IWA 2010
IWA is still the most important European outdoor fair in Europe. This year admission rules were changed a bit – for the better. New rules, which fairly successfully weeded out kids (no minors allowed) and enforced strict control over ticket sales contributed to less crowded halls and overall less stupidity.
Recession is still apparent, as overall quantity of new products is still lower that in 2008 – but industry is more confident than in 2009 that the worst is over.
As far as airsoft related industry is concerned, couple of major trends- first is that companies tried to attract crowd with show. ASG for instance have had two blonde twins, offering info packs; Cybergun promoted their licensed replica of Thompson with cute girl, dressed in 1920ies boogie style. Redwolf was conducting IPSC seminars with Clarence Lai as host. Nothing wrong with that, as long as show does not overshadow the actual reason we are there – new products and innovations.
Another new is Magpul, which is now a defacto important aftermarket manufacturer as their subsidiary Magpul PTS was heavily promoted on X-Guns and Cybergun stands and their parts used on a wide plethora of airsoft AEG's. But more about that later.
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And the final trend being a more subtle but still quite apparent, the co-operation of real firearms makers with the airsoft manufacturers being a more symbiotic one, where both sides acknowledge the potential, primarily for the real firearms manufacturers recognising the training potential in airsoft, not to mention that licences still trade high on the market, with recession still lurking behind the corner, any additional income is welcomed. Not by all, some companies still look the other way when approached with an offer to co-operate with the airsoft manufacturers as far as licensing is concerned. Not mentioning any names here, but a few of the big players are clearly hinted at here.
And now, airsoft related news:
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Action Sport Games – yes they did have blonde twins with task of distributing goodie packs. But more importantly, they displayed several new models, worth mentioning: Classic Army Dragunovs in sleek polymer black and wood stock; CA M14 EBR which is -compared to Kart's much lighter and refined, Action Sport Games also showed couple of licensed replicas, B&T GBB SMGs being most interested. They will be available in OD, tan and black. Also second generation of their licensed LMT M16/M4s with ARMS style parts are no longer covered with ARMS inscriptions- now trades look realistic. Also, Mk43 and M60 now come with markings. They also obtained new licenses: Yankee Hill Machine, Sage International and C-MORE among others.
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Guay Guay, which in my opinion probably presented the most new products on the airsoft market; FN2000 looks fancy. Sturdy and very realistic. Compared to the real FN2000 it feels just right (yes, I did have an opportunity to test it). Excellent product and innovative as well. Several new models were on display: replica Valmet, Combat Machine AK47 with blowback, G96 gas sniper replica are now also available with green and tan stock. Replicas will be available with laser engraved zodiac signs, which could be cool if you are in this kind of stuff. Also, their announced replicas L85 Carbine (AFV version of SA80), wood version of already mentioned G96, Guay Guay FNC called GFNC and SCAR-H.
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X-Guns/King Arms showed new M4A1 GBB with licensed Colt trades. Expect a review soon. SIG based DMR, M79 shorty and plethora of different M4 models. The X-Guns stand had two main themes, King Arms, since it was a joint booth and Magpul, which we mentioned before as becoming a major aftermarket licensed parts manufacturer. The Hong Kong based PTS division is coming on strong to the global market with quality parts, reasonably priced and willing to protect the licensed products with proper legal representatio. which has been expected for a while now.
As far as King Arms is concerned, they have announced a few new models, the first model being the SIG 556 b DMR, which they managed to get through the customs just in time for the saturday's crowd. They showed black and tan models. other announced models were GBB M4A1 and M7A1, AEG M7A1 2010 version, SIG516 Rifle and SIG 716 Rifle, and, get this, Blaser R93 Sniper rifle. Planned, but not confirmed are SVD Dragunov and 4 version of Thompson SMGs (M1A1 Wood version, M1A1 steel version with CNC manufactured receiver and barrel and wood furniture, Thompson M1928 Wood version and M1928 Steel version).
Cybergun- I might be wrong, but the impression we had received from the Cybergun management was a very positive one. They are trying to improve their reputation and we will be keeping an eye on the development of things as far as Cybergun is concerned. One of first moves being minor changes to management staff for certain regions, The other more important shift of doing business being the products will be labelled differently. Namely, actual manufacturer will be named and Cybergun be only mentioned as the license holder. Yet another move that can be seen as a positive one. They showed PPSh (no mention of manufacturer) and couple King Arms' models.
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Redwolf is becoming a regular exhibitor on the IWA fair since their UK based office is enabling them to have a strong presence in the EU. Whilst their booth was showing few new items, the MG42 mounted on a tripod was just calling for the Hugo Stiglitz moment. The star attractions on their booth however were not the replicas but rather their in-house legendary air-smith, Clarence Lai and their Canadian partners from Airsoft Innovations. While they did have the previously mentioned MG42 and a very nice RPG-7 replica, it was Clarence Lai and his GBB masterpieces that attracted the crowd. Clarence being as approachable and down to earth as ever took his time to explain the custom work that he was displaying there even though he was running IPSC seminars, or perhaps a workshop would be a better description. The extra time Clarence took for us was put to good use and a video interview was made, which should go online soon. Bottom line, Redwolf Airsoft booth was one booth that one had to visit, if not for the displayed pieces but also since the staff there was as friendly, open and approachable as one could only ask for.
Star Rainbow Company, they are doing their best to introduce GBB replica of TT-33 in 2010, but no promises. This should be a hit, since no viable option is available on the market for a true "Eastern Block" player. As long as they manage to present it in a decently reliable format, they should have a winner on their hands. Also it appears that SRC took their lesson- their MP5 line of products being promoted and marketed as extremely sturdy should establish them as a serious manufacturer even more. Combined with decent pricing, their quality vastly improved and offering options as far as FPS output is concerned, they are well worth the look at if you are on the market for a new toy.
WETTI or WE Tech, another one of those pleasant surprises of IWA 2010. Several new GBB rifle models displayed (...sadly no M14, but rest assured, it is coming) and prototype of legendary Browning HP. The HP or GP35 as it is known on this side of the pond will be available in two options, with adjustable rear sight, we call it the optimistic version as the sight can be adjusted for ranges up to 500m and the version with regular, fixed sights. In either case it's going be a pleasant addition ti their lineup and should find it's way into a WW2 re-enactor's holster to supplement the Sten for instance. Mr. James Chan, the general manager at WETTI took the extra time for an interview where he disclosed some future plans and projects, stay tuned for the release of the video interview. Armalite/Colt platforms are coming in all shapes and sizes. More in our gallery.
Evolution Airsoft, another EU distributor with an excellent booth, which seemed to be there for one sole purpose, to present their »mystery« replica. Now the mistery part is history and the revealed product is the new GBB and AEG version of ZM LR300 in various versions, lengths, shapes and incarnations. AEG will have blowback as well, with steel teeth piston, 8mm bearing gearbox. Apparently, blowback system is replica of original DIGS (delayed impingement gas system) system. GBB version will have an actually working DIGS!
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Crossman, while primarily known to the airgun community, they have made their first steps into the world of airsoft last year with their Verdic Marker BB's, the first non-paintball BB's that mark the targer or POI to be more exact. They have made various improvements to their products that were present, their latest version of these BB's being the Bio-Degradable Vertic Marker BB's. New version does not leave any residue in the bottle, unlike previous version. Another hint of their intended stronger presence on the airsoft market being the acquisition of two world renowned licences, namely Bushmaster and Remington. Again, this is a good thing as more and more players and collectors will have access to properly marked replicas of the ACR, M700, 870...
Other
As always, short report on products, which may or may not interest every airsoft player from the big names in the industry:
As far as optics go, the big game scopes that a few years ago were more or less ridiculed by the "tactical" community are finding their way onto the battlefields and shooting ranges as they serve as good starting platforms to develop scopes that compete with the by now venerable and widely recognised Trijicon's ACOG. The trend started with the S&B Short Dot is now widely copied as the true potential of such scopes is being utilised and reconised. And while the Canadian Elcan was virtually non-present, Oberland Arms did have the Elcan Specter DR mounted one one of their masterpieces, Trijicon basically displayed the already seen products. The most notable being the RMR and the Horseshoe reticled optics in red and green. Oberland also displayed their licensed PMAG magazines, called G-MAG which, this year they presented the 7.62 version of the PMAG, intended for the SR25, Massoud and other 7.62 beasts.
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Glock presented their new line of pistols, the generation 4 (GEN4), which offer a few distinct changes over the previous generations. The main features are the RTF on the grip. RTF stands for Rough Textured Frame and basically designates the re-designed frame with new texture on the grip which should enable the shooter to retain a positive grip even with wet or soiled hands. The second distinct feature being the new shape of cocking serrations on the slide, on the GEN4 they now come in a shape that could be described as fish scales, to me personally they work better. Another distinct new feature is the backstraps on the grip, these can be replaced or exchanged for either a smaller one or a larger one, depending on the size of hands. The two other new features are the dual spring recoils spring quide system, which is designed to make the recoil more manageable and the magazine catch, which is now reversible in order to suit the left handed shooters. For the magazine catch modification, the following should be noted, the new magazine catch will for for the left handed shooters only with the new magazines that have the mag catch recesses on both sides.
Leupold, the premier US optics manufacturer has been a regular exhibitor on IWA for years. Their latest product, the 2010 SHOT Show introdouced CQBSS really attracted the crowds. And as usual, the Leupold Stevens staff was there to greet and explain the all the features of this excellent product. The scope is nothing short of impressive. While it seems to have only two major drawbacks, namely the 34mm tube, which translates in harder to find or for the moment none existent combat mounts for it and the estimated high price, this piece of glass has some awesome features. It was designed to be a true all in one scope, it can fill the CQB role with its 1.1x setting. With the highest setting being the 8x it sure gives the shooter the ability to engage targets up to 800m, depending on the weapon/caliber used. The dot is holographic and when turned off lens itself as a part of the reticle. The ranging reticle is superb and Leupold will offer ballistic cams for all major calibers as custom made BDC cams per a small fee.
Schmidt & Bender, while in the past they seemed to lead the pack of high end optics, this year Leupold took the lead with their CQBSS. It's not that S&B did not have an answer to their CQBSS, they did, the new 1-8x24 Short Dot was presented, it would seem the scope on display was a prototype or a pre-production model with fuzzy picture and off-center red dot. This being S&B who are renowned for their superb optics, which cam at a superbly high price, this leaves a bitter taste in the mouth. I'm sure the full run production models will have these issues fixed, but the point of such fairs is to present the products to the professional public so potential the product can at least be evaluated in a limited way. With the new Short Dot, S&B did not do themselves a favour.
Nightforce, yet another of the premier manufacturers of superior optics. It would seem Nightforce took the completely different approach as far as 24mm front lens scopes are concerned. Their standard 1-4x24 was displayed with various reticles. While their 2.5-10x24 will remain available for the military and LEO communities, civilians will have to wait for their new 24mm front lense optics or get the 32mm version. While Nightforce staff at the booth did not want to go into the details, they do have a direct answer to the S&B's 1-8x24 Short dot and the Leupolds 1.1-8x24 CQBSS. They were willing to confirm, that the new optics will have the magnification range starting at somewhere near 1x and should go beyond 10x, with various reticles available. I guess we'll just have to wait and see.
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Kriss, originally designed as a SMG that can deliver high rates of fire in a large pistol caliber but offer minimal recoil was also present on the IWA this year. Off course, they offered their semi auto only version. They are offering the KRISS in .45 ACP, .40 S&W and soon in 9mm Luger. The 9mm version should have the recoil close to .22 LR, at least that is what was siggested by staff on their KRISS booth. The civilian KRISS komes fully kitted out with various rails on 12, 3, 6 and 9 o'clock, it also comes with a foldable stock and a barrel shroud that mimics the look of a suppressor. A nice toy, too bad Mac was not there to do a proper Future Weapons presentation. Sorry, just could not resist.
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CAA, a company that goes by many names which is basically an Israel based company with their sales dept based in the US. They offer a wide range of accessories for a wide range of weapons. The range of accessories include pistol grips, stocks, rails, rail panels, front grips, bipods etc, etc... While these accessories can be fitted to just about any weapon on the market, it is their latest product that cought most of the attention on their boots. The item in question is the Pistol-Rifle, RONI-G1, which is basically a polymer chassis that accepts a complete donor pistol and transforms it into a pistol caliber carbine. Designed primarily as a Glock chassis, CAA will soon offer them for other pistols. While the suggested retail price is not that low, it's a viable option to transform a pistol into a carbine that shoots cheap pistol ammo. And the plethora of rail on the RONI-G1 combined with features as a collapsible stock and additional magazine holder, suppressor support (...can accept suppressors) it ooffers a platform for a recreational shooter as well as for a professional operator.
FAB Defense, another Israeli company, that offers simmilar products as TDI and CAA albeit a bit different and a bit differently. While a lot of these products seem the same, I can attest to it they are not, see last year's report regarding this (...look for CAA bipod in the report). FAB Defense is slowly but surely increasing their line of products that attract more than a fair share of customers, their innovative design and a certain new product attracted even more visitors to their booths this year. If last year, the main attraction was their excellent T-Pod, this year the star of the show was the K.P.O.S. which is n aluminium chassis that accepts a donor pistol, converting it to a pistol carbine. While it falls into the same category as their counterparts RONI, the KPOS is a a les bulky, and much sleeker. It's made of aircraft grade aluminium and has a side folding stock, the picatinny rails can be found on 12, 3, 6 and 9 o'clock of the chassis, it too can accommodate pistols with suppressors and it is readily available for the Glock 17, SIG P226 or the SIG Pro. It's sleek design, smaller, narrower size and side folding stock make it a trully concealable carbine. A Glock 18 version will be available and with the removing of the front chassis nut, that looks like a muzzle brake, a longer slide/barrel Glocks can be installed. As far as pistol carbines go, this is my personal favourite, beating out the RONI as well as the Storm from Beretta, which is a few years old by now.
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Worth mentioning is that most companies simply recycle stands from previous years. Which is just as understandable as it is smart with the global economy still in recovery. Some booths lacked the flare while most of the major exhibitors managed to re-fresh their booths just right to make the impression of the new. A few booths stood out for thei ingenious use of props and smartly recycled parts of older booths.
The common concensus in this year's IWA, at least as far as the industry professionals we talked to was, quality over quantity, this being result of the lower visitor numbers. In our opinion that is a good thing, hopefully time will prove us right.
This about concludes the IWA & OutdoorClassic 2010, we will do our best to bring you the 2011 report just as fast and just as thorough
