By Kornkob and Cueball
Published: 15 November, 2003
Right behind Heckler and Koch’s MP5 series of guns, Armalites are some of the most common replica guns made for Airsoft. With the raging popularity of Tokyo Marui’s M4a1 it it’s not uncommon to attend a skirmish where almost 100% of the guns present are a variant of the Armalite series of guns.
Of course, people like to tweak out their gear to get a bit of their own individual personalities into their kit. As such, it’s hardly surprising that many companies would be producing a wide array of attachments, upgrades and accessories for this and the other Armalites. Fore grips, conversion kits, risers, barrels, scopes.
Recently Uncompany sent ASR a couple new Armalite parts from a company called Zenith. One of the items was a sweet little pistol grip with a contoured shape and a specially textured surface designed to improve comfort and weapon retention. The other is a replica of the Crane Adjustable stock in use by Spec ops teams today. We took this improved stock and textured pistol grip and put them through the paces.
Inspection
These Zenith pieces present well out of the box. Solidly constructed out of heavy plastic, they were obviously crafted with care and attention to detail.
The TacGrip is a pretty standard ‘ergonomic’ pistol grip shape. While the one we got is black, a brief look at Uncompany.com turned up the fact that the grip comes also in Brown and Olive Drab. The entire surface of the grip is heavily and deeply textured. One person who looked at it said that it almost looked like a cork texture. While it looks a little like cork, it doesn’t feel like it. It has the same firm feel as the standard plastic, with a different surface texture.
The Crane Stock is solidly built and, with much twisting and pushing, did flex or squeak, which is often feared in replica parts. The moving parts all work smoothly and don’t have the cheap feel that sometimes plague knock offs of real steel accessories.
The most dramatic thing about this stock is that which makes it a ‘Crane’ stock. The standard issue adjustable stock has the bare minimum amount of plastic and parts to make it function as a shoulder stock. However, the failing that the standard stock has is there is not really a good surface for the shooter to get a cheek weld on. When the shooter is aiming for a shot, the natural resting point on the standard stock is a tube.
The Crane Stock seeks to correct this by making that round tube into a shape conducive to a cheek weld. There is an area running the length of the Crane that sticks out an extra inch, providing a small, 45 degree platform for one to rest the face against when aiming. This makes shooting more comfortable and natural. How well does it work? Let’s get it on and find out!
Installation
The installation for both the grip and stock took just under 10 minutes. While the installation is pretty simple for both items, the grip does require a couple tools. A long neck Phillips head screwdriver and 1.5 hex driver. Installation of the Crane stock was very easy on the TM M4a1. Even someone not very mechanically inclined should have no problem at all with it. All you need to do is pull down on the adjustment lever and side the original stock off. To install the new stock pull down the adjustment lever and side it forward on the stock rail. That’s it. Simple, sweet and ready to rock.
While the process for changing the grip on one’s Armalite is a little more daunting. However it is still relatively simple and doesn’t require a lot of mechanical know-how to get right. It is important that you take your time and get it right, however.
To begin, find the 2 screws at the bottom of the grip that hold a plate that holes the motor in. These will need to be removed. When you remove the plate, be careful there is a shim that is used to push the motor up into the gears. Be sure not to lose this piece and make a note of how it fits in there. Next remove the negative and positive cables from the motor. After you pull the motor out make a note where the negative and positive cables lay inside the hand grip because it can be tricky to reinstall the grip if you've forgotten how these wires route inside the grip.
There are 2 more screws that connect the hand grip to the gear box that need to be removed at this point. After the screws are removed the hand grip should slide off. Be careful when sliding off the hand grip not to pull or strain the positive and negative cables. Gentle, firm pressure should be used.
Now that the grip is removed you can install the new one. The new grip has 4 holes in the top. The inner two are for the positive and negative cables and the outer 2 are for the screws to hold the grip to the gear box. Pull the negative and positive thought the 2 inner holes. Put the screws for the grip in the other holes and reattach the grip to the lower receiver. Be careful not to over-torque the screws as you could strip them out.
Then place the negative and positive cables back in place like there were when you first disabled the grip. Place the motor back in and connect the positive and negatives back to the motor. When you place the plate that keeps the motor in make sure you have the shim too. Screw back in the motor plate. Your new grip is now installed.
You will have to tighten the motor adjustment screw with the hex driver until the motor is siting firmly against the gears in the gear box. This may take some time to get right as you want the motor to be positioned tight against the gears but not so tight as to keep them from freely moving.
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Yes, 10 minutes later you’ve got a new look to your Armalite replica.
The dull ABS finish matches well with the finish of the TM M4 we put it on. The stock and the grip don’t have any more play in it than the ones that came standard. After checking to make sure that flexing the stock and the grip didn’t squeak or make any other sounds, it was time to take it out and see what different these things made.
The stock’s cheek rest is an excellent addition, allowing one to find a nice comfortable place to rest one’s cheek when aiming. This was particularly noticeable during long, stationary periods where one is holding a sight picture for an extended period. It’s adjustment was smooth and silent as well.
The pistol grip was very comfortable. The texturing seemed to help with retention of the gun. It was certainly ergonomic and fit in the hand very nicely.
Conclusion
Overall, these new offerings from Zenith seem to be some quality pieces.
The stock is easily installed and it’s improved shape is a great improvement over the original stock. However, the battery holders in the stock seem to have no real use. It would require both a special battery and some significant mods to the gun to make use of that battery storage worthwhile. However, for a relatively inexpensive way to both give your gun a bit more of a unique look, as well as adding a little functionality at the same time, with hardly 30 seconds work to get installed.
The grip takes a bit more work to install but that challenge is surmountable for the average person. With 3 color choices and it’s unique textured look, this grip is certainly a way to get a stylish look in a functional package. Ergonomic, functional and definitely unique.
Yep—Zenith may have hit a home run on this one. So head on over to Uncompany and check this stuff out.
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