HK and Tokyo Marui Samurai edge detailed comparison (56k viewers, put the kettle on)

Senden

So, HK came out with a full metal Samurai edge under half the price of the Marui version, How does it stack up?





Tokyo Marui on left, HK on right by CrimsonRoamer, on Flickr

(You can see a customised my Marui 'Edge by adding a lanyard ring)




Tokyo Marui on left, HK on right by CrimsonRoamer, on Flickr


As you can see in the pictures, the plastic grips have a more visible and convincing wood grain effect ( made with fibres embedded in the plastic, and the colour of the slide and frame are more consistent.




magazines by CrimsonRoamer, on Flickr


The Magazine appears to be a WE model, with generic trademarks and solid retaining pins rather than roll pins. The fit in the magazine well is secure but a little loose with some rattle. The Marui magazines have a much better fit with no rattle but will still drop free.



frame internals by CrimsonRoamer, on Flickr

The frame is nearly identical, but lacking the locator dimples from drilling to attach a rail.



slide internals by CrimsonRoamer, on Flickr


field stripped slides by CrimsonRoamer, on Flickr

Inside the slide things start to get interesting. the HK comes with a differing recoil spring and guide, and lacks the separate (and fiddly) barrel bushing. The barrel assembly includes a rubber bumper to salve the plastic parts from metal slide.





Barrel assemblies by CrimsonRoamer, on Flickr
Even fully assembled you may notice some forward and back play in the outer barrel, closer examination reveals they have neglected to pin it in place.

However there is a method to this madness...





barrels by CrimsonRoamer, on Flickr


Your eyes do not deceive you, the HK samurai edge has an adjustable hop-up! To access it you need to lower the faux locking block until it clears the outer barrel and slide the outer barrel forwards




inner barrels by CrimsonRoamer, on Flickr

And the inner barrel has a bevelled muzzle crown unlike the Marui.

And though I forgot to photograph it, the outer barrel has internal threads which are compatible with the WE/Socom Gear 1911 silencer adaptor, rather than the faux rifling of the Marui.


And here's another improvement on the Marui, you remember that ambidextrous safety switch it used to have, the one secured by a grub screw and a shallow dimple that worked loose under recoil.



Ambidextrous safety by CrimsonRoamer, on Flickr
HK have deepened the dimple by half a millimetre but the results and transcendental. That switch isn't going anywhere.




internals by CrimsonRoamer, on Flickr

The blowback mechanism seems pretty similar, but the cross-head screw which secures it seems softer than the Marui one, and if you gouge it, it will take chunks out of your hammer, LFMF.


And now we come to what is really the only drawback to this pistol over the Marui, the safety.



Inexplicable fire selector by CrimsonRoamer, on Flickr


It seems that HK used the same brigadier type slide pattern as HFC's full-auto M190 because the slide has three (3) positions machined into it, causing the safety to stick irritatingly between fully up and fully down (and no, it does no do full-auto, the middle position is just another semi-auto position)

Now this would be a niggling complaint except that the only way to fix it is to dremel superfluous depression out.



One last thing. Like the marui the front and rear sights and dovetailed into position so they may be replaced (or lost, some light thread-lock probably wouldn't go amiss)

Darth Phoenix

Awesome review, Cheers for posting it. Was considering which of these to get. Thanks


DP