Airsoft Action - March 2023

CONTENTS

8 ARMOURY: VORSK VMP-1

Some things are worth waiting for, and some are worth waiting for more than others! Followers of Airsoft Action will know that we’ve been involved with a “Special Project”. NOW we can start to talk about the development of this unique and original design that sees VORSK set to enter a new era, one that will help bring gas-driven airsoft to all!

18 ARMOURY: ARCTURUS/PERUN AT-AK12-PE

A long time ago, in an airsoft galaxy not that far from home, ARCTURUS released their AEG-take on the AK-12, and we were pleased to feature it back in 2020! Okay, it’s not that long ago, but in an airsoft market that moves faster day by day this OPFOR workhorse was well overdue for an update! Bill finds out what new “tech” it brings to the (not-communist) party!

Editorial Director: Bill Thomas

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©Calibre Publishing Limited 2023

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26 ARMOURY: VORSK VX-14

Last month Bill took a good look at the yet-to-be-released VX14 REQUIEM EDITION GBB and thoroughly enjoyed the initial experience that he had with it… but now the VX-14 has hit the stores and Bill, Jase, Jimmy and Ben got hands on with the “combat version” during their day with VORSK, and this is what they had to say!

32 ARMOURY: EMG F1 FIREARMS BSF-19

It’s a bit of a “pistol heavy” issue this month and we’ll continue this theme unashamedly with something a bit different that’s based on a real-world firearm and is all the better for that! We like something different, and the EMG replica of the F1 FIREARMS BSF19 is most certainly unique, so Bill dives in to see if it’s any good in airsoft form!

38

It’s that time of year again that we should be keeping our kit up to speed, so Bill revisits technical fabrics and takes a close look at why you should choose them as part of your loadout, and how you can effectively look after them without leaving the house!

66

Although Airsoft is the same the whole world over, there are some crucial differences from country to country that allow us to play. It may be to do with power levels, legal requirements, or it may just be to do with how things need to be set up to allow fields to be run in the first place… sometimes it’s all about the teams themselves, and why they run as they do; Miguel tells more…

44

We’ve kicked properly into a whole new year and many of us are reviewing our kit in preparation for the games and events ahead, tweaking and fine-tuning our loadouts to make sure that they are truly “fit for purpose” and good to go! With this in mind we’re starting a new sequence of THE CAGE this month to talk about scenario-specific loadouts and what they entail…

48

Following on from last months Red Cell overview of their favourite “longs” of 2022 this time we’re looking at the pistols that the crew have used most during last year, and which models they swear by when it comes to what’s in their holsters! Although there are certainly some newcomers in the mix it would seem that the saying of “battle proven” is very much the order of the day! As usual, Bill kicks things off…

62

Games are most definitely back on for another fabulous year of airsoft, but let’s be honest and admit that for many of us the good times just kept on rolling through the end of ‘22 and into ‘23 without pause! Larri joins us again from Hong Kong to tell us all about one very special event that he and his UBCA team-mates are involved in every year!

70

With the close of 2022 in sight and things easing up increasingly in terms of what seemed like never-ending restrictions a somewhat subdued calendar of national-level shooting events could finally get back into its swing! With two long weekends at the opposite end of the country one after another crammed into December, Stewbacca was in his element with his usual masochism in the name of content production, so what happened at the international Level 3 shoot at the Taiwan Practical Shooting Association’s newly acquired shooting centre in Kaohsiung?

84

Continuing our coverage of the major shows this month we’re delighted to report back on the massive beast of an event that is SHOT Show as Boycie, Li’l Stu and Danbring in their lowdown of the 2023 event in Las Vegas!

96

As the new HUNTSMAN TACTICAL AEG models from iWholesales have been out in the wild for a while now we thought that we would revisit one of these neat little ARs now that we’ve had it on and off the range for a couple of months; Bill recaps on the features and tells all about performance so far!

TOD: LOOK AFTER YOUR GEAR!

RED CELL: FAVOURITES –PISTOLS OF ’22!

AA LEGION: HONG KONG

THE CAGE: FIT FOR PURPOSE?

AA LEGION: TAIWAN

AA LEGION: PORTUGAL

AA LEGION: SHOT SHOW 2023

RELOADED: HUNTSMAN TACTICAL

TURN YOUR PHONE INTO THE MOST AFFORDABLE VIRTUAL SIMULATION SHOOTING SYSTEM.

WORKS WITH REAL FIREARMS, GEL BLASTERS AND AIRSOFT.

FIELDING DREAMS

SOME THINGS ARE WORTH WAITING FOR, AND SOME ARE WORTH WAITING FOR MORE THAN OTHERS! FOLLOWERS OF AIRSOFT ACTION WILL KNOW THAT WE’VE BEEN INVOLVED WITH A “SPECIAL PROJECT” FOR A WHILE NOW, AND WE’VE BEEN SWORN TO SECRECY ABOUT THE LAUNCH OF THE VORSK VMP-1 GBB SMG! FINALLY WE CAN START TO TALK ABOUT THE DEVELOPMENT OF THIS UNIQUE AND ORIGINAL DESIGN THAT SEES VORSK SET TO ENTER A NEW ERA, ONE THAT WILL HELP BRING GAS-DRIVEN AIRSOFT TO ALL, AS THEY LET RED CELL LOOSE ON THE FINAL, FULLY-FUNCTIONAL, PRE-PRODUCTION MODEL!

I’m not going to lie but a select group even within the close-knit teams of Red Cell and AA Legion have been literally sitting on their hands and bouncing up and down with barely suppressed excitement since late in 2022, and for me, my journey with the VORSK VMP-1 started over two years ago…

As I see pretty much every new AEG or GBB that comes into the AA office for test and evaluation it’s hard not to become a little jaded and it has to be something pretty darn special for me to jump up and down and rave about a new model these days, and it’s one of the reasons why you’ll see more of the team getting involved in the review process… but the VMP-1 has been on my mind and in my airsoft dreams for some considerable time, and continues to be there front and centre!

Again, regular readers of AA will know that I have a passion for GBBRs and it’s a passion that I will gladly share with any poor soul that will listen! However, I understand that for various reasons many AEG players will find it hard to understand just why I find gas “the thing” so exciting. In the past gas in airsoft has been a bit of a hit or miss affair, with some excellent platforms hitting the market, but equally some pretty horrible ones too. Gas itself

has been inefficient to say the least, especially in colder climates, and gas magazines have always been insanely expensive and prone to failure without scrupulous maintenance. Then there’s the “realcap” magazine question… why have just 30 BBs when you can have 500 in your mag, or even 3000?

As I’ve said many time before, gas airsoft does require a different mind-set, but I’m still of the belief that a well-set-up gas primary platform can be a 100% viable option in all game settings, and not just MilSim or competition shooting, and I have to say that there are others among the AA team that agree with me. VORSK have, through their stunning pistol program, done more than most to improve things for gas users; they have improved the very fundament of this side of airsoft by creating new gas formulas and helped us to understand what we are using in our platforms and why, and whilst they may not have made gas magazines “cheap” they have certainly made them more affordable!

But still you may disagree with me that gas-driven airsoft is THE WAY, and I admit it is not for everyone as the challenges may simply be too much of a reach; it is however, ONE WAY, and one I embrace for exactly those challenges! Playing airsoft with limited ammo where each and every BB counts puts

PHOTO COURTESY KRIOS PHOTOGRAPHY

he and the VORSK team were working on their first “primary”, and that this would be a gas “machine pistol”! Over the next couple of years, in person

with our high quality standards.

“We wanted to create a striking-looking, supercompact gas SMG that could be used by anyone and

Development Render Courtesy of VORSK

everyone at many different specific scenarios; when we started working on the VMP1 the concept was driven by my personal love of gas blowback rifles and SMGs from my early years

And so it was that I watched with huge

over time, each one adding to the ergonomics and

3D models and prints being created to ensure that each and every part worked seamlessly together. The decision was made that the magazines for the VMP1 should be new, but with compatibility to the MP9

improved and a mag-cover was created to continue

true “point man” platform. In fact there are so many fabulous little design aspects that it’s hard for me to cover them all in the space I have allotted here, but when we look at the final production model in range and field testing we’ll come back to them more!

IT’S ALIVE!

Late last year Ross called me to say that the working pre-production model of the VMP-1 had arrived with him and asked if I would like to go up to VORSKs “skunkworks” to give it a try… what can I tell ya… I was there like a shot!

Although still a little rough around the edges and with a few final production design-tweaks still to happen, finally there in front of me was the VMP1! The suppressor was still unfinished silver, and the muzzle device was still 3D printed, but oh boy, I was smitten! It’s a privilege to have had even the smallest part in the development of a new airsoft platform, and I can only imagine the level of pride and excitement that Ross and the VORSK team must have felt at that moment!

Ross told me later that:

“We have built an eco-system within VORSK to support the design and manufacture of our airsoft replicas. This includes our range of 6mm ammunition and the V6, V8, V12 GBB Fuel that all of our replicas are designed around. This ensures a consistent performance that is tested throughout the prototyping process as well as enabling us to offer genuine advice on how our replicas will perform in different environmental conditions, with different powered gasses and BB weights…”

platform compact and tidy, so the VORSK team went lightweight and slimline, but with an innovative 15 degree rotating buttpad that allowed you to keep this firmly in the shoulder during manipulation, especially when “cutting the pie”, moving around corners and

Again, everyone involved agreed that the VMP-1 just had to have a suppressor as standard, but rather

device the guys went away and designed not just said device, but a striking new suppressor as well, and one that was really, truly Quick Detach! I absolutely LOVE this, and although the VMP-1 looks fabulous “as is”, with the suppressor fitted it becomes in my mind a

And oh boy! Gassed up with V6 FUEL I finally, after nearly TWO YEARS got to put some BBs downrange with the VMP-1; all the passion, attention to detail, design changes, improvements, and sheer hard work from the VORSK team had led to this moment… and I WAS NOT disappointed! Okay, it was only a 10m or so range in the depths of the “skunkworks” but the VMP-1 went off like a jack-hammer and sent BBs straight into “centre mass”! There were no hang-ups, no misfeeds, nothing, nada… it just performed… accurately on semi, but when you cranked things up… OH BOY!

I believe that Ross was a little disgruntled when I made safe and said to him “my, that was pleasing…”, but honestly even I was somewhat lost for words at that moment, so pleased was I with the performance of the working product, and equally so for him and the VORSK team that their personal dream had become reality in such a fabulous way!

NAILING THE SHOOT!

And so it was that last month Red Cell Jase, Jimmy, Ben and I made our way at zero-dark-thirty to an “undisclosed location” to attend a photoshoot for the VMP-1 and the “combat version” of the thenunreleased VX-14 that you’ll see next in this issue of AA. I’d had a thought to make this a bit special, (even more special!) by speaking to Ian at VIPER about getting their latest gear and especially their new VX SMG Mag Panels to feature, and also to Taig at KYDEX Customs for some Multicam-wrapped Hi Capa Holsters for the VX-14s. I prepped the “background platforms”, all VFC GBBRs, as I wanted this to look great for the VORSK team; they’d put in a huge effort to have the VMP-1 ready (although Ross was horrified when we “tactically rattlecanned” the suppressor!), so I wanted to make and equal effort to make things “look just so”; I’ll be coming back to this preparation and all the gear we used in detail next month…

We were also joined on the day by Legion Associate Josh and his team from KRIOS PHOTOGRAPHY; I really like working with Josh as he “gets it”, and as part of The Legion it means he’s also covered under our NDA so I can keep him in the loop with our plans. With Matt from VORSK also taking pictures, as you’ll see from the images, we had a GREAT day, and there’ll even be a video to follow from Josh that will be posted in our new MIXED MEDIA section on the website soon!

And of course it was time for other members of Red Cell other than I to get their first taste of the VMP-1, so I’ll pass over to Jimmy and Ben now for their initial impressions…

Jimmy: A LOT of thought has gone into the allnew design of the VMP-1, in fact around two yearsworth of thought so I was expecting it be good. The little time I did get up close with this platform didn’t give me a chance to get the full lowdown on the internals, but that said on the outside it does look pretty cool! To look at it you can see likeness to other very popular RIFs and indeed real firearms, and it strikes me as a mixture between the Uzi, MAC, MP9 and MP7 and Ross based it on all the good bits of old favourites of his, but has brought a modern twist to it. In terms of size it is about the same size as an MP7

“THE VMP-1... HOT DIGGITY DOG! NOW THIS IS A BIT OF ME! GBB, AND IT COMES WITH A LOOK OF AN UBER-MODERNISED MP9/MAC! IT’S VERY COMFORTABLE IN THE HAND, PERFECT FOR CQB OR YOUR TEAM’S POINTMAN.”

in a future issue of the magazine and on my own fun YouTube channel where I’ll have it in gameplay action for you our devoted reader’s and follower’...TEAM VORSK… watch this space!

So there you have it, the launch of a new VORSK model, and one that is absolutely ensured of having a proud place in airsoft history! For the first run at a

My genuine thanks go to Ross and the VORSK team

Thanks to of course to Ian at VIPER and Taig at KYDEX CUSTOMS for helping us out with kit, and to Josh at KRIOS PHOTOGRAPHY for making us look good! VORSK will be exhibiting at the IWA 2023 show this year in Nuremberg, to give Airsoft businesses and media the opportunity to get up and close with the VMP-1. Expected Launch date is late spring 2023! AA

Development Render Courtesy of VORSK

“THE VMP-1 HAS BEEN DESIGNED FROM THE GROUND UP BY THE VORSK TEAM HERE IN THE UK. WITH OUR IN-HOUSE PROTOTYPING CAPABILITIES, WE WERE ABLE TO GET THIS PROJECT OFF OF THE GROUND, BUT IT ALSO TOOK A FEW ROUNDS OF PRODUCTION SAMPLES BEING DELIVERED FROM OUR MANUFACTURING PLANT TO PERFECT THE VMP-1. ”

PHOTO COURTESY KRIOS PHOTOGRAPHY

AK GOES TECH!

A LONG TIME AGO, IN AN AIRSOFT GALAXY NOT THAT FAR FROM HOME, ARCTURUS RELEASED THEIR AEG-TAKE ON THE AK-12, AND WE WERE PLEASED TO FEATURE IT BACK IN 2020! OKAY, IT’S NOT THAT LONG AGO, BUT IN AN AIRSOFT MARKET THAT MOVES FASTER DAY BY DAY THIS OPFOR WORKHORSE WAS WELL OVERDUE FOR AN UPDATE, AND THANKS TO OUR FRIENDS AT PERUN THIS HAS NOW HAPPENED! BILL FINDS OUT WHAT NEW “TECH” IT BRINGS TO THE (NOT-COMMUNIST) PARTY!

It’s still a fact that many European players are loathe to buy into the AK platform at the moment for reasons that are patently obvious, and for many “Russian” guns n’ gear have been relegated to the very back of the gear cage until events in Ukraine ultimately come to some kind of resolution. Although we at Airsoft Action have very strong views in relation to his horrendous ongoing war we cannot be oblivious to the fact that for many players around the globe it is not as “personal” as it is for us, and that OPFOR players everywhere are still picking up their AKs and having at it in-game!

This would not be quite so apparent if it weren’t

for the sheer number of “com-bloc” AEGs and GBBRs that are appearing at the shows around the world right now; in the comprehensive report of new models appearing at SHOT ‘23 that we also have in this very issue, amongst the highlights are some righteous new PP-19-01 Vityaz models from Lancer Tactical and Arcturus, and Dan commented on the latter that “The build quality was absolutely fantastic, with these sporting some really smart features from the true quick-change spring guide, to the realistic magazine dimensions, and a (soon to be updated) rotary hop up chamber that will sport a top-down-center hop up arm…”

And it would appear that Arcturus are not just changing SOME internal operating systems when it comes to their AEGs, but a LOT of them, and the first production model that has appeared is none other than their AK-12, but with an upgrade from our good mates at PERUN that really brings the platform right

characteristics the V3 Hybrid.”

SAME, BUT NOT!

up to date in terms of playerfriendliness!

Yup, that’s right, for those that may have missed it the Arcturus AT-AK12PE (PE “Performance Enhanced… or possibly for PERUN…) now comes pre-fitted with PERUN goodies as standard!

Speaking to PERUN direct they told us that;

“The electronic board inside AK12 PE is a modified V3 Hybrid, which has slightly altered selector sensors and software. It’s supposed to work with 3- and 4-position selectors (because it’s also utilized in other Arcturus V3 replicas of the “PE” line). Software is meant to be more a little bit more accommodating for inexperienced users than the V3 Hybrid. Other than that, it has most of the

So what does this mean in reality? I won’t go into all the history of the AK-12 as a real platform again as I’ve covered this off so many times already, but starting with the AEG itself it’s essentially the same AK-12 that I looked at back at mid-2020. This is no bad thing as the AT-AK12 in my opinion hit the global airsoft market at precisely the right time. As I said way back then, whilst trends are driven in the main by manufacturers pushing forward with new models, the whole “AK Thing” seems to have grown more organically, and to my mind has been driven by the players themselves. The move to OPFOR and the rise of themed teams has certainly helped in this, but I would go further and say that the adoption of the AK platform by many more seasoned players has filtered down via games and sites to the newer player.

Although there are a few of us that love the classic 47/AKM/74 wood and metal models, the newer players in the main seem to look for something far more funky, far more “modern”, with all the bells and whistles as standard. Just like its forebear the base Arcturus AEG is solid as a rock, and weighs in at a hefty 3500g, 20g heavier than its predecessor, but for a good reason that will become apparent! If like me you’re used to a “classic AK” then this weight feels “right”; this is a bruiser of a rifle with steel and high-quality alloy used throughout the construction. Like the “real deal” the receiver cover is another unique feature of the design as it has a permanently affixed top Picatinny rail where the rear sight assembly mounts directly to the cover; this of course means that the rifle is all ready for an optic should you desire to fit one, and this is mated firmly to the dust cover.

This of course means that the rear latch has gone, and the dust cover is released instead by rotating the retained front locking arm above the cocking handle

“IF LIKE ME YOU’RE USED TO A “CLASSIC AK” THEN THIS WEIGHT FEELS “RIGHT”; THIS IS A BRUISER OF A RIFLE WITH STEEL AND HIGH-QUALITY ALLOY USED THROUGHOUT THE CONSTRUCTION”

the real-deal perfectly down to the “round-countwindow”, and fed perfectly in testing.

The “PE” mech though is a new reinforced gearbox with electronics from PERUN… that extra 20g… quite possibly! The AT-AK12-PE still has the Quick Spring Change System, bearing spring guide, bearing piston head, full steel-tooth polycarbonate piston, and CNC 13:1 Steel Machined Gears mounted on 8mm ball bearings that ably transfer all the power from the motor to the piston gear, which is mounted on a bushing to be able to withstand the highest loads; you can happily give the AEG some real abuse, knowing that the mech will take it! The “PE” also features a CNC POM nozzle that works in complete harmony with the Rotary Hop-Up Chamber and a PCP Grade Precision Inner Barrel. The latest innovation is a 21TPA High-Torque Neodymium Motor with MIM steel pinion gear, so this is quite the package, and a 100% step forward from the older version!

selector switching and trigger-pulls supported by sound signals and multicolour LED diode. That allows changing the settings in any moment, in a matter of seconds, even in-game!

“All settings are set independently for each selector position, so you can program the MOSFET exactly the way you want, for example semi on semi and binary trigger on auto. It works without problems with any battery from 7V do 17V. It can also be used with the most extreme setups…”

And it really IS that easy… how can I say that? Well, as I’ve admitted many times in the past I am definitely no tech; okay I know my way around a gearbox and hop chamber, and I can certainly change out a motor, but anything more than that and its “back to the armourer”, or in my case, Jimmy! However, as the “PE” comes with everything pre-fitted all I needed to do was follow the clear setup steps and I was AWAY! What this offers me is;

• Adjustable trigger sensitivity – The trigger

“WITH THE NEW PERUN BOARD INSTALLED THIS LATEST AK-12 CAN BE PROGRAMMED JUST AS YOU WOULD LIKE IT TO BE, AND IT CAN END UP BEING JUST AS UNIQUE AS YOU ARE WHEN IT COMES TO SETTING HOW IT OPERATES!”

SAFE-AUTO-2RD BURST-SEMI

Alternative 1: SAFE-AUTO-BINARY TRIGGERSEMI

Alternative 2: SAFE-3RD BURST-BINARY-SEMI

Alternative 3: SAFE-SEMI-SEMI-SEMI

• Active brake - Active brake stops the motor after each shot preventing spring compression or in case of replicas with high rate of fire, overspin (double shot issues)

• Precocking – A fast trigger response can be a matter of victory or defeat, especially in CQB situations! With precocking enabled, the piston will remain in the rear position after each shot with the spring already compressed, ensuring that next shot will be fired immediately after you pull the trigger. To release the spring after using precocking, pull the trigger and hold it for 2 seconds, after which a second shot will be fired, this time with no precocking and fully braked

• Diagnostic system – This constantly monitors the replica and the MOSFET itself. In case of any problems, it immediately lets you know what the issue might be, making troubleshooting much easier

• Electronic fuse – This will save your AEG and battery in case of a major malfunction. It will automatically disconnect the battery when a short circuit or blocked motor is detected

DOWNRANGE

With all this worked out I loaded the 500BB Hi Cap up with a full complement of my usual RZR 2.0g test BBs and got to work; Ten BBs through the chrono gave me a wanging 1.59 Joule/415fps so it was quickly back to the tool kit and make use of that Quick Change Spring system as obviously this was WAY above where I should have any AEG in the UK! With a new spring installed I retested and things were happily down to a perfectly acceptable mean of 1.0 Joule/329fps…

“THE TRIGGER CAN BE SET TO 5 SENSITIVITY LEVELS, RANGING FROM A VERY SHORT PULL NEEDED TO FIRE A SHOT, TO A VERY LONG ONE. NO MODIFICATION TO THE TRIGGER OR THE GEARBOX IS NEEDED AND THE TRIGGER SENSITIVITY CHANGE IS POSSIBLE EVEN IN THE FIELD”

COMBAT EFFECTIVE

LAST MONTH BILL TOOK A GOOD LOOK AT THE YET-TO-BE-RELEASED VX-14 REQUIEM EDITION GBB AND THOROUGHLY ENJOYED THE INITIAL EXPERIENCE THAT HE HAD WITH IT… BUT NOW THE VX14 HAS HIT THE STORES AND BILL, JASE, JIMMY AND BEN GOT HANDS ON WITH THE “COMBAT VERSION” DURING THEIR DAY WITH VORSK ...AND THIS IS WHAT THEY HAD TO SAY!

What a day we had with the guys from VORSK, and oh boy, do they have some hotness hitting the stores in the coming months! As our photoshoot with them encompassed not only the VMP-1, but also other models we’re going to roll straight into their latest pistol…

As you’ll see from our headline report this month we were extremely privileged to be able to get our hands on the new VMP-1 and spent a fabulous day getting into the intricacies of a brand new model, and direction, from VORSK, and a VERY exciting direction it is too! As I said, the AA Crew and I are extremely interested to see just where the VMP program goes, but now it’s time to look at one of the other new VORSK releases, the “combat version” of their VX-14!

It’s a solid starting point commercially to be honest, as who doesn’t love a 1911-inspired pistol? I know that some of you will favour something other than a

1911 or Hi Capa as your secondary, but just like the AR platform when it comes to your primary, the “1911” remains one of the mostused pistols in airsoft, so doing something different with it, updating it, and making it unique is a pretty tall order!

But I have to say that VORSK seem able to create a viable re-invention not just once, but time and again, with different design flourishes and just a little bit more performance each and every time. Again, it’s no secret that I am intimately involved when it comes to the VORSK brand as I’ve been following their amazing story right from the very beginning, and their pistols get better and better; the initial models were good,

and a solid grounding for a new-at-the-time brand, but the past couple of years have seen them grow, expand, and stretch their design and manufacturinglegs in the best possible way.

I see VORSK doing well in my local airsoft shops, to the point that they are a “best seller”, and by looking at different groups and forums throughout Europe that appears to be the story everywhere! This comes from having a collection of quality products that have a uniqueness and character all of their own, products that appeal to us as airsofters not down only to performance but also in how they excite us to own them. “Special Edition” pistols are one thing, and I know of many of you out there that collect these as soon as they appear, but it’s the “fighting pistols” that will get the attention of everyone, those that you and I will use week-in, week-out when we play, and VORSK seem able to provide a little extra bit of value for money, don’t they?

Whether it’s attractive (ultimately performancerelated) design touches, hi-vis “irons” as standard, suppressor-ready threaded outer barrels, green gas or C02 compatibility as the norm (with all the necessary parts included in the box!), or indeed, as in the case of the VX-14, an extended inner barrel and accompanying suppressor as part of the deal, VORSK pistols continue to impress and offer us simply…. MORE! None of us that play airsoft are made of money (c’mon, we play airsoft, it’s a money pit!) so it’s vitally important that what we spend our money on not only does the job intended, but does it in an exemplary fashion, and all those extras that come as standard with a VORSK pistol mean that our money is being well-spent.

Although the colours and finishes of the “combat VX-14” are different to the REQUIEM, the allimportant feature set is the same, so I’ll direct you to my review last month of the REQUIEM for those details. I will make comment here that the VX-14 fits perfectly without the suppressor fitted into the excellent Hi Capa holster from Kydex Customs, and my thanks go to Taig for the loan of some fabulous multicam-wrapped models for use in the shoot. Suffice to say that the “combat VX-14” looks fabulous in the more muted “tactical” palette and performs just as well as the “special one”, and I’m looking forward to having even more rangetime with it.

RED CELL READY

I’ve been lucky enough to have spent some time already with the awesome REQUIEM EDITION of the VX-14 and already love it, but of course for Red Cell members Jase, Jimmy, and Ben our day with VORSK

was the first time that they’d got hands-on the latest pistol, so I asked them for their initial impressions to share with you.

Ben: VX-14, a nice modern take on a 1911 style pistol! For those who use or are familiar with a “1911” the VX-14 will feel much alike; in operation the top slide recoil is light and it cycles well, the trigger pull and wall are also very light and short, and I managed to get 27 BBs out before the gas had depleted from that big old Hi Capa style magazine. Okay, so not the greatest of gas holding magazines but then it was super-cold and it’s decent enough to empty fully, and I managed to get a maximum range of (out the box) of 53 meters/ 177 feet!

The pistol has a good weight to it and its grip covers are chunky which aids with retention. It has a modern under-barrel rail segment for your laser/ lights, and when fitted with the suppressor the extended inner barrel works well. The overall look is nice and slick and it comes in a choice of colours for the “tacticool” out there! Not being much of a pistol person myself I would say the VX-14 is a decent platform that performs well and would suit any level of player looking for an all-round affordable pistol. Hats off to the team VORSK for bringing another good quality piece to the market and for allowing us to be a part of its reveal; having one to test long-term will mean more honest reviews for you, our dedicated reader’s and hardcore players, in time!

Jase: I’ve not had any real lovin’ time with the VX-14 yet, and I’m waiting for some rangetime with bossman-Bill to really give it a good hammering! It is however a beautifully presented pistol, and straight out the box it’s perfectly fine, it just needed a little clean up and wash up on the rubber and I would be happy to field it; this is just my preferred routine with a new shooter. The finish is very cool indeed (I have the grey/black model) and all the features are thoroughly functional and good to go. The only niggle I have is with the barrel extension going into the suppressor as it doesn’t always mate up perfectly, but that’s more user error and lack of watching what I’m doing; I need to be “Smooth Jase” in this so practice will make perfect! As I’ve been more recently a SIG/GSeries kind of guy for MilSim then the layout of the 1911-style will take a bit of getting used to again, but I’m looking forward to seeing what this baby can really do!

Jimmy: The VX-14 is the latest offering from VORSK and some would see it as a Hi Capa but technically it is still a “1911” in my eyes. Yes it has a double stack mag but only when you look at its design will you see it is not “standard”. TM Hi Capa

(and most other brand) magazines do fit, but the rest of it is different! The slide has non-adjustable fibre optic sights that are fixed by two pins, and this sits on a one-piece frame and magwell with removable grips. The hammer housing is a two-piece design which is removable from the frame making it easy to work on. I did discover a small error on the finish of the hammer housing of my test pistol which has been reported back up the chain and investigation at the factory means that actions have already been implemented to have this rectified; of course, anything manufactured can suffer from a glitch, but as long as it is dealt with effectively as part of a scrupulous QC program as it has been here, then it’s not a biggy, and won’t affect performance in the long run.

The adjustable trigger is a nice touch allowing the user to remove a lot of the trigger travel. Running the extended inner barrel requires the use of the suppressor and does up the velocity quite a bit; using it without the extended barrel does bring that down and make it site legal but it does look tacti-cooler with the suppressor. Also included in the package is a separate nozzle which should bring the power down, but I am yet to confirm this. The adjustable hop unit allows you to dial in your BB trajectory; the one I received struggled a little to lift a 0.30g BB at

full adjust, but can handle a 0.28g BB which is fine for a pistol being used at its intended engagement distance. I like the packaging; yes, I said it, I am an “unboxer” after all! The VX-14 arrives in an updated box very similar to earlier VORSK boxes but with the addition of EVA foam which is very neatly cut; it does actually look better than Shadow Foam! Overall I like the VX-14; it is aesthetically pleasing and well presented, it works well and so far is ticking all the right boxes. I haven’t really stress-tested it yet but time will tell…

I hope that Jase, Jimmy and Ben have given you a taste of both the VMP-1 and VX-14 this month, and thanks to VORSK we have now placed the new models in the pool for longer-term testing, so expect to see more on these in coming months as they start to get some serious rangetime and in-game testing; as far as we’re concerned the VX-14 is every bit as much of a winner and the VMP-1!

Our sincere thanks go to the guys at VORSK and also again to AA Legion Associate Josh and his crew from www.kriosphotography.com who spent the day with us; we’ll be looking in more detail next month at how Red Cell went about preparing for this photoshoot with VORSK and some other very special people! AA

MCBLK MAGIC

IT’S A BIT OF A “PISTOL HEAVY” ISSUE THIS MONTH AND WE’LL CONTINUE THIS THEME UNASHAMEDLY WITH SOMETHING A BIT DIFFERENT THAT’S BASED ON A REAL-WORLD FIREARM AND IS ALL THE BETTER FOR THAT! WE LIKE SOMETHING DIFFERENT, AND THE EMG REPLICA OF THE F1 FIREARMS BSF-19 IS MOST CERTAINLY UNIQUE, SO BILL

FORM!

You may have gathered from what else I’ve written about this month that I’m definitely starting the year with my eyes firmly focused on handguns, and why not? We all love our pistols and although they may not generally see quite so much action in a skirmish setting as our AEGs there’s just something about your pistol that is deeply, and meaningfully personal isn’t there?

Let’s face it, when we head off to our local site for gameday there is inevitably a lot of ”Show & Tell”; somebody is bound to have something new to share, and we’re always interested to see what turns up. Undoubtedly the reveal will be generally received with approving nods and coos of “ooh, gucci”, and “can I have a shoot of that?” followed by many BBs heading down the test-fire range… and of course we always balloon up with pride in our new acquisition when the general consensus among our peers is “that kicks ass…”

Nowhere I’ve found is this truer than when we first field a new pistol, as just about everyone LOVES their handgun; in an airsoft world still dominated by AR-style AEGs the GBB “secondary” is where your personal taste can really shine through, and as you’ll see from Red Cell this month everyone has VERY strong opinions of why they have chosen the pistol-

DIVES IN TO SEE IF IT’S ANY GOOD IN AIRSOFT

model they have, and I’m certain this is just as true of you!

More and more manufacturers are seeking licences to replicate “real” handguns for us as airsofters to cherish, and as much as I do love striking and innovative directions in this aspect. I have no issue whatsoever owning and using a pistol that is not based on an existing firearm IF it is an effective airsoft platform, but there is still something about a true, 100% as-the-real-deal model that excites me.

I fully understand that many firearms manufacturers are loathe to see their creations replicated as (as they sometimes see it) “toys”, and are wary as some of their designs have been ripped-off with no recognition by airsoft companies (yes, REALLY! Shocker…). Thankfully there are companies like EMG ARMS out there that work closely with the real innovators in the shooting world to ensure that proper licences are in place to ensure recreation-accuracy, and that means that we get to play with things that are as close to “real” as they can possibly be!

LET’S TALK LICENCING!

I’ve said this many times before, but I’ll keep on saying it; you may have noticed in many of the reviews I carry out on “replica firearm models” that I regularly make

“I HAVE NO ISSUE WHATSOEVER OWNING AND USING A PISTOL THAT IS NOT BASED ON AN EXISTING FIREARM IF IT IS AN EFFECTIVE AIRSOFT PLATFORM, BUT THERE IS STILL SOMETHING ABOUT A TRUE, 100% AS-THE-REAL-DEAL MODEL THAT EXCITES ME.”

that necessarily come with the same after-purchase backup, or indeed will it even fit a holster that has been designed for the original? Many copies vary in overall size, especially frame size, to get around licence infringement and in my mind there is nothing quite as annoying as buying a holster or a taclite for your replica and finding they don’t fit!

In my opinion EMG ARMS are one of the best in the business at getting their licensing agreements right, and ensuring that what we as buyers get is 100% correct. In relation to the F1 FIREARMS BSF-19 this

even down to the original specifications of the “real deal” to provide a replica with a completely authentic look and feel.

And EMG are also very good a bringing together development and manufacturing partners to ensure that the model they are replicating actually, you know, works, and the BSF-19 is an awesome collaboration! EMG really seem to be making the most of the licences they’ve managed to secure from real firearms manufacturers in the USA, and this latest pistol model sees them working with no other than the somewhat

this gives them a very competitive edge. They take great pride in bringing advancements through modern weapons design and features into semi-automatic and automatic rifle systems. The company’s advanced weapons manufacturing facility is state of the art and F1 have assembled a top-notch team of experienced designers and machinists to ensure they manufacture and provide the finest 100% American-Made weapons and parts around. They also take great pride in employing U.S. Veterans from all facets of the United States Military.

REAL SPEC

Thanks to iWholesales in the UK I’ve been lucky enough to have a green gas-driven BSF-19 (C02 models are also available) in for testing for a while now, and even before I got it to the range it became much appreciated by all in the team that got “handson” when it arrived with us.

F1 are probably better known to AR-shooters then pistoleers to be honest, as their superlative rifles have already found their way into the hands of shooters

like Jerry Miculek and Matt Carriker, the main guy behind Demolition Ranch. But their pistols are no less impressive, undergoing scrupulous in-house machining processes using state-of-theart technology. A real BSF-19 will set you back somewhere iro US$2000; built in Texas, the pistol has its roots in Glock 19 Gen 3 and was designed to deliver the same level of dependability and performance but to take things to a whole new level!

The real firearm is made with a 7065-T6 aluminum frame, and the frame and slide are aggressively detailed, with a multitude of serrations and machinecuts which are there not so much to enhance the visual appearance but to aid in comfort, balance and the overall ergonomics; cuts for instance on the front and back-strap area provide solid retentionaid without affecting comfort. The standard slide machining also means that you get both “irons” and

And all of this is faithfully and accurately replicated in the 6mm BSF-19! First off the pistol features an alloy slide AND frame that straight away feels very different from its Big-G forebear. It’s an attractive, modern-feeling pistol that has the specially designed machined cuts to reduce weight and assist with operation, and a spiral-cut outer barrel offers lighter weight and a distinct look.

Also as per-the-real the BSF-19 comes optics ready design to accept RMR dot sights, and a framemounted rail allows for the attachment of lights, lasers, and other standard accessories. The pistol even comes with an 11mm positive (CW) to 14mm negative (CCW) adapter so you can add the allimportant suppressor or tracer if you want to round out your in-game accessory package!

IRL F1 FIREARMS are known and respected for their head-turningly cool anodized finishes, and this too is replicated in the airsoft version of the BSF-19; I’m STILL working on my MCBLK loadout and the pistol I received in for testing was actually in that pattern, and it’s a beautifully-achieved look right enough! EMG also offer the BSF-19 in a multitude of colours

“F1 ARE PROBABLY BETTER KNOWN TO AR-SHOOTERS THEN PISTOLEERS TO BE HONEST, AS THEIR SUPERLATIVE RIFLES HAVE ALREADY FOUND THEIR WAY INTO THE HANDS OF SHOOTERS LIKE JERRY MICULEK AND MATT CARRIKER, THE MAIN GUY BEHIND DEMOLITION RANCH. ”

that include regular MC, Black and a very striking grey colouration along with some outrageous two-tones and even my favourite “Bazooka Green”, and they’re all finished off with some really nicely achieved deepengraved trademarks.

DOWNRANGE

Weighing in at 919g this is a hefty handful of compact pistol, and it feels super-positive; the alloy pistol grip is quite short and initially feels a little strange, but the extended-style 23+1 BB magazine and the gripcuts all go to make it feel somehow “right”, and the magazine certainly makes reloads quick and easy!

In use the BSF-19 is pretty flawless although the sample did need a bit of degreasing first; the action is very crisp indeed, the slide easily moved to the rear thanks to those deep serrations on either side of it. Loaded up with .20g BBs and gas the BSF-19 sends BBs downrange with astonishing accuracy given the short 86mm, 6.03 inner barrel and the trigger breaks smoothly and consistently, providing excellent groupings at 5-10 metres; I was easily able to group 10 BBs “in the black” straight from the box with no adjustments!

On .20g BBs it chrono’d at a steady and reliable average of 0.78 Joule/290fps. EMG do offer a CO2 version and this I’m told raises the power a little giving an increased average of 1.04 Joule/335fps; I see this as a real positive as the CO2 model may well give greater consistency in terms of rapid competition shooting and use during the colder months of the year. I shot mostly on .30g when punching the targets and the BSF-19 appears to have zero issues lifting that weight of ammo at short to medium range. Overall this is a really superb airsoft pistol and is worthy of a place in anyone’s armoury. It feels great, shoots consistently and extremely accurately, and cycles perfectly on green gas… as well as looking drop-dead gorgeous! EMG pistols are stocked by most good airsoft retailers, and the BSF-19 in my opinion offers excellent value for money considering the outstanding build-quality and overall finish along with the fact that it is fully, and properly, licenced. If you’re in the market for a new pistol for either skirmishing or competition then I would thoroughly recommend that you give the EMG replica of the F1 FIREARMS BSF-19 your full attention!

My thanks go to www.iwholesales.co.uk for supplying the review sample, and I certainly hope that I can persuade them to let us keep the BSF-19 in the long-term test pool… I did mention it’s a proper little ass-kicker, right? AA

THE L119A2 IS JUST ONE POPULAR EXAMPLE OF OUR CURRENT RECOIL MODELS, BASED ON TOKYO MARUI’S FANTASTIC SYSTEM - FITTED WITH THE ANGRY GUN RAIL SYSTEM AND REAL STEEL MAGPUL FURNITURE

LOOK AFTER YOUR GEAR!

IT’S THAT TIME OF YEAR AGAIN THAT WE SHOULD BE KEEPING OUR KIT UP TO SPEED, SO BILL REVISITS TECHNICAL FABRICS AND TAKES A CLOSE LOOK AT WHY YOU SHOULD CHOOSE THEM AS PART OF YOUR LOADOUT, AND HOW YOU CAN EFFECTIVELY LOOK AFTER THEM WITHOUT LEAVING THE HOUSE!

As we are heading towards spring at last I’m certain that just like all of the AA Crew your gear has been put through it a bit over the harsh winter months! Here in the UK it has been wet, cold, and muddy… did I mention wet?

I have written about this before and make no apology for revisiting and including the subject here again; we spend A LOT on our performance gear so looking after it to me is a crucially important aspect of getting the most for our money! To recap on what I’ve written on this subject in previous issues of AA understanding what you buy and what you use in relation to your personal clothing is a subject that’s very close to my heart; “technical clothing” whilst not hard to come by, is an expensive part of any loadout, and you want it to keep on performing for a significant time to make your investment worthwhile. So, what are we really talking about when we use the phrase “technical performance fabrics”? Basically we are looking at fabric technologies with a very specific end use in mind that balance the three key areas of waterproofness (read general weatherproofness), breathability and durability.

Breaking it down most clothing manufacturers will use two main forms of construction in their garments, Two and Three Layer (although there are

other specific constructions out there). Two Layer construction essentially means that the waterproof membrane is attached directly to an outer face fabric with a loose lining; Three Layer construction means that the face fabric, membrane and inner lining fabric are all bonded together. Many prefer the Three Layer construction as it’s is easier to get on and off as a loose mesh liner can sometimes snag on gear. Different seam tapes (to ensure seams are 100% waterproof and do not let water in through stitch holes) are used in the different constructions; Two Layer seam sealing tape is applied to the GORE-TEX membrane directly, whilst in Three Layer the sealing takes place over the inner lining fabric; seam sealing is an art form in itself!

WATERPROOF

Let’s take a look first at waterproofness and how technical fabrics achieve this. The well-known GORE-TEX membrane for instance contains over 9 billion microscopic pores per square inch. These pores are 20,000 times smaller than a water droplet, but 700 times larger than a water vapor molecule, which makes the membrane durably waterproof, while allowing perspiration (moisture as a vapour)

to escape from the inside. An oleophobic, or oilhating, substance is integrated into the membrane, preventing the penetration of body oils, insect repellents and the like.

Simply put imagine an elephant, a mousehole and an ant! The mouse hole is the microscopic pore in the membrane, the ant is a water vapour molecule and the elephant a water droplet; it’s pretty easy to see that although the ant can escape through the mousehole with ease, there is NO WAY that you could push the elephant through it without breaking the wall down! In garment terms that would mean tearing a darn great hole in your jacket!

So, water cannot penetrate the membrane, or can it? Logic dictates that eventually any fabric technology can be pushed to a point of failure and this can be tested; in this case the applicable British Standard that I refer to is ‘BS EN 343:2003

Protective Clothing: Protection against Rain’. The Standard describes the tests that should be carried out to ascertain a garment’s level of waterproofness and sets out the performance standards that items carrying this description should meet. A Test House would carry out these tests in order to ascertain the garment’s ability to keep out water. This is measured in PSI (pounds per square inch) or “Hydrostatic Head”. Hydrostatic Head is measured in mm and pressure is measured in pounds per square inch.

The Hydrostatic Head is determined by a test whereby a fabric is held taut underneath a sealed tube of water 1 inch in diameter. Over 24 hours it is observed to see how many millimetres of water the fabric can withstand before it leaks through. When the fabric begins to seep water, the “height” in millimetres is noted. This is known as the fabric’s ‘hydrostatic head’ which literally means: HydroWater, Static - Not moving, Head - Height.

The PSI relates to the amount of water pressure that a garment can withstand both from the pressure within the garment (the wearer) and the external conditions (the weather). To be 100% waterproof, the British Standards of 3 PSI has to be met, which means that a fabric can withhold 1500mm of water pressure. Pressure is not just as simple as the pressure of a rain storm, simply moving a garment when it is worn will exert pressure on the fabric.

Let’s put this in perspective though; if you were to sit on a wet, flat surface the mean pressure you generate is around 10,000mm! If you were kneeling in a firing position then the point of the knee generates 15-17,000mm of pressure (smaller surface area, greater pressure) so let’s face it, a minimum legal rating of 1500mm just does not do the job. It does begin to explain though how a garment can be legally classed as “waterproof”, but in reality it really isn’t.

BREATHABLE

Comfort is a relative thing, but if you’re too hot, that can lead to heat exhaustion, too cold, hypothermia; whilst keeping external ingress of moisture at bay, controlling the micro-climate inside your clothing system helps to prevent either too. The body regulates itself effectively; as activity levels increase you sweat and the evaporation of this moisture helps to cool the skin. If moisture is not allowed to move away you will become “uncomfortable” inside your clothing system.

Letting moisture escape from the system is a tricky thing, but it’s essentially what is being discussed when we use the word “breathable. Behind it all is a law of nature, the Law of Partial Pressures. This law states that moisture as a vapour will naturally move from a warm, high pressure environment to a cooler low pressure one. If we are keeping a wellbalanced temperature inside our clothing system then on a bad-weather day moisture will move away from our skin through the pores in our clothing and escape to the outside. Sometimes we call this the “Temperature Gradient” as it sounds like moisture vapour is moving “down” from hot to cold.

This of course is also subject to testing; many methods can be used here to establish a Moisture Vapour Transmission Rate (MVTR) or a Resistance to Evaporative Transmission (RET) figure. Of the two I prefer an RET figure as it just plain makes more sense to me. Skin is 100% breathable and has an RET of Zero. As soon as you cover it though you build up a resistance that slows down the rate at which moisture can be transmitted away; the thicker the barrier the more resistance and the slower the

“SIMPLY PUT IMAGINE AN ELEPHANT, A MOUSEHOLE AND AN ANT! THE MOUSE HOLE IS THE MICROSCOPIC PORE IN THE MEMBRANE, THE ANT IS A WATER VAPOUR MOLECULE AND THE ELEPHANT A WATER DROPLET; IT’S PRETTY EASY TO SEE THAT ALTHOUGH THE ANT CAN ESCAPE THROUGH THE MOUSEHOLE WITH EASE, THERE IS NO WAY THAT YOU COULD PUSH THE ELEPHANT THROUGH IT WITHOUT BREAKING THE WALL DOWN”

transmission. In essence this means that as you cover the skin with layers your system becomes less breathable so we will always be looking for technical fabrics with as low an RET figure as possible.

KEEP IT ROCKIN’!

If you’re spending a lot of money on a set of waterproof gear, then you really want to get the best out of it don’t you? Just like changing tyres or the oil in a car your “shell gear” will really, really benefit from some regular “TLC”, a bit of a service if you like. All too often I’m out on the range or at a game with my mates and when we get back in the car their “Gucci” waterproof shell gear just gets dumped unceremoniously in a pile on the floor or in the footwell! These are usually the self-same people that I will see at a later date bemoaning the fact that their expensive waterproof jacket “isn’t working”, complaining to all and sundry that somehow the technology has failed, and that they are wet and uncomfortable. The most common gripe I hear is that “this funking thing is leaking” when actually it’s still perfectly fine, and the fact is, it just isn’t “breathing” anymore!

Like all performance items top-end shell gear needs maintaining regularly to get the best from it. When you buy a Gore-Tex (or similar) jacket you’re investing in a high-performance item, and as such, it needs treating like one! Over time things like the hydrophobic (water-heating) Durable Water Repellent (DWR, think a microscopic “film”) on the outer face fabric of the garment will begin to wear and crack, and the fabric will start to hold the water that’s now allowed through to it. As new, water droplets will be held on the DWR layer, simply rolling

the fabric itself; this is usually noticeable first in areas like the shoulders where pack straps or a plate carrier rub and abrade the DWR, or on cuff ends where the fabric rubs against itself.

Internally over time, body oils, grease and general dirt will also build up and the net result is that your jacket will stop “breathing” as well as it did when it was new. You won’t really notice this until it becomes obvious, and water vapour that was previously being transferred out of the system stays inside and re-condenses. You’ll feel cold, clammy and uncomfortable, put your hand inside your jacket, feel “water” and of course your quite natural conclusion will be that the jacket is leaking!

A re-proofer will restore the waterproof performance of your gear to ensure it continues to keep you dry and protected. To combat the degradation of performance you simply need to give your jacket (or pant) a bit of care and invest in a maintenance product. There are many of them on the market these days, and most can be ordered easily online, so check out brands like Grangers, Nikwax, Storm, Red Wing, Rockin’ Green, and Gear Aid. You’ll also find bespoke products for down, merino, and base layer care products to keep all of your gear tip-top. These products offer high performance cleaning, water proofing and aftercare treatments that let you refresh and restore the performance of your gear, ensuring your kit delivers the same protection it did when you bought it.

The first step is obviously to clean your garments, and to do this you need to ensure that first and foremost you follow the manufacturer’s care guidance that’s given on the label you’ll no-doubt find inside the garment. Most garments, including

make certain that no harm is going to come to your beloved gear so it comes out all sparkly and fresh!

Once your garment has been cleaned, you should clean out your washing machine’s detergent tray. This is a similar step for washing, but you’ll want to clear out any remnants of your washing product. Get yourself some wash-in proofer (unless your garment has a hydrophilic (water-loving) lining which is used sometimes to help transfer internal moisture, in which case use a spray on proofer to the outer face as directed!) then simply follow the instructions for volume and temperature settings before setting the washer. Let the cycle run with the proofer, and once completed, allow the cycle to repeat and remove excess moisture. Re-proofers usually activate with heat so if your garment allows you to tumble dry it the heat will help activate the replenished coating, and then you’re good to go all over again.

All of your clothing system will benefit form a good wash and clean, and again products like base and mid-layer washes will help your clothing system in its entirety. These wash products are specially formulated to work with both natural and synthetic “thermal layering and next to skin” garments to retain and improve performance, and aid in effective moisture wicking, enhancing the overall effectiveness of your entire clothing system.

THE BALANCING ACT

It’s always precarious balancing act when you put technologies together in a garment with a lining fabric and an outer face fabric that will ensure long term durability whilst not degrading performance; when you then add thermal mid-layers and fastwicking base-layers in becomes even trickier still! All these fabrics are chosen with extreme care and tested for all kinds of heat, cold, flex and abrasion. Not maintaining these garments to the best of your ability simply means that you’re not getting the levels of performance you have invested in, and this is something you can be doing at home right now.

The fact of the matter is that many people find performance garments expensive but at the risk of being blunt they must have no real idea of what is going on behind the scenes! When you’re paying for a performance garment you’re getting “Formula 1” levels of performance and that doesn’t come cheap. Of course, you can always buy a cheap “hatchback” but if your enjoyment, and ultimately even your life, may end up depending on the performance of your clothing system I have to ask the question “how much is too expensive”?

Use your time wisely, get your gear prepped and be ready for ALL your new airsoft adventures! AA

THE CAGE: FIT FOR PURPOSE?

WE’VE KICKED PROPERLY INTO A WHOLE NEW YEAR AND MANY OF US ARE REVIEWING OUR KIT IN PREPARATION FOR THE GAMES AND EVENTS AHEAD, TWEAKING AND FINE-TUNING OUR LOADOUTS TO MAKE SURE THAT THEY ARE TRULY “FIT FOR PURPOSE” AND GOOD TO GO! WITH THIS IN MIND WE’RE STARTING A NEW SEQUENCE OF THE CAGE THIS MONTH TO TALK ABOUT SCENARIO-SPECIFIC LOADOUTS AND WHAT THEY ENTAIL…

“Horses for Courses”, or so the saying goes, but what does this actually mean when it comes to airsoft loadouts? Simply put it’s not unusual to have different loadouts for different types of airsoft scenario… c’mon, would you be lugging around your MilSim load at an indoor CQB site or wearing all your skirmish gear for a competition shoot?

What I and the members of the AA LEGION will try to do over the next few months is to look in detail at what we use for different airsoft game settings and specific scenarios, and why we use it. Among THE LEGION are players with a vast amount of experience gained over many years in numerous different styles of airsoft gaming, so if we can help you to focus in on the kit that’s absolutely necessary, and what can cross over from discipline to discipline, then we’re doing our job right… always remember though that if something works for YOU it is NEVER wrong!

My personal gear has been distilled over many, many years; sometimes it will be “real deal CRYE”, UF PRO, Helikon-Tex or Clawgear but more and more these days I love the latest VIPER and INVADER GEAR clothing and kit… why spend the earth when you can have excellent gear for a sensible price? It’s the same with my LBE; yes, I do own “real” from brands like WAS and Direct Action, but when I actually play it’s more than likely to be VIPER, ONETIGRIS or EMERSON these days. Boots are important, REALLY IMPORTANT, and mine tend to be LOWA, Salomon or Bates depending on the time of year and the weather conditions…

We’ll get into more detail on specific things for different scenarios later in this new sequence of THE CAGE, and this is where we’ll start to really dig into the detail of what works and why…

TEAM TALK

So, to start the ball rolling I kicked things off with a simple question to the AA LEGION; “What clothing, gear and footwear do your wear for a “normal” Skirmish Day?”

Robbie: DPM BDUs (still the best woodland camo and comfortable too!), a scrim (I overheat in hats and this can be adjusted to change my silhouette), 5.11 zip boots or one of my half dozen pairs I own from other companies, and my SMERSH Y set as I run an AK and love belt gear, canteens, and more “old skool” kit! If it is a small-enough field-game I’ll just run an old 3-Mag chest rig and carry a canteen on the belt. Knees pads of some sort, I’m old and my knees have a radar for any stick, thorn, or rock I can kneel on and they seek it out!

Elvis: Flash Force Industries for my team setup

(M81, perfect repro!) and for the some games a contractor setup, Invader Gear gear all the way. To me Invader Gear has the best stitching and lightweight ripstop fabric; so many times I’ve been through the bushes and it’s never ripped. I have a TMC replica of TYR belt, CSM real steel dump pouch, TMC single mag for pistol and M4, Kydex medic pouch (LBT replica) and a TMC pistol 63DO holster replica with flashlight in multicam (Safariland-style). When it comes to carriers I have three; an FFI LV-MBAV with Eagle industries utility pouch in coyote (the vest is khaki), the second one is SPC Crye replica by TMC with a front triple mag pouch (open one, no flaps) with zip on panel on the back and Eagle industries utility pouch in coyote and single mag double stacker (Eagle Industries) in khaki colour. The third vest is Pew Tactical, LV119 replica in multicam; this has an elastic cummerbund with tubes, zip MOLLE back panel with three flashbangs (Eagle industries in khaki colour), one utility pouch also Eagle Industries. On front is Pew Tactical chest rig attached; this is a Haley-style micro rig, buckles connects it. Boots are always Merrel Moab Mids…

Stewbacca: My skirmish loadouts tend to vary in camo scheme or which placard I’m wearing on which coloured rig based on team uniform requirements or lack thereof for each game day, but, head to toe:

• Helmet: TMC FAST bump helmet in either black or OD, with NVG mount for GoPro 7. It’s easy to slip over or smack your head on low lying obstacles at many of the sites we go to, plus I want the stable camera platform and head shot protection.

• EyePro: ESS ICE 2.4/Crossbow Been using them since 2008. Don’t skimp on eyepro.

• Facepro: TMC mesh mask with soft cheek sides in either black or Multicam. I’ve been wearing that since I lost the first half tooth, lost a second full one the one time I dropped it in my last game in the UK!

• Top: lightweight decathlon sports shirt in black or AOR2. Sometimes I’ll wear full BDU although that tends to get sleeves rolled up pretty quick due to heat and sweating, or ditched altogether if camouflage isn’t a huge deal.

• Gloves: Mechanix MPACT in either black or Multicam. I’ve tried loads of gloves. These are the only ones which have lasted. Buy Mechanix. Buy once.

• Trousers: TRU SPEC Asia lightweight BDU trousers in Multicam /OD/Khaki or just jeans. Again camo requirement dependent, can’t quite get away with shorts here since I moved

to mostly outdoor gaming due to the terrain, plants, bugs and other hazards.

• Belt: I’ve taken to just wearing the inner rigid velcro belt of my double alpha lynx setup as my EDC solution for all situations, it’s comfortable, adjustable and holds holsters and mag pouches great. No need for a PLB/Battle belt for me in reality.

• Holster: Genuine Safariland 579 for most situations because it works and is adjustable to suit most of my side arms.

• Pistol pouches: a trio of black TMC Scorpion Fast mags tie wrapped together as a unit, with the belt mount clips installed. Used them since I came to Taiwan. Simple, cheap, never had a retention failure or any problems with them using pistol or SMG mags.

• Kneepro: medical tube sock retained gel inserts that go right over the knee itself, acquired in Spain years ago! Again, I’ve tried all sorts of hard shell and integral kneepads, these don’t make you sweat too much or clamp your trousers around as they’re inside them, nor do they move around or fall down. They just work, and are unobtrusive. No elbow pads as yet but I’m contemplating something similar to the knee pads for prone sniping and crawling work.

• Plate carrier: TMC JPC1.0 clone in AOR2, Multicam or black Kryptek depending on terrain, with custom clip on placard setups allowing me to use 3x 5.56/7.62 mags, 4 x SMG/pistol or a combo of two pistol and 4x very slim SMG mags (PP2K or MAC 11) in PSI gear pouches. All non PSI gear pouches are TMC scorpion gen 2 Fastmag pistol or rifle, again they just work.

• Radio: PRC152 clones the team bought in bulk with a throat mic and in ear headset. The most effective setup I’ve used yet and massive batteries that last for ages, also looks realistic and has a pretty good range.

• Boots: LOWA Zephyr GTX Task force mid or hi rides depending on terrain. I used to use Oakleys but can’t get them. These are the new hotness. I’ve rolled both of my ankles at different times; I’m using my brand new highankle ones to avoid that in future in rougher or hilly terrain.

Miguel: For me, first up are my feet, so VIPER Venom boots. These are lightweight, comfortable and breathable, they are pretty much perfect for the weather and the fields that we find here. My go-to plate carrier is my trusty VX Gen 2, it can be adapted

with a lot of VX add-ons to adapt to the game on hand, from a simple chest rig to a plate carrier with backpack.

The uniform will change depending on the game and the team rules, from the legendary M81 to a more arid ATACS AU and passing by a more recent full OD. We may also do some combos between them. For example, ATACS pants + OD top works really well! The headgear mostly changes between a boonie or a helmet; the boonie is great for woodland! When it comes to replicas, at the moment I mostly use my Specna Arms mk18 or the H20 (HK416), both EDGE 2.0. Both are versatile replicas with great performance.

Björn: I usually have a similar setup every time I play with smaller adjustments, a plate carrier , a battle-belt (mainly highspeed gear) with a dump pouch on and with a dropleg holster attached. Sometimes grenade pouches and an extra m4/ pistol pouch… I have several plate carriers from ONETIGRIS both black and multicam that I use in different setups. I often wear a helmet, preferably a L/XL model from FMA as even in a simple skirmish setting you still have overhead hazards! I have become really fond of my LOWA mid boots, and I basically live in my UF PRO pants! Uniform colour and setup will vary from time to time, game to game; it can be UF PRO, OPS, Invader Gear, Giena, Clawgear, 5.11, and some pieces from who knows where… they just work for me! If I need additional camo I top everything with a 3D Hoodie from Giena Tactics.

Chris: My general game-day “plinking” gear is something practical and comfortable. At this time of year it tends to be a Paramo windproof top, VIPER ELITE trousers, LOWA Zephyr boots, US aviator gloves, a Helikon-Tex Beanie, Helikon-Tex shooters belt with various useful pouches and a real Safariland holster for my TM USP. My favourite primary is either my sub 350fps Scout or an AUG, and my gear reflects this.

Dan: For a normal “low key” skirmish that doesn’t have established uniform regs, I might dress a little more casual.

• Boots: LOWA Desert Elites are my 24/7 everyday wear, outside of formal weddings and funerals lol. I’ve yet to find anything else that’s been more durable and comfortable for all day use. The only thing I typically change out is the insoles.

• Headgear: This would typically be a basic Oakley SI cotton stretch hat. It breathes well, keeps the sun off the face, and doesn’t have that annoying button on top-dead-centre.

• Eyepro: This would be the ESS ICE NARO with

the elastic headband fitted. Simple, effective, and never fogs up. I typically change out the lenses at the end of every year.

• Facepro: Still running a ONETIGRIS Balaclava at events where I expect to be in closer contact with other players. It works, but it is not what I would call the ideal solution for face protection still. I’m still looking for something better.

• Top: For the really casual games, this would be any ol’ T-shirt pulled off the rack. For the chillier events, I might throw on a lightweight sweater or my Arc’teryx LEAF Atom LT jacket. Windy / rainy days would see me pull out the First Spear Windcheater.

• Trousers: I’ve been really enjoying the comfort and flexibility of Savage Tacticians SL Trail pants, so I’ll often wear those to the casual games or my Outdoor Life Traveller pants from the now-defunct Sears, Roebuck & Co.

• Belt: This would be a Ronin Tactics Shūto with a G-Code optimal drop platform and Kydex Customs Glock light-bearing holster. The only other thing I run on this belt is a Tactical Tailor roll-up dump pouch and a Haley Strategic “Everything” hook for keeping my gloves in

one place when I’m just lounging about at lunch time.

• Gloves: My go-to have been a pair of Blackhawk SOLAG fingerless gloves. They’ve been pretty durable and I can’t ask for more than that.

• LBE: My venerable Tactical Tailor MAV w/ Fight Light X-Harness. The main 4x magazine pouches are G-Code Scorpions, which will fit M4 and AK mags equally well. I use some goodies from Milwaukee Custom Kydex, such as their Raven M12 carrier for the Odin speedloader and RACC for the Baofeng UV5-R. There’s also a double pistol-mag TACO from HSGI, a Tasmanian Tiger flashbang pouch (which holds my spare gas reservoir), a Tactical Tailor grenade pouch, and a Warrior Assault Gear 1.5L hydration pouch on the back.

Boycie: My general “turn up and play” set up is my Clawgear ‘tactical jeans’, First Tactical boots and depending on my mood, I’ll either use a UBACS or just a t-shirt and my Clawgear fleece. Over the top is my Templars Gear TPC. If I just want to be comfy and have as least hassle as I can then that’s what I go for. The Clawgear jeans are my every-day wear too and are just sooo comfy, as are the FT boots! AA

RED CELL FAVOURITES –PISTOLS OF ’22!

FOLLOWING ON FROM LAST MONTHS RED CELL OVERVIEW OF THEIR FAVOURITE “LONGS” OF 2022 THIS TIME WE’RE LOOKING AT THE PISTOLS THAT THE CREW HAVE USED MOST DURING LAST YEAR, AND WHICH MODELS THEY SWEAR BY WHEN IT COMES TO WHAT’S IN THEIR HOLSTERS! ALTHOUGH THERE ARE CERTAINLY SOME NEWCOMERS IN THE MIX IT WOULD SEEM THAT THE SAYING OF “BATTLE PROVEN” IS VERY MUCH THE ORDER OF THE DAY! AS USUAL, BILL KICKS THINGS OFF…

Red Cell has always been, and was always intended to be, a rolling program, and as we promised at the outset we will continue to document the performance and durability of the original models in our lineup, but we’re also continually adding new, player-popular models to the mix!

It’s been a great last year for pistols to be honest, and we’ve had some absolute crackers to look at over the past twelve months, but whilst new models are always welcome to this ever-expanding segment of our airsoft armoury, it would appear that when it actually comes down to what is being used by The Cell members it’s a right old mix! “Replica military models” are still popular, but it’s incredibly interesting to see new designs hitting the market, concepts drawn up by airsoft manufacturers themselves. Recent models from the likes of VORSK, VFC, ICS, EVOLUTION, RWA, WE and EMG are far from “military” but that’s not to say that they’re not righteous 6mm creations and that they don’t perform sublimely in-game.

I seem to spend more and more time with my handguns these days, not only in terms of ongoing testing, but also just because I enjoy shooting them! Thankfully the restrictions imposed upon us during the “plague years” are a thing of the past, so that means, for me at least, that I can get back on a shared range on a regular basis. I did get good use of my “home range” during the dark days of covid, and I’m eternally grateful that I had it, but one thing I believe those trying times proved to all of us is that we are indeed “social animals”, and if I’m honest I spent most of my lockdown time shooting steels… and my consistency of target-level-accuracy has fallen off dramatically!

So, at the beginning of this year I made a resolution with my old mate Marcus that we would shoot together once a week on the basement range (which I’ve formally christened THE PIT!) at his shop before he opens. Not only does that let me concentrate on getting my “paper target skills” back up to snuff, but it also gives me a chance to find out what is selling and why, what is popular with local players, and what models have seen problems; when the shop opens it also gives me a chance to speak directly to local players and find out what’s exciting them about our beloved game.

TESTING CONTINUES… ALWAYS!

Most importantly though my Wednesday morning rangetime each week gives me a chance to carry out additional testing of new pistol models with an impartial partner, and of course also allows me to revisit older models in the long-term test pool for continuation evaluation. Now I won’t go into the VORSK Hi Capa 5.1 as I looked at that in RELOADED just last month, although I must include it as it’s a great pistol and one that I used a lot at the back end of 2022; instead I will concentrate on another model that I returned to and just went “wow!” all over again, and that’s the VORSK Hi-Capa 5.1 Split Slide.

I first looked at this pistol in Issue 119 and whilst other brands sat on their hands during the pandemic, and indeed furloughed staff to sit at home, the team behind VORSK ploughed ever onwards, and during this time we saw the release of a number of unique and wonderful GBB pistol variants including the Hi Capa 4.3 and 5.1s (followed by the lovely Hi Capa 3.8!), but at the time it was the Split Slide Hi Capa that really gripped me!

On first inspection the Split Slide Hi-Capa was everything we’ve learnt to expect from VORSK, a mix of high quality polymers and alloys, but it also had a custom textured grip and a flared, oversized magwell which aids immeasurably doing fast reloads! But it’s the slide that makes all the difference on this pistol, that Split Slide design, which means only the rear half of the slide actually moves, dovetailing beautifully with the fixed front half so there is much less weight moving, making your gas usage massively more efficient, and the cycle time meaningfully less when it comes to taking follow-up shots!

And up on top of the slide you get, as we’ve come to expect, raised fibre-optic “irons” which are brilliant in low light situations, and super-fast to acquire, and the attractive spiral-cut outer barrel of the pistol is threaded for suppressors and tracer units; this removable threaded adapter comes so any 14mm CCW threaded muzzle attachments can be used, and is finished with a knurled cover to protect the thread itself. The 5.1 Split Slide is as good inside as it is stunning outside too, featuring a 6.03 mm tight bore barrel for more accurate shots and tighter groupings, as well as an adjustable hop-up unit for range and accuracy.

At first when I first got the 5.1 Split Slide in my hand I thought it to be a most eye-catching design, and at 900g it certainly felt solid and weighty, a pistol made to “get business done”. On the fixed, front part of the slide the “venting” is not only visually pleasing as a design feature, but serves a purpose too, in that you can mount a micro or mini-RDS on this section for excellent target acquisition and retention of zero.

As new the 5.1 Split Slide performed very well at 10m on steels, and at 5-10m down in THE PIT using .28g RZR BBs even on colder days it does seem to be incredibly efficient on VORSK V8 gas, cycling the rear

“I FIRST LOOKED AT THIS PISTOL IN ISSUE 119 AND WHILST OTHER BRANDS SAT ON THEIR HANDS DURING THE PANDEMIC, AND INDEED FURLOUGHED STAFF TO SIT AT HOME, THE TEAM BEHIND VORSK PLOUGHED EVER ONWARDS, AND DURING THIS TIME WE SAW THE RELEASE OF A NUMBER OF UNIQUE AND WONDERFUL GBB PISTOL VARIANTS”

of the slide quickly and efficiently even in the cold of recent weeks, and having no problem whatsoever emptying the entire 28BB magazine. I like this model SO much now that I’ve even added one in green to my PAMG armoury!

Although I’ve concentrated here on the VORSKs I’ve actually been continuing to enjoy spending more and more time with a whole host of GBB handguns and although I have my favourites it’s always nice to try something new isn’t it? Recently we’ve had new models through that will be added to the test pool, and as things are picking up again and shipments back to full flow I’m sure that I’ll be adding more for the guys of The Cell to test in due course. But it’s time to hand over now to the Red Cell crew themselves to give you an idea of what they’ve used most in 2022!

TRIED AND TESTED… TO THE MAX!

Jimmy: Looking back over last year I can’t say I had any single favourite if I’m honest as I’ve had so many models to play with; from a tech’s perspective this is wonderful as I get to see models from so many different manufacturers and work out their individual idiosyncrasies! My change of game style to “airsoft sniper” also saw me swap between several pistols in-game; I enjoy having to draw on my pistol either because my primary has failed or I have got close enough to an opponent that to use a rifle is a bit less that sportsman-like!

I have respect for the people I play against so I treat them as I would expect to be treated. Sometimes I will use my pistol purely as a challenge and put prior learning into practise. At the turn of ‘22 and through to mid-‘22 though it was always my trusty TM Hi Capa Gold Match which is a very good and reliable platform. On top of it’s awesome appearance it is

an amazing out of the box performer and fast earned popularity among the community. Everything you would expect out of a TM pistol is encompassed in the Gold Match. Highly efficient thanks to Japanese quality and precision engineering, you can be sure this thing will work every time you draw, and it’s very accurate even over great distance. Many assume that due to the low velocity of a TM it won’t give great range but that is not the case; it’s fully capable of lifting up to a 0.30g BB!

TM pistols utilise a plastic slide which is not to be sneered at; a lot of players have opinions on whether they are durable or not and it is recommended to use a low-powered gas and initially I maintained the use of NUPROL 1.0 gas and it worked perfectly well, allowing me to empty a full magazine. I decided to do a few minor mods to the internals and decided to start using NUPROL 2.0; this along with the mods transformed the performance giving a heavier recoil effect and a much faster action and to date it is still going strong. I had every intention to go full hog and completely upgrade it but I really don’t feel the need to. As a result of its popularity many manufacturers began bringing out a vast range of accessories and components which would complement or enhance the appearance and performance of the Gold Match; as the Hi Capa platform itself fast became the preferred choice of many an airsofter be it on the field or for competition use this extended further still, and still does. I mentioned, though, a change in game style, and this was when I adopted the role of a sniper. Immersing myself fully into that role I needed something quieter which is when I started to use the TM FNX45, a lovely pistol with great performance and accompanied with a suppressor it does become rather quiet. Being quiet is key to the snipers box of tricks and having a sidearm that will operate unnoticed gives you a major advantage over the unsuspecting… oh, and of course I’d be remiss if

“MY CHANGE OF GAME STYLE TO “AIRSOFT SNIPER” ALSO SAW ME SWAP BETWEEN SEVERAL PISTOLS IN-GAME; I ENJOY HAVING TO DRAW ON MY PISTOL EITHER BECAUSE MY PRIMARY HAS FAILED OR I HAVE GOT CLOSE ENOUGH TO AN OPPONENT THAT TO USE A RIFLE IS A BIT LESS THAT SPORTSMAN-LIKE!”

I didn’t mention the ICS Challenger, now wouldn’t I? It’s a great pistol that I have enjoyed spending time with and look forward to sharing with the rest of the crew this year!

Stewbacca: Any time you’re likely to have seen me over the past nearly two years since I acquired it on May 2021 (another birthday present pistol to myself as is tradition), you’ll no doubt have seen me with a VFC PPQ NPA on my hip. Barring any need to carry something else for review purposes, this has been the pistol I’ve trusted to just work since acquiring it. A number of my teammates also carry them as a reliable backup, some even sporting red dots… which I’m considering on mine.

The Taiwanese police evidently also see the value in them as the NPA is the National Police Authority version of the real steel (and replica) PPQ and uses the ambidextrous flapper style magazine release instead of the push button, coupled with the grip back strap and general excellent ergonomics (which clearly stem from the format of P99 which I also have the WE replica of); it makes an ideal and comfortable easy to operate secondary for many people of any hand size.

I run it on the typical 0.3g BLS rounds and 12kg gas that are my baseline standard for everything I use unless I need extra range, and it’s pretty accurate for a pistol, serving me very well in IPSC and my dabbling into IDPA, even though the trigger is longer and heavier like a Glock, you can still run it fairly fast and accurately. The recoil impulse is excellent and much improved over the earlier version which my earlier teammate had, and until the sear failed recently it had been basically faultless aside from me having to be mindful of my grip accidentally actuating the slide stop levers as they are fairly long to suit smaller hands with shorter thumbs.

The recent failure notwithstanding it’s been an excellent and dependable sidearm that just works, and

looks the business. I run it in a genuine Safariland 579 which takes most of my sidearms.

Boycie: My favourite was my licenced Glock 19X, but in black. I’ve been a long term user of Glocks (since early 90’s) both in real steel and airsoft. I find, as a left hander, that they just work perfectly for me. There’s no safety lever to worry about operating or breaking and like the old Volvo advert “they’re boxy but they’re good”. When Glock bring out a new variant, in most cases it’s just a few revisions/ improvements. I’m really pleased that VFC/Umarex are keeping up with the new variants. Unfortunately TM is still mostly running on Gen 3 models…

Chris: Most used, TM USP. This is my most trusted, reliable and favourite of the two sidearms I own, the second being a temperamental WE Browning MK3 which is mostly, sadly, a paperweight and only used for living history display purposes…

Björn: What has 2022 meant in terms of pistols? The clean looks of the “Warrior” G model from Evolution… the snappy feel of the Raven Airsoft Hi Capa 4.3, and the cool Punisher/Wick feel of the VP-X from Vorsk! This also has a BIG “kick” to it, but the style really does it for me! I always use .25g BBs for my sidearms; it’s easier because then I always take the right speedloader for them. .20g, although we use it for chrono testing to get a mean is too light and I usually use .30g for my primary but I feel it is a bit too much for a GBB pistol.

Bill: I have to chip in again here as RAVEN have really impressed me with their no-frills Hi Capa range that really delivers performance in a seemingly simple and pared-back package that actually hides some exceptionally clever internal engineering! With their Hi Capas they’ve kept thing completely streamlined without any fuss or fuss-work to any of the major parts or components. These are pistols fundamentally designed to be shot and skirmished with, to be used and not just gazed at fondly… although their uncluttered and brutally elegant lines sing to me of function over aesthetics!

They’ve beefed up areas that they felt needed it to give them longevity and durability, only adding features where necessary like the threaded outer barrels and the accessory rail on the frame; they have also upgraded the slide spring to cope both with the

“MY FAVOURITE WAS MY LICENCED GLOCK 19X, BUT IN BLACK. I’VE BEEN A LONG TERM USER OF GLOCKS (SINCE EARLY 90’S) BOTH IN REAL STEEL AND AIRSOFT. I FIND, AS A LEFT HANDER, THAT THEY JUST WORK PERFECTLY FOR ME”

VORSK HI CAPA 5.1

Price: iro UK£140.00

Age: 18 Months

Weight: 930g

Length: 250mm

Magazine Capacity: 28 BBs

Cold Chrono: 0.83 Joule/300fps

Hot Chrono: 0.83 Joule/300fps

Holster Compatibility: Standard Hi Capa

Taclite Compatibility: Good

Suppressor Compatibility: 12-14mm CCW with adaptor (provided)

Supplied By: www.vorskairsoft.com

VORSK HI CAPA SPLIT SLIDE

Price: iro UK£140.00

Age: 2 Years+

Weight: 900g

Length: 250mm

Magazine Capacity: 28 BBs

Cold Chrono: 0.92 Joule/315fps

Hot Chrono: 0.92 Joule/315fps

Holster Compatibility: Standard Hi Capa

Suppressor Compatibility: 12-14mm CCW with adaptor (provided)

Supplied By: www.vorskairsoft.com

VFC/UMAREX GLOCK 19X

Price: iro UK£160.00

Age: 2 Years+

Weight: 630g

Length: 175mm

Magazine Capacity: 18 BBs

Cold Chrono: 0.77 Joule/288fps

Hot Chrono: 0.72 Joule/280fps

Holster Compatibility: Standard Glock

Taclite Compatibility: Good

Suppressor Compatibility: N/A

Supplied By: www.landwarriorairsoft.com

TM GLOCK 17

Price: iro UK£150.00

Age: 2 Years+

Weight: 703g

Length: 201mm

Magazine Capacity: 25 BBs

Cold Chrono: 0.67 Joule/270fps

Hot Chrono: 0.65 Joule/266fps

Holster Compatibility: Standard Glock

Taclite Compatibility: Good

Suppressor Compatibility: N/A

Supplied By: www.fire-support.co.uk

TM GOLD MATCH

Price: iro UK£185.00

Age: 18 months

Weight: 855g

Length: 220mm

Magazine Capacity: 31 BBs

Cold Chrono: 0.78 Joule/290fps

Hot Chrono: 0.72 Joule/280fps

Holster Compatibility: Standard Hi Capa

Taclite Compatibility: Good

Suppressor Compatibility: N/A

Supplied By: www.alphadeltaairsoft.com

ICS CHALLENGER

Price: iro UK£230.00

Age: 18 months

Weight: 970g

Length: 220mm

Magazine Capacity: 30 BBs

Cold Chrono: 0.80 Joule/295fps

Hot Chrono: 0.78 Joule/290fps

Holster Compatibility: Standard Hi Capa

Taclite Compatibility: Good

Suppressor Compatibility: 11-14mm CCW with adaptor (provided)

Supplied By: www.icsbb.com

VFC/UMAREX PPQ M2 NPA

Price: iro UK£145.00

Age: 18 months

Weight: 610g

Length: 180mm

Magazine Capacity: 22 BBs

Cold Chrono: 0.81 Joule/296fps

Hot Chrono: 0.81 Joule/296fps

Holster Compatibility: Dedicated (Safariland 579 recommended)

Taclite Compatibility: Good

Suppressor Compatibility: N/A

Supplied By: www.vegaforce.com

EVOLUTION WARRIOR

Price: iro UK£140.00

Age: 10 Months

Weight: 476g

Length: 200mm

Magazine Capacity: 24 BBs

Cold Chrono: 0.76 Joule/286fps

Hot Chrono: 0.75 Joule/284fps

Holster Compatibility: Standard Glock

Taclite Compatibility: Good

Suppressor Compatibility: 12-14mm CCW with adaptor

Supplied By: www.evolutioninternational.it

RAVEN HI CAPA 4.3

Price: iro UK£110.00

Age: 2 Years+

Weight: 840g

Length: 200mm

Magazine Capacity: 28 BBs

Cold Chrono: 0.83 Joule/300fps

Hot Chrono: 0.82 Joule/298fps

Holster Compatibility: Standard Hi Capa

Taclite Compatibility: Good

Suppressor Compatibility: 12-14mm CCW with adaptor

Supplied By: www.rvnairsoft.com

VFC 1911 TACTICAL CUSTOM

Price: iro UK£135.00

Age: 2 Years+

Weight: 840g

Length: 224mm

Magazine Capacity: 20 BBs

Cold Chrono: 0.83 Joule/300fps

Hot Chrono: 0.82 Joule/298fps

Holster Compatibility: Standard 1911

Taclite Compatibility: Dedicated

Suppressor Compatibility: N/A

Supplied By: www.vegaforce.com

minimal increase in weight (the slides are chunky and solid right enough!), and to give them a really positive recoil impulse!

When the Hi Capas were launched, the guys told me that they wanted to really make a firm statement of intent when it came to what they were able to achieve, and the net result of that was the new iteration of RAVENs, the Hi Capas 3.8, 4.3 and 5.1. Both these models moved on from the originals, with a modern, strong, almost “blocky” look that is right on the button for current combat pistol design. RAVEN has really come on as a brand since I first saw those initial models, and although, like any manufacturer they’ve had their “ups and downs” it’s been pretty much all “ups” as the range has matured and grown.

When it comes to regular carry for skirmishing

I’ve found that the RAVEN Hi Capa 3.8 or 4.3 are my preferred options, although for practical “ringing the steels” use the 5.1 is ideal. Even though the design is obviously at variance with the lines of a “classic 1911” in terms of both the frame, slide and magazine capacity, the grip angle and operation is both familiar and comfortable; it’s as if they’ve taken that classic “1911 rake” and feature set and incorporated it into a new, modern design that works well and looks great, but that keeps an overall simplicity that John Browning would have approved of without doubt!

Robbie: My absolute favourite has been and will continue to be the TM Glock 17 but tuned. I ran 6.01 barrels that were moly-polished combined with H-bucking (degreased) and then high flow valves in the mags. Everything was super-cleaned, no oil, no grease. The result? I was outshooting most AEGs for the same fps (1joule) running .25g BBs. I still use this set up to teach classes and train with; it runs flawlessly, with insane accuracy, consistency, and reliability.

Dan: I’ve pretty much settled on my custom RWA Agency NOC, which I had picked up as part of a purchase of an entire GBB Glock parts inventory from a business that was being sold, so as you might expect from a full-time tech it’s not a retail model! When I started it was just a Guarder frame with some really nice stipple work from JPG Customwork in Hawaii paired to the NOC slide and having mostly TM stock

internals. Since I now had a plethora of aftermarket parts to select from, I ended up outfitting the entire thing from top to bottom… to which end, there is no longer a single TM part left in it now!

I’ve spent a lot of time tuning this piece, especially as then I was slightly obsessed with the idea of having a pseudo “offensive pistol” concept that could be paired with a sniper rifle and be able to go toeto-toe in the range department with your M4’s and AK’s on the field. But I also needed something that would handle well in CQB environments as our fields have lots of transitions from woodland to CQB areas. I’ve dabbled with using various SMGs, including the TM Skorpion and MP7’s, as well as the compact AK’s like the 74U in the past, but this admittedly starts adding on a lot of weight and most of these do not have very ideal solutions for keeping them secured (but also eminently accessible) to your person; juggling a 48.2” long rifle whilst trying to retrieve your little SMG from its byzantine mounting arrangement proved impractical. So selecting a reliable pistol with some good tweaks and spare magazines ultimately won the day.

For a number of years I was shooting heavy .40g’s, which absolutely sailed with the best of them, but was also what I typically used out of my Real Sword SVD. Since I recently switched up to slightly heavier weights in the SVD, I’ve started running .32g’s more recently in the pistol. This is also simply to standardize with what I carry in my field guns (for which the sidearm is always along for the ride) and avoid ammo mix ups amongst those. These still have excellent range and don’t fly too slow either.

One of the more recent additions to the pistol was some EMG TTI extensions, which increase the gas capacity and add 4 more rounds to the magazine. While a little expensive on a per cost basis, this has definitely been money well spent as just having a few more rounds can make it or break it in tight situations. I run a Surefire X300U-A on the rail as one of the fields here has some buildings with some really dark interiors. The light has definitely come in clutch for clearing those out. Aside from the initial “trial by fire” with tuning it, she has otherwise been phenomenally reliable. I did end up shearing one of the RMR

“I’VE PRETTY MUCH SETTLED ON MY CUSTOM RWA AGENCY NOC, WHICH I HAD PICKED UP AS PART OF A PURCHASE OF AN ENTIRE GBB GLOCK PARTS INVENTORY FROM A BUSINESS THAT WAS BEING SOLD, SO AS YOU MIGHT EXPECT FROM A FULLTIME TECH IT’S NOT A RETAIL MODEL!”

mounting lugs off the top of the slide somehow. I haven’t been able to really repair it, so I’ve gone back to running irons and reinstalling the cover plate on top.

Bill: To round off this look at our favourite pistols

I’m going to come back to the mighty 1911, and an absolute classic that I enjoy every single time I pick it up, and that’s the VFC 1911 Tactical Custom! VFC, are in my mind really one of the real innovators right now when it comes to GBB pistols, carbines and rifles. As their range, sadly sometimes only for the Asian market due to licencing issues, has grown VFC for me has become an international benchmark for GBBs both in pistol and rifle/ carbine form.

Although VFC have a hand in many GBB pistol

“branded projects” I have to admit that I’m a huge fan of their own 1911 Tactical Custom.

The “1911 Tactical Custom”, just like the real deal Kimber it’s based on, is a striking looking pistol! It aims to break a few moulds in both looks and performance, and to my mind it does both very well indeed! The pistol is beautifully finished in every respect, living up to the “Kimber” feel although thankfully VFC haven’t included trademarks; VFC are one of the airsoft companies that understand the licencing game well and hold a number of good ones, and to be frank I would have been slightly disappointed had they added spurious ones to this pistol model. In all honesty this 1911 doesn’t need any “dodgy trades” to help it sell, as it’s good enough, WAY good enough, without them; the VFC 1911 is totally unmarked, making it “a completely blank canvas for you to place your own custom markings on it”.

In use this 1911 is all about smooth cycling, and all the positive ergonomics you would come to associate with the 1911 platform. Internally the pistol features a revolutionary hop-up design that allows you use the guide rod for adjustments, the GuideHop, and this can easily be done on the go if necessary, allowing for you to access the hop without removing the complete slide; all you need to do is hold the slide to the rear and turn the guide rod itself to increase or decrease the hop with series of “clicks” that you can

both feel and hear, then release the slide forward to keep shooting! The pistol also comes with a 20BB magazine and is extremely gas efficient, but that’s something I’ve come to expect from VFC these days.

I’m pleased to say that I now also have the 1911 Ultra carry (UC) from the “same stable” thanks to my very good buddy Ray, and once again VFC have dome a fabulous job of recreating another truly excellent “Kimber-style” design. As much as I love the 1911 Tactical Custom, and I do love it, as an aficionado of compact “concealed carry” style 1911 pistols the UC really ticks all my boxes!

need for “concealed carry” in an airsoft game, where you want your beloved AEG or GBB to be seen by EVERYONE, for certain scenarios, especially when you’re acting as a player character in a storyline, having a neat little handgun tucked away somewhere under your shirt or jacket can really give those on the other team a nasty shock!

Although some might say that there is little

So, there you have it, our “personal picks” from a host of excellent GBB pistols that we’ve used, abused and come to love even more during 2022! We’re in the process of honing down the long-term test pool for the coming test season, adding and subtracting models as we go, and rest assured we’ll keep this rolling as having a shiny new pistol is one thing… but having one that will never let you down in game is quite another, and the members of Red Cell and I hope that our experiences, continual evaluation, and “torture testing” will point you in the right direction to find the model that sings to you too! AA

Red Cell is supported by:

UBCA WINTER CUP: THE MONEY HEIST 3.0

GAMES ARE MOST DEFINITELY BACK ON FOR ANOTHER FABULOUS YEAR OF AIRSOFT, BUT LET’S BE HONEST AND ADMIT THAT FOR MANY OF US THE GOOD TIMES JUST KEPT ON ROLLING THROUGH THE END OF ‘22 AND INTO ‘23 WITHOUT PAUSE! LARRI JOINS US AGAIN FROM HONG KONG TO TELL US ALL ABOUT ONE VERY SPECIAL EVENT THAT HE AND HIS UBCA TEAM-MATES ARE INVOLVED IN EVERY YEAR!

UBCA Cup Games were started in 2014, and our original idea was to get our community to be more united and push beyond their CQB skill set for a “championship”, and from the very beginning, we focused on this internal event for the summer, but as we found out, people are keener on outdoor games during summer-time here in Hong Kong so we changed to organize this event every winter, to bring out the joy of CQB during our “indoor time”.

Each year our game mode designer, UBCA Dezomani crafts different game modes; in the old days we had Poker card game mode, Monopoly game mode, conquest game, or even building an electronic device for scoring objectives.

Besides UBCA members, we will also open invite guests that always participate in UBCA weekly games, and for each cup game, we have a specially designed UBCA patch by our designer UBCA Sauerkraut!

The UBCA Cup Game itself is a yearly airsoft-only pistol internal event. Besides the Team Death Match, we always bring different mission objectives in to spice up the airsoft experience. As we were resuming our yearly internal competition after the “time of covid” and associated lockdowns, for the 2022 Winter Cup we decided to bring back our popular “money heist” game mode to challenge players’ CQB skills and looting skills (P.S. Money Heist is just a game mode, do not do this in real-life!).

GETTING THE GAME ON

Each team leader was selected before the event, with their usual teammates as core members, while the rest were be picked by rhe leaders. To get more play time for the event, we organized team enrollment and briefing in an online format.

Since this was our third time with a “money heist theme”, we adjusted our game mode to an Attack and Defend style, which is a round-robin game, so each team had their chance as an attacker or defender as well.

As each game only lasted 7 minutes with respawn game mode (as each respawn takes only 10 seconds!) you couldonly slow down your enemy, instead of clearing them all. Each team had a respawn bell, attack teams have 2 so they can respawn 2 players at the same time, while the defender only has 1 respawn bell.

Our “money” had also been redesigned to the 2022 version, with 100 stacks with different values of $20, $50 & $100 with a total of $5100, stored in a designated area as a bank vault. To bring up the

game changer elements, we also provided a gold bar that equalled $1000 which was located near the defender spawn point.

This event was set with 30 players only, while each team had 10 people. As we planned attackers had players scale benefit, so while 2 teams were having their competition, the attacker team can “hire” 5 members from the third team as mercenaries with a 50% bonus of the looted money, while the rest of the third members will be a referee of the match!

HIGHLIGHTS

Strategy-wise, each team planned a heavy defence around the area. For all the attackers team, they tried to push through the choke point and also through a room two stories high for high ground advantage. It helps on covering people to grab the money…

Usually, it takes up to 4 minutes for attackers to access the vault area, so the last 2 minutes will be the key to delivering the money back to the extraction point. Besides that, all 3 teams were trying their best to push to the jackpot area for the gold bar.

Based on the results, players who had reached the vault dropped their weapons and grabbed all money with both hands! The highest-scoring team got up to $2800 within 7 minutes; however, the gold bar could not be removed to the extraction point before the game ended. Finally, the event was smooth and each team got the specially designed UBCA moneythemed Velcro patches as souvenirs; also 3 MVPs were elected as the players of the event.

It usually takes time to organize an entire competition, a lot of preparations and discussion to get it done. However, it is also a great enjoyment to see players getting more united and enjoying the event, this is always the best way to summarize our airsoft year.

In 2023, we aim to go to Macau and Taiwan for Airsoft CQB again after the summer, and then we will arrange another Winter Cup in 2023.

As our cup game usually involves every player, we must give our credit to Indigo again, he had taken several shots by filming and taking photos for us during our most intensive gameplay of the year, which gave us the first UBCA Cup Game video with 3rd person angle montage; for the official event montage please check https://www.youtube.com/ watch?v=an3H4oYJYdA

That’s it for sharing today, and hopefully, you all enjoyed our community content! See you in the next issue of Airsoft Action! AA

UNNATURAL SELECTION!

ALTHOUGH AIRSOFT IS THE SAME THE WHOLE WORLD OVER, THERE ARE SOME CRUCIAL DIFFERENCES FROM COUNTRY TO COUNTRY THAT ALLOW US TO PLAY. IT MAY BE TO DO WITH POWER LEVELS, LEGAL REQUIREMENTS, OR IT MAY JUST BE TO DO WITH HOW THINGS NEED TO BE SET UP TO ALLOW FIELDS TO BE RUN IN THE FIRST PLACE… SOMETIMES IT’S ALL ABOUT THE TEAMS THEMSELVES, AND WHY THEY RUN AS THEY DO; MIGUEL TELLS MORE…

Let’s talk about new guys in airsoft. How does your team welcome new players? Are they friends who you introduce to airsoft? Coworkers or family members? What happens when someone who you don’t know wants to join your gang? What if it’s not just one new player, but 10, 15 or even 20, and you don’t know most of them? Would you be comfortable in taking them to an airsoft game? Where adrenaline runs high, it’s easy to lose patience in many situations. These are just a few of the obstacles that we found when opening our team to new players.

But before moving into the article in question, it’s important to explain the reality of airsoft in my home country of Portugal. Here, teams control the fields and organize around 99% of the games nationwide; we have a few Associations who also organize a few games each year, but it’s always with the help and support of teams.

This means that the teams can organize private events and invite who they want, and they can cross teams off their list if there is a history of issues in the field, so that means that it’s important to be on the good side of those who organize events. Playing airsoft is not a right, it’s a privilege, and not everyone has the right personality or mentality to play airsoft at any level, of this we are all well aware.

Now, with the previous paragraphs in mind, we can agree that it’s important to trust the new players who join a team, that’s why every two years we open slots for anyone who wants to join, and “work” with them for around six-seven weekends.

Even before the first weekend, we try to explain online a bit about airsoft and a good deal give up at this time; some don’t have free time on the weekend, others had no idea about the prices of the

replicas and gear and some don’t even say anything and disappear. This is our first “filtering” stage. There is no point on having anyone who is interested buying gear if then they just can’t play airsoft, or waiting on those that just won’t show up.

Then the real deal starts, every weekend for around six-seven weeks there is a different event, all this with the goal of getting to know them and explaining what the airsoft that we play is all about. Every day has a goal, like teamwork exercises where they need to reach a goal, interviews to get to know them, night game, team building, role-play in airsoft, shooting exercises and even some surprises to see how they react.

For those looking from the outside this might look a bit overboard for some, or even extremism, but when we go out to the field we like to find players who respect airsoft and everyone involved, and we have all witnessed situations with people who maybe are not cut out to play airsoft. That’s what we want to avoid.

And it works; we’ve held eight “Admission Courses” so far, each with a good number of candidates, most between 10-15, and a couple exceeding 20 who signed up. Up until now only three candidates, in 15 years of existence, weren’t accepted in the end of “process” by decision of the team, the rest ended up giving up for several reasons. Some want to play airsoft here and there, with no commitment, others want a more skirmishbased game and some see that airsoft might not be compatible with their life or other hobbies.

The truth is that in the end, those who reach the last weekend (most of the time) are accepted into the team, and have the spirit and the character that we look for.

AND NOW FOR THE FUN PART!

This may all sound very serious, but I’s how we must run things here in Portugal to make it work for everyone; ultimately though, once the difficult work is done being part of an airsoft team is about enjoying being with your friends, and having fun with other like-minded people in our wonderful global player community, so let’s talk about “Snack Fest 2022” as it definitely comes under the FUN side of airsoft!

A huge airsoft celebrity visited Portugal under the radar at the end of last year; you might have met him in the fields around the UK, heard him squeak as he sniffs beards and rubs himself against patches, or simply jumps you aggressively if you use a P90! He’s usually accompanied by Bakewells and hates sweaty airsofters. That’s right, Stretch McChicken, the star from Super Mega Tactical News, was able to somehow pass by Airport Security and found himself in Lisbon, trying new snacks, beer

and other interesting foods.

It wasn’t long until he started getting whiffs of an airsoft beard mixed with “pasteis de nata”, and that’s when Stretch contacted me for a meet up, saying something about “chicken trafficking” and that his cousin wanted to stay in Portugal. It was confusing, but I went anyway; I had to make sure that there was no mayhem in the capital. It was a rainy night and the streets of Lisbon were filled with football fans, so to avoid bloodshed we decided to move from the crowds and get some refreshment in a quiet place. I listened with enthusiasm to all the stories and adventures from back when Stretch came to be, and his ultimate rise to power!

So, after confirming that the authorities were still blind to Stretch’s location, we decided to risk it and arrange for a meeting with more airsoft players and force them to... I mean, let them try some UK snacks, and so “Snack Fest 2022” was born. I called some members of the Ghost Ops team, and we were joined by some guys from the UPA Margem Sul team as well. We all shared stories, drank and ate a lot, squeaked even more and enjoyed what airsoft is all about even without being in the field… having fun, meeting people and being childish to the point of nearly being kicked out of the place!

Before Stretch left for the UK, he surprised us with his cousin, who wanted to remain in Portugal. So after some interrogation, we found out that he’s called Sneaky and likes to whisper strange words in MilSimmers’ ears and sniff their beards afterwards.

So be ready to meet Sneaky in the Portuguese fields soon, he has definitely passed our “selection”!

AA

“A HUGE AIRSOFT CELEBRITY VISITED PORTUGAL UNDER THE RADAR AT THE END OF LAST YEAR; YOU MIGHT HAVE MET HIM IN THE FIELDS AROUND THE UK, HEARD HIM SQUEAK AS HE SNIFFS BEARDS AND RUBS HIMSELF AGAINST PATCHES, OR SIMPLY JUMPS YOU AGGRESSIVELY IF YOU USE A P90!”

SHOOTOUT IN A DOWNPOUR – KAOHSIUNG LEVEL 3!

WITH THE CLOSE OF 2022 IN SIGHT AND THINGS EASING UP INCREASINGLY IN TERMS OF WHAT SEEMED LIKE NEVER-ENDING RESTRICTIONS, A SOMEWHAT SUBDUED CALENDAR OF NATIONAL-LEVEL SHOOTING EVENTS COULD FINALLY GET BACK INTO ITS SWING! WITH TWO LONG WEEKENDS AT THE OPPOSITE END OF THE COUNTRY ONE AFTER ANOTHER CRAMMED INTO DECEMBER, STEWBACCA WAS IN HIS ELEMENT WITH HIS USUAL MASOCHISM IN THE NAME OF CONTENT PRODUCTION! SO WHAT HAPPENED AT THE INTERNATIONAL LEVEL 3 SHOOT AT THE TAIWAN PRACTICAL SHOOTING ASSOCIATION’S NEWLY ACQUIRED SHOOTING CENTRE IN KAOHSIUNG? OVER TO STEWBACCA...

Ever the glutton for punishment I had decided to make use of the last of my paid holiday from the day job to cover MOA 2022’s triumphant return as well as get involved in the two largest (inter) national level events in the competition shooting calendar in Taiwan… which both happened to be hastily crammed into the end of the year… you know, just to maximise my suffering for my art!

So it was, with a few final practise sessions crammed in between getting back from my adventures in Japan, as well as juggling the skirmishing & reviewing side of things, we set off in the mid afternoon of Friday the 16th of December to embark upon a long weekend epic journey that would see four of us form Team SPPT driving basically the length of Taiwan and engaging in 12 stages of pistol shooting, and for three of us an additional…experience… of 8 stages of rifle shooting at the same time… I like to keep myself busy and out of trouble, you know. Thus I packed my CLPD Shadow 2, magazines, CO2 capsules, BBs and other support equipment into my usual 5.11 Rush 48 backpack, and also secreted my clone-SRO-fitted VFC LAR/FAL GBBR into the typically long and utterly inconspicuous black gun bag for the weekend away with the boys.

Travelling down with Mars, Rex and Tacticalcat driving in shifts we made our way all the way from our training field in Taipei to the outskirts of Kaohsiung bordering with Pingtung county which is about as far from civilisation as you can get in Taiwan, stopping off for the obligatory refreshment breaks and driver changeovers along the way, we finally found ourselves at our homestay, which we were apparently sharing with a youth baseball team for the weekend… at least we weren’t the only ones traipsing in mucky equipment I guess!

While nearly all the competitions I’ve been

involved in thus far have been held at our usual training centre, this was to be the inaugural event to celebrate the opening of our new dedicated competition area run by the TPSA, and its leader Philip Chen, in Kaohsiung; a Level 3 event (and my first at that!) which would encompass a whole two days of shooting for everyone, with the stages set up outdoors on the newly acquired grounds of a massive temple halfway up a hill with commanding views of the county below! Not a bad setting for a shootout, assuming the weather held…

Spoiler alert, the weather, as it happens, did not hold! We awoke on Saturday morning and began preparing our equipment and had a highly traditional Taiwanese hamburger breakfast at a local place before the short drive over the river to the shooting arena. Marquees had been prepared in the shadow of the large temple on site and we began occupying tables inside and getting signed in and having our guns checked at the admin station. Once all the teams were on site we formed up for the usual introductory remarks and were told that a few international guests had also made the trip thanks to the dropping of restrictions, with shooters representing Mongolia, Thailand , Macau and Hong Kong swelling our ranks! Our teams were introduced and representatives from each were picked to officially open the festivities with a balloon shoot salvo at the testing station. Perhaps I should have prayed harder for good weather, as the spitting rain began just as we made our way to the first stage for us; with Mars, Rex and myself doing both TPSA pistol shooting and TSMOC rifle shooting on the same stages over the course of the weekend we were packing in another half on top of what everyone else was, so had to shuffle between squads 2 and 4 respectively as and when we could to get everything finished.

“I

STAGE 2 - DRIVE THRU

We began on stage 2 a short course of a minimum round count of 12, with 3 no shoot obstructed papers, two open papers, a single popper, and the end plate, with the popper and three papers inside the walled boundary of the stage and a paper flanking either side, the shooter started facing up-range, hands on a barrel with their pistol unloaded alongside all their magazines on a table

GBBR; this took a little longer at T=18.45 seconds, but yielded basically the same results, of 9 alphas and 3 bravos with a makeup shot and no misses. I guess my skills are at least repeatable regardless of weapon type?

STAGE 1 - CROSSROADS

in two marked fault boxes. So, a Condition 3 start, facing the wrong way, and only a small window behind the table through which to engage the targets behind the wall.

I actually did pretty well on this one, placing 3/13 no doubt thanks to my height advantage making the lone popper hidden to the low left inside the window easier to get sights on while moving from the right outside target to the left - T=13.01, 9 alphas, 3 charlies, one make up shot, no misses or reloads, and a round of applause to go along with the pitter-patter of the driving rain, I’ll take that.

Later I’d come back after lunch to do the same layout again but with TSMOC square targets and make use of the FAL

Next up squad 2 took on stage 1, another short course with a minimum round count of just 10; four no-shoot obstructed papers were hidden behind walls the shooter had to lean around, at four stations each at the end of an X shaped fault line area of crossing lanes, with a lone extra popper on the rear left, and the ending plate out beyond the front left leg, with the shooter once again starting in condition 3, with the empty pistol holstered but all of our magazines deposited atop the starting barrel in front of the centre point of the X. I elected to run right, then back left, back right and front left to try and minimise the awkwardness of running up range and keeping my pistol downrange, evidently not the fastest approach, but nonetheless I managed to shoot it clean with 10 alphas and no misses or makeup shots in T=13.80 seconds putting me 6/13 just above middle of the

ACTUALLY DID PRETTY WELL ON THIS ONE, PLACING 3/13 NO DOUBT THANKS TO MY HEIGHT ADVANTAGE MAKING THE LONE POPPER HIDDEN TO THE LOW LEFT INSIDE THE WINDOW EASIER TO GET SIGHTS ON WHILE MOVING FROM THE RIGHT OUTSIDE TARGET TO THE LEFT”

pack, at least I didn’t slip over or do anything stupid. Once again this was a stage I returned to in the afternoon for the rifle work, following the same plan with the FAL, however missing the popper on the first shot and taking a further 2 misses before hitting the ending plate, once again all clean on paper at least - the height over bore of the SRO clone did make me a bit concerned with shooting no shoot obstructed paper not much further away from me than the muzzle at times, but I was enjoying running the long rifle on paper at least - T=17.31, A = 10, 3 missed shots.

STAGE 3 - SLIDING DOORS

Stage 3 was next, with a trapezoidal shaped centrespace surrounded by the fault lines going left to right around the sides; with a minimum round count of 18, I’d have to make at least one strategically timed reload given my 15 BB magazine limit in production division. The targets were fairly symmetrical in their distribution, the right leg ending in a lateral wall with a no shoot obstructed paper in front and one behind, which the shooter then swung left from to get another two unobstructed papers in front and behind a similar wall, in the centre behind a somewhat awkward height small sliding door that had to be opened manually was a further no shoot obstructed paper, with another to the far left in front

of another wall, and the shooter swinging to the right to get the final targets around the other side of the central barricaded area; another obstructed paper inside then another unobstructed behind the wall along with a lone popper at its feet and the ending plate beyond.

I managed to eke myself a little higher on this one placing 5/13 in production division, with a fairly smooth run of T=14.27, A=17, C=2 and one makeup shot with no missed shots and just the one reload after I cleared the sliding door target, slick yet slow is my typical theme it seems.

STAGE 4 - HORSESHOE OF HOPELESSNESS

After returning to the marquee area we quickly ditched our pistol magazines, went to the safe area to repack our guns and switched out our equipment to use our rifles, hurriedly carrying our gun bags to take on stage 4 with the long guns first.

The rain had been somewhat continuous and reasonably to rather obnoxiously heavy throughout all this, so everybody’s shooter shirts were sodden, and many of us were living in our outerwear during the moments we weren’t shooting or moving between stages, taking shelter under the command and spectator gazebos at each stage. We slipped in with the rest of squad 4, the rifle-only shooters, and unpacked our long guns and placed them on the designated storage racks under the watchful eyes of the ROs. Stage 4 was set up for TSMOC first to do the rifle shoots on, being converted later for TPSA and pistol targets, in the never ending juggling of practitioners, squads and target types that is any such large event. A large horseshoe shaped fault line area was presented, with three targets hidden behind barrels at the front right corner, and a further open one to their right, followed by three more distant open targets from the rear right of the shooting area, two targets in the centre behind a low wall, another wide target on the left and one hidden behind

“THE RAIN HAD BEEN SOMEWHAT CONTINUOUS AND REASONABLY TO RATHER OBNOXIOUSLY HEAVY THROUGHOUT ALL THIS, SO EVERYBODY’S SHOOTER SHIRTS WERE SODDEN, AND MANY OF US WERE LIVING IN OUR OUTERWEAR DURING THE MOMENTS WE WEREN’T SHOOTING OR MOVING BETWEEN STAGES, TAKING SHELTER UNDER THE COMMAND AND SPECTATOR GAZEBOS AT EACH STAGE”

another barrel array, then a popper to the left and obstructed targets left and right of the rear left of the area and the ending plate.

STAGE 5 - QUAD GOALS

As the rain continued to pretty miserably hammer it down we trudged over, gun bags in hand, between the gazebos and once again stacked up our safed rifles on the wooden rack for Stage 5, a longer front to back stage with bays either side of an reversed L-shaped path, the shooter began seated (with a wet bum) on a quad bike facing to the right of the stage, rifle laid out across the front basket, with hands on the handlebars.

Some other competitors had already slid on their backsides on this stage apparently, so I was taking it a little slowly given my tread-bare Lowa Zephyrs that were also somewhat waterlogged adorning my own flippers! I at least managed to shoot it fairly clean, with T=27.74 and a 27 alpha, 3 bravo and no misses or makeup shots, the reload was admittedly a little slow and clumsy, and I wanted to retain my magazine in this case rather than risk it getting caked in mud, coupled with the rock and lock action of the FAL it was more than a little slow switching them out and probably added 4-5 seconds all told, damned speedy boys with their boring ARs!

Once again I returned to this stage later to do the pistol run on it, and once again the results were uncannily similar - with T=25.73, A=28, C = 2, but with 6 makeup shots and 3 total misses slowing me down on the popper with two reloads required along the way, that all put me dead middle at 7/13 in production division.

On the go buzzer we were to hop up and grab our guns in a safe manner and make our way to the front left of the stage where a single popper was waiting, followed by having to hold open a falling sliding door with our support hands and shooting a paper target within off hand and without sweeping ourselves in the process. Following that a high open paper target and lone low popper at the far right of the bay then lead us to the path forward, with targets in bays left and right; the right one I totally forgot to engage through the small window provided despite it being ringed in bright red, as I was busy focusing on tagging the partially obstructed far right rear target from there instead, then heading far rear left to get a trio of targets hiding behind a stack of barrels before

“THE

SHOOTER BEGAN SEATED (WITH A WET BUM) ON A QUAD BIKE FACING TO THE RIGHT OF THE STAGE, RIFLE LAID OUT ACROSS THE FRONT BASKET, WITH HANDS ON THE HANDLEBARS”

finishing in a low crouch in the rear middle to get a low left and right target through a small barred window as well as the ending plate in the centre rear.

Aside from completely forgetting to engage the one target on the mid-right, I didn’t do terriblyT=24.17, A=18, B=3 with no missed shots and only one makeup for what I did engage, the failure to engage cost me 2 misses on paper and a procedural. Sad trombone noise, I guess, never matters how well you plan it seems, as soon as that buzzer goes your brainfart ruins everything!

FEEDING TIME

We then broke for lunch and enjoyed a quick break out of the ongoing rain, with the typical Taiwanese lunch box being provided by the organisers, while the on-site cafe and caterers were also providing hot drinks and the inviting smell of a slowly cooking whole hog roast beginning to fill the air after lunch. The pig may no longer have been as happy as one in S&*$ but we weren’t letting the weather dampen our spirits at least, muddy puddles, ankles - and some bums - aside.

Following this we rounded off the day’s shooting by re-doing stages 1&2 with rifles, with results as mentioned previously, and re-shooting stage 5 with pistols with the same layout. However, I managed to make it my absolutely mare stage of the whole competition. Unfortunately my third CO2 magazine had a slow leak on its only seal which had been venting my freshly inserted capsule all morning to the point where it was empty, so for some reason I decided to make use of that magazine just in case the other totally reliable ones decided to develop an issue. Upon reaching the first popper I had a dead trigger due to the empty capsule, which I then turned into a misfeed thinking racking it would make things better, then took the mag out to clear that and put the same mag back in not realising it was the problem before finally putting a fresh reliable magazine back in after a good 8 seconds of faffing around like a lemon! From then on the marksmanship was pretty typical

although I failed to neutralise the right hand popper despite hitting it; it seemed a few of us suffered the same malaise, so at least it didn’t just punish me I suppose. A not so great 11/13 - somehow not dead last, so others must have had even worse days than me to manage that feat - T=25.73, A=16, C=5, FTN=1, at least only one actual missed shot on the first popper once I got the gun running. I hate it when a plan falls apart!

STAGE 6 - H IS FOR HELP!

The final stage of the first day for us was to be pistols only and although the rain had basically petered out by this point the overcast cloud cover and daylight beginning to fade weren’t helping. The sixth stage was another short one with 12-shot minimum round count and four corners as such this time with an H shape instead of an X, again the shooter starting at the front centre in condition 1 and working their way around the bays to their own taste. I immediately drew and shot the popper on the inside right, then the paper on the outside, swung left to take out the next inside paper, before retreating up-range to get the two poppers on the right front, then the no shoot obscured paper on the left and then shot the length of the stage to get the far left unobstructed paper and then the ending plate beyond the left of the front centre starting point - T=13.18, A=12, missed shots = 1 on the ending, I did it clean, just way too slowly

“I IMMEDIATELY DREW AND SHOT THE POPPER ON THE INSIDE RIGHT, THEN THE PAPER ON THE OUTSIDE, SWUNG LEFT TO TAKE OUT THE NEXT INSIDE PAPER, BEFORE RETREATING UPRANGE TO GET THE TWO POPPERS ON THE RIGHT FRONT, THEN THE NO SHOOT OBSCURED PAPER ON THE LEFT AND THEN SHOT THE LENGTH OF THE STAGE TO GET THE FAR LEFT UNOBSTRUCTED PAPER”

compared to the others it seems, 12/13 in production division.

With all that wrapped up for the day I hung around for a bit to finish filming and photographing some of the other squads finishing up before I headed back to the marquee, ditched off all my equipment and followed my nose back to the hog roast which was now ready, along with some of those greens people keep telling me to eat more of along with the fine meats. The results of the first day were tabulated and posted on the display boards and we sidled off to grab a hot-pot dinner on the way back to our hostel, finishing up the evening with some communal gun cleaning after we all showered and changed into less sodden clothing for the night.

DAY 2, LESS RAIN!

Awakening early again and dragging ourselves out of bed for another breakfast at the local joint, we then made our way back to the shooting centre to prepare ourselves for another whole day of the same! Another 6 pistol and 4 rifle stages to juggle manically before the celebratory evening meal and an inevitable exhausted collapse!

STAGE 10 - MERRY GO ROUND

Back on the long guns first thing in the morning we took to Stage 10, one of the wider and longer offerings, with the shooter starting pretty central, at

the rear of the quad bike parked at the centre rear, with their rifle in condition 1, aimed at the trailer hitch of the quad. Surrounding us were targets to the left and right of the main fault line zone we stood in the centre of, on the go buzzer I immediately went rear right and started making my way anti-clockwise, with two open paper targets either side of a row of barrels, followed by three open targets with two barrels between them, then engaging the three targets at the rear diagonally across to the left before reloading on the move (a little less clumsily than the day before at least) and taking out the front left paper and popper, then the rear two poppers and paper in the bay behind before hitting the ending plate at the far centre rear.

T=28.20, A=22, B=2 with no misses and two makeup shots which were more a case of the sear issue on the FAL - that had been a common theme throughout the weekend in fact, sometimes doubling on the second shot and giving me additional paper hits as a result, nonetheless, clean and at least slicker on the reload, but still difficult to keep up with the AR crowd, hey, I do it for the gunscience.

We’d revisit this with pistols as our last stage of the second day, with me placing 5/13 with T=21.10, A=21, C=3 with 3 makeup shots and just one missed shot, using the same layout but with pistol targets and moving left first then working my way all the way anti-clockwise to finish more centrally and reloading on the way from the front left to right.

STAGE 11 - SWING AND A MISS

We moved directly to stage 11 with the rifles next, probably the shortest stage with a minimum round count of only 9 shots; a square fault line area we started at the rear of with guns pointed down centrally in condition one, with a single paper target behind a barrel on the left of the central wall, and a lone popper on its right, as well as a right mid window with a target activator lanyard that set a swinging paper target loose behind the window, before moving to a lower central window to take on a left high

“AWAKENING EARLY AGAIN AND DRAGGING OURSELVES OUT OF BED FOR ANOTHER BREAKFAST AT THE LOCAL JOINT, WE THEN MADE OUR WAY BACK TO THE SHOOTING CENTRE TO PREPARE OURSELVES FOR ANOTHER WHOLE DAY OF THE SAME!”

paper and a central popper and then the ending plate behind and above it. T=17.07, A=8, B=1, no misses at least. I fluffed yanking the activator chord a bit and peppered the moving target just to make sure accounting for the 4 makeup shots adding to the total round count. We’d return to this after lunch for the pistols run and there I did it a little bit faster but sloppier with T=12.36, A=5, C=4, 2 makeup shots and a miss on the right popper, earning me 7/13 place for that stage - middle of the pack again.

STAGE 9 - SPECIAL DELIVERY

We moved to this stage after ditching our rifles again and switching back to pistols, and this would be a pistol only stage, and in fact a strong-hand only stage. With a wide stage design with a no shoot obstructed paper at the far left beyond a diagonal wall making it a hard leaning shot for many, then a swing right to get an open paper target further back but more central, before moving past the open sliding door in the main front wall and taking out the two staggered poppers there, then a far right popper again requiring a long lean out to reach for many, before sweeping back in for another central open paper and then the ending plate at the far rear centre.

The catch was you had to do all of this one-handed, carrying a large and bulky albeit relatively lightweight rifle case in your weak hand and having to stretch a bit for some of the target presentations. Evidently my lanky frame and long arms finally came in handy, as this was my best stage of the competition, placing 1/13 in production division, with T=13.93, A=10 with just one makeup shot on a more distant paper to make sure, no misses or reloads…I’ll beat you all single handedly, I guess.

STAGE 7 - LIVING IN A BOX

This was a relatively short stage with a narrow lateral fault line space limiting our movements somewhat; we started in the rear centre of the shooting area and could move a little forward but mostly only left or right, with a presentation of lone popper, open paper and no-shoot obstructed paper target on both sides behind diagonal walls requiring us to run far left and right to shoot across the opposite way at them before hitting the ending plate in the rear centre. Pistols first; I moved left to right and shot it fairly clean with T=10.32, A=9, C=2, only missing twice at the end trying to get the ending plate, again middling the pack at 7/13 in the production division.

“THE CATCH WAS YOU HAD TO DO ALL OF THIS ONE-HANDED, CARRYING A LARGE AND BULKY ALBEIT RELATIVELY LIGHTWEIGHT RIFLE CASE IN YOUR WEAK HAND AND HAVING TO STRETCH A BIT FOR SOME OF THE TARGET PRESENTATIONS”

We returned after lunch to take on the same stage with rifles, and I went right to left instead, which seems to be a natural tendency of me using rifles, as it feels easier to sweep and move left away from the strong hand a lot of the time. T=14.12, A=11 with one makeup shot, so a little slower, but cleaner, with the long gun - another common theme at times.

STAGE 8 - KILLING HOUSE

This was a fairly intensive stage which again we would do with long and short guns, a total of 12 paper targets present with the outer three on each side of the stage having no shoot obstructions, as well as a far left popper and another behind the low right window. The whole stage was shot from a wide square area with a wall at the front and the trio of obstructed papers either side at the extremities, as well as three unobstructed papers arrayed behind the low lying window to the right which I had to get right down on my knees to shoot through, and a further three unobstructed paper targets and the ending plate behind the central higher window.

We shot this with rifles right after stage 7 after lunch, where I picked up my only actual miss with the rifle in terms of attempted shots - unfortunately on the far rear left paper I just didn’t seem to land a shot for some reason, most annoying as it was otherwise a clean run aside from a few more extra shots on paper due to the sear slipping - T=26.72, A=26, M=1.

STAGE 12 - BACK TO FRONT

Stage 12 was basically a reversal of stage 6 the day before, with the same H layout of fault lines, but the shooter starting at the rear centre and working forwards, and the target presentations varying slightly having a 20 round minimum this time with an unobstructed low paper at the front left and a no shoot paper at the front right, with a lone low popper and far high paper at the rear right through a gap in the barricades, an open paper around the far right of the barricade and a no shoot obstructed one through the same gap but more central, then low and high papers either side of the central barricade through gaps each side and the stop plate in the rear. Again I was middle of the pack with 6/13 in the production division, T=16.02, A=17, C=3, with a single miss and a makeup shot.

THAT’S ALL FOLKS!

With all the stages finally completed in pistol as well as rifle where applicable, we were finally able to pack all our gear away and enjoy the more social aspect of the event. Running between stages so much had somewhat hampered our ability to chat with even our own teammates let alone other teams, likewise I obviously didn’t manage to catch everyone’s runs on everyone’s stage attempts by virtue of so many stages running in parallel, although judging by the sheer number of photos and videos I still managed to take I’m not exactly sure that’s a bad thing!

As the night rolled in we all congregated back at the marquee area as the hired caterers started wheeling out a plethora of local dishes for us to stuff ourselves with as the final tabulations were made and the RO team began assembling some of the larger trophies which came in subassemblies in some of the boxes.

After the posting and checking of the results, and the introductory remarks and thanks, the winners and runners up were called to the stage for the award presentations; open division consisted of 14 total shooters, with “Tom” Lao/ Liu JiaYu taking first place, “Luke” Peng

“THE WHOLE STAGE WAS SHOT FROM A WIDE SQUARE AREA WITH A WALL AT THE FRONT AND THE TRIO OF OBSTRUCTED PAPERS EITHER SIDE AT THE EXTREMITIES, AS WELL AS THREE UNOBSTRUCTED PAPERS ARRAYED BEHIND THE LOW LYING WINDOW TO THE RIGHT WHICH I HAD TO GET RIGHT DOWN ON MY KNEES TO SHOOT THROUGH”

WeiHua taking second, and “Jacky” Ho BoXian of team Yamars in third.

For standard division there were 21 competitors, including all 5 ladies present that day, Tsai YuQi of team Yamars took first place, followed by Zheng JiaHua of team Spring Rain, and Kei Sau Ching of from Hong Kong taking third place, team Yamars’ Du Hsin Pin took high lady as well in fourth place right on the heels of Kei Sau Ching.

With production division Zhou YuTing of team Yamars took first place, “Bear” Zhan DengXiong of team spring rain took second, and Lai YuChen also of team Spring Rain took third place. In the end my own mess up on stage 5 managed to offset my excelling on stage 9 and overall most of my stage scores were centre of the pack, and I ended up placing 6/13 overall. Lots of people had kit malfunctions and slips in the rain and mud, but overall everyone seemed to be running things well and making up for mistakes, so it was by no means an easy competition for anyone.

In terms of the TSMOC rifles we still haven’t been given all the detailed results at the time of writing, but there were around 14 competitors including the staff who took part; our own team captain “Mars” Liu HanLin took second place with team TFAS shooters Yang ZhengHong and Zhuang HaoJun taking first and

third places respectively.

With all the awards dealt with some folks were sticking around overnight to return to their respective hometowns the next day, including the rest of my team. However, duty, as ever, called for me, as I had neglected to book the Monday off work and didn’t fancy getting the first HSR all the way home in the morning to then rush around getting ready for work, so the guys were good enough to drop me off the other side of town to get the high speed train back to Taipei… Sunday night HSR rides are somewhat of a legendary misery in Taiwan, with everyone commuting back from their weekends away… doubly so when you have a conspicuous long gun bag and backpack to deal with on the unreserved section where everyone crowds in… nonetheless, home in time for a scotch!

Many thanks as always to everyone who organised the Kaohisung Level 3 shoot, the RO team for braving the rain to make sure everything went smoothly, and the teams and competitors in general for showing up and getting through it all, poor weather be damned, congratulations to all, but especially the winners and runners up of each division.

Until next time, fellow shooters… AA

AN AA LEGION SPECIAL REPORT

CONTINUING OUR COVERAGE OF THE MAJOR SHOWS THIS MONTH WE’RE DELIGHTED TO REPORT BACK ON THE MASSIVE BEAST OF AN EVENT THAT IS SHOT SHOW AS BOYCIE, LI’L STU AND DAN BRING IN THEIR LOWDOWN OF THE 2023 EVENT IN LAS VEGAS!

The plans to hit SHOT Show for myself and Li’l Stu started way back in 2020. We were due to attend in 2021 but due to the world COVID pandemic, that trip for us was never going to happen. With the restrictions starting to be relaxed we thought we’d try for SHOT 22… again, due to COVID restrictions it was decided that we would miss 2022’s Show and push on for 2023. So this January we set off from Heathrow and after a 10 1/2 hour flight, we finally sighted the lights of Las Vegas and McCarran International Airport!

Li’l Stu and I made it through US Border Control and to the hotel at around 21:00 on Saturday night. On Sunday morning we got up and went for breakfast and then started preparing our kit whilst we waited for our friends and colleagues from The Armed Lifestyle (TAL) Magazine to arrive. By 20:00 we were all together, barring Dan who would be arriving in town on Day 1 proper of SHOT. After introductions we all went for dinner and discussed the plan of action for the following day.

INDUSTRY DAY AT THE RANGE

This would be the one day we’d have the opportunity to fire some of the firearms we had only previously handled in airsoft form, something that could not happen in the UK! After a breakfast with the guys we (myself and Li’l Stu) headed over the road to the Venetian Expo Centre where we were going to board the coach out to the Boulder Rifle and Pistol Club near Boulder City, approximately 40 minutes out of Las Vegas. The Boulder R&PC were hosting the range day for a huge number of exhibitors of firearms and accessories. Of course for the UK based members of the team this meant Li’l Stu and myself were

like “kids in a candy store!”

Stu had said his “Target #1” was the 1911. Stu is quite new to live firearms whereas I started shooting in 1979; my aim (no pun intended… well yes it was!) was to get to Kimber, Glock and Daniel Defense. Stu had also said he’d love to go “rock and roll” with a full-auto rifle. After the last passengers boarded, the bus pulled out of the parking lot at 0845 and we headed out of town. The bus pulled in to the range complex and dropped us off, and we met up with the TAL crew before deciding to start at one end and simply head down

First stop was the Flux Defense stand where we saw, and shot, one of their Raider pistols. This was a quite futuristic, being based off the SIG M17. Carrying over 40 rounds in two magazines this was billed as a “truck or pack gun”; there’ll be more info on this to follow! Most of our team took the opportunity to fire one of the six variants that they had on offer. Li’l Stu really enjoyed this stand. We both said that we looked forward to the time when the Flux Raider replica would find its

way to the airsoft market. Throughout the day we fired the H&K G28, AR’s, bolt-actions and pistols, as well as shotguns and even a belt fed AR. What an awesome start to the Show for us Brits!

GETTING DOWN TO (AIRSOFT) BUSINESS!

Veteran show-stomper Bill had told us that SHOT was big but nothing ever really prepares you for it! For the most part Day One would be a recce day; walking round and locating the stands (booths) we wanted to visit properly later in the week. Just to try and give you an idea of the scale of the

morning to just walk Floor 2!) we had a chance to discuss where we needed to go during the afternoon. We decided to go and ‘scope out’ the airsoft exhibitors Lancer Tactical, Redwolf, Evike, Cybergun, PTS, MOS (E&L & Arcturus), and KWA.

LANCER TACTICAL

2,400 exhibitors spread over four floors of the Venetian Expo Center in addition to the whole of the Ceasars Exhibition Center. Within the floor space of the show, 547 F16 fighter jets could be parked and there would still be some space left over! In Dan’s estimation, it was a “labyrinthine maze” with seemingly no end in sight…

The Press Room was rightly huge on its own. This was where we would get breakfast and plan our days. After a quick bite and some discussion, it was time to hit the floors on the search for airsoft-related products, and the first floor we went to was Floor 2 which housed the majority of the Military and Law Enforcement clothing and kit exhibitors. Here we located First Tactical, Condor, Agilite, Blue Force Gear, Spiritus Systems, Eotech, Holosun, Hawke, and more.

After lunch (yes it really did take the whole

Boycie: For me it was great to catch up with fellow AA Legion Associate LayLax Marck for the first time in person. We had a chat about the new hop units coming which are specifically made for VFC platforms. These also come with two hop rubbers: the soft, which is ideal for UK climate, and the new red bucking to suit 380-420fps. Whilst I was talking with Marck, we got onto the subject of his MPX build and I asked what he ran in his. He was happy to tell me that he runs the new LayLax VFC hop unit, soft bucking, Prommy inner barrel and the hard gear set. He said, “it’s a great setup that lets me reach out and touch people in a good way!”

Stu: I really liked the LCT AKs on the Lancer stand and they were certainly “floating one’s boat.” I have really liked the build quality on the LCT AKs for a long time. You have the confidence that they are really well put

“WITHIN THE FLOOR SPACE OF THE SHOW, 547 F16 FIGHTER JETS COULD BE PARKED AND THERE WOULD STILL BE SOME SPACE LEFT OVER! IN DAN’S ESTIMATION, IT WAS A “LABYRINTHINE MAZE” WITH SEEMINGLY NO END IN SIGHT…”

together.

Dan: The first item to catch my eye was the Kalashnikov USA licensed PP-19-01 Vityaz replica front and center. I was surprised to learn that Lancer Tactical will be manufacturing this model, amongst several other Kalashnikov branded AK’s present. Notable features were the realistic magazine dimensions, rotary hop up chamber, on top of the overall build quality feeling quite lovely. As a user of LCT’s PP-19-01 model, I am really keen to get my hands on one of these for some T&E.

REDWOLF AIRSOFT

Boycie: Redwolf’s booth was not quite what I had thought it would be, but this is entirely understandable considering the remaining COVID restrictions for people coming into the US from Hong Kong/China. There was a really lovely aged Enfield rifle on display, which I mentioned to Andrew that looked perfectly aged just like the No4 Mk2 we have at the range where I work.

Stu: With the Redwolf stand being quite low key, the one stand out item for me was the new RWA Warhawk. This is a revised version of the officially licensed Nighthawk, which has been around for a few years now.

Dan: I was certainly admiring the excellent ‘distressing’ and aging work on the Enfield, but found the SBR variant of the upcoming RWA Battle Arms Development 556 PDW to be visually interesting. This sported a nicely done quick-release Fortis rail and compact PDW style stock paired with the unique styling Battle Arms is known for. Andrew humorously pointed out Battle Arms proclivity for slapping their logo on every single part as we had a little laugh counting the number of instances

replicated here. True to form, indeed!

ACTIONSPORTGAMES (ASG)

Stu: The Steyr L9-A2 MF! I’d not seen one before and was intrigued on the design.

On picking it up, I felt the design ergonomics worked well (please note, I have short stubby fingers, so finding a comfy pistol is troublesome!). Both the backstrap and side panels can be swapped out to give the user the best choice and fit. A nice polymer frame, metal slide , Steyr Trades and an underslung Picatinny rail too.

Not normally a huge fan of pistols that I’ve not seen or played with before; in this case, I’ll make an exception.

Dan: I also really liked the feel and solidity of the Steyr L9, but the standout item for me would have to be the B&T APC 556 models on display. It’s been great to see more manufacturers actually incorporate true quickchange spring guide

assemblies into designs, and this was on display here in the form of a nifty little door that allowed access to the spring and battery compartment. The APC feels very much at home in the hands of someone who’s ran the CZ Bren and SCAR series platforms. I particularly liked the compact form factor of the collapsible stock version, which was reminiscent of the H&K collapsible stock designs.

PTS SYNDICATE

Boycie: The PTS booth was quite busy when we got there, with the guys talking to Greg Wong AKA

“I WAS CERTAINLY ADMIRING THE EXCELLENT ‘DISTRESSING’ AND AGING WORK ON THE ENFIELD, BUT FOUND THE SBR VARIANT OF THE UPCOMING RWA BATTLE ARMS DEVELOPMENT 556 PDW TO BE VISUALLY INTERESTING.”

Spartan117GW and a couple of other groups of people, so we stood back for a few minutes to allow the crowd to dissipate. When we eventually got to talk to the PTS guys, I immediately asked about the soon to be released MAWL and the Zev Custom Glock and 1911.

The MAWL was still in prototype form with some parts being 3D printed and the coating wasn’t the final hard anodized finish that we were told would be on the production versions. Saying that, it looked good and I can’t wait to see the finished article. The licensed Zev Custom Glock again, was still coated in the prototype finish but again will be hard coat anodized in the final version. I really liked the Glock and I was told that there would be two variants, one using a metal lower frame and the other using a more usual polymer frame. This would offer variants that would appeal to those with varying budgets.

Stu: As a really big 1911 fan, I really liked the soon to be released Zev Customs 1911, which will be available in Black, FDE or Dual Tone. This will also be compatible with CO2 magazines, which for me will be a really good feature.

Dan: The standout items for me were the simpler

things: namely the extended buttplate for the compact version EPS stock. This will house up to an 11.1v LiPo and will be an absolutely ideal solution for us ERG users who wish to keep to a slimmer stock assembly, but still keep things rear-wired. The upcoming Unity licensed 45 degree Aimpoint mount and flip-up magnifier mount were also on display and very well replicated. Another item of interest was a prototype of a new EPG grip in development, which will surely be a hot item as the natural ‘bridge’ between the two existing versions.

EVIKE/CYBERGUN

Boycie: After the recce to find Evike, we went down to the new Evike Outpost for their pre-opening party where we could have a good look around their store, try out their range and enjoy a beer along with a live band. Back on the Shot Show floor, I liked the SCAR SC but I am going to leave Li’l Stu to wax lyrical about that, as he is a huge fan of the SCAR.

Stu: This was an easy choice… The SCAR SC – saw it last year at IWA and was very impressed; it’s a SCAR, and yes, I’m a fan , can’t you tell ? Having also been afforded the opportunity to get “hands on “ with a real FN SCAR SC, I’m very impressed with its airsoft counterpart.

Small, pointable, comfy, a perfect CQB tool that I suspect would be handy in other airsoft situations too!

Dan: I did not get opportunity to peruse the Evike booth in great depth. The first time we swung through, we had an interview to get to, then the second time I was running solo and it was the last day of the last hour of the show. The booth was packed with the crew and the lovely ladies from Taran Tactical, so I took a moment to wait until there was time to zip in and fondle the merchandise (the airsoft goods, of course!). I was quite keen on the LCT SVD Dragunov and VFC FAL GBBR, which I’m told will be hitting the website this year for us US-based guys. The Ares SCAR SC was also quite attractive, as was my first handling of the Archon Type B pistol that was tucked away in a corner.

ELITE FORCE/UMAREX

Boycie: What I really liked on this stand was the

“THIS WAS AN EASY CHOICE… THE SCAR SC – SAW IT LAST YEAR AT IWA AND WAS VERY IMPRESSED; IT’S A SCAR, AND YES, I’M A FAN , CAN’T YOU TELL ? HAVING ALSO BEEN AFFORDED THE OPPORTUNITY TO GET “HANDS ON “ WITH A REAL FN SCAR SC, I’M VERY IMPRESSED WITH ITS AIRSOFT COUNTERPART”

M110 and the long awaited Carl Gustav. Having fired the HK G28 live on Monday I had a good reference point to compare the heft and feel of the M110 to the weight of the real steel G28. I can honestly say that I really liked the balance on the M110 and can see it being on my shopping list soon. The Carl Gustav really is a lovely piece of kit. It would need to be two-person operated unit on the airsoft field and the loading of the ‘round’ can be a bit fiddly until you get used to it but oh what a lot of fun that will be to use at skirmishes.

Stu: An Airsoft Charlie G? Really? Hell YES! I’d seen

dealt with.

MOS (E&L)

Boycie: There were a lot of things here that caught my eye, firstly, the new E&L AK and Vityaz replicas. As Dan really liked those I’ll leave them to him. Another product that I really liked was the collaboration between Arcturus and Gate, which is the all-new Trinity Armament Alpha series. These combine a Gate TITAN II ETU along with a rather clever split gearbox. The unique thing about the gearbox is that you can change the ‘timing’ of the system from instantaneous trigger response to pre-cocked without having to reprogram the ETU or open the gearbox.

Second for me here was their range of Russian replica scopes, which most are NV compatible and also in some cases outperform their real steel counterparts! These are expected to be available this year in around the 3rd quarter (July - September) and start from US$80 and go up to around US$300 as the expected resale price.

Stu: I mean, where to start? It’s E & L, AK heaven for a fan like me! I spent a good long time chatting to the Team on the stand, and they happily answered all my questions.

dabs on one at the show has changed my mind. Impractical ? More than likely. Fun? Shedloads!!! And it can take TAG rounds I believe…

Dan: Aside from the Gustav, the only new item on display appeared to be the M110A1 AEG. I was told this would be equipped with a Gate ASTER out of the box and will be a regular production item.

The first point about the ASTER leads me to believe it might be running a new gearbox design (hopefully a Ver. 2.5?). Unfortunately the Elite Force rep manning the booth didn’t know the specifics of the internals, but for fans of this platform, the change to a new gearbox design has us collectively and tentatively crossing our fingers; especially as wet paper is practically stronger than the old Ver. 2.2 design we’ve

A lot to choose from , but the AK-105 Platinum stood out. Perfect example of how an airsoft AK should be. Solid, reliable and just the right amount of Sino/Russian brutalist architecture. It strips down like a real AK, same cleaning kit, oil bottle… no real surprise as they are built in the same factory as certain other AK’s are made!

After I had a look over some of the body parts, I can make a guess as to their original purpose too… the gearbox was a delight, QC spring feature ( though it looked like it was not as QC as would have been liked), and the magazines ? Well. According to one of the chaps I spoke with, they make the midcap internals to the same dimension as real AK mags, allowing airsoft inners to be swapped into a real AK mag. Not had the chance to verify this meself, but if its true ? Oh boy!

Dan: Ever the ardent Vityaz fan, I was immediately smitten with the PP-19-01 models on display from Arcturus. The build quality was absolutely fantastic,

“AN AIRSOFT CHARLIE G? REALLY? HELL YES! I’D SEEN ALL THE BLURB ON ITS RELEASE, THE REVIEWS ETC AND FOUND MYSELF NOT TOTALLY CONVINCED… HOWEVER, GETTING MY DABS ON ONE AT THE SHOW HAS CHANGED MY MIND. IMPRACTICAL ? MORE THAN LIKELY. FUN? SHEDLOADS!!! AND IT CAN TAKE TAG ROUNDS I BELIEVE…”

with these sporting some really smart features from the true quick-change spring guide, to the realistic magazine dimensions, and a (soon to be updated) rotary hop up chamber that will sport a top-downcenter hop up arm. Two of the models present were bedecked in full Zenitco regalia, including the modernized PT-1 stock, which has actually been improved by Arcturus to have a better opening and locking mechanism. To wit: this AEG has officially supplanted my desire to pick up the SIG MPX, even!

KWA INDUSTRIES

Boycie: We have enjoyed a great relationship with KWA over the years and have been privy to a number of new developments; even being supplied with the Ronin 47 and LM4D before they were released in the UK and Europe. This year for SHOT show, they were

showing their new PTP in the form of the ATP-Z, which had some similarities to the SIG M17. We were also told that the classic ATPLE is also undergoing a redesign, so I look forward to what that new version will look like.

The new variant of the LM4D was also on show with the new M-LOK rail. Both myself and Li’l Stu have our own LM4’s… I have the LM4D and Stu owns the LM4C and the PTS Radian which uses the KWA LM4 internals.

Stu: F90 AUG GBBR… this was an easy choice for me; as a long-time airsoft AUG user, I couldn’t wait to get a close look at the F90 GBBR. At IWA in 2022 I was lucky enough to see a real one on the Steyr display stand; little did I know, I’d have a chance of seeing KWA’s version. After having wiped the silly grin off my face, I picked the F90 up and had a good look over it. To me , it’s perfect; others I know will have their own

idea’s & thoughts! It’s heavy but balanced, yes, it’s a love/hate RIF.

Most certainly on the “Want List” but as KWA are currently supplying about 2000 units to a certain armed forces somewhere in the Southern Hemisphere for use as training weapons, it may be a while until they are released to the airsofting public!

Dan: Not being a huge GBB guy myself, I was admittedly impressed by the build quality and truly unique design of the F90. That being said, I was informed of some interesting new developments coming down the pipeline from KWA that I’m not privy to discuss yet. Suffice it to say, the ‘arms race’ amongst airsoft manufacturers never stops, and certainly is driving some interesting innovations.

GETTING DOWN TO (KIT & GEAR) BUSINESS!

Boycie: For kit and clothing, we sought out First Tactical, which regularly. It my work uniform. We met up with the owner, Cory, who was really pleased to meet me as I had sent him my FT Flash/Slash glove which had saved my right hand from major injury when a flash bang went off prematurely about 3 years ago.

“MOST CERTAINLY ON THE “WANT LIST” BUT AS KWA ARE CURRENTLY SUPPLYING ABOUT 2000 UNITS TO A CERTAIN ARMED FORCES SOMEWHERE IN THE SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE FOR USE AS TRAINING WEAPONS, IT MAY BE A WHILE UNTIL THEY ARE RELEASED TO THE AIRSOFTING PUBLIC!”

He said “you know, I have that glove in my office!” Cory is a guy who really cares about the product and knowing when it has really done its job well.

Secondly on kit, we stopped by the Agilite booth and saw the new K-Zero plate carrier system. This had quite a few cool additions over previous Agilite rigs, the main ones being sewn on shoulder pads and the ability to quickly swap from a velcro closing to the Agilite version of First Spear Tubes. Both Dan and myself are a part of the Agilite T&E team who advise and comment on Agilite products in development. Boaz of Agilite gave me my exclusive to the T&E team patch. I was really pleased to receive it and it went straight on to my newly acquired Spiritus

rifle plates.

PERSONAL HIGHLIGHTS

Boycie: My personal highlights were catching up with Jerry Miculek again after 27 years. He’s still as nice a guy as I remember. I also got to sit in the 1969 Mustang Mach 1 that was driven by Keanu Reeves in the John Wick movies!

Stu: As a non-shooter, this was my idea of heaven. Range Day was both brilliant and terrifying – but great fun. Meeting up with Trampas and the AL crew was amazing, a great bunch of folks that made this “f*cking Brit” (as I was laughingly named) feel very welcome. Boycie for putting up with my endless crap jokes and Dan for being one hell of an amazing chap, full of knowledge and help, but incredibly modest about it; a proper gent with a great sense of humour too (the taxi ride back from Evike was epic… ) : The astonishing number of products on display would honestly make any one thing hard to pick out from the other. But for me personally, I would have to say that the true highlight of the show was finally getting to meet John and Stu in person. They were truly great guys to experience the show with, and made you feel as if meeting with old friends.

ENDEX

near future.

Stu: Too many to choose from, but the Ready Tactical Sling (see the video on the AA website!) was my standout. Fiendishly simple design and build, but so damned effective and adaptable!

Dan: As a member of Agilite’s T&E team, it was really cool to see some of the features we’ve suggested and talked about actually being incorporated into final design. That sort of public discourse and rapid, forward-thinking design is refreshing to see in an industry that often seems to avoid taking in product feedback. Agilite also had one hell of a nefarious claw machine that befuddled many a passerby trying to win a mag pouch or even the dual-tube NOD’s nestled within its confines.

While not exactly new, S&S Precision had some very interesting low-profile plate carriers on display that showcased some rather technically advanced design. I could see these being quite useful for Airsoft as a lightweight and breathable chassis to mount pouches to without even needing to load them up with mock

During our walks around the halls, we covered around 50 miles over the four days of the show proper, which isn’t hard to believe when you consider that there were nearly 2400 exhibitors over the 4 floors of the Venetian Expo Centre and the two massive halls of the Caesars Convention Centre as well as the Market Place and outdoor displays. It is estimated that if you spent 30 seconds at each stand it would take around two weeks (during the opening hours of 8:30 – 5:30) to visit every stand and display!

That about wraps up the report for SHOT 23; I’d like to thank Bill for entrusting the coverage of the show to myself, Li’l Stu and Dan. Also a huge thanks to Trampas, Tabb, Aubree, Amy, Cody AKA “Bingo”, Shaun AKA “Bugout”, Jamie, Patrick and Luke for being such a great crew and for welcoming us and making us part of the team from the first time we met up. I left one person off the list and that is Bernei. She gets a special mention for not only being such a kind, supportive and welcoming person but for being our (myself, Stu and Dan) partner in crime during the after-hours in Gilley’s and for the laugh that is so infectious we couldn’t stop laughing for most of the night on Wednesday. This trip and the people truly has been epic and something we all definitely want to do again! AA

GET ON THE HUNT!

AS THE NEW HUNTSMAN TACTICAL AEG MODELS FROM IWHOLESALES HAVE BEEN OUT IN THE WILD FOR A WHILE NOW WE THOUGHT THAT WE WOULD REVISIT ONE OF THESE NEAT LITTLE ARS NOW THAT WE’VE HAD IT ON AND OFF THE RANGE FOR A COUPLE OF MONTHS; BILL RECAPS ON THE FEATURES AND TELLS ALL ABOUT PERFORMANCE SO FAR!

When I first looked at HUNTSMAN TACTICAL a couple of issues back we were in the extremely privileged position of having a couple of the very first models for initial review and full testing, and thanks to the guys at iWholesales we’ve placed the M-LOK SHORT variant into the

one look forward to seeing where the range expands, but for now I believe that the new AEGS will bring a lot of joy to many, many players out there, and enable them to enjoy the thrill of the hunt to the max!”

Further rangetime has proved that my initial assessment was 100% correct, and in truth after

initial review my comment was:

“The launch of the new HUNTSMAN TACTICAL AEG models is a confident, superbly achieved debut, and shows just what a company that intrinsically KNOWS airsoft can create when they decide to. I for

perfect weight for this AEG set to UK spec, as using this weight gives a fabulous combination of range and accuracy. I had almost settled on .25g being “the thing” until I took the SHORT out in high winds, and found that at this weight the BBs were straying

“I’VE BEEN PLAYING AROUND WITH DIFFERENT WEIGHT BBS TO SEE WHAT THE HOP CAN HANDLE, AND AFTER TRYING .20, .23, .25, .28, AND EVEN .30G I’VE REACHED THE CONCLUSION THAT .28G IS THE PERFECT WEIGHT FOR THIS AEG SET TO UK SPEC, AS USING THIS WEIGHT GIVES A FABULOUS COMBINATION OF RANGE AND ACCURACY”

somewhat; just an incremental weight change took them back to the trajectory I’d already come to expect on .25g in fair conditions, so I believe I’ll continue with .28g as the standard fodder from now on.

In terms of power, the SHORT initially went through the chrono at 1.05 Joule/337fps on a .20g, which is obviously perfectly site friendly, and I’m pleased to report that now everything is beginning to settle, this power level has remained consistent, with a fluctuation of just 5-10 fps over extended testing strings in different (albeit winter!) conditions. This bodes well for the longevity of the SHORT, but I’ll continue to check this at regular intervals in the future. I would note that I have now tried the SHORT with many different brands of AR magazine now, both Mids and His, with excellent levels of success; most brands will fit in the well and feed nicely, but as always my advice here is that if you already own AR mags, take a couple along to try at your local store when you test fire the AEG.

INSIDE AND OUT

Internally the hi-speed motor, metal gearbox (with a quick-change spring function) and MOSFET appear to be working flawlessly; as I said when I first looked at the test models you do get as standard an electronic trigger and a built in FET, the latter of which is carefully placed inside the body of the AEG and not in-line with the wiring in the buffer tube so as protect the electronics and give maximum battery space! Again as I noted initially this is a definite indication of an AEG platform that has been well thought out and designed by folk who understand the rigours of use in-game! Where many FETs are still found in the buffer tube and prone to damage when changing batteries, the FET in the SHORT is inside the body of the AEG and fully protected, although Jimmy tells me it’s still easy to access and work on.

The electronic trigger is working extremely well, and this is most definitely something that the team have commented on, that the trigger is light yet crisp; everyone to have tried the SHORT so far has commented both of the feel of the trigger, and indeed on the quietness of the AEG overall when in operation. The motor sounds as if it is perfectly set and balanced, with no whine or “drag”, and the gearbox is pretty darn quiet which indicates to

me that everything is mated properly and working together efficiently.

Externally the SHORT continues to stand up well too; in addition to the M-LOK rails that have numerous QD sling points, on the polymer-bodied SHORT you also get a CNC Aluminium Stock Tube, Metal Inner and Outer Barrel, Retractable Polymer Stock, metal Hi-Cap 300 BB Magazine, a Metal Flash Hider, (14mm CCW), and fully adjustable Front and Rear Flip-Up Sights. All the same features are replicated across the HUNTSMAN range, so you get a lot of cool for your buck!

Externally the polymer and metalwork are also standing up superbly to the rigours of transport, time on the range, and time in use in all kinds of weather conditions. Again I recap, but “all of the parts have been put together with care and attention to detail and there’s absolutely no wobbles or creaks anywhere. The receivers fit very well indeed, and although I would usually choose a metal-bodied version, the strength of the polymer parts appears excellent. There are a few very minor mould lines visible, but really only on the underside of the buffer tune, and everything else is crisp and precise”; it’s all good here.

SOLID PEFORMANCE

Nearly three months into testing, and with several thousand BBs downrange, my respect for what iWholesales have created has grown further, especially considering the pricepoint of the HUNTSMAN models! As I’ve said many times in the past, I do like a compact SBR-style AEG, and the SHORT has really, REALLY grown on me. It’s light, ergonomic, perfectly balanced, has familiar controls and easy-to-use-features, and thus far it’s internally steadfast. It’s also accurate, with a range on a .28g BB easily in excess of 60 metres, and has a great ROF on an 11.1 LiPo for those moments when you need a lot of BBs downrange fast to suppress the opposition.

In conclusion, in my opinion iWholesales have got everything 100% right with their new HUNTSMAN models, and there’s already a couple of members in the Red Cell crew that have placed one on their wishlist for a sturdy and reliable “backup/friends AEG” given the price! All I can suggest to you is that if you’re in the market for a great-value, serviceable and

“NEARLY THREE MONTHS INTO TESTING, AND WITH SEVERAL THOUSAND BBS DOWNRANGE, MY RESPECT FOR WHAT IWHOLESALES HAVE CREATED HAS GROWN FURTHER, ESPECIALLY CONSIDERING THE PRICEPOINT OF THE HUNTSMAN MODELS!”

reliable AEG that’s a thoroughly modern-looking AR, then you get down to your local store as soon as you see HUNTSMAN in stock and try one for yourself… trust me though, you WILL be buying one if you do!

Thanks again to www.iwholesales.co.uk for providing an early test model for us, and for letting

us hold on to it for longer-term evaluation; please do be sure to visit their website and social media channels to get the very latest on new updates for the HUNTSMAN TACTICAL range and much, much more! AA