Inokatsu Mk43 Mod 1

[ardrummer292]

Inokatsu Mk43 Mod 1

 

 

Everyone lusts after 'that' gun. You know, the one that you always ogle and drool over? That epic piece of kit that would complete your armory? For me, that has been the M60. I've always loved support weapons, but for some reason the 'Pig' has always caught my eye. Despite its blocky and somewhat ugly appearance, it just seems to scream 'FEAR ME,' and with good reason! LMGs are very effective in airsoft, and playing against them is an experience I have never forgotten.

 

What took me so long to buy one? Aside from the obvious financial hurdle, I had no reason to train with it. I believe airsoft has excellent training value. I bought a M4 and a M9 because that's what I'm issued, and I want to drill muscle memory on the weekends that I can use at work.

 

So, I'm taking a walk around the armory, perusing the inventory, when I spy something different from the racks of M4s around me. Taking a closer look, I realize it's a Mk43! I immediately ask to fondle it. So big, so bulky, so ugly, so... me! I'm sold, I need a Mk43 PTW.

 

Now, which to buy? The VFC has always looked appealing, but the proprietary gearbox is off-putting. The Star has guts made of wet paper, and the Ares isn't any better. A&K would be promising if they hadn't copied TOP's body design, which is bolted together in the middle (not to mention the proprietary hop rubber). Speaking of TOP... I'm not even going there. That leaves Inokatsu, with their way-too-short pistol grip and prohibitive price tag. I can only hope my bear paws will fit.

 

Next, which variant? We have a hodgepodge E3/E4 as issue, but I'd be more comfortable with a movable RIS foregrip. The Mod 1 is extra blocky, extra bulky, and extra ugly, but practical. She had to be mine.

 

 

 

REAL-STEEL HISTORY:

courtesy of world.guns.ru

Like other nations which faced German troops, the USA gave a great deal of attention to German machine guns. Early experiments to convert the MG 42 to the US rifle calibre, carried out by the Saginaw Steering Gear division of General Motors Corp with the T24 prototype, resulted in a complete failure, because someone ‘forgot’ that the US .30-06 cartridge is about 6 mm (1/4 of an inch) longer than the German 7.92mm Mauser cartridge. Despite that setback, the US Army set out to develop a general purpose machine gun for its troops, and in 1945 started a series of trials to test guns developed by various state armories, American private companies and some systems from foreign contractors.

In 1946 the US Army tested the .30-06 calibre T44 machine gun, an interesting weapon which combined features from two remarkable German designs – the action of the FG42 machine rifle and the belt feed unit from the MG42 machine gun. The most notable feature of the T44 was the placement of the belt feed module, which was located on the left side of the receiver (with the belt passing vertically from bottom to top) instead of the more common top position with a lateral belt movement.

The development of the T44 was stopped in 1948, when it was decided to concentrate on a new, shortened 7.62mm T65 cartridge. Work on a new prototype, designated T52, commenced in 1947 and was continued up until 1952, when it was decided to persuade a derivative of the T52 design, known as the T52E3, under the new designation T161. Originally chambered in .30-06 (as a backup measure for the guns chambered for new 7.62mm T65E3 ammunition), the T161 went through several versions, starting with the 7.62mm T161E1 and up to T161E3, which was finally adopted in 1957 as the “machine gun, 7.62mm, M60”.

 

courtesy of US Ordnance

M60E4/Mk43 Commando light machine gun series represents the latest improvements to the M60 Series of machine guns. The M60E4/Mk43 Commando features a redesigned machined aluminum top cover with an Commando features a redesigned machined aluminum top cover with an integrated Picatinny rail and an aluminum Rail Interface System handguard provides for Mounting Optics, Infrared Laser Systems and other sensors giving the weapon 24 hour capability. Several 850 round continuous fire reliability tests have been performed by Special Operations Personnel to include: SEAL Team Eight, Special Boat Team 20 and U.S. Army SF 5th Group.

 

 

 

ORDERING:

I placed my order with Airsoft Extreme. The order came to $1475 plus shipping. A week later, a refrigerator-size box showed up. Inside was the Ino crate surrounded by packing peanuts. Maybe a touch excessive, but I'd rather have too much than too little.

 

Pulling the crate out of the box was awful. It must have weighed 50lbs! I was concerned that the gun was the bulk of the weight, but I was relieved to find out that the gun was only 25lbs of the total. Rather irked that I paid so much extra S&H for a wooden box, I trashed it.

 

 

 

EXTERNALS:

Handling the weapon for the first time was wonderful. Rock-solid construction, no rattles aside from the bipod (the real one does this as well). Quite hefty and large, but not nearly as bad as I thought. The best part is that I didn't even notice the out-of-spec pistol grip until much later. That was my main concern with the Ino, and it turns out that my hands fit on it well regardless.

 

Everything is of top-notch construction. I've done plenty of baseball slides into the prone position, slamming the bipod into the deck and dragging it for a foot or so; this thing didn't flinch. Gotta love that solid Ino craftsmanship!

 

The barrel has a bit of play, but not enough to cause any sort of problems. It hasn't affected the performance at all, and it still locks in solid as ever. I can still grab the gun by the carry handle and swing it, shake it, and jerk it with no ill effect.

 

The ammo hanger pouch is good enough, although I replaced mine with a real LBT piece. The boxmag's feed tube locks into the receiver with a grub screw, which is allegedly superior to VFC's 'twist and lock' design.

 

 

 

INTERNALS:

thanks to PlasticMag for the following

Standard Chinese mid-torque motor, steel pinion gear secured with grub screw, some evidence of arcing

Cast gearbox, painted black, looks like rebranded Cyma CM.02, uses Phillips screws dabbed in red Loctite

6mm metal bushings, aluminum air nozzle Standard ratio XYT gears w/polycarb sector chip, 4-step bevel gear, reinforced antireversal latch, white polycarb tappet plate Regular pitch spring, clear polycarb spring guide (will eventually need to be replaced; has hole in back for retention during dis/*albatross*) Clear polycarb cylinder head w/brass nozzle, cheap white polycarb piston and bodged-on piston head (like Cyma, had AoE corrected)

6.04mm uncrowned barrel (crowned with Dremel), great nubless hopup design with positive 'clicks' for adjustment, awful stock hop rubber (replaced with Guarder clear)

Excellent shimming with copper shims, a little too much grease, excellent compression

 

thanks to Wes for the following

Getting gearbox out is fairly simple, a few screws and some elbow grease and she pulls apart. Gearbox is a standard v3, however, there is no internal trigger block or wires. All the wiring is outside of the gearbox which in my opinion is nice. the wiring hooks directly to the motor on the outside of the gearbox and when you pull the trigger it hits a micro switch which fires off the motor. I like this because it eliminates points of failure and simplifies the trigger system which is a chronic problem spot.

 

The feeding system is very nice and is something all AW should model. Its merely a metal spring tube that feeds from the outside all the way to the hop.up. its easily flexible and bbs feed smoothly through it. The downside of the feed tube is they didnt create a block that would guide the tube back to the entry point from the outside of the gearbox, so it makes it a hassle to guide the tube back. The hopup is a one piece CNC unit which eliminates air leaks.

 

Overall I think its very raw design and simplistic which is why it functions extremely well. Other then general maintenance I cant see this thing having major issues. After working on it, it really made me want one.

 

 

 

LOADING:

1. Ensure range is clear and weapon is on 'safe' (switch is down). Put on eyepro.

2. Attach feed tube slip collar from boxmag to gun, tighten grub screw.

3. Attach ammo hanger pouch by slipping upper portion of ammo hanger through loop on pouch, then securing pouch's velcro strap around lower portion of hanger.

4. Carefully insert boxmag into ammo hanger pouch.

5. Open top cover and hold. Connect red boxmag drive wire to corresponding red wire in receiver. Route under feed tray.

6. Remove upper buttplate screw.

7. Rotate buttplate out of the way to access the battery compartment. Be sure not to lose the 2 pieces that the screw threads into.

8. Insert battery. Connect wires and arrange as necessary through top of receiver.

9. Lay rounds on feed tray. Ensure wires are not going to block the top cover when closing.

10. Close top cover.

11. Fill boxmag with approximately 1200 rounds.

12. Close boxmag lid and secure with velcro pouch strap.

13. Ensure range is clear and eyepro is on.

14. Flip up rear ladder sight, deploy bipod (if desired), take weapon off 'safe' (switch up) and fire. You should dry fire for 2-3 seconds before bbs begin feeding. This is because the ammo system takes time to feed and fill the ammo tubes.

15. To adjust hopup, put weapon on 'safe.' Push in button on the left of the trunion block while rotating the barrel lock forward. The barrel should spring forward about 1cm.

16. Take barrel by carry handle and pull straight downrange. It should come free easily.

17. Observe the hopup unit. CW rotation increases hop, CCW rotation decreases hop. Adjust as necessary.

18. Aim weapon down and gently shake until 1 bb falls from chamber.

19. Replace barrel. Be sure to align both the hop unit in the chamber and the gas cylinder extension with the gas cylinder.

20. Using constant pressure, push the barrel into the receiver until flush. Rotate the barrel lock rearward until it locks in place.

21. Tug forward on barrel to ensure positive lock.

22. Repeat steps 15-21 until a good BZO is obtained.

 

 

 

PERFORMANCE:

Roughly 750rpm cyclic with 7.4V LiPo, 850rpm cyclic with 9.6V 3300mAh Elite NiMH

370 +/- 5fps w/0.25g TSD bbs

Eff range (grazing fire): 150ft point (18'' beaten zone), 200ft area (3-4ft beaten zone)

Eff range (plunging fire): 250ft area (6-8ft beaten zone)

 

 

 

IN THE FIELD:

This thing is a monster. The more experience behind an AW I get, the more effective I am, the more I love using it, the more I wonder about selling my M4. This thing is a BLAST to play with, although your shoulders, arms, legs, and back are going to be screaming by the end of the weekend. It doesn't seem that heavy if you ask to have a go with someone's LMG back at the safezone; hump it around all day and you'll have a newfound respect for gunners.

 

I've found that a good sling is key. I was using a TAG CQC double-hook bungee sling, but I have since picked up a LBT Mk43 sling and like it.

 

 

 

MODIFICATIONS:

External - paint/wear, TD Mk46 vertgrip, LBT Mk43 sling, LBT 100rd hanger pouch, Star 7.62mm dummy rounds, removed sight rail and filled holes with bolts, replaced top buttplate screw with velcro strap, duct-taped boxmag and feed tube (to stop spring from unscrewing from the slip-collar attachment)

Internal - Guarder clear hopup rubber, filed down next-to-last tooth on piston, crowned stock barrel with Dremel

 

 

 

PRO/CON:

+ Solid construction, and the carry handle works

+ Mostly realistic construction under the top cover (i.e. feed tray moves, feed cam *albatross*'y and pawl are present but fixed)

+ Great performance

+ Great boxmag, no hiccups in feeding other than those caused by operator error

+ Don't have to jam mags in between/during games

+ Unique

+ Barrel can be removed from fully-loaded weapon, losing only 1 bb

+ Solid stock internals, minimal mods necessary, 50k rounds and counting (as of 16JUL2009)

+ Can be reloaded by an AG while staying on target/firing

+ Hopup clicks into position, will not creep

+ You'll be everyone's favorite person once the plastic starts flying, or in a defensive scenario

+ A true firefight decider and force multiplier

+/- Approx 1200rd capacity: not bad, but not the best

+/- Unrealistic reloads

+/- Everyone wants a go at it

+/- Building-shaking LOUD

+/- Uses a CM.02 Version 3 gearbox: not gucci, but effective and easy to get parts

+/- Looks only a mother could love

+/- May incline one to be an AW operator ALL the time

- Grip gets hot on 200+rd bursts

- Boxmag isn't 100% sealed

- Shipping crate weighed more than the gun!

- Not very versatile, so a solid pistol with a quick-access holster is necessary for CQB

- Carrying is awkward at first due to boxmag

- Top cover doesn't clamp down tight enough on dummy rounds

- Insufficient spring tension on top cover to keep it open

- Included dummy rounds look awful

- Using the carry handle with a fully-loaded weapon is awkward due to rear-heaviness

- Very front-heavy when shouldering

- Stubby pistol grip, not nearly as irritating as I thought it would be though

- Makes you a priority target

- Very expensive, it's a $1500USD toy gun

- You're always the slowest guy on a patrol

- Takes awhile to learn the role

- May need a second job to pay for ammo

- Battery changes aren't very convenient

- Barrel must be removed for hopup adjustment (as far as I can tell)

- Real pain in the *albartroth* to tear down for maintenance and repair

- Takes a few seconds of dry-firing to prime feed system

- HEAVY (about 25lbs fully-loaded), hit the gym or have a lightweight backup rifle for when you get tired

 

 

 

UPDATE 01AUG2009

75k rounds: barrel jammed and gearbox locked up. Tore hop rubber and stripped stock piston, likely due to operator error (kept on firing in the hope the jam would clear itself) and cheap ammo (Fidragon 0.25g). Gearbox components and grease still good, no signs of wear. Replaced with TM piston and Promy POM piston head, AoE corrected. ROF increased to about 900rpm. Hop rubber replaced with another Guarder clear.

 

 

 

UPDATE 08AUG2009

85k rounds: barrel jammed. Tore hopup rubber, again likely due to cheap ammo (Fidragon 0.25g). Replaced with KWA 2G rubber (similar to Firefly), jammed again after 500 rounds. Will see if switching back to higher-quality (TSD) ammo will rectify problem.

 

 

 

UPDATE 15AUG2009

86k rounds: barrel continues to jam, even with use of high grade bbs (TSD 0.25g). Neither Guarder clear nor KWA 2G bucking affect jamming issues. Double/triple feeds are still present. Local airsmith suspects a broken tappet plate or malfunctioning air nozzle, will find out shortly if this is the case.

 

 

 

UPDATE 22AUG2009

86k rounds: jamming problem may originate from excessive barrel rotation, causing hop nub misalignment. New hopup c-clip (same as AK) and outer barrel shimming have been recommended to correct said problem. Gearbox position within the receiver may also be an issue.

 

 

 

UPDATE 12JAN2010

86k rounds: Team airsmith performed a complete gearbox rebuild due to massive piston failure (piston head torn off and flipped in cylinder, metal teeth shredded). Hop rubber was also replaced with a trimmed Guarder clear plus teflon tape. Gearbox adjusting screw tightened. 500rd test fire with KSC Perfect 0.25g proved effective, chronoing at about 328fps likely due to extended spring compression. Field report to follow.

 

 

 

UPDATE 16JAN2010

105k rounds: Field testing proved successful, firing nearly 20k rounds of Fidragon 0.25g throughout 7 hours of play. The only issue I encountered was the plastic butt cracking, likely due to a hard fall taken earlier in the day. Problem was remedied with zipties, still looking for a more permanent solution. The boxmag also misfed on occasion, which was easily remedied with a slap on the bottom of the box to dislodge the stuck rounds.

Edited January 20, 2010 by ardrummer292

[ardrummer292]

UPDATE 213JAN2010

 

115k rounds: Weapon chronoed at 300fps with Fidragon 0.25g bbs. Will check for airseal if spring decay is not the cause. Blew a fuse during a firefight while putting down large volumes of fire. Fuse appears to be a 30A 250V, will search locally for a replacement. Performed flawlessly otherwise.

[bluntshooter]

excellent review, i really like how you keep us updated to the story of this gun.

 

Owning a star m60 myself and having handled inokatsu m60s before i can tell you the star doesnt stand a chance. although the star/ares doesn't have the stubby grip. I suppose ino did that to fit the gearbox. Oh well, tis a minor gripe

 

 

[ardrummer292]

Thanks for the compliments, man. Here's some in-field pics from this past weekend and an update.

 

 

 

DO THA STANKY LEGG

 

UPDATE 30JAN2010

 

116k rounds: fuse replaced with 30A 250V fuse sourced locally. Buttstock torn completely off receiver, 550 cord used to reattach. Buttstock is stable, but I'm looking into replacement parts anyway. Pictures of failed stock to follow.

[ardrummer292]

UPDATE 13FEB2010

 

122k rounds: encountered an issue with the gun where, while delivering high volumes of fire, the gun would simply cease to fire. I can hear the motor trying to turn over and the boxmag motor running fine, but the gearbox doesn't cycle. When given 10-15min rest, the gun would resume normal operation. Unsure of the nature of this problem, possibly due to the mid-grade quality of the stock motor and high round count. Will investigate and report back.

[PlasticMag]

Sounds like the wiring or the motor is over heating. No bueno.

[ardrummer292]

Thanks for the theory, man. Research into the problem continues at Support Central.

[ardrummer292]

UPDATE 27FEB2010

 

137k rounds: locally sourced a new motor, which is from a JG AK. Overheating motors persist, although stoppages are less frequent and cool-off time is now reduced to under a minute. Grip still gets very hot during extended firefights. While I'm fairly content with the performance as-is, I still plan on picking up a high voltage switch kit from Redwolf and a new motor.

 

As a side note, it does appear I'm making a laundry list of problems with this weapon. These are mostly common problems with some minor annoyances. The hardest problem has been finding an airsmith gutsy enough to tear down such an expensive and rare weapon, and unfortunately he is usually quite busy.

 

Given a choice, would I go back and buy this weapon again? Without a doubt, absolutely. I am made to be a gunner... either that, or I am an especially lousy rifleman. I can't even bring myself to use 'normal' rifles now, as I honestly don't enjoy my gaming experience in a less specialized role.

[tosuzu]

What kind of battery are you using?

 

Do you use bearing or bushing?

[ardrummer292]

I'm using an Elite cell 9.6V 3300mAh NiMH large battery with the stock bushings (I think they're bushings anyway).

[ardrummer292]

UPDATE 07MAR2010

 

140k rounds: rear sling swivel torn completely out of buttstock, new buttstock is likely a must now. Thankfully, I have transitioned to the carry handle through a carabiner carry method, so the broken stock is more of an eyesore than anything. Performance was flawless. An order for 70k more Fidragon 0.25g bbs was placed the same day, as I'm down to about 5k bbs (of my original 126k order last year) and could use some more.

[mr.systema]

it's rambo gun ?

 

how heavy is it ?

[ardrummer292]

About 25lbs loaded.

[ardrummer292]

UPDATE 13MAR2010

 

142k rounds: wore through a hopup rubber, replaced with KWA first gen M4 hop rubber (all I had on hand). Gun is shooting well again. Overheating problems seem to be gone, although I still plan on replacing the motor again just in case. Carry handle through carabiner method of carry takes some getting used to, but is quite effective and safer than having the weapon slung parallel to the ground, flagging everyone. Low round count for the day is due to 3 other AWs being on the field, lightening my workload.

[ardrummer292]

UPDATE 19MAR2010

 

160k rounds: overheating problem is still present, although it only made itself known after a 12k round firefight while I was laying down multiple 1000rd bursts. Weapon chronoed at 265fps with 0.25g bbs, which leads me to believe that there may be an airseal issue since the ROF has stayed mostly the same and therefore spring degradation is not a likely culprit.

[ardrummer292]

Here's a couple pics from the weekend:

 

 

[Kai_Wolf]

The gun is a beast. Ive been on the receiving end of it and it has no mercy. I personally have always been impressed with how it holds up to such long bursts of fire (especially since it isnt some crazily beefed up custom gearbox. Its just a CM v3). The gun is just a tank. Its meant to be used hard.

[ardrummer292]

A little video from this past Saturday:

 

 

Myself, my girlfriend and assistant gunner, plus my buddy taking care of business. They hop up and cover my sector when my sh!t overheats.

[ardrummer292]

UPDATE 27MAR2010

 

170k rounds: boxmag began misfeeding every tenth round, causing me some concern. I disconnected the bb feed tube from the gun to discover a sliver of wood being pushed into the receiver's bb tube. Once removed, the boxmag fed flawlessly again. I also wore out a hop rubber, which I replaced with a KWA Gen 1 rubber (all I had on hand).

 

 

 

UPDATE 03APR2010

 

182k rounds: Blew a fuse during the first firefight of the day, melting a hole in the glass fuse container. Tried a 15A replacement, which immediately burned out. The same happened with a 20A fuse. Frustrated, I put a drillbit in the fuse casing. This caused the wiring harness and battery to light on fire. Thankfully, I removed the current source at one of the redundant connections in the system. I tested it after the fire and it functioned flawlessly, with a slightly higher ROF (likely due to no interference from a fuse).

 

The boxmag began misfeeding later in the day, only working when given several firm slaps to the side. Once the box was completely torn down, part of a bb bag, leaves, wood, and rocks were found in the M4 VN hicap that the box is built on. It appeared that the mag was totaled, so I replaced it with an AGM VN hicap I had on hand. The feed is somewhat inconsistent in testing, although it did function flawlessly during a brief 2k round firefight. I will lube the main drive gear to see if that remedies the problem.

 

I also replaced the KWA Gen 1 hop rubber with a Guarder clear. Now the gun chronoes consistently at 290fps with 0.25g Fidragon bbs. I will wait to see how she performs after my Redwolf order arrives and the following parts are installed:

Systema Magnum short-type + Systema chrome-moly reinforced pinion gear

Prometheus aluminum piston head

Systema M120 non-linear spring

Prometheus 6.03 x 363mm EG inner barrel

Inokatsu high-voltage microswitch

[ardrummer292]

UPDATE 10APR2010

 

205k rounds: installed a Systema Magnum short + Systema chrome-moly pinion, Promy 363mm EG barrel + Guarder clear rubber, and the 250V 30A fuse + fuse box from my Ino upgrade trigger switch kit. Everything performed flawlessly aside from the Promy barrel, which didn't seem to jive with the weapon for some reason. I snagged the barrel out of a broken JG fullmetal M4 to replace it, which ended up working perfectly.

 

While muzzle velocity remained about the same (275fps w/0.25g Fidragon bbs), the Systema Magnum motor bumped the cyclic ROF from the 700s to a consistent 1000-1050rpm on the same Elite 9.6V 3300mAh NiMH batteries I've been using all along.

 

The boxmag rebuild went quite well, functioning flawlessly all day after a quick squirt of silicon oil into the mech. The only issue is that the boxmag motor sometimes struggles to keep up with the ROF of the weapon itself, likely due to the installed Systema Magnum.

 

I also received my Arktis 1601 vest, which is a solid piece of kit. While not necessarily accurate to portraying the role of a gunner, it could be used as such and is more than acceptable for airsoft use. It is also far more comfortable, breathable, and mobile than my previous Hugger/LBE combo. I do plan on keeping the latter kit for direct action, heavy defense, and larger scenarios.

 

I will have the Promy aluminum piston head, Systema M120, and the remainder of the Ino trigger switch/wiring harness unit installed into the weapon shortly (likely tomorrow). Will report back after a 2 day OP later this week.

[ardrummer292]

 

Pic of me yesterday holding down the western side of the town. Wasn't feeling too tactical at the time, hence the lack of cover or any real discipline.

[ardrummer292]

UPDATE 13APR2010

 

206k rounds: installed the following:

TM piston (next to last tooth filed) + Promy aluminum piston head

Systema M120

Inokatsu high-voltage wiring harness

 

The airsmith tearing down the gearbox noticed nearly no wear on the Guarder piston or stock gears. The only part that had any signs of use was the Promy POM piston head, which was most definitely still serviceable. One of the stock bushings had been worn into an elliptical shape, but the gearbox was still running well. Said bushing was replaced with another from a TM FAMAS that was lying around.

 

After adjusting the gearbox 'headspace' by adjusting the screw that goes through the serial plate in the receiver, I gave her a quick 1000rd test fire. At the end of my burst, the gearbox locked up. On tearing the weapon down, I saw the same bushing had been worn into an oval shape (again!). Will rectify the situation as soon as a local airsmith is available.

 

I hope to have it running by tomorrow night, as I have a CQB defense game and would like something a little more potent than my Marushin 6mm M500 Entry to repel the attackers.

[ardrummer292]

An addendum to the above update:

 

I forgot to mention that my power spring had a slight kink in it. When the airsmith handed it to me, I poked the upper part of the spring, which promptly fell away from the remaining spring. That might explain my power issue from before.

 

Said airsmith is now in custody of my weapon and will be fixing it this weekend while I'm on leave at home. The next update may not come for up to seven months, depending on when I deploy.

[ardrummer292]

UPDATE 17APR2010

 

220k rounds: the Inokatsu gearbox is not playing nice, unfortunately. Got a new bushing set for it, but now the sector gear is wrecked. I have a CM.02 gearbox from an old AK build I did a couple years ago, so I had that put together with my old Guarder piston and Promy POM piston head. Said Cyma gearbox usually chronoes at about 330-340fps with 0.25g bbs, but it's only getting 220fps with 0.25g bbs in my pig. Not real sure what the problem is, so I'm taking it to my airsmith tomorrow night to have a look-see. I may just throw in my SRC M140, accept the fps loss, and run it for this weekend. This is going to be my last game before deployment, so the fix doesn't have to be perfect. I'll post an update as soon as I have the Ino gearbox fixed and back together.

[ardrummer292]

UPDATE 25APR2010

 

230k rounds: ran the CM.02 gearbox on Saturday, which chronoed at about 250fps with 0.25s. No issues to report there, aside from the rather silly 1200rpm cyclic ROF. Threw a SRC M140 in my Inokatsu gearbox with the TM piston and Prometheus piston head, then ran that Sunday. Chronoed at a healthy 390fps with 0.25s and dropped the cyclic ROF to a more reasonable 850rpm. No issues to report, aside from the fact that the gun is now incredibly loud versus the previous within-reason loud.

 

I have found an issue with the Arktis rig. It isn't really suited for carrying the weapon by my usual carry handle-through-carabiner method, as the back of the vest rides up and puts pressure on the back of my neck (ESPECIALLY with an empty hydro bladder). I was looking for yet another rig, since variety is always nice. I may go for a SORD Australia SCS LBV front with some custom VelTye shoulder straps, effectively turning it into a split-front chestrig. I'd likely run a TAD F.A.S.T. LiteSpeed pack for hydro and the ubiquitous pyro loadout.

 

I'd like to apologize in advance if there aren't any updates for awhile. Come Saturday, I'll be playing leadsoft for 6 months.