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SV
Infinity 5″ Hybrid
(or the Strayer-Voigt Infinity Hybrid-Comp 5″, to give
it its full title)
This hunk of steel is my
main sidearm, and as such has dragged me out of many a tight spot. One year
on, I’ve taked the time to review it again, thanks to the beauty of hindsight.
Western Arms have seen fit
to expand the Infinity range, now covering all the main models in the real steel
range. SV’s by their nature are particular beasts, they’re custom made to the
owner’s individual specs, hence the airsoft versions are copies of the basic
models from which the customer can refine his choices
The
Line-Up They come in 4 different sizes, working upwards, slide
models in ():
3.9″ (Officer)
4.3″ Compact Carry (Compact/Commander)
5″ (Government/Extended)
6″ (Longslide)
Ironically in realsteel,
only the Longslide is available in .45ACP, the other coming in various calibres
(.38, 9mm, .40S&W, .357Sig, 10mm); but the airsoft versions are all supposedly
chambered for the ACP round.
The two larger guns are
available as the Hybrid, as seen here. These cater for the Shiny Parts Appreciation
Society Members among us (or SPASM for short J). An addiction to the 80’s TV
series Miami Vice is almost a pre-requisite here.
SV do both Traditional (single-stack)
and Competition (double-stack) frames, however all airsoft versions are of the
Competition variety.
Construction
& Use The
Hybrid, like the others, has a chunky, solid metal frame to it, which gives
a nice feel and weight to the piece. Most of the control surfaces (safety, hammer
and trigger) are metal, as is the complete trigger unit, which is a faithful
copy of the realsteel trigger unit.
It is a testament to the
build quality of WA guns that I am able to use what would normally be a Race
pistol (perfect for IPSC) as a skirmish weapon. Were I to have the realsteel
version, I’d probably be strung up for crimes against pistols.
Disassembly
– To remove the slide:
· Rack the slide back until the notch in the left hand side lines up
with the catch on the locking pin
· Pull the locking pin out
· Push the slide off the front of the frame
Reassambly
– Putting it back on:
· Pull the slide back onto the frame
· Insert the locking pin
· Pull slide back until catch on pin lines up with notch in slide
· Push in pin fully
· Let slide forward
Cleaning and Maintenance
is the same as all other GBB’s, keep it nice and clean, and well lubed with
silicon spray.
Changing
the trigger blade – If your gun was supplied with alternate trigger
blades (Hybrids definitely do, 3.9’s I know do not, standard 5 & 6″
I believe come with spares, Compact Carry TBC), then at some point you will
want to find the best setup for you personally.
Using the smaller of the supplied hex keys, wind the grub screw into the trigger
base, until you can slide the blade off the side of the base (this will take
some time). Then replace blade and do the reverse.
Performance:
This piece has more than enough punch to outpower standard
AEG’s, and goes knocking on the door of upgraded ones too. On a good day, I’ve
seen more than 330fps out of her, though most of the time she sits at around
325. These figures were achieved using HFC22/GreenGas, and Excel 0.2g ammo.
The slide cycles crisply and cleanly, and the kick is sizeable, but not uncontrollable.
You are conscious that there is a fair chunk of mass moving about on the top,
and this may explain why the action is not as rapid as, say, my Glock 26. This
doesn’t mean there’s anything wrong, far from it, the action is “smoother
than a Bangkok ladyboy’s arse” Inspector Sweeney – Ogri Video
(ask a biker, they’ll know who Ogri is), it’s simply a big pistol.
Thanks to the wonders of
the WA Magna Valve system, this guns works faultlessly in most conditions (it
can just about cope with rain), and will fire at any angle, even upsidedown
I’ve heard tales of a RedGas
conversion for the Infinity, that takes it out to 500fps. Apparently this fearsome
beast is far superior in range to an AEG, the downsides being huge costs from
having to replace all the internals, and a working life of about 12 months before
it throws the slide off in a tantrum.
For those seeking a little more power, go in search of a Prokiller, but be aware
that this has a captive silencer, to hide the longer barrel fitted, and so is
much harder to carry.
Apart from this, in terms
of cosmetic tweeking, you can get metal slides, upgraded nozzles, different
hammers and so on, but with the added advantage that many of the parts from
the realsteel guns will fit quite happily. DENTrinity feature some very nice
custom pistols, mostly based on the 1911 frame, which show what can be done
with a bit of ingenuity, a workshop and plenty of cash.
In
Conclusion A nice, weighty high performance
pistol. Possibly a little too nice to be dragging around an airsoft field, it’s
really a competition race gun, but it seems to cope fine with the conditions
it is frequently asked to function in.
- It has very shiny bits,
SPASM affiliates only need apply (Founder members – Sykobika
and Hitman-AC). This really is a pimp’s gun, it would have fitted in
nicely in Miami Vice, with polished barrel, trigger blades, safety,
beavertail, hammer, compensator etc.) - Nice sighting system,
the Bomar unit is fully adjustable, and helps you get your aim spot on. - Decocking lever – there
isn’t one! Be careful when letting the hammer forward, or sore thumbs will
result. Dropping the mag ensures this cannot happen. - Rapid Draw – Ambidextrous
Safety allows you to draw the gun from safe, and fire very quickly. Mag changes
need not be precise either, thanks to the large magwell; when you’re in a
hurry, this is a godsend.
Conclusion
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External
Links:
WesternArms
– the offical homepage of WesternArms
Strayer
Voigt Inc.
– the official homepage of SV
Comment
about this review in the forums
copyright 2001
ArniesAirsoft