ARES M110 Project (Part 3): Setbacks and Lube

That was a hilarious title for a post, I know.

Anyway, following the fixes detailed in my last post that involved swapping the V3 tappet plate for a V2 one, I took the M110 to the field this past weekend, and during lunchtime, gave it a shot. I had not one, but two new issues pop up.

Issue one: feeding issues.

Thankfully, I was able to chalk this one up to the BBs I was using – Tamashi brand 0.30s. I’ve had good luck with the Tamashi 0.25s I’ve used in the past, which fed perfectly in my IAR and yielded impressive results accuracy and range wise. I switched to 0.25s and the feeding issues largely disappeared, so I’m satisfied with just calling it a BB issue and leaving it at that. Some guns just inexplicably like certain weights/brands of BBs. The good news is it fed pretty reliably once I switched to the Tamashi 0.25s, so the feeding issues of the past couple of entries have been solved, at least for now.

The second issue is a little more concerning: the M110 is double cycling on semi-auto, which is obviously no bueno for an AEG shooting at DMR fps levels.

I opened up the box when I got home and cleaned then re-lubed (lol, lube) the entirety of the gearbox. I discovered that the likely culprit for the double cycling is the cut-off lever, which looks a little worse for wear. The previous owner of the gearbox warned me that this particular part was a little worn out, so I’m likely going to have to salvage the part from the new V2 box I ordered and toss that into the M110 box.

Sigh. The project continues…

ARES M110 Project (Part 2): Setbacks and Fixes

 

I didn’t play this past weekend, but I did get the chance to get out to the field and try out some AEGs in preparation for an upcoming sim. With a mixture of trepidation and anticipation, I brought out the M110, loaded a mag, connected a battery, and pulled the trigger.

It cycled fine. It didn’t shoot, though.

More on my fix and the ridiculous source of the problem after the break.

ARES M110 Project (Part 1): Building The Thing

hooray portrait orientation pic!

I must apologize to the FN SCAR-H; I think I’m falling for a another 7.62 FDE DMR. I’ve gotten to know her pretty well over the past couple of months, and, well, for the first time in my airsoft career, I wasn’t afraid to be inside her.

Read of my love affair after the break.

Random Airsoft Musings: Saving Those Chiclets

No, it’s not forehead protection. I put it on when it came to the CQB engagement distances…

When I first started playing airsoft, I wore (as most of us newbies did) a full JT paintball face mask that was integrated into my goggles. After a couple of games I began to notice that none of the uber-cool-elite-hard-as-fuck vets were wearing masks, so I ditched the mask and ran with the paintball goggles alone. I did this for about a year or two, dismissing mouth/lower face protection as being strictly the domain of the noob, together with a G&G clearsoft M4 and a Condor chest rig.

I had a few close calls along the way – over the years I took a couple of shots to the face that left bruises that had to be covered up with a band-aid and dismissed as a “hockey high-sticking bruise/cut” at work the next day (because explaining what airsoft is to your supervisor isn’t always easy or worth it). But I had never sustained any permanent damage. No teeth knocked out or embedded BBs to mar my (not really) perfect complexion.

But lately I’ve started wearing a mask again; specifically, one of the lower face mesh masks that are designed for just this purpose. Perhaps it’s the close calls and full-on accidents that fellow players and teammates have had (and the accompanying medical/dental bills) that has led to me donning the mask. Perhaps it’s the growth of the sport and the accompanying noobs, with a spray-and-pray attitude and blatant disregard for MEDs taught to them by hours fighting digital terrorists in Battlefield 4.

But I think mostly it’s because I’ve realized that all it takes is a split-second of crappy luck to ruin your day and a good chunk of days to come. Your teeth, like your eyes, don’t grow back, and you wouldn’t dream of stepping onto the field without a good set of googles protecting your peepers. And in the end, taking that risk to look uber-cool-elite-hard-as-fuck just isn’t worth it.