Well I'm not good with reviews so I'll just jump right in.
I started off buying the VFC m40a3 hoping to fully upgrade it since it was fully VSR compatible. The day it came I liked the stock and it seemed to be built nice. Then i took it outside and shot it with .40's and .30s. It shot somewhat straight and was shooting around 160 feet max. One of the problems I had with it was it kept slam firing every couple of shots. Then I pulled the bolt back and the entire cocking handle cracked apart from the bolt. This was due to the poor construction. Basically the bolt had a couple round notches and the actual cocking handle had little holes that would make it VERY likely to break eventually. Afterward I sent the gun back to WGC workshop and had an AWFUL time with their customer support, but eventually got a refund from Paypal. Beware: There's only a three day warranty!
VFC M40a3
External stock-6
Bolt construction-3
Looks-8
Performance out of the box-6
Cons-Slam fires, awful bolt construction and the stock could be built nicer
Pros- Fully VSR compatible (or so they say)
After I got my money back for the VFC I decided to buy the new Ares M40a5 (mcm700x). When I received the gun I was amazed at how well the external quality was compared to the VFC. I checked the bolt and it had the nice little indents on nice metal and is NOT going to break any time soon. I then loaded about 10 bbs in it and went to fire it, except it wouldn't fire. This is because like most of Ares's spring guns the magazine must be completely loaded to shoot. You HAVE to load it with a speed loader. If you load it by hand you will hit the bb releasing switch and they will spurt out everywhere. Then I went and loaded it up with the speed loader and shot it for awhile. Now the amazing thing is that most of Ares's spring rifles are crap out the box, but they actually made a decent rifle this time. Out of the box I used .30 bbs since I'm out of .40s They shot dead straight and I am getting an effective range of about 175 feet. The main thing I do not like about this rifle is that only certain parts are upgradeable. Once I start upgrading I'll let you know how everything fits in.
Ares M40a5 (mcm700x)
External Stock-8
Bolt-9
Looks-8
Performance out of the box-8
Cons- Not fully VSR compatible and the magazine must be loaded all the way.
Pros- There is a co2 or gas bolt made for it, stock is built VERY nicely, shoots great out of the box (should still upgrade it), and the bolt won't break off.
In conclusion if you're looking for an M40a3 or a5 model you should just get a VSR 10 and make or buy an M40a3 or a5 stock. But if that's too much work for you then buy the Ares.
Here are some pictures of my Ares M40a5. I had a little black tape on the orange tip so don't mind that.
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I started off buying the VFC m40a3 hoping to fully upgrade it since it was fully VSR compatible. The day it came I liked the stock and it seemed to be built nice. Then i took it outside and shot it with .40's and .30s. It shot somewhat straight and was shooting around 160 feet max. One of the problems I had with it was it kept slam firing every couple of shots. Then I pulled the bolt back and the entire cocking handle cracked apart from the bolt. This was due to the poor construction. Basically the bolt had a couple round notches and the actual cocking handle had little holes that would make it VERY likely to break eventually. Afterward I sent the gun back to WGC workshop and had an AWFUL time with their customer support, but eventually got a refund from Paypal. Beware: There's only a three day warranty!
VFC M40a3
External stock-6
Bolt construction-3
Looks-8
Performance out of the box-6
Cons-Slam fires, awful bolt construction and the stock could be built nicer
Pros- Fully VSR compatible (or so they say)
After I got my money back for the VFC I decided to buy the new Ares M40a5 (mcm700x). When I received the gun I was amazed at how well the external quality was compared to the VFC. I checked the bolt and it had the nice little indents on nice metal and is NOT going to break any time soon. I then loaded about 10 bbs in it and went to fire it, except it wouldn't fire. This is because like most of Ares's spring guns the magazine must be completely loaded to shoot. You HAVE to load it with a speed loader. If you load it by hand you will hit the bb releasing switch and they will spurt out everywhere. Then I went and loaded it up with the speed loader and shot it for awhile. Now the amazing thing is that most of Ares's spring rifles are crap out the box, but they actually made a decent rifle this time. Out of the box I used .30 bbs since I'm out of .40s They shot dead straight and I am getting an effective range of about 175 feet. The main thing I do not like about this rifle is that only certain parts are upgradeable. Once I start upgrading I'll let you know how everything fits in.
Ares M40a5 (mcm700x)
External Stock-8
Bolt-9
Looks-8
Performance out of the box-8
Cons- Not fully VSR compatible and the magazine must be loaded all the way.
Pros- There is a co2 or gas bolt made for it, stock is built VERY nicely, shoots great out of the box (should still upgrade it), and the bolt won't break off.
In conclusion if you're looking for an M40a3 or a5 model you should just get a VSR 10 and make or buy an M40a3 or a5 stock. But if that's too much work for you then buy the Ares.
Here are some pictures of my Ares M40a5. I had a little black tape on the orange tip so don't mind that.
