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Most recent acquisitions at the top
Ever since I saw that Marushin were releasing the Automag in 8mm form I'd been hoping and waiting. The release date slipped 3 months, but, finally, there it was on Guns N Guys' website - The order went in and GnG's normal excellent service meant it was here in a couple of days.
First impressions were a bit disappointing. The grips are a bit flimsy and flex under your grip and the black finish (I've already got a big silver gun ) is a bit dull and matt, no worse than my Mauser, but more noticeable on a such a big gun (and it's BIG - The box is the same size as my 8.375" Raging Bull and it pretty much fills the box), whilst the paint on the metal parts looks unevenly applied. The gun also feels a bit light (Endoshoji claim 850g, which is not bad, but it doesn't feel heavy).
On the positive side, the (few) AMT trademarks are beautifully detailed (Marushin markings are limited and small) and the metal sights (rear) are adjustable (very like the Raging Bull ones), although the foresight is almost impossible to see against a dark target.
Finally to the REAL proof of the pudding. I loaded half a dozen 8mm BBs and gave the mag a squirt of AE Winter gas (It's about 12 degrees C here today). I put a Coke can up about 4 or 5 metres away and took aim.
The BB went straight through both sides of the can! My Tanaka can do this at half that range (to be fair, I've not tried at the same range), but that shoots little 6mm BBs - The 8mm ones spread their force much more widely. Seems the Automag lives up to expectations on the power front - This has to be one of the most powerful (unmodified) airsoft pistols around. I didn't have a Chrono at the time, but I still believe it was more powerful than any of my other NBBs.
Accuracy, totally subjectively, seems good - I hit the can every time, in poor light and given the comments about a dark target.
Weight : 960g
Realism : ***
Quality : ****
Power : *****
Accuracy : *****
Real Steel link at Automag.Org
I'd fancied a SOCOM for ages, almost bought a springer one from a local trader and bid on e-bay loads of times, but people always ended up bidding silly money for a springer (IMO).
At first, I was excited about the fullset NBB, but as I saw it and read the reviews, I felt I didn't want to spend all that money on the silencer and toy LAM (OK, it's not a lot if you feel you want them, but I didn't really), but then I spotted Den Trinity selling the NBB and case (without the Silencer and LAM) for about half the full kit cost, which was hardly any more than a springer would cost in the UK.
It arrived and I unpacked it and checked it over. First off, the finish of case and gun are both very good. The cut outs in the case look tight and certainly hold the gun and mag well. You can fit the mag to the gun and store a second one in the mag cutout, which is nice (to coin a Fast Show phrase).
I gassed the gun and loaded a dozen BBs (the provided ones, so .2s I guess). The trigger has a very long and dead pull to start with, followed by increased resistance as the firing takes place. Once fired, though, the gun is impressively fast and incredibly accurate. My Marushin Mauser M712 is my benchmark for accuracy, but with my first shots the Socom was right up there.
As an example, the first 9 shots were all in a single hole about an inch across from about 15ft. This was taking a pause between each shot and checking where the shots went.
The next magazine I fired almost as quick as I could and the hole was probably about 1.5" across, which I thought was very good.
The power was good too, punching a number of BBs through BOTH sides of a fairly thick cardboard box - I was wondering where half the bbs went, until I picked up the box BEHIND the one I was using as my target and found them there!
The real steel SOCOM is, like many modern pistols, polymer framed, and TM have done a great job of replicating that and the slide (although ABS) feels a bit like really smooth steel and has excellent markings.
Overall, I'm very pleased with my SOCOM - I'd like the heavier weight of a KSC blowback, but that'd be double the price (and more!) and I don't suppose it'd really look a lot better (except at VERY close range). I suspect this will prove to be a big seller for TM, not least for the bits I wasn't interested in, but it's a good gas pistol in its own right.
I managed to obtain a Tokyo Marui silencer, as usually provided with the gun. I was amazed at how huge it was. Some people state it is metal and it does feel cold to the touch, but I suspect it's actually plastic. The paint finish is very shiney, which isn't a positive, in my opinion.
The silencer fits the accurately dimensioned thread on the Mk23 without any adaptors (this means it will ONLY fit the Mk23, TM or KSC) and doesn't upset the balance too much (it's too light for that and most of the gun's weight is in the magazine).
I had two main questions. Firstly, did it affect the accuracy.
As you can see, at 5m the answer is a clear no. On the downside, however, it does seem to reduce the FPS quite dramatically (and presumably range) as shots with the silencer (although grouped as tightly the unsilenced group) failed to penetrate into my polystyrene target backing.
In terms of silencing, the REAL reason you buy a silencer and my second question, the Mk23's is extremely effective. When I find some suitable software, I'll measure the volume with and without and place it here, but I would say it's half as noisy (maybe less than that) with the silencer, than without and it's not very noisy to start with.
Weight : 800g/880g with silencer
Realism : ****
Quality : ***
Power : ****
Accuracy : *****
This 3PSA branded, little peashooter was my very first gas gun. I had a couple of springers, but really fancied something that I didn't have to cock every shot.
The little Colt really is TINY, only my second finger rests on the grip with my first on the trigger.
This is an old/cheap style NBB, where the gas goes in the grip and the magazine is just a thin strip, just wide enough for a single stack of 7 BBs. Whilst this is annoyingly unrealistic on a big handgun (like the Desert Eagle or Colt 1911 by TM), it really doesn't detract from the Colt's appeal much.
In use the gun is no SOCOM or Mauser, but it works. The sights consist of a long groove in the top of the (fixed) slide with a single blade at the end, but they do the job at the range the gun works at, which is comparable with the better springers. There's no Hop-Up (of course), but the gun is either cast of metal or very strong ABS and the detail is moulded very well, including the Colt trademarks on the grip and slide.
For a concealed skirmish weapon this makes a lot of sense. It's cheap to buy, 7 rounds is enough for the purpose and it's nicely made. It also makes a pretty good collector's piece as the detailing and finish are much better than you'd expect for the typical price and there are few airsoft pistols of this type to choose from.
Over 5 shots, the Colt .25 averaged 191fps (using 134a gas) indoors (around 21C).
| Shot | FPS |
| 1 | 190.3 |
| 2 | 195.4 |
| 3 | 193.5 | 4 | 188.7 |
| 5 | 192.2 |
Weight : 180g
Realism : ***
Quality : ***
Power : ***
Accuracy : ***