|
|
|
|
|
|
| |
| Please select a poll for this category from the admin panel. |
|
|
|
|
Meatball's Featured Reviews |
|
|
|
|
|
Airsoft Core |
By Voodoo Sprout
Published: December 7, 2003
Print
Email
Overview
The folding metal stock for the Marui SPAS 12 is available most cheaply with the gun, although it can be bought as in this case as a separate accessory. Fitting it takes a matter of minutes to perform or reverse, and once on, it makes a big difference. If rested along the top of the receiver, it obscures the sights but makes the gun more maneuverable for CQB, and (perhaps more importantly :-) ) makes the gun look incredibly intimidating - and reminiscent of science fiction films such as Aliens. The four holes in the stock (to reduce weight) add to the looks, although unlike some shotgun stocks the are too thin to hold shells though some people have widened their holes for this purpose. To extend the stock, you have to press in the metal button on the right hand side of the receiver at the rear, you can then rotate the stock up and out until it locks. There is a similar button on the butt, which allow the butt to be folded down for shouldering, or extended to lie flat against the receiver when the whole stock is folded. Once extended, it makes quite a difference. With the gun shouldered, cocking it is considerably easier than without one, while you can fire more accurately and I find, faster as well. Even when extended the full metal stock feels very solid, and even after some months use only wobbles a bit, certainly not enough to be a problem. The downfall is of course size - as mentioned above the standard SPAS 12 is big, but with the stock extended it's as long as many of the larger rifles, while also being much more chunky. This is fine for open spaces, but at close ranges it can become rather unwieldy. If you are a small person, you may find that with the foregrip forced such a distance from your shoulder it may be difficult to use.
Also included is a metal hook, which clicks into the butt. It can be rotated around 270 degrees, most usefully either facing 90 degrees or forward to stay out of the way. When rotated out to the side you can hook it under your firing arm to provide support, letting you use the SPAS one handed. This can be fun if not very useful as you have to hold it directly in front of you so it quickly becomes very heavy, and you have to "unhook" yourself every shot to recock it. I think this is intended for the real steel where the semi automatic nature makes one handed firing feasible, perhaps if holding a riot shield or flash bang in the other hand. In airsoft though I think it serves little purpose but does change the looks somewhat for the worse in my personal opinion, so I always keep it removed (which is a simple case of rotating it to the left allowing it to drop free). Also note that it is sometimes said that with the stock folded and hook on, you can use it as a carry handle. You can do this, but it is strongly advised you do not. As the stock is only locked down with a button, all the weight will be placed on the hinge. When you consider that the hook is some distance forward of that, you can imagine the leverage produces a fairly large force on the hinge, which could well, do damage.
The stock as an accessory
As said before, I bought the stock as an add on for the standard, stockless version. This is much more expensive than buying the combined stock/gun (depending on where you go, you can pay over twice as much!). If you do this the problem is largely down to acquiring it, though not all retailers will have them in stock like they do AEG's and you do have to fit it yourself. Fitting is relatively simple though, as you need only dismantle the pistol grip, which is a rather simple affair. it is strongly advised to keep the screws safe as with anything like this, but from beginning to end it takes only about 5 minutes using the instructions parts and tools (of which an Allen key is provided, though you need your own screwdriver). You do have the advantage that some parts are replacements so you can keep them to switch back if you want. Of course the gun won't fit in the normal box, but you can quite easily cut the top off and remove little bits here and there so it will still completely cover the gun with the stock folded (only when the hook is detached).
Conclusion
The SPAS 12 stock is quite expensive for what it is, but I think it is certainly worth considering. It does not enhance performance very significantly, but I think that the changed look certainly make it worth it. That said, if you're on a strict budget, you will do about as well with the standard SPAS 12 or the Benelli M3, both of which are cheaper. And if you do want one, I'll say again it is much better to buy the pre-stocked version of the gun rather than as a separate accessory, it's considerably cheaper and more convenient.
The SPAS 12 folding stock - a scary if cumbersome CQB companion <
- Voodoo Sprout
5034 Views -
View Comments (0)
|
|
|
|
|
Sorry, your account does not have access to post comments.