PRIME MOVER

WHEN THE GUYS MET WITH THEM AT IWA, SPECNA ARMS TOLD US THAT THEIR BIGGEST NEWS FOR 2024 WOULD BE THEIR NEW PRIME SERIES OF AEGS AND WE’VE BEEN WAITING PATIENTLY FOR THEM TO DROP… AND NOW THEY HAVE! MIGUEL AS ALWAYS IS RIGHT ON THE BALL WITH THIS LATEST TAKE ON THE LATEST OF MANY NEW AND EXCITING RELEASES, AND NOW BRINGS IN HIS INITIAL THOUGHTS ON A TECHNOLOGICAL MARVEL!

So, it’s another series of AR models, what’s so exciting about that? Well, PRIME is the flagship of Specna Arms’ own development and the culmination right now of all their clever industry collaborations, and these AEGs are more than just a bit special!

In their own words:

“Specna Arms presents a line of airsoft carbines based on many years of experience, passion and commitment. The variety of models, versions such as those licensed by Rock River Arms or Daniel Defense

• External barrel with 14mm CCW thread

• Precision steel inner barrel with a diameter of 6.02mm

• Folding Sights as standard

• Dark Matter 28K Brushless Motor

• GATE ASTER II

• TDC Magnus™ (Top Down Center) rotating Hop-Up chamber for highly accurate and stable adjustment (covered by European Patent number 015052069-0001)

• Helium™ Flat Hop rubber for improved BB nozzle, steel cylinder, steel spring guide, CNC steel gears with 16: 1 gear ratio, 8mm J-Cage bearings (motor and piston pinion) and 8mm plain bearings (centre pinion ), SolarTrigger™ trigger by GATE, a powerful Specna Arms Dark Matter™ High Speed brushless motor, and a Gate™ ASTER II Bluetooth® ETU Module!

So, basically this is pretty much “state of the current art” when it comes to AEGs, and if you like your AEG full of the latest goodies and most certainly technologically versatile, then the PRIME series could weekend, otherwise it would be quite difficult to test and review all these new models! But, all the previous releases this year dwarf what the brand has been teasing for some time now, and by now most of you already know which one it is. It’s been announced everywhere! Of course, I’m talking about the new PRIME series, which came to “overthrow” the EDGE 2.0 series, as the top dog within the brand.

I was really looking forward to seeing what Specna Arms had in store for us; the upgrades and news that PRIME brought were many. In last month’s issue gearbox, but who wouldn’t be interested in testing something that Specna Arms obviously put their heart into it?

Next up, let’s look at the new Top-Down-Centre (TDC) rotary hop up called “Magnus”.

It is obvious that the brand took inspiration from some top-tier chambers in the market to design this trigger responses I have ever used. new model. Partner it up with already tested Helium flap hop rubber, which was designed to work its best with heavier BBs, and this is probably one of the best hop-up systems out of the box in the market. The only addition that I would have liked to see was having the numbers that show the hop-up level marked visibly white, this way it would be a bit easier to adjust our “shots”. This whole set up doesn’t fall far from the upgrades that many players get for their replicas, this way you can save time and money!

Another major addition is the ASTER II from GATE, which is also an upgrade from the Version 1 found in the EDGE 2.0 series. This new ETU brings with it all the features from the previous model like fire mode configuration (binary, bursts of various durations, full auto), ROF, trigger response levels, active break and pre-cocking. But now all this is available via Bluetooth®! You no longer need the USB link to connect with the Gate Control Station, or GCS. All you need to do is download the GCS app for your smartphone, register your ASTER II serial number, and you are ready to go. With this upgrade, the player can now change the replica’s settings in the field before a game. So, for example, if a field doesn’t allow full auto, you can configure a burst.

Now... the Dark Matter brushless motor, which I already had the opportunity to test in the A33 as I mentioned before; given its performance in an older platform (the ONE series) I couldn’t wait to see how the combination with the PRIME platform would turn out. The motor included in the PRIME series is the 28K, which offers 28,000 revolutions per minute, translating into a phenomenal rate of fire and a superb trigger response with almost perfect heat dissipation. During my tests, I can say without a doubt that this is an out-of-the-box AEG with the fastest

The last upgrade I want to mention is the new version of the widely known Easy Spring Access 2, or ESA2, Specna Arms’ tool-less system to quickly change the spring. They listen to the community feedback and reinforced the stock guide rod.

THE BEST… SO FAR…

No wonder that they chose a new name for this line; it’s not just an EDGE 3.0 as almost everything is either new, or an upgrade!

These new PRIME AEGs are complete beasts out of the box, and I for one have been really enjoying using the SA-P23 in-game and in the field, showing it to players and seeing the surprised look on their faces when they learn about the price.

In my opinion, Specna Arms took a great leap in cementing their position in the market and in the field with their PRIME AEG series. All these ingredients that make this replica are great on their own, but it’s another level when they are all combined into a BB throwing machine.

Many thanks to the good people at Specna Arms (www.specnaarms.com) and GUNFIRE (www.gunfire. com) for sending over the SA-P23 to be used and abused, enabling us to prepare this article! AA

“NEXT UP, LET’S LOOK AT THE NEW TOP-DOWN-CENTRE (TDC) ROTARY HOP UP CALLED MAGNUS. IT IS OBVIOUS THAT THE BRAND TOOK INSPIRATION FROM SOME TOP-TIER CHAMBERS IN THE MARKET TO DESIGN THIS NEW MODEL. PARTNER IT UP WITH ALREADY TESTED HELIUM FLAP HOP RUBBER… THIS IS PROBABLY ONE OF THE BEST HOP-UP SYSTEMS OUT OF THE BOX IN THE MARKET”

“IN MY OPINION, SPECNA ARMS TOOK A GREAT LEAP IN CEMENTING THEIR POSITION IN THE MARKET AND IN THE FIELD. ALL THESE INGREDIENTS THAT MAKE THIS REPLICA ARE GREAT ON THEIR OWN, BUT IT’S ANOTHER LEVEL WHEN THEY ARE ALL COMBINED INTO A BB-THROWING MACHINE”