A&K SVD FPS too low

[THE FNG]

I got the A&K SVD for christmas and I have taken it to the last 2 events. On the website (owners will know this) it states an FPS of around 470 - 500+ with .20's.

I chrono'd my rifle at 280 FPS with .30's and around 340 with .20's.

I admit that the hop up may not be correctly adjusted (the bb drops rather than spins up) but surely this wouldn't affect a decrease this great?

I was wondering if anyone else had encountered this problem or if they have any ideas on how to solve it?

Thanks in advance!

 

[Dan_W]

Did you get another spring with it, and were did you get it from, if you are from NI they might have cut it for you to coincide with local law.

 

[THE FNG]

I got it from airsoftworld.com and I'm in England.

There were no other parts with the gun; just the gun, unjamming rod and chingrish manual.

 

[RR01]

Try swapping springs first off. It's a 2 minute job to do so and it takes standard AEG springs. Try putting an M140 or M150 in there. That should get you in the 450 - 480 ballpark. If that doesn't do it then you probably have an airseal problem. Check that you have good compression on the piston / cylinder. If the piston O ring dries out it could effect the power output. If that is good then check that the hop rubber isn't damaged.

Oh, and if that doesn't work, take it back to AW.

 

[THE FNG]

A quick look through the rifle:

Compression on the piston is ok, O rings are not dried out, hop rubber is in good condition.

The spring could be my problem. I'm waiting on a m150 to arrive, then I can install and check. Failing that, off it goes back to AW

 

[RR01]

I've just got one delivered today from AW and have been running a load of my old springs through it, partly to check what they run at, as I'd not put them back in the right packets, and also to see how the SVD behaved FPS wise.

The standard 1J spring that it was fitted with chrono'd at 320, so 10 fps above their suggested power of 310. The extra spring supplied was supposed to push it up to 440, but mine is doing 490 almost every shot, so it could be a 150 might actually put you over 500. Testing the supplied spare against a known new M120, which pushed out 410, the supplied spare with the rifle is probably an M140.

If your M150 pushes it high you might want to clip a few coils off it to bring it back down, or try an M140.

 

[THE FNG]

Thanks for the advice, much appreciated.

One thing though, you said the fps is advertised at 310ish...is it a different version, ie the Izhmash licensed?

Mine was this one, 450+ :

http://www.airsoftworld.net/twotone-aandk-dragunov-svd-airsoft-sniper-rifle-spring.html

I wonder if it possible that mine has been fitted with the wrong spring at the factory?

 

[RR01]

Yes, mine is the Izhmash Licenced one. Couldn't argue with the price compared to the standard A&K and although it says ASG on the box, I believe it is a re-badged A&K. It is certainly exactly the same internally as an A&K one I had a year or two back and made the mistake of selling, especially as that one had a wood kit on it.

I guess yours is supposed to have the higher rate spring fitted as standard (you also seem to get a midcap mag, whereas the ASG has a hicap), so possibly there could have been a cockup in the factory and you got a lower rate spring in error. Changing to a higher rate spring should confirm if it's just the wrong spring fitted from new. If that doesn't cure it then there is a real problem with your gun.

 

[THE FNG]

Just got an M150. It's too dark for me to check out its performance so I'll post tomorrow hopefully. It's a couple of coils longer than the stock spring and it sounds differently when fired now. Crossing my fingers!

 

[RR01]

I bet it's also a bl**dy sight harder to cock it as well. I've bought the extension piece for the cocking handle for mine. Even at close to 500 fps it's quite an easy pull now.

 

[THE FNG]

There is a slight difference, but I have the extension too so it that may have reduced the scale of the tension upgrade. I'm genuinely excited to try this out! Next stop after this could be a new sear

 

[RR01]

Yes, I've put in the steel sear and bought the improved hop unit as well. The hop is definitely easier to adjust, as it just involves turning a knurled wheel, rather than the tiny grub screw of the OE hop unit. Also fitting the sear is quite easy once you drop the trigger block out of the receiver. Just make sure when you fit it back that you get the end of the safety lever in the right place so that the safe / fire selector works properly. The bits are out of stock from sniperpartsuk but are in stock at AirsoftPro.cz.

 

[THE FNG]

Having fired a few rounds off today, I can happily say that the the problem is solved! An instant indication was the speed of the bb. Struggled to see it at first as I was used to a much slower travel. Before, I was literally able to see the arc trajectory of the bb, whereas now it flies in a straight line for 40 metres before hitting a target.

I'm almost ecstatic! I can't test the actual fps as I don't have a chronometer, but I can safely say that the power increase is somewhat dramatic.

Can't wait for my UKARA now; decided to buy a black body kit (I have the two-tone version SVD).

On the subject of UKARA, how long does it usually take once they have your details? I sent mine to JD airsoft in Cannock/Stafford and I've been waiting for 2 weeks with no reply. Rang them Wednesday dinner time, and they said that the 'UKARA man' wasn't in but I should receive an email from UKARA office once it's done. I know it can be a long procees but I'm just so excited to gey my first AEG!

Due to the previous problems with the SVD, I was going to abandon using the sniper as it let me down at the 2 skirmishes that I used it (0 confirmed kills)

Now however, I am thinking of a SVD/UMP.45 loadout.

 

[RR01]

The fact that you now have site membership means you can go ahead and buy the bits to convert the SVD to a RIF. You do not need to wait for your registratrion on the UKARA database to be uploaded, although you will get an e-mail from UKARA once the registration is confirmed. UKARA registration just makes it easier for an online retailer to check that you are a site member and allowed to buy RIFs, although you don't need to be registered to just buy parts.

Yes, having a back-up is essential when using the SVD. I'm not sure yet whether to carry my MP5 as well, or just use my TM Glock 17, which would be a lot lighter and easier to carry than the MP5.

 

[THE FNG]

On second thoughts, it's what's on the inside that counts. I've sacrificed the body kit for the steel sear and the advanced hop unit. I was tempted to get the re-inforced piston head too; would you recommend?

 

[RR01]

Depends on your budget. I've not bothered with that on mine, but if it wears in use from engaging with the steel sear then I might order a whole new piston assembly once the OE one needs replacing. Seeing that at the moment the rifle is firing each shot within about 5-10fps of one another I can't see the need for upgrading it any more, although I have fitted a Falcon twin point hop rubber to the OE inner barrel. I have them fitted to nearly all my AEGs and the accuracy and distance of the shots is a big improvement over a standard hop rubber, so much that at the last game my M16 was shooting better than ever with the hop almost fully off. Definitely worth the $7 each from Ehobbyasia. Now just need to get the SVD out in the field and set the hop and zero the POSP scope.

 

[THE FNG]

Well...I caved to the body kit as well. I bought the black one from airsoftworld. Arrived the next day. I fitted it straight away after filing down some of handguard and it looks awesome. First R.I.F and I'm really chuffed. When I first got into airsoft, I thought that I would have to send guns off to upgrade them but I've successfully taken it apart to fit the handguard and changed its spring. Just awaiting the hop unit and steel sear from AirsoftPro.cz.

Have you changed your barrel at all? I was wondering if it would be worth upgrading that in the future? I apologise as well for asking a 1000 questions but I'd rather ask and get it right the first time than destroy a weapon through not researching it properly. I would also like to point out that I am extrememly grateful for your advice; much appreciated

 

[RR01]

No problem with the questions. Happy to help.

As regards the inner barrel, not yet. There are differing schools of thought over the best internal diameter for both range and accuracy, with some manufacturers insisting that 6.08mm is best, others that 6.03 or 6.01 is better. I've checked mine with a set of digital callipers and it's 6.08, so as soon as I can get it out on the skirmish field and set the hop and "run it in" I will see what it is doing accuracy wise.

Since mine is running close to 500fps stock I do know that putting in a 6.03 barrel is likely to increase the fps by maybe 20fps, taking me over my usual sites limits, so unless the accuracy is crap, I may well stick with the OE inner barrel. If it is crap then I'd probably go for a 590mm 6.03 Madbull Black Python V2 inner as a replacement, as I've had them before and always found them to be a good choice between cost and upgrade and change the spring to a slightly lower rate one to keep below the limit.

 

[THE FNG]

Hit an interesting obstacle on Saturday. I took the SVD to a half day event at NPF in Stafford. I set up during the first game, found my first target, pulled the trigger and narrowly missed a kill. Pulled the bolt back, aimed again, pulled the trigger. Instead of firing the bb, somehow the bb got mashed and little fragments came hurtling out. I tried again and the same thing happened. It's only happened since I took the gun apart to fit the body kit. Do you know how to remedy this? I will be taking apart again over the next day or two as I have the sear and hop unit set to arrive today.

 

[RR01]

[SIZE=10.5pt]At a guess I would say the hop unit is slightly out of line with the hole in the receiver where the mag fits, as it may be jambing the BB to far back in the hop unit, so releasing the cocking lever is slamming the nozzle into a stuck BB and breaking it. As soon as you pull the trigger the air is pushing on the broken bits, not a whole BB.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.5pt]If you are going to take it apart anyway, once the outer barrel unit is removed from the receiver, look down it to make sure nothing is stuck in the barrel. If it is clear then give it a run through with a piece of lint free rag in the end of the un-jambing rod, just to be sure. Then look at the hop rubber from the muzzle end by pointing the hop unit towards a light source. How much of the bump in the hop rubber can you see? Even for higher weight ammo it shouldn't be too much, as that can jamb the BB. If it is down a lot, back off the hop until you can just see a very small amount of the bump. Then put it back together and try running ten or so shots through it to see if it cycles properly.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.5pt]One other thought. If you look in the rear end of the hop you will see a small steel ball bearing just by the entrance to the back hole in the hop unit. That is there to align the nozzle with the hole in the hop unit. It should be factory set at the right amount, but if it has been moved at all then it could effect how the BB is being fed into the hop unit from the mag. The easiest way to check is to remove the mag, turn the gun upside down and cock the action to take the heavy spring tension off the slide / cylinder unit then re-apply the safety. Now watch underneath as you move the slide forward into the hop unit. You should feel a very, very slight "notch" as the nozzle moves into the end of the hop unit, when the nozzle runs under the ball bearing. Anything more than the slightest resistance might mean that the bearing is pushing too much on the nozzle and moving it out of line. If it is, that may be your problem. You'll need a small Allen key to adjust it, I think the same size as the one that adjusted the hop on the OE hop unit, but only if you think it is wrong, as too little might also be bad.[/SIZE]

[SIZE=10.5pt]See how you go and let me know if any of this helps.[/SIZE]