The last time I used a replica with a plastic receiver, a Tokyu Marui M4A1 was way back in 2002. It was my first AEG but it suffered from being only able to take tiny batteries (in the hand-guard) & a flimsy, creaky body. I promptly sold it & purchased a TM SR-16 with an aftermarket metal receiver. Installed it. Problem solved. Never again would I let plastic constitute that part of a RIF.
Moving swiftly forward to 2024 & I find myself in shock that I not only used one with a pla… sorry, polymer body but I was very happy to do so. More on the body later.
So who are Arcturus? They’re a relatively new Hong Kong based manufacturer who first appeared in 2017. Their products have garnered a reputation for a decent level of reliability. I’ve hands on with two of their recent AK platforms & the external build quality really impressed me as did their trigger response & shot consistency. I also had the chance actually get a couple of days play in with a “Sword Lite ME M4” – essentially their MOFSET enabled mid-range AEG. I was really impressed, to the extent that I ended up looking for an Arcturus to fulfill my need for a new primary.
.: Versatile vs Explorer :.
Arcturus offer two versions of the 8.5″ “Arcturus x C.A.T.”. Lets get one thing straight – I’m looking at the “Versatile” model here. I couldn’t find an “Explorer” left in stock in the UK so much as it irked me – no, would previously have irked me – I went with the polymer body.
The difference between the two is simply the build material of the receiver. As a result, they are distinguished by the position of trademarks/serial (which are Arcturus specific rather than real steel) & weight. The “Versatile” is some 15% lighter – in the region of 300g. The internals & all other externals are identical, with one exception in that the “Explorer” comes with a small mock suppressor which actually acts as a sound amplifier. The “Versatile” weighs around 2 kilos before battery, magazine etc are added.
In terms of naming conventions Arcturus use their “x C.A.T.” moniker to signify their mid-range replicas with the mechanical pre-cocking. It stands for “Combat Artisan Tactical” & certainly the closest thing the in form factor the 8.5″ gets to is an HK-416. There’s a lot of differences though when it comes to the detail such as the fire selector icons, grip, rails etc.
.: Build Quality – External :.
Starting at the back of the “x C.A.T.” is the stock. Out of the box it comes with something Arcturus are billing as their “Multi-purpose-stock-system.” Its of polymer construction, feels very solid & well made (no flash, variable thickness or visible weak points) & is essentially an “MCX” style stock. The closest in real steel is that which is part of the M4 system made by Sig Sauer. In essence this means being able to swap parts to configure the rifle for different calibres. In airsoft this means a small, compact stock which you can enlarge if required for bigger battery capacity while still remaining relatively compact.
This is probably the feature I was least interested in – I run an 11.1 3000 mAH crane lipo as my battery of choice so I switched it with their improved M4/AR15 “crane” type stock, the Mod1 WKS LBC11. The “x. C.A.T.” wasn’t actually my first experience with Arcturus as a brand. When my Specna decided to busily shed both external and internal parts I borrowed a Mod1 Light AR-15. Aside from being a lot lighter I was really impressed with their take on a crane stock – very solid & in particular with more room to accommodate the wiring and connector plug. The butt plate is also permanently attached which means no need to tape the detachable rubber style one found on the more standard type in order to avoid adding to the wild population lurking unloved in muddy ditches all over the country.
Going back to the provided MPS stock, it shedding parts under rough play will certainly not be an issue. If you’re intending to use the supplied stock you will have to check elsewhere to see what works for other operators as it won’t work with either 7.4 or 11.1 nunchuks without modification. Its modular nature is a nice touch, it looks the part & is a very well made bit of kit. Its comfortable, easy to adjust & you will not find enough discernible wobble to cause any concerns.
The standard buffer tube is attached to the lower receiver via a 1913/20mm interface. This allows Arcturus to implement a folding stock – which I think is a first for an M4/AR-15 in the world of airsoft, especially as they way it has been done allows you still use a rear stock mounted battery. I was particularly impressed with the way the wiring from the stock into the receiver has been protected by a tough braided fibre cover. My previous experience with folding stocks has only been in models where the battery has been in the front. Having had a chance to look and play with this for a full day I don’t think the wiring arrangement will give you anything to worry about.
It takes a firm, determined push up to unlock it, being sure you’re applying a strong consistent pressure in the vertical plane only. Once you’ve done it a few times its easy to do – the stock folds parallel to the body. In this position there is a little give in terms of the vertical plane but this is to be expected as it is no longer firmly braced against the lower receiver. It is still solid (much more than I’ve experienced on either AK or Sig models). Its a cracking feature that I think is a real killer app if your play style is one where sometimes you need to operate in tight or cluttered spaces. I love it – being able to to suddenly have an MP5 sized weapon in the middle of a thicket rather than dropping to a sidearm is a bit of revelation.
To unlock it you just repeat the vertical movement and it snaps back. The wires remain a consistent length with no chance of getting trapped or shredded by brambles.
Moving forward to the receiver its a two part polymer body which house a version 2 Arcturus gearbox with a high torque neodymium motor.
Don’t be put off by this being a polymer receiver. Its absolutely solid – no creak, no wobbles – in fact you’d be hard pressed to know that it isn’t made of metal aside from feeling slightly less cold to the touch. I’d even go so far as to say the polymer’s weight saving offers you an advantage over the metal equivalent. I don’t see a reason to spend the extra as in this case I don’t know if it can actually be thought of as an upgrade, unless you’re after real steel trades.
In terms of trademarks – well you don’t really get any. There’s nothing on the body aside from the lightly etched safety icons. on the left side of the receiver, laser etched & filled in white we get : Outlined “C.A.T.” logo, stylised letters & “Combat Artisan Tactical” as well as a unique serial. On the right side this time in a solid fill are the logo & “C.A.T.”.
The polymer pistol grip is comfortable, does the job well but aside from again being well made is nothing out of the ordinary.
What is a nice touch is that everything, the safety, mag release, bolt catch is all ambidextrous. I love this & I’ve been grateful for it when in the decidedly ungraceful positions you find yourself in.
Arcturus provide a bullet shaped tool to use for opening up the body to access the upper receiver chamber, releasing the pre-cocking & adjusting the Mechanical Adjustable pre-cocking sector gear.
On the rear of the upper receiver is a locking pin which when pushed through opens up the body if you need to adjust the pre-cocking. I didn’t find I needed to – running both a 7.4v & an 11.1v worked fine with no overspin but the option is there if you need it. From my limited experience with the “light” where there was a tendency to overspin on semi with an 11.1v & this addresses that issue. Indeed Arcturus advertise the x C.A.T. as “11.1v ready” – something they don’t with the “light”. Something to bear in mind if like me you prefer the response & option of improved ROF an 11.1v battery.
The pre-cocking, combined with the micro-switch trigger is brilliantly responsive. As soon as you go past the trigger break point (and actually having a responsive break point is a real treat) you engage fire. I really noticed the difference in the kind of situation where you have a bead on the opposition & are just waiting for their head to pop up. I was able to pull off a shot & return to cover before their side had a chance to register my position accurately or notice movement. While it might be small, the extra time gained by the pre-cocking gives you a definite advantage.
After ops the pre-cocking will need to be dis-engaged (it does put extra tension on your spring) and this is simple using the supplied tool. Make sure you’ve made the gun safe (blank fire, remove battery) then depress the pre-cocking release catch on the underside of the receiver. You’ll hear the gear wind which uncompresses the spring. Be aware if you haven’t cleared your chamber you will discharge a shot.
Moving forward you have a standard 20mm picatinny rail which stops just after the end of the upper receiver where the M-LOK rail system is attached. There is a short piece of picatinny rail integrated onto the front of the rail for a foresight. A nice touch which makes holding the grip when you’re using it much more comfortable.
The rail system is absolutely rock solid and extra stability is provided by a metal bar. As a result there is zero barrel wobble. That’s correct – none. Its a well thought out & implemented solution. At the front is a standard CCW flash hider locked into place via a grub screw. Removing the screw & flash hider will allow you install any 14mm CCW accessory such as a silencer or tracer unit.
As is becoming something of a standard with AR-15 style replicas these days, the x C.A.T. has a quick change spring system. I won’t go into the details here – suffice to say, yes it works, its slightly less fiddly than the Specna system & a really useful feature compared to needing to open the gearbox up to do a replacement.
..: Build Quality – Internal :..
The use of high quality parts is continued on the inside. Opening up the RIF I was struck by how there was virtually no use of plastic – aside from the microswitch unit – on the inside. Everything is CNC steel, the moving parts shimmed as well as you could hope for in a mass produced rather than tuned gearbox. I struggle to think of an out-of-the-box AEG which has this level of finishing & quality on the inside. With around 5k rounds both in semi & full auto I’ve jet to experience any mis-fires, jams or problems. Each time I’ve pulled the trigger I’ve had a consistent trouble free experience.
The full list of internal gearbox components is (confirmed by my airsmith as of 15/10/20242):
Gear Set Material : Steel Powder Metallurgy / 18:1 ratio. Mechanical Pre-Cocking Tunable Sector Gear.
Bushing : 4 Pcs 8mm Bushing + 2 Pcs 8mm Bearing
Motor : 24K High Performance Neodymium Motor w/ MIM Steel Pinion Gear (Ferrite)
Piston : Nylon Fibre Reinforced Polymer / Full Steel Teeth
Cylinder : Copper Machined
Spring Guide : POM + Steel
The housing appears to be propitiatory although of the same CNC steel as the other internals & is compatible with the standard V2 AEG internals synonymous with the M4/AR-15 platform.
The hop is the again pretty standard drum style – using a dial which makes setting it nicely tactile & easy. Rotate up for less, rotate down to add more. Once set, it stays set & unless you need to tweak it (for example to “drop” rounds in on a static opponent at extreme range) you won’t be revisiting them on game day. Get it right for your play style in the morning then you can relax and leave it alone.
What’s really nice is how you access it. You pull the charging handle back which slides back the bolt cover under which the hop is situated. It then stays open, which is a nice touch & much more user friendly than those that flip out a cover. The flip out covers are notorious across several marques for breaking & staying open. Its also a lot easier than trying to deal with one which closes the moment you release it. To close it, you press the working bolt catch lever & it snaps shut. This pleases me way more than it should do.
Arcturus brand this as “RS™ Reinforced Polymer Precision Rotary Hop-Up Unit”. What I can confirm is that it is possible to very finely tune it with no sudden jumps in the amount applied.
The inner barrel is 6.02mm QPQ3 processed full steel resulting in a very smooth, consistent & low friction finish. I’ve had confirmation from again, my friendly airsmith that some of the early prototype models could be prone to corrosion (no more so than a standard inner) & this addresses that.
All of this, in combination with the air tight cylinder, results in very little FPS or direction variation. The consistency is good enough that I am able to engage a target in semi & be confident of a hit with a single shot – if the environmental factors are supportive. Grouping on both semi & full auto is excellent (by “excellent” I class this as consistently hitting an elbow or hand size target at around 70 foot). It would say, anecdotally that it is better than most other makes4 of “stock” AEG’s and on a par with some non-dmr “tuned” ones. I would put it on a par with the modern Tokyo Marui M4’s I’ve had chance to use.
The RIF also comes with reasonable plastic iron sights, easily adjustable (they also stay adjusted) for windage at the front & elevation at the rear. They’re a decent quality plastic but are well made. Where they have seen use, they have happily lived through a battering without bits or indeed, the sights themselves working loose.
You also get one of Arcturus’s 30/130 round real/midcaps. These are windowed, so a quick glance will tell you if you’re getting towards empty. They’re decent, polymer mags. I prefer midcaps thanks to the lack of rattle/winding & these are for my money a really great choice. I use PTS EPM gen 1’s exclusively but these make an excellent solution. Of all the non PTS EPM gen 1’s I used these are by a long way my favourite with no feed issues.
In terms of non-Arcturus midcaps I have used the following other “off-brands” with no issues : Specna Arms, Ares.
..: Chrono :..
Chrono values are for the x C.A.T. as supplied (no spring change was needed as she came out perfect for UK skirmishing out of the box) & are intended to give you an idea of variance.
Weight : 0.25g Blaster Devil.
309 FPS
311 FPS
313FPS
311 FPS
309 FPS
310FPS
310FPS
313 FPS
311FPS
309 FPS
Rounded variance over 10 shots – 2FPS
..: Conclusion :..
I like it. I really like it. The polymer body is easily the best polymer AEG I’ve come across, by any manufacturer. If you think the folding stock won’t add anything then you’ll change your mind after you play with it.
The pre-cocking system is as I’ve said a game changer. Couple that with the microswitch trigger with the break point & it really doesn’t get much better than this in the AEG world. Externals are rock soild, very well made & thanks to the internals you have a consistent, accurate piece. Really the only reason to upgrade or tinker with those is if that particular thing floats your bag.
Arcturus really are head & shoulders ahead of their competition. Internal, external build & QA all are consistently good. There’s a reason their RIFs sell out quickly when they appear in the inventory of UK stockists. Having handled & played with a number of the other leading marques I wouldn’t hesitate to recommend it over their mid-range, hell, even their allegedly high-end models.
Highly recommended.
- Nope, me neither. ↩︎
- I’m not technical but if you have any queries I will pass them on along with responses in the comments below. ↩︎
- Quench-polish-quench : Surface oxidised at high temperature, polished, oxidised again. ↩︎
- My “hands on” experience includes similar priced/specification Specna Arms, Ares, Double Eagle & Evolution. ↩︎
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