"So I’m pretty sure this is the IWI Uzi now and if so my God it is a beast. The hard kick of the recoil and sound of each shot sounds nothing like an airsoft gun. Most parts are metal, the grip and hand guard are platic, along with the sight/charging handle. But the rest is metal and for a airsoft gun of that size its heavy. The stock is easy to deploy and fold up for both cqb and longer range as it can shoot fairly far for out of the box. Its biggest downfall is the cost of mags, $40 a mag is quite expensive, so unless you wanna invest in this gun and get multiple magazines dont buy. Part of the reason for this is because each mag uses up an entite CO2 canister and towards the end it runs out and the bb’s drop.
My only other complaint at least for myself is switching from auto to semi to safe seems to be a pain and requires some finese.
This gun is worth the price for its quality and realism.
"For the money, this is an extremely well priced, durable, and well made GBB. I bought it primarily as a trainer to supplement real firearms and it serves its purpose well. I've looked at many options and this is probably the best you are going to get at the pricepoint without going for something like the Tippmann M4. Recoil is about the same as a 22LR cartridge which is fantastic. I get on average 60 shots per CO2 cartridge which brings me to a little under a penny per shot, compared to 3-6 cents per shot of 22LR, or 20 cents per shot of 9mm.
For those concerned with realism, the only parts that are plastic that are metal on the real firearm is the outer barrel, receiver/rear trunnion, and trigger (likely also the trigger group). The top cover seems to be aluminum and may actually be surplus parts for real mini uzis as the top is stamped calling it a firearm with the usual markings. The only odd part is that it is non-magnetic (suggesting some kind of aluminum) while the real mini UZI is from steel sheet metal. The bolt is also non-magnetic which I assume is some kind of die cast metal as I can't see any machining marks through the finish.
Issues:
-The recoil causes the muzzle climb to go downward rather than up. This is very subtle and most probably won't notice it but it is noticeable on full auto if you pay attention. Realistically it is inconsequential but if you are used to real firearms it becomes apparent almost immediately.
-The recoil can sting. This sounds silly but it is odd since the recoil on this gun while not as strong as the real 9mm version, some shots can produce usually sharp recoil that can sting the cheek. For those shooting this for airsoft games or force on force and wear a mask, this will not be a problem. However if you intend to shoot this without a mask it will quickly become very unpleasant to shoot. I took a quick trip to the hardware store and bought some foam matting (you can find it where they have cork and rubber sheeting) and cut a 1cmx1cm square strip from the matt and laid it inline on the top of the stock and secured it in place with wrappings of electrical tape. This did not interfere with the complete folding of the stock, but provided enough of a cushion that the sting no longer became painful.
-As most know, this weapon is known to consume a lot of gas for the recoil. One entire CO2 cartridge per magazine is often cited. However there is a bit of a variation depending on how you use this. If you shoot full auto immediately, you are unlikely to shoot all 38 rounds, and often will only get about 25 rounds. To a degree this is fine since the magazines are actually not replicas of 30 round 9mm magazines but of the 25 round magazines. If you load to realistic capacity you will get full performance. However, you can stretch your dollars by shooting on semi auto. If you don't shoot semi auto rapidly, say only 5 rounds per every 10 seconds, you can actually get 2 full mags worth of shots or darn near close to it. When doing up-drills, it is very easy to maintain this slow cadence which is excellent for training. It should also be noted that this is an open bolt firing gun. As a result while inserting a loaded magazines on the bolt closed won't damage anything, it can possibly engage the hammer which will cause you to expel gas prematurely. To avoid this, after every time you dry fire, charge the gun then reload magazines just like a real open bolt SMG. This gun does have a "bolt hold open which is kind of odd compared to the real thing, but all it is is the magazine follower holding the bolt half open, and it drops home when the magazine is pulled out. Personally I don't care for that since when a real firearm open bolt or closed bolt has the bolt only half way in battery, that normally signifies a malfunction, not an empty gun. For those not using this for training it isn't a very big issue. As a side note, one of the benefits is that the thick magazines serve to insulate the cartridges very well so there is little issue with temperature variation.
-The stock doesn't lock, it is held in open or closed position by a detent. This normally is not a problem but the other issue is that the stock buttpad is offset about 1/2" to the right so that it tucks under the handguard when the stock is folded. For this reason when shooting right handed it is possible to accidentally fold the stock a little. This is a relatively minor issue and once you are aware of it it shouldn't happen accidentally. One thing that should be noted is that because of the buttpad offset you cannot install a vertical foregrip in the position where the stock is if you want to allow the stock to fold completely later.
-The iron sights are terrible. On the front sight there is a small plunger which can get stuck when the front sight post is at its highest position (and you will need it at it's highest position because this gun is powerful and makes even 0.2g bbs fly upward like a 0.12g at the lowest hopup setting). The rear sight windage adjustment does not have positive detents and it is more of a friction lock. This isn't really an issue since the windage doesn't drift out of place under recoil, but it is a little disconcerting. The rear iron sights have two apertures of the same size, but on a short and tall post. Again, because of the BBs curving upward even on 0.2g, you will want to only use the short post in order to get as much downward elevation in your zero as possible.
[Note: I wrote a lot about the issues but none of these should dissuade anyone from buying. These are simply little things I noticed that you should be prepared for as a buyer, but they are very minor concerns]
Modifcations
-Anyone who has time using a real UZI knows that the grip safety is terrible. On a handgun it is fine since you acheive a solid grip to shoot, but on a stocked firearm due to the angle of the wrist, rarely is the webbing between your index finger and thumb high and tight on the grip. As a result you can have issues where your gun "locks" on you at the wrong moment. Just like the real firearm, it is advisable to get some electrical tape and wrap it tightly around the top of the grip to securely hold the grip safety depressed.
-Since the iron sights were terrible, I used a drill to widen the aperture of the rear iron sights. This greatly improved light gathering of the sight picture. I also drilled and tapped the top dust cover to accept a small rail section for a mini red dot. This greatly improved the function of this gun and I strongly suggest doing it if you have the basic metal working skills. Even if you don't there are plenty of forums for UZI firearms where they show this modification in detail.
-I also added rail sections to the handguard for a vertical foregrip (just forward of where the buttstock folds) and that bottom rail also serves to mount a SASS style muzzle device mount that I made which holds a tracer unit I made (as the barrel is not threaded). You could theoretically use the barrel nut as a host for mounting a Tracer unit, but I am not certain if the thread pitch is the same as the actual surplus uzi parts available. I also mounted a side rail for a flashlight and wired the pressure pad switch to velcro onto the space just in front of the charging handle which makes it easy to actuate with either side thumb.
Overall this is a fantastic airsoft gun and I recommend it for every use from training, gaming, or just fun. I also advise buying at least 4 spare magazines or you will regret it as you won't want to stop frequently to reload CO2 and BB.
People should be aware that there are apparently kits to modify a magazine to run of HPA or green gas. Considering that you will easily run through a box of CO2 cartridges in a session or two of shooting, I advise considering those kits and I have one on order (from ebay as evike was sold out at the time of my purchase).
"This by far is my favorite airsoft gun. It's loud, it kicks HARD, and it get's people excited. It's such a fun gun. There's really not anything bad about the gun besides how expensive the magazines are that it uses one 12g of CO2 per magazine fired. Overall, awesome gun. If you have the money, but it.
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