MWS or WE Open Bolt?

[Hawkeye450]

So I’ve been airsofting for the better part of 20 years & worked my way through a whole load of AEGs in this time, including TM, VFC, KWA, G&P, G&G, ICS, a long with various Chineseium & CYMA Platforms… got a fair amount of experience in tech including rebuilding & scratch building various AEGs, so am familiar with a lot of the manufacturers available on the market… However,  the time has come to branch out into GBBRs…

 

Having dived into the various GBBR threads, there are clearly a lot of opinions about various brands (as well as debates on the levels of “realism” of some platforms), along with all the aftermarket upgrades etc to consider too… 

 

Having looked into availability of upgrades/aftermarket bits, it all depends where you go/look - and that’s cool.

 

The question is, what would you (the people) recommend…

Either a WE Open bolt AR-15, OR, an MWS (TM/Clone) based system?

 

Be as honest/blunt as you want to be. Any experienced creatures, please tell me positives & negatives of either (or both).

 

Thanks in advice 🤙

[Impulse]

I'll happily shill the TM MWS. I have 3 of them (one m4 CQBR, one m16 and one mk12 set up as a DMR) and they never skip a beat. Generally the feeling that I've got is that the TM MWSs are the kings of efficiency, but I think the WE, VFC or GHK offerings have more recoil but don't have the same level of reliability and efficiency of the TM; I couldn't tell you for sure, however, because I haven't used the others. All I know is that my three MWSs are amazing.

 

In terms of aftermarket parts, the MWS doesn't need much. All three of mine have the exact same setup, being the Jaeger Precision NPAS, Stalker barrel (250mm in the CQBR, 510mm in the m16 and 455mm in the mk12), Flamingo hop rubber and Jaeger Precision Titan nub. People say the nozzle return springs eventually go, but mine are still going strong. However, it's definitely worth picking up some spares just in case!

[sjhirst]

If you'd asked this several years ago, id had said the WE, just based on price and available spare part/ upgrades. Having owned several of them, there was never any huge issues with the ones i had.

Now, however, id say the MWS platform. The DE versions seem a superb buy and parts are a lot more readily available for the MWS system. The reliability seems second to none and overall id say is the best option to get into GBB's (or if you own a gbb already and looking for other options)

[woody_2231]

VFC & TM are the most recommended brands for gbb ARs.

 

VFC advantages:

-excellent gas efficiency 

-durable steel FCG/BCG

-Strong recoil

-real spec parts

-Decent accuracy ootb

-High gas capacity 

 

VFC disadvantages:

-Expensive/uncommon in the UK

-Little airsoft specific aftermarket 

 

TM advantages:

-Very strong airsoft aftermarket

-Excellent efficiency and cold weather performance

-Decent gas capacity 

-High ROF

-Good accuracy ootb

-Materials design around their limitations

-1/3 cheaper than VFC

 

TM disadvantages:

-Unrealistic/toy-like design & action

-Mostly zinc alloy

-short inner barrel, low fps

-Aeg spec parts

 

WE system is no longer recommend because their design have basically no advantages over the aforementioned brands beside being cheap. Even then there's better alternative(double eagle mws clones).

 

WE: 

-Infamous cheese zinc alloy construction

-unrealistic internal design

-poor winter performance 

-poor accuracy

-Little aftermarket (besides ra tech)

-Bolt lock failure

-unappealing externals(steel parts stand out from alloy)

 

 

As mentioned, double eagle mws clones are best bang for your buck since it's a direct clone of the mws with steel internals while being cheaper than a TM mws. The N4 and Ghetto blaster are both recommendable. However you may need to shim the magwell and replace the nozzle.

Edited February 13 by woody_2231

[Impulse]

1 hour ago, woody_2231 said:

VFC disadvantages:

-Expensive/uncommon in the UK

-Little airsoft specific aftermarket 

 

These are getting better now though. I'm keeping an eye on 4uantum and what they're bringing out, as their VFC/GHK AR hop unit looks really, really nice. If they bring out a version for the VFC M110, I may be tempted enough to buy another gun at some point...

[OREVREV]

Woody's summarised it well.

 

I have two of each VFC and TM, I would say if I could only have 1 it would be the TM, it has never skipped a beat the VFCs feel better and perform nearly the same with the hop upgrades, but the TMs just work OTB, never had an issue with any aspect of it inc mags, can't say the same for VFCs.

Both are great though, once you get 1 gbbr it's very hard to stop, they are so much fun, TMs the best staring point imo as it just works, the M4A1 won't feel like a toy compared to an AEG, it feels great full stop.

[MistakenMexican]

Having owned both a WE open bolt and an MWS, I’d recommend the MWS.

 

Theres nothing wrong with the WE open bolt, however it struggled with cold weather and the after market parts required a lot of grinding and filing to fit.

 

My MWS runs fairly happily in the single digits we’ve had recently. My AKX has performed very well in sub zero where the MWS has struggled. However, by comparison, my WE SCAR L would have given up around 10-15C.

 

if you want realism, then the VFC systems are much better. My bugbear with the MWS is that it takes AEG furniture so lots of the cool stuff isn’t available in MWS spec or is super expensive because it’s specifically made for the MWS.

 

 

[Nick G]

I have 2 WE based L119's , I also now have the DE N4 . There are pros and cons to both. Available upgrades for the N4/MWS are certainly plentiful. However it doesn't kick as hard or frankly feel as robust as the WE's . It's a nice platform though , hop adjustment is certainly quicker than the WE . Mine has had the usual barrel , hop ruber and nub replacement . My WE's have had the same , barrel , rubber and nub . Beyond that they are stock, I know some folk decry WE internals , but I'have never had a failure in either of them (or any of my other WE GBBRs) that wasn't down to user error.  Thousands of rounds through them and the bolt locks are still working fine. 

 

And most real steel furniture fits the WE, MWS I believe is a bit more selective.

 

Mine have run happily down to under 5 degrees with careful mag management , any colder than that and I'm not playing ! 

 

I honestly dont find anything in it in terms of range and accuracy betwenn the WEs and DE 

 

Go with whichever you fancy, based on my experience you wont be dissapointed with either.

 

 

[Hawkeye450]

Thanks to everyone so far… this is some good info for me to work with & greatly appreciated.

The VFC & GHK seem pretty well regarded, along with the price being higher & their own supply/aftermarket options being a little more limited than the TM & MWS options.

 

Seems that the consensus is MWS out of the box, due to efficiency & performance, quality, accuracy, cost - along with general availability of parts for aftermarket upgrades (by the sounds these may not even be needed).

 

Just need to figure out which one now… and that debate continues, as to whether a TM, DE, or other base. There are so many options out there…

 

Sounds like everyone (so far) has had good experiences with the MWS & WE options!

 

With regards to aftermarket parts for MWS bases - any good recommendations for pistol grips? Considering looking into the standard PTS options…

[Impulse]

15 minutes ago, Hawkeye450 said:

With regards to aftermarket parts for MWS bases - any good recommendations for pistol grips? Considering looking into the standard PTS options…

 

Any real-steel AR grip should fit. I use Hogue AR-15 grips on all of mine because they're not too expensive and feel great.

[MistakenMexican]

1 hour ago, Hawkeye450 said:

With regards to aftermarket parts for MWS bases - any good recommendations for pistol grips? Considering looking into the standard PTS options…

Magpul MOE K2+ for me.

 

its a steeper grip angle which is good if you’ve got compact PDW stock.

 

alternatively the MOE+ is very good. 
 

you have a rubberised grip and a compartment for skittles.

[Nick G]

My DE has a real steel ERGO grip on it 

[Hawkeye450]

1 hour ago, MistakenMexican said:

Magpul MOE K2+ for me.

 

its a steeper grip angle which is good if you’ve got compact PDW stock.

 

alternatively the MOE+ is very good. 
 

you have a rubberised grip and a compartment for skittles.

think this may have just won me over… tactical-haribo in the pistol grip is an 11/10 🤙

1 hour ago, Nick G said:

My DE has a real steel ERGO grip on it 

This is a nice streamlined set-up!!!

liking that grip too… very L129/Sharpshooter-esque 🤙

[OREVREV]

Modern stuff is cool, but consider a classic M4A1, I spent loads on bits over the years but ended up full circle and it's actually my favourite mostly tm stock parts, the BCM is VFC with real BCM rail, buffer, grip stock, steel barrel, 4UAD hop unit etc, but just can't beat the GWOT look and the performance of the mws.

[GiantKiwi]

Been a user of WE since the closed bolt era, but i'm now swapping to TM as I don't have to stick with a single, shit aftermarket option (note, not upgrade, aftermarket, as they're anything but upgrades).

 

Also another consideration, WE V2 (what most retailers in the UK have in stock at the moment, and what all used sales will be) is now end of life, as V3 has been released 4-5 months ago. There isn't enough information on the reliability of V3 to be able to recommend them, and V2 parts ceased being manufactured 3 months prior to the first production runs of V3, so parts will start to become more scarce.

 

[Anonymoose]

Doesn't MWS limit you to just AR-based guns? (And a SCAR-L for a lot of money)

[EvilMonkee]

No contest, MWS every time

[GiantKiwi]

10 hours ago, Anonymoose said:

Doesn't MWS limit you to just AR-based guns? (And a SCAR-L for a lot of money)

 

TM AKX et al are also empirically better than WE AK's, if not compatible with many RS parts, but then most will take a functioning gun over a pretty one.

[Anonymoose]

23 hours ago, GiantKiwi said:

 

TM AKX et al are also empirically better than WE AK's, if not compatible with many RS parts, but then most will take a functioning gun over a pretty one.

 

Yeah, as i understand all of TM's quality is impeccable. But if we're talking MWS as a platform that limits you to ARs and the Guns Modify SCAR-L. I know the OP asked about ARs.

 

(My GBBs are all VFC and one GHK so zero first-hand experience of MWSs.)