CA M24 Military Version

[Strelok]

Classic army M24 (Military version - Fluted barrel)

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Intro:

Well, I've been waiting on getting a sniper rifle for quite some time now, four years even, but laws in Canada prevented me from doing so. as I am only 17 years of age as I write this (Just a heads up. this thing isnt leaving the house until i'm 18 and is remaining concealed unless i am able to bring it to a MAA game with permission.) . On Janurary 5th, 2008, I finally had enough money, and the permission of my parents to pick up the rifle . I was pretty much skeptical of getting it since there has been so many interruptions in the past, but I finally got it! I was only able to look at it in the box at first. and had to wait the painful ride home (which was an hour... Still painful enough) before I could open it up and test it out. This was pretty much my first 'real' airsoft gun ,as I've been playing with clear springers ever since I had gotten into the sport. So if I miss any important details. Ask away.


Real steel history:

The M24 SWS (Sniper Weapons System) is a military version of the Remington M700 rifle. It was adopted by the US military in 1988 and is capable of using both the 7.62 mm NATO and up to the .300 Winchester Magnum cartridge. The U.S. Army specified this capability in case future tactics required the larger cartridge's extra range and penetration.

Remington has also developed an improved version of the m24 rifle known as the M24a2, which features a 10 round detachable magazine and multiple Picatinny rails for extension of the weapons current optics, such as a night vision system.

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Appearance:

The Gun :

When I got to set my eyes on it for the very first time, I was slightly disappointed, but surprised at the same time, The gun was rather dirtied by something, there was a rubbery white substance on a bit of the barrel and on the stock (Almost like white latex paint) which was easily rubbed off, and it seemed a bit dusty, i was guessing it was sitting around for quite some time as a 'show off' peice for the guys store.
After cleaning it up, I was able to admire the true beauty of the thing, the stock was sleek and smooth with no nasty rigid edges or seams of poorly finished plastic. A nice rubbered texturing to the polymer stock and a matte black finish to the metal parts of the rifle.Along with the adjustable shoulder pad, which gives it that more modernized, tactical look. The 'functioning' shell release was a nifty little addition as well, I use it to store the little Allen key used for adjusting the hopup on the rifle. i don't think it will unlatch any time soon unless the button becomes weak, from what I can see, that wont happen.

Another thing to note is the shape of the hand grip of the rifle, it bulges out to the sides quite distinctly.its not an uncomfortable bulge, but rather an odd one. It may be uncomfortable for someone for smaller hands as its weird to wrap your fingers around.



Weight:

This is probably one of the things that surprised me the most, It was much heavier than expected, Hell, its heavier than one of my buddies hunting rifles, or so i'm told. Though, I've held full length shotguns and the such, and the m24 compares, and even feels nicer in some cases! Other than that, it seems to have a very mild balance issue, which is fixed by adding on a bipod if you prefer.

Other:

Though, the magazine (even compared to my springers) Looked rather cheap, but it functions quite well and feeds the very last bb (which also gets in the way of the bolt from advancing forward, a nifty little addition to help you from feeding a non existent bb. Though, the problem with it (Or mine, at least) is that it wont feed a full magazine, I guess theres no room for the bb's to roll into the chamber when the mag is full tight.

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Performance:

I've heard a lot of mixed reports of the rifle not firing too well for a stock weapon due to the poor hopup rubber. But i'm guessing i'm either lucky. Or i'm oblivious since I haven't owned another rifle to compare the quality to. (Well, i've shot a CA SLR-105 at one of my first games) A TM vsr-10 Gspec (This one shot a little better) and a TM ak47 at another point. And so far, other than the automatic capability, The m24 shot more accurately and further than anything i've owned that is airsoft, and i'm really happy for that, as i'm not planning to upgrade for a few months now. I am running KSC .25s through the thing right now and the thing shoots straight and true even through wind. I have it set up to overhop just a little for range.

Accuracy results

(insert accuracy shit here)

Field results:

You wont see anything in here 'till late march. Theres still a lot of snow on the ground and no games going on.

Poor Mans Chrono:

(Insert chrono shit here)

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Concerns:

Dirty barrel:

Well, When I first shot the thing, I accidentally misfed a few rounds into the chamber, which rolled out, and upon inspection of the BB, there was black 'stripes' like what you would see on an 8 ball from a billiard set. (Minus the 8) I'm not sure if the gun was used at one point... or somehow got dirty on the way here. Or if thats the stuff coating the hopup unit before the hopup 'breaks in'. I'm not sure if this was the case for other m24 owners.


Bolt roughness:

working the bolt seems to be a little grindy for some reason, having fired a vsr-10. there is a very noticeable difference, again, i'm unsure if this is the same case with other m24 users.

Magazine:

The magazine loads a full 25 round magazine, but you have to get rid of 1 bb to have the action work properly. (To lock in, at least). the magazine either gets too tight to let the bbs move around inside or something. I dont know.

Hopup:

The hopup functions great, but getting to it is a real hassle. That, and there is no indicator if its on high or low, you literally have to tweak it, test it, tweak it again to see results. and i'm unsure what will happen if you turn it too far one way or the other.



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Conclusion:

So far, as a first 'real' airsoft gun, i'm happy I paid the $761.00 for it, I just need to spice it up with a better scope, quality internals, and Maybe, maybe a paint job. The finish is too good to cover up!
If you're just too impatient to read throughout the descriptions above, This should suffice:

Pros:
Good range for a stock rifle
Decently Accurate
Solidly built
Beautiful exterior
Heavy (Can be a con)
Decent magazine capacity
Very few parts to worry about
Adjustable buttstock
Enough slingmounts to have both a bipod and a sling without colliding
EXACT replica of the real thing, including a 'functioning' shell release
Adjustable trigger weight
Safety is stiff, but functional(can be a con)

Cons:
Hopup unit is hard to adjust
Unable to see if hopup is on high or low
Many many different views on hopup quality
Dirty inner barrel (for mine, anyway)
Weight (Can be a pro, too)
Availability for parts
HUGE rifle
Reports of bad screws, Sometimes they strip. (Fixed by tapping and fitting new threads)
A bit on the noisy side
The adjustable buttstock can be a little wobbly.
Doesnt like low profile scope mounts.

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If you have any questions about this rifle, just drop a message and i'll see what I can do

SOON TO COME

I will be doing a bit of a walkthrough of the internals once I get the right keys to do so. And images of accuracy, and coke can tests will be coming up sometime this week.
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BRUNETTE GERMAN

[CDN_Stalker]

Good review, I commend you on taking the time to do it, as well as the fact you are a new guy. I have a LOT of experience with this rifle, so ask me what yo uwant and I'll tell you. When I have a bit more time I'll answer some of your questions posted on here, as well as as how to tweak and make your gun work better for you.

[Strelok]

Originally Posted by CDN_Stalker

Good review, I commend you on taking the time to do it, as well as the fact you are a new guy. I have a LOT of experience with this rifle, so ask me what yo uwant and I'll tell you. When I have a bit more time I'll answer some of your questions posted on here, as well as as how to tweak and make your gun work better for you.

Haha, thanks bud! Its Tyler from MSN by the way, if you're unsure. I couldnt imagine it shooting better than it already does! Its already shooting wonderfully.
hope to talk to you soon, Glad you found the review good! its my first.
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Class action lawfirm

[Ghillie973]

Good job on the review mate. One upgraded, you'll really see what this rifle can do.

and yea, paint that shit up. A sniper rifle without a camo job just won't do. But take your time on it. Make it a work of art.

[Strelok]

Originally Posted by Ghillie973

Good job on the review mate. One upgraded, you'll really see what this rifle can do.

and yea, paint that shit up. A sniper rifle without a camo job just won't do. But take your time on it. Make it a work of art.

Oooooh I dont know! The finish on this rifle is just too beautiful to cover up! But, I will when the time comes. This will be wrapped up with a ghillie wrap until I find where i'll be playing most of the time before i think up a camouflage pattern. I have an airbrush i paint cheapsoft with and do artwork with, so i'll be sure to give this one a paintjob worthy.
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MAINE DISPENSARIES

[Mr.Planters]

You say there too mag wells, one for props and the other for the actual mag.

Talking about the prop one, what kind of shell can fit there? Real round?

thanks, and great review

[FOX_111]

Originally Posted by Mr.Planters

You say there too mag wells, one for props and the other for the actual mag.

Talking about the prop one, what kind of shell can fit there? Real round?

thanks, and great review

Nothing can fit there. I sometime put a small bag of BBs in there for backup.

[Mr.Planters]

Originally Posted by FOX_111

Nothing can fit there. I sometime put a small bag of BBs in there for backup.

Ok ok cool

EDIT: Fox, regardes tes PM

[frapso]

I've been wanting to get into airsoft for quite sometime now... But since Canada has such heavy restrictions on airsfot guns coming into the country, how did you get the CA M24 into Canada because I want the same one.

[FlyingCats]

Originally Posted by frapso

I've been wanting to get into airsoft for quite sometime now... But since Canada has such heavy restrictions on airsfot guns coming into the country, how did you get the CA M24 into Canada because I want the same one.

It was probably from the classifieds...18+ area.

[Strelok]

I actually purchased this rifle from a freind a few years back (yeah, I was 17 at time and dodged the age verification system, but i've long since learned.) I've seen this rifle in the classifieds multiple times, even upgraded to their full potential (Which they have a lot of)
Get yourself age verified and grab hold of one, they're well worth the penny.
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Bdsm Movies

[SuperHog]

Its been 4 years since this review and here is my review of the CA M24 military.

Same problems with the magazine. You need to fiddle with the magazine to get it to lock in. Hop up is terrible to adjust. Barrel has crud in it messing up the bb's. Looks a lot of scratches from the factory assembling has been touched up with paint.

I guess CA has no plans of improving anything as long as people buy these as is forever.

Who makes a better aftermarket magazine for the CA M24?

[Strelok]

Hah, Forgot I even wrote this... I still have yet to finish it after 4 years!

I've since sold this rifle, and then bought another one! Its currently an empty shell (I've discarded the internals save for the trigger assembly) until I can save enough cash for a complete PDI upgrade.

As for the magazines, there are none out there that I can think of. PDI sells extra mags, but I think they're just CA mags. same crappy brittle plastic.

Sucks

[SuperHog]

I also have a M28 that people told me to stay away from. Well, that is still shooting great and the so called proprietary magazines uses a M4 style of follower and works simply great. I can chamber an empty shot instead of slamming the nozzle into the bb follower.

My friend busted many M24 magazines while game because it pushed the bolt forward just a little too hard, which is easy to do while under sniping pressure.

The hop up is so hard to get at as well. Does the PDI hop up solve this?

[Strelok]

To be honest, I don't mind the integral hopup adjustment. While its a pain, its pretty solid for adjustments sake. Adjust to the BB's you use, dab some loctite in there and it'll stay true forever.

I'm certain its the same in the PDI, just better tolerances for compression.