A&K Spring SVD

[Swaltz]

Hi,

I've got a A&K Spring SVD that is meant to shoot over 480fps but when I first got it out of the box, it didn't fire very well due to the silly hopup system...

Eventually I took it apart to do some checking and when I reassembled it, It was only doing 320fps. I then did some cleaning, lube and teflon wrapping etc... new O-ring etc
Now it only seems to shoot 380fps at most...

I am not quite sure what is wrong because I have checked it over and over again...

Whew... maybe some expert advice on the matter?

[chtomman]

Hello .
First to change on this svd it's the hop up airsoftpro hopup ( the bucking rubber includ with this set is good ) . For more regulate fps and louder sound take airsoftpro ver 3 piston .
IT's my opinion.
Have a nice day.
http://airsoftpro.cz/eshop/index.php...04&language=fr

[Drakker]

Yeah, the Airsoft Pro hop-up chamber is a must. The stock hop-up chamber is crap and will start double feeding very quickly, making the gun useless.

Also, if you are going to order from Airsoft Pro, order their reinforced sear, it is also a must. The stock sear is made of soft pot metal and will wear out really fast. And while you are at it, grab the cylinder head, it seals better thus improving FPS and consistency a bit.

http://airsoftpro.cz/eshop/product_i...oducts_id=2231
http://airsoftpro.cz/eshop/product_i...roducts_id=821

[Clanofwolves]

I understand why you wishes to upgrade your SVD, for the base model is very good for the money, but somewhat lacking. My A&K did have great power out of the box, but the accuracy was something to be desired. Nice thing is, these can be upgraded quite easily. I have investigated these guns and found the following additions/renovations create a fantastic, relatively cost-effective platform. To give you an idea on what you might think about, the parts I settled on to upgrade mine are as follows:

PPS SVD Steel Piston Catch
PPS SVD Hopup Chamber
PPS Spring SVD High Power Piston
PDI 170% AEG Spring
Marui Hop up bucking
AIM CNC X-Large Bolt Handle (this will save your fingers, imensely)

Whatever you do, remember the fact that the barrel and the bucking are, as I understand, key to accuracy.

[Drakker]

The PPS parts are shoddy copies of the AirsoftPro parts and they are more expensive. Avoid them.

If you change the spring, you have to use PSG length springs. They are longer and fit well in the A&K SVD. The shorter AEG springs will move inside the cylinder and you will get a loud TWAAANG every time you shoot. The strongest I could find was the Systema 160%, which yields roughly 390 FPS, which is more than enough for this gun really.

The Marui hop-up bucking is far from ideal for this gun, a PDI W-Hop is a much better choice. Other good choices include Maple Leaf, A+ Reaps and Prometheus.

[Clanofwolves]

Originally Posted by Drakker

The PPS parts are shoddy copies of the AirsoftPro parts and they are more expensive. Avoid them.

I was intrigued by your statements about PPS vs. AirsoftPro so I did some digging. I did find that AirsoftPro seemed to have higher tolerances on some of their manufacturing according to some, but not to every user that I could find. However, I can see, with their added detailed descriptions of their work -especially their 3rd generation piston- they are very detailed oriented; that I really like.

As far as prices go, I found the PPS to be about 20% cheaper across the board; which actually makes a great deal of sense as they are constructed in HK in lieu of CZ. I don't know the actual performance quality head-to-head, so I'm not sure "avoid them" would necessarily be the final word by most.

My gun currently has an AEG spring and I don't get the sound to which you were refering.

I think I might be swayed to order a part or two from AirsoftPro in lieu of my planned parts above; their piston rework has me intrigued. Thanks for the feedback......hummmmmmm?

[Drakker]

You really need to have a long spring to know what that loud twang is. I've run AEG springs for 2 years before I ordered a proper length spring and the difference was night and day. You can check easily if your spring is too short, just fire the SVD without the dust cover and look at the spring. A correct length spring will stop moving really fast. A short spring will keep "swinging" for around 1 or 2 seconds and resonating. Some people have had success by spreading AEG springs to correct length to remove that sound, although it might decrease the spring durability.

For the piston I would recommend that you get their first gen piston. It takes standard AEG piston heads, which means you can use the Lee's precision air brake piston head to make it very silent (akin to a VSR with a Laylax piston).

http://www.leesprecision.com/collect...ke-piston-head

I've read only bad feedback from PPS parts compared to AirsoftPro. Ordering straight from AirsoftPro is cheaper than ordering the PPS parts from the states, unless some asian stores have started to carry them, which in the end could be cheaper than Airsoft Pro, I haven't looked for that recently.

Also, there is a thread on Airsoft Society with a lot of very good info on the A&K SVD:

http://www.airsoftsociety.com/forums...-thread-58026/

[Clanofwolves]

Originally Posted by Drakker

You really need to have a long spring to know what that loud twang is. I've run AEG springs for 2 years before I ordered a proper length spring and the difference was night and day. You can check easily if your spring is too short, just fire the SVD without the dust cover and look at the spring. A correct length spring will stop moving really fast. A short spring will keep "swinging" for around 1 or 2 seconds and resonating. Some people have had success by spreading AEG springs to correct length to remove that sound, although it might decrease the spring durability.

Also, there is a thread on Airsoft Society with a lot of very good info on the A&K SVD:http://www.airsoftsociety.com/forums...-thread-58026/

After looking into the spring length issue, I see what you're saying; I ordered a "Systema M160 AEG Spring" from Airsoft GI. I ordered the third generation piston with the related upgrades but I do understand the rationale for your recommendation. Also, PPS is cheaper, even in the states from places like Airsoft Atlanta who are typically higher than most. With that said, cost isn't the determining factor for most purchases. The thread you attached is a great one on SVD's; I've looked at it before.

I have a question on the hop-up bucking; which one works best with the AirsoftPro's hop-up? I've ordered a "SHS 6.03mm Tightbore Inner Barrel" (a friend's gun has one and it works great) and I was recommended the "PDI VSR-10 and AEG Hopup W Bucking" ...what do you think?

[Drakker]

Wait until custom hits you with extra fees... and shipping is crazy expensive from the states. When you order from asia the shipping is ridiculously cheap and most of the time you don't get hit with custom fees. When you order from the states you almost systematically hit with custom fees and the shipping is at least 20$ to 30$. It is even worse when using a commercial shipper like UPS/FedEx/DHL. I stopped ordering from the states for these reasons.

The PDI W hop-up rubber is great. It has worked well in all my guns and is now my go-to rubber. I have had good results with the A+ Reaps rubber too. I'm going to try a Maple Leaf in my SVD soon, it works very well with heavy BBs, although it will badly overhop lighter BBs even with hop-up set at the lowest level in most guns.

I have no experience with the SHS barrels, but they are generally frowned upon on Airsoft Mechanics, so I wasn't planning on ever buying one. I stick with Laylax/Prometheus and PDI barrels now. But frankly, I stopped even buying upgrade barrels. Nowadays stock barrels are generally well made, and the price of a good upgrade barrel is so high, and the accuracy/power gains so low that I think it is not worth it. If you think the stock barrel is causing inaccuracies in your gun, polish or lap is and it should get close enough to the performances of a high-end upgrade barrel. Bore consistency is key for a good barrel, and you can make it really good yourself with a little work. Check the lapping kit on hunter seeker armory (also available from Airsoft Store Canada I believe).

It is also very common for low end tight bore barrels to have worse performances than a stock barrel. Keep it in mind when buying cheap barrels.

[Clanofwolves]

Originally Posted by Drakker

Wait until custom hits you with extra fees... and shipping is crazy expensive from the states.

Luckily, I have a way round any continental shipping; that can be a real deal-breaker when it comes to any purchase, especially relatively small ones like these upgrades. I know a few guys who have PPS made tight-bores and are real happy with the construction and the flawlessly smooth bore. I have heard that 6.03 is the tightest you should go if you want any hop-up assistance as the 6.01 doesn't allow the projectile to gain any spin at all. Amazing what only .02 can do.

As an aside, how long does shipping usually take from AirsoftPro in CZ? In the checkout area it just has a rather bemussed statement about the fact that shipping could take a while.....at least they don't blow smoke.

[Drakker]

I ordered from Airsoft Pro three times so far, if I remember well it took roughly 2 weeks every time.

I don't know anything about PPS barrels either, so I can't comment. But the thing with 6.01 barrels preventing BBs from getting spin is bull. The BB gains its spin from the hop-up rubber. It might or might not get extra spin as it rides on the ceiling of the barrel, no one knows for sure yet. Even a 6.00 barrel will not reduce the BB spin significantly.

In an inner barrel, the tightness of the bore determines how much extra power the BB gets. The smaller the bore, the less air escapes on the side of the BB and the more power it can get. On the other hand, in larger bores, there is a lot of air escaping around the BBs forming a kind of air cushion, which prevents it from hitting the barrel too often and getting side spin, thus giving it a straighter trajectory. Airsofters now generally agree that larger bores barrels are more precise. The reason why people think that tight bore barrels increase accuracy is because they used to compare crappy stock barrels in the days with high-end consistent bore barrels. Tightness didn't make them more accurate, it was the quality of the bore that did.

[Clanofwolves]

Originally Posted by Drakker

I ordered from Airsoft Pro three times so far, if I remember well it took roughly 2 weeks every time.

Thanks again for all the 411... I was reading the SVD link which, with all of the adds attached to every single reply, was maddening. However, I did hit a recommendation once or twice that when performing an SVD upgrade, you should always replace (list, list, list) and the trigger assembly. Now, I know to replace the piston catch with a steel one as the stock one is of drop-metal and will wear down quickly, but what about the rest of the trigger assembly? Looks like sites that sell them have the piston catch as part of the assembly. Thoughts sir??

Again, thanks......

[Drakker]

There are no trigger assemblies available. The guy saying that got one custom made. You really only need to chance the piston catch (sear). If your trigger assembly ever breaks, well, those SVDs are so cheap you might as well just buy a new one. Also, he keeps saying that you need to shim it, but there really is only one piece in there you can shim and I'm not sure that is really going to help for longevity.

Essential upgrades really are:

Piston
Sear (piston catch)
Hop-up unit
Hop-up rubber (the one shipped with the Airsoft Pro hop-up unit is ok, not the best but it works good enough)

Everything else is optional. But if you are going to order direct from Airsoft Pro, you might as well order the cylinder head too. Not a required upgrade, but nice to have, as is the case with pretty much all upgrades offered by Airsoft Pro.

[chtomman]

Originally Posted by Drakker

There are no trigger assemblies available. The guy saying that got one custom made. You really only need to chance the piston catch (sear). If your trigger assembly ever breaks, well, those SVDs are so cheap you might as well just buy a new one. Also, he keeps saying that you need to shim it, but there really is only one piece in there you can shim and I'm not sure that is really going to help for longevity.

Essential upgrades really are:

Piston
Sear (piston catch)
Hop-up unit
Hop-up rubber (the one shipped with the Airsoft Pro hop-up unit is ok, not the best but it works good enough)

Everything else is optional. But if you are going to order direct from Airsoft Pro, you might as well order the cylinder head too. Not a required upgrade, but nice to have, as is the case with pretty much all upgrades offered by Airsoft Pro.

+1 :tup: for essential upgrade
A have the same in my 3 svd A&K And for the inner barrel a have a stock barel (psl project ) , de deep fire barrel ,Deep Fire Stainless Steel 6.02mm Barrel for M116A1/A2/VN/AUG (509mm) With cutting svd outter barrel ( sks project ) and this one ( vst40 project )Inner barrel 6.03mm - 590mm (PSG,SVD)[AimTop] ( airsoftpro ).For my the 6.03 590mm aim top it's the best (it's my opinion) .In my svt40 project the hop up rubber is Silicone HopUp bucking [Guarder] ( airsoftpro ) and it's work very well with . 28 gr .

In my futur 2 next svd , I'm try de version 3 piston beceause it's same at the original ( work fine ) + rubber demper for more silence.http://airsoftpro.cz/eshop/product_i...oducts_id=3692
Sear (piston catch)
Hop-up unit
Hop-up rubber Guarder for first
http://airsoftpro.cz/eshop/product_i...roducts_id=277
and madbull 60 degree for second ( test for level up .36gr BB )http://airsoftpro.cz/eshop/product_i...oducts_id=3480
inner barrel aim top 6.03 590mm SSThttp://airsoftpro.cz/eshop/product_info.php?products_id=1424
Steel outer barrel housing ( i have this one in my 3 svd , more stabilisation on the outer barrel )
http://airsoftpro.cz/esho/product_in...oducts_id=2484
And for more silence and better seal with the airsoftpro hop up unit , steel silender head .http://airsoftpro.cz/eshop/product_i...oducts_id=2231.
A+:wink:

[Clanofwolves]

Originally Posted by Drakker

There are no trigger assemblies available. The guy saying that got one custom made. You really only need to chance the piston catch (sear). If your trigger assembly ever breaks, well, those SVDs are so cheap you might as well just buy a new one. Also, he keeps saying that you need to shim it, but there really is only one piece in there you can shim and I'm not sure that is really going to help for longevity.

Essential upgrades really are:

Piston
Sear (piston catch)
Hop-up unit
Hop-up rubber (the one shipped with the Airsoft Pro hop-up unit is ok, not the best but it works good enough)

Everything else is optional. But if you are going to order direct from Airsoft Pro, you might as well order the cylinder head too. Not a required upgrade, but nice to have, as is the case with pretty much all upgrades offered by Airsoft Pro.

Thanks again....here's the location for a trigger assembly that I found; not sure if it's one that fits or not: http://www.evike.com/products/41495/

What do you think?