King Arms – M4 CQB Troy A3

King Arms – M4 Troy CQB A3

(all pictures are clickable for larger version)

Normally, at the beginning of a review, I’d give you a little bit of information about the real steel version of our AEG counterparts, this time I’m not going to. Why? Because if you don’t know by now what an M4 looks like, you’ve been living underground for the past 25 years! The Colt M4, based on the Armalite M16 family… I’ve never really been a fan of them to be honest. Not because I don’t like them as a weapon, but more because EVERYBODY seems to like them as a weapon, and I wanted something a little more unique on the Airsoft battlefield. That’s why I couldn’t wait when Marui released the M14, and guess what… Now loads of people have them too! So when King Arms contacted us and asked us to review their latest offering, the M4 Troy CQB A3 (we shall hereby refer to as ‘The Troy’), I jumped at the chance – one which could possibly change my views on the whole M4 craze…

A Few Of The Stats:

• 6 Position ‘Clubfoot’ Crane Stock (accepts 8.4v 1400mah Crane Stock battery)

• 7mm Reinforced Gearbox

• One Piece Metal Hop Unit

• 7″ Free Floating RIS/RAS fore-grip

• 10.5″ One Piece Outer Barrel

• Rear Flip Up Sight

• 2 x RIS/RAS Panels Included

• RIS/RAS Foregrip Included

• 300rnd Hi-Cap Magazine

• 14mm CCW Steel Flash-hider

• 67-75cm

• 2.8kg (3.4kg fully loaded with a magazine, battery and fore-grip)

• 300fps (with 0.2g BB)

The Troy, not to be confused with the over-hyped, over-budget Hollywood film, is one of many CQB variants of the M4 series on the market today making for a smaller and more compact weapon, one of it’s closest competitors would be the Classic Army M15A4 CQB or the upcoming Star M4-FF CQB model. Then of course you have several Chinese manufacturers producing short barrelled CQB versions of the M4, the Dboyi M4 CQB-R being an excellent example. It’s certainly leaving poor old Tokyo Marui lagging behind with their last M4 offering being the S System version.

King Arms have long been producing quality accessories for our Airsoft needs, but up until the release of this model, had a very limited foot in the door of the AEG market. The FN FAL series was very successful model which we reviewed earlier on in 2007, but it wasn’t very mainstream as a replica. Now with the release of an M4 (not another one!), King Arms can truly compete with some of the other longer standing manufacturers.

So what’s in the box?

The Troy turned up in a fairly non-descript box with King Arms logos on all surfaces, no indication on the box as to which model was inside, but I have been assured this will not be the same on the actual production run (bear in mind I have one of the 12 samples produced by King Arms). I love the packaging King Arms lovingly delivery their products in… A grey, spongy foam material that not only keeps the AEG secure in transit, but doesn’t get damaged easily like polystyrene, useful if like me you want to keep things looking nice in their boxes! Looking at the foam cut-outs, one could presume another M4/M16 model is on the way, there is certainly additional slots for the recognisable carry handle on the M16, and the rear of the foam is cut to accommodate a larger fixed stock model… Watch this space!

In the box you get an instruction booklet (mine was provided to me electronically, again – it was early days in the production run), a 300 round high capacity magazine, a front RIS/RAS grip and a cleaning rod / un-jamming tool. An additional space is provided once you remove the cut-out foam to store a battery, and the box is deep enough to hold around 3 magazines in the cut-out provided too. Slightly disappointing on the copy of the instructions I received was no mention of installing the battery in this model, which differs from the usual large fixed stock or handgrip installations, being a crane stock model. Hopefully this is something that will have now been resolved for full production.

Removing the AEG from the box, you immediately recognise how solid this bit of kit is. At this point, I would normally go into listing the metal parts on whichever replica we’re reviewing… how about this time I list the parts which are NOT metal: The RIS/RAS fore-grip, the two RIS/RAS side panels, the grip and the stock. Yes that’s it folks, the rest of this AEG is entirely aluminium or steel – nice! Like their FN FAL, the Troy can truely stake the claim ‘All Metal’ AEG.

It has a nicely distributed weight, especially once the battery is installed, unlike some other models where nearly all of the weight is at the front of the rifle. In total it weighs 3.4kg with everything including a 8.4v 1400mah battery, minus BB’s in the magazine. Comparatively that’s around 200g lighter than the CA M15A4 CQB model. At a mere 67cm with the stock retracted and only 75cm when fully extended it’s a small bit of kit and almost identical in length to an MP5 SD3 both with stocks in the extended position.

Mark at King Arms tells me the construction of this rifle is Aluminium Alloy and Nylon materials, some of which being cast (such as the main body) and the rest being CNC finished. If this is a casting, it has to be some of the finest I’ve seen, as the finish is amazing with no imperfections in sight. I would imagine the RIS/RAS fore grip has been CNC finished due to the intricate nature of its design.

Working Our Way Down…

Starting at the muzzle end, lets take a closer look at the M4 Troy. The steel flash-hider is removable and cut with a 14mm counter clockwise thread to allow the attachment of a silencer (you might want to consider one of these, more on this later!). Just behind this is the bayonet attachment mounting and the forward sling swivel which are both built into the front sight assembly, again steel is the material of choice.

Onto the hand-guard, and this one very solid installation indeed. All four sides covered in RIS/RAS panels (conveniently marked for those of you who don’t know their left from their right!), this very sturdy CNC finished construction shrouds the 10.5in one piece steel outer barrel. You are definitely not going to get any barrel wobble here as not a single piece at this end of the gun will budge. The hand-guard is engineered to stay in place and with it’s slim design there is no way you’ll get a battery in here without some serious customisation. It is of a two piece design and is removable aided by 4 small hex screws on the bottom half nearest the magazine well. Markings at this end of the gun include the wording ‘MRF-M M4/M203 PATENT PENDING’. The Troy is provided with two full length RIS/RAS covers which were already installed on each side of the AEG when it was shipped to me. These are very easy to slip on and off, and are released by gently lifting the cut-away end of the panel and simply sliding it off. Also included in the box is RIS/RAS fore-grip which I highly recommend putting on, but it’s entirely up to you. Not as easy to put on as the panels, you need at least three hands, but even more impossible to take off! I’m sure there is an easier way, but the instructions don’t cover it – never mind, I wanted it on anyway!

The lower receiver is a work of art in itself with laser/cnc cut logos on both the right and left hand sides. In total on the left hand side, you have the following markings: ‘TROY™, CLOSE QUARTERS BATTLE SPECIAL PURPOSE CARBINE. CAL 5.56MM NATO’ and a serial number which reads ‘00201’, unsure as to whether this is unique or the same number will appear on all rifles. You also have the wording ‘STAG ARMS, NEW BRITAIN, CONN. U.S.A’ and the usual markings for Safe, Semi and Auto. On the right hand side you have a different etched logo and the wording ‘CLOSE QUARTER BATTLE, CARBINE 5.56MM SPECIL ARMS AND MUNITIONS’… I’m guessing that should have read ‘Special’?

A wonderful feature on this model, which is becoming more popular on other Airsoft versions of the M4, is the working ejection port cover and bolt release catch. Ok, although not entirely necessary, it is rather cool when you pull back on the charging handle to release the ejection port cover, and the ‘bolt’ locks back allowing access to the hop-up dial. Then simply press the bolt release catch on the left hand side of the receiver and ker-clunk, the ‘bolt’ flies back to a forwards position. It certainly does make it easier to adjust the hop-up dial as some models of the M4 you have to keep the charging handle held back otherwise the ‘bolt’ moves forwards on its release. Disappointingly, on the Classic Army equivalent of this CQB M4, the charging handle does nothing apart from moving backwards and forwards, and the ejection port cover is held in place with a small magnet. Come on CA, you’ll have to do better than that these days, we like knobs and levers that actually work! On this King Arms model I did find the ‘bolt’ (or the little metal cover which hides the hop-up dial) a little stiff to return to it’s forward position, but a quick spray of silicon sorted this out. The forward assist knob also moves, although it does nothing on this model.

The upper and lower receiver rather than being of the hinged type, that is removing the rearward pin causes the the halves to pivot, is of the split type whereby the top and lower halves separate by removing both pins and sliding them apart. Rather than being split pins that hold the two halves together, these steel pins cleverly stay in the lower receiver – excellent now you won’t lose them! I recommend using a piece of 6mm wooden or PTFE dowel (a 5cm length of cut down ‘loading rod’ will do!) to knock them out, as they’re quite stiff and they won’t get scratched that way. Sliding the two halves apart (you’ll need to pull back and lift up slightly the charging handle too) you’ll see King Arm’s very own version 2, 7mm gearbox – a versatile powerhouse indeed.

Further inspection of the lower receiver uncovers a steel motor plate, with a slightly different design for adjusting the engagement of the motor with the gearbox rather than the usual hex screw affair. On this type you can adjust using just a normal flat headed screw driver. Removing the motor plate and inspecting the motor it is King Arms own (unbranded), hi-torque EG1000 equivalent – It seems to be of good quality, with a hardened steel bevel gear.

Removal of the barrel and hop-up assembly for closer inspection reveals an all metal, albeit cast, one-piece hop-up unit and high quality brass barrel, 26.7cm in length. A quick check with the digital callipers gives the barrel an internal diameter of 6.05mm – impressive!

As mentioned previously the stock on this model is the ‘clubfoot crane stock’, and is wired up accordingly with a mini connector for the battery to locate in here. You are going to need a custom crane stock battery to fit in here, and various configurations are available. The King Arms website show this stock with either a 9.6v (4 cells in each tube), 10.8 or a whopping 12v pack! Detailed instructions are provided on battery installation, and anybody who has experience of a crane stock will not encounter any problems. Simply lift the stock adjustment lever upwards, and the entire thing slides off the tube, allowing access to the wiring and for battery installation. Further access to the battery connector is made possible by removing the end cap as shown in the picture. Just make sure the pack you purchase is made from cells used in a normal ‘mini’ pack, which I believe the industrial size is 2/3AF – and not Sub C size! The stock tube is steel and is marked for all 6 positions of adjustment. My only criticism of the model lays here, and that is the stock is slightly wobbly. Don’t worry, it’s not going to fall off, but on an otherwise solid rifle, this is the only point that lets it down. You could of course remove this stock completely and replace it with a solid stock allowing installation of a large battery, or other alternatives such as an external battery bag which I sometimes see people running around with. Being a standard M4/M16 model it’s pretty much compatible with all manner of accessories on the market, the choices for customisation are limitless!

Firing… The Fun Bit!

Having not got a crane stock battery in my kit, I opted to attach a standard 8.4v mini held in place with some insulation tape, DIY at it’s best? I think not, but it’ll do the job for testing. The 300 round hi-cap provided with the model has a flip up cover rather than the slide type you’ll find on the Marui M16 magazines. This was filled with 0.2g Excel ammo, and wound until the tell-tale ‘clicking’. Inserting the magazine firmly into the receiver and making sure it was properly locked in place, I took aim at some CD’s, which make some excellent targets, hanging about 20m down range.

The first few shots fell about 12 inches short of the target, so some obvious adjustment of the hop-up was necessary. Time to put to the test the bolt catch release mechanism… Pulling back the charging handle fully gave a satisfying ‘ker-klunk’ as the ejection port cover opened and the ‘bolt’ locked back. The hop-up was practically turned off, but only needed it setting roughly 1/3rd of the way to achieve nice level flight. Pressing the bolt release catch caused the ‘bolt’ to fly forwards, closed the ejection port cover and we’re good to go. Taking aim again at the targets, hitting them was no problem. Interestingly the sights on the model seemed to be spot on accurate at 20m. I don’t usually pay too much attention to iron sights, as I much prefer to install a nice red-dot on my AEG’s for quicker target acquisition and as I play mainly CQB it helps in the lower light conditions. These iron sights however are rather lovely, the rear one being of the ‘folding battle’ type. You will need some kind of riser or perhaps an M4 carry handle to install on this model to help get you over the fixed front sights for a clear sight picture.

Range seemed perfectly adequate and on par with my Classic Army MP5-SD3, but here is the interesting fact… My CA MP5 needed a replacement hop-up rubber and I was also advised to swap the barrel out for a tight bore too (apparently, CA barrels aren’t none too popular!). So to get the same performance out of the King Arms model, straight out of the box with no remedial work – I was pleased! Accuracy was fairly good too, covering a 9.5 – 10inch spread at about 40m with the majority of shots falling within this grouping. Maximum effective range without some serious elevation correction I would have to estimate to be around 55m, unfortunately without having standing in the field behind my house, I can’t measure this to be the exact!

Full auto and sustained bursts of fire posed no problems at all. The Troy has an excellent rate of fire on just the 8.4v pack and didn’t suffer a single mis-feed… but, and there is a but.. it is a NOISY old gun! Possibly due to the fact the majority of this model is metal, but it really does have a overly healthy ‘klack klack klack’ when firing. It’s not a worrying noise, mechanically it sounds great, but it sure will give away your position! You might want to think about putting a silencer on it to see if it helps, plus lets face it, it’d look uber cool!

Unfortunately at the time of writing this, our chronograph has gone walkies so we’re unable to give you a precise FPS reading – we will update this ASAP. King Arms claim 300fps, and I can’t see this being far off.

Conclusion…

We were very lucky to one of the few first to have our hands on the M4 Troy CQB for review purposes, even luckier as Mark from King Arms advised us we could keep this model. Did we want to keep it though? OH YES please (don’t worry, we’re not going to… one of you lucky lot can win it instead!). I was very impressed with this model indeed. True, I have limited experience of M4 models with only the Classic Army ones for direct comparison, but it’s clear to anyone that King Arms have done an excellent job in producing what I can see is going to be a very popular choice on the Airsoft battlefield. Built like a tank and looking the part, the M4 Troy CQB should be seriously high on your list of considerations if looking for a CQB style model. Redwolf for example are currently selling this for $329.99 as opposed to $428.00 for the Classic Army M15A4 CQB model as a comparison. Hmmm, now, where are you going to put your money? Certainly worth every penny. We look forward to the next King Arms release with anticipation!

If you already have an M4 model, and want to give it the ‘Troy Treatment’, don’t forget most of the parts are available from King Arms as accessories or upgrade parts.. Go on, indulge yourself a bit!