Airsoft AK 47 Cyma CM.028, a monster airsoft electric gun

I started playing airsoft over 3 years ago. Back then I was a poor college student and spending 200-300$ on an airsoft gun seemed unthinkable! This started my search for a cheap airsoft gun.

I won't bore you with details - I went though 4 guns before I found my first real AEG - the Cyma CM.028 at a bargain price of 95$ on eBay. Back then I knew virtually nothing about airsoft, but was intrigued by the concept of owning a shooting replica firearm! Most of the low price guns toys that I got before this Cyma AK 47 are now stripped for parts or decorate my airsoft electric pistols!

You might have noticed that the gun is dubbed 028 by the manufacturer. This is their 28th model of an airsoft gun. Models 0-26 were of terrible quality, owning CYMA a backronym of "Crap Your Money Away", because guns broke after a few days of plinking. Their first quality AEG, the CM.027 - the H&K MP5 has changed airsoft for average college students like me!

As one of the unwitting pioneers of Cyma, I faced a lot of puzzling looks at the field, and the stock gun itself wasn't much to look at. It shot 280 FPS with 0.2 gram BBs with about 11 rounds per second rate of fire. I used this gun with a bulky sweater and an airsoft tactical vest and black camo pants as my only gear! Oh, the fun days!

By conservative estimates I put 250$ into upgrading this gun, including parts and labor

What's so different about this gun?

For one, it is a Tokyo Marui clone. When the gun first came out, there was a lot of debate about the "clone" , "knockoff", etc. Since then, the commotion has subsided and Cyma's are a lot more accepted. In fact, the company went to create their own airsoft electric guns.

Tokyo Marui (TM) spawned a huge after-market parts industry. This is because most TM AEGs were shooting in the 280-300 FPS range, which, as I hear, is perfectly fine in Japan. The aftermarket parts allow you to upgrade multiple parts of your gun, to make it shoot faster, more accurately or have more durability. This is why being a clone is a good thing - a lot of parts are interchangeable!

Being a TM clone, this is practically a "work in progress" gun, which is easy to mod and upgrade. It can be kept stock, but the quality is still lacking. Here's what I did to my gun:

• Replaced the stock wiring with 16 gauge good quality wiring with solder joints and heat shrink tubing.
• Replaced some of the connectors on batteries (the gun came with a mini battery adapter)
• Modded Stock to accept 8.4V large battery (very tight fit)
• Was lucky enough to have the gearbox serviced by the best airsoft mechanic in the area - added a hurricane tune up kit, shim job, bushings, piston, seals, etc.
• Changed a motor to a high torque one
• Changed to tightbore 6.03mm barrel and better hopup
• Added Top rail

The list can go on and on, and quite a lot of airsoft guns go through a similar process. The advantage of the Cyma AK in this case was that I practically bought a gun shell, got a lot of internals replaced and got the gun to be as good as most other AEGs out there, shooting 400 FPS

Cyma AK47s, with full stock (after model 0.28) make great beginner weapons. They can teach you about the internals of an airsoft gun, and will let you have fun modding them and talking about your accomplishments.

In an essence, you are buying a gun shell, a gearbox and gears, everything else can be swapped out for a higher quality aftermarket parts. I would strongly recommend having your gun serviced by a professional.

In terms of the field play,

• one of the advantages of the AK47 is its magazine design - most AK 47 magazines accept a hex key, allowing you to easily wind a magazine in the field. This turns your AK into a rapid fire squad automatic weapon, eliminating the need for drum or an auto winding magazine. Cheap, but it works!
• The rugged design of the gun means you can scratch it, break off the sights, use duct tape and it still would not look that bad. At some scenario games, the rugged look is actually encouraged :) Try that on an M4 - you need all those pretty battery pouches and stuff to avoid looking ridiculous!

There are few notable disadvantages to the AK series

• first is the tall magazine. This makes shooting from a prone position difficult in many cases and leaves you very exposed. Short magazines are available, but they look goofy.
• The second disadvantage is lack of a tactical rail on top. Some of the later models come with it, and I would strongly recommend getting one. Having a scope on your weapon is great and offers you a lot of advantage. Dealing with scope mounts is just a pain!
• The original CM.028 shoots at 280 FPS with 0.2gram BBs, has crappy stock wiring, mini adapter on a battery and a stock that has to be modded. The motor has to be replaced if you want to use a tighter spring. If you want to keep the gun stock, it is good.
• The original hopup is also rather pesky, as it does not accept the TM compatable hopup buckings

Some people dab clones as "MPEG" - medium power electric guns. This is because these guns are a step up from LPEG - low power electric guns. After owning an LPEG I must say that the comparison is very unfounded. A clone is a clone. It is a replica of a high grade airsoft gun. Putting in a tighter spring and better motor results in just as much power as other guns.