TheFull9

At airsoft ranges and with the ''accuracy'' of airsoft guns, an irons setup for speed over grouping is far preferable I'd say. Airsoft guns in general are only capable of firing as accurately as the real thing (i.e. where your zero'd sights point is where the bullet goes, every time) within a small distance. A good quality AK can put 762x39 within about 3-4" at 100 yards, I'm not sure what the max distance would be for an AEG to attain that tight of a group as I'm just not interested in barrels/hop parts/internals, but I'd wager something very roughly around 20m (gun dependent obviously), followed with a max range of about 55-60m for a 350FPS gun that's been extremely thoroughly tuned by a very gifted tech. That ties in to the proliferation of red dots within airsofting, how many people do you even see that don't run a dot sight? I mean when I think back it's a very rare sight for me personally. Get a few guys with 4x ACOGs/Specters and obviously there's the marksmen/snipers. Few older style guns (often AKs) just running irons, but more often just because they don't have any picatinny on top of the rifle. But outside of that, everyone I personally see with a gun that can easily mount a dot seems to have one and it does makes sense realy. In the real world if you're an awesome shot with a lot of training you can shoot someone at 700m with a dot, but it's a whole truck load easier with magnification, even a biff like me can hit a man at 500 yards with zero prior practice shooting at that range at all, long as I've got a SUSAT. However the concept of red dots was really tailored for close range encounters (10-200m ish, opinions and SOPs vary a lot) and the standard airsoft combat ranges of about 10-50m fit in that bracket very nicely indeed. You only have one point of reference which in the iron sight world would just be crazy, nobody does that, but we're so close in airsoft and the average carbines most people carry just don't shoot shoot anywhere near tight enough to worry about maximising sight radius and spending ages perfectly zeroing optics. Whereas being able to get a bead someone that's close very quickly is very useful indeed. A quick zero with a reasonable quality (or for AEGs even low quality) red dot works great I find. Usual caveat that obviously all the above is just based on my own experiences, your mileage may and quite possibly will vary.

That's very unfortunate, how old was the gun/rounds fired?

Some choice bits on there, nice. Be interested to see some more outdoor shots.

I think you're kinda looking at it in the wrong context, need to try and (just very temporarily) put yourself in a different perspective. If you still disagree that's obviously absolutely fine. Apologies if this is egg-sucking to anybody but to address the forum at large/in general: It's based on/made popular by the 4 safety rules that are prevalent with american civilian shooters and it assumes that you actually haven't cleared your gun at all, because if you use their rule set there's no need to and it's perfectly safe. The military way you and I know (completely unloading after every single string of fire) is designed for and around the lowest common denominator, the dumbest recruit/admin'er/PTi/med centre receptionist that can't physically get their head around safely handling a loaded gun and cannot be trusted with them in general, but the government is still obliged to employ them. As with everything in the forces it's got its' basis in someone's past screw-up, these things always have a historical basis that need to be born in mind, because it wasn't always done that way. Discussed this with a few different ex-US forces guys and they say the same thing about their lot. Nobody here's telling anyone else what they have to do or how they have to behave, it's literally just a discussion going on about different experiences and perspectives. If you think different that's fine you're welcome to your thoughts same as anyone else, but I don't think anybody here is being pretentious. Especially when it'll only take one kid's lost eye reported to some rag to get airsoft in an even more precarious position than it is, I think we should all very much welcome people being as safety conscious even if we don't actually agree with their thoughts, it all makes the hobby in general look better to the outside. But again that is just my view.

Pretty sure 99% of sites have that rule, never been to one where you weren't required to remove mags before leaving the game area and entering the SZ. I very much agree with keeping fingers outside trigger guards at all times you're not shooting at someone deliberately during a skirmish, there's just too many potential factors at work. Apart from anything else it's literally the easiest thing to do just about ever, possibly a close third after breathing/absorbing light through the eyes in this thing we know as vision. No matter how good a site's rules are you can never prevent some f****** morons putting loaded mags in AEGs and thinking "oh I'll just have a quick test fire in the safe zone.. it'll be fine". I've seen it, I've f*cked up myself in my own house (which I'm very ashamed of but when the ricochet goes real close it teaches you a lesson for sure) and I've met very few players who haven't seen someone do something like ping off a shot in the safe zone. I always bring at least 3 sets of eye pro to every game anyway, largely just because they're permanently stored in the bags I take. The plan in future is to wear my preferred set of eye/face pro for the playing then a quick switch to some nice, dry shooting specs once off the field. Military and airsoft folks alike are all largely shocking when it comes to safe weapons handling, I've seen it from every service, rank and every type or skirmisher without exception at some point or another. Most brits (mainly softers) hate the 4 rules that the yanks like to use, but having tried them extensively they're what I employ at all times with RIFs and guns. I personally find they give far more confidence and safety than the military and airsoft attitudes of "it's unloaded"; however I'm not the king of airsoft by a long old stretch and I do not expect the vast majority to agree in the slightest. It'd just be nice if people would respond amicably on the very odd occasion I ask someone to not point a barrel straight at my face, rather than getting pissed off and instantly massively defensive over a simple, politely worded request.

My knees got kinda messed up in basic training, during just a couple of days of the final exercise they went from absolutely fine/standard spritely teenager, to barely being able to squat. Always having a weapon+webbing+bergan on then dropping to kneeling many many many times without any pads (on top of the monkey running and other larking about) and spending a long old time in the kneeling in general. I was fine at the end in every other respect (apart from stinking badly) but I genuinely felt like an immobile old man when I tried to drop down to reorganise some stuff in the bottom of a locker. Took them probably 3 years or so to go fully back to normal. For airsoft it's all about the Crye style setup to my mind. I've got a few trousers with the internal foam/neoprene but then you're just wearing through the trouser itself whenever you kneel, so having a foam pad with a plastic cap on the outside not only means the pads will last a long time but if they eventually do wear out you spend far less money. They can be occasionally tricky to position just right, but they're always somewhere in the correct sort of area; pros and cons to all the different arrangements.

I think he most probably knew what you were on about mate.

Ladder covers? That's just a start, you can get the XTMs and XTM handstop kits. I mean the stock is RS for starters, if it weren't for the fact I wanted an extended slick-type forend it'd have matching plastic handguards and if it were a GBBr the pistol grip would match too. F***, knew I'd get a detail like that wrong. Back to the drawing board.

And now for something completely different.

LEAF Combat Jacket

Usually the weak springs that airsoft manufacturers put behind their delta rings which are to fault there. Not sure how to go about getting some decent ones in the UK apart from buying some RS delta ring assemblies from Midway (which is what I ended up doing). You'd also need a barrel nut spanner and some good needle nose pliers to change the thing. If it's movement back and forth try packing out the front edge with some tape, if you keep it to the very front edge it'll be hidden under the front handguard retainer cap. Not exactly a professional gunsmithing technique but the problem is brought about by iffy/variable airsoft manufacturing specs and tolerances so bodge solutions are required on occasion.

The receivers are a bit wider in some ways, that doesn't affect the specs of the barrel nut or handguard cap though (those being the parts which dictate fitting of plastic handguards). Like I say I've fitted RS MOE handguards to various electric guns no problem.

Maybe I'm mis-understanding the question, but there shouldn't be any difference. The PTW is built to real AR dimensions and I've fitted PTS and RS MOE handguards to AEGs, EBB and GBB rifles, never had any problems. Shouldn't be any reason for there to even be two different specs on sale.

I think it depends how many mags you get through. I've done a fair bit of practice at reloading and always run pouches with quick access, also only tend to use one or two mags between breaks so that stops the rattling as you run. Never got anywhere close to running out of space in my dump pouch, most I've had in one is 2 rifle and 2 pistol mags but that's a rarity, usually just one rifle mag. If they're plastic mags of any kind (which probably covers more than half of all airsofters loadouts at a vague guess) the problem is lessened further. I've been noticing recently they don't suit GBBRs so well, don't want much more than 2 GBB M4 mags swinging around in there. Again though depends on the user, I'll probably only reload once most games so having 1 mag in the dumper is ok and you can always stow empty mags securely in a pouch during a lull, indeed you probably should. Generally in airsoft there's plenty of opportunities for doing that. In which case the dumper almost purely acts as an aid to make reloads that much faster.

Just the front end of the 14.5" Avalon BCM gun. Waiting on a chance to take full shots.

They only just popped up in the states, probably a couple of months until they make it to the RS retailers over here I'd say. The 2 main places to keep an eye on/enquire with are Lantac and Arc Precision, although a lot of airsoft retailers here and in HK have been stocking RS magpul stuff since PTS lost the license.

Everyone starting out with an AR with plastic handguards says that, then the reality hits that quad rails are very heavy and the facilitate the adding of even more weight to the area of the gun where additional weight makes your arm hurt and detriments 'pointability'. Haven't bought a quad rail myself in... at least 2 years, maybe 3 or more. I mean if you want one that genuinely is entirely your choice and it's airsoft so go for it, just passing on some experience. I'd recommend putting the rail budget in to something like hydro dipping the gun/parts thereof, or some other handguard that doesn't have a rail on all 4 sides. The real MOE set can be had for less than a lot of dodgy ACM RAS sets and far less than a high quality airsoft rail. Same amount of attachment options if not more, less weight, better integration with VFGs. Ideally wait for the new MOE Slimline handguard to get to the UK, shouldn't be that long and then you'll be right on the cutting edge (seeing as they were literally just announced).

Final iteration of my WAS DCS before it moves on. PALS might be kinda heavy compared to my FirstSpear rigs but it does have the versatility there in spades.

Gotta be the biggest AEG ever.

Some say WE are currently putting out a newer batch of M&Ps with a new QC process in place, but I'm yet to be convinced by any of that. I'd never say it was a 'bad' brand as such but to me QC from the factory is paramount and WE still don't have a solid track record in that respect, even with their recent stuff, reports are very much mixed. VFC aren't the king in that respect either but the Glock line has been good enough in the quality and consistency departments for me to give them a fair chance, certainly over WE.

More morale stuff than anything with this lot, but I am a patch whore so that's all gravy. Also 2 x Gen 2 IDA Combat shirts from UR-Tac in AOR2 and ATACS-AU, but no pictures of those.

But you can with a banana in a jacket pocket.

Cheers. I wouldn't be too hesitant, when people talk about VFC GBBs in a negative sense they're referring to their rifle line (which itself has improved a lot in recent times apparently). The original VFC M&P9c has a pretty good reputation and has been around for some time, same story with the Stark Glocks which are pretty popular indeed. You don't see/hear about them as much here because they're not available in the UK, but the Stark G19 has probably the best all round reviews of any G19 from what I can see, heck likely in the top few in terms of all airsoft Glocks. The VFC line isn't TM I'll say that, they are cheaper and with metal slides which means they aren't as nice internally there's no denying it. But they're at least as good as the new WE stuff or KJW, if not slightly better.

VFC M&P Full Size Gas Blowback Pistol Video review covers a lot, obviously there's things you can't really put across in stills. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xq4gHYZ7unY]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xq4gHYZ7unY In the Box The M&P9 with the Medium backstrap fitted 1 x Magazine Spacer to allow dry firing of the magazine without the slide locking Small backstrap Large backstrap Serial number plate to cover up 'Made in Taiwan' Plastic inserts for the front sight and both dots of the rear sight Packaging itself is pretty plain, not exactly TM standards but there was plenty of plastic and bubble wrap inside to keep everything secure and free from any moisture ingress. Externals The plastic of the frame has a fair amount of seam line going on and the trigger is particularly bad for seams and some flash, but it's not something you actually feel in the hand (much to my relief). Overall I generally feel like the shape of the M&P is what a Glock should be and isn't miles from the the way many Glocks end up once they've had a professional re-profile. No stupid finger bumps that imply everyone in the world has the exact same sized hands. The plastic itself is certainly decent enough, there's a bit of a sheen but nothing offensive and nothing creaks, flexes or wobbles. The take-down lever on mine seems to either have had something go a bit wrong in the machining of the serrations or there's something left in there from the factory, but I've seen pictures of the RS with a similar effect. The slide lock/release and the arrow around the pin hole that would mount the manual safety on the RS guns that feature said safety are accurate. Although technically there should be a spring pin in the rearmost space that's purely an aesthetic issue where the VFC gun doesn't have a hole all the way through like the S&W does. The 20mm rail is obviously an expected feature on a modern pistol of this type and from my quick tests it appears to be fine in terms of dimensions, which elevates this gun significantly in terms of practicality for CQB skirmishing in my eyes. The fit between the slide and frame is a tiny bit loose but there's certainly much worse out there in airsoft. The visible gap is pretty much comparable to the RS. It definitely wants some breaking in from the factory, particularly when it comes to the field strip. I had some real troubles getting everything to line up just-so the first few times I took the slide off and attempted reassembly but after a few repetitions it started to improve. The slide appears to be of a good quality metal and the machining inside and out looks pretty precise. The cocking serrations are particularly grippy compared to most handguns, although with the weak recoil spring that comes in this gun you won't need to worry about that too much. I'm not sure if the extractor itself is actually a separate piece but it certainly looks that way and it is a different colour to the rest of the slide so that's a nice aesthetic. Finish on the slide is pretty good from my initial look, certainly better than my KJW 1911 and a lot of other metal pistols I've seen that are only cheaply painted. As with any metal-slided GBB you'll obviously get paint wearing away in high friction areas inside such as the grooves for the rails and where the outer barrel cams downwards, so keep those spots clean and lightly oiled. As you'll note from the pictures my outer barrel had already seen a lot of cycles before the gun even got to me, which is slightly annoying, but the paint wear is consistent with that seen on the RS. You can always get the thing cerakoted if you want the top of the chamber to stay black for longer. Personally I'm not a mega stickler for trades in terms of them being rolled/stamped/engraved in the exact same way that the real firearm features/when it comes to the nuances of the font etc. However VFC's partnership with Cybergun has allowed them to include a full set of realistic trademarks on this M&P replica and still openly sell it internationally, unlike the traded Stark G series. I think they're nicely done on both the slide and frame and certainly seem quite close to the real gun, but the main thing is that there aren't any screaming, nasty, airsoft specific, whited-in trades on this pistol. The one way they deviate from the Smith & Wesson gun is the 'Made in Taiwan' on the right side of the frame, which is nicely covered up by the included serial number plate (which you'll want to secure with a dab of glue). Here's some macro shots of each trademark. Internals One great thing about this design is that you can break it down to what you see below in about 7 seconds with no tools of any sort. It's similarly quick and simple to re-assemble (once you've worn it in a bit) which makes adjusting the hop much less of a chore than some designs and it's obviously very handy for general cleaning and maintenance. Even compared to the Glock design I find it a lot better, both in terms of the field strip and switching the backstraps (which do make a significant difference depending on which you fit so this gun will cater to a wide range of hand sizes). The bits inside the frame and slide aren't exactly beautiful but then they obviously don't need to be, they certainly appear sturdy enough, and again, very comparable to a Stark G17. The recoil spring (which is captive on the guide rod) is very weak as I mentioned, so if you're at all ginger/tentative with cocking the gun or pressing the slide release you can end up with a failure to battery, especially when the gun's not yet worn in and before you clean out what little grease is put in by the factory and add some silicone oil yourself. But I didn't have any issues with returning to battery during firing or when cocking the gun properly at speed/with some force. The hop unit is a Marui type although this is one area I did come across an issue, mine does not apply even pressure to the bucking. The metal arm that is moved up and down by the adjustment wheel doesn't sit dead straight/flat and tends to be pulled slightly further down on the side of the wheel, creating more of an impression on that side when you look down the barrel. I stripped the unit down and reassembled to check it wasn't the screws being loose but it appears not, the arm itself may need some modifying to prevent shots hooking left at longer ranges. The inner barrel was very mucky from the factory so definitely give that a clean. Although the groove in the end of it near the muzzle with the fitted o-ring is very good to see and stops the inner barrel rattling around inside the outer during firing, something a lot of cheaper pistols can suffer with due to omitting this simple feature. The full-auto mode can be easily accessed with the gun assembled by locking the slide back and looking under the rear sight. Not sure why VFC included this (apart from just copying the mechanism from the M&P9c) and I've not tried it at all myself, would've preferred it not be included. But fingers crossed it doesn't cause the gun to last any less time than it would being semi only, in which case it'll just be a nice little feature for people to play about with on occasion. Features and Function The movement of the slide on the frame probably won't win an awards for smoothness and the sort of robust feel that inspires the confidence a high quality RS pistol does, but for a metal slided gun in this price range it's certainly comparable with the competition. I'm probably judging it somewhat harshly for various reasons, but overall it's perfectly fine and doesn't have any problems cycling. The trigger to my mind isn't particularly impressive, but I think a lot of this comes down to the two-part design of the M&P family trigger, which to me always just looks like a sideways version of the Glock trigger safety. I've been spoilt by some very expensive, highly modified RS M&Ps but I think the plastic VFC have used is just a tad too flexible when it comes to small/thin parts like the trigger. End of the day the average airsofter won't notice this so as a skirmishing gun it's not much of a negative, just a point for the shooters. It hits a fairly predictable wall before the break which certainly isn't the most sharp and crisp in the world and is overall a tad sponge'y, but I haven't noticed any grit to it. The reset is annoying to me personally in that it is neither audible nor tactile most of the time (for some reason it occasionally does click), but again most airsofters (certainly in the UK and most of Europe) won't be bothered by this in the slightest and from what I've been told this is accurate to the RS trigger when the gun's in stock form. The slide lock was almost a bit disconcerting at first, because rather than the piece you physically interact with locking the slide there's a protrusion that goes further in which catches on the notch in the slide. As I noted in the video it doesn't take much of a knock to dislodge the lever and send the slide home, but I'd imagine the worst case scenario of this is that you might occasionally have to power stroke on a reload. Although it does mean as a side effect you can reload that fraction of a second faster every time because slapping in the mag will send the slide forward consistently in my experience thus far. The magazine catch is an area that maybe needs breaking in as I found my pistol somewhat inconsistent in releasing magazines compared to others I've owned and used. The protrusion on the frame feels like a real obstruction, as if you have to reach over it with your thumb to actuate the button. It's not a flaw specific to the VFC and it's not insurmountable, but getting a good press on the button will take some getting used to vs a 1911/P226/G17. The mag catch can be swapped around for any left handed users who prefer that. Which combined with the dual-sided slide lock and symmetrical frame makes this pistol essentially full ambidextrous. The blowback is what you'd expect, perhaps a tiny bit on the sluggish side due to the slide/frame interface not being the smoothest and the weak recoil spring. Overall though we're talking very small fractions of seconds between this and the various other comparable GBB pistols on the market. Firing and feeding was consistent although I'm unable to provide any sort of range or ranged accuracy report at this time due to the constraints of the job. The pistol did fine with hitting a 12" square paper target (typical mesh BB catcher box) at roughly 5-6m, but I've no idea as yet how that wonky hop unit will affect things at further distances. In Conclusion I don't particularly like to use the phrase "for the price" because that just always seems to imply a lesser quality somehow, but in its' truest sense I feel it's very relevant to this pistol. Given the spotty reputation of the WE with regards consistent, reliable function (along with said pistol's lack of accurate trades) and the fact the Marui M&P quite likely won't handle propane too well when it eventually arrives (whenever that is); I strongly believe the VFC is a strong entry to the market. I think it will suit a lot of people who wish to own an airsoft version of one of these guns, be it for skirmishing (perhaps more suited for CQB), collecting/plinking or as a cost effective training tool. It looks good inside and out with a complete set of fully correct trademarks with no airsoft 'extras' or alternations, the magazines hold gas reliably and feed perfectly fine. The M&P design is highly ergonomic and one of the most modern designs of pistol that exists in airsoft form. I've no doubt that a good selection of high-end slides, barrels, triggers and other parts will be forthcoming for this platform for those that want the ATEi/Salient/Costa custom type look and if the Stark Glocks are anything to go by the supply of stock parts to keep these guns running in the event of breakages should be plentiful. It's a shame the mags aren't compatible with WE and you know TM won't copy anyone else so unfortunately we are going to end up with 3 types of mags, but I think if you want a really good looking M&P that's also decent for skirmishing and can handle the same gas as your GBB rifles this platform is a very sound bet overall.

Not to worry ian, never so much as touched a gun with a MOSFET inside. If I spent money on that kind of thing I wouldn't have as much to spunk on aesthetics and other frivolities. Gun might lock up on semi, but at least it's pwettyful.