FAQ for Tokyo Marui Hi-Capa, 2011, 1911, MEU & Detonics type variants

[Basic-Wedge]

I came across this video demonstrating a simple modification that extends the number of rounds you can get from a WE Hi-Capa magazine.

Hicapa Magazine Mod - YouTube

What is it this mod is supposed to fix?

I'm on my way out to the shop to try this on my 50 rounder, which usually sputters-out around the halfway point. I'll let you know how it goes...

[jordan7831]

I cant see it fixing anything. If there were a leak there it would already be in side the magazine.

[Styrak]

Originally Posted by Basic-Wedge

I came across this video demonstrating a simple modification that extends the number of rounds you can get from a WE Hi-Capa magazine.

Hicapa Magazine Mod - YouTube

What is it this mod is supposed to fix?

I'm on my way out to the shop to try this on my 50 rounder, which usually sputters-out around the halfway point. I'll let you know how it goes...

That "modification" does absolutely nothing.

[Basic-Wedge]

Originally Posted by Styrak

That "modification" does absolutely nothing.

I really did go straight out to the shop to try this "mod", and, yeah, I'm going to call this one Busted.

Once I had the mag apart, I could see it would do absolutely nothing beneficial. I went ahead and tried it anyway, but there was no improvement.

Too bad. My 50 rounder very much needs a big boost in its gas efficiency.

[GP]

Hi Guys , I'm new on this forum but old on this kind of gun...
I'm Italian .... sorry for my english .............hahahaha
I'm a Ipsc shooter from a couple of years...........

this is one of my mags.



I put on the tube another pieces to have less liquid in the mag every refill.

This mod don't give you more pover but need to put less liquin in.
Less liquid= more expansion volume and this give you more consistency and less
showers on the first 3\4 shoots............

Bye

[ILLusion]

Originally Posted by Basic-Wedge

I came across this video demonstrating a simple modification that extends the number of rounds you can get from a WE Hi-Capa magazine.

Hicapa Magazine Mod - YouTube

What is it this mod is supposed to fix?

I'm on my way out to the shop to try this on my 50 rounder, which usually sputters-out around the halfway point. I'll let you know how it goes...

This is actually not a good mod. It doesn't "fix" anything. It actually makes the magazine unsafe and reduces gas output consistency.

By covering the hole at the end of the valve, you effectively block the hole that's responsible for stopping the flow of gas once it's reached a certain fill level. So, this works, in that it allows you to fill up to an extra third more liquid than normal. The problem with that, is you lose the gas expansion chamber required to effectively do a phase transition from liquid to gas.

I'd like to see the results of this mod through a chronograph


Exactly as GP pointed out. Less liquid is better.

[GP]

I use this mod from 2 years and there are no benefit in power, but the pros are : less cold down and better constancy in hi-speed shooting and this (in IPSC shooting) is very important for me.
Of course in Italy we have 1J limit and medium temperature of 20° ...............and this mod works great for my use.

[ILLusion]

If you can control the volume you inject, this technique can work, ONLY if you are injecting equal or LESS than the original implied volume. Beyond this, you are only impeding performance.

[GP]

Yes of course, the extra pipe is for stop filling on the liquid at the nedeed for shoot 40 bb. ( +\- 2bb)
Of course my hi-capas are all tuned to reach this result and whit a 5" barrel
If I use those mags on 7" barell the shots are 30\35.

By the way...... I use co2 mags from kjw on hi-capa to but to use them I need to setup the gun in different way and i don't like this.
It's possible reduce or adjust the pressure of those mags ??????
This would be a great help in winter time.

Bye

[Gunmage]

Illusion, im in the process of building my Prog4 SVI sight tracker kit and my frame does not sit flush with the frame. What could the problem be? Heres a picture so you can see.

[ILLusion]

Originally Posted by Gunmage

Illusion, im in the process of building my Prog4 SVI sight tracker kit and my frame does not sit flush with the frame. What could the problem be? Heres a picture so you can see.

There could be an issue with your blowback unit.

[GP]

@gunmage: I don't understand (looking at the photo) if you mean that the problem is that the slide close in wrong position or if it don't move free on the rails ..................

[e-luder]

Hey ILLusion,

Is there any discernable advantage of using the NineBall BBH? Is it that much lighter? More effective in giving the slide more crispness in cycle? I have one installed on a G18c and I am sort of 50/50 as far opinions go. What do you think?

[ILLusion]

Yes, the effect is quite noticeable, in terms of felt recoil and slide cycling speed.

At a scant 6 grams, it is significantly lighter than most blowback units out there, compared to 41 grams for the stock Marui blowback unit (with all attributes the same, no piston head, no screws and no plates attached.) It's almost 7 times lighter than the Marui Blowback unit.

But... understand, that with reduced mass, there is reduced potential energy, which means less felt blowback. If you're building something that you want to feel a bit more real, you might want to go with a heavier setup. That is the compromise to be made: Cycling speed versus felt blowback.

Ultimately, it depends on the type of build you are going for. For example, my completely tricked out race guns where reduced blowback is the idea, I use the featherweight blowback unit or one of the ILLusion Kinetics blowback units if I want a bit more durability. For more realistic builds, I go with a stock blowback unit.

The Nine Ball unit is also nice, because it allows you to install whatever piston head you like. Other versions (such as the ILLusion Kinetics, Airsoft Surgeon, Nova, etc), all have integrated piston assemblies. They do the job fine, but it just restricts options if you're after something particular.

Regarding the ILLusion Kinetics product, there are two versions available now. The new version is lighter weight, as more material is removed. Assembled similarly, the Nine Ball Featherweight blowback unit weighs in at 9 grams, versus the Gen 2 ILLusion Kinetics Super Light Weight Blowback Unit at 19 grams. The ILLusion Kinetics generation 1 weighs in at 23 grams, which isn't that far from the generation 2. There is only so much material that can be removed without sacrificing structural integrity. The only way to go lighter, is with a lighter material, as Nine Ball has done. I feel the generation 1 is a great compromise between speed and weight.

To summarize, these are the weights of the blowback units, with all parts of the assembly attached (using the Marui piston head and screw as the baseline):

Marui (Stock): 43 grams
ILLusion Kinetics (Generation 1): 23 grams
ILLusion Kinetics (Generation 2): 19 grams
Nine Ball Featherweight: 9 grams

[e-luder]

Originally Posted by ILLusion

But... understand, that with reduced mass, there is reduced potential energy, which means less felt blowback. If you're building something that you want to feel a bit more real, you might want to go with a heavier setup. That is the compromise to be made: Cycling speed versus felt blowback.

Yes. Of course. I notice the difference in cycle speeds in the Glock but was unsure with Hi-caps/1911s. It is quite a significant weight reduction. Though I never really bothered measuring the 18c one.

I'm trying to build a fast cycling gun based on a 1911 single stack. I'm trying to get the slide to cycle more efficiently due to the smaller gas reservoir. Would it make sense to also pair the lighter NineBall BBH with some shock buffers to short stroke the gun and the stock recoil spring to achieve this goal?

The slide is metal with a tighter than usual seal for the piston head. I customized the o-ring to achieve this. The loading muzzle is still able to spring back and fourth freely without friction.

I was wondering what your opinion is on this below:

I did the mod in the hunt to create a "perfect" seal to give a more crisp cycle- but as narrow-minded as I was, the perfect seal doesn't mean "no air leaks". the thing needs to vent...

What worries me is that if piston head seals "too well", it may cause the loading nozzle to explode. I did the mod on the Glock Guarder nozzle for testing and though it boasted a higher FPS output (somewhere between 360 to 385 FPS), it cracked the muzzle. The gas pressure was too much for that particular muzzle. I am hoping that the TM 1911s have a higher tolerance than their Glock line. But I see no real design changes in their muzzle assembly.

Is there anyway to get around this without reducing the size of the o-ring? Can I mod the floating valve to direct most of the gas to the BB while still keeping enough air to cycle the slide crisply? The only solution I can see it install stronger floating valve spring to keep the valve open longer. On the Glock, I also modified a Firefly floating valve to have "slimmed legs", a smaller valve head thingy to funnel air towards the BB more but it still destroyed the muzzle.

I may as well ask you ILLusion as your more experienced with GBBs than I am
What do you think?

PS. I apologize if I am a newb in my interrogation. That's because I am a newb compared to you!!!

PPS. Are you still selling Illusion Kinetics BBHs?