RELOADED: G&G RAIDER 2.0

G&G CM16 RAIDER 2.0

WHEN YOU WANT TO SHOW NON-AIRSOFT FRIENDS A FUN TIME, OR HAVE A RELIABLE BACK-UP FOR FRIENDS HAVING A BAD DAY, THEN YOU WANT A SENSIBLY PRICED BUT COOL LOOKING AR (… OR TWO) DON’T YOU? BILL LOOKS BACK ON A MODEL THAT’S JUST MORE THAN A LITTLE DIFFERENT FROM THE HERD, IN THE FORM OF THE RAIDER 2.0 FROM G&G, A CARBINE THAT HAS EVERYTHING GOING FOR IT AND HAS STOOD UP WELL TO THE TEST OF TIME AND HARD USE!

As somebody that has been reviewing airsoft replicas for a considerable time, I have to admit that I do sometimes give a little shudder when I hear from one of the manufacturers that they have a new model they would like me to take a look at, especially when asked they use a phrase something akin to “…well, it’s basically an M4 but…”.

If you have even the most perfunctory of glances at airsoft models online, or indeed even in your local shop, you’re going to see a lot - and I do mean A LOT - of “AR/M4” carbine replicas. In one way you can view this as a positive, as it means that there is a plethora of accessory upgrade parts, both internal and external, for the AR as it is such a popular choice for players but bolting aftermarket parts into and onto your AEG or GBB means that you can soon run into spending more than the gun cost in the first place. Once upon a time this was the way you would have to go if you wanted something even vaguely unique, but as time moves inexorably onwards manufacturers are adding more and more parts to “out of the box” airsoft replicas than ever before.

A couple or so years back I decided to buy a couple of reasonably priced ARs to put into my armoury as friends who had not played airsoft kept asking me all about it and wanted to have a go. As much as I have quite a collection (which is STILL growing!) of ARbased rifles and carbines (and don’t get me started on AKs!), I thought it easiest just to buy in a couple as “loaners”, carbines that I knew would perform well that would give “non-‘softers” a taste on the range before I introduced them to the game as a whole. These could also act as “loaners” for friends having a crisis of one kind or another on “game day” and these “soon-to-be-very-abused” carbines were the G&G CM16 Raider 2.0!

I chose this model because I’d had good experience with G&G in the past (apart from the odd, easy-torectify glitch in their very earliest models and some Mosfet hi-jinks which I’ve come to expect from time to time with any manufacturer in fairness) and the Raiders were robust but not overly heavy (2,200g), were sturdily made of polymer but with an alloy outer barrel, charging handle, buffer tube and had both a singlepoint sling plate and flip-up sights fitted as standard.

They also had pretty robust internals based on a good V2 box, meaning that they were easy to work on and fix should things go awry - and also there was a big (HUGE!) range of aftermarket upgrades and replacement parts that would be available if I wanted to do anything with them at a later date. I also actually liked the fact that they still had a simple inline fuse to protect things, and a minimum of “fancy parts” to go wrong. The fact that the battery compartment was in the stock/buffer tube (so, easy and fast to change) and that they worked with just about any and every “AR” magazine I owned was a bonus too!

IT’S ALL ABOUT THE LOOKS … RIGHT?

One of the major things that “sold” the Raider too me though was the Yup, why not have a looking AEG for friends and the fact that the look… greatto shoot Raider

came as standard with an M-LOK

handguard (an up-toaccessory then) a

the-minute full-length top rail, and a cool-looking muzzle brake, really made it a standout at the time. The Raider also had some ambidextrous controls (sadly not the fire selector) which made it ideal for use as a “loaner” as it suited both left and right-handed shooters when it came to mag changes, so it was pretty much perfect for the use I had lined up for it. You have to understand that many of my non-airsoft friends are still actually shooters and that having something to “wow” them with, that was in airsoft form actually way cooler than their basic rimfire ARs, made me smile …quite a lot!

I also loved the fact that I could tell them as “real steel” shooters (and a number of them former military or police) that, alongside the World Cup events, G&G actively engaged with national military, law enforcement, government and educational establishments to spread a positive message about the benefits of responsible shooting cultures and even produced aesthetically accurate and real-weight replicas of the Republic of China Armed Forces’ standard T91 weapons platform to aid in training of service personnel in Force on Force situations or general range work and weapons handling prior to progressing to live fire weapons. I’ve since had many discussions about the role of “6mm Training” using airsoft platforms, both at home and abroad, as this is something I am passionate about and I’m still in discussion about this locally, although some of the existing .22 AR users do see it as a “safe introduction” benefit, especially now that I’ve introduced them to gas platforms too!

Most of them though, got the initial idea having used the Raider and I’m pleased I had an AEG to offer them that looked the mutts bits, was absolutely solid as a rock (although still relatively lightweight), had reliable internals and controls that would suit everyone and (as it turned out) where the performance fully lived up to the rakish good looks! I’m pleased to tell you that as well as making use of great-quality components and looking modern and kinda’ cool straight out of the box, the Raiders also shot (and still shoot) like a l’il laser! I chrono’d initially with .20g using an 11.1V LiPo and as a “straight out of the factory” AEG I got a reading of 0.99 Joule/328fps. This dropped slightly as the hop bedded-in and they were used more but given that the 2017 Policing and Crime Act had recently come into effect, I needed to be squeaky-clean in the eyes of friends who actually knew what “Section 5” was - especially as one of them was a serving police officer!

With the 11.1V battery the Raiders were, and are, snappy as hell with superb trigger response and a great ROF. Accuracy-wise, with the workmanlike inner barrel, the Raiders proved to be no slouches either, easily reaching out 50m+ and on target each and every time, which has impressed everyone that’s used them, and transformed their thinking that “this is not just a plastic toy”! Given that a number of them own and shoot the S&W M&P15 .22, which is “plastic”, this has not been such a mental leap thankfully!

So, have I been pleased with the two Raiders that I bought? Yes I have! They’ve seen a lot of range use with shooting friends but they’ve also been loaned out at games where even seasoned players have needed a quick “back-up” when they’ve had problems with their own primary, and they’ve given great service in both respects. They’ve been professionally serviced a couple of times now and continue to run well on my usual N-MAG 30/125 magazines, and even though they’ve had a lot of abuse and many thousands of BBs through them, they’re still active and ready for duty when called upon!

Not too shabby for a sub-UK£150 Polymer AEG … not too shabby at all!

Thanks to Tom at www.nuprol.com for the loan of a shiny new Raider for the pictures (mine are now partly “training blue” or camo painted) Do check out what else NUPROL have to offer from G&G by simply visiting their website! AA