Glock18C: Black on Tan

This now is a gallery of the second Glock18C swapped with the black PGC metal slide from the first Glock18C.

You probably noticed that the dark earth frame now sports a magwell and a thumb-rest. I got the magwell in a stack of second hand items in a local airsoft shop that specializes in handguns parts and upgrades. And the thumb-rest is something I got from my friend. He owns a Tokyo Marui Glock17 Custom and he wanted to get rid of the thumb-rest because he didn't like it. That's luck working in my favor. I really wanted to have a thumb-rest on my Glock so he gave it to me!

Glock18C: Black on Black

This is a start of a series of Glock18C photography entries featuring my Glock 18Cs.

In this entry are the photos of one of my Glock18Cs, with the orignal frame, and the slide upgraded with the PGC black metal slide and barrel. This Glock also sports the NineBall Tritium sights.

Glock18C: Metal Slide and Barrel Mod

This is my first time to disassemble and modify a Tokyo Marui Glock. At first I was kind of nervous or anxious but remembering how other people say that it's very easy, I went on with it.

Just like the 1911, the slide must be taken out of the frame first. The Tokyo Marui Glocks have the same field stripping process as the real Glocks. The slide lock must be pressed down first on both sides of the gun. Then, while holding down the slide lock, pull the slide back, and push it out front.

After that, the recoil spring guide assembly and the barrel assembly can be taken out from the slide.

The inner barrel assembly can now be taken out from the outer barrel.

The screw that joins the two halves of the chamber was undone to access the inner barrel and hop up rubber.

The PDI 6.01 Raven inner barrel and NineBall hop rubber replaced the original Tokyo Marui parts.

The inner barrel assembly was then put together again with the new parts installed.

Then it was oiled on the sides and inserted into the PGC metal outer barrel.

Now the slide was turned upside down and the screw that keeps the selector mechanism, blowback unit and the rear sight was undone.

The part that keeps the selector switch and mechanism in place was then taken out.

Also the selector block (I'm just making up the part names here depending on their function on the gun) and its spring.

Then the selector switch can be removed. This is a bit tricky to do so it's ok to take your time.

After that, the rear sight will just fall off on the other side. The blowback unit can be removed the same way in 1911s. The sides of the slide must be widened and with use of a finger the blowback unit can be pushed out from the slide.

Now the PGC metal slide was prepared by installing its small parts like the dummy extractor plug and the small circular part on the inner rear of the slide (I have no idea what they call it in real steel, I suppose it's an extractor pin. It's a dummy part in airsoft anyway).

The NineBall Tritium sight was screwed into the slide and the blowback unit and selector assembly parts were installed. Everything is just a virtual drop-in.

Now to finish the custom work, the new barrel assembly and the recoil spring guide assembly were put in place. (In the photo below, the recoil spring is still the original Tokyo Marui recoil spring).

Glock18C Black Custom

I've always wanted to use metal slides on my Glocks. My close friend had told me that installation was easy and that once installed, the sound of the slide racking is just music to the ears. I saw a couple of PGC metal slide and barrel sets in a local airsoft shop and I just couldn't let the opportunity to pass. 

Another part that I'm always keen on replacing is the inner barrel. I opted to use the PDI 6.01 Raven inner barrel as I have heard and read lots of good things about it.

One of the main reasons I got the G18C is its full-auto capability. This pistol was intended for my CQB games and most such games here in Japan were held indoors. Almost always, these game sites would have unlit area where it would be hard to aim your gun if you're using black iron sights or non-glowing sights. So part of the plan really is to put a Tritium sight and the Nineball Tritium sights for Glock are just awesome! 

My usual custom work for pistols would almost always include a hop rubber replacement and this particular custom gun is no exception. I always use the Nineball hop rubber whenever I replace the Tokyo Marui original hop rubber.

Of course, when the plastic slide and barrel are replaced by metal (aluminum) ones, no matter how light the aluminum is, it would tend to be heavier than the plastic parts. Replacing the recoil spring is a must so that the slide cycles well when the gun is fired. In this project I used a RCC 130% recoil spring.

I'm excited to show you the very easy process of changing from a plastic slide to a metal slide. Wait for it on the next post.

Wired out.

Kimber Tactical Entry II: Internal Parts

I have already discussed the internal parts that I usually would replace in customizing an airsoft 1911 so I'm just going to do some sort of recall on these parts for the Tactical Entry build.

The first major component that I would replace is the blowback housing or blowback unit. Just like the Covert, I used the Airsoft Surgeon Super Lightweight Speed Blowback Housing for the Tactical Entry because it is about 50% lighter than the original BBH of TM.

The next internal part I replaced is the hop-rubber. I used the Laylax-Nineball hop rubber because it is believed by many to provide better sealing. Based on the Covert that I built, this hop rubber works like magic as just a small turn of the hop towards the "on" position from the "zero/off" position gave me a very straight, consistent BB flight.

Now here comes the interesting part. When I built the Covert, my M.E.U. was already using a PDI 6.01 Palsonite inner barrel. After finishing the build and testing the gun out, the Palsonite barrel-Nineball hop rubber combination works wonders. In this Tactical Entry build, I planned to use the Nineball 6.03 inner barrel to see which combination works better. (I will post the results in a different entry)

Again, like the Covert, this custom build used other internal upgrade parts that are already included in the kits. The upgraded recoil spring is included in the Hurricane conversion kit and the steel sear is included in the Nova hammer set.

In my next post, I will discuss the steps in building the slide!

Just a special thanks to all my readers, followers, and supporters...even though there's not that many of you yet. Thanks!

Wired out.

Kimber Custom Covert II: The Frame

Almost a month ago, I posted the steps on building the Kimber Custom Covert II slide. I'm now posting the build process of the frame. I know I should've posted this sooner but, well...no excuses. Here it is.

Before I begin with the actual steps on building the frame, I'm going to show and tell you a bit of a backgrounder. When I got the parts and the kit needed for this project, I immediately test-fitted the different parts like grip safeties, thumb safeties, and the main spring housing, into the frame. I found out that Nova parts are not drop-in fit with the kit unlike the TM original parts. So I did a lot of filing on the frame (which was supposed to be just a little had I known where to file). In the photo below, the parts filed off the frame were clearly shown.

I've filed a significant amount of that bar between the tangs of the frame to fit the Nova KBR grip safety.  Also seen in the photo is the inner part of the frame where the thumb safety slot engages and because of the thick powder coating on the frame, it needed to be filed, as well.

This top view of the frame shows just how much of that bar was left after the filing.  I should've just sawed it off and saved lots of time!

Now, on to the build itself. Again, I followed LaZouche's video in his YouTube channel on the step-by-step process of disassembling a Tokyo Marui 1911 or MEU pistol.

First is to put the thumb safety of the MEU into the "safe" position and pull the left side part out of the frame and then do the same on the right part.

Then, by removing the pin at the bottom of the grip, the main spring housing was removed.

The hammer spring was then released from the housing by pushing the plunger down with a pin and nudging the retaining pin to the side.

And the plunger and the hammer spring was placed inside the Nova main spring housing. This housing is identical to the real steel main spring housing as the retaining pin is inserted from the rear and not from the side like the TM's.

The next step is to remove the grip safety from the frame.

And then the three-finger spring.

Using an allen wrench, the screw that holds the frame and the inner chassis on the side is removed.

And the screw inside the front frame is removed, as well.

The Hurricane conversion kit includes a screw for the front of the frame. The original screw from TM and the one from the kit have different thread pitches, thus the TM screw cannot be used for the Hurricane frame.

Comparison between the two frame screws (Hurricane on the left and TM on the right)

After the frame screws were removed, the pins behind the grip can be easily pushed out.

With the pins out, the inner chassis can be freely taken out of the frame itself.

By following the video linked above, the chances of losing the tiny spring on the side of the chassis is minimized. This spring is very important and one must make sure not to lose it.

The chassis was turned to the other side to keep the spring from flying out of its slot.

While in this position, the screw that holds the part that locks the hammer assembly can be removed.

In my desire to get the most realistic look of the Custom Covert, I replaced the hammer with a Nova Kimber type hammer.

Comparison between the original TM MEU hammer (left) and the Nova Kimber hammer (right).  Notice the difference, especially the protruding part, at the bottom of the hammer.  That part is there for the half-cock feature to work -  which is not really important in airsoft guns.

The hammer strut was removed from the hammer.

All of the parts not used for my projects were kept in plastic pouches and labeled before storage.

The next step is installing the hammer strut into the new hammer. This took me a very long time as the pin is a bit bigger than the hole. I really had a hard time punching that pin into the hole.

After about an hour of hammering the pin, the strut was installed.

The plastic cylinder that holds the hammer into position is placed.

The Nova hammer set comes with a steel sear so I replaced the original sear.

I put a small amount of silicon oil on the surfaces of the chassis for easy installation into the frame later. The slide spacer that comes with the kit was also placed in its slot on the left side of the chassis.

Going back to the MEU frame, the magazine catch was removed by turning the screw clockwise and slowly releasing it. It was then slowly pulled out of the frame and about half-way through, turned 180 degrees, then taken out of the frame completely.

With the magazine catch out of the way, the trigger assembly can be removed.

By taking out the top pin, the trigger and the trigger bow ca be separated. In the photo below, the two pins were removed out of the trigger. As I mentioned, only the top pin should be removed to separate the two parts. I have taken out the bottom pin by mistake. And I learned from it.

Here now, the magazine catch screw and spring were taken out.

And then installed on the magazine catch that comes with the conversion kit. The original TM mag catch is a very tight fit for the Hurricane frame.

Then inner chassis was then inserted into the frame and locked by the two pins.

The side frame screw was replaced.

As well as the front screw.

The  three-finger spring was also installed along with the main spring housing inserted just to keep the three-finger spring from becoming loose and coming out.

Again, back to the original frame, the grip screws and the grips were removed to gain access to the plunger assembly.

The plunger set was taken out once the grips are off.

The plunger was installed on the new frame.

The Lasergrips were screwed with a hex screw to hold the plunger set in position. I didn't use the original flat-head screws to achieve the realism I want.

The new magazine catch was installed.

The grip safety was then held into position.

Then the new main spring housing was installed along with the Nova Kimber type thumb safety (left side only).

And now, the slide and the frame are both ready. I had done lapping of the slide and the frame and they now fit perfectly.

Presenting now, is the finished product of my first airsoft custom work: The Kimber Custom Covert II.

Watch out for my next project! Thanks!