Airsoft Arms and Accessories: ASG Specter MWS

The ASG Specter MWS is by no means new. People have been talking about it, writing about it, posting about it since some time in 2010, and I mentioned it myself in a previous post quite a while ago. So, why am I referring to it again? Simply to register my very keen interest in the idea behind it, and to let you know, in case you didn't already, that it has just been reviewed in what is, arguably, the most 'commercially successful airsoft publication' in the world, if not the known universe, Airsoft International

When I first saw the adverts for it I remember thinking, 'ooh, I like the sound of that,' a gun that allows you to swap out a variety of front ends whilst keeping the same stock, power pack and necessary 'mechanicals', giving you flexibility and the option to adapt the weapon to suit the demands of the game or the environment in which you'll be playing. 'Hmmm', I remember thinking, 'I wonder how expensive that will be, and will it be any good?'

AI's review has answered a lot, if not quite all, of my questions and, I'm not ashamed to say, it left me with a smile on my face, and an itch in my pocket!

The idea behind it is simplicity itself. You want a standard assault rifle with a standard length barrel, without all those gadget laden RIS rails weighing down the front end, and you want a short barreled, stubby-killer-type affair, with enough RIS rail to bolt on a full heavy metal concert lighting rig for when you go up close and personal in the next Copehill Down extravaganza, but you also quite fancy sitting in the undergrowth for the morning session of the next woodland game, picking off the lame geese from a distance with a longer range rifle. So, of course, you need at least three, quite expensive guns, right? After all, you want a bit of variety, and you want them all to be reliable so you're not going to go for the cheapest ones on the rack! This system might make you think again. Why buy three guns when you can buy one? Well, one lower receiver, and three uppers!

The MWS gives you a choice of two lower receivers and ten uppers

Instead of buying three guns, you buy one lower receiver, which comes with the option of a fixed or a crane stock, and three separate upper receivers, form a range of ten. I think you'll agree, it's a nice idea. Provided, I guess, you like the M4/M16 platform. If for you playing a different type of game necessarily means playing it with a different type of gun, an MP5 for CQB for example, then this clearly isn't going to appeal

So, back to those all important questions to do with price and performance. I don't intend to go in to all the technical details described in the AI article, merely to summarise some of the key points. Firstly, the gun isn't made by ASG. It's manufactured by VFC, a Taiwanese company with an enviable reputation for producing good quality, reliable kit. One of my playing buddies over at FBS swears by his VFC M4. He has a number of other guns, too, but loves the VFC for its rugged reliability and down to earth efficacy. It's built to do a job and does it bloody well!

AI's evaluation of this gun is pretty much the same, commending it on its first rate design and construction, extremely positive and well positioned fire controls, ability to accept magazines from a variety of manufacturers, and easily adjustable Hop-up. It fires at around 337fps out of the box at a cyclic rate of 1160 RPM using a 1400mAh 9.6v battery and is, to quote AI, "a rock-solid AEG"

"It's just a tool for doing a job.....it allows you to just get on with it. At no point did it ever feel like it was going to let you down.....it is a great piece of kit, and overall it's a superb concept. Tyr one. You won't be disappointed"

They scored it a hefty 5 out of 5 for all four of their testing criteria, external parts, internal parts, performance and field testing, and thoroughly recommend it. As for price, that will inevitably vary depending on the precise nature of the configuration you go for, and where you go to purchase it, of course. Airsoft Armoury are stocking the complete range and retailing the crane stock LR for £169.99 and the fixed stock LR for £159.99 with the upper receivers starting at £134.99 and going up to £219.99

I will be sure to try one out at the earliest available opportunity! Happy hunting