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Advanced AEG Upgrade Guide - SVX
Version 2.4
Section 1 : Weapon Archetypes (Determining what upgrade path to take)
Part I - High Reliability-tuned Weapons
Part II - High RoF Setups
Part III - High Power Setups
Part IV - Hybrid Setups
Section 2 : Parts Information (Transmission, Compression, Electical, etc...)
Part I - The Mainspring
A) Mainspring
B) Spring Guide
Part II - Transmission
A) Gearsets
B) Pistons
C) Bushings/Bearings
Part III - Compression
A) Pistonhead
B) Cylinder
C) Cylinderhead
D) Air Nozzle
Part IV - Electrical
A) Battery
B) Motor
C) Trigger Switch
D) Selector Plate
Part V - Barrel
A) Inner Barrel
B) Hopup Assembly
C) Hopup Packing
Part VI - Misc
A) Tappet Plate
B) Anti-Reverse Latch
C) Cutoff Lever
Section 3 : Part Selection (Parts combinations)
Part I - Reliability
A) 320FPS
B) 360FPS
C) 400FPS
Part II - RoF
Part III - Power
Section 4 : Compatability Issues (Things to avoid)
Section 5 : Shim/AoE/Dissassembly Links
Appendix : Specific gear ratios, spring rates, and other detailed parts specifications.
- CA/G&G M14 Parts Compatability[
- Exact Gear Ratios
- Gearset ID
- Tightbore Shootout by Hissing Sid
- Motor Shootouts by TehFish and Dirius -----------------------------------------------------------------------
Section 1: Weapon Archetypes
Part 1- High Reliability-tuned Weapons
Part 2- High RoF Setups
Part 3- High Power Setups
Part 4- Hybrid SetupsPt. 1 High Reliability-tuned Weapons This is the goal of most airsofters - to simply give their gun a little more power, and a lot more durability. Most of the time they just want to bump the power to 330, 360, 380, 400, or 420 FPS, and have the gun not break. With the correct parts and installation, you can run an AEG at up to 20 RPS (rounds per second) at these power levels, lay on the trigger all day, and not have anything break for a long time.
I'll get into details later, but it's basically about as simple as installing an FTK, and perhaps over-gearing for the spring. A 9.6v battery is all you need - a good one will give you plenty RPS.
Pt. 2 High RoF Setups This is my personal favorite. RPS is rarely restricted, and tends to produce the greatest intimidation factor.
Most of these setups revolve around M100 springs. Getting around 25 RPS is easy, Getting up to 30 requires a basic understanding. Pushing 35, you need to know what you're doing. Techs that can breach 50-60RPS are few and far between, but it is possible and has been done.
Lightweight pistons, polished parts, MOSFET switches and Short-stroked gears come into play in this department. Simply running an overpowered LiPo pack in a near-stock AEG is a recipe for disaster, and will get you laughed at when your gun breaks.
Pt. 3 High Power Setups The target audience for this section is the Semi-Only AEGs being converted for DMR use, at 400 to 550 FPS.
This isn't too difficult to do, but you should only be using a high-powered AEG in semi-auto mode.
Pt. 4 Hybrid Setups These are the setups that exceed 400FPS @ 20+RPS, or 500+FPS with blistering rates of fire. The amount of skill and knowledge required to setup such a platform is beyond the scope of what can be learned from reading a guide. There is more to a gun than a bucket of parts, and if you have to ask, you are not ready.
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Section 2 : Parts Information (Transmission, Compression, Electical, etc...)
Part I - The Mainspring
A) Mainspring
B) Spring Guide
Part II - Transmission
A) Gearsets
B) Pistons
C) Bushings/Bearings
Part III - Compression
A) Pistonhead
B) Cylinder
C) Cylinderhead
D) Air Nozzle
Part IV - Electrical
A) Battery
B) Motor
C) Trigger Switch
D) Selector Plate
Part V - Barrel
A) Inner Barrel
B) Hopup Assembly
C) Hopup Packing
Part VI - Misc
A) Tappet Plate
B) Anti-Reverse Latch
C) Cutoff LeverPart I - The Mainspring (Upgrades here will directly improve FPS)A) Mainspring This is the core of any upgrade; choosing the right spring. Generally, you want an "Irregular Pitch" or "Progressive Rate" spring, such as PDI or Guarder The softer coils in these springs compress first, putting less stress on the first piston tooth.
Springs usually shoot 'hot' when first installed – cheaper springs can shoot as much as 40-50 FPS over their rated strength when brand new. Guarder SP springs have a pretty gentle break-in, in my experience they only lose 10-20 FPS from their first shot chrono.
Most brands are labeled by "Mxxx", meaning "xxx" Meters Per Second. Simply multiply by 3.28 to get the FPS. PDI labels their springs by a percentage (using a stock Marui M85 as 100%). Multiply the full % by 2.8 to get
approximate FPS.
I personally have taken a liking to Guarder SP-type springs. They are very consistent and have a fast, minimal break-in. The SP rating is accurate when used with a stock barrel, decent hopup, a non-bearing spring guides, and non-bearing pistonhead. See the APPENDIX for Spring Charts (manufacturer claims).
B) Spring Guide This part keeps your mainspring from jumping into your gears. With fast RoF setups or springs over M110, it's a good idea to have a metal or Polycarb one. Don't be cheap here - I've seen a lot of these break, even with stock springs.
Most guide either have a bearing or a washer at the base of the guide rod. This allows the Mainspring to twist and rotate, rather than possibly develop kinks, which could cause the spring to break apart. Also, a bearing or washer functions as a spacer, precompressing the spring and giving you 5-10 more FPS.
Pretty much any brand (metal) will work, but if it's Polycarb make sure it's an ANGEL clear one. Be sure to loctite the guide shaft to the base so it doesn't vibrate apart.
Part II - Transmission (Upgrades here will improve RoF, and are the greatest factor in overall reliability)A) Gearsets There's a lot of options on gears out there. I recommend either Guarder (about $35 shipped from eHobby on Ebay) or HurricanE for a low cost option (HK retailers have them). For maximum performance, get Prometheus. The extreme tuners at AirsoftMechanics always have problems with Systema and Pheonix gearsets - but Prometheus is the gold standard.
Here's the heirarchy of speed ratios and torque ratios. Starting with gearsets that optimize ROF when paired with weak springs (such as M100), and moving to ratios that optimize ROF with stronger springs (M120 and above).
Ultra-High Cycle: Made by Systema either in a gearset or FTK. These gears have built-in bearings, and are the *second* highest ratio available, HOWEVER. They are very expensive, hard to find, and very FRAGILE. The gears are made of lightweight aluminum and skeletonized, and direct feedback from users has indicated these gearsets do not last long even when paired with a weak M100 spring.
It is interesting to note the Ver.1 (FAMAS) Tokyo Marui stock gears are set at a faster ratio than any other in production (even the Systema UHC).
High Speed: Available in many brands. Available in Helical cut. Gear ratio is approximately 15% faster than stock, depending on manufacturer.
Standard/Original Ratio: Available in many brands. Available in helical cuts. These gears are capable of powering up to M130 springs with very fine tuning.
Torque Up: Available in many brands. Available in Helical cuts. This ratio lets your motor work easier, and may give you more battery life.
"Super, Double, Triple, etc." Torque Up (abbreviated 'STU'): Different manufacturers use different terminology. These ratios further reduce motor strain, and cut down top-end ROF. Available from several brands. Availible in Helical cut.
INFINITY TORQUE (abbreviated 'IFTU') or ULTRA TORQUE: These are nearly ALWAYS Helical Cut. This gear ratio uses a unique Spur/Sector Gear tooth geometry for a powerful torque increase, requiring a HALF-CUT PISTON (SEE APPENDIX). These gearsets can easily power M170 springs and beyond.
WHAT ARE HELICAL GEARS?Helical simply refers to the gear teeth being cut diagonally (Helical) rather than straight (aka 'Flat'). Diagonal teeth are stronger, but only if shimmed correctly to ensure a PERFECT MESH.
WHEN DO I NEED A HALF-TOOTH (aka 'helical') PISTON?'Helical piston' is a misnomer. The correct term is 'Half Tooth'. You only need a Half-Tooth Piston to match an IFTU gearset (SEE APPENDIX).
B) Pistons The piston is usually the first point of failure when you push your AEG too hard. Any piston labeled as Version 1, 2, 3, or 6 is identical, even if the other Versions aren't spelled out. That is because the V2 is the de-facto standard for AEG pistons. PSG1/SR25/AEP and other incompatible pistons should be labeled as such.
Full-aluminum pistons have strong metal teeth, but they are heavy, and can cause a gearbox case failure and accelerated sector gear wear. Additionally, the aluminum is often not of very high quality, and simply gets ground in to harmful shavings by the gears, especially when the piston itself does not engage and mesh properly with the gears.
The
DeepFire full-tooth pistons are a hybrid, nylon body and a full rack of Ti-coated aluminum teeth. Good in theory, but in practice the nylon body tends to fail far before the teeth themselves do (the teeth cave into the piston itself and stop meshing with the sector gear). There are two guarantees with the DeepFire Ti piston:
1. It will last several thousand rounds of absolutely any abuse you can throw at it.
2. No matter what you do, even if you DONT abuse it, it will fail after several thousand rounds.
Next, the
Prometheus EG Hard Piston. It's a heavily overbuilt Polycarbonate body with 7 metal teeth. It's pretty heavy, but extremely durable. It can always be lightened by 'swiss-cheesing' or drilling holes in it. It's also recommended to remove the second tooth from the open end.
AirsoftMechanics Mega Piston Review.
Next is the most common upgrade piston:
Polycarbonate. Made by Guarder, ANGEL, and many others, Polycarb pistons are the lightest and cheapest type. ANGEL makes pistons that are pre-modifed for short-stroked high speed setups. Plus they're clear... which is cool looking. :-) Systema pistons seem to be trouble magnets and have a bad reputation. There are a million other brands of ploycarb pistons, and they all claim to be the best.
The last type to mention is
PolyAcetal, made by G&P. These pistons perform very well in my experience, similar to polycarb.
Personally, my favorite pistons (in order of preference) are the Prometheus EG Hard, G&P white PolyAcetal, and Guarder. At least one of those is always available at almost any retailer. The most critical part of piston life is it's installation rather than brand; the Engagement Angle and mesh must be inspected
ASM LINK <CLICK>.
C) Bushings/Bearings These hold the gear axles and center them in the gearbox holes. Most Clone and Marui AEGs have plastic/nylon/Delrin bushings stock. These are fine with stock setups, but they tend to cause extra friction with upgraded setups. They can deform slightly from heat or pressure, and are also more difficult to shim.
Most gearboxes have 6mm bushing holes. The bushings have 'flanges' that are 8mm across, which fit on the inside of the gearbox so that the bushing doesn't fall out. Some Classic Army AEGs have 7mm Bearings stock.
The two best upgrades for standard 6mm gearboxes are Ball-Bearing inserts or Metal Bushings.
Ball-Bearings provide the least amount rotational resistance (giving a better RoF) but can break down if used with springs heavier than M100's. If a bearing blows out while your AEG is running, it is nearly guaranteed to cause a catastrophic failure that will probably take out your piston and gears as well. 7mm bearings are much stronger, and 8mm bearings are indestrucible by airsoft standards.
Bushings are simply lugs of metal with axle holes drilled in them. They can handle any amount of stress an AEG gearbox can create.
Part III - CompressionA) Pistonhead WARNING - READ SECTION 4 The pistonhead is a mult-functional upgrade part. The right one can make your gearbox shoot stronger, quieter (or LOUDER), cycle faster (or SLOWER), and last longer. In any case, your stock one is probably crap by comparison. The biggest issue is simply the O-ring size. If it doesn't push against the cylinder walls, it's too loose. Other issues include stress points, weak materials, porting, and weight.
The 'Do's and Dont's' are found in SECTION 4. The different pistonhead types:
Polycarbonate, ported flat: The most common, and cheapest type. They get the job done with no frills. They can crack, but they will not put undue stress on the gearbox case.
Polycabonate, silent type: Much less common. These look like 'mushrooms' because of the domed face. They are designed to make your shots quieter, but I own one and it doesn't do much. In a side-by-side comparison, these can give you a fraction of a percentage increase in RoF, but that could be explained by the leaky seal of the Systema model (which caused an FPS drop).
Polycarbonate, airbrake: The only production model I've seen is the Silent Headset made by ANGEL. "In Canada, they worship these like Jesus and Mary", said another airsofter. I'm willing to give them a shot. If anything, it should still provide an excellent air seal.
Polycarbonate, silent-boreup: The original was made by Systema. They are 'domed' like a Silent headset, but they are
wider than a standard pistonhead. These require a 'Boreup' cylinder and cylinderhead (both are wider than standard also). The idea, is to move more air per shot, either for super-long barrels or for simply more power. Like the original Silent Headset by Systema, these... blow. It's possible to rectify the problem by installing a proper O-ring. Guarder and Classic Army also make Boreup Kits now. No word on their quality.
Aluminum, ported flat: These are the Devil! DO NOT USE! If you are breaking pistonheads, you are doing something wrong anyway. More info in "Compatability Issues".
Aluminum, silent type: They're just like the polycarb silent-type, but heavier. Heavy is bad.
Aluminum, Silent-Boreup: Again, heavy = bad. And they're expensive.
WHAT IS PORTING?Porting refers to those little air holes on the piston face. These are good - they channel some air to the inside edge of the O-ring, 'inflating' it. This provides a tighter seal, leading to more pressure in front of the Pistonhead - that's a good thing.
WHAT DOES 'BEARING' MEAN?The Bearing they are talking about goes inside the Piston. It's the anchorpoint for the Pistonhead. It is similar to the Bearing Spring Guides; it allows the spring to twist and relieve kinks, and also precompresses the Mainspring for a tiny FPS boost. Some Pistonheads (like a stock Marui) have a simple washer or spacer unit. Washers are cheaper than Bearings, and might not be as effective at relieving Mainspring kinks. Any washer or spacer will also preload the Mainspring, depending on how thick it is.
B) Cylinder Making changes here usually doesn't make much of a difference. The most common type is Brass. Chrome-plated and Teflon-coated Cylinders are also available. Theoretically, they would give you a better seal, with less friction to slow down the piston.
WHAT 'TYPE' OF CYLINDER DO I NEED? When you extend your Inner Barrel, you may need to change you Cylinder to match the air volume. The longer the barrel, the more air you need to push a BB all the way down the barrel. If there wasn't enough air, FPS could be lower than expected due to the infamous 'barrel suck'. Using a Cylinder too big is a subject that still remains to be resolved.
An M16 or G3, for example, need a full-volume, unported Cylinder. While an MP5k (with a barrel the length of my pinky), uses a Cylinder with a port near the middle. See the APPENDIX for a more detailed Cylinder Guide.
C) Cylinderhead WARNING - READ SECTION 4 The Cylinderhead seals the end of the cylinder, and funnels the air pressure into the Air Nozzle so it can be fed into the Hopup system. Some are padded better than others, and some have better seals (Guarder for example, has double O-rings). Check SECTION 4 for additional information on what to avoid.
D) Air Nozzle This little guy plays a big role. If it's out-of-spec, it could cause double-feeds, or failure to feed. It can also cause a loss of power if it's too short, and if it's too loose. Look for one with an internal O-ring (such as Guarder).
Metal air nozzles do tend to provide an excellent airseal, but they are not necessary, as a good Systema or Guarder airnozzle will do the same. Always compare the upgrade nozzle to the stock one, and make sure they are the same length, or it could lead to feeding and FPS issues.
Part IV - ElectricalA) Battery If you care about your RoF at all, get a decent damn battery. Intellect Bros and Elite are considered the gold standard (and quite inexpensive). If you can find something better (i.e. reccomended to you by an R/C'er), use it. R/C'ers are very knowledgable when it comes to batteries. Even if you don't care about RoF, a QUALITY 8.4v will last longer, and give you more shots per game, as well as working far better in the cold weather.
Now, once you get into the good cells, Voltage is the biggest factor in RoF. MaH is a secondary factor; (this is a rule of thumb) higher MaH batteries tend to have higher quality, higher discharge rate cells.
B) Motor Make an upgrade here for RoF or trigger response time. The hottest motors on the market right now are the new Systema Magnum, and Systema Turbo. It's not clear which is truly the best for high-speed setups, or at what point the Magnum is provides more power output than a Turbo. Sytema claims the Turbo is designed for springs up to an M130.
If you are on a budget, other good motors include the G&P 'M120 High-Speed', ICS Turbo3000k, old Systema STU, and the Eagle Force Hummer series. Guarder has recently introduced upgrade motors as well. See the APPENDIX for a shootout between some motors by
TehFish. I personally recommend the new Systema's if you've got the money, otherwise the T3k for Torque, and G&P M120 HS for Speed and regular torque, and a Guarder Revolution for speed. The old STU and Eagle Force are also supposed to be very good, but the extra price isn't worth it, IMO.
C) Trigger Switch The trigger switch is nothing but two open prongs, and a third contact connected to the trigger that bridges them. Systema and Guarder make enhanced Switch Assemblies that have better wire equipped. These upgrades have a minimal impact on RoF. If you really want to cut down on resistance, upgrade to a MOSFET switch. See
Section V: Links.
D) Selector Plate Another upgrade of minimal gain. The biggest reason to upgrade this part would only be for the mechanical durability itself, rather than a reduction in electrical resistance. A modification to the selector plate may be made, to convert a regular AEG into a semi-auto only DMR.
Part V - BarrelA) Inner Barrel This is a good first upgrade. They can be a little pricey, but you will see a positive return. A tightbore will require you use good BBs for the rest of the weapons' life, but this just makes an even better accuracy improvement. Some barrels have Titanium or Teflon coatings, others are just plain Brass or Steel. MadBull barrels appear to be good for a budget upgrade. Premium barrels include PDI, KM TN, Prometheus, and Dees.
Also note that tightbores offer a substantial FPS boost, between 5FPS to 20FPS depending on the difference in quality.
B) Hopup Assembly In some cases, upgrading your hopup assembly can produce a dramatic effect on power and accuracy. Some are just badly designed, or badly put together. Others may have simply been out-of-spec or badly worn. The advantage comes from having less places for air to leak, and less parts to misalign.
The most common Hopup Assembly upgrades are One-Piece kits for Armalites, and Metal Hopup Chambers for other guns such as the AK and G36 (though AK's and G36's usually have a very good seal stock).
C) Hopup Packing One of the FIRST upgrades that should ever be done, and also one of the cheapest. Many AEGs come stock with very inconsistent Hopup Nubbings and Sleeves. The Nubbing is the cylindrical part that is pushed into the Sleeve through the Hopup Notch on top of the barrel. The Sleeve seals around the notch and prevents the Nubbing from falling into the barrel.
Very good ones are made by Guarder, Systema, and Prometheus. Also, if you can find a FireFly Kurage, or Big-Out H-Hop, these last two are new developments in Hopup technology. They have a gap along the middle of the bucking, so that the Hopup Nubbing engages the
sides of the BB instead of the very top. This causes a more precise, vertical spin, further reducing 'slicing' or curving shots (which happen when the Hopup spin is not perfectly vertical).
Part VI - MiscA) Tappet Plate Some AEGs simply come with brittle Tappet Plates. Other times, a stock Tappet Plate may be too weak to deal with extremely high rates of fire (been there).
Guarder makes very good ones. Also, ANGEL makes clear Polycarbonate Tappet Plates.
B) Anti-Reverse Latch Another part that's very hard to get wrong, and even harder to break. Usually all that happens is the ARL Spring gets worn out. At that point, just get a Spring Set for $5.
If you do need a new one, get a Guarder, Prometheus, or
Systema.
C) Cutoff Lever Sometimes these get worn out also, but it is incredibly rare. Replacements are made by a couple manufacturers.
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Section 3 : Part Selection (Parts combinations)
INTRO
Part I - Reliability
A) 320FPS
B) 360FPS
C) 400FPS
Part II - RoF
A) +20RPS
B) +25RPS
C) +30RPS
D) +35RPS
Part III - Power
A) 400FPS
B) 450FPS
C) 500FPS
D) 550FPS INTROPart I - Reliability 320 FPS This is stock-level performance for most AEG's, excluding Marui.
RECOMMENDED: Have backup piston and spring guide on hand. Sometimes stock shimming is so bad, its enough to make a tech weep, but won't directly kill the gun at this power.
REQUIRED: Parts that aren't absolute crap. Sometimes stock guns will lose power due to compression issues, or hopup parts either wearing out or being improperly installed.
360 FPSRECOMMENDED: Metal bushings/bearings, metal spring guide, polycarb piston
REQUIRED: Decent compression components
400 FPSRECOMMENDED: Metal bushings, upgrade piston, Guarder or better gearset, EG1000/T3K/M120HS or better motor, Metal Cylinderhead, Upgrade Pistonhead
REQUIRED: EG1000 motor clone or better, preferably standard ratio gears, good compression, metal spring guide
Part II - RoF 320 FPS: Most high speed setups focus on using M100 springs. While providing low resistance, these setups often require short-stroking at high RoF.
Stage 1 (+20RPS): Reshim, Bushings, High Discharge Battery.
Stage 2 (+25RPS): +Quality Gearset, Vented Pistonhead. Piston speed mods.
Stage 3 (+30RPS): +Combination of Motor and Battery to attain raw speed.
Stage 4 (+35RPS): Piston AoE and teeth mods are critical to success. Wiring, trigger, and connectors need to be able to handle high current.
Stage 5 (+40RPS): +High Speed Gearset shimmed to perfection, in addition to raw motor and battery power.
360FPSStage 1 (33RPS): Reshim, Bushings, high-end Piston with AoE and teeth mods, high-end Standard Ratio Gearset - Shortstroked 3 teeth, 130m/s rated spring, high-end motor, and High Discharge Battery. Recommend MOSFET.
400FPS This setup utilizes a higher rate spring with raw motor and battery power to ensure a rapid cycle rate without short-stroking. An extremely precise piston setup and absolutely perfect gear shimming is required to prevent failure of those parts.
Stage 1 (30RPS): Reshim, Bushings, high-end Piston with AoE and teeth mods, high-end Standard Ratio Gearset, 110m/s rated spring, Bearing Pistonhead, Bearing Spring guide, high-end motor, and High Discharge Battery. Full barrel/hopup upgrades to maximize FPS output. Recommend MOSFET.
Part III - Power 15-20RPS (RoF is a non-issue here, this is focused on DMR builds. A good tightbore + H-hop should be a priority.)
Stage 1 (400FPS): Metal spring guide, bushings, a decent piston, EG1000/Turbo3000/G&PM120 or better motor
Stage 2 (450FPS): +Quality gearset (ratio depends on motor/battery)
Stage 3 (500FPS): +Quality TU or IFTU gearset (depending on motor/battery), hard hopup, Promy/Guarder/Systema/etc piston, upgraded piston/cylinderhead set
Stage 4 (+530FPS): Acceptance that either a piston, pistonhead, or worse will eventually break in the middle of a game.
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Section 4 : Compatability Issues (Things to avoid)Part I: Piston/Cylinderhead matching. 1. Do not mix Boreup/Standard parts. This includes Pistonheads, Cylinders, Cylinderheads, and Air Nozzles. "NB" denotes 'Non Boreup' parts. "BU" sometimes denotes 'Bore Up' parts - sometimes parts won't be marked at all, and you just have to use deductive reasoning.
2. Do not use flat-faced Aluminum Pistonheads with flat-faced Cylinderheads. Doing so sends excess energy straight into the weakest point in your gearbox case - the front end. You have been warned.
3. Do not use flat-faced Pistonheads with 'funneled/tapered' Cylinderheads. Most Silent-type cylinderheads are funneled/tapered. Use a Silent-type pistonhead with funneled/tapered Cylinderheads. The Silent-type Pistonheads are
designed to take all the force of slamming into the Cylinderhead on the edges, or rim, of the Pistonhead. A flat-faced pistonhead will eventually get it's rim/edge broked, cracked, or snapped off.
4. Do not use a domed/Silent-type Pistonhead with a flat-faced Cylinderhead. This is a no brainer. Besides having the Pistonhead trying to bend the Cylinderhead, the extra length of the pistonhead may push the Piston and Sector Gear teeth out of alignment in the pre-engagement state. Bad, bad, bad.
Part II: CA Yellow Pistons 1. The second tooth (from the 'insert spring' end) does not quite mesh correctly with the Sector Gear. Simply file off the entire thing to avoid excess stress or deforming to the piston.
2. The last tooth (metal) is out-of-spec. It's too big, and stresses the Sector Gear teeth. Either file the metal tooth smaller or replace it with any other brand's metal tooth.
Do those mods, and you should have a good piston. Many people use theirs stock with no problems,
but it's a game of chance if you do.
Part IIIPart IV: Hopup/AirNozzle Fit AdjustmentPart V: Systema MotorsSystema Magnum and Turbo motors are prone to shorting out through the anodized motor endbell. Read about the solution here:
http://forums.airsoftmechanics.com/index.php?topic=1486.msg11283#msg11283http://forums.airsoftmechanics.com/index.php?topic=1486.msg11411#msg11411 -----------------------------------------------------------------------
Section 5 : Shim/Disassembly/Other LinksShimming linkshttp://pageproducer.arczip.com/daedalus03/workshop.html - The explanation of a correct shim job (with the best pictures). I can't link directly to the Shim Guide, you have to click the picture.
AoE and Short-Stroke Guidehttp://www.airsoftretreat.com/forums/index.php?topic=77728.0 - A great guide written by our own SDobbins.
Angle of Engagment discussionhttp://forums.airsoftmechanics.com/index.php?topic=956.msg6627#msg6627 - The major cause of stripped and broken (re: 'the entire rear end of my piston broke off!') pistons.
Disassembly/Teardown linksM4 (Marui) disassembly:
http://www.mechbox.com/site/m4/m16-upgrades/m733-disassembly-video.html -(reassembly:
http://www.mechbox.com/site/m4/m16-upgrades/m733-resassembly-video.htmlM4 (ICS) disassembly: SEARCH
http://www.google.com/search?source=ig&hl=en&rlz=&q=ICS+m4+disassembly -(reassembly:
MP5 (Marui) disassembly:
http://www.mechbox.com/site/upgrades/mp5-upgrades/mp5-disassembly-video.html -(reassembly:
http://www.mechbox.com/site/upgrades/mp5-upgrades/mp5-reassembly-video.html )
MP5 (ICS) disassembly: SEARCH
http://www.wpairsoft.com/forum/showthread.php?p=24065 -(reassembly: SEARCH
http://www.wpairsoft.com/forum/showthread.php?p=24065AK (Marui) disassembly:
http://www.mechbox.com/site/ak-47-upgrades/ak47-disassembly-video.html -reassembly:
http://www.mechbox.com/site/ak-47-upgrades/ak47-resassembly-video.htmlM14 (Marui/clone) disassembly:
http://www.airsoftretreat.com/forums/index.php?topic=23994.0 or
http://www.airsoftcommunity.co.uk/forums/index.php?showtopic=115036 -reassembly:
G36 disassembly:
http://www.mechbox.com/site/upgrades/g36-upgrades/g36c-disassembly-video.html -reassembly:
http://www.mechbox.com/site/g36-upgrades/g36c-reassembly-video.htmlAUG disassembly:
http://www.mechbox.com/site/aug-upgrades/aug-disassembly-video.html -reassembly:
Animated GBX:
http://www.airsoftretreat.com/gallery/data/573/vidfingif.gifBasic Gearbox Guide:
http://www.airsoftretreat.com/reviews/showproduct.php?product=67&cat=49V2 disassembly:
http://www.mechbox.com/site/mechbox/the-mechbox/version-2-mechbox-upgrade-video.html -reassembly:
V3 disassembly:
http://www.mechbox.com/site/mechbox-upgrades/version-3-mechbox-upgrade-video.html -reassembly:
V6 disassembly:
http://www.team-sapc.org/Content/pid=9.html -reassembly:
v7 disassembly: <<<DOUBLE CHECK>>>
http://www.airsoftcommunity.co.uk/forums/index.php?showtopic=115036 -reassembly:
M4/CA33 hopup:
http://www.airsoftretreat.com/reviews/showproduct.php?product=118 -reassembly: <<<SAME>>>
G36 hopup:
http://www.airsoftretreat.com/reviews/showproduct.php?product=191 -reassembly:
Generalhttp://pageproducer.arczip.com/daedalus03/workshop.html - A great collection of material, really cool stuff, CHECK IT OUT!!!
http://www.airsoftretreat.com/forums/index.php?topic=221.0 - How to make your UTG/CYMA/WELL hicaps work better.
Advanced Gearbox Tuninghttp://www.airsoftmechanics.com/phpBB/ - DO NOT WASTE THESE GUYS' TIME if you are a noob. I swear I will flame you to death myself.
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APPENDIX : Specific gear ratios, spring rates, and other detailed parts specifications.CLASSIC ARMY AND G&G M14 GEARBOX PARTS[/u]
V2/V3 Gears
V3 Spring Guide
V6 Cylinder Head
AUG Airnozzle
Short Motor
Standard Cylinder
Standard Spring
Standard Piston
Standard Piston Head
G&G M14 Proprietary Tappet Plate (might be a V6)
7mm Bushings/Bearings
AUG Hop Up Unit
509mm Barrel
Standard Hop Up rubber
WHAT ARE 'PRO-WIN' AND 'PGC' GEARBOXES? ProWin are the CNC gearboxes for M16-series AEGs. They are CNC'ed billet aluminum which is an order of magnitude stronger than any cast gearbox case. You won't be getting a snapped mechcase with one of these from a high-rate spring. Also, the Pro-Win's are set with 8mm Ball Bearings instead of 7mm or the standard 6mm. 8mm bearing a also an order of magnitude stronger than anything available on standard gearboxes - with 8mm you can run any spring rate and still enjoy the silky smooth RoF boost from ball bearings. Finally, the Pro-Win has an integrated hopup, which improves the air seal so much you get a minimum 20FPS increase.
The PGC is an in-line gearbox style for M249's and M60's. It was originally a replacement to the TOP bellows system allowing you to use standard AEG parts for reliability and performance. The CA M249 comes with a cast metal one, and the STAR M249 has a polycarbonate one. I know the CA is 8mm bearing, but IDK about the STAR.
Both gearboxes also have a hot-swap spring function. Throw a latch while the GB is still installed in the gun, and you can change the spring guide and spring out.
EXACT GEAR RATIOS
Prometheus and Systema use different naming conventions for their gear sets. Here is a list of the gear sets and their ratios:
PROMETHEUS
High Speed 16.45
Standard Torque 18.72
Double Torque 23.78
Triple Torque 25.84
Max Torque 36.81
SYSTEMA
Ultra High Cycle 15.50
High Speed 16.45
Standard 18.72
Torque-Up 23.78
Super Torque-Up 27.50
Ultra Torque-Up 36.82
Infinite Torque-Up 45.00
PHEONIX
Super High Cycle 16.00
High Cycle 17.36
Powered 21.60
High Powered 23.44
Super Powered 25.65
Ultimate Powered 39.60
TOKYO MARUI
Ver.1 stock 15.20
Ver.2/3/6 stock 18.72
Ver.7 stock 21.76
CLASSIC ARMY
Standard/Stock (stamped "CA") 18.72
GUARDER
Standard Flat Ratio 21.76 (ver.7 ?)
Guarder Infinity Torque-Up 45.00
GEARSET IDENTIFICATION
Guarder Standard Ratio Flat Gearset (Above)
Systema STU Ratio Helical Gearset (Above)
Guarder IFTU Ratio Helical Gearset (Above)
CYLINDER / BARREL MATCHINGNo Hole: 450-580 mm barrel length
4/5 Hole: 364-460 mm barrel length
¾ Hole: 227-430 mm barrel length
½ Hole: 110-170 mm barrel length
BARREL SELECTION
Anyway, on a day when I was bored I gathered up a whole pile of barrels that people had been foolish enough to leave at my house or which I had lying around. I also gathered up 2 mates to do the testing with me, to try to avoid subjective results. I've posted the results of the tests I did elsewhere so, suffice to say, there was no practical difference in accuracy between any length of the barrels I tested, ranging from a P90 barrel to an M16 barrel (IIRC).
When I chronoed the gun with each barrel there was a small power increase from the longer barrels, just as you'd expect.
The stock P90 was firing at 325FPS and, when fitted with the longest barrel, it was firing about 10FPS higher thn that.
Next I tested tightbore barrels. I happen to have a whole bunch of 460mm G3 barrels so I was able to test similar barrels. I wasn't testing an MP5K 6.03 barrel against a 6.04 M16 barrel. They were all G3 barrels. I had (again IIRC) a Systema brass 6.04, a KM TN 6.04, a stock Marui Brass 6.08, a TK twist barrel and a Prometheus 6.03.
Everything went as you'd expect. The tighter the barrel the better the groups. The only oddity was the TK twist barrel. That would score some good groups and then just lose it completely for a few shots.
At 20m The 6.03 could shoot almost through the same hole. The 6.04s were shooting 1" groups. The Marui barrel was shooting 3" groups and the TK barrel would put 3 or 4 shots through the same hole then put another 2 into the wall 3ft to the side of the target.
What about power?
The stock barrel was shooting about 330fps. The 6.04s were shooting about 332-333 and the 6.03 was shooting about 333-334. A small difference but a repeatable, definate one. The TK barrel was, alas, shooting way down at about 315.
I suppose it's possible that the TK barrel would have blossomed into a beautiful butterfly if I'd fettled the gun to increase the power back up to 330fps but, pah. Life's too short.
MOTOR SELECTION[/u]
G&P M120 "HiSpeed" vs. TM EG1000
Testing Platform - WGC-Custom M4A1 New Type(G&P) It has been opened a few times. All internals have been checked, it has been reshimmed and relubed, and it is running a TM piston, polyurethane o-ring, and custom brass type-0 cylinder. Other than those parts it is stock.
gear ratio - standard(approx. 18:1)
Spring - 140% according to PDI's scale. (EDIT: Similar to a standard M110 rather than an M100)
Battery - Intellect 9.6v 1400mAh mini battery. 8x IB1400 2/3A cells
Motors tested - G&P M120 High Speed, Tokyo Marui EG1000, and two Classic Army stock motors("High Performance...High Torque")
Measured using a computer microphone, an audio real time analyzer to graph the .wav, and pixel analysis with Microsoft Paint.
G&P M120 High Speed ~ 18.9 rounds per second
Tokyo Marui EG1000 ~ 15.5 rounds per second
first Classic Army ~ 13.1 rounds per second
second Classic Army ~ 13.3 rounds per second
G&P M140 "Hi-Torque"
I'm one of the few people that have actually bought one of these motors. It was suggested to me on these forums over the Systema Super Torque Up for my high-FPS DMR setup. Despite the motor being called "M140", there is no way this motor can pull a M140 spring without max/infinite torque gears.
When upgrading my GR-25, I was trying everything I could to get around buying another motor, but in the end, it was required. Upgraded the wiring, battery, shims, bushings, you name it. Upgrade list is quite long, so I'm only listing relevant parts.
Setup 1 (G&G GR-25, Prometheus Triple Torque gears, 10.8V battery, unknown discharge rate)
-- Guarder SP160 530FPS spring: Pulls it half-way, then locks up.
-- Prometheus MS150 400FPS spring: Pulls it fine, not very impressive trigger response time.
Setup 2 (G&G GR-25, Prometheus Triple Torque gears, 12V 35A discharge battery)
-- Guarder SP160 530FPS spring: When fully charged, it might be able to pull off 1-2 shots, but locks up half-way. It is then unrecoverable until mechbox is openned and spring tension released.
-- Prometheus MS150 400FPS spring: Pulls it fine, slightly better trigger response.
Setup 3 (AE MP5 v3.5, Prometheus Torque gears, 8.4V battery)
-- Systema M120S 400FPS spring: 17 rounds per second, no problems.
Setup 4 (AE MP5 v3.5, Prometheus Torque gears, 10.8V battery)
-- Systema M120S 400FPS spring: 24 rounds per second, no problems.
As a torque motor, it's not up to the task of handling DMR setups, where the Systema STU motor supposedly would have worked. It performed well with the midrange/400FPS springs however.
