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Initial Impressions of the TM SOPMOD M4 AEG


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While fiddling about with my SOCOM recently I noticed an expected benefit of using a Magpul MIAD grip. The swappable backstrap means you only need to remove the pistol grip base to get access to the a

Oh PureSilver, you do spoil me rotten sometimes.   PureSilver dropped half his SOPMOD off with me last weekend with some new goodies to install. Before we continue, you should note that the gun had

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A few questions though.

1. Any upgrades I should do to the gun? Nothing internal just parts to help the recoil and secure the gun more.

2. I took the stock off and I noticed a small little tab on the buffer tube connector broke off. The gun still fires but will this be a future problem?

3. One of the batteries I got doesn't hold a charge all the way. Can I revive this?

4. Is the bolt suppose to lock back if you pull the charging handle all the way?

5. Lastly, what would be the best bucking for the gun?

 

Thanks guys.

 

I'll see if I can help at all:

  • The major upgrades I'd recommend are to the battery system - I'll detail that in point 3, since they're related. Other than that, there is one other upgrade that I'd say is a must-have - the First Factory Hard Stock Block. I guarantee you that if you pull your original block out it will be fractured and it can cause connection problems between the contact bars and the contacts on the buffer tube. It's not cheap, but it's not particularly expensive either, and it's solid CNC'd POM so it only needs to be done once.
  • The contacts do break, and with only half the contact patch that it should have a broken connector will adversely affect the SOPMOD's already poor electrical efficiency. You can get the Prometheus Gold Contacts Kit if you like, which includes solid replacements that aren't fragile.
  • The original Marui batteries are dreadful; expensive, proprietary, low capacity, low voltage, chemically obsolete, slow to charge and discharge rapidly even when not being used. If you're cheap, you can crack open the original shell and replace the individual cells with replacement NiMHs, and add an additional cell for a boost of 1.2v. However, you're much better off switching to LiPos. The best all-round solution is to unscrew the QD system Marui uses (it's horribly inefficient) and put it in a safe place for when you come to sell the gun. Then, purchase the Prometheus Gold Contacts kit, solder a Deans pigtail to the ends of the contact bars, and use the 3000mAh Hot Power 7.4v 15C LiPo batteries with a Deans connector. That would suit you well as you've already gotten a broken contact, and you might as well do the whole upgrade while switching out the stock block too.
  • No.
  • Eagle6 recommend the FireFly hop-rubber and FireFly flat hop-up nub combination as the best for the SOPMOD.
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It seems like the Eagle6 is the only one that carries the Prometheus Gold Terminal. Is there anywhere else that sells it? I am in the US so the Pounds to USD is quite a bit.

 

It's not just Eagle6, but you're right, it's not as widely carried as it should be. If you're going to be ordering a few SOPMOD parts you might as well order them from Echigoya; they have the contacts kit and the stock block. The eHobbyAsia contact bar kit you linked looks to be similar, but like you say, I don't know if it includes the replacement contacts for the buffer tube. If you e-mail eHA they'll let you know. Bear in mind that it says they are of copper construction - the Prometheus ones are aluminium core with a bright hard gold plate, so not the same. Copper will tarnish much more quickly than the Promtheus upgrades or the nickel-plated originals.

 

If you're going to keep the SOPMOD long-term, there are a few other things it might be wise to pick up from Echigoya. The NexGen AR-15s suffer from weak castle nuts, which are prone to stripping their/the stock tube's threading if done up/undone enough times because of their pot-metal construction. If you're ordering anyway the ARS or First Factory upgrades are not particularly expensive and certainly a lot cheaper than the alternative, which is buying the ARS buffer tube.

 

Also,

Is there a video or images to convert the contact bars to deans?  Am I still using the QD battery packs or strictly using the lipos with no mods to it. Couldnt I just cut off the whole conector on the tube and wire it all to deans or is that a bad idea?

 

I posted a guide as part of a more comprehensive upgrade programme earlier in the thread. Removing the connectors from the buffer tube and running wires directly is not a very good idea. It means you can't close the stock completely because the wire inside the stock gets in the way, and the wire is vulnerable to getting trapped between the buffer tube and the stock and sustaining damage. It also means you can't completely remove the stock, which is a bit of an annoyance and also a bit unsightly.

Edited by PureSilver
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Hey, sorry to be lazy. Just so many pages to search through. Motor is dying on my Recce, could someone confirm for me whether I can use a standard long motor or aside from ordering from Echigoya(who won't even ship to me in Korea) what might other options be? I was just thinking about getting another Marui EG1000

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 Am I still using the QD battery packs or strictly using the lipos with no mods to it. Couldnt I just cut off the whole conector on the tube and wire it all to deans or is that a bad idea ?

Seeing as its second hand to you and your planning to keep it for a while (plus don't think you'd get that much for it third hand) I'd just clear the whole fast change guts out of it my self and solder a deans straight on to the wires on the stock tube so you can run cranestock lipo's in it (what I did with both my sopmods) much easier to run , and when I did look in to selling one of them it wasn't a problem for any of the prospective buyers .

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Sweet thanks! I will pick those up right away! Anything else I should pick up?

 

You will eventually need one of these wrenches so if you don't mind paying for it now, you might as well pick it up at the same time. You'll need it if you want to take the gun apart, which you might do if you get bored of the weak stock delta ring spring or the barrel or castle nuts come loose (which they do occasionally under the recoil). It's necessary unless you know someone else that has one.

 

Would the recoil feel be different with lipos? Will I still need to use the fuse if I am switching to deans?

 

The recoil shouldn't feel any different, but it might subjectively feel very slightly harder as the internals will be moving a bit faster with the slightly increased cyclic rate (somewhere around an additional 1-5rps). The fuse isn't strictly necessary - I put it in for my piece of mind more than anything else - and if you put it in you won't be able to use the larger Hot Power 3000mAh batteries - you'll be stuck with smaller flat cells. I've designed a drop-in replacement that has space for both the bigger Hot Power cells and a mini low profile fuse, but haven't found the time to get one printed/machined yet.

 

Also should I get the recoil upgrade spring? Or do I only need that if I am upgrading the internals?

 

The recoil spring is intended to help the recoil system keep up with guns that have a markedly higher rate of fire than stock. If you're fitting a new gearset that isn't the Prometheus Double Torque (i.e., the Prometheus Torque Up, Siegetek or Lonex gearsets) and some electrical upgrades the increased efficiency supposedly overcomes the slightly taller gear ratios and results in a rate of fire that's too fast for the original spring. Unless you're upgrading the motor or the gearset, you won't need it. In fact, I would avoid it; fitting it requires you to take the gun apart, including removing the castle nut, and that's not something you should do too often unless you're going to replace the buffer tube and castle nut with the more robust ARS replacements.

 

Anyone have any opinions on these? http://echigoya-guns.com/guns/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=353 If I am switching to a full rail system without the use of the delta ring would this be useful? Any better than stock or the Laylax base one?

 

That isn't the same part as the LayLax one. The LayLax 'Hard Barrel Base' replaces the horseshoe-shaped part that slots around the outer barrel and is required no matter what delta ring set-up you have. It's aluminium and is intended to be less prone to deformation than the pot-metal original. That ARS part replaces the part that goes over the outer barrel, and you only need it if you're sticking with the original faux delta-ring system. If you're moving to a full-rail system you categorically will not be able to fit that part.

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I have this Hard recoil Spring in my checkout

http://echigoya-guns.com/guns/index.php?route=product/product&path=61&product_id=363

 

So this one wont help increase recoil at all for the sopmod with all stock internals?

 

Nope. The spring doesn't increase felt recoil at all; the only thing that can do that is increasing the speed of the recoil weight's movement, and/or increasing the mass of the recoil weight. Doing either of those requires a new gearset and/or the SURUS.

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That isn't the same part as the LayLax one. The LayLax 'Hard Barrel Base' replaces the horseshoe-shaped part that slots around the outer barrel and is required no matter what delta ring set-up you have. It's aluminium and is intended to be less prone to deformation than the pot-metal original. That ARS part replaces the part that goes over the outer barrel, and you only need it if you're sticking with the original faux delta-ring system. If you're moving to a full-rail system you categorically will not be able to fit that part.

Sorry you are wrong. That is the ARS replacement for the horse shoe shaped part and it can be fitted with any delta ring or free float rail. I have this part and a DD lite rail. I previously had the part fitted with a G&P delta ring.

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Really?! I need my manual in front of me. How the hell do you get something with the same inner diameter as the outer diameter of the barrel to go over it and settle into the slot without becoming acentric? I suppose it breaks apart into two pieces for installation - could you provide some photos?

 

[EDIT]Yeah, I got it right the second time - it's not one piece, it's two-piece and held together with a washer, as illustrated in these photos:

 

gallery_77463_1993_7966.jpggallery_77463_1993_7209.jpg

 

It seems overtly complicated given that it's three pieces replacing one, but it's still an improvement over the real thing in that you don't have to remove the gas block in order to change the delta ring assembly. In terms of upgrade potential, then, I suppose the idea is that it provides a 360-degree level of support as opposed to the ~190 degrees offered by the original and the LayLax upgrade. I don't know if that's important; so far as I can tell, the barrel base provides location along the length axis of the barrel, not transversely, so I don't know if it makes any difference. Is it any good, weekenny? And thanks for the clarification - I was totally wrong![/EDIT]

Edited by PureSilver
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It is in my opinion a much more worth while upgrade than the laylax one. Providing support all round the outer barrel. Once the barrel nut is fitted there is zero flex in the mount making the barrel very secure. The part fitted well and is well made. Transverse barrel loads are not normally imposed on a barrel with a floating rail but if the barrel is knocked or the rifle dropped then even small loads will bend the stock barrel base.

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The recoil spring is intended to help the recoil system keep up with guns that have a markedly higher rate of fire than stock. If you're fitting a new gearset that isn't the Prometheus Double Torque (i.e., the Prometheus Torque Up, Siegetek or Lonex gearsets) and some electrical upgrades the increased efficiency supposedly overcomes the slightly taller gear ratios and results in a rate of fire that's too fast for the original spring. Unless you're upgrading the motor or the gearset, you won't need it. In fact, I would avoid it; fitting it requires you to take the gun apart, including removing the castle nut, and that's not something you should do too often unless you're going to replace the buffer tube and castle nut with the more robust ARS replacements.

 

fyi - to fit the recoil spring you only need to remove the stock and unscrew the end cap on the stock tube and remove old spring and drop in new spring.. 5mins, its a worth while upgrade for anyone not running original 8.4v bats..

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Also,

Is there a video or images to convert the contact bars to deans?  Am I still using the QD battery packs or strictly using the lipos with no mods to it. Couldnt I just cut off the whole conector on the tube and wire it all to deans or is that a bad idea?

 

 

 

 

Does this come with the connectors that I need compared to the prometheus? Or is it just the two bars in the photo? 

http://shop.ehobbyasia.com/diamond-ring-efficient-stock-rot-for-marui-sopmod-m4-cqbr.html

 

 

There are many many places listing the lipo convertors for the sopmods now... especially for those new top sopmods you dont want to be soldiering anything.. just buy a convertor and it will save you messing about.  Also soldiering devalues the gun for any potential buyer in the future.

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fyi - to fit the recoil spring you only need to remove the stock and unscrew the end cap on the stock tube and remove old spring and drop in new spring.. 5mins, its a worth while upgrade for anyone not running original 8.4v bats..

 

I'm gonna stop giving advice - wrong twice in two days! I've only ever done it the invasive way 'cuz we had to have the gearbox out anyway. I know that the Echigoya 'upgraded spring' is a lot softer than the Eagle6 one; will it still be worth it for zushiku?

 

There are many many places listing the lipo convertors for the sopmods now... especially for those new top sopmods you dont want to be soldiering anything.. just buy a convertor and it will save you messing about.  Also soldiering devalues the gun for any potential buyer in the future.

 

Definitely you don't want to solder connections to the buffer tube, but I don't agree that buying a converter is the best solution. With a converter, you have ten unsoldered connections between the motor and the battery's cells. If you pull the original QD system and set it to one side (i.e., so the work is completely reversible and won't affect any future value) and replace it with a soldered contact bar, you cut that to just four unsoldered connections. Quite a few people in this thread (myself included) found that the decreased resistance gave a worthwhile boost in rps.

Edited by PureSilver
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I'm gonna stop giving advice - wrong twice in two days! I've only ever done it the invasive way 'cuz we had to have the gearbox out anyway. I know that the Echigoya 'upgraded spring' is a lot softer than the Eagle6 one; will it still be worth it for zushiku?

 

 

Definitely you don't want to solder connections to the buffer tube, but I don't agree that buying a converter is the best solution. With a converter, you have ten unsoldered connections between the motor and the battery's cells. If you pull the original QD system and set it to one side (i.e., so the work is completely reversible and won't affect any future value) and replace it with a soldered contact bar, you cut that to just four unsoldered connections. Quite a few people in this thread (myself included) found that the decreased resistance gave a worthwhile boost in rps.

 

Theres a billion things you could do for more RPS .. more effciencey.. where do you draw the line. Hes a new player and even if he isnt not everyone wants to soldier there guns in fact very few do. I always have to think what can everyone do not what can a few do, not everyone is after every last ounce of effeciencey. Lesson learned the hard way for me im afraid, everything i sell now has to be plug and play ... easy fit.

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I have a few questions about upgrading. I have the 416 but it is pretty much the same as the sopmod internally:

- if I upgrade every part in the gearbox would the Eagle6 110 spring reach around 390-400 FPS?

- can the Eagle6 recoil spring be used with the stock gun or should I only put it in an upgraded gun?

- I bought the Lonex next gen gears. What motor would be the best? Would a Lonex A2 be too much?

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I have a few questions about upgrading. I have the 416 but it is pretty much the same as the sopmod internally:

- if I upgrade every part in the gearbox would the Eagle6 110 spring reach around 390-400 FPS?

- can the Eagle6 recoil spring be used with the stock gun or should I only put it in an upgraded gun?

- I bought the Lonex next gen gears. What motor would be the best? Would a Lonex A2 be too much?

Yeah sounds about right for an m110

 

i would only use the upgraded recoil spring with a lipo battery or 9.6v sopmod pack.

 

any motor will be fine.. high torque of course.

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