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Airsoft Systems Gen3 ASCU and ASHU review


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Background: I have been wanting for an advanced mosfet trigger unit for my Lonex M4 for a long time now. I always tought that they were overpriced and not good enough. After I saw Airsoft Systems Gen3 ASCU and ASHU combo (trigger unit and hopup with "empty mag" function) I knew that this was something I wanted. That is maximum realism and PTW like AEG. The price was steep though - 85 EUR for the ASCU and 30 eur for the ASHU. I explained myself that I needed it and so I ordered it via a local dealer who inturn got it from the official dealer www.gunfire.pl

The review:

First up the package. Who in their right mind sends about 150USD worth of fragile plastic and electronic goods in a plain slim cardboard box without any other packaging or protection?
This was the state that the goods arrived from Gunfire.pl to the local dealer.

osl1ruB.jpg

You can clearly see the packaging being damaged. Well atleast the goods were all there and at first glance seemed to be in good shape. 

Next up I started reading the manuals and installing the items into my Lonex M4. 

The ASHU hopup unit:

lyJHbo7.jpg


Well what can I say? Its a disaster IMHO. It doesn´t take any regular barrels or hopup rubbers. It just doesn´t work. The Microswitch on the bolt catch broke the first time I installed the upper receiver on the lower (and YES I did watch out for it, its just SOOO fragile). The FPS fluctuated alot and was bad, really bad. 

A youtube video is here:

 

Here is a quote from my Youtube video description:
 

I ordered this hopup unit with the Gen3 ASCU trigger unit to combine and use them. I had high hopes for these things as they go for 85EUR for ASCU mosfet and 30EUR for the ASHU hopup. 

 
Unfortunately I am very disappointed. The hopup unit is pretty much worthless without a specific barrel/hopup rubber combo (that Airsoft Systems does not specify in the manual). 
 
I have tried Lonex stock inner barrel
Guarder 6.02 inner barrel
Lonex stock hopup rubber
PDI "W" hopup rubber. 
 
Now those who know a thing or two can confirm that these barrels and rubbers are great combination and give excellent results in a variety of airsoft AEG-s. However in this case I could not get them to work with the ASHU. 
 
Here are the problems so far:
The hopup unit is large large in diameter. You need a really thick hopup rubber to fit well.
The C-clip did not fix in place properly. Had to replace it with a Lonex stock one. 
The manual states that the hopup unit is designed so that the rubber lip is closer to the nozzle than usual. Which is great for airseal. However they seem to have overdone it because I get bad FPS results with every combination. FPS fluctuates 20-30FPS and is down from the usual 400FPS to 280-350FPS. READ: NOT GOOD! After installing the original hopup combo back everything returned to normal. So it is not an installation error. 
 
Nex up is the specific ASHU empty mag indicator that is installed and can be used with the ASCU. That was one of the main reasons I ordered the set. Too bad, because this went broke before I got to shoot it for the first time. 
 
When sliding the upper receiver onto the lower I knew that this was a delicate piece and I watched out for it. However I ever so slightly nicked the edge of the microswitch thus sending it to the microswitch heaven for good. This was the first time I installed it. I never got to use it and I am ! It would be almost impossible to take the receiver off and put it on again many times without damaging that unit. 
 
Plus the wires for the ASHU are so thin and long that it is inevitable you brake some of them sooner or later. If you don´t believe me - order one for yourself and check it out!  LOL :D
 
So is there anything good about the hopup unit? Yes there is! The clicking adjuster system on top is very good. I would like to see other makers use this in the future as well. The clicks are easy to make and stay there no matter what.
 
P.S. About me as well. I have played airsoft for about 8 years now. I have repaired, upgraded and fixed all of my airsoft guns plus a lot others as well. For the last 6 years or so I have been a professional airsoft technician. So YES I do believe I am competent to say that this product is not worth the money. I really had high hopes for this and ordered a set as soon as I could. Unfortunately things did not turn out to be as good as proclaimed. 
 
P.S.S Feel free to ask questions about the unit. I will try to answer them as best as I can. I will also try to get a comment from the makers of the unit: Airsoft Systems.

 

That explaines just about everything about the ASHU hopup unit. Now I have to mention that I used my original Magpul PMAG-s to feed the bb-s. They are very very good mags that feed flawlessly everytime anytime. After reassembling my original setup everything worked fine again. 


Here are some pics as well:
The microswitch being ripped apart from the base
yLUOorW.jpg


Here you can see how tiny and fragile the microswitch really was! Compared to a standard hopup nub. 
J1RXt4m.jpg


You can see what a pain in the *albatross* it is with the hopup and bolt catch wires
H9fdjnf.jpg

The wires tucked away but still wanting to exit by themselves! I can´t really imagine taking the rifle apart many times, what a pain! Its a disaster just waiting to happen. 
4O3ThSE.jpg

The hopop adjuster is the only nice thing about the unit!
ek0dkTn.jpg

 



Now lets move on to the ASHU advanced trigger.
I have to stay it was not as bad as the hopup (which is complete waste of money), but it is also NOT worth the 85 eur pricetag they are asking. 

Here is my Youtube video: 

And a quote from the video description:
 

Lonex M4 with Airsoft Systems ASCU Gen3 mosfet unit.

Internals: stock Lonex M4 shooting @ 400FPS or 120m/s with 0.2g bb. Also using stock Lonex A5 motor (ferrous) with the anti reversal latch still installed! If I took the ARL out, then the gears would backspin after each shot. The same thing happened with a Lonex A1 Titan motor as well (Neodynium magnets). 
 
A5 motor in the video shooting 24RPS.
The A1 Titan motor gave 30+RPS but ripped the piston with first bursts. 
 
Lipo is a Turnigy 2000mah, 15-25C, 11.1V lipo.
 
NB! I am not satisfied with the Airsoft Systems ASCU mosfet unit. It does not give any performance gain, except burst option, over a standard conventional mosfet. It is DEFINITELY NOT worth the 85EUR pricetag that is being asked for it. 
 
The Lonex gearbox shell had to be modified. I had to use a modified Lonex cut off lever, since the one that came with the ASCU did not fit properly. 
The wires for motor are ONLY 18AWG soft and thick silicon insulated wires that get hot realy quick in this test as well. The shimming is spot on and so is motor height. With my original self-built mosfet and the exact same setup I could fire hundreds of rounds of continous bb rain without a problem. With this I do not know if I would get past a midcap. 
 
The hopup has a lot of problems as well. I will post another video about it later. 
 
I expect similar reviews popping out a lot more with the same aspects as mine! Ask for questions if you need any more info or have suggestions! I will try to get contact with Airsoft Systems to get some answers from them as well!

 

 

What more can I say? Thats about it. I don´t really know what to do next. I am waiting for a reply with some comments from the manufacturer, but I don´t really know if I will get an answer at all from them. 

Here are some more pics from the ASHU
 

Selector plate comparisson to a Lonex M4 plate
tcuP3Oe.jpg


Cut Off Lever comparisson. The black plastic one that came with the ASHU was pretty much useless. It sat flush with the gearbox and couldn´t move freely because of the sector gear bushing. I modified the Lonex one to get it finally working properly. 
6p7HZT6.jpg


The lower part of the mosfet
JUHCX9M.jpg


Upper part installed as well 
H0aA29D.jpg


The other side
TR8HxHV.jpg

Everything installed
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The motor wire length was fubar as well. Here is how they came out - same length! And NO you can´t adjust it in the gearbox. It is all fixed. 

yO3Jp2I.jpg



Thats it for the moment. Ask questions and please - if anyone gets their unit share your opinions as well. 

Bjorn

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I have also just bought the set to go into a G&P Troy M7 and replace the AWS Raptor that has always been problematic.

 

Good points on the ASCU:

 

  • Better cabling than the Raptor
  • Better tracking system for selector plate and cycle completetion
  • Comes complete with the selector plate and everythiing needed to fit it.

I did find I needed to Dremel out a couple of areas of the gear box, but fine after that.

 

I had identical issues with the hop up unit as well, barrell fitted like a batton in the Albert Hall, and after just catching the microswitch, the whole switch broke in half!

 

Glad its not just me!

 

Later daze

 

Lee

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Posted · Hidden by crackisbad, June 21, 2013 - poster request
Hidden by crackisbad, June 21, 2013 - poster request

Seem I might have to rethink my plans of making the ASHU compatible with the BTC Spectre. I don't want to be held liable if the ASHU malfunctions when connected to my FET. Hopefully they'll fix the problems asap.

 

The custom selector plate is a nice idea for preventing those selector switches from being damaged...but is bad news for V2 gearboxes that use a different type of selector plate (like the VFC SCAR). Instead of using the same selector switch as the ones on the AWS Raptor, they should've just used a switch with a smaller height so people can keep their current selector plate.

 

Thanks for writing the review! Was hoping to see if I could learn from any of the ASCU's flaws but it seems my design already addresses all the problems you found. Drop me a PM if you're interested in having a prototype BTC Spectre to be sent to you (free of charge) for criticising.

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Thanks for the review - I was strongly considering purchasing one (particularly for the Hop Unit/Stop on empty functions as well as the trigger performance) - but sounds like I won't get any of that with the Gen3. Don't suppose you happen to have a Gen2 ASCU for comparison purposes (i.e. trigger response side by side) 

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Just all of my bad thoughts about the hopup regarding the barrels and hopup rubber.

 

Maybee I should start rethinking the idea of the ASAR.....

 

Yes, pretty bad omen TBH, ASAR is still on top of my list for a new M4 this summer, I just will wait for reviews instead of buying it right away. 

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Well just as I predicted I am not the only one with loads of problems with this unit. I checked out Airsoft Systems Facebook page and there are tons of people already now posting different problems on there. 

Since I still haven´t got a reply from Airsoft Systems, I decided to post the videos with descriptions to their FB page as well. Maybe it will speed things up a bit. 

Airsoft Systems FB page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Airsoft-Systems/150377941783808

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Hope this doesnt affect their other product lines like the ASAR or their sniper rifle...

On the contrary - I hope it does!!

Hope their will be fixing the problems before they start selling the ASAR.

But like you I wont be the first one to buy it after this.

And I wont be buying it at all if it is not possible to change barrels and hopup rubbers.

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Well, I didnt mean "that" kind of effect :lol: if after so much time and testing with the ASAR (as explained in their IWA 2012 video) the gun has as many problems as their ASCU... well, they really need to revise their priorities.

 

Im sure it will be possible to change barrels and hop rubbers as any AEG, even the chamber if properly modded as it uses regular M4 magazines. I hope we can use regular AEG outer barrels and buy upper recievers to build different guns with the same lower :)

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On the contrary - I hope it does!!

Hope their will be fixing the problems before they start selling the ASAR.

But like you I wont be the first one to buy it after this.

And I wont be buying it at all if it is not possible to change barrels and hopup rubbers.

+1 to this. As of this moment then only "great and beyond believe performance" products they have shown us are 1) on a picture or 2) as a prototype. Now on the other hand ALL the real products they have produced (ASCU line + ASHU) seem to fail at every step. 

 

Since when is a manufacturer rated by hype? And lets be honest - Airsoft Systems IS based on a LOT of hype, specially before the release of the ASCU Gen3. Well we fixed that, didn´t we? :P

 

P.S. Wasn´t it so that a whole lot of units (ASAR) inside Bulgaria were supposed to be sent out to test users already last year and they are still getting the feedback. Howcome I haven´t seen not one user on this forum post anything about the testrifles? Not even a smug little comment of pride to be a tester? You know what I mean...

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I believe one user from bulgaria said he tested one from another player in a mayor event, cant remember the name, and he said it was a good gun. It has been stated that at april the 1st they would recieve the anodizing machine and the gun would be released soon, which i think could be june, so they have time to produce and ship it to retailers. 

 

And I agree with Bjorn, to this date some more info should have popped/leaked somewhere and all is silent... in fact, I think they should be making some kind of advertising campaign, just to let know potential customers their gun is coming, but at this rate, their sales are going to be eaten by the cheap TWs and WE katanas, which is a real shame as this looks lilke a totally superior system, just not sure about how reliable it is going to be.

 

Hope they say something, because that katana system is looking better by the day to replace my ICS M4

 

To be honest, im a bit worried about their partnership with redwolf and the possibility of the ASAR being produced in China as the low quaility ASCU and ASHU suggests

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Here are my final findings with the ASHU hopup chamber. This is extra to the info in the first posts. 


Since Madbull Blue hopup rubber was in a review test, I had to order it to try and get it to work. That was another 10 euros not very wisely spent. The madbull blue hopup rubber did install okay and looked good but it did not perform any good. 

1) It did not feed, not even with Magpul pmags, which have a very strong spring. 
2) When it did feed (about 1 in 10 shots) then I got a FPS reading well below the average (about 10-15m/s less or 30-40FPS less). That was it and I have no other tests that I want to perform. It is simply one of the worst high-end cost products that I have ever purchased. 


Another thing about the ASCU as well. I had my aeg stand in a room for about a week and today after trying it out it failed. Why? Because the lipo  battery was drained - completely. When I tested it, it gave only 1.7V overall voltage. That is from a 11.1V lipo. Dead as dead it can be. For reasons still unkown the ASCU had drained the lipo completely in a week. I have never had such problems with regular mosfets and I always had my AEG battery connected. 

So that was the last drop. I went back to my regular self-made mosfet and was pleased that everything went back to normal. That is a perfectly good AEG that doesn´t need all the that it went through. 

I am still trying to get in contact with Airsoft Systems but no luck. I will try to get some kind of refund and return of profucts from the seller. This is ridiculous. This is the last time I buy a product that has not got atleast 3 positive reviews before hand. 

Bjorn

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All computerised Mosfets continue to draw power from the battery when not in use. I get the strong feeling you got this without actually knowing what you were getting.

 

1.7v is dangerously low, and computerised mosfets don't drain THAT much battery power.

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1.7v is dangerously low, and computerised mosfets don't drain THAT much battery power.

Exactly my point. 

 

I had a 11.1V 2000mah lipo, that was half-full just as it has to be. 

So it should not, in normal conditions, drain the battery in a week. 

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1.7v is dangerously low, and computerised mosfets don't drain THAT much battery power.

 

Indeed but a week is a long time to leave one connected to a battery. That pack can supply 2A constant for a hour before draining or 0.2A for for 10hours 0.02A for 100hours.. in a full week there are 168 hours.

Edited by LordElpus
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Well I just checked the manual that came with the ASCU. 

Quote from it: "The ASCU has an integrated Low Drain Protection, which is specially designed to keep LiPo batteries from damage."

There are not a lot of ways you can understand that quote. As I understood it, you do not have to disconnect your Lipo battery because it has Low Drain Protection. There is nowhere in the manual stated that you have to disconnect your battery to prevent it from being completely drained. 

P.S. still no word from them. 

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Well I just checked the manual that came with the ASCU. 

 

Quote from it: "The ASCU has an integrated Low Drain Protection, which is specially designed to keep LiPo batteries from damage."

 

There are not a lot of ways you can understand that quote. As I understood it, you do not have to disconnect your Lipo battery because it has Low Drain Protection. There is nowhere in the manual stated that you have to disconnect your battery to prevent it from being completely drained. 

 

P.S. still no word from them. 

 

Well I believe on the P* MOSFETs specifically the Gen2 engines, they have something that will actually shut the system off if the battery gets to low, maybe that is what they had?

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