why is that? Well, Cygnus already has a normal fast helmet, so with this new model they wanted to bump up the protection it provides. The XP is made UHMWPE fibres (Ultra-High Molecular Weight Polyethylene), a material I had no experience with, so I had to research it.
According to our old friend Google, UHMWPE fibres are “...high-performance synthetic fibres known for their exceptional strength-to-weight ratio, high tensile strength, and impact resistance.
“IF
They are lightweight, chemical-resistant, and have low moisture absorption, making them suitable for a wide range of demanding applications, including bulletproof vests, cutresistant gloves, marine ropes, and aerospace components”. And yes, the XP feels a lot stronger than any airsoft helmet I’ve come across. It will resist bumps, falls and even heavy blows! The good people at Cygnus have an interesting video on their website where they torture test the XP in several ways; hits from sledgehammers, falls from considerable heights, hitting it against rocks and even using a drill, proving just how resistant it is.
Now, is that a bit too much protection for airsoft? Well, that kinda depends; I’ve played airsoft on fields that many would consider dangerous, like abandoned factories or derelict buildings. Luckily I’ve never injured myself, but
YOU ARE LOOKING FOR A LIGHT AND BREATHABLE FACE PROTECTION, THE CYGNUS ARMORY NEW FACE WARRIOR DEFENDER SHOULD BE ON TOP OF YOUR LIST. IT’S A WELL DESIGN AND WELL-BUILT MASK, MADE BY THOSE WHO KNOW WHAT THE PLAYER IS LOOKING FOR”
protection. Of course, using such a helmet has a negative side, it’s weight. If you are not used to it, the pressure of such weight after a few hours of an event will take its toll on your neck and back. My tip? Try using it in small time frames first, so you can get used to it.
Now, besides its main feature, the XP can easily fit head circumferences of 55-60 cm, it comes with an adjustable internal system, like we are used to in many other helmets. The package comes with hook and loop stickers, so you can decide where to place the cushions, and the helmet comes with two different cushion types, one harder and one softer, so take your pick. You will also find the typical NVG mount, hook and loop for patches or other accessories and rails for headset adapters, nothing out of the ordinary here. The good guys at Cygnus were also kind enough to send a helmet cover as well, which you will see in the photos. Great to reduce that normal shine that helmets have. Although the powdercoated finish on the XP is quite well done, and the colour is not as bright as other plastic helmets. The XP is also available in OD, TAN and Black.
The XP fast helmet will be my go-to helmet when extra protection is needed, no questions about it. I know that while I’m using it, I can be sure
“THE
that I’m safe from most bumps and dangers that can be found on some fields and sites out there, especially those that I’m not familiarized with. The weight will get some getting used to, but after a while you won’t even feel it.
My thanks to the good people at Cygnus for sending over their new Face Warrior Defender Mask and the Premium Fast Helmet XP for testing and review; you can check out the models featured here plus a LOT more by visiting www. cygnus-armory.com! AA
XP FAST HELMET WILL BE MY GO-TO HELMET WHEN EXTRA PROTECTION IS NEEDED, NO QUESTIONS ABOUT IT. I KNOW THAT WHILE I’M USING IT, I CAN BE SURE THAT I’M SAFE FROM MOST BUMPS AND DANGERS THAT CAN BE FOUND ON SOME FIELDS AND SITES OUT THERE, ESPECIALLY THOSE THAT I’M NOT FAMILIARIZED WITH”
STEEL CHALLENGE: DING DING
‘25!
THE DING DING CUP IS A LOWER INTENSITY “GATEWAY” COMPETITION INTENDED TO GET NEW PARTICIPANTS INTERESTED IN THE COMPETITIVE SHOOTING CIRCUIT BY GIVING THEM A TASTE OF HOW THINGS RUN, WITHOUT THEM HAVING TO BE CERTIFIED OR A MEMBER OF A LOCAL TEAM OR TRAINING OUTFIT AS IS TYPICALLY THE CASE WITH THE MORE ESTABLISHED AND FORMALISED IPSC & IDPA DISCIPLINES. IN FACT IT’S THE VERY EVENT THAT ALSO GOT OUR OWN TAIWAN RESIDENT PISTOLEER STEWBACCA INVOLVED AS IT HAPPENS, SO WHAT DID 2025’S ITERATION HAVE TO OFFER?
Back in early 2019 I was invited up to Taipei, a few months prior to me transferring to my company’s head office schools in Taipei and leaving the old #StuInHsinchu life behind me, by my old Filipina skirmish teammate Belinda to join her and an array of other established competitive shooters and new practitioners to take part in my first Ding Ding Cup, a steel challenge competition with no paper target scoring and only falling poppers or non-falling steels to be engaged by the shooter.
The Ding Ding Cup was my own beginning in the Taiwan competitive shooting scene and around a year after in early 2020 I started training with Team SPPT and took up Action Air IPSC, training regularly and certifying to take part in Taiwan Practical Shooting Association (TPSA) and hence bringing you all my own story-arc throughout the intervening years in my ‘Fresh Prince Of Action Air’ series of articles.
COVID naturally caused issues for a wide array of events and even sank some teams and competitors in terms of people being unable to train in their usual spaces and competitions being off- limits for pandemic control reasons. It wasn’t until later 2023 that we had another iteration of the event, held in Taipei City Underground Mall at its far west end not far from Taipei Main train station, as covered by Anny and I at the time.
Another two years down the line and it returned for 2025, landing on a Saturday, and another array of shooters young and old, certified and casual all descended once again into the underground
mall for a further six stages of steel shooting over the course of the day! This year I elected to use my CLPD Shadow 2 Orange with its red dot sight in red-dot pistol division, and once again entered the red-dot rifle/PCC division, this time using the recently acquired VFC Knight’s Armament KS1 L403A1 British alternative individual weapon platform with a Vortex Crossfire red dot. All ran very well throughout the competition as well as the run up to it with six of us from team SPPT entering and practising on the run up to it following our return from the world shoot.
I also decided to bring in our compatriot in Lin YiJun from the southern region of Taiwan who has been competing alongside us for a while in IPSC as well as taking part in IDPA and skirmishing, as well as live fire shooting overseas, and who already demonstrated her great abilities as the top lady in production optics at the world shoot. I took the VFC MD9 down to her in Chiayi a few weeks before the event to allow her to get some practise in with it, and we trained together on the Gun King range which she lives near and trains at on her own usually every night after work that she can make it along there for. So, she fielded the MD9 with an EOTech clone in PCC division alongside me and shared her thoughts about the gun itself and her experiences of it as a lady shooter as part of my review in ISSUE 179.
Initially I’d contemplated running the VFC MP5SD3 in the PCC division given my great love of the platform and its accuracy even at extended ranges; however, I found the weight and front
“THE DING DING CUP WAS MY OWN BEGINNING IN THE TAIWAN COMPETITIVE SHOOTING SCENE AND AROUND A YEAR AFTER IN EARLY 2020 I STARTED TRAINING WITH TEAM SPPT AND TOOK UP ACTION AIR IPSC, TRAINING REGULARLY AND CERTIFYING TO TAKE PART IN TAIWAN PRACTICAL SHOOTING ASSOCIATION (TPSA)”
heavy balance coupled with the longer, heavier trigger-throw less conducive to the fastest shooting, and seeing as I’d recently acquired the L403A1 model for review as well I figured it made a better fit in terms of lighter weight and faster handling and trigger response. I fitted a bunch of the tan coloured Amarok rubberised M-LOK grip panels around the entirety of the M-LOK handguard, as well as one of their black stub M-LOK fingerstop/handstops on the bottom edge to improve the overall grip and control of the rifle in hand for competition and in skirmishing alike.
TARGETS APLENTY
The format of the competition is somewhat standard as such, with the same target types and presentations from the previous iteration, and we managed to replicate them in our training spaces for practise on the run up to the competition itself. This gave a mixture of small disc targets and large rectangular plates mounted on selfsupporting stands in arrays of five for each stage,
and one of the smaller discs marked with a red tape and being the last to be engaged as the ‘stop plate’ in each case.
The various stages array the targets at different heights and distances from the shooter who always fired from a stationary position in a fault line bounding box, minimising the risk of falling over, dropping or losing control of our platforms, sweeping other competitors or ROs. It eliminates the need for movement with the AEGs and GBBs, making it a lot more accessible to new shooters with less to manage mentally as well as less risky for everyone else in general. In terms of pistol stages each round was performed from a handsat-head-height ‘surrender’ pose, drawing from the holster with the pistol cocked and off safe in all instances to maximise the focus on speed and avoid the need to disengage safeties or perform any other manipulations than raw marksmanship and baseline safe handling.
In PCC/rifle division we would similarly start chambered and off-safe, aiming the platform at low ready towards the top of a small designating cone in front of the main target array, swinging up into line with the target arrays while already sighting down it and engaging and hitting the targets as quickly as possible.
Each stage array was completed five times one after another by every competitor in each of their divisions, with the four fastest times being added together to give your aggregate score. Many were like me doing pistol and rifle, but one guy also did pistol AND revolver
“TWO YEARS DOWN THE LINE AND IT RETURNED FOR 2025, LANDING ON A SATURDAY, AND ANOTHER ARRAY OF SHOOTERS YOUNG AND OLD, CERTIFIED AND CASUAL ALL DESCENDED ONCE AGAIN INTO THE UNDERGROUND MALL FOR A FURTHER SIX STAGES OF STEEL SHOOTING OVER THE COURSE OF THE DAY!”
so had to switch his competition belt gear out quickly between attempts with each platform. I managed to set my belt kit up to have my usual four pistol mags and holster, with an additional rifle magazine on the rear and carrying another rifle mag in my shorts pocket. This at least kept it nice and toasty in terms of keeping the gas power consistent! Suffice to say the morning of the shoot was nice and sweaty; unfortunately the air conditioning in the underground mall is centralised and not activated until 1100 each day, so we had to do the first three stages in a pretty warm and thirst-inducing environment again.
USUAL SUSPECTS
All told three squads of competitors turned up, grouped loosely by platform-type used, with myself and Ou of team SPPT in Squad 2; he was running his typical competition setup and his own CLPD Shadow 2 Orange as per our exploits in the world shoot, and in fact there were a few of us running such equipment as there were also secondary monetary prizes for the best shooter in each class making use of the VFC SA320 pistol, VFC M9 PCC, CLPD Shadow 2 and CLPD/Ares revolver. Luis from 4UAD also joined us running the CLPD/Ares combat revolver along with one of Clarence’s belt gear setups with a specific holster as well as his competition moonclip holders; one other gent was also running one and it is definitely HARD MODE! You have six BBs to make five hits as fast as possible, and risking a reload would
“EACH
absolutely eat your time… Ou figured out and informed Luis that if you miss a target before the ending plate it’s probably equally beneficial to just finish regardless because taking that extra final available shot before engaging the ending plate might risk a miss on that which would require a reload costing maybe 8-10 seconds given the fiddly nature of reloading a revolver even with moon clips (unless you’re Jerry Miculek, of course) rather than just absorbing the three second penalty for such a miss.
I ended up being the first to shoot the first stage (Stage 1) which comprised five of the smallest disc targets, and unfortunately I got off to a bad start off the bat. I hadn’t re-zeroed my optic on the run-up to the competition as I didn’t want to mess with my standard competition set up, so the shorter range and my usual zero distant put a lot of my BBs just off the bottom of these smaller targets. I ended up with a 7.29 first string with 4 misses and 9 shots total, so I reloaded pre-emptively forgetting that I had a lot more BBs loaded than my usual limit of 15 for production
STAGE ARRAY WAS COMPLETED FIVE TIMES ONE AFTER ANOTHER BY EVERY COMPETITOR IN EACH OF THEIR DIVISIONS, WITH THE FOUR FASTEST TIMES BEING ADDED TOGETHER TO GIVE YOUR AGGREGATE SCORE. MANY WERE LIKE ME DOING PISTOL AND RIFLE, BUT ONE GUY ALSO DID PISTOL AND REVOLVER”
division in IPSC, and unfortunately loaded a magazine that had leaked all its gas out and I hadn’t recharged them all before beginning. Another ‘badministration’ moment on my part that left me reloading again at the start of the second string and coming away with an 8.99 run which was obviously not included being the slowest attempt, although at least I only took 5 shots to complete it, but still, slow start - damage done! My next few attempts were more typical in the 4 second range, and overall I came last of the 14 shooters in red dot pistol for Stage 1, with an aggregate 19.94 second time around 58% of the best score - great start, as always… For the rifle portion of stage one I at least did a lot better coming fourth of 10 shooters with an aggregate time of 11.29 - 92% of my team leader Mars’ time, with my fastest 2.51 attempt hot on heels of his fastest at least… so when it goes right for me it goes very right!
We shuffled left to the next of the three stage bays and prepared for the next onslaught, Stage 3, four large plate targets flanking the small disc stop plate in the centre in pairs either side; a lot more potential for speed given the larger targets at least! And indeed I did much better on pistol and rifle as a result, although unfortunately it seems my pistol and rifle results were mixed up; I should have once again come fourth in rifle, and tenth again in pistol. I was very fast with the rifle in fact, doing two of the runs
with sub-two second results which were the fastest of my rifle runs overall.
Up next was Stage 6 (they were all arranged in an odd order on the day, probably to minimise the change in target arrays based upon their layouts, rather than following a numeric progression as is typical of IPSC competitions) which comprised of another five small disc targets but arrived with more separation front to back of the pairs on each side of the central ending disc. I got another tenth place in pistol with 9 misses out of all the runs, only the last iteration being shot clean - rounds falling below the small targets again causing me issues and make up shots. Rifle I came fourth again with the majority of runs just over or under 2.5 seconds each with one miss a piece on all but the last run.
LUNCH RUN AND DONE
Finishing just before midday, we broke for lunch and went off to grab some really nice Indonesian
“THE VARIOUS STAGES ARRAY THE TARGETS AT DIFFERENT HEIGHTS AND DISTANCES FROM THE SHOOTER WHO ALWAYS FIRED FROM A STATIONARY POSITION IN A FAULT LINE BOUNDING BOX, MINIMISING THE RISK OF FALLING OVER, DROPPING
OR LOSING CONTROL OF OUR PLATFORMS, SWEEPING OTHER COMPETITORS OR ROS”
food as a team and also had a sit down with Clarence, Katherine and the boss man of Ares and his wife who I’d just been introduced to. Now they are operating out of Taichung having moved over from Hong Kong like many other manufacturers, I have another industry contact to investigate for articles further down the line, and they had a stall on site showcasing their range of CO2 revolvers and related accessories. Likewise VFC were also showing off their latest offerings, along with Northeast Airsoft, Beans Workshop who makes custom holsters (including the ones for my Walthers), Conqueror and Guns Cool gunshops, and No.9 workshop who make embroidered patches including my own Stewbacca Island Insider ones.
Returning from lunch we donned our gear and made sure all our magazines were topped off… or at least we should have! I reloaded my rifle mags but forgot to reload the pistol ones I’d used, and we’ll need that fact shortly for this story. Kicking off again just before half one in the afternoon we cycled through the same order of shooting bays, beginning at the right side with Stage 2 which had three small disc targets up front and two large rectangular plates at the far rear, and also had two fault line boxes taped on the floor, the shooter having to shoot three iterations from one then move to complete the final two runs from the other, thus varying the manner in which the targets were presented.
I only missed the end plate once on the first run, in 3.51 seconds. Next I fired the next five shots and missed two, ended up surprised by slide lock and had to quickly reload to take the final two shots… not helpful, taking 6.07 seconds to get my act together overall. Obviously that was the worst run and not counted towards the final score thankfully, the other runs being between 3.50 and 3.20 seconds putting me in ninth place for pistol for that stage. Rifle-wise I shot the first two iterations clean and then picked up five misses overall in the last three runs, actually putting me in second place overall with most of my runs just over two seconds a piece despite the small discs up front to deal with. Over to the central bay we pressed on with Stage 4, two large rectangular targets flanking three small discs but in an echelon of sorts with all the targets at different ranges from left to right front to rear. Missing two of the shots on the first run I ended up with a 7.28 second time; I immediately improved on this with just one miss and a much faster 3.39 second run, another rushed run got me two misses but I did it in only 3.91 seconds at least. Same again next run but in a faster
“THERE WERE A FEW OF US RUNNING SUCH EQUIPMENT AS THERE WERE ALSO SECONDARY MONETARY PRIZES FOR THE BEST SHOOTER IN EACH CLASS MAKING USE OF THE VFC SA320 PISTOL, VFC M9 PCC, CLPD SHADOW 2 AND CLPD/ARES REVOLVER”
3.68 seconds, and then a 3.45 second run with two misses at the beginning followed by clean hits on everything afterwards, another ninth place overall for red dot pistol. Rifle was again slicker and faster, shooting it with one miss in the first run in 3.35 seconds, clean the second round and somehow faster at 2.95, missing three shots the next run but in 3.13 seconds, then a 3.03 and very rapid 2.33 to round things off, putting me in sixth place overall for that stage.
Last up was the left bay for Stage 5, five small discs at slightly different heights and distances in a V from the central stop plate and rearward both sides. It took me 4.66 seconds to miss four times again on the small targets with BBs flying beneath due to my unadjusted dot height, missed twice the next time and got it down to 4.59 seconds, then shot it clean in 3.16 seconds, missed two again in 3.84 seconds, and finally another two misses in 3.24 seconds. This all put me eighth overall for that round, and I guess a lot of people struggled with the small targets at different distances.
Rifle-wise I got second place on that stage, first round was two misses in 3.41 seconds, three misses next in 3.82 seconds, a clean and fast run at 2.26 seconds, one miss in 2.36 seconds, and finally one miss in 2.64 seconds… clearly rifle is more my bag to be honest! With all the shooting done with I could finally unload everything and grab some posed pictures with Yijun sporting our VFCs for the purposes of this article and the gun reviews, as well as let others have
a go with the remaining magazines on the small test range to the side… with the usual approving noises and nods as I’m used to.
GONG-TIME
With everyone finished up the scores were finalised with Practiscore once again taking care of all the leg-work in tabulation of results. In iron sight pistol first place was taken by Zheng Jiahua followed by Zhang Linxiang in second and third taken by Liu Jiaming out of twenty total competitors. Red dot pistol was won by Cai Yuqi, second place taken by Lin Weisheng and third place going to ‘Bear’ Zhan Dengxiong with yours truly placing tenth of the total of fourteen shooters. PCC division was won by Liu Chixiao, second place taken by Lu Bosheng and third place being Zhang Zhaoxiang; correcting the score error for myself I would have been in fourth place out of ten shooters, ahead of my team leader Mars Liu and Zhuang Yixun of KIC Airsoft, who took first and second places last outing in
“RETURNING FROM LUNCH WE DONNED OUR GEAR AND MADE SURE ALL OUR MAGAZINES WERE TOPPED OFF… OR AT LEAST WE SHOULD HAVE! I RELOADED MY RIFLE MAGS BUT FORGOT TO RELOAD THE PISTOL ONES I’D USED, AND WE’LL NEED THAT FACT SHORTLY FOR THIS STORY…”
2023 with me following in third, so I was pretty happy with that result overall in the end; we all got beaten but I managed to hold my own against two who previously bested me at least.
Wu Xinxi took first place in revolver followed by Luis Wen Yuzhang of 4UAD Smartairsoft, the former also getting a cash prize for being the fastest score with the Ares wheelgun. Sally Chou took a prize for best performance with the SA320, while our own Ou Jiacheng took the prize for best Shadow 2 performance having placed fourth overall in optics pistol, while the prize for best MD9 run went to Zhang Zhaoxiang.
Once again I’d like to share YiJun’s thoughts as this was her first match competing with something other than her usual pistol setup, and first time joining the Ding Ding Cup in general, so I figured it was another good opportunity to share her perspective as a newer female shooter among our ranks
“It was my first time joining the Ding Ding Cup and also my very first rifle competition; what made it special was that my good friend Stu lent me his VFC MD9 PCC. From the day I received it to the competition, I had only 12 days to practice, and with several unfortunately rainy days, I actually trained for just 3 to 4 days in reality. Within that short time, I pushed myself to master the basics of grip, aim, and breathing.
“When I first held Stu’s MD9, the cold metal gave me both excitement and nerves; each shot tested my ability to stay calm and focused. On match day, I told myself, “Even with little training, give it your all and enjoy this moment.” When I pulled the trigger and heard that crisp ding, all the pressure turned into pure joy and satisfaction.
“Though the preparation was short, this experience showed me the beauty of shooting, a journey of focus, rhythm, and self-challenge. I’m truly grateful to Stu for his support. My first rifle match became unforgettable, and I look forward to hearing that ding again, with more practice and
“THOUGH
confidence next time.”
Many thanks again to YiJun for all her efforts and sharing her thoughts with us. After the presentations were complete the usual raffle ensued with many people walking away with spare parts and even some full on guns donated by the sponsors. I managed to bag two 4UAD Smartairsoft GBB HOP buckings as I entered two divisions and thus had two shooter ID cards to enter into the raffle. But others managed to bag one of the Ares CO2 revolvers, a VFC SA320, a VFC Maxim Defense MD9, as well as Dr Black competition HiCapa pistol components, Nutrek red dot sights, and holsters. With that we took the usual group and team photos and dispersed into the evening’s fading light…
Until next time, fellow shooters… AA
THE PREPARATION WAS SHORT, THIS EXPERIENCE SHOWED ME THE BEAUTY OF SHOOTING, A JOURNEY OF FOCUS, RHYTHM, AND SELF-CHALLENGE... MY FIRST RIFLE MATCH BECAME UNFORGETTABLE, AND I LOOK FORWARD TO HEARING THAT DING AGAIN, WITH MORE PRACTICE AND CONFIDENCE NEXT TIME”
OP EX:PO
IT’S PRETTY OBVIOUS TO US THAT AIRSOFT IN PORTUGAL WORKS DIFFERENTLY TO MANY OTHER COUNTRIES, AND FROM MIGUEL’S REGULAR REPORTS OF GAMES AND EVENTS THAT TAKE PLACE THERE IT APPEARS ALMOST POSITIVELY UNIQUE GIVEN ITS STRONG AND RESILIENT COMMUNITY-ORIENTED PLAYER-BASE! WITH EXPOAIRSOFT 2025 SOON TO HAPPEN, THIS MONTH HE ILLUSTRATES THIS WONDERFUL “AIRSOFT COMMUNITY SPIRIT” YET AGAIN!
“I’M TALKING ABOUT THE UPCOMING EXPOAIRSOFT 2025, THE SECOND EDITION OF THIS IMPORTANT EVENT FOR THE AIRSOFT COMMUNITY IN PORTUGAL THAT BILL VISITED AND WE REPORTED ON LAST YEAR. BUT, LEARNING FROM LAST YEARS “MISTAKES”, THIS YEAR A BIGGER TEAM WAS GATHERED”
Well, I guess we can’t just go out and play airsoft, right? Sometimes we are called to help a cause, and that means organizing an event with the objective. And this time, the cause is quite important.
I’m talking about the upcoming ExpoAirsoft 2025, the second edition of this important event for the airsoft community in Portugal that Bill visited and we reported on last year. But, learning from last years “mistakes”, this year a bigger team was gathered; it’s too much work for just two or three players, so I was one of the members of the community invited to be part of the staff. And knowing some of the expenses associated with the Expo last year, we also prepared plans to gather funds, in order to pay for everything necessary, like licensing from the authorities, insurances, even investing in publicity, materials and anything needed to improve from last year.
Now, one of the ideas that was pitched during one of our meetings was a callout to the community, and have teams organize events where part of the amount raised would fund the Expo. Our goal with this is to have the means of having a bigger and better event, and to be direct, this can’t be done without money. Well, and if I have the means of organizing such an event, it would be hypocritical of me not to, and with that, the Op. Ex:Po event series was born.
So, it was time to get to work, and as every other event, there is an extended list of task to complete before even opening the gates on game day. And yes, much
of that work falls in my hands, it’s part of being a team leader! First we started divulging the game, and unlike the vast majority of our games in the past ten years, this one was 100% open to the “public”. Luckily, throughout the years we found ourselves surrounded by many teams with whom we created great friendships, so most of our games are invite only. But, since it was important to divulge the Expo as well, we decided to open all slots to the community. And in less than 72h I had all 80 slots filled!
As we started planning the game module, or scenario, we had to take into consideration the fact that a good portion of the players present were new to the field, so it was important to keep the game on the simpler side. Some of our events can be a bit complex, but if the teams are used to it, it can be done.
PULLING IT TOGETHER
What was the game module? Well, the game was divided into two phases, and the first involved our programmable game boxes. There were a total of 4 in the central part of the field, and every 10 minutes it started beeping for 1 minute; during
“ONE OF THE IDEAS THAT WAS PITCHED DURING ONE OF OUR MEETINGS WAS A CALLOUT TO THE COMMUNITY, AND HAVE TEAMS ORGANIZE EVENTS WHERE PART OF THE AMOUNT RAISED WOULD FUND THE EXPO. OUR GOAL WITH THIS IS TO HAVE THE MEANS OF HAVING A BIGGER AND BETTER EVENT”
this time window a player had to swipe an RFID ID tag and the box would give them a metal coin. That metal coin had to be delivered to their faction commander in their HQ. So, the first phase of the game had both factions constantly fighting for the control of 4 areas, but instead of a normal domination, there was an actual item involved that had to be transported back.
The second phase was in the hand of the faction commanders. Every time they had 5 metal coins in their base, they could “purchase” one of 4 special missions (Alpha, Bravo, Charlie and Delta). These missions all had the same objective, but the location changed as well as the points attributed. How did this work? The special mission had players search for a black ammo box and retrieve from them a CD cover with the colour of their faction, and after delivering that CD cover back to their HQ, they would get points. In the end, the faction with more points from completing these missions would be the winner. The points attributed to each mission would vary
depending on the location, if it was the closest to their base it would be worth 1 point, 2 points for the two in the centre of the map and 4 points for the mission closest to the enemy HQ. This was though to give the faction commanders the decision of playing safe or risking it.
Before game day, I also created the WhatsApp groups for each faction, and sent the players all rules and game module, so they were prepared even before the game. My idea is always to have time to answer questions or even change something that got overlooked, instead of rushing it all during the event. It was also interesting to see the interaction between the players in the factions and their commander. It’s also important to mention that I invited two other members of the staff behind the Expo to lead the factions, I guess it was a special touch considering the objective of the event.
GAME ON
The game day started soon for us as usual; we had HQ to set up, objectives to place and the check in to get ready, and soon the normal bustling with cars arriving started. But, it’s not an airsoft event with any kind of setback, and unfortunately one of the faction commanders called me, saying that he was sick and couldn’t attend the game... so time for plan B (there was no plan B)! Luckily, I had two players who were going to be present, but weren’t going to play, one that broken a toe and another that was pregnant (what a mix!). So I called them to help and had a small briefing, mostly because I like to have the commanders understanding the game well.
As time went on, more cars
“AS NORMAL, BEING PART OF THE ORGANIZATION, IT’S IMPOSSIBLE TO FOLLOW SPECIFIC MISSIONS OR DETAILS. BUT IT WAS REALLY FUN TO SEE THE CONFRONTATION FOR THE BOXES IN THE MIDDLE OF THE FIELD, WITH LINES PUSHING AND COLLAPSING”
arrived, more people to welcome and spend a bit talking to of course, it’s part of airsoft. As the players started gearing up, we also started pushing them to the check-in, otherwise they would pile on closer to the briefing, and that can create delays. It did end up happening, and the game itself started with a 10 minute delay... something I don’t like! Since we had several players who were new to the field, the briefing covered safety and field hazards more extensively.
After all that, the teams started moving towards their respawn and at 0925 (10 minutes late!) the game started! As normal, being part of the organization, it’s impossible to follow specific missions or details. But it was really fun to see the confrontation for the boxes in the middle of the field, with lines pushing and collapsing. Many players even had to go back to their cars to refill, because they are not used to shoot this much at our games!
As the game progressed and the commanders started gathering the metal coins, it was time to purchase missions and send out teams to complete this objective. And here we saw some differences in strategies, which I’ll talk about further on. Since there were a lot of confrontations for control of the boxes, the marshals kept a strong presence at that location, me included. And it’s always fun to see people complain about this shot or that shot while we were looking from the sides. If players saw some of the shots that they swear were a hit, they
would leave in shame.
Towards the end of the events, half of the boxes stopped giving out the metal coins (they were programmed like that), forcing the players to fight for the other two operational ones. Meanwhile, the commanders were trying to gather coins in order to buy as many missions as possible, it was the final stretch! And while the Red team was playing safe, and going for the 2 point missions (in the middle of the map) the Blue faction took the risk and purchased 4 point missions (closest to the enemy HQ), which in the end paid off! The Blue faction got the win with a difference of just 4 points; although the Red faction completed more missions, the Blue faction got two 4 point missions, which gave them the win, by one mission.
After the game ended, we held some giveaways, always with the support of our friends at Viper Tactical and Specna Arms! I want to thank everyone who supported this cause, with your help we were able to gather 750€ which now will help the ExpoAirsoft 2025!
See you there… and for those that can’t attend then look out for the Event Report soon! AA
“AFTER THE GAME ENDED, WE HELD SOME GIVEAWAYS, ALWAYS WITH THE SUPPORT OF OUR FRIENDS AT VIPER TACTICAL AND SPECNA ARMS! I WANT TO THANK EVERYONE WHO SUPPORTED THIS CAUSE, WITH YOUR HELP WE WERE ABLE TO GATHER 750€ WHICH NOW WILL HELP THE EXPOAIRSOFT 2025!”
BRASS AND POWDER
HAILING FROM A MOSTLY NON-PERMISSIVE ENVIRONMENT IN THE UK, AND NOW LIVING IN AN EQUALLY NON-PERMISSIVE ENVIRONMENT IN TAIWAN, STEWBACCA’S NOT OFTEN HAD THE CHANCE TO GET BEHIND REAL FIREARMS SINCE TRAINING ON THEM MORE REGULARLY MORE YEARS AGO THAN HE CARES TO MENTION, BUT WHILE IN THE PHILIPPINES FOR THE WORLD SHOOT, HE HAD THE OPPORTUNITY TO MAKE UP FOR SOME LOST TIME, AND HAD TIME TO PONDER ON HOW “AIRSOFT EXPERIENCES” TRANSLATED TO THE REAL THING!
Ifirst started training with real firearms around about the same time I was getting into airsoft guns as I was entering sixth form at my secondary school they started a Combined Cadet Force that I eagerly joined with dad arguing against my mum’s obvious anti-gun grumblings and misgivings to let me get it out of my system rather than risk me joining up good and proper, I suppose… we used the L98 and No.4 bolt action rifles ‘back in my day’ and I sailed through my Weapons Handling Tests (WHTs). As older students and NCOs we also usually got the opportunity to finish the remnants of ammunition booked out each time we ended up on a range, bringing back fond memories of the four of us dumping full magazines at the end of one day following which I jumped at the chance to finish the final partial magazine… must have done about seventy rounds that day all told… Fast forward a decade and change from then and I was in Cambodia accidentally gate-crashing my old university friend’s honeymoon after a slight miscommunication… but they ended up letting me tag along as a photographer and
“bodyguard”! Along with visiting the landmine museum and self de-mining efforts (a subject close to my heart throughout my life), I also visited a range while I was there and finally had the chance to get behind military rifles in the form of an M16A1 and AKM which I got to run a magazine through each, the distant yet still familiar scent of spent powder filling the inside range tunnel back then.
I moved to Taiwan a couple of years after that and since then it has been equally difficult to get trigger time in on real guns; obviously the police carry pistols habitually here, but it’s difficult to find your way into that kind of crowd as a civilian let alone a foreigner. While shotguns are somewhat open to use and even ownership, as I understand it they have to be kept in the assigned shooting club’s gun safe and nobody is really allowed to have firearms at home aside from extremely unusual circumstances from what I gather. In decades gone by some people had personal firearms licenses but the issuing of such things ceased long ago and they could not be passed on; thus, organised crime or
“I MOVED TO TAIWAN A COUPLE OF YEARS AFTER THAT AND SINCE THEN IT HAS BEEN EQUALLY DIFFICULT TO GET TRIGGER TIME IN ON REAL GUNS; OBVIOUSLY THE POLICE CARRY PISTOLS HABITUALLY HERE, BUT IT’S DIFFICULT TO FIND YOUR WAY INTO THAT KIND OF CROWD AS A CIVILIAN LET ALONE A FOREIGNER”
services personnel aside, it’s highly unusual to come across any real guns in-country outside of controlled expo spaces like the TADTE defence show, or military displays at public relations events, but live firing them is the reserve of those who serve behind them. The only other exception is one distant firing range in the centralsouthern Tainan region where .22LR target pistols are available for public use, which team SPPT did indeed avail themselves of while we were at the said same range for a Level 2 action air competition last year… and I did quite well then too.
There is also an awesome national marksmanship training centre with .22LR olympic pistols and lots of range lanes just southwest of Taipei, but it is reserved for national shooting teams and services personnel and equally
training on paper, and with the zippy target mounting lines that run the targets back and forth at the push of a button for convenience, it’s not quite the same as the recoil management and concussion of being behind a proper gunpowder weapon.
Thus it was a refreshing break to see the permissive and organised environment of the Philippines, with guns being a casual fixture of shopping centre guard staff, and some people licensed to carry them concealed, or apparently not so concealed in some cases! Also the police system mentioned in my first AAWS article facilitated the ease of flying around the Philippines archipelago with personal firearms, all being logged and communally stowed by the Philippines National Police officers in pelican cases in the luggage compartment.
unavailable for public use. The only other option is some of the community sports centres that have olympic air pistol and air rifle ranges available for public use which are admittedly fun and useful for genuine marksmanship principles
GETTING REAL
After the majority of Taiwanese competitors had arrived on the first weekend, we made a first trip to Mikey’s Firing Range outside Iloilo; I didn’t have a SIM card and there was no wifi at the convention centre, but luckily I was hanging around outside
“THUS IT WAS A REFRESHING BREAK TO SEE THE PERMISSIVE AND ORGANISED ENVIRONMENT OF THE PHILIPPINES, WITH GUNS BEING A CASUAL FIXTURE OF SHOPPING CENTRE GUARD STAFF, AND SOME PEOPLE LICENSED TO CARRY THEM CONCEALED, OR APPARENTLY NOT SO CONCEALED IN SOME CASES!”
the centre and saw Yijun scurrying by to join the team Spring Rain guys who were staying at the hotel next door so I tagged along with her and also managed to score an appropriate SIM card from my squadmate Wei when I met up with them all in their hotel foyer… good times all round.
We set off in a convoy of minibuses driving around half an hour out to the northeast countryside to the range, all excited to get some more trigger time in. A lot of the guys travel to Thailand with their Taiwan IDPA adventures to do live fire competitions and training at their preferred Tiger Tac Academy which looks awesome and I might have to find my way there too at some point. Likewise Anny has made her bay to Batangas further north in the Philippines on the south of Manila on the main island (see Issue 149 for more details of her own adventures out there!); suffice to say all of us had previous real firearms experience and were looking forward to being on the range together and being trusted to manage ourselves with minimal oversight as a result of our collective experience.
Mikey’s though is a great environment with an indoor range for basic training and shooting experiences in the air conditioned space for the more novice shooters looking to get their first whiff of powder, and then has a large outdoor range complex out to the rear with multiple bays radiating from the central covered walkway with various existing barricade and fault line setups to run competitive stages on. Then there are more open bays for longer range marksmanship on paper or poppers… and also has a cafe and pool hall on site to get out of the heat! I was certainly drenched after spending a whole afternoon out there on the first range day… hydrate or die, fellow shooters!
They tend to have a varied selection on hand which cycles depending on which range officers or personnel are available or coming to site that day; on our first outing we were somewhat
“WE SET OFF IN A CONVOY OF MINIBUSES DRIVING AROUND HALF AN HOUR OUT TO THE NORTHEAST COUNTRYSIDE TO THE RANGE, ALL EXCITED TO GET SOME MORE TRIGGER TIME IN. A LOT OF THE GUYS TRAVEL TO THAILAND WITH THEIR TAIWAN IDPA ADVENTURES TO DO LIVE FIRE COMPETITIONS AND TRAINING AT THEIR PREFERRED TIGER TAC ACADEMY”
fighting over a lone Glock 17, a SIG P320 and a 1911, all in 9mm, as well as having access to an M16A1, M16A2, M4A1 and an AR style PCC. We divided into different groups depending on the desired shooting experience and set up on adjoining bays at the far end among the more regular local shooters, some of whom would become familiar friends in the coming days of the world shoot but whom we hadn’t met in person as yet.
The more experienced shooters of Team Spring Rain worked their way through the pistols on offer among themselves doing draw and fire on paper, then moving between targets and firing then running forward to stop and fire drills, while the rest of us took a look at the AR PCC in the next bay. Jackie, Belinda and Yijun all took a run with a magazine load on falling metal plates out to around 20 metres, and made it look easy for the most part. Yijun cleared the plates one for one, evidently a dab hand with a PCC, although she had a few misfeeds from having less of her own mass behind the gun to resist the recoil… I don’t suffer such issues at least, being a chonkeh boy!
A little later in the afternoon while the Spring Rain guys started running live stages with the 9mm 1911 we got hold of the Glock and shared it between us as we cycled through the ammunition we’d bought. I focused more on raw marksmanship and shooting for groups as it was the first time I’d ever fired a 9mm handgun; ‘back in my day’ they were only for specialists or officers and the UK forces only recently relented and started issuing sidearms as a more standard thing like our US compatriots.
Dry firing the Glock 17 a few times to get used to the trigger break I started loading up the solitary magazine we had for it with fifteen rounds to do my first group on paper; I pulled a little left of centre but got all but two rounds in the A-zone at around ten metres - not bad, I think, for a first timer. This, I think, comes back to our ongoing
“ON OUR FIRST OUTING WE WERE SOMEWHAT FIGHTING OVER A LONE GLOCK 17, A SIG P320 AND A 1911, ALL IN 9MM, AS WELL AS HAVING ACCESS TO AN M16A1, M16A2, M4A1 AND AN AR STYLE PCC. WE DIVIDED INTO DIFFERENT GROUPS DEPENDING ON THE DESIRED SHOOTING EXPERIENCE”
argument about airsoft being a perfectly capable training tool to progress people onto live firearms, and clearly all of the more experienced shooters having progressed in that same story arc - with four of the Taiwan IDPA gents being part of a competition in the US which my friend helped make a documentary of charting their journey.
With most of them never having live pistol experience prior they went to a competition and managed to clean up on awards between them! Similarly I’ve personally tutored people who’ve never had any type of gun or replica thereof and by the end of the first session had them drilling A-zones at ten metres too; granted there’s an argument for recoil control being something you have to adapt to, and I was trained in that on rifles so the skills are naturally transferrable in terms of my engrained marksmanship principles of yesteryear sticking around. I think, as does Bill, there’s also an argument for airsoft giving people already-trained an outlet to maintain otherwise perishable skillsets, and that certainly seems to transfer into Taiwanese airsoft and MilSim or competitive circles.
GOING LONG
After expending most of the hundred rounds of 9mm myself on paper (although we didn’t patch so diligently between shooters so it was difficult to tell whose shots were whose) I took a nosey over at the right-hand bay as the rifles had arrived and were being loaded up ready for us.
I took my now familiar-handling to the M16A1 and A2 thanks to having the VFC replicas within arms reach of my workstation at home, and having fielded them quite a few times at MilSims thus far, and suffice to say the noise and recoil was louder, but at around 20m and standing freehand I managed put all but one of the twenty five rounds loaded, half the box of fifty 5.56mm I bought, in the A-zone! Normally I’d shoot prone in the old days, but evidently the principles transfer;
“YIJUN CLEARED THE PLATES ONE FOR ONE, EVIDENTLY A DAB HAND WITH A PCC, ALTHOUGH SHE HAD A FEW MISFEEDS FROM HAVING LESS OF HER OWN MASS BEHIND THE GUN TO RESIST THE RECOIL… I DON’T SUFFER SUCH ISSUES AT LEAST, BEING A CHONKEH BOY!”
I put the rest of the box through the somewhat shorter yet heavier M4A1 and put a nice tighter group all within the A-zone although slightly lower. The RO had warned me the sights would shoot lower, but, grouping size is the important thing after all, so I was pretty happy with that result given the decade gap between each of my last live fire experiences.
I finished up the last of my 9mm with a few magazines through the SIG P320 shooting for groups; the sights in this case were way off, with the pistol shooting good groups, but eight inches low at ten metres, so I’m not sure what had been done to it. The trigger felt kind of spongey and it was actually quite difficult to get support-hand purchase on the front rail and nobody seemed to particularly enjoy shooting it as a result.
We also returned the next Monday on our last day before leaving back for Taiwan, with Clarence and Katherine, the 4UAD squad, some of our local Filipino friends, the remaining Hong Kong shooters who hadn’t returned home yet, and our new Croatian friends who turned up a little later for some range time before leaving as well.
This time we had a quartet of Glocks to share at least, and we all got to work shooting for groups in turns, and Ou was helping introduce Wei Wei to her first live fire shooting experience as well while the rest of us ran shooting and moving drills.
The Armalites were unfortunately unavailable on this day, but a Galil ACE showed up later in the afternoon and Luis of 4UAD and myself were running that with another box of 5.56 I ran up to the office to purchase. I took a more technical approach as I was left largely alone and did five round groups on paper at around twenty metres from standing, kneeling, sitting and prone to compare the spread, then did another few ten round groups prone and sitting to use the remaining ammunition
Clarence’s friend in country Angel also arrived later and brought an array of his own personal
“WE ALSO RETURNED THE NEXT MONDAY ON OUR LAST DAY BEFORE LEAVING BACK FOR TAIWAN, WITH CLARENCE AND KATHERINE, THE 4UAD SQUAD, SOME OF OUR LOCAL FILIPINO FRIENDS, THE REMAINING HONG KONG SHOOTERS WHO HADN’T RETURNED HOME YET, AND OUR NEW CROATIAN FRIENDS”
firearms to try, including a very nice Angstadt Arms AR PCC which was just easy mode for everyone with a very soft recoil impulse, very crisp and light trigger and a great red dot. I can certainly see the appeal of the fun factor and ease of training with them versus a ‘full bore’ rifle in 5.56mm or larger calibres; it was fairly easy even for the slighter folks among us to wield and run stages with. I also managed to get a go on one of the range officer’s personal CZ P10Fs which he was very gracious to lend me to put fifteen rounds through and try out; just like the replica I found it superbly comfortable in the hand compared to the Glock and the trigger pull felt very good and the whole thing pointed and shot naturally.
After running some more live stages with a red dot-enabled Glock 19 with the 4UAD guys for filming purposes Ou and I had a real treat thanks to Angel again; he’d brought his personal CZ Shadow 2 along! So naturally we were gleefully trying that out and I immediately went and bought another box of 9mm to extend the fun times. We ran multiple stages and drills into the fading light with sound of gunfire, smell of burnt powder and warmth of friendship and shared love of shooting in the air, but alas, all good things must come to an end and we decided to grab a big group photo with everyone remaining before we departed.
RANGE NOTES
A few notes to consider if you’re considering doing live fire and haven’t done so before… recoil springs are a lot heavier! It probably seems obvious, but nonetheless if you have chance to handle real pistols or rifles at trade shows you’ll immediately realise you’ll have to muscle the actions a lot more to properly chamber a round and deal with other drills, so moving over from airsoft guns can make that surprising and some of the lady shooters struggled with the arm and wrist strength required at times.
Similarly resisting recoil is essential to avoid
“CLARENCE’S FRIEND IN-COUNTRY ANGEL ALSO ARRIVED LATER AND BROUGHT AN ARRAY OF HIS OWN PERSONAL FIREARMS TO TRY, INCLUDING A VERY NICE ANGSTADT ARMS AR PCC WHICH WAS JUST EASY MODE FOR EVERYONE WITH A VERY SOFT RECOIL IMPULSE, VERY CRISP AND LIGHT TRIGGER AND A GREAT RED DOT”
stoppages; Yijun had a few stovepipe jams in a row although to be fair the Glock felt sluggish and like it needed a clean anyway. You really need to keep the frame of the pistol stationary until the slide fully reaches the rear of travel and bottoms out on the frame and transfers the recoil muzzle flip to it; if you allow the frame to move earlier it will rob the inertia from the action and result in stoppages, so proper stance and handling are things that have to be considered by, or imparted on, new shooters.
Be very aware of personal effects being near the firing line, especially if you come from a nonpermissive environment, or just because of air travel in general. One of the spent casings made its way into my small tote backpack on the first outing as I left it on the table near the firing line where we were handling guns and ammunition; thankfully I found it in the meantime and took it back on the second outing for proper disposal, but besides the likely trouble with airlines and security, if you do get it through, certainly in Taiwan empty casings are still a very problematic and controlled thing that will bring you unhappy times. Also make sure to check your personal equipment and especially boot treads, as back in the day I had one of the younger guys come to me with a 5.56mm casing he found in his boot tread during kit cleanup and polishing after a trip to the range, which I of course sent up the chain for appropriate controlled disposal.
Those concerns aside and the obvious need for responsible and safe gun handling being even more important with live firearms (although in truth you should get into such habits even with airsoft platforms to my mind) then live fire experience is something there really is no substitute for, and is a great progression to try if you find the opportunity. Granted it can be expensive depending where you are in the world; in the Philippines I expended three hundred rounds of 9mm, a hundred of 5.56mm and had to
pay range and gun rental fees. Range and pistol rental fees were both 500 pesos (around 250NT or GBP 5 quid each visit), rifle rental was 1500 pesos (750NT around 20 quid each visit), 9mm was between 1250 - 1900 pesos a box of fifty depending on brand for factory ammo (reloads were cheaper), so around 20-30 pence a round for 9mm, while 5.56 was a little more expensive of course at 45 pesos a round 50-60 pence a shot. It probably would have made more sense to go once and spend the range and hire fees just the once with more ammunition at one time, but, I wanted to spend as much time in good and varied company anyway, and it’s not like turning money into brass, powder and noise is something I get the chance to do often… yet…
Many thanks again to Clarence for organising our final shoot and his friend Angel for letting us loose with his personal collection; it was certainly a fantastic way to finish an already excellent trip and finally wraps up my reports from the Philippines experience…! AA
“IF YOU’RE CONSIDERING DOING LIVE FIRE AND HAVEN’T DONE SO BEFORE… RECOIL SPRINGS ARE A LOT HEAVIER! IT PROBABLY SEEMS OBVIOUS, BUT NONETHELESS IF YOU HAVE CHANCE TO HANDLE REAL PISTOLS OR RIFLES AT TRADE SHOWS YOU’LL IMMEDIATELY REALISE YOU’LL HAVE TO MUSCLE THE ACTIONS A LOT MORE…”
GIVE ME MOA!
IT’S ALWAYS A GREAT MOMENT WHEN THE INTERNATIONAL SHOW SEASON KICKS OFF PROPERLY WITH THE FIRST MAJOR EVENT ON OUR CALENDAR, AND MOA EXPO 2025 CERTAINLY DIDN’T DISAPPOINT! BILL JOINED STEWBACCA IN TAIPEI FOR THIS YEAR’S SHOW, AND WITH THE ABLE SUPPORT OF ANNY THEY SAW A WHOLE HOST OF NEW AIRSOFT PRODUCTS, AND NEW INNOVATION, SO IT’S TIME TO GET THE LOWDOWN!
One of the most enjoyable things about my many years in the airsoft media community has been the opportunity to travel around the world to report on events and games, and I always love hitting the big shows to find out just what will be on offer to enhance our enjoyment and performance in-game year on year, and there’s always something new to excite me.
When Eric Chu, the organiser of the evergrowing MOA EXPO that now happens towards the end of every year in Taipei’s awesome World Trade Centre, invited me to attend the show this time you can bet your bottom dollar that I jumped at the chance to return to Taiwan, not just to enjoy everything that this fabulous island nation has to offer, but to be among all my friends and colleagues in the global airsoft industry and find
“I
JUMPED AT THE CHANCE TO RETURN TO TAIWAN, NOT JUST TO ENJOY EVERYTHING THAT THIS FABULOUS ISLAND NATION HAS TO OFFER, BUT TO BE AMONG ALL MY FRIENDS AND COLLEAGUES IN THE GLOBAL AIRSOFT INDUSTRY AND FIND OUT EXACTLY WHAT WAS COMING FOR 2026!”
out exactly what was coming for 2026!
And so my plans were made; with the assistance and support of the great folk in the TAITRA (Taiwan External Trade Development Council) office in London, I got on with the mechanics of planning a literal flying trip to the show. China Airlines, Taiwan’s national carrier, fly direct from London to Taipei, and by making full use of their advance booking discount I managed to bag myself a great deal on the return flight from Heathrow to Taoyuan, Taipei’s international airport, and the gateway to what proved to be another amazing airsoft adventure.
I won’t bore you with details, but all I will say is that it’s a long-ass haul from the UK to Taiwan, some fourteen-plus hours on the plane in both directions, and adding time taken to get to the airport and then into Taipei proper makes it a twenty-plus hour journey overall… it’s pretty darn gruelling, but thankfully China Airlines are an awesome carrier and really know how to look after you onboard! Arriving in-country early evening Wednesday I was greeted at the airport by the warm embrace of the one and only Stewbacca, our resident “Man in Taiwan”, and we made our way by metro into the city.
Now let me comment further on the metro system in Taipei… quite frankly it’s wonderful, and apart from the maze that is Taipei Main Train Station it’s pretty easy to navigate your way around the city, hopping from line to line! Thankfully announcements and directions are given in English as well as Taiwanese so there’s no stress involved in getting around, and by purchasing a top-uppable electronic “ticket” (in my case my “Metro Cat”… if you know, you know!) you simply click in and out simply and swiftly.
After crashing at my hotel Thursday got us straight into things as it was time for Range Day; actually this was the second Range Day as Stewbacca had attended the first shoot-session on Wednesday, so I’ll hand it over to him to speak more about that…
Stewbacca: The excitement (and contingent exhaustion) of MOA keeps building each year as the show has grown so much since its earliest 2017 sports hall venue with narrow gangways and far fewer things on show, even with the impact of COVID curtailing 2020’s show, outright deferring 2021’s until the campfest outdoor show in early 2022 and finally returning to normality in 2022, since then it’s bounced back and grown to what was originally planned before the bug overrunning the world dark times, and with 2026 and 2027 already in the planning stages to take a further zone of the trade centre floor year on year, the show will have conquered almost all the available space if things continue at this pace by the time it reaches its decade anniversary show.
The major change this year, as Bill already mentioned, was the addition of two range days prior to the main show, held upstairs in the same building while the contractors and exhibitors were putting the final touches on their excellent booths down below, with a great conference room stocked with meeting and eating tables and a myriad of quality drinks and snacks. The second room had larger tables and plinths for the manufacturers to set up shop on, with multiple firing lanes constructed from board walls allowing an around ten metre length of testing space for each exhibitor, some brought their own metal, paper or electronic targets to give feedback to the shooters, and having met Bridges and Nachos of HRC in the preceding days we got to work handling the wares on show.
With numerous GBBRs catching our eyes, personally I was quite taken by the Marksman Daewoo K2 as it’s another national service rifle for the collection and similar to the FNC in construction and handling, again running off VFC AR magazines; also the M7 which was very well put together and handled as nicely as the real steel variant I got hands on with at TADTE 2025’s SIG booth. I’d already gotten hands on with the VFC AKSU at its launch party event,
“THE MAJOR CHANGE THIS YEAR, AS BILL ALREADY MENTIONED, WAS THE ADDITION OF TWO RANGE DAYS PRIOR TO THE MAIN SHOW, HELD UPSTAIRS IN THE SAME BUILDING WHILE THE CONTRACTORS AND EXHIBITORS WERE PUTTING THE FINAL TOUCHES ON THEIR EXCELLENT BOOTHS DOWN BELOW”
but nonetheless happily tried it again as well as comparing it to the larger AK74M, but getting to fire the Northeast FAMAS and Mini Uzi was also a highlight, having been taunted by Sebastian bringing them along to our Wednesday night CQB shoots but keeping them largely to himself!
Bill: For me it was an exciting start to things, a chance to get hands-on immediately with some of the newest AEGs and GBBs. Attendance for the Range Day held on the second floor of the Taipei World Trade Centre (while the main show was being set up down below!) was excellent with both local and international media and industry folk getting a chance to “go live” with the very latest platforms from the likes of VFC, Northeast , Action Airsoft/PRO-ACT, Archwick, Hwasan, MOS Manufacture, Arcturus, BOLT, and even SPECNA ARMS got in on the action!
Among the things that we got to shoot on Range Day were the latest GBBR AK and AR offerings from VFC, and the new K2 (that’ll be the Daewoo!), and the outstandingly-gorgeous Toxicant M7 GBBR as well. Moving on we got a crack at North East’s awesome FAMAS, Uzi and Mini-Uzi, before having a proper crank with some Archwick B&Ts! Of course I spent some time with BOLT to get the absolute lowdown on their latest MAS gas rifles to conclude my review, and also got to have a play with a not-at-all-an-EVO GBBR; we all agreed that this looks great, and although it’s still a prototype it’s looking mighty fine. Stewbacca and I got to hang out with a whole bunch of friends new and old and enjoyed just being a part of our great, global airsoft community.
At the same time on Thursday G&G (who sadly weren’t exhibiting at the show proper for some reason) hosted a Factory Visit down-island, and from what I heard from folk attending this was a great event in itself; thankfully I got to catch up with Randy and Ryan later in the show who gave me a thorough briefing on what we can expect
from G&G in 2026… and it all looks and sounds outstanding!
After a couple of evening meetings and some “street food dinner” though I was ready to crash…
GAME ON- SHOW DAY 1!
Rising early, the excitement for the show proper just built and built! An easy and direct Red Line metro journey spat me out at the Taipei World Trade Centre (TWTC), and under the shadow of the always-inspiring 101 Tower... to give you an idea of just how inspiring this structure is, Taipei 101 is a 508-meter (1,667 ft), 101-story skyscraper, formerly the world’s tallest building from 2004 to 2009! It is known for its striking design and its large seismic damper, which stabilizes it during earthquakes and typhoons. You can go to an observatory for amazing city views, with an indoor area on the 89th floor and an outdoor area on the 101st floor…. if you’re brave enough!
And what a start it was as the show this year was bigger than ever before with over 100 exhibitors from all over Taiwan, Asia, and indeed the rest of the world! From humble beginnings MOA EXPO has blossomed into something truly very special with virtually all of the major “Industry Players” quite literally setting their stands and showing their goods both existing, new, and planned in the best possible way!
The crowd waiting for entrance was extensive, with the line stretching all around the cavernous lobby of the TWTC, and even outside onto the street! We immediately saw a LOT of people to shake hands and catch up with, and we knew that a whole load of new airsoft products were waiting for us to get “hands on” with even after all the 6mm gucci-ness that was presented at Range Day!
And as I said in my daily update post it was absolutely a day of GBBRs, and it’s weird how dreams sometimes become reality; at Range
“AMONG THE THINGS THAT WE GOT TO SHOOT ON RANGE DAY WERE THE LATEST GBBR AK AND AR OFFERINGS FROM VFC, AND THE NEW K2 (THAT’LL BE THE DAEWOO!), AND THE OUTSTANDINGLY-GORGEOUS TOXICANT M7 GBBR AS WELL. MOVING ON WE GOT A CRACK AT NORTH EAST’S AWESOME FAMAS, UZI AND MINIUZI, BEFORE HAVING A PROPER CRANK WITH SOME ARCHWICK B&TS!”
Day we were all talking about how good it would be for LCT to turn their awesome AK range into GBBRs… and immediately we were presented with an AK74M GBBR in development that will be Marui compatible, along with an HPA-ready version using the MECHLABS engine (MECHLABS also had their own imposing stand elsewhere…)! The LCT stand was impressive to say the least, and their “VIP Lounge” gave me access to some proper coffee (thank you Bella!)… the main stand though was the “activity hive”, with some amazing-looking new AK rail systems, and both their long-awaited MP5 and AK 2.0 with ASTER II models got some serious attention! Again I’ll hand over to Stewbacca...
Stewbacca: Having been graciously hosted by our good friends at LCT Airsoft at their Changhua facility on multiple occasions at this point, they’ve let Bill, Anny and myself in on a lot of inside track info in the past on their future plans and products, some of which we still can’t mention but can nonetheless get excited about. They openly discussed their plans to get into gas guns eventually way back on my earlier visits, and these promises seem to be coming to the fore with last year’s announcement of the PTK1 HiCapa pistol, as well as this now being joined by the future inclusion of HPA and GBBR AK lines in their portfolio.
Of course for me and my German fanboying, seeing the LCT take on the much-loved MP5 finally adorning their booth walls of course got my attention and naturally I had to get hands on and give it a little slap (delightful); stamped, welded steel cold war beauties are their bread and butter, and having supplied me the rest of their HK lineup the TP5 as they are calling their iteration will no doubt make a pleasant addition to the already crowded gun walls. Thankfully they have once again gone for earlier variants and included the SEF trigger pack with the more positively indexing and easier to reach chunkier one side
“THE SHOW THIS YEAR WAS BIGGER THAN EVER BEFORE WITH OVER 100 EXHIBITORS FROM ALL OVER TAIWAN, ASIA, AND INDEED THE REST OF THE WORLD! FROM HUMBLE BEGINNINGS MOA EXPO HAS BLOSSOMED INTO SOMETHING TRULY VERY SPECIAL”
only selector lever I love, and of course the build quality and general heft naturally inspire the same utilitarian confidence their other offerings always do - quite looking forward to that one being released, of course.
VFC had a variety of the same AKSUs, both classic loveliness with the red lustrous wooden stub handguard, as well as the tacticool modernised versions on their booth, as well as samples of the L403A1, MD9 and SA320 pistols we’ve already had extensive time behind and reviewed in prior issues. Newer variants of their venerable licensed BCM line sees the adoption of more up to date internal components mirroring the creature comforts of the L403A1’s system and features, the highlights for me however were the German offerings!
Having acquired the PPKS, PPQ NPA and PDP in the Walther line, the leaked announcement of the HK P7M13 was very exciting for me, and
I managed to get hands on when Vega himself passed me the prototype which wasn’t on public display but had disclosed by another media outlet after a closed door showing of it - “I’m going to count to three, Mister Takagi, there will not be a four…”, “you asked for a Christmas miracle, gentlemen; I give you the V…F…C…” - plenty of time to warm up your “Die Hard” or “Tomorrow Never Dies” references for its release around the tail end of next year. Likewise I was aware of the plans to make the HK33 years back when the HK53 was released, but its official announcement and public display was nonetheless another point of excitement for me, it should be coming relatively soon, it seems.
Newer kids on the block Amarok (Sports) had a slightly bigger booth than their inaugural one for their launch last year, and on top of their apparently well-received and heightened durability and fast, reliable feeding AM250M high capacity spring fed midcap magazines, they
announced a shorter 190 BB variant to suit DMR AEG users who want to get lower in the prone position, or SpeedQB players using magwell adaptors who want less magazine body sticking out and getting in the way without sacrificing the established reliability, familiar aesthetic and handling, nor too much in raw ammunition
“OF COURSE FOR ME AND MY GERMAN FANBOYING, SEEING THE LCT TAKE ON THE MUCH-LOVED MP5 FINALLY ADORNING THEIR BOOTH WALLS OF COURSE GOT MY ATTENTION AND NATURALLY I HAD TO GET HANDS ON AND GIVE IT A LITTLE SLAP (DELIGHTFUL)”
capacity. Along with their M-LOK handstops, vertical grips and rubberised extreme grip rail covers (which my T91SOC, L403A1 and APC9SD2 front ends are completely covered with along with handstops or grips) I’m also aware of other exciting directions they’re taking and totally new product lines they already have in final prototyping but have to keep my usual closed lipped about for now.
Bill: Then it was onto ICS, and although I’ve known about their fledgling gas rifle program since IWA it was fabulous to see the finished TTI TR-9 PCC in the flesh… even more exciting as it will be using the awesome mag technology
developed by MAX TACT! There will also be an AEG version of this stunning carbine, so if your friends are all electric, then you’re covered too! As well as this particular show-stopper ICS also had tucked away a new version of the LEGACY Hi-Capa, a shorter, punchier variant, and I’m very much looking forward to getting my hands ion all the new models.
GHK were showing an all new gas SPEAR LT that looked droolingly good, but it was their latest AK revision with an improved-performance magazine that really took our interest; this new multi-cell design promises to increase the
performance of GHK AKs even more, and of course their pistol range continues to grow and grow…
Stewbacca: Another interesting addition this year was an expansion of GHK’s Umarex licensed ultra-realistic Glock replicas, with their overmoulded metal frame inserts, their hammerless gas system and metal slides with larger gas cylinders and pistons which give a
hard kick, The trigger systems at least seem to be progressively improving over the extremely hard to pull and break initial versions; they honestly felt like pulling a Marui trigger with the manual sliding serial number safety bars engaged! Now they are very realistic, having handled real Glocks quite recently in the Philippines and dumped hundreds of 9mm rounds through them and other pistols, and the addition of optics ready G34, G45 and G47 models which handle very nicely and hopefully will eliminate all the woes of the prior systems.
Bill: On the Hwasan stand we got to take another long, hard look at the Toxicant M7 variants, and although it’s pricey, by hell it’s just gorgeous… as was the STRIKE INDUSTRIES not an EVO… hopefully the licencing via EMG will go through on this particular GBBR as I believe
“HAVING ACQUIRED THE PPKS, PPQ NPA AND PDP IN THE WALTHER LINE, THE LEAKED ANNOUNCEMENT OF THE HK P7M13 WAS VERY EXCITING FOR ME, AND I MANAGED TO GET HANDS ON WHEN VEGA HIMSELF PASSED ME THE PROTOTYPE WHICH WASN’T ON PUBLIC DISPLAY”
there’s a lot of players out there that would love it! On the same stand we saw the amazing TTI x V7 Harbinger GBBR, which beautifully replicated the “Wick Universe/Ballerina” rifle.
The really BIG surprise though was when we visited stalwarts Classic Army; to be honest I wasn’t expecting much, but then they dropped a bomb by showing us their new AR GBBRs! There’s a series all based around Marui spec components, and they appear to be 100% workmanlike with a great recoil impulse!
Stewbacca: One company and product line I’ve been following very closely and even been directly involved with the testing and development of since first being introduced to them via our great friend Clarence is the MAX
TACT internally regulated CO2 GBB pistol and now rifle magazine system. With their operational prototype MWS compatible rifle magazines on display along with their established VFC Glock and general HiCapa compatible pistol magazines which me and my teammate Eilon (who incidentally now works directly with MAX TACT helping James and his team with marketing, development and investment as well as demonstrating the products at the show and to other players whenever he gets the chance) have been testing along with a few of team Taiji already sold on the technology and adopting Glock pistols mags for our somewhat standardised sidearms, and yet other players at the Wednesday night CQB sessions who have seen us testing
them extensively there and now acquired their own having been convinced by the system. Obviously I’m personally looking forward to the VFC AR compatible system so I can run a full combat loadout that will give me two or three full BB loadings from a single capsule or external tank fill allowing me to abandon carrying relatively fragile cans of flammable gas in my MilSim loadout gear for longer or larger theatre games. The consistency and efficiency really have me and others sold and I’m excited to see their product line grow and become adopted by ever more OEMs some of which have already
“AFTER
HAVING A LOOK ACETECH’S NEW QUADRA PISTOL TRACER UNIT AND ALIGNMENT R TARGET SYSTEM, IT WAS TIME FOR ME TO ALSO SPEND SOME TIME WITH JAMES AT MAX TACT AND JANE AT MODIFY, AND THEN HANG OUT WITH CLARENCE AND KATHERINE ON THE SHINY, SHINY CLPD STAND”
openly brought them on board or are in more undisclosed talks - hopefully we can get FAL, PDP/PPQ and Shadow 2 compatible systems further down the line to really give me the wide spectrum of usage.
Bill: After having a look Acetech’s new Quadra pistol tracer unit and Alignment R target system,
it was time for me to also spend some time with James at MAX TACT and Jane at Modify, and then hang out with Clarence and Katherine on the shiny, shiny CLPD stand (eating popcorn courtesy of Anny!). A quick visit to the Taiwanese Military Display Area was very interesting indeed, as was seeing Roman Legionnaires, Knights in armour, Samurais… yup, as well as countless cosplayers the living history guys were out in full force just to add some flavour!
But then it was already time to call it a day… Day 2 beckoned brightly!
GO, GO, GO – DAY 2!
After some evening shenanigans and another night of rest (ish!), MOA EXPO Day 2 proved to be just as solid a day for Stewbacca and I as the first with an awful lot of great kit to look at, and although we thought we’d broken the back of the new GBBRs set to hit the market we found that there was even more… this truly was the show of new GBBRs, that’s for sure!
I went straight on to see the guys at Lancer Tactical who also have an entry into this years GBBR stakes, and in fact they’ll be releasing a host of gas ARs with MWS compatibility and all-steel trigger groups, and the two models I viewed under the SLR licence looked absolutely righteous. There’ll be more from them on the AEG and pistol front, of course, but it was the gasrange that really hogged the spotlight.
And more news on the gas-front too from our old mates at NUPROL, who I was delighted to see exhibiting! We know of course that they have a VORSK-branded gas AR heading to market in the not too-distant future, and to get this program rolling they’ve developed a bunch of different designs of MWS-style magazines, a long 45 BB version and a cool shorter one that holds 25 BBs!
“THEN IT WAS ONTO ICS, AND ALTHOUGH I’VE KNOWN ABOUT THEIR FLEDGLING GAS RIFLE PROGRAM SINCE IWA IT WAS FABULOUS TO SEE THE FINISHED TTI TR-9 PCC IN THE FLESH… EVEN MORE EXCITING AS IT WILL BE USING THE AWESOME MAG TECHNOLOGY DEVELOPED BY MAX TACT!”
These are substantial beasties as they benefit from steel internal parts, but we were told that there will also be a lighter alloy version in due course… and we can expect to see all the mags early in the new year!
Of course there was more AEG news, and the first was courtesy of S&T! Well known for their somewhat esoteric range of historically-themed AEGs the latest to arrive (as a 3D printed mock for
now) is the FG42, and we know that this news has already pleased many of you out there… no more details as yet, but of course we’ll follow up with them…
I then made a return to BOLT, but this time to check out all the new recoil variants under their new EMG X Daniel Defense licence… and
oh boy, they look totally tidy, with rails, stocks, and finishes (including that new awesome grey again!) to offer something to please all their fans! Arcturus/MOS Manufacture was up next, and along with their existing range of super AEGs they
were also showing some new pistols, and the Tempest 4.3 “Duty Grade” optic-ready Hi Capa really took my eye… I then popped over to have a look at Raven Evolution as this Canadian brand has really piqued my curiosity, and I have to say that their EVO AR AEGs look pretty tidy.
Ares were loud and proud with a great looking stand, and it’s great to see their revolver program
moving on! I was very taken here by a cool-looking 3D-print concept version of their revolver bringing
“AS A SOMEWHAT SEASONED AND JADED SHOW-GOER WHAT I SAW IN TAIWAN WAS JUST REMARKABLE! NORMALLY BY DAY 3 EVERYONE IS GETTING A BIT BURNED OUT, BUT IN TAIPEI AT MOA EXPO THE ENERGY JUST SEEMED TO BUILD AND BUILD CULMINATING IN A WONDERFULLY FABULOUS AND FUNNY LAST DAY!”
it a really rugged tacticool look, along with the new railed front-end counterweights!
Stewbacca: One system though that took our collective attention was the modular Ares bolt action gas powered sniper system which replicates the existing successes of their Amoeba spring powered bolt action sniper line in its various barrel and stock lengths, but eschews the clumsier manual cocking spring for a smoother and easier to manipulate gas powered bolt system.
JOB DONE – DAY 3!
Bill: Day 3 at the show was all about catching up with more on the kit and gear front, and I spent some time checking out scopes and sights with VECTOR OPTICS, Olight/Osight, and Holosun; the Holosun SCS VP9 model designed for the H&K VP9 optics-ready handguns impressed me, as did their HM6X/HE510C-GR combo setup. Next was Angry Gun for accessories, and immediately I was pulled up short by their beautiful KAC-licenced KS-1 and KS-3 MWS conversion kits… in fact their KAC-licenced kit is looking absolutely awesome in its entirety, and I’ll come back to look at all of this in a future issue!
With integrated threaded capsule holders secreted in the lower forestock or handguard allowing various existing CO2 capsules to be installed depending on the holder hooked up to the gas line, our South African teammate Tobie was certainly sold on the system and wanted to take one home with him cash in hand there and then! Alas, they’re not quite out yet, but having also been introduced to the top man himself again via Clarence due to my involvement in the Ding Ding Cup where I first met the now Taiwanbased Ares top man, and their collaborative CO2 revolvers which feature elsewhere in this issue, I’m sure I can chew their ears to get early adoption and testing privileges and share the process, information and spoils with Tobie!
And then it was my meeting with Randy and Ryan from G&G, coffee with the lovely people Anny introduced me too at Retro Motif who make some beautiful airsoft and military-related novelty items, a quick meeting with the guys from BLS to check out their new Blue Tracer BBs, checking out the arcade games and action figures at Kizuna Works, checking in with RA-TECH and SPECNA ARMS, and much running around taking pictures and chatting to exhibitors; suffice to say we saw way more than what’s detailed here, and of course we’ll be referencing back to it all in due course!
But any show is of course made by the great people that we see, and once again I’ll hand over to Stewbacca…
Stewbacca: Of course, it’s not just about the products, as I always say, the people make it what it is, and this year alongside Bill’s inaugural visit we had the fine gents from Heavy Recoil Club who we’ve featured in the magazine before due to their excellent online community and vast information repository and reference building work, as well as the impeccable Jonathan of Targazh photography whose gun pictures and artwork now proudly adorn multiple exhibitor’s booths and websites, and whose presence and
“THE VIBE WAS TOTALLY COOL; THIS WAS TRULY AN AIRSOFT SHOW, NOT AIRSOFT BOLTED ON TO SOMETHING ELSE, AND I HAVE TO SAY THAT OTHER SHOW ORGANISERS SHOULD BE VERY AWARE (AND PERHAPS A LITTLE SCARED!) OF ERIC AND HIS MOA EXPO CREW AS I FEEL THEY HAVE SOMETHING VERY SPECIAL GOING ON”
personality are equally amenable.
More regular faces like our good friend Vic from Popular Airsoft as well as the Polish WMASG and Swedish Airsoft.nu and Japanese Hyperdoraku media crews were also joined by industry people such as Masaki of Laylax, ‘uncle’ Allen (now of Amarok), and of course Jonathan of Airsoftology who lives out here in country with me, as well as our firm friend Larry of Centurions Option in Hong Kong, Joppe and Gijs from Europe, the Pfitzner Waffen brothers from Germany along with Stephan of Badwolves out there, and my first introduction to the wonderful Turgay from Turkiye. Brian & Trish as well as Clive Santos from the Philippines who I met in Taiwan and at the world shoot and of course the very lovely ladies Jillian and Ning of Hong Kong’s competitive shooting scene along with Cyrus who joined them, all of whom were joined by the numerous good friends and industry people I know in country, as well as teammates, players and wider fans of my work and what we do in general at Airsoft Action it seems, and especially the Warhound Tactical guys who were brought over by Amarok to help create some excellent events coverage pictures and videos and who I gave a tour of the highlight new releases with.
Even with Bill and Anny’s able support this year and both range days I felt like I didn’t see everything or everyone I wanted to and spent the three days of the show constantly running the floor, meeting people, taking pictures, hugging and chatting with the myriad great people who make the event and whole industry at large a real pleasure to be a part of… and there really are too many to mention adequately!
Bill: As a somewhat seasoned and jaded showgoer what I saw in Taiwan was just remarkable! Normally by Day 3 everyone is getting a bit burned out, but in Taipei at MOA EXPO the energy just seemed to build and build culminating in a wonderfully fabulous and funny last day!
The overwhelming feeling both Stewbacca and I came away with was 100% positive… MOA EXPO is a show by airsofters FOR airsofters (sound familiar?) and in this instance allowing the public entrance really worked… perhaps it’s a difference in cultures but there was always politeness and no finger-banging of the product samples; respect
was everywhere present.
The vibe was totally cool; this was truly an airsoft show, not airsoft bolted on to something else, and I have to say that other show organisers should be very aware (and perhaps a little scared!) of Eric and his MOA EXPO crew as I feel they have something very special going on, and that the show here in Taipei will just grow and grow!
MOA EXPO is almost entirely dedicated to airsoft, and as pretty much all of the major manufacturers were present it could fast become THE airsoft show in the future, a show where we will consistently see all that is best and brightest in the industry. MOA EXPO could well be THE future of airsoft industry events, and I for one look forward to returning… not just to MOA EXPO but to Taiwan and the awesome local player community!
It was a truly great show, with so many wonderful people all in the same place at the same time, and my sincere thanks go to Stewbacca and Anny for simply being awesome, to Eric Chu and his fine team from QRF.mag 軍物特 搜 for the invite to what was a truly memorable and wholly successful event (and for additional show imagery), to China Airlines for two wonderful flights, and to the fine people at TAITRA for facilitating my visit to Taiwan. AA
