Academy L85 review

[orange]

what would be easiest/cheapest to turn in a decent aeg this or the spring l85?

 

25m! thats the range of a TM boys gun

[greebo_Brat]

what would be easiest/cheapest to turn in a decent aeg this or the spring l85?

 

25m! thats the range of a TM boys gun

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

This I assume since it's already an AEG ...

 

believe you need to replace the motor, famas hop up, better barrel, minimum I guess?

[Hissing_Sid]

You guys that think 25m is poor range are dreaming. I defy anybody to knock over a coke-can at 25m in one shot with any standard AEG.

 

Beyond that, you've only got to look at some of the nonsense that people have posted above to realise that a few people have no idea what they're talking about.

 

Incidentally, I modded the mag-well of my SA80 to take Armalite mags and it took me about 4 hours using a belt-sander, a dremel and a router so I dread to think how long it'd take with sandpaper.

[cazboab]

6 months.

[ED-SKaR]

right, taken it to another game,

 

this time they had a crono there so i can now tell you that my SA80 cronos at:

223.7fps with .20g bbs

 

looks like you got the first version hissing sid

 

my battery ran down at about 1000-1300 rounds (rough estimate) i am useing a 1300 mah battery

 

the accuracy is actually not that bad i can hit targets at about 15yards on single shot( after 3-5 missed shots) i also knocked my flash hider and it broke is it possible to get a replacement?

[cazboab]

the HFC springer supposedly has the same outer barrel, only in metal, but its £60 to find out if they do.

[greebo_Brat]

the HFC springer supposedly has the same outer barrel, only in metal, but its £60 to find out if they do.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

It's similiar, but there's another wider tube fixed to the back part, cold pressed fit by the look,s there aren't any screws.

 

Marcus has suggested using an angle grinder to get it off .. not sure I trust myself with power equipment like that

 

Would an M16 flash hider fit ? thinking about replacing the entire front barrel (not the hand guard ) with an M16 outer at some point ..

 

But if you do get an HFC springer you can use the rear metal sling loop and the SUSAT mount (although it's thinner than the Academy AEG one and there are ridges on the Academy SA80 where the SUSAT fits so you will need to make 4 small cut outs or sand those ridges down). Now, if you take the top off the HFC SUSAT scope (eg the scope bit plus the flat plate it fits on) there is a rectangular slot running width wise across the base, you can push a CA M4/M16 handle sight 20mm rail into that and mount the weaver that way.

 

BTW, the motor in the SA80 I have is round, not flat on the edges.. dont know if thats relevant (eg different versions of the rifle floating around?)

Edited April 27, 2005 by greebo_Brat

[ED-SKaR]

i have another question that requires an experienced person(like hissing sid) to answer- no guesswork

 

how do you apply lube to the gun, i have a spray can of silican based lube

[greebo_Brat]

Has anyone got a definitative list of what needs to be replaced? Pay days in so I'm going to start to shopping for upgrades.

 

So far I've got on my list;

 

6.04mm barrell most prob from Z1 or HK supplier if I cant get a hop-up unit that fits

 

hop-up (FAMAS?)

 

1 joule spring

 

spring guide, v2

 

shims

 

RDS (Preferably with magnification but dependant on cost and remaining budget).

 

Do I need to replace the motor if it's already an EG 560 ? Not interested in increased ROF, just reliability.

 

Anything else that should be on my list?

 

Also someone (saft?) mentioned that screwing the spring guide into the back of the mech box is a good idea, if so, what size screw is needed and does the mech box need to be modified toa allow this?

[cazboab]

whats in mine now :

Star 6.05 mm barrel for M16 a1 (£20)

EG560(£35)

laylax piston head(£12)

M100(£10)

 

whats going in eventually

FAMAS hop (price unknown)

spring guide(price unknown but i have one here)

metal body(£90ish from HK but might not fit the EG560 inside it.)

better scope(dunno how, never mind what it costs)

[greebo_Brat]

whats in mine now :

Star 6.05 mm barrel for M16 a1 (£20)

EG560(£35)

laylax piston head(£12)

M100(£10)

 

whats going in eventually

FAMAS hop (price unknown)

spring guide(price unknown but i have one here)

metal body(£90ish from HK but might not fit the EG560 inside it.)

better scope(dunno how, never mind what it costs)

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Where did you order these from? Z1 do 6.04 barrels for 39.99, and a 1J spring for 10 pounds or so.

[cazboab]

Wolf armouries have the motor and barrel, they should have the piston head and springs as well

[Sangheili28]

has anyone here heard or actually tried airsoft club's L85 packages?

 

one in which has the original gearbox with different internals

 

and another with an M4 gearbox

 

before i consider getting one i would like some feedback from here, i have also tried elsewhere to get the most out of opinion

[Maveric]

thought i'd put up on here what i did to mine.

 

i got my SA80 today along with these parts. and immediately replaced the spring (M100), nozzle (Guarder M16 series) , guarder hop-up rubber and buffer), barrel (systema 6.04 M16 series 509mm (a perfect length)) and hopup unit (Classic Army one peice M16 series hop-up unit) and a decent battery (1700mah 9.6v)

 

here what i did, the spring and nozzle are a straight swap easy enough to do, though u have to watch the anti reversal latch spring its abit of a *badgeress* to work out how to put it back in correctly.

 

hop-up - there are 2 screw supports holding the original fixed hop-up unit in place these need to go so the adjustable hop-up unit can be fitted. i just simply cut them out with my dremel. job done in 2 seconds.

 

when u have the 2 hop-up units out. you'll notice that the original one is slightly longer than the replacement you put in, whether that be G&P, Guarder, Systema or CA. so you'll need to extend the feeding nozzle on the hop-up unit (the part that goes inside the magazine) ever so slightly. i did this by just cutting a small section off the original unit. and glueing it on the bottom. *make sure u take some time making sure its in the correct place, else it'll just break off after time.* after you have done this you'll notice the edge of the gearbox and hop-up unit are very near touching. i decided to glue these together, so the hop-up unit was unable to turn. as unlike in the M16 series weapons there are no lugs for the hop-up unit to go into to hold it securely.

 

inner barrel, inside the receiver there are grips that hold the inner barrel down to keep it stable inside the gun. these are made for the original Sa80 barrel and are to big for the new proper AEG barrel. i simply thickened the part where they touched with some insulation tape. i also placed a O ring down the inner barrel at the front of the gun to make sure it was nice and stable that end. also i thickened up the end of the barrel, where the flashhider attaches so the screw that holds it on would have something to grip onto.

 

tomorrows mission is to sand down the magwell to make it compatible with TM M16 series magazines.

 

- Mav

[davedawg123]

Hi!

 

Great review! I am a newbie and I just bought my first aeg, academy l85a1 thanks to you! :-) Now I would like to upgrade it. As you can probably guess, I know nothing about airsoft. I wish I could test it right now, but AIRSOFTSHOP does FALSE ADVERTISEMENT and did not send me the battery and charger (bastards!):

 

http://www.airsoftshop.com/airsoftshop/cat...products_id=919

 

It specifically states that it "Come with... 7.2v Battery & Quick charger" in the information section... so mad!!! >:-(

 

But enough ranting... I would like to know what the effects of using a 7.2v 2100mah battery (I found some that are cheaper than the standard 7.2v 1700mah) and adding a stronger systema m140 spring would be.

 

Any feedback would be much appreciated,

Thanks!

 

Dave

[squale]

To davedawg123

You should have to buy your Academy SA 80 from another shop in HK(149$for Airsoftshop ,normally 116-120$ for the other )Anyway with the new battery you should have a longer capacity of fire(approximately 1 shot=1maH)and an increase of ROF but a m140 spring should be to strong for the EG 560 ACADEMY motor copy

Edited June 16, 2005 by squale

[snowman]

thought i'd put up on here what i did to mine.

 

i got my SA80 today along with these parts. and immediately replaced the spring (M100), nozzle (Guarder M16 series) , guarder hop-up rubber and buffer), barrel (systema 6.04 M16 series 509mm (a perfect  length)) and hopup unit (Classic Army one peice M16 series hop-up unit) and a decent battery (1700mah 9.6v)

 

here what i did, the spring and nozzle are a straight swap easy enough to do, though u have to watch the anti reversal latch spring its abit of a *badgeress* to work out how to put it back in correctly.

 

hop-up - there are 2 screw supports holding the original fixed hop-up unit in place these need to go so the adjustable hop-up unit can be fitted. i just simply cut them out with my dremel. job done in 2 seconds.

 

when u have the 2 hop-up units out. you'll notice that the original one is slightly longer than the replacement you put in, whether that be G&P, Guarder, Systema or CA. so you'll need to extend the feeding nozzle on the hop-up unit (the part that goes inside the magazine) ever so slightly. i did this by just cutting a small section off the original unit. and glueing it on the bottom. *make sure u take some time making sure its in the correct place, else it'll just break off after time.* after you have done this you'll notice the edge of the gearbox and hop-up unit are very near touching. i decided to glue these together, so the hop-up unit was unable to turn. as unlike in the M16 series weapons there are no lugs for the hop-up unit to go into to hold it securely.

 

inner barrel, inside the receiver there are grips that hold the inner barrel down to keep it stable inside the gun. these are made for the original Sa80 barrel and are to big for the new proper AEG barrel. i simply thickened the part where they touched with some insulation tape. i also placed a O ring down the inner barrel at the front of the gun to make sure it was nice and stable that end. also i thickened up the end of the barrel, where the flashhider attaches so the screw that holds it on would have something to grip onto.

 

tomorrows mission is to sand down the magwell to make it compatible with TM M16 series magazines.

 

- Mav

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

So, what's your L85 like with all those mods? What's the fps, range, accuracy like?

 

Cheers.

[Maveric]

 

 

i am in the process of getting a rail made for it so i can attach my SA80 iron sights onto it.

 

- Maveric

[squale]

So, what's your L85 like with all those mods? What's the fps, range, accuracy like?

 

Cheers.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

 

 

 

i am in the process of getting a rail made for it so i can attach my SA80 iron sights onto it.

 

- Maveric

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Maveric, could you give us some pictures of your SA80 open (especially the changes carried out on the hop up unit

[Sexybeast]

Also would an 8.4 2000 mah battery fit in this gun? So I won't need a famas hopup, just an m16?

Edited June 16, 2005 by Sexybeast

[davedawg123]

To davedawg123

You should have to buy your Academy SA 80 from another shop in HK(149$for Airsoftshop  ,normally 116-120$ for the other )Anyway with the new battery you should have a longer capacity of fire(approximately 1 shot=1maH)and an increase of ROF but  a m140 spring should be to strong for the EG 560 ACADEMY motor copy

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

 

Hi, thanks for the reply.

 

About the gun price, yes I know about the other stores price of around $116. I even found one for $110 or $100 I think, I just don't remember where. After about 4 or 5 emails back and forth with airsoftshop, they finally refunded me the difference $33. I should post my correspondance with them in the retailer review section. I think it would be a nice read I've spammed this thread enough, so I will probably just post it in the retailer review section under airsoftshop review thread or something like that. For people considering purchasing from them, look for it!

 

Anyhow, regarding the battery, I thought that the more amps would provide more power available, and hence more shots. I just wasn't sure if the fuse could handle it. I believe it is a 30amp fuse in the gun. I was thinking about purchasing 7.2v 3000mah battery also but ended up buying the 2100mah.

 

As for the spring, I found some spring upgrade guides on the net later suggesting that m100 was probably the highest spring I could probably safely get away without upgrading any other components. It was just that an auction for a really cheap m140 spring on ebay was about to end :-) I ended up purchasing an m100 spring on ebay for $12.

 

Dave

[D_Giovani]

Quality Review M8, i will be going out today to buy one and also get a famas and just use the parts from one! I've never modded a gun b4 so if any1 in a week or so can guide me thru it i will be very thankful!

[ED-SKaR]

IMPORTANT MESSAGE TO EVERYONE WHO ISNT VERY VERY EXPIERIENCED WITH MECHANICKS

 

 

DONT EVER EVER TAKE YOU GUN APART

 

you are garenteed to destroy your gun.

i am a mildly expierienced mechanic and i will NEVER take the SA80 apart (not even the shell) because i know that when it goes back together again the live expectancy has halved.

 

if youre getting an academy SA80 then leave it stock (like me) and use it in CQB, because me and my SA80 own like a train owns sheep.

 

if you want a SA80 for woodland games then wait for a ICS SA80 or just dream on (like me)

[FarEast]

never mind i found it!

Edited June 23, 2005 by FarEast

[D_Giovani]

lol its not exactly dear if i brake it i just have to buy anova lol