KTW
Ithaca M37 "MasterKey" Shotgun Playing
CQB scenarios, I wanted to be able to have a weapon that was both functional
and badass looking, a weapon with intimidating looks. So, when I saw the
pictures of the M4 "MasterKey". It was love at first sight and
I knew it was my weapon of choice for CQB scenarios. Here are my impressions
of the KTW Ithaca M37 "MasterKey" Shotgun.
When I first opened
the box, it did not look as nice as the pictures that I had seen on various
websites (no surprise to me). None the less, it didn't look bad either.
I picked it up out of the box and it was very light in weight, it weighs
850g, which is about 30 oz. That was one of my concerns about the shotgun
to begin with. I was worried that it would put stress on the front of the
M4. But, my worries were quickly dispatched due to how light it was and
the way it mounts to the M4. It doesn't really put any strain on the front
of the weapon at all. It feels filmy and not very solid. Be sure to check
all the bolts and screws to make sure they are tight. All mine were loose.
Just don't over tighten them as the threads could strip easily.
Rear Mount with Mounting Bolt in place |
Fitting
This model does not require you to have a R.I.S. handguard on your
M4. The KTW Ithaca M37 Shotgun mounts to all of Marui M16 Series AEGs.
You could probably mount it on others, but it would need to be modified,
and you would probably need to be handy with fabricating parts.
The rear mount
slips over the magazine receiver on both the M4 and M16. The pivot
pin for the main body is replaced with a bolt and locking nut.
I recommend that
you use a light grease to help slide the bolt into place. Put the
locking nut on, but don't tighten it just yet. I did notice a casting
flaw with this mount, but it was no big deal.
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Front Mount and 1 or 2 BB Fire Control Switch |
Once, you have
the rear mount attached, the barrel mount can be put on, it attaches
to the underside of the front sight or bayonet lug. You may have to
do some grinding on the bayonet lug to get the mount to slide all
the way on, but mine didn't require any.
Now that you have
the barrel mount in place all you have to do is just tighten all of
the hex head set screws and the locking nut for the rear mount.
All the tools
that you will need to mount it with come with the shotgun. So, you
won't have to try and find the right size hex head wrench. Just don't
over tighten them; all you need to do is snug them up.
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The only bad thing
about mounting the shotgun on the M4 is that you will have to remove
it to replace the battery.
You could relocate
the battery, externally perhaps. Or you could modify the handguard
so that the battery is on the top underside of the handguard. This
is not a problem if you plan on mounting it to the M16.
Looks
As for the looks of the shotgun, like I said before, it's not really
that bad. It kind of has the looks like across between a toy and real
steel. It is made of mostly ABS with a little metal. And by little,
I mean very little metal. I would give it a 4 to a 4.5 on a scale
from 1 to 10 for looks. From a distance, it gives both the M4 and
M16 that "Badass Look". In Airsoft, looks are about 90%
of the sport. I did paint the front pump handle with flat black paint
to make it match the rest of the weapon. The shotgun also comes with
a rear pistol grip in case you wanted to use it solo. All you have
to do is remove the rear mount and put on the pistol grip. The shotgun
then resembles a sawed-off shotgun.
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Special thanks to Kenny aka 888 for use of picture
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Overall length
of the shotgun is 530mm, which is about 21 inches, so it would be
good for CQB scenarios or tight woodland scenarios. In the near future,
I plan on putting a laser sighting system and a SOCOM silencer on
the M4 to help balance it out, along with a shell carrier on the side
of the shotgun with deactivated shotgun shells in it for looks.
Overall length of M4 with extended stock and "MasterKey"
mounted
is just less than 38 inches and weights 8.8 lbs. |
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Magazine loading into lower tube |
This shotgun is spring-powered
and it uses a magazine that loads into the front lower tube of the shotgun.
The shotgun came with two magazines and it says that they will hold 46 BBs,
but I have loaded 48 BBs in them with no problem. I wouldn't put any more
than that, though. The magazines are about 8 inches in length and will fit
in a utility pouch or M16 mag pouch. To fire the shotgun, you load one of
the magazines into the lower tube underneath the barrel. There is a small
switch where the barrel goes into the receiver.
You can flip it forward
or backward. This is for firing one or two BBs at a time. When in the two-fire
mode, mine did fire three BBs sometimes. I don't know if this will cause
any problems on down the line or not. There is also a switch located at
the trigger guard. You push it in to activate the feed for the BBs. Then
all you do is pump the handle like a real steel shotgun. Take the safety
off. It is located at the back of the trigger guard. Now, squeeze the trigger
and each time you want to fire a BB, you just pump the shotgun.
 
The shotgun comes with two magazines(left). Safety and Feed Activator
Button(right) |
The power of the shotgun
is nothing to brag about, but it's not bad either (I've seen worse). Supposedly
it shoots about 200 fps but this is unconfirmed at the moment. If I had
to guess, I would say it shoots somewhere between 180 and 200 fps. It does
have decent range, and I have hit targets out to 50 ft. Using .25g BBs,
but for CQB scenarios I will be using .2g BBs. It is primarily a close up
weapon and you couldn't engage targets at any great distance. But, because
it is low in the power range, you could engage your opponents at close range
without the worry of seriously hurting them. The shotgun is really for CQB
and it is a plus having your back-up weapon ready and on hand. This is why
I chose the M4 "MasterKey" for CQB. If I decided not to carry
my pistol, I would still have a back-up weapon and a little extra firepower
when needed. Not to mention the fact that in airsoft, having the "one
badass looking weapon" is half the fun.
Don
Sang KTW ITHACA M37 SHOTGUN review By SHADOW Here is a review
by SHADOW. He plays the of role recon/sniper for his team. But when
he's not taking out the enemy from afar. Or performing reconnaissance
for his team, he is back up for the Entry Team when they play CQB
scenarios and his weapon of choice is the M4 "MasterKey".
For those of you who don't know what an M4 "MasterKey" is,
basically it is a Colt M4A1 Carbine with a 12-gauge shotgun mounted
to the underside of the front handguard.
