Having owned the FIRST Hard Outer Barrel, and found it to work effectively I was initially drawn to it for a solution to the problem. But when Guarder released their latest 2003 series One Piece Outer Barrels I noticed they had included an M933 version (the true Colt Commando as featured in Black Hawn Down – well the M733 variant). I decided to be original and go for this version as it would sort out the barrel wobble problem, and would also eliminate the need for me to buy an extra Short Outer Barrel. I ordered mine from UN Company, so far the only place on the web that sells the M933 version of the barrel. After a wire transfer and 2 week wait the barrel arrived in a consignment that escaped the attention of HM C&E – hooray!! So was it worth the £50 I paid for it? Overview All Guarder kit appears to be packaged in clear plastic wrapping, my barrel was no exception. It came disassembled, with the M933 extension wrapped separately in cellophane, some brief instructions and an Allen key for tightening the grub screws on the barrel.
The barrel looked immaculate, no scratches or scuffs – what you’d expect from a brand new bit of kit. The quality of work is excellent, every edge and surface on the barrel has been finished of perfectly – there are no burrs, no excess material or over run on mouldings. In other words usual Guarder quality.
The barrel itself in made up of 3 parts – the M933 extension, the main barrel section and the mount block. The main barrel section and mount block come assembled ready for fitting – with the barrel held in place with two 4mm grub screws. The main barrel section has 2 holes in it for the front sight pins and both the main barrel extension and M933 extension come with a 14mm threaded end – ready for flash hiders and silencers.
The 2003 version of the One Piece barrels includes a feature Guarder call ‘Vari-length’. In real terms means that the barrel assembly can be fine-tuned for length to ensure handgrips and/or RIS mounts fit properly.
The whole assembly is finished using Guarder's infamous P-Process, possibly a powder coating or bead blasting process. Which ever it is the finish is excellent, although there is a slight colour disparity between the main barrel section and the M933 extension.
Once I was sure the HOP would fit comfortably I inserted the barrel into the receiver. Do this by sliding the outer barrel into the receiver then slide the handguard ring assembly over it and start turning so it screws onto the thread onto the receiver.
It fitted perfectly to my Systema M4A1 metal body, and once attached it was rock solid, although required a bit of force to get the barrel flush with the front of the receiver. I then simply inserted the inner barrel (it requires a 300mm inner barrel – KM MC51 long or Thompson barrel does the trick) and built up the receiver. Testing Once I completed the AEG, it was solid. I ordered the Guarder Hand guard set as well, which came with the metal handguard retaining ring, this added extra rigidity to the front end of the gun. I carefully examined the front end and could find no barrel wobble – mainly due to the one-piece barrel and the threadlock holding the handguard nut on the receiver.
An important benefit of the barrel unit is that it the inner bore of the barrel is designed to be as close to the outer diameter of the Inner barrel (??). This means that there is no movement if the inner barrel when firing, meaning less vibration and more accuracy – a massive bonus. The only drawback
I have found with the barrel assembly has been the problem with
U-shaped battery packs and the higher capacity Twin battery packs!
This did affect me personally as I invested in 1700mAh Twin type
packs, and the problem I found was that they did not fit with
the Guarder One piece barrel AND the Guarder Handguards, since
they are 1-2mm thicker than the TM ones. So I have had to order
new battery packs! I have no hesitation in recommending this product, if your planning a to build a custom M4 I would put this part high on your priority list. The only two issues with the barrel are the fact you would need a new inner barrel (300mm) and that you might need to replace your battery packs. Overall compared to the money I would have spent on a FIRST HOB and the G&G Short outer barrel I have easily bought the Guarder M933 one-piece barrel, a better quality and simpler solution. But do take not in that if you are looking for batteries that are compatible with both the M933 barrel and Guarder Handguards then only fork out for the 9.6V 1100mAh packs – as only they will fit! by Permian
"...First,
the 'Vari-Length' mechanism is designed to be fine-tuned. Why?
Because we found the real steel M4 handguard system is slightly
longer than TM handguard. So, people can't install the real steel
handguard or real Knight's RAS system on the TM M4 AEGs. That's
why we designed the 'Vari-Length' mechanism. With this mechanism,
you can install the original TM handguard as well as the real
steel M4 handguard. =)
Comment on this review in the forums Last modified: Wednesday, May 9, 2001 9:37 AM copyright 2001 ArniesAirsoft
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