Tokyo Marui P226R Review (August 07, 2008)

Tokyo Marui P226R Review (August 07, 2008)

Postby Alex » Thu Jul 17, 2008 9:52 pm

Tokyo Marui P226R Review

Current Status: Beta 1
Last Edited: 20:00 PST, 07 August 2008

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[Updates And To Do List]

I am still undergoing tests and fine tuning the gun. Sorry for the delay.

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Hey AP. This review will cover a great deal of parts, tools, guides, experiences, and comparisons in addition to the overall review of the finished TM P226. Please be patient as this extensive review will take a great deal of my time to write and organize. Please check back from time to time as I will edit and update this review without notice. I would appreciate any help or suggestions from you guys. If I am missing details or if you want to suggest something, please let me know. I want this review to be as informative and in depth as possible.

Note to reader: Please do not quote the entire post as it will lag up the server and nobody likes tiring out their index finger on the scroll wheel. If you need to quote, please select lines or small sections at a time. Thank you.

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[Parts List (tentative)]

[Base Parts]

Tokyo Marui P226R (black)

[Aftermarket Parts]

Carom Shot steel hammer
Carom Shot steel trigger
Dytac night sights
Guarder enhanced loading muzzle
Guarder enhanced valve blocker
Guarder recoil spring guide (**short-term substitute for the Firefly recoil spring guide with bearings**)
Hidakaya floating valve spring
Hidakaya hammer spring (130%)
Hidakaya recoil spring (130%)
King Arms floating valve
King Arms piston head
KM high flow release valve
Laylax hop up chamber
PDI 6.01mm palsonite inner barrel
PGC P226R aluminium slide, railed frame, outer barrel
Proud enhanced magazine lip
Shooters Design valve knocker
Sigarms factory grip panels
Tanio Koba loading muzzle return spring

[Tools, Supplies, And Accessories]

Airsoft Innovations propane adaptor ver. 5
AMSOIL silicone spray
Blade-Tech IWB holster
Coleman propane
ICS 0.20g pellets
Pelican 1400 case
RC 10 weight pure silicone oil
Shooters Design valve key
Shooting Chrony F1 Master chronograph
Sigarms armorers tool

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[Packaging]

Here is the box to the P226. Tokyo Marui never fails to amaze me with their presentation. The box art displays the stylish, yet serious Sig backed by a moody background. It would have been worth keeping, but US Customs went through the box and blacked out each of the "Sig" trademarks. A little warning sticker on the corner warns us only to use duster gas in this gun.
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Upon opening the box, there is a stack of papers inside a plastic bag. They contain paper targets, the product manual, and a bunch of other information I will go over later on in the review.
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[First Impressions]

Finally, the gun itself laying so innocently in its polystyrene bed. Further inspecting gun, I found the trademarks to be accurate and in the correct position. Though I already know how a TM P226 feels like, I took it up in my hands just to refresh my memory. It is quite balanced and it does not dead-weight in my hands, unlike my nose-heavy KJW P226. Weighing in at precisely 815g total, 305g being from the magazine, it is still a little on the light side for me as most of the pistol is plastic. The gun's finish is a dark matte black, elegant in all its respects as a "strictly business" service pistol. You can really see TM's quality control shining here.

The trigger has a fine grit texture from the painted finish and has a butter smooth long pull in DA, and a short pull of about one cm in SA. However there is a little bit over-travel after the trigger fires the gun, but I do not think it is noticable enough to hinder the user's shooting speed. To note, while I pulled the trigger, I kept the hammer from striking the firing pin to preserve the condition of the gun.

The decock has a bit more resistance compared to the KJW P226 decock, but it is smooth and springs back once it lowers the hammer. The hammer itself seems to be very solid and pulls back smoothly when being cocked.

The three-dot contrast sights are sharp and bright and the dots are centered correctly. This is the first Sig replica I have owned that has the dots perfect and not offset or too big or not perfectly round. As much as I love the perfection of the dots, I have replaced them with even better Nitesiters night sights.

The plastic grips feel a bit hollower than I am used to, but the texture is nice and rough. The trademarks on the grips are also correct. I will be swapping out the grips with the real deal later on in the review.

The magazine is all metal, with the exception of the loading lips, and feels a lot more solid than the ones found on my KJW magazines. I believe the magazine can load up to 24 pellets double stacked, but like the rest of my Sigs, I only load a maximum of 20 rounds. I am looking forward to loading a few mags and testing it very soon.

Tokyo Marui decided to replicate the latest generation of the P226 as the rail is ever so popular amongst shooters as it gives them the ability to mount torches and lasers. Overall, it is a very solid gun made from a combination of metal and remarkably durable plastic.

Like all other TM pistols, the P226 comes with a handy red muzzle plug if one is to ever remove the orange paint from the barrel to transport the replica. As much as the next guy, I wanted to load it and shoot it right away, but I kept it virgin as it is only stock. For the record, nothing has really been touched yet: the gun has not been dry fired or further taken apart past removing the slide. Also to note, you can see to the left of the hop up tag that the Sig logo has been shaved off by Customs. I ordered the P226 with a spare magazine as I may need a backup in the near future. Dentrinity has honored my request to put the spare magazine in the gun box instead of in its original plastic bag. Also I thank them for putting this black "playdoh" putty over the very delicate trademarks on the slide as Customs will whip out the dremel and blowtorch if they see the trademarks.
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The gun comes with a handy cleaning rod as well. It is good for pushing cotton swabs down the barrel to clean it. Toilet paper works well too, but will leave a small amount of paper lint inside of the barrel that can easily be blown out with compressed air. A pack of free 0.20g pellets is also included.
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Unfortunately, I will not fire this gun in its stock form, so iI will not know how it performs out of the box. Secondly, I do not want to stress the stock gun under propane. After I finish upgrading the P226, I will mothball the plastic slide, frame, and outer barrel.

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[Aesthetics]

Now for a few photoshoots.
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Here is the putty. It is not as bad as it looks; it is soft and easy to remove. Just slowly roll it off and savor every moment as the trademarks unfold before your eyes.
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There is also putty on the right grip panel.
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The fake serial number is engraved quite nicely. You can see the mold lines on the inside of the trigger guard.
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9mm Para, also beautifully etched into the chamber in italics.
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Tokyo Marui. Obviously these are not genuine Sig trademarks, but they are engraved perfectly into the frame.
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Three-dot contrast sights. Perfectly round.
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The front sight dot is not as prominent as the rear dots.
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Left grip panel.
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The orange painted muzzle. the paint can be easily removed with rubbing alcohol.

I thank Dentrinity for only putting paint and not primer along with it. Both my KJW P226 and P229 barrels, ordered from Airsplat, had primer painted on first with orange paint over it. The alcohol removed the orange paint, but the white primer stayed on untouched. I tried using brakefluid, paint thinner, 99% alcohol, and nail polish to remove the primer but they would only remove a very minute amount at a time, and that includes very heavy and delicate scraping. I do not have the time to spend hours removing the primer so I ended up taking the shortcut and cutting off the extended barrel, which I should have done in the first place. I personally dislike extended barrels anyway. I recommend using 70% alcohol on plastic barrels and 91%+ on metal barrels.
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The gun and the magazine.
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The magazine is all metal with the letters engraved clean into the sides.
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The buttplate tucks away the fill valve and the long hex-head screw that holds the two-piece magazine together.
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The release valve.
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The magazine loading spring.
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The decock and the slide stop are both metal despite being painted in a plasticised black paint.
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So is the take down lever.
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The trigger.
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And the hammer.
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Here is a close up on the grip panel texture, and the metal grip screw and magazine release. You can also see the texture on the grip panel.
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An undershot of the frame where you can see the mold lines on the Pic rail and along the rest of the trigger guard.
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The frame grip serrations.
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Mock extractor and roll pin.
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The right grip panel and magazine release plate.
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Lanyard post.
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Inside of the slide
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Recoil spring
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The blowback mechanism.
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Hop up adjustment wheel.
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Trigger assembly.
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The housing for the hammer assembly.
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Four free targets. These are my favorite targets so far. I recommend making several copies of them.
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Tokyo Marui catalog.
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The P226 manual. Sig has been blacked out here as well.
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A little flyer for how to not handle an airsoft gun. The pictures explain it all.
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I believe this is a mailing survey of some kind. Please correct me if I have misinterpreted.
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Here are some instructions on how to properly put the take down lever back to a locked position. You need to push the barrel inward so that the lever can flip back to position smoothly.
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[Take Down Procedure]

(replace entire section with finished p226)

To properly take down the P226, first remove the magazine.
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Then lock the slide back. Turn the take down lever one-quarter turn clockwise.
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Disengage the slide stop while holding the slide and slowly move the slide forward until it is free from the frame.
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Remove the recoil spring.
(insert pic)

Remove the outer barrel and the inner barrel. The P226 is now fully stripped.
(insert pic)

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[Upgrade Parts Overview]

Individual reviews for each item will come soon once I start building the gun and testing it.

(**all part descriptions are obsolete and inaccurate. please wait for the final write up on each part. thank you.**)
(**note to self. rewrite entire parts section and order them to master parts list**)

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The new second generation KM high flow valve with a spare o-ring. A user on another airsoft forum has done a very compelling review on this valve and tested it with a bunch of other valves for the TM P226. The outcome was that this valve brought the most consistancy and increased power. I took the valve out of its original packaging and put it in a bag and sprayed silicone in it so it will not dry out during storage.
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(rewrite. include firefly hop up chamber, drop KM rh55)
I was choosing whether to get this one or the KM RH55. But I quickly decided on the Laylax chamber as I have read that this chamber does wonders in TM guns. I also put this in a bag with silicone so that it will not dry out as I wait for that spring guide to come back in stock.
(replace with firefly hop up chamber pic) Image

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(rewrite. include laylax, action, pgc, pdi piston head)
Action floating valve and piston head. This is a new product recently released this year by Action. I believe this is a copy of the King Arms floating valve and piston head set, but nonetheless it is still quite solid.

(replace with laylax piston head)Image

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Here is another new product recently released this year. This is the PDI 6.01mm palsonite anodized SUS304 stainless steel tightbore barrel for the TM P226. The palsonite treated barrel is much smoother to the touch than the standard stainless PDI barrels. I feel that it will look a lot more flush when looking down the barrel because it does not catch the eye like the brighter brass colored stock barrel, or PDI's standard silver colored barrels.
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(rewrite with hidakaya spring)
Hidakaya hammer spring. Stronger hammer springs stiffen the trigger pull in DA, but causes the hammer to open the release valve wider and for a slightly longer period of time resulting in more gas being injected into the loading muzzle. Many people say to avoid installing a stronger hammer spring on the P226 because it is not necessary. I agree with the other users because the P226 has no problem opening the release valve with the stock spring. The reason why I put the Hidakaya spring in anyway is to get the most performance out of the gun, even if the performance gain is minor. Compared to the Proud and Guarder hammer springs, the Hidakaya hammer spring is the softest, followed by Proud at about 140%, and Guarder at 150%. The Proud hammer spring may not present any issues, but the Guarder spring will pose cycling problems. I highly suggest staying away from the Guarder hammer spring.
(replace pic) Image

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(rewrite with hidakaya spring)
Hidakaya recoil spring. Stronger recoil springs reduce the amount of felt kick when the slide retracts, but allows the slide to return to battery faster. This recoil spring is rated at 130% of the stock spring's strength, which I feel creates the perfect balance between kick strength and cycle speed. Compared to the Proud, Guarder, and Action recoil springs, the Hidakaya recoil spring is the softest of the four with the Proud spring being stronger at, what I estimate to be, 140%, then Guarder at 150%, and then the Action recoil spring being the strongest at 160% rated strength. The Guarder and Action springs may pose issues with cycling so I do not suggest getting either of them as an alternative.
(replace pic) Image

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(rewrite)
Proud floating valve spring. This spring slows down the floating valve before it seals off pressure towards the barrel. This allows more gas to pass towards the barrel before the rest of the gas is used to power the blowback mechanism.

This spring may cause problems with the stock floating valve and the Shooters Design floating valve as both the plastic valves do not have enough mass to push the strengthened spring and seal off pressure towards the barrel. This results in less blowback power and may hinder the slide from stroking fully and locking back after the last round. Metal floating valves, made by Action, King Arms, or Hidakaya, will balance out this problem and distribute the gas pressure proportionally again.
(replace with proud floating valve spring) Image

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Shooters Design loading muzzle and valve blocker. I left out the floating valve because I will be using the metal Hidakaya valve. The valve that comes in the Shooters Design set is in my KJW P229.
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The legendary indestructible Shooters Design valve knocker. Out of all of the upgrades, I think this is the most important one. The stock valve knocker is reported to be fragile and brittle. This valve knocker will solve that problem and certainly liven up the action on the pistol.
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Proud magazine lips for increased durability. This is a must upgrade for those who are shaky with speed reloads.
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Carom Shot trigger. My god, this trigger is so smooth its scary. Personally I like a little resistance to my triggers, but the Carom Shot trigger action is so slippery smooth that I am beginning to take a liking to it.
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Carom Shot hammer. This is a very nice steel hammer. I doubt that this hammer will degrade over time when it hits the valve knocker.

The striking pad on the stock pot iron hammers will slowly lose its shape as it hits the valve knocker, especially if it is the steel knocker from Shooters Design. The deformation is quite evident as the stock hammer on my KJW P226 is wearing down from striking the Shooters Design valve knocker.
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Pelican 1400 case to store the pistol.
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I have several of these cases for my other pistols. The "pick 'n pluck" foam is quite versatile and fun to customize.
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[PGC Metal Kit]

So far, I feel that the stock TM P226 is built very strong and sturdy. But it is still light and made of plastic, so I decided to get me one of these. This is the PGC/Pro-Win second generation metal kit for the TM P226.
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Black slide on black rail.
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PGC really took the time to pad the frame in bubble wrapping. The slide and the outer barrel are inside of the long rectangular box.
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The kit comes with small brass rings that serve as grip hole spacers for whatever kind of grips you throw at the gun. Thankfully, PGC has included three sets of rings of different sizes; the bag marked with the red dot contains the rings to fit the original TM grips, the yellow dot for Hogue wood grips, and the green dot for Hogue rubber grips. Fortunately, genuine Sigarms grips do not need the grip hole rings.

The kit also comes with a few neat details to add to the gun: an extractor and roll pins. The cd contains directions on how to mod the stock P226 parts going into the new kit so that it may properly function. I will post those pics with the directions later.
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Black frame, slide, and outer barrel; all of them flawlessly produced from PGC's CNC machine. Absolutely no mold lines or imperfections.
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The frame comes with even more bubble wrapping inside of it.
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This comparison shows the finish between the KJW p226 on the left, and the PGC frame on the right. the KJW has a darker shinier finish, but the PGC has a nice matte finish.
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And here is the comparison between the TM finish and the PGC.
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Finally the frame is out of all that plastic.
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The grip screw base is considerably smaller than the ones on the TM frame allowing you to fit real grips on it without having to bore out the grip panel holes.
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This is the hammer spring seat on the back of the frame. It replaces the bulky silver seat so that real grips can be fitted without being modded.
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More shots.
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The fake serial number is actually the model number.
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100% accurate trademarks.
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No mold lines to be found.
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Flawless serrations.
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Here is where the trigger assembly will sit.
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And for the hammer assembly.
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Moving on to the slide. The slide is also well protected in bubble wrapping. WGC humbly accepted my request to apply lacquered grip tape onto the trademarks.
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The tape is quite sticky, but can easily be removed nice and slow with no residue. Underneath the tape lies the trademarks unscathed by Customs.
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The trademarks look extremely clean after removing tape.
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Here is a comparison between the TM slide on the bottom, and the PGC slide above it.
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And the KJW slide on the bottom with the PGC slide on top.
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Perfectly cut. The insert for the roll pin, seen a few pics above, goes in that hole.
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The ejection port and the slot where the extractor goes in.
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The muzzle.
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The inside of the slide is just as pristine as the outside.
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The outer barrel.
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Very nice detail on the waving.
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9mm Para.
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The top of the barrel.
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Inside.
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[Sigarms Factory Grips]

I got these grips from the guys over at Topgunsupply. They are an extremely reliable gun store for Sigs and I always buy stuff from them for my real 9mm P226 with no hassles. They are the Dentrinity/WGC of real steel pistols. Excellent customer service and selection. They have a bargain flat rate shipping too.
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The genuine Sigarms grips are a lot rougher and tougher than the KJW or TM grips.
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Here is an up close shot on the textures and the trademark.
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Here are the insides of the grips.
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I think you can tell which one is the real deal.
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This one is real obvious.
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Comparison between KJW grips on the left, Sigarms on the right.
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Notice how the real grips have a smaller grip hole. This is why the PGC frame has a smaller hole base so that you will not need to bore out the grip hole.
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And this is why PGC sculpted the real hammer spring seat into the frame.
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You will need the proper screwdriver if you want to preserve your grip screws. This is the Sigarms armorers tool for real Sig pistols. Notice how the driver properly fits in the slot. I primarily use it more on my 9mm P226 as it remove grip screws as well as the magazine catch, the sear spring, and the hammer spring seat.
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[Nitesiters Night Sights]

Meet Nitesiters, the do-it-yourself night sights kit made by Mr. Dave Presley. These little guys are the most cost-effective and practical alternative to factory or aftermarket tritium night sights for pistols. I decided to buy another set of these as I was so satisfied with them on my KJW P226. Though this time I had to buy a new pack from Mr. Presley as I gave my "leftovers" to my buddy down in Los Angeles so he can put a set on his Glock.
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Nitesiters comes as complete package with eight night sight dots, installation instructions, and all the necessary tools to install them; alcohol pad, cotton swab, hobby blade, and toothpick. The night sights are kept in a really nice blue portfolio for convenient storage and to protect them from being lost or collecting dust.
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The dots are about 1.6mm (1/16in), which are pretty much the same size as the dots on the P226. You can see that they are a bit feathery around the edges. That feathery material is only the residue from the dots being "hole punched" during the manufacturing process. The residue can easily be removed after the dots are installed. The dots are basically like stickers, and impressively sticky ones at that.
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Last edited by Alex on Thu Aug 07, 2008 7:58 pm, edited 20 times in total.
Alex
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Team: N/A
Posts: 65
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Joined: Sun Jan 27, 2008 6:12 pm

Postby Alex » Thu Jul 17, 2008 9:53 pm

[Kit Installation]

This section of the review will cover the entire process of fully disassembling a stock TM P226 and reassembling the stock internals into the PGC kit.

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[Disassembly]

Before you start, first strip down the P226 as shown in the Take Down Procedure section.

Let's start by removing the blowback mech from the slide. Unscrew the two screws in the back of the slide. The two screws hold both the blowback mech and the rear sight onto the slide. Once the screws have been removed, carefully push the sides around the ejection port outward so that the blowback mech will be able to pull upward. While holding the sides pushed outward, pull upward on the end of the loading muzzle and pull the entire blowback mech out of the slide. You can see that the square embossments on the sides of the blowback mech are what holds it in the slide. Go ahead and remove the front sight from the slide as well. There is a small plastic clip inside of the slide that holds the front sight in place. Simply slide the clip off of the pegs of the front sight.
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Next, unscrew all four of the grip panel screws and pull apart the grips. Remove the grips from the frame slowly as the trigger bar spring under the right grip may slip off and shoot out and become lost. Carefully remove the trigger bar spring from the trigger bar. The decock lever on the left side of the frame will also need to be removed. Simply pull the decock lever along with the spring and bearing out of the frame. Make sure that the decock spring does not slip off as it may shoot out in any random direction.
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Remove the hammer spring seat from the frame by pushing the hammer spring seat upward while carefully holding the hammer spring and strut.
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Removing the hammer assembly will require a pin puncher or similar instrument; a narrow rod and the butt of a screwdriver may also be used as an alternative. On the right side of the frame, there will be two pins: one is in plain sight on the beavertail and the other is right above the trigger bar. Carefully tap both pins out of the frame from the right side so that they exit out the left. Then the hammer assembly will be free to pull out of the frame. Be aware of the valve knocker lock and spring as it may pop out while you pull the hammer assembly out of the frame.
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The trigger assembly is next to be retrieved. First, unscrew the hex screw hidden behind the takedown lever. Then remove the screw that is holding down the front of the assembly to the frame. The takedown lever will require holding down the safety click that holds the lever in place. Make sure that the takedown lever is in the horizontal position before you hold down the safety click with the end of a screwdriver or similar. Push the lever out from the right of the frame and carefully pull it out from the left while keeping the click pushed down the whole time. With the three key pieces removed, the trigger assembly can now be pulled out of the frame. When pulling the assembly out, be aware of the slide stop spring as it is another easily misplaceable component of the gun. Inside the now empty frame where the trigger assembly resides, you will see two small inserts on both sides of the frame. These are trigger pivot inserts. You can remove them and store them away. The PGC kit comes with higher quality inserts for the trigger pivot.
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With the trigger assembly out, the last pieces of the gun are easy to remove. Pull the magazine catch stopper from the frame. Keep an eye on the catch spring as you remove the stopper from the frame. With the stopper out, you can pull the magazine catch out of the frame. Finally, unscrew the final screw holding the catch cover.
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Here are all of the parts removed from the stock plastic frame and slide. Make sure you account for each of the parts as each one serves a critical purpose.
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[Reassembly]

Before you can put all of the parts into the PGC kit, you will need to do a little bit of fitting to some of them. Three parts will require fitting if you want the finished product to function normally and smoothly. The first part is the takedown lever. On the underside of the lever shaft, there are two slots that the stud on the safety click needs to keep the lever in place. Unfortunately, the slot on the left is too small for the click to allow the lever to move. So you will need to open up the slot a bit. Use a simple file or a dremel to deepen and widen the slot. When you put the takedown lever into the PGC kit later on, make sure that it can turn from the locked and the unlocked position smoothly. If there is any strong resistance or if the lever doesn't turn at all, you will need to open up that same slot even more. It took me three tries before I was able to get a deep enough slot for the lever to function correctly.
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The second part that needs fitting is the ridge on the back of the trigger assembly. The purpose of that ridge is to prevent any magazine play or rattling inside of the frame. But in the PGC kit, the ridge protrudes too much into the magazine well and makes the magazine very difficult to insert and remove because it pushes too much against the magazine loading lips. You will need to be grind the ridge down enough so that the magazine can be inserted into the gun and exit the gun smoothly under its own weight. Again, use a file or a dremel and shave thin layers at a time. When you put the trigger assembly into the PGC kit later on, check to see if the magazine can be inserted and removed smoothly from the gun. If the magazine cannot insert smoothly or exit under its own weight, redo the fitting process and shave a little bit more off of the ridge. I had to dremel the ridge around five times for the magazine to move smoothly in the gun.
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The last part that needs fitting is the hammer ramp on the blowback mech. This part probably needs the least material removed from it compared to the other two parts. The hammer ramp is what pushes the hammer back in the cocked position. But when installed on the PGC kit, the hammer ramp protrudes too much causing unnecessary resistance and wear on the slide and the hammer. Take a file or a dremel and take a thin layer off the top of the ramp enough so that it can cock the hammer smoothly. When you put the slide back on later and you find out that the ramp is pushing the whole slide upward when it cocks the hammer, go back and take another thin layer off the ramp. Be very careful as taking off too much material will result in the hammer failing to lock back in the cocked position when the slide is racked. Fortunately, I was able to get the hammer ramp to function properly in only two tries.
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From here you can finally begin reassembling the parts into the PGC kit. Start by inserting the magazine catch into the PGC frame and center it. Then insert the magazine catch stopper into the slot in the middle of the magazine catch. Be sure that the catch stopper spring is in the correct position; refer to the documented pics above for reference.
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The PGC kit comes with a bunch of metal inserts that replace the stock plastic ones. Take the two trigger pivot inserts and put them in the hole on both sides of the frame; the insert with the screwdriver slot should be on the left. Now we can drop the trigger assembly in. Take the entire assembly and slowly ease it into the frame. Be sure that the slide stop spring does not fall out during the process. Once the trigger assembly is back in place, the mounting screws can be screwed back in place. Before you continue, the PGC kit includes a replacement front screw for the trigger assembly as the stock one will not work due to having a wider thread pitch. Screw the new screw into the front of the trigger assembly. Then screw the hex screw into place. After both screws are secured, the takedown lever can be inserted. Just as mentioned above, slide the takedown lever into the hole in the horizontal position while holding down the safety click.
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Now onto the hammer assembly. Take the whole assembly and slowly ease it into its place in the back of the frame. Make sure that the valve knocker lock and spring does not pop out while you insert the hammer assembly. Once the hammer assembly is in place, insert the two pins back into the holes. You will notice that the pins will be difficult to push back in so you will need to use more effort when tapping them. Remember that both pins need to be inserted from the left side of the frame.
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Now that the hard part is over, you can finish putting the last pieces of the gun back on. Begin by putting the trigger bar spring back on the right side of the frame. Be sure that the spring is in the correct position as shown in the picture. Then put the decock lever back in place. Be sure that the decock spring is also in the correct position; do not put the end of the spring through the hole. Next, put the hammer strut and spring back in place. Because the PGC kit has the exact copy of the real steel hammer spring seat already sculpted into the frame, you will no longer need the bulky stock hammer spring seat. Also, since the PGC hammer spring seat is slightly higher than the stock seat, the hammer strut and spring will be a bit more difficult to put on. Insert the top of the hammer strut through the slot under the hammer assembly until you feel the hook catch onto the hammer bar. Once you feel the strut catch onto the bar, slip the hammer spring onto the strut and push the spring upward so you can mount it on the seat. This may take a few tries as the spring is difficult to push up now with only your fingers. Lastly, put the magazine catch cover back on the right side of thr frame. Because the PGC kit does not have a hole for the catch cover, you can do away with the tiny stock screw for the catch cover.
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Before you put the grip panels onto the frame, I suggest that you insert the brass grip hole rings that come with the PGC first. With the rings on the frame, put the grip panels in place and screw the grip screws on to finish assembling the frame.
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You can now finish off with reassembling the slide parts. First, start by putting the roll bar inserts into the holes in the slide where the blowback mech is to be placed. The PGC kit comes with two pairs of roll bar inserts to suit your taste: one pair is solid and the other has a hole in the center of the inserts. Next, install the extractor into the slot on the right side of the slide. Then you can drop the blowback mech into the back of the frame and secure it down with the rear sights using the two screws. Insert the front sight and secure it down with its clip. Then finish off by sliding the outer and inner barrel into the slide along with the recoil spring and recoil spring guide. Put the slide back on the frame and take a satisfying deep breath because you just finished building the P226.
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Here is the finished product.
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For secondary reference, here are the installation pics and instructions provided in the CD that came with the PGC kit.

"Attention:

(1)When installing the metal frame, use a small file to file a bit on the Slide Lock to make a small slot.
Make sure the Slide Lock can be turned smoothly BEFORE tightening the 2 screws.
Otherwise the Slide maybe NOT ABLE TO BE DETACHED anymore, and/or the 2 screws will loosen even thread glue is applied.
If you don't understand the which part of the slide lock to be filed, please view "b.jpg" in the instructions CD or consult your gunsmith.

The second thing to mention is about the 2 small holes on the rear end of the frame.
DO NOT drill the holes to make them bigger otherwise the fire power will drop.
Use a plastic hammer or screw driver grip to hammer the pins into the hole.

(2)Please refer to photo ¡§frame-mag.jpg ¡¨ to cut a thickness of 0.3-0.5mm IF you can¡¦t remove the magazine smoothly.

(3)Please refer to photo ¡§slide-smooth.jpg¡¨ to cut a thickness of 0.2-0.4mm IF the SLIDE is not smooth in action."
Image Image Image Image Image Image Image Image

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[Aftermarket Parts Installation]

(in progress)

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[Nitesiters Night Sights]

Installing the dots onto the iron sights may seem simple and easy, but the entire process is actually very tedious and time consuming. Though the tools and supplies that come with the Nitesiters should be sufficient enough to install the dots, I recommend using this set of tools along with the ones provided: a bottle of 91% rubbing alcohol, a plastic syringe, super glue, and a few extra toothpicks or barbecue sticks.
Image

Before the Nitesiters dots can be installed, the painted dots on the stock iron sights need to be removed. The alcohol pad that is provided should be sufficient enough to remove the paint from the sights, but I suggest using the more potent alcohol to remove them. Fill the plastic syringe with alcohol and put a drop of alcohol on the painted dot and let it set for a moment. You will then notice that the white paint will start breaking up and turning into liquid. Clean off the alcohol and drop a fresh new droplet into the dot sight and use a tooth pick to "stir" it. Continue applying more alcohol and rubbing the paint off with the toothpick until all of the paint is gone as seen in what used to be the left dot in the pic. I cannot stress enough how imperative it is to have the iron sight free of paint and sterilized clean.
Image

Once the dot foundation is free from paint and clean, the Nitesiters dots can be installed. I added another step in the process by putting super glue into the dot foundation to insure that the dots will never come off. Put a drop of super glue onto a piece of paper and use a tooth pick to "paint" the liquid super glue onto the dot foundation. Most super glue will not bond to paper so you do not have to worry about rushing the application. Once the glue has been applied, use the blade provided and slip it under one of the Nitesiters dots and slowly lift it from the cookie sheet. The dot's super adhesive will keep it well planted onto the blade so it will not fall off. The next step will require your steady hand and patience.
Image

Steadily hold the iron sight and slip the dot off of the blade so that the dot is lightly ontop of the dot foundation. Then use the toothpick to push the dot inside of the depression; for the front sight, you only need to flatten the dot. The dot's adhesive and the super glue will not settle rapidly so you will have enough time to adjust the position of the dot with the toothpick if it is offset. The dot must be secured onto the iron sight so continue using the toothpick to firmly press the center of the dot and its outer edges. The residue, as I have mentioned above, will flake off as you push the dot in and can easily be removed with the blade, the toothpick, or a pair of tweesers. The night sights are fully functional and immediately ready to use on the field once you finish installing them, but the glue and adhesive will require 72 hours to completely bond as recommended in the instructions. It is also recommended that the sights be warmed with a hair dryer or similar heat source to help the adhesives bond.

Here is a before and after comparison showing the original iron sights on the left and the finished product on the right. You can still see some residue as I have not finished cleaning it off. In my opinion, they look exactly like the stock latex paint sights before I removed them.
Image Image

Here is another comparison between the Nitesiters night sights and the stock contrast sights: TM P226 with Nitesiters on the left, KJW P229 with stock sights at center, KJW P226 with Nitesiters on the right. Personally, I cannot tell the difference.
Image

TM P226 on the left, KJW P229 on the right.
Image Image

KJW P226 on the left, KJW P229 on the right.
Image Image

The night sights glow brightly in even the dimmest lighting conditions. These are the dots after a short five minute charge under the morning sun.
Image Image Image

To sum it up, these night sights are solid white for quick acquisition during the day, and at night the sights glow a bright flourescent green that are considerably brighter than the more expensive tritium sights. The sticky adhesive on the dots will keep them stuck on the iron sights until you wish to remove them using the hobby blade. Add a bit of super glue if you are sure you want the sights to be permanent.

Mr. Presley has quite an amazing product here and I highly recommend them to anyone who wants a nice pair of quality night sights at a bargain price in their pistol. Check out his website for more information and for other Nitesiters shapes and sizes to fit your pistol, (http://www.nitesiters.com/).
Image

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[Cleaning And Maintenance]

(in progress)

========================================================================================

[Velocity Tests]

Contraints And Dependents

The chronograph used is the Shooting Chrony F1 Master
The pellets used are ICS 0.20g pellets.
The test is conducted indoors in a garage.
There is a five second delay between each shot.
The magazine is filled to capacity with propane before each set.
The magazine is loaded with 10 rounds before each set.
The magazine is hand-warmed for 30 seconds prior to inserting into the gun.
The hop up is turned off.
Ambient refers to room temperature prior to starting each set, not the magazine temperature. The magazine temperature is most likely colder than the recorded ambient temperature.
The P226 is fully upgraded along with the independent parts in the results below.

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Action piston head/Action floating valve
Image

Laylax piston head/Action floating valve
Image

PDI piston head/Action floating valve
Image

(in progress)

========================================================================================

[Accuracy And Precision Tests]

distance from target: 5m

(in progress)

========================================================================================

[Store Reviews]

These are the some of the stores that i have bought parts from to build the TM P226.

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Dentrinity Shop (http://www.dentrinity.com/)

Dentrinity is a very reliable airsoft dealer based in Hong Kong. The guys over at Dentrinity are very friendly and will try to get your order shipped out by the next day or two. Their product selection is massive with some of the lowest prices around. When Dentrinity exports replicas pistols, they will paint the end of the barrel instead of the slide. Upon request, they will put putty on the trades of your gun to keep them intact from Customs. Lastly, email response is quick to within one day. I sometimes inquiry them about when certain items will come back in stock and they always reply promptly. I cannot think of any way one can go wrong dealing with Dentrinity. This is my thumbs up and my good merits to you all at Dentrinity. Keep up the great work guys.

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WGC Shop (http://www.wgcshop.com/)

WGC is another fantastic airsoft dealer in the Hong Kong area. Pretty much the same great qualities that Dentrinity has can be experienced with WGC as well. They give the choice of using putty or grip tape to cover up trademarks if you so choose to; I recommend going with the tape. Also, I love how they throw in random "gifts" for larger orders; a few gifts to mention are a speedloader and a WGC embroidered cap. I am sure WGC will be even greater now that they have recently expanded their warehouse. Another thumbs up to you guys at WGC.

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Cobra Airsoft (http://www.cobraairsoft.com/)

Can you say fast as a cobra? The Hong Kong based Cobra Airsoft guys really live up to their name. I ordered a few parts for my KJW P226 from them before and they shipped it out in less than half a day and to my surprise, it arrived at my house the next afternoon. Their selection is not as wide, but they make up with their insanely quick shipping time and customer service. Just keep doing what you do best Cobra.

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Uncompany (http://www.uncompany.com/)

Situated in Hong Kong, UNC is also a very well known retailer in the airsoft world. Though they do not have a wide selection, UNC has more unique gun parts for sale that you will not find at other airsoft retailers. They also offer the option to cover up trademarks with putty or tape if so requested. Their customer service is not as responsive as Dentrinity or WGC, but they will get back to you with your questions answered. Out of all of the overseas retailers I have dealt with, UNC has the lowest starting shipping price for pistols; $10 less shipping compared to Dentrinity and WGC. On top of that, their shipping speed is respectably quick and will arrive at your doorstep within the end of the week, if not the following Monday. The only problem that I have with UNC is their slow website speed. Other than that, UNC is a great reliable place to pick up a few parts and deserves my recommendation. Thanks UNC.

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Airsoft Northwest (http://www.airsoftnw.com/)

(review coming soon)

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Airsplat (http://www.airsplat.com/)

Located in Los Angeles, California, Airsplat is good for ordering supplies and other commodities for dirt cheap. I cannot speak highly for their product lineup as they are mostly entry level. My only disconcern about Airsplat is how they apply paint on gun barrels, atleast on pistols. As I have mentioned earlier, they apply primer on the barrels before they paint it making it impossible to fully remove unless you spend the next week constantly using toxic chemicals to somewhat dissolve the primer. But, it is worth it if you want to keep the orange paint on; especially since their KJW pistols are bargain cheap. Also, when Airsplat packs the little bottles of silicone lubricant used for propane adaptors, they do not tighten the cap enough and sometimes one or two of the bottles will leak during shipping. you may end up losing 20% of the silicone in the bottle if it manages to leak; a big downer for Airsplat. Other than that, they are reliable and ship out relatively quickly. One of my favorite item from Airsplat is their 5,000 round jar of ICS 0.20 gram pellets for $12. They also sell heavier rounds for low prices too. I cannot speak for their customer service as I never needed to talk with them yet. Otherwise, as long as you are aware of their downsides, you can get a lot for cheap at Airsplat and you can shoot for the free ground shipping if you order over $150. Airsplat, you are almost there. Keep up the good work.

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Topgunsupply (http://www.topgunsupply.com/)

Located in Chesterland, Ohio, TGS boasts a very large selection of parts and supplies exclusively for Sigs and various other firearms. If you need real steel grips for your Sig, these are the guys you want to go to. They have flat rate shipping by USPS 2-3 day priority and a friendly staff ready to answer all your questions. Their shipping is also quite speedy and reliable. "Hoorah" TGS.
Last edited by Alex on Mon Jul 28, 2008 3:59 pm, edited 18 times in total.
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Postby Alex » Thu Jul 17, 2008 9:53 pm

(reserved space for upgrade parts)
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Postby Alex » Thu Jul 17, 2008 9:53 pm

(reserved space for field tests)
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Postby Alex » Thu Jul 17, 2008 9:53 pm

(reserve space for misc)
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Postby Alex » Thu Jul 17, 2008 10:01 pm

(reserve space for misc2)
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thanks

Postby Wezsh0T » Wed Jul 23, 2008 9:49 am

Wow..this is a really informative thread. I will probably upgrade my TM p226 at some point. Thanks for all your work!
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Postby cc11rocks » Wed Jul 23, 2008 10:55 am

dang
how long did it take you to do all that?
how much money did it cost?

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Postby Alex » Wed Jul 23, 2008 2:20 pm

@cc11rocks

i think i began the project back in february. though if i had all the parts ready in front of me, i would have finished building and testing the gun within a week. but so far it has been an on-off process due to college, parts taking weeks to come in, my other hobbies, etc.

thankfully my stimulus check protected my wallet from feeling most of the downside of building the gun. some of the parts i have already had long before february, and i cannot remember how much i bought them for. but the parts that i did need to buy now totals enough to buy ~5 well g-22s, which i believe is your prized long arm if i am not mistaken.

i should begin testing it very soon by the end of this week or the next week at the latest. keep tabs on the updates section at the top of the page as i will post my progress there.
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Postby cc11rocks » Wed Jul 23, 2008 2:35 pm

thanks for repling
it is a well mb04 g-22 sniper rifle with a bunch of cool crap (actually two things)on it (go to my profile for details)
i will keep tabs
thanks


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Postby Alex » Wed Jul 23, 2008 2:43 pm

i take back what i said about waiting for next week. the usps man just dropped off the piston head just five minutes ago. expect another update, most likely in the upgrades section, later on tonight.
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Postby cc11rocks » Wed Jul 23, 2008 2:45 pm

oh man
sooooooooooooooo sweeeeeeeeeeet!
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Postby Alex » Thu Jul 24, 2008 5:13 am

good news. i have begun testing the p226 under the chrono and i have come up with very unexpected results. the performance from each of the piston heads was quite strange as i had expected the laylax piston head to perform the best, then pdi, then action. but after conducting the test, it turns out that i had it backwards. the action piston performed exceptionally holding just over 330fps on each shot. see the numbers for yourself in the velocity tests section.

what i also found strange while testing the gun was that even with all the upgrades that are supposed to consume more gas, i was still able to shoot a full 20 rounds on a fully gassed magazine and have a few more shots left after reloading. it seems that i have underestimated the very generous gas efficiency of the gun.

now for the bad news. the shooters design loading muzzle is extremely tight, and sometimes locks, in the blowback chamber and i believe it is hindering the gun's performance. i have tried the sd muzzle in my kjw p226's blowback chamber, which has the nine ball piston head installed, and it is just as tight. the stock loading muzzle also has the same problem, but not as accutely. however, the guarder loading muzzle in my kjw p226 can move as smooth as butter in both the kjw and tm blowback chamber.

aside from the technical problem at hand, i am still surprised that the p226 can dish out that much power. with that said, i will again put any further testing on hold until i get a replacement guarder loading muzzle.

once i get the new muzzle in, i will redo the testing process with all three of the piston heads and both the floating valves all over again.

for now, if anyone has any alternative suggestions or solutions for the locking loading muzzle, i am all ears.
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Postby cc11rocks » Thu Jul 24, 2008 10:39 am

good job and good luck
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Postby Alex » Mon Jul 28, 2008 3:54 pm

hey again. here's a small heads up for the week. i finally received the guarder loading muzzle with the matching valve blocker in the mail this morning and installed it in the gun. just as i expected, the guarder muzzle cycles so smoothly in the blowback mech, unlike the shooters design muzzle that took some real elbow grease to pull.

i just want to give a little shout out to the guys over at airsoftnw. it was my first purchase from them and i am very pleased with their service. lucky for me, i was able to snag their last guarder muzzle and blocker for a bargain with very speedy shipping and convenience of paypal. i look forward to doing more business with them in the near future. thanks airsoftnw.

i will resume testing the gun this week, most likely beginning tomorrow on tuesday. so stay tuned.
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