for the a&k masada owners out there

Since this is not covered anywhere else (and I did look), if you own an A&K Magpul Masada airsoft rifle, its original barrel is not 363mm long. Yes, that is the standard length for M4 / SR16 / SG551 clones, however, the Masada’s barrel measures in at something closer to 393mm in length.

What does this mean to you? Well, replacement inner barrels for airsoft rifles (not to be confused with the outer barrels, which are modeled to look like "real" barrels, and functionally useless when it comes to propelling BBs) seem to come in some set lengths: 205mm (UMG), 229mm / 233mm (MK5), 247mm (MK36C / E90), 300mm (M4 CQB / M1A1), 363mm (M4), 407mm (SR16), 455mm (AK), 500mm (M14), 509mm / 510mm (M16), and 650mm (FSG1)*. Notice what is not there? To be fair, some companies do make 370mm inner barrels, but they are either from companies with kind of "meh" reviews, or they are super-tight-bore barrels that require high-end BBs and lots of TLC. To be doubly fair, the flash suppressor included with the A&K Masada extends a good inch to inch-and-a-half past the end of the barrel, meaning that the 407mm barrels would fit and still be protected by the flash suppressor, but the end of the barrel – and its all-important crown – would just be dangling in space, which is not something that gives me a warm fuzzy.

So I went with the 363mm. In reality, barrel length in airsoft matters significantly less than in "real steel" firearms, and that missing inch of barrel probably will not be noticeable when the newer version has a tighter bore with better tolerances. Alternatively, you can go a "suppressor"** route, extend the overall length of your outer barrel that way, and then slide in any length inner barrel you can figure the math for, but given how annoying that evolution looked (trying to translate inches to mm and back again while not really knowing how long things actually are), and given that I find the Masada’s COTS barrel length (about 15") to be pretty much perfect, I decided to forgo that trial-and-error nightmare.

And if, right about now, you are getting that niggling suspicion that it is entirely possible to spend as much money on airsoft rifles as "real steel" ones, you would pretty much be right – one of the better players (in terms of skills, not just equipment) on the field I frequent invests somewhere around $2000 per rifle, plus his time, to customize them exactly how he wants them, and, having been at the receiving end of those rifles more times than I care to count, I can say the money certainly accomplished something. Whether or not it was "worth it" depends on the person…

Speaking of, I will find out if my modifications meet that requirement this weekend, but here is to hoping.

(On a related note, does anyone know what the purpose of the little brass ring around the barrel in the A&K Masada’s hop-up is? I bought a CNC replacement for the COTS plastic hop-up assembly, and the ring will not fit in the new piece, but it does not seem strictly necessary any more either. And, of course, I forgot to take any pictures of any of this…)

(* – Numbers pulled from Airsoft GI’s Precision Inner Barrel listing. I make no claims as to the veracity of XXXmm length barrel being applicable to Y airsoft rifle.)

(** – Airsoft "suppressors" are completely useless on "real steel" firearms, and would probably spontaneously disassemble themselves (explode) if you managed to mate the two and fire the latter. Additionally, unless you custom fabricate a foam interior for them, they do not do a whole lot for actually "suppressing" airsoft rifles either – they are pretty much there for looks and the ability to slide a longer inner barrel in.)