armoury
KWA QRF MOD1
the classic design of
the MP5 - on a wire stock.
Obviously, there is some
flex in the stock due to
its construction but it
clicks into place nicely
and doesn’t feel like it is just
waiting to collapse at any given
moment. Where the buffer
tube would be on an AR there
is a contoured battery box. I use Titan
Li-Ion batteries in all of my guns and I have
a couple of 7.4v brick style ones that offer
(with the new version 7 packs) 3000mah
in a very compact size. Sadly, they are just
a few mm too long to fit in without using
one of the extension units made by Airtech
Studios. With that the battery storage is
increased greatly and it doesn’t detract
from the lines of the gun either. There is a
double sling loop at the rear of the receiver
and an ambidextrous charging handle.
Grip duties are taken care of by the very
comfy and durable PTS EPG-C pistol grip,
one of my favourites
due to the slightly
more vertical grip angle.
There are polymer ambi-
fire controls which are very
positive in their movement
and with no play between
positions.
The trigger guard is large
enough to be comfy even with thick
gloves on and just in front of this is one of
three magazine releases. It is a little paddle
that you push forward to remove the mag.
There is another on the side of the receiver.
This one is extended and very easy to reach
without removing your hand from the grip.
Above the mag release is an ambidextrous
bolt release. Useful when adjusting the
rotary hop unit without needing to hold
the bolt plate back manually. There is
another bolt release and magazine release
on the left hand side of the receiver so,
all in all it is a gun that is comfy to shoot
regardless of what handedness you are
and you are never far away from a control
when needed.
On top of the receiver is a set of the
rather excellent PTS polymer BUIS – I have
got to say that I am a big fan of these and
also the ongoing collaboration between
KWA and PTS that sees their guns specced
with some very high quality components.
The gun also comes with a couple of
MLOK rail segments, so that you can fit
any accessories you have with minimal
fuss.
Magazine-wise, the Mod1 uses
propriety curved polymer 85-round
offerings. To me they look like how I’d
imagine a MP5 mag would look if it
were designed today. They don’t have
any play when in the gun but don’t take
monumental efforts to remove either. They
are sturdy enough and have withstood
some pretty rough handling but have
never failed to feed any of the weights of
BB I tried in them.
Thanks
to KWA’s extended follower they also
feed every last BB, so none will drop out
when its empty. Thanks to some ridges in
strategic places they are easy to handle
when covered in mud or when wet and
they fit in the standard 9mm calibre SMG
mag pouches I have.
UNDER THE HOOD
Internally, the QRF Mod1 uses the AEG 2.5
gearbox, which means you can adjust
the FPS really easily using the provided
T-handled allan wrench. Need it slightly
lower for CQB? Not a problem! Want a bit
more punch for woodland games then you
can have that too - all without having to
open the gun up or change the springs.
There is a high torque motor in the
pistol grip with switch life extender and
high speed gears are in residence in the
gearbox.
All this combined gave me a RoF of
around 16-19 rounds per second and a
FPS of 300 (1.17J) on the nose using 0.28g
BBs. This was without adjusting the spring
either. The only change I made to the
stock gun was a change in hop rubber. I
swapped the KWA one for a Guarder clear,
as I tend to do in all of my guns. It is a
perennial problem with KWAs at UK power
levels and one I keep on mentioning in the
hope they will one day change it because
the supplied rubber is just too hard for UK
power levels. Unlike my ERGs, swapping
the hop rubber was a piece of cake and
took only a couple of minutes but it
transformed the gun, giving it an effective
range of 55-60m. My BBs started to drift a
little at the extremes but it was more than
competent and very capable of holding its
own against even some heavily upgraded
guns. As this is the 2.5 version gearbox,
it is also possible to upgrade the trigger
switch to a GATE Titan, a very popular
upgrade.
I found that I needed to have the stock
all the way out to be comfy but my son,
who also used the Mod1 due to its size
and light weight (at a shade under 2.5kgs)
had it in the first position and found it to
“THERE IS ANOTHER BOLT RELEASE AND MAGAZINE RELEASE ON THE LEFT HAND SIDE
OF THE RECEIVER SO, ALL IN ALL IT IS A GUN THAT IS COMFY TO SHOOT REGARDLESS
OF WHAT HANDEDNESS YOU ARE AND YOU ARE NEVER FAR AWAY FROM A CONTROL
WHEN NEEDED.”
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