In the previous post, we looked at the appearance of the UMAREX/VFC VP9 (SFP9) and the slide that was removed using a field strip.

Let's start by looking at the remaining frames.

Field Strip Frame Edition

This is the area around the hammer.

The spring in this hammer is quite stiff, so I'll address that later. This stiffness is significantly affecting its operation.

Another interesting point is that the spring that returns the knocker is a standard coil spring (often a torsion spring). I'm not sure what the advantages are, but it's likely that they used a coil spring because it was easier to design, produce, and assemble due to the available space. Coil springs also have more straightforward spring characteristics.

When the hammer is down, it looks like this:

We won't know the details until we disassemble it, but from what we can see so far, it looks like a typical internal hammer structure often found in gas blowback guns.

Next is the front chassis section.

There's nothing particularly unusual.

Unlike Tokyo Marui's Glock, it lacks a serial number plate safety, resulting in a very simple structure.

What's interesting here is that the trigger spring isn't the typical coil spring found in many Glocks, but rather a larger torsion spring.

Because it uses a larger torsion spring, the load is higher, resulting in a slightly stiffer trigger feel.

To summarize the trigger feel, it's a bit gritty, but it's a firm feel that makes it easy to feel the sear dropping.

Overall, it has a well-thought-out structure and the parts seem to be of good quality, but unfortunately, it was smeared with a mysterious white grease, and grease was missing in places where it should have been applied, making the assembly feel a bit disappointing.

Magazine

Let's take a look at the side of the magazine.

This magazine is designed to resemble a steel press. Of course, if it were made solely from steel press material, it would leak gas like crazy, so it must contain aluminum or zinc cast parts inside.

This is the back.

A real magazine is made by pressing out a sheet of iron, then bending it, and spot welding the interlocking grooves on the back.

This model has a box-shaped steel pressed casing, so there are no gaps in the indentations or protrusions, and the welding is also molded in. I think it's reproduced quite well.

Incidentally, the reason why the entire mating surface isn't welded in the real thing is that if welding takes too long, the iron base material can become dull or warped due to the heat, causing dimensional inaccuracies and a decrease in strength, so spot welding is used. I think this is rare these days, as plastic magazines are more common. Perhaps they prioritized productivity and reliability and opted for the classic iron pressing and welding method?

Finally, there's the lip and the gas outlet.

The lip is made of resin and is slightly soft, which seems good as it won't damage the bullets. The gas outlet was the trendy curved type. The gas injection valve had an option at the store where I bought it to be the Japanese specification, so I requested that.

Finally, here is the magazine weight with no ammo or gas.

Live-fire performance verification

Let's check the usual live-fire performance.

The conditions were a magazine full of gas, a magazine surface temperature of 29.6°C (body temperature), and an ambient temperature of approximately 25°C.

I'll be using S&T's 0.2g bio BBs with the hop-up set to 0 to measure the muzzle velocity.

The initial velocity is fairly high.

This is the fifth shot fired in quick succession.

It was quite stable, but the muzzle velocity at the end of the magazine was around 66 m/s (22 rounds).

My guess is that the hammer spring is stiff, requiring a large load to lower the hammer, which in turn requires a large amount of gas. This excess gas is released, and the heat of vaporization lowers the magazine temperature, causing the pressure to drop.

Also, since the casing is made of pressed steel, which has good heat conductivity, it's possible that it cooled down quickly. As evidence of this, the magazine was quite cold after firing.

The aluminum slide weighs around 270g, but I don't think it's too heavy to be a problem, so I think the strength of the hammer spring plays a big role.

If you're interested, please also check out my review of the chronograph.

Fuel efficiency

Next is fuel efficiency.

This is the weight of the magazine when it is full of gas.

This is the weight of a magazine that has fired approximately 22 rounds.

The total gas consumed was 6.5g for 22 shots, meaning each shot consumed approximately 0.3g. That's pretty good fuel efficiency.

This is the weight of an empty magazine.

The gun holds a total of 20g of gas, so theoretically you could fire more than three magazines, but to ensure proper gas pressure for it to function correctly, three magazines is probably the absolute limit.

Next, regarding the trigger feel, it's not bad, but it's not particularly good either.

There's a slight grinding sound right before the hammer hits, so I'll do some custom adjustments to fine-tune it. But the feel of the sear is still very clear.

Overall, it's a shame it's not quite there yet.

For reference, here is the trigger stroke. A good way to interpret it is to compare the distance from the magazine release lever to the trigger.

Free state

Just before Shear is released

Pull-off

Finally, here is a video of it in actual operation.

UMAREX/VFC VP9 Normal

I think it moves fairly nimbly and sharply. It might be slightly better to make the slide return a little faster.

That concludes the live-fire performance test.

Summary and direction for customization

I tried to attach an S&T handgun light I had at home, but the rail on my VP9 was too thick and it wouldn't fit.

This light attaches to the rails of long guns without any problems, but so far it doesn't work on any handguns (including Tokyo Marui). Do handguns have different rail standards?

In summary, it's a very well-made product, but since it was released in 2016, it has an older design and some shortcomings in assembly quality compared to the company's later-released GLOCK 19X.

It's perfectly usable as is, but I felt it had the potential to be even better with a little tweaking.

As expected from a genuine licensed product and from the reputable VFC, the exterior is of very high quality. Furthermore, it comes with high-quality sights as part of the DX Special Combo, and the grip panels are also excellent, making it a very satisfying product.

Since this model hasn't been made by any other manufacturer, it might be a must-have for fans of the Japan Self-Defense Forces.

Due to licensing issues, other overseas manufacturers cannot produce this model, and Tokyo Marui is the only domestic manufacturer with the resources to release a new one. However, at the time of writing, they seem to be quite busy with the SIG P320, next-generation MP5, and gas blowback AKM, so it seems unlikely for the time being.

The direction of customization will be as follows:

If the fuel efficiency improves with customization, I might adjust the flow valve spring to slightly increase the muzzle velocity.

Next time, we'll take it apart in detail and customize it.

If you're interested, please join us again next time.

A word of caution when purchasing: Based on my research, it seems that the valve knocker settings are different for versions other than the JP version, and they may not operate smoothly with HFC-134a.

If you enjoy customizing it yourself, that's fine, but otherwise, you should definitely buy the JP version.

Even if it's slightly cheaper, if you're not entirely sure it's the JP version, I think it's best to think carefully before purchasing.

・UMAREX/VFC VP9 DX special combo/JP version
Includes a steel extractor, a luminous sight set, and a slide takedown lever.

・UMAREX/VFC VP9 STD JP version
The extractor, sight, and lever are made of aluminum. The only difference is the appearance.
IfIf you are considering purchasing this item, please click the Rakuten button.From what I've researched, this is definitely a Japanese specification product.

・Le Pair Magazine
It seems they've restocked, and the price is now reasonable. I recommend getting it while it's still in stock.

・Injection valve for domestic gases
I recommend it (but be sure to use genuine O-rings).