Tokyo Marui Colt M1911 Government HG Airsoft Gun Assembly and Customization

Last time, I wrote about the disassembly and mechanism explanation of the frame of the Tokyo Marui Colt M1911 Government [HG/Hop-Up] airsoft pistol.

This time, we'll proceed with adjustments and customizations as we assemble the parts.

Even though I'm talking about adjustments and customization, the gun is already very well-made right out of the box, so I'll just carefully assemble it, apply plenty of grease to the moving parts, and then try to slightly increase the muzzle velocity by installing an aftermarket power-up spring.

We'll start by assembling the chassis and frame.

Frame and chassis assembly

Before assembling, prepare the grease to apply to the moving parts.

The grease I often use is Bellhammer Gold Grease No. 0. This grease is relatively soft and has little corrosiveness to plastics, so I often use it to lubricate plastic parts together.

Bellhammer No. 0 Gold Grease
This is a classic, top-quality grease. No. 0 is a low-viscosity grease. I generally use No. 0 for resin-to-resistance and resin-to-metal connections.

By the way, if you plan to paint the model, I recommend cleaning and painting each part at this stage.

This is where grease is applied on the frame.

Basically, you apply it to the movable and sliding parts (apply it to both sides).

Next, we'll assemble the parts, but we'll also need to attach the hammer spring, which is easy to forget.

The remaining parts will be assembled by referring to the previous disassembly. During this assembly stage, grease will be applied to the movable and sliding parts of each component.

Now, carefully glue the frame pieces together, left and right (or top and bottom?).

Secure the frame to the combined left and right sides with just one screw (use the shorter of the two screws available).

Next, we will install the important leaf spring. The way you assemble the leaf spring is crucial, so please refer to the photo below.

Next, we'll temporarily assemble the grip safety. Apply grease to the moving parts here as well.

Attach the thumb safety to secure the grip safety.

I don't think there are any points to be careful about at this point, so just assemble the remaining parts (grip-related) and you're done.

At this stage, check that all moving parts are functioning correctly (hammer, trigger, thumb safety, grip safety, magazine catch).

The process up to this point is very simple and takes about 20 minutes even for beginners, and about 10 minutes once you get the hang of it, so I highly recommend it. The effect of the work is subtle, as it makes the movement of each part smoother, but it makes a huge difference in usability (the trigger feel and grip safety movement are completely different).

Next, we'll put together the slides.

Assembling the slides

Clean the inner barrel before assembly (it's actually a good idea to do this regularly).

The inside of the barrel accumulates not only dust and dirt but also wax from the surface of the bullets, so thoroughly cleaning it will significantly improve muzzle velocity and accuracy.

Personally, I clean by applying silicone spray to a tissue (to remove stubborn wax). Whether or not to apply silicone oil seems to vary from person to person.

KSC Genuine New Gun Oil 430ml
Any silicone spray will do, but KSC's is convenient because it comes in a large size.

Next, we'll temporarily assemble the hop packing.

If you're installing aftermarket parts, you'll need to replace them at this stage. Also, if you want to increase the hop-up amount, you can do so by wrapping tape around the packing to raise it.

If you change the weight of the BBs you use (0.25g to 0.2g) or significantly alter the muzzle velocity, you will likely need to make some adjustments to the hop-up to achieve a proper trajectory.

This time, we won't be making any significant changes to the weight of the ammunition or the muzzle velocity, so we'll assemble it as is.

Attach the sleeve that secures the hop packing.

Now, check to make sure the gasket is not misaligned.

I think it looks good.

We'll now assemble the chamber (if you're unsure how to do this, please refer to the slide disassembly guide).

Once the chamber is assembled, I perform my own unique hop check.

Insert the bullet into the chamber by hand.

Carefully press the loaded bullet with a rod (such as the included maintenance rod or punch) or screwdriver to check its feel.

You should feel a slight resistance, and then the hop should engage.

Next, before assembling the outer barrel into the chamber, apply grease to the moving parts of the outer barrel (both sides), as it is a movable part.

Attach the outer barrel.

The outer barrel is difficult to assemble because it snaps into place, so I assemble it by gently lifting it with a flathead screwdriver, as shown in the picture above.

Install the chamber into the slide (don't forget the return spring).

This is the only tricky part of assembling this product, and it requires a fair amount of strength, so please do your best. It will be much easier if you have someone to help you (like a family member).

Since the chamber moves relative to the slide at this point, apply grease to the area shown in the photo below.

Next, apply grease to the moving parts of the cylinder.

Assemble the cylinder and piston into the slide.

The basic assembly is now complete.

Next, we'll customize it by installing a reinforced spring to increase the initial velocity.

Reinforced springs incorporated

The reinforced spring I chose this time is the Power Spring from Fortress.

The reason I chose this part is that, since it only changes the main spring and not the return spring, I thought that the force required for cocking would not change much, thus increasing the muzzle velocity.

Fortress Power Spring
I didn't think it would work with my particular M1911 (I wrote about the reasons in this article). The muzzle velocity definitely increases. It might be suitable for models that are easy to cock.

This is an article about the launch mechanism.

Let's compare its shape to the original spring.

Compared to the original, it had a free length of 59mm (shorter), a wire diameter of 1.3mm (0.1mm thicker), and a coarser winding pitch.

I believe the aim of the power spring is to increase the spring constant K by increasing the linearity, thereby increasing the load capacity.

I believe the difference in length is intended to give it versatility rather than making it exclusive to the M1911 (this length has a significant impact on the cocking action, as will be discussed later).

Assembly is easy; simply fit it into the guide as shown in the following picture.

The slides are now complete.

We will assemble this slide into the pre-assembled frame.

Next, we will check the actual firing performance.

Live-fire performance verification

This product has a fixed hop-up and specifies a 0.25g BB weight, so we will use 0.25g BBs.

For the live-fire performance test, we used VFC's 0.25g bio BBs (since it's an air-cocking gun, we didn't investigate conditions such as ambient temperature).

This is the initial velocity.

The original reading was 0.25g and the reading was 57.4m/s, so it increased by approximately 4m/s to 61.9m/s.

It went up quite a bit.

We will measure again.

With a 0.25g BB, the initial velocity is 60.9 m/s, and the BB yield is 0.46 J.

This initial velocity is almost the same as a gas blowback M1911.

Introduction article on chronographs

G&G Bio-Bullets 0.25g
The fixed hop-up setting for Tokyo Marui air cocking guns is 0.25g.

Normally, I would take a few more measurements at this point and upload a video of it in operation, but a problem occurred.

Let's consider the problem and its causes.

問題と原因

The problem that occurred was that when cocking the slide, the cocking position was further back compared to the original spring.

Mechanically, the position where the piston engages the hammer has moved backward.

An example of the original cocking end position (not entirely accurate, just an illustration)

Position after spring installation (exaggerated, for illustrative purposes only)

In terms of actual usability, this change requires you to pull the cocking mechanism deeper than usual, making it less convenient (personal opinion).

The M1911, in particular, has a slide that isn't designed for easy cocking, which makes it feel even more difficult.

The mechanical reason is that the change in spring length caused the piston's position relative to the hammer to move backward.

The difference in the free length of the springs is only 5mm, but that 5mm has a significant impact on the actual feel of the operation. It's particularly difficult because you need to cock the gun even deeper when the spring load of the return spring is still present (although it's not assembled at its free length, the difference has a big impact).

Reading the detailed mechanism will help you understand it better.

After cocking the gun a few times, the spring's natural length shortened further due to initial break-in, causing the cocking position to move further back.

This initial break-in change occurs in all springs and is not a problem unique to this product. However, applying high-quality heat treatments (carburizing, carbonitriding) and surface treatments (shot peening such as WPC) will reduce the amount of change to a negligible level.

Unfortunately, I decided to switch back to the original because it became less convenient for me personally (I have no complaints about the original, so it's fine).

Since it didn't happen to suit my feel and my specific M1911, I might try Firefly's "Manly Spring," even if it means risking a heavier cocking mechanism.

This analysis isn't meant to criticize power springs, and I think it's largely based on my personal experience and the specific model I'm using, which is similar to the M1911, so it's not likely to be a general statement. However, I hope it's helpful as a reference.

The situation might be quite different with models that are easier to cock, such as the Glock or SOCOM.

Summary

This time, I introduced assembly and a simple spring replacement.

Although we ultimately failed to achieve our goal of increasing the initial velocity, we were able to perform greasing and careful assembly, which are difficult to do in mass production, resulting in smoother operation.

I also think this was a good opportunity to think about custom springs.

My personal recommendation is to understand the structure, choose custom parts, and then carry out the customization.

Generally speaking, most customization and adjustments involve changing the original balance of a product to your liking rather than increasing its potential, so understanding the mechanism will make it more enjoyable (although there are also many ways to increase the potential itself).

As a first step in understanding the mechanics of airsoft guns other than gas blowback guns, I highly recommend this product for tinkering with (once you get the hang of it, you can completely disassemble and reassemble it in under 30 minutes).

Because it has high performance and is inexpensive, it's a product that's fun to play with, so I recommend it.

This concludes the M1911 article for now. Thank you for reading.

Actually, I already have an airsoft SOCOM for experimentation, so please look forward to an article where I'll be tinkering with it later (I plan to make parts with a 3D printer to make it look like a bolt-action rifle).

Tokyo Marui Colt M1911 Government [HG/Hop-Up] Air Cocking Gun
I believe this is the ultimate product, the origin of both airsoft guns and real automatic handguns. I highly recommend it.

Special Magazine
Since it's an air-cocking gun with a 25-round magazine, I don't think it's really necessary, but I'll include it just in case (it might be useful to have one or two).
As of this writing, it appears that Amazon, Rakuten, and Yahoo! Shopping are all out of stock, but I think it will become available again once they start production again.