This time, I'll be introducing a custom build I made for a friend: a WE-made Dragunov SVD gas blowback rifle with an aluminum receiver and polymer stock.

As the rainy season approaches, opportunities for outdoor play will decrease, but once the rainy season ends, it will be gas blowback season, so I am currently prioritizing gas blowback guns among the commissioned works.

This model is rumored to have an impressive blowback right out of the box, but its actual shooting performance is quite poor, so let's check how this particular unit performs. Incidentally, when I asked the owner about the circumstances of its purchase, it seems he bought it secondhand without the box, but the condition of the unit itself is quite good, so I suspect it's from a relatively recent production batch.

Let's start by looking at the exterior.

Exterior Review

First, let's take a look at the overall side view of the exterior, as usual.

Other side

It's quite long. However, because the aluminum receiver and the long outer barrel are both made of aluminum, it feels light.

The catalog specifications state it weighs around 3kg, but because the center of gravity is near the grip and there are no heavy components far from the center of gravity, it's not as difficult to handle as it looks.

Let's take a closer look at each part.

Outer barrel area

Let's take a look at the flash hider at the tip.

Other side

Russian rifles often have quite elaborate flash hiders, but the SVD is quite simple. Interestingly, it has a proper bayonet lug. Do marksmen engage in bayonet combat?

The front sight is a standard type with a hood. It looks like the height can be adjusted from above using a jig.

Incidentally, the outer barrel is made of aluminum and the flash hider is made of cast iron.

Next, let's look at the gas route and gas piston. They're hidden from view from the outside, but they seem to be quite well made.

Other side

Next, let's take a look at the handguard.

Other side

It's thinner than it looks, making it easy to grip. The exterior quality is also quite high, with a solid matte black finish on the resin. It's a very nice handguard.

Incidentally, the manufacturing precision is also excellent, and the alignment of the left and right hand cards is superb.

Next, regarding the site, it's the usual Russian tangent site.

The tangent sight is adjustable, and if you push it further down, a leaf spring will pop out and it can be removed.

Next, let's take a look at the receiver area.

Around the receiver

Let's start by looking at the receiver from both sides.

Other side

Based on my experience as an engineer, I suspect the receiver is made by machining an aluminum casting base.

The black paint job is quite solid. Of course, there's some chipping where the metal side rails rub against each other, but that's to be expected.

Next, let me briefly introduce the receiver above. As you may know, moving the selector switch downwards activates semi-automatic fire. Behind the selector switch is the takedown latch for the rear cover.

Next, let's try pulling the bolt.

It's so heavy that I wonder if it can even run on HFC-134a (my fingers start shaking just from holding it).

Unfortunately, it doesn't seem to be in full stroke.

The hop-up adjustment mechanism is located at the base of the outer barrel inside the ejection port and is a drum type with a click sensation.

My fingers got tired from holding it down, so I used the magazine's hold-open function.

Next, let's look at the trigger guard.

This part is made of sheet metal and riveted to the receiver, so I think it's a pretty realistic structure.

Next, let's look at the magazine slot.

Just because it's made overseas doesn't mean it has any unusual structure; it's a typical negative-pressure gas blowback system.

Next, let's take a look at the grip and trigger area.

This is the trigger area.

It seems pretty normal.

I'll describe how the grip and trigger feel when held. I'm 175cm tall and weigh 70kg, a typical Japanese size, with average hands and slightly longer fingers.

The grip feels a bit thick. The trigger distance isn't a problem for me, but it seems quite far for my wife, who is under 150cm tall. I guess that's unavoidable with a thumbhole stock.

Next is the top cover. For some reason, it's made of pressed iron with a thickness of 2 to 2.5 mm.

As I briefly mentioned with the KSC AK74M, this shape is quite difficult to manufacture using thin aluminum sheets and pressing, so I think it was made of iron (as iron has lower ductility).

Therefore, in WE's products, this is the only large component that is made of steel.

If you're interested in KSC, please take a look.

Next is the last part, the stock area.

Around the stock

First, let's take a look at the entire stock from a side view.

Other side

This stock is a signature feature of the Dragunov, and it fits my build perfectly, making it easy to aim. Moreover, like the handguard, the resin quality is quite high. The matte black finish looks great.

I tried holding it while wearing a T-shirt, but the rear end of the stock is made of aluminum plate, so it hurts. I might need to do something about it.

Next is the cheek pad.

This looks quite good on bare skin, but you might want to take it off if you're wearing goggles. Incidentally, the photo shows it attached for right-handed users, but it can easily be adapted for left-handed users as well.

I would normally show a sight picture at the end, but my eye, tangent sight, and front sight are too far away to get a good photo, so I'll give up on that. With my eyesight (0.8), the sights are actually quite far away and difficult to see.

I'll show you the custom build with the optical equipment installed.

Accessories including the magazine

First, let's look at the magazine. Its exterior is made of sheet metal.

It seems to hold 20 rounds.

Next is the gas release valve. It looks pretty standard.

Next is the top of the magazine. It has the ammunition feeding port and a lever to switch between dry-firing mode (blank mode).

The gas inlet is the usual overseas design, making it very difficult to fill with gas.

Finally, let's talk about weight. It doesn't contain any gas or ammunition.

It's heavy, but I think it's about average weight for a gas blowback rifle.

The remaining accessories include a loader, a recoil spring, and a mysterious jig.

While most gas gun magazines can be loaded with commercially available loaders, the SVD's spring is so strong that it's difficult to load without using the included loader.

Next, let's look at the actual firing performance.

Actual firing performance

Initial velocity

The conditions for verifying the live-fire performance are to fill the magazine completely with HFC-134a and raise the magazine's surface temperature to approximately 27-28°C.

The BBs used are S&T's 0.2g bio BBs, and the measurement is taken with the hop-up setting at 0. The room temperature is approximately 23°C.

Initial velocity

This was the first shot, and although it was a little low, I thought it might be usable, so I continued firing at intervals of about one second.

The tenth shot

Around the 20th shot

The initial velocity fluctuations are just as rumored.

After letting it rest for a while and then firing with the hop-up applied using the second magazine, the muzzle velocity decreased by the amount of the hop-up effect, but the dispersion remained unchanged.

This is a point that needs to be addressed.

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

Fuel efficiency

Next is fuel efficiency.

This shows the magazine in an empty state and in a state where it is fully filled with ammunition and gas.

That's the weight of firing a magazine of 1 rounds at a rate of one round per second.

Since it consumes 10g for 20 shots, it seems to be a bit inefficient at 0.5g per shot.

It holds about 57g of gas, so a simple calculation would suggest it could hold about 5 magazines, but in reality, the gas pressure weakens, so I think it might only be able to hold 4 magazines.

I actually loaded ammunition and fired about three magazines, then continued firing in blank mode, and I was just barely able to get through four magazines.

Next is a demonstration of the blowback. Please be aware of the sound as this is a video. This is the movement after firing three magazines' worth of shots.

WE SVD GBB Normal

The recoil is quite strong and intense. Even in semi-automatic rapid fire, it makes aiming difficult.

Even though I can fire about four magazines with one charge, using approximately 60g of gas for only 80 rounds with a magazine capacity of 20 is a bit too fuel-inefficient, so I'll think of a solution.

G&G Bio-Bullets 0.2g
It's inexpensive and accurate, so I use it for a wide range of purposes, from performance testing to airsoft games. It's been my favorite since it first came to Japan (around 2008). It lasts a long time for a biodegradable product.

G&G Bio-Bullets 0.25g
It's 0.25g. I generally use 0.25g BBs when playing airsoft.

Trigger pull

Finally, let's talk about trigger pull.

We are taking safety precautions, so please place your finger on the trigger.

This is the trigger position when cocked. The adjacent photo shows the trigger position when fired.

　

There's a slight amount of play, and you immediately feel the load, so if you pull further, the hammer falls over. I think it's a pretty straightforward and good feeling.

Now that we know the state before any modifications, we'll start customizing it next time, including setting goals.

If you'd like, please join me.

Although I've mentioned several drawbacks, it's generally a good product and I recommend it. However, if you're going to use it for airsoft, adjustments will definitely be necessary.

WE-tech SVD Dragunov Aluminum Frame, Polymer Stock, Handguard
This is the Dragunov featured in this article.

WE-tech SVD Dragunov Aluminum Frame, Faux Wood Stock, Handguard
This is a fake wood version of the Dragunov featured in this article.

WE-tech SVD Dragunov Magazine
This is a spare magazine.