Echo 1 MP5-A5 RIS Review

Echo 1 MP5-A5 RIS


I bought this gun around five weeks ago from Steel Hawk, located in Orange, California.

The final price was $175, about 25 bucks cheaper than Shorty USA.
The package included: the gun, flash hider, mini-type battery, charger, grip, cleaning rod, metal hi-cap 200rd magazine, barrel plug, and a few bb’s.



I went into the store expecting to choose between an Echo 1 M4 Commando or a G36C, both around $140. I
heard good reviews about both guns, and I knew that either would serve well in
CQB and long range shots. But when I saw this gun (the last box left), I just had to take it. It's box was an eye-catching red, standing out from the rest of the Echo 1 guns with their drab blue boxes.

Immediately after taking it out of the box, I noticed how
light it felt, and how smooth and cool the metal felt compared to the other,
plastic Echo 1 guns. It
also sounded better when I tapped it with my fingernails, without that awkward,
hollow sound the other Echo 1 guns made. It also looked very realistic at first, although the RIS made it obvious that this was not a real MP5.








According to Echo 1, the A5's length is 640.5mm (accurate measurements coming soon), and weighs approx. 6 pounds.

The gun includes three RIS rails and a scope mount. The mount can be taken off if you decide not to install a scope.
It has a three-position stock that helps in close-quarter combat and long-range shots. The grip is a bit larger
than normal, to fit the battery, but feels pretty good and comfortable. One downside to this type of battery-installation is the difficulty in pushing the wires behind the ris and attaching the grip.
The removable rear sight offers four positions, for different situations. The front sight is also good. The flash hider that comes with it is a bit annoying, with a flashy, orange color. I chose to take mine off, as the gun looks better without it. However, the flash hider can simply be spray-painted black and put back on.





The body is all metal except for the sliding stock and the lower body, both of which are made from high-quality plastic. The only crappy
plastic part was the front foregrip, which you can ditch once you get a larger
battery and PEQ box. Unfortunately, the grip can’t accommodate any other sized
battery.






Performance-wise, this gun is excellent. It clocks 380 fps with .2g, and around 370 fps with .23g. (.25g coming soon), mainly due to the high torque motor. The gun’s accuracy was also impressive on the field, but I wasn’t able to get accurate measurements. The hop-up system is very useful in getting the aim correct, since mine gun tended to shoot slightly to the right when the hop-up was off. The lever is above the left RIS. (more coming soon)

The A5's effective range is between 150 and 200 feet, with an 800 rpm rate of fire. The range is much better than other MP5’s that I’ve shot. (More coming soon)

The A5 RIS originally comes with a metal hi-cap magazine that carries 200 rounds. These are relatively cheap to buy online, around $20. Also, mid-cap 90-round ABS plastic magazines are around $10. One slight annoyance this gun has is that the magazine wiggles a bit when it's in the gun. Its fit is not as tight as I would like, but performance isn't affected, nor do you notice it in the midst of a skirmish.




There are two downsides to the MP5-A5 RIS’s more powerful
M120 spring. One is that the high fps may not be allowed at many airsoft
fields. This is easily solved by using .23, .25, .28, or .3 gram bb’s. However,
this eventually costs more than .2g bb’s. Another problem is that the more
powerful spring will cause the engine to die earlier. The only way to solve
this is too replace the spring with an M110 spring. This will both prolong the
gun’s life and enable you to buy cheaper, lighter bb’s. This procedure generally does not cost much;
the airsoft store near me has offered to switch the spring out for around $40.



Overall, this gun is excellent, and a great deal. It shows excellent performance in both close-quarters and long range, and serves a great primary weapon.


Pros:

-price
-all-metal
-tri-RIS
-sliding stock
-accurate
-high velocity
-great range
-compact
-hop-up
-high rpm
-very powerful motor
-M120 spring
-comes with metal scope mount
-grip
-hi-cap metal mag
-pretty light (6 lbs)
-looks sweet


Cons (Very few):

-paint can be chipped easily
-no room for large battery
-stronger spring = shorter life?
-no upper ris
-might be too fast for some places
-mags only hold 200 rounds
-magazine is a little loose and wiggly

The Downright Ugly:

-the flash hider
-the only 500rd magazine on airsplat is made by WELLS


Suggested upgrades/downgrades:

-weaker spring (if you don’t want to buy heavy bb’s)
-scope
-large battery
-PEQ battery box or other case
-folding RIS grip (on shortys)
-sling (can get heavy)
-extra hi-cap or mid-cap magazines
-laser
-flashlight

Beautiful Review!!!!!!!!!!!!Pics and every thing, if you could get a disassembly in there that would be nice, but it is optional, so far 8/10 review wise.

two quick questions

1-do u know if the flashhider of the gun is threaded so tht u caneasliy attach a silencer or something????

2- if the sprinng on this guns breaks do u know if u can get a new one anywhere else???

if u could answer those tht would be great thanks

Alright, MP5A5RIS, could you get a pic of the gun inside of the box with all the content, so it looks like you just opened it.

Then just a bit more editing and this could be well on its way to being published.

drsneaky: yes to #1(I think) and
definitely yes to #2. just go to any airsoft store or go online

omd: I'll try. I have a bunch of hw this weekend


10/8/07 - added a few more pictures, will try to get fps, length, accuracy, groupings, etc by this sunday

Good overall review however I spotted some problems. First off you said the good FPS was due to the motor.

An M120 spring would not be a good thing in an Echo 1 gearbox, you should probably downgrade to a M100 and use some good .23bb's The higher fps will decrease the effective range because of wind resistance.

There is a 500 round mag made by CYMA, they make good guns and mags. It is like the one that comes with the CM.027 just longer.

I would not recommend shortys they overprice everything

This things stock FPS is way over the normal CQC requirements.

A decent gun? Yes. A good review? Yes. However there are some things that need to be worked out.

Quote :

Title
What company manufactured this replica?
What real steel gun is this modeled after?
What is the product’s name?


Basic Information:
Where did you purchase this replica?
How much did it cost?
What kind of packaging was included with it?
What accessories were included with it?

Product Description/first Impressions:
The first thoughts you had about the product
Appearance, Does it look the part? from a distance? How about up close?
What are this product’s physical dimensions – length, width, weight, etc?
How is the gun’s balance? Is the gun Butt or muzzle heavy?
What is the body, outer barrel, grips, and stock made of? What parts are metal, plastic, wood, etc.?

Grips
How are the grips designed?
How does the weapon fit in your hands?
How would this gun fit smaller or larger hands?

Stock
Does this gun have a stock? What style? What is it made of?
Is it Adjustable - folding, collapsible, removable?
How does the stock aid shooting?

Sights
What kind of sight or sighting system does this replica have?
Are the sights adjustable?
Does this product require or have an available scope mount? Where?

Barrel
How long is the inner barrel (in MM)?
What kind of inner barrel does the gun have?
Does this weapon have a flash suppressor or can it accept Muzzle mounted accessories? How?

Hopup
Does this gun have a hop?
Where/how is the hop accessed?
How effective is it?

Trigger
How is the action of the trigger?
How heavy a pull is there?
What is the response time between pulling the trigger and the gun firing?
Is the trigger metal?
Is the trigger adjustable or replaceable?

Power
How is this gun powered?
Where is the power source and can it be upgraded? How?
Are there any special power requirements for this gun?

Magazine
Does this weapon have a magazine?
How many rounds will the magazine hold?
What high capacity magazine (if any) is available for this weapon?
What other magazines are available or compatible with this gun?

Real Steel History:
Who makes the real steel version of this weapon?
How does this replica compare? Different?

Performance Characteristics:
Does everything work the way it should? This is also the place to brief the reader on how to operate the product
What is the effective range of this weapon.
How accurate is this weapon at its minimum and maximum range?
In stock format, what role would this weapon best fulfill?
In your opinion, what areas could this gun be improved?

Accessories/Modifications
What else can I get to go with it.
If you have upgraded it, how has it worked?

Conclusion:
Pros/Cons/The Down Right Ugly List: Give us the good, the bad, and the downright ugly.
Based on the above criterion, would you recommend this replica to others?
What points do you believe sell this weapon over the others available?

Alright, fix/add on more detail on whats in red and this review can be
published.

Also, add a table of contents, and embolden each section.

Let's work on finishing the review so we can publish it.

Would you guys happen to know which gun is more accurate, the E1 G36C or the E1 Vector Arms MP5 A4 RAS?

Nice review BTW

Make a new topic.

-Me-

gah. sorry I haven't been able to work on this lately.
this is my first year of college, so the workload is hard to get used to. and these last few weeks (and next week) are midterms, along with long boring essays.

I'll see if I can work on this next weekend

No problem, work on it when you want to, there is no rush.

Unfortunately, I have to go through your situation next year

Did you crono it your self?????

lol, I never did finish this review


I don't even have this gun anymore, so can one of the mods lock this topic?


Thanks.