KIT & GEAR: MAROM-X

DESIGNED FOR PROFESSIONALS

who can’t read or prefer visual guidance.

In the box you get the Camera Unit, a 32GB SD Card, Camera Dock, USB lead and mounting hardware for rifle and helmet.

I like this unit a lot but there’s one thing, in my opinion, that is off and that’s the price. It sits at a hefty UK£510. That’s not pocket change and for that you could buy a GoPro Hero 9 bundle but, and it’s a HUGE BUT, you will not be anywhere close to getting the quality of night footage, nor do you get the mounting hardware, battery life, built in torch and IR illumination, GPS or 4G that you get with the MAROM-X Elite Camera.

And THAT’S a HUGE difference in performance that if you’re using it right may well be worth the money!

Tech Specs: • Codec H.264 & H.265

Recording Resolutions • 2560x1440 @30fps • 2304x1296 @30fps • 1920x1080 @30/60fps • 1280x720 @30/60fps • 848x480 @30/60fps

Streaming Resolutions • 1280x720 @15/30fps • 848x480 @15/30fps • 640x350 @15/30fps • 320x240 @15/30fps

Photo Resolution • 5,12,20,25,30 & 40 MegaPixels.

If you’d like to have a look at how to set up the MAROM-X and check out some of the features then it’s simple, just head on over to their website https://maromx.com and head on into the “Support” section where it’ll link you to their Youtube channel MAROM-X. On their channel you’ll find even more to do with testing, plus a complete step-by-step rundown on setup and operation!

With the initial testing now complete and the full production version of the MAROM-X now in our hands I’m passing the torch (quite literally in this instance!) over to Jase who’ll be looking at it from the MilSim perspective, so we can see how the camera can REALLY perform in the field and he’ll be reporting back soon! AA

LIKE AEGS, GAS BLOWBACK PISTOLS HAVE COME A LONG WAY IN THE LAST FEW YEARS AND THEY JUST KEEP ON DEVELOPING FORWARD, WITH INCREASED FUNCTIONALITY AND EFFICIENCY, PLUS SOME VERY COOL DESIGN AESTHETICS AND AT THE HEAD OF THE PACK RIGHT NOW IS VORSK! BILL TAKES A LOOK AT THE VP26X, WHICH TAKES THEIR ALREADY UNIQUE DESIGNS IN A TOTALLY NEW AND EXCITING DIRECTION!

You might say that I’m a bit of a “Vorsk-aholic”, as I say I can give them up any time but just keep on adding more to my collection! Whilst I do love a pistol that is based on a real model, especially when fully licenced with all the markings and trades in place, I’m also a lover of cool, clean, futuristic design and over the past couple of years working directly with the guys at VORSK, they have persuaded me that a pistol can not only look startling and unique but can function even better than before too!

Working with them remotely and (I’m pleased to say!) spending more time with them again now that C-19 restrictions have lifted somewhat, I’m massively lucky to have an inside track on what’s in the pipeline and let me tell you right now that the “development program” shows no sign of slowing up! If anything, it’s just about to kick into a higher gear… However, not only am I a loyal friend, but I’ve also signed a very business-like NDA with them which prohibits me from talking about future plans… but oh, how I want to scream them from the rooftops!

With the release of their EU and Hi Capa pistols VORSK moved things forward sensibly and slowly but surely added to the line. We’ve now had some superb “legacy” pistols, like the Agency VX-9, the VP-X and the CS-Defender (all of which I absolutely, 100% adore!), along with more performance-oriented models like the Hi Capa Split Slide and the Vengeance, which are showing exactly how much efficiency you can get from a pistol platform if you know what you’re doing and design it correctly from the ground up.

Not only have they looked at the pistols themselves but also the BBs that we fire from them, plus the “fuel” that drives them, offering as complete a package as possible, one that is designed to work in complete harmony from the outset to ensure unadulterated performance.

Returning to my comment on the uniqueness of their design though, up until now VORSK have rightly stuck to their wonderful version of tried and tested 1911, Hi Capa, and EU styles and although they certainly look VERY different, it’s been a while since they really stepped “outside the box” again and did something that they’ve not ever done before (although in fairness they do new variations almost constantly). But now they have with the VP26X!

ALTERED ALLOY

Okay, I’ll stop with the nods to William Gibson and Richard Morgan (I love “Johnny Mnemonic” and “Altered Carbon” remains one of my favourite books, the TV series not so much…) and move on, although there’s a reason why I use these as my “hooks”, given that the VP26X looks like it could have leapt fullyformed from a visualisation of their imaginations. In fact it looks like it could easily have been seen in the hand of Takeshi Kovacs in a cyberpunk dystopian setting, especially the Brushed Aluminium version that I chose for myself!

Okay, underneath the VP26X (I’ll just call it the “X” from here as that sounds cooler…) it’s pretty obvious that there’s a “226” base and in terms of the operation this is so, as I’ve tried it with other brand 226 mags and its works perfectly on most of them. However, this is FAR from “all she wrote” as the pistol seems to scream like a woken fury (sorry, couldn’t help myself!) that it’s different, and as much as the internal mechanisms have been fine-tuned and optimised with a little of that VORSK attention to detail, it’s the externals that really make it even more special.

Fitted with a frame-mounted “Breacher” muzzle device which extends both the pistol and barrel length (as well as bringing the 20mm front rail flush with the muzzle), the VP26X’s side profile is quite unique and pretty intimidating! The slide has been pared back a little to bring the weight down (and therefore increase the ease of cycling) with the addition of three forward twin-vent ports as well as deep engravings on the rear slide grips. This is a “look” that VORSK have really made their own, and it really is a very clever piece of subliminal branding as well as being genuinely performance enhancing.

The reduced weight slide also enhances the recoil effect, which is heightened by the “Breacher”; most GBB pistols rely entirely on the locking pin to stop the forward momentum of the slide, but here the muzzle device provides a second point of contact that really amplifies this sensation. On first glance, and a number of people have commented on this, the “Breacher” looks as it’s been wrongly fitted as there’s an obvious gap between it and the forward top edge of the slide but this is actually done for a reason to avoid damage as the slide slams forward with each and every shot… If it were impacting the “Breacher” every time it would eventually lead to spring fatigue over time, potential damage to the metalwork and most certainly a loss in overall “zing”! It’s a case here of finding out the true story behind the design, not just making an “ass-umption”.

The “must-be-a-VORSK” touches continue to be apparent on the bespoke half-solid, half-wireframe hammer as well as the high-stippled polymer grip. This is brilliant, as not only does it look outrageously aggressive but it means you can keep it in your hand