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-Table of Contents-


1. Reason For Purchase
2. Real Steel History
3. Ordering
4. First Impressions/Build Quality/Look and Feel
5. Assembly
6. Included accessories and features
7. Function
8. Magazines and Loading
9. Hop up Adjustment and Safety
10. Barrel
11. Light Disassembly
12. Upgrades
13. Shooting and Accuracy Overview
14. Poor Man's Chronograph Test
15. Size Comparison
16. Pros and Cons Section
17. Final Thoughts and Overall Rating



-Reason For Purchase-


I wanted another sniper rifle, one that was more powerful than my UTG M324. I wanted a spring powered gun, since I have had bad luck with AEG's, and the simpler design makes it so that fewer things can break and go wrong. My friend purchased this one the day it came on sale at shortyusa.com. I used his and love the weight, feel, and power so much, that I had to get one. I hate buying things from shorty. I had to use my store credit from previous RMA's though. If I could have gotten it from other sights such as www.pyramidair.com, I could have gotten the 4x40 illuminated mil dot scope with it for the price I paid for shorty. I would also like to mention my gun did not come with any magazines, and the rear 1 piece sling mount was broken in half. I used my friend's mags for this review, and shorty is sending me a new set very soon.


-Real Steel History-

The AI Arctic Warfare Super Magnum was designed as a replacement for the L42 Enfield sniper rifles. The model AW-Police was just one of 5 different models. At 600 yards, it can create 2" groups. The police model (AWP) has a 24" (609mm) barrel. It fires a 7.62mm NATO round, with boat-tail match ammunition. This rifle was built by Accuracy International of Portsmouth, England, and is one of the best sniper rifles in the world today. The magnum variants have a maximum effective range of over 1100 meters. (Information received from http://world.guns.ru/sniper/sn06-e.htm)


-Ordering-


I had store credit from www.shortyusa.com, so I had to order it from there. Since I live only a few hours away from their store, I usually get my orders in the next day. I would not suggest ordering from them. Their customer service is slow and bad, although, they are sending me out 2 new magazines, since they didn't include any. I ordered the gun on a Friday, and it came in the next Tuesday. Not bad. Another concern from Shorty is that everything is overpriced. This gun can be purchased elsewhere for much less than $180. At other retailers you can get this gun for less that that, and with a scope! Also, if you don't like the black version, the gun comes in green.


-First Impressions/Build Quality/Look and Feel-


When I first looked at the box, I thought, "Man, what is this one of the toy guns you get at Toys R Us?" It features bright blue colors.

Now, once you open the box, it is very obvious it's not a child's toy. Inside of the box you get:


1 UTG Shadow Ops Sniper
2 Metal Magazines (Shorty sent the gun to me without any, used my friends for the review. At least they are sending me 2 new ones)
1 Speed loader including pistol adapter
1 Rod (No end for cleaning patch)
Manual
Bipod
Bipod Adapter
Cheap sling (Don't use it, it will snap at the clips and send your new gun crashing into the floor below)
1 Large Allen Wrench, 1 small Allen Wrench
Small packet containing an Allen wrench and a screw (Manual does not state its purpose)

When I picked up the stock of the gun, it felt heavy, but not too heavy. It is supposed to have an aluminum sub-frame, which isn't visible from the outside of the gun. One of the first things I noticed about the gun was the ugly seam lines on the stock. They stand out, and ruin the nice matte finish of the gun. In the future, I will be sanding them down and painting the stock anyway, so it doesn't make a difference.


The top of the stock. Notice that it is a free floating barrel system.

The underside of the stock.

The thumb hole stock is a very nice touch, it helps you steady the rifle, and has a very tactical look and feel.

Next, I picked up the receiver. It is heavy, and very solid. The only problematic thing is the plastic trigger box. Strong plastic, but in the end, its still plastic. Will it hold up to the high FPS of this rifle? Only time will tell...



The build quality of this gun is very nice. It is sturdy, and nothing moves or shakes except for the bipod, I will announce the reason for that later. The finish is very nice, and the stock is thick and strong. It's a nice looking gun, and the sun doesn't reflect off of it. The seam on the bottom of the gun is the only problem with its looks.


As for the way the gun feels, it's great. It doesn't slide off of your hand, and it's not rough. In my opinion, it is the perfect size for me. It is a monster. It makes smaller guns like my UTG M324 feel like sticks. Be prepared, if you don't want a big, bulky gun, go for something else. It's not the most maneuverable gun at 45 inches and almost 10 pounds fully loaded. It is intended to be used as a stationary sniper rifle. If you are the type of guy that likes to run around a lot, this gun isn't for you, it is simply too heavy and bulky. I will feel very secure using this rifle in an operation. It's got the power to compete against much more expensive snipers, and will be good against AEG's because of its great range and accuracy.


Now, there aren't any trades on this rifle, just a warning label and where the gun was made. On the left side of the gun it says:


CAL 6mm BB
Warning: NOT A TOY. FOR 18 YEARS AND UP.
BEFORE USING, READ OWNERS MANUAL
MADE IN CHINA


-Assembly-


Putting this gun together is relatively simple. Unlike the M324, the 2 screws to mount the stock to the gun are pre-installed in the stock, making it impossible to lose the screws, or put them in the wrong holes therefore ruining your gun. This is what you are going to see when you take everything out of the box (minus the rod and the sling)

Basically, all you have to do is line the barrel up with the stock, and slide it in. No strength needed, it simply sits there. Next, you use the large Allen wrench provided with the gun to screw the stock to the gun. UTG states in their manual that you must screw in the rear one behind the trigger guard before the other one. I get it 3/4 of the way then screw in the other one, to even out the pressure to ensure nothing breaks, and then tighten both at the end.

Now this is how the gun looks when it is together (the scope off of my UTG M324, I will eventually be replacing it with a Leapers tactedge 4x40 illuminated mil dot scope, but for now, this will work)

-Included accessories and features-


You get 2 magazines, a speed loader with pistol adapter, an unjamming rod, a bad sling, a bipod, a bipod adapter, a large Allen wrench, a small Allen wrench, and a bad with another wrench and a screw.

All of the accessories together

A close up of the wrenches and the packet of 1 Allen wrench and a screw. I am guessing it's a spare for something like the hop up, but since the manual doesn't state anything about them, I just put them aside.

Next, we have a bipod. The gun comes with a compact tactical bipod and the mount. The design on this gun was much better than on the UTG m324. The bipod adapter actually locks into the stock. On the bipod is a screw in which you use to attach it to the mount, which features 3 standard weaver rails.

To lock the adapter into the stock, you slide it into this metal, yes metal, compartment as shown here. It is wobbly in there, but there is no way it can come out.

This is what it will look like after the adapter is in place.

To push the legs of the bipod down, you push down on these round tabs on each side, and then just pull down. You can also extend the bipod another few inches.

The large Allen wrench is not only for securing the stock to the gun. It also raises the cheek rest, and adjusts the butt stock.

Put the large Allen wrench into these 2 sockets and screw to the left.

The cheek piece removed.

The cheek piece raised. I find it easier to remove the screws completely. Since I have a small 4x32 scope with low rings, I have to leave it all the way down, or I can't see into my scope. Although, if you do purchase a bigger scope and hi-rise rings, you probably will want to adjust the cheek wrest so that you will be able to see through the scope clearly.


Next, the butt stock can be adjusted. Being able to remove or add some of the insets is useful to compensate for the eye relief of the scope, or the size of the user. Personally, I am big enough and tall enough that it feels better to have all of the inserts in. Let's take a look at some pictures.

Just a close-up of the butt stock. It is thick rubber at the end with a nice, strong, durable feel to it.

To remove some of the inserts, all you do is screw these 2 screws out, and take out what you want.

Exploded view of the inserts and the screws. Take note of the large weight in the insert on the far right.

-Function-


The main functions on the gun are great for the most part. The gun is powered by a spring, so you must cock the bolt back for each shot. This prevents having unwanted noise from a gearbox when you're sniping. It is also a simpler design, therefore there are less parts to break and less things that can go wrong. The large bolt allows for easier grabbing with gloves and an overall better and more ergonomic feel than the rubber coated bolt on the M324.

The ball is big, and it is very sturdy. Another nice touch is that it slides up and down easily, and clicks into place.

Here is a picture of the bolt cocked back.

Notice the greasy bolt. It allows for easy pulling action of the 25 lb slide.

The bolt handle area is also loaded with grease.

You will see more grease pictures as we move along in the review. Also note that the cocking indicator at the back of the cylinder is not functional like it is on the Maruzen or the real steel.



-Magazines and Loading-


The gun comes with 2 solid metal magazines. Each magazine holds 23 rounds. Unfortunately, shorty didn't send me the magazines. I just used my friends for this review. I am not sure if it was them, or a factory defect. Anyways, they are sending me two brand new ones, and I ordered 2 more from Leapers. Here are a couple shots of the magazines.

To load the magazines, the gun comes with a speed loader and a pistol adapter.

These magazines generally require you to use the pistol adapter, but there is a simpler, easier, and faster way. Press the spring-loaded part of the magazine down.

Then, use your fingers to squeeze the sides of the U-Shaped bb entrance. Next, just load the magazines like you would for any other gun. The reason for putting your fingers there is to relinquish the possibility of bb's going everywhere except for the magazine. People think that you have to either load the magazines by hand or use the pistol adapter, but both of those methods take time that you won't have in the field. This is what it will look like. You would use your other hand to push the plunger down. (I had to hold the camera)

Another nice touch with these guns is that the magazine release is spring loaded. When you press the release lever, the magazines shoot out.

The magazine release

-Hop up Adjustment and Safety-


This is another straightforward adjustment of this rifle. In front of the magazine release is the area in which you adjust the hop up. Take the small Allen wrench, and put it down into the hole. Turn the screw to the left to lower the hop up, to the right to raise it.

Many people don't like that you can't adjust it in the field. With this method, it's not going to move, so your scope is always going to be sighted in right. If you need to hit a longer range target in the field, simply aim above the target. If it's really long range, keep the wrench on you and do the 2 second adjustment.


Next, we have a standard safety. Slide it back towards the butt stock turns it on. Slide it towards the muzzle and your ready to fire. This is a picture with the safety off.

When you take the trigger assembly off, you can see the safety mechanism. It's stronger and better than the M324, and its all metal.

-Barrel-


The barrel is a nice touch to this gun. UTG supplies a stock 6.04 brass tight bore barrel, improving the accuracy and the FPS. The length of the barrel is 515mm.This is a step up from the m324's aluminum normal bore. (To get this picture I had to screw the orange muzzle off, it comes off by hand, and it isn't glued.

-Light disassembly-


After you have the gun separated from the stock, you can disassemble the gun.


First things first, you're going to need to take the trigger assembly off to get to the bolt. This is a weak point of the gun. The trigger box is plastic. We will have to see how it withstands the high power of the gun's spring. To remove the trigger assembly, unscrew the single screw on each side. Then, pull it straight off. Don't be afraid to use some force in this.

The trigger assembly removed.

Once you remove the trigger assembly, don't be afraid if a piece of metal and a spring fly out. It took me a while to figure out where the spring and the metal thing go, but I will give you the rundown so you won't have to waste the time like I did.

The Metal Part

The spring

What you do is simple. In the metal thing, there is a slot for the spring. Slide it in there as shown.
When we put the trigger assembly back, I will show you where to put it.

Once you have the trigger assembly free. The bolt will slide right out. This is another part of the gun loaded with grease.

Here is a close up of the spring. Look at that grease...haven't the Chinese workers heard of moderation!

Here we are looking at a shot down the gun, all the way to the barrel.

This is as far as I went with taking apart the bolt of the gun. Hey, its brand new, I don't want to break anything. Align the bolt handle with the rest of the gun and slide the bolt back in.


The trigger assembly is going to look like this before you put it back in. Take note where that part with the spring is, and which way it is facing. If you don't put that spring in, you won't be able to fire the gun, and the spring will stay cocked back after you cock it. I learned this from personal experience.

Now all you do is align it with the bolt, and push it in. (Again, use some force.) Make sure everything is pushed in as far as it will go, then screw in the 2 screws that hold the trigger assembly in place.


Now that the bolt and trigger assembly is back together, you can examine the area where the bb's enter the gun. Again, notice the overload of grease. After I took this picture, I quickly removed the grease with a Q-Tip.

-Upgrades-


Since the cylinder on this sniper rifle can be opened and takes Maruzen parts, you can replace it with many higher grade parts. Here are just a few:


Laylax Damper Cylinder Head
Laylax Zero Trigger set
Laylax PSS96 Teflon Cylinder
Laylax PSS96 Smooth Spring
6.01mm tight bore barrel


Upgrading it will not be cheap. The zero trigger alone usually costs over $125 dollars. But, it does have a lot of potential to be a very well built sniper rifle, even for an experienced sniper.


There are a few cost effective ways to upgrade this rifle. You could put some electric tape or Teflon tape over the nozzle, around the connection of the bucking and barrel, but not over the hole in the barrel where the hop up functions. I have not tried these methods, but they could be a good alternative to spending a few hundred dollars on high-grade parts.


-Shooting and Accuracy Overview-


This sniper rifle amazingly accurate, and once you get the hop up right, curving is minimized. For these accuracy tests, I will be using AE .2g bb's in a controlled indoor environment.

This is at 55 feet

And here we are at 125 feet

When you are outside, factors such as wind will play a major part in how accurate the gun is. Also, I haven't messed with the hop up a lot, and the hop up isn't broken in yet. I would like to try these tests with .25g bb's or .28's, but I don't have any at this time.


-Poor mans chronograph-


According to Red Wolf Airsoft, the gun is going 520 FPS to 540 FPS. Once the gun breaks in, the fps might drop to under 500 fps. This is still great for a Chinese airsoft clone. The following tests were done with AE .2g BBs and Diet Coke cans.

Bottom of Can

Top Center

Top Edge: As you can see, the gun is very powerful.

-Size Comparison and Beauty Shot-


This gun is bigger than other sniper rifles. To give you a better idea of the size of this rifle, I have taken some photos of it next to my UTG M324.

-Pro's and Con's Section-


Pros:
Powerful
Heavy (I calculated mine at over 9lbs fully loaded)
Accurate
Loaded with accessories
2 Metal Magazines
Easy to disassemble
Cheap
Trigger safety


Cons:
Ugly Seam lines
Cheap sling
Heavy (might be too much for smaller players)
Loaded with black grease
Plastic trigger box
Plastic spring guide and Piston


-Final Thoughts and Overall Rating-


Overall, I was very happy with my purchase. I wanted a powerful, accurate, and cheap sniper rifle. I amazed myself when I did the accuracy and chronograph tests. The gun is great, and Leaper's customer service can not be beat. For example, I needed a new bolt (complete with spring), new trigger assembly, new hop up system, new bucking, and new stock screws for my UTG M324, and they sold all of it to me for only $40.00. I encourage anybody who wants to get into sniping to get this gun. Don't spend hundreds more on a higher priced sniper rifle. UTG is working their way up in the airsoft world with their guns, and this one is no exception


Overall, I'm going to give this gun a 9.2/10.


Get this clone, you won't be disappointed.

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