This review item is is kinda different than you should expect. No regular airsoft gear, and not a must-have during airsoft. However certainly a nice to have during airsoft, esspecially when you are operating in a team. This Topcom Twintalker 9500 Airsoft Edition is kindly provided by Coolblue (http://www.walkietalkiestore.nl/) for a review! 

We rarely play with radio since we mostly operate as freelancers during big open skirms. This however was a nice addition during the game and a pleasant experience. Radio communication adds a whole new level to airsoft and will provide you with more tactical intel. When properly used it will for sure improve your gameplay. Before you start with this, make a good communication plan with your team and DO NOT use a radio on a open channel during a skirm (very, very annoying). Let's see if this Airsoft Edition is really a suitable airsoft product!?!

Regarding the product itself, it's a rather standard PMR radio with a range of 10KM, clear sound due to noice reduction, vibration, roger beep, drop waterproof (IPX2), 8 channels and various sub-channels, 446 Mhz band (no additional licenses required in Holland) etc. Special about this Airsoft Edition is the very robust and military look and feel and the standard included airtube headsets. They are very convenient and enable you to quietly communicate with eachother. Enough chatter for now, head over to our video introduction of the Twintalker units...

Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MTuNxe8_AoQ

PRO'S

• Affordable.
• Military look, robust.
• Comfortable use, even with gloves.
• Airtube headsets.
• Really good sound!
• Contrary to most airsoft products, batteries included!

CON'S

• Hard to hook up third party professional airsoft gear.

THE VERDICT
Fun for entry level airsofters to setup basic communications. Interested to buy this piece of gear? Head over to this link...

Today we received the Madbull Airsoft new LifePo 12.8V battery together with the Madbull Airsoft LFP charger. This is the latest of battery technology for airsoft. I never expected to use LiFe batteries so soon. There were poor sales of the Li-Poly batteries and a lot of doubt regarding safety (we all know those explosive YouTube movies). However this type of battery is taken into serious production by MadBull Airsoft!

They introduce their own development of this promising battery in the form of a 9.6V and 12.8V LiFePO4 battery together with a charger. They last longer, are safer, and easier to handle as compared to Li-Poly batteries. This 12.8v LiFEPO4 battery can deliver even more power than a 13.2v Ni-MH large type battery with only half of the size and a third of the battery cells. LiFePO4 batteries are designed to give the same performance as a LiPo but with a higher tolerance for abuse it is much safer to use. So we requested a review sample and headed for testing.

Are we seriously considering these revolutionary batteries for our expensive AEG's?

LiFePO4 Batteries: an introduction
In 1989, Arumugam Manthiram and John Goodenough of the University of Texas at Austin showed that cathodes containing polyanions, eg. sulfates, produce higher voltage than oxides due to the inductive effect of the polyanion. In 1996 Goodenough and co-workers discovered the electrochemical utility of the olivine material lithium iron phosphate, LiFePO4. It is an important and emerging cathode material for lithium-ion batteries due in part to its enhanced safety compared to other lithium-ion chemistries.

Lithium iron phosphate ( LiFePO4, also known as LFP), is used as cathode material for lithium-ion batteries. Its characteristic does not include noble elements such as cobalt, the price of raw material is lower and both phosphorus and iron are abundant on Earth which lowers raw material availability issues.

Avoiding the lithium cobalt oxide cathode leads to a number of advantages. LiCoO2 is one of the more expensive components of traditional li-ion batteries, giving LFP batteries the potential to ultimately become significantly cheaper to produce. LiCoO2 is also toxic, while lithium iron phosphate is not. LiCoO2 also can lead to problems with runaway overheating and outgassing, making batteries that use it more susceptible to fire than LFP batteries. This advantage means that LFP batteries don't need as intense charge monitoring as traditional li-ion. Lastly, LFP batteries tend to have superior power density in comparison to traditional li-ion.

LiFePO4 batteries are also used in the OLPC XO laptops, power tools and electrical vehicles. This 12.8V sample from Madbull has a current of 40C! Interesting to notice is that their sister company SOCOM GEAR still supplies Li-Poly batteries...

Battery Manufacturing process
Madbull gives all of us an exclusive view in their battery kitchen, check this YouTube video below to see how these batteries are made.

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Build quality
Build quality is extrmely well done. Most impressive is the charger which is also made by Mr. Chen (the designer of the Madbull Chrono) and he used rock solid 6061T6Aircraft aluminum which is extremely durable. The charger is simple to use, has clear indicator lights and is usable for both the 9.6 and the 12.8V version.

The battery comes in a nicely protected package (full of safety warnings, we will come to that later) and the housing seems to be decend. It has to be noted that the battery comes with a mini Tamiya connector. No worries about all the wirings, this is how it has to be done.

Improtant to note is that the batteries DO NOT come with a high throughput Deans connector. True, most type AEG's are standard equiped with a mini or large type Tamiya connector. However operating at higher current levels and larger throughput, Deans connectors are the connectors to use. I really would like to see these batteries with a standard Deans connector and i will be more than happy to modify my AEG and implement a Deans connector.

Environmental friendly?
Just good to know and only worth a short notice is that these batteries are RoHS Compliant.RoHS stands for 'Restriction of the use of Certain Hazardous Substances in Electrical and Electronic Equipment'. For those who don't know, this is a market directive introduced in 2006 by the European Union to restrict the use of 6 hazardous materials in the manufacture of various types of electronic and electrical equipment. The hazardous materials include Lead (Pb), Mercury (Hg), Cadmium (Cd), Hexavalent chromium (Cr6+), Polybrominated biphenyls (PBB), Polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE).So Madbull takes their environmental responsibility here.

Comparison
Here is a nice comparison Madbull made with the currently used battery technologies:

Off course this is a chart from the manufacturers themselves, however I think the values stated are true and show a fair comparison between the current battery technologies. Most noticeable is that the LFP batteries are relative cheap compared to NiMH batteries. They only perform average on MAh/Peice and Vol/MAH, rest of the items are covered by the LFP battery.

Safety
Wow this was impressive, I have never seen an airsoft product with such a large list of safety warnings. I simply have to review this battery, however I will certainly pick my test AEG carefully :)

Here is the list which Madbull airsoft provides together with the batteries:

Impressive! When we take care of all these safety warning all should go just fine! pfff...

Battery and charger properties

MADBULL AIRSOFT BATTERY MODEL# PowerX-02 [12.8, 1500mAh]
Specifications:

• Manufacturer: Madbull
• Voltage: 12.8v
• Discharge Rate: 40C
• Cell Type: Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFEPO4)
• Connector Type: Mini
• Special note: this battery can only be charged with the Madbull LFP Charger

Cell specifications

• Nominal Capacity 1500mAh* / Nominal Voltage 12.8V** / CELL internal resistance ≦12mΩ / Charge Current max. 3A(2C)
• Voltage max. 3.65V / Discharge Continuous Current Max. 22.5A per cell, / Burst Current Max. 40.0A per cell or higher/ Voltage cut-off 2.0V/ Cycle Life / >80% Retention / 1C 1000 cycle / 10 C 100 cycle / Self -Discharge <5% per month / Operating Temperature Range /Charge 0℃∼45℃ 32℉∼113℉ / Discharge -20℃~60℃ -4℉∼140℉ / Storage -20℃~40℃ -4℉∼104℉ / Cell Dimension Thickness 6.2mm/ Width 34mm/ Length 96mm/ Pack of 2 series Dimension Thickness 13.6.0±0.5mm / Width 34.0±0.5mm / Length 96±1.0mm / Weight Appro 135.0g
• *Nominal capacity (average discharge capacity) : discharge current 0.5C, end of voltage 2.0V, temperature 23±2℃.
• **Nominal voltage (average discharge voltage): discharge current 0.5C, end of voltage 2.0 V, temperature 23±2℃.

MadBull LFP Battery Charger
Features：

• For Lithium Iron Phosphate LiFePO4(LFP) Batteries Only.
• Max 1A charging current.
• Output 9.6V (3 LFP cells)/ 12.8V (4 LFP cells).
• Independent charge each LFP cell.
• 3.6V per cell / Auto cut off when full charge.
• Handheld small size: 13*6*2.5cm
• 6061T6Aircraft aluminum. Extremely durable.

Characteristics

This chart shows a quite steady voltage during use...

Pricing

General retail price at the moment is:

• 9.6V: 75USD
• 12.8V: 85USD
• Charger: 90 USD

A very decend pricing for the quality you get. There are also battery/charget combo packages with a little discount.

Testing
For now we will first consider which AEG to use for this heavy lifting, we will soon come back to you with our results. Off course we will use the madbull chrono to check the fire rate (bals per secong, bps). The video below shows the battery can cause an impressive 27 bps!

Youtube
Here is a nice additional video review from Airsoft GI...

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Conclusion
Also let us know what your personal user experiences are! Log in and leave your comments below...

External Links
Madbull Airsoft - http://www.madbullairsoft.com/
Lithium iron phosphate (WikiPedia) - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lithium_iron_phosphate

This is the first review of 2013 and most certainly not our last review, as you might know airsoft will become legal in Holland. So expect a lot more from us! We start of with a review of the new G&G Armament M.E.T Units. We are one of the first to test these units and very curious how they perform. No it's not a stress ball, it's not an alarm, it's a airsoft shooting target system! No more cardboards to setup your practice range...

INTRODUCTION VIDEO
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BACK AT IWA 2012
We first heard of these M.E.T. Units at IWA 2012 where we had a nice demo of a unit which still was a prototype unit. We were instantly impressed! It immediatly was clear to us it was a complete new way for airsofters to practice or compete with friends. Very suitable in back gardens, garages, or on a professional airsoft target practice range. Even perhaps for an IPSC/AIPS competition.

WHAT'S IN THE PACKAGE?
The set we received is the 5 unit retail pack of the final version and comes with all the equipment necessary to set it up and start playing. Packaging is functional and contains all the instructions you need to get started. Each unit consists of a base and a rubber which provides the 360 degree target area to shoot at and protects the lights inside. Total package cost of this 5 pieces unit is 250 USD suggested retail price (around 200-250 EURO here in Europe) which is quite hefty in my opinion.
Units take 4 AAA batteries (included) each to operate and are covered in a rubber like ‘skirt’ to protect the plastic casings and switches etc. One unit has a yellow ‘skirt’ to help identify it as the ‘Master Unit’ but in reality which ever unit you make the settings from (or switch on first when linked together) will become the Master Unit. Also each unit has a setting switch and a speaker jack should you wish to connect it up to an external powered speaker for sound.
All units can be switched between 4 different sound settings via the dip switches located underneath the units. So you can set each target to its own sound setting (depending on how many you have in your target groupings) just remember to ‘reboot’ them in order for sound changes to take effect.

OPERATION
Operation is simple, just load the batteries and chain the units together and from one of your targets switch on (this becomes the Master Unit) and then select the game mode you desire, all the targets in the chain should respond. Players have the choice of up to 4 game modes on this set by just pressing the on switch from 1 to 4 times for the relevant mode required.
When the rubber is shot, a pneumatic sensor is set of and the unit will give a sound AND light effect to indicate a hit. It will detect impacts from 0.2J up to 2.0J, so it's very sensitive and will detect all hits very accurate.

GAME MODES

1. Competition Mode (Default)
All modules are put into Stand-by mode, with a Blue-light displayed. The first target hit turns Red whilst all the other targets switch off and will not register a hit.

2. Versus Mode
Only the Master Target is in Stand-by mode, with a Blue-light displayed one the master is activated a countdown for 5 seconds begins. Once the countdown has completed all target modules will turn solid Blue. The first target hit will turn Red for 5 seconds and gameplay will auto-reset with the Master Target returning to Stand-by ready for replay when the Master Unit is re-activated to start.

3. Random Mode
The Master Target will light up Blue with all the others in Stand-by mode. As soon as the Master Target is hit the next target will be activated randomly. Once all targets are shot the last one will turn Solid Red for 5 seconds to signal the end of the round before it all resets for the next round. The Master Target will always start the sequence again.

4. Practice Mode
All targets will display Blue lighting and turn Red when hit. The last target hit will stay solid Red for 5 seconds to signal the end of the round before the units auto reset for the next round.

TARGET PRACTICE!
In use these M.E.T.’s are extremely easy to use and I like the way that ONLY if the rubber spherical target section is hit does the pneumatic sensor trigger a hit. Even hits on the body of the M.E.T.’s which are protected by a rubber skirt around them wont register as a hit which will ensure only a players accurate hits will count.

Although these units are available individually to get any benefit from the play modes available you will need more than one and I would also suggest the longer wiring set which is available separately (the 5x set comes supplied with 5 lots of 50cm wires) in order to give you more of a challenge and allow you to space your targets further apart. 0.5m, 1m, 5m, 10m, 15m are all available and can be purchased separately.

These are great units to play with friends in a garage or range type setting with the ability to link up to 25 together and a maximum wiring length of 15 meters you could make quite a course up between a few of you. The units must be mounted on a flat surface (and have a threaded section underneath them, similar to a camera tripod screw mounting point in size) they cannot be placed on their sides showing the full domed face at more than a 45 degree angle facing the shooter due to the method used for detecting a hit.

The units are available from G&G stockists in sets from 1,2, 5 or 25 units so you can add more and more to your collection as cash allows!

INSTRUCTION VIDEO
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PRO'S

• High sensitive (impacts from 0.2J up to 2.0J)
• Easy to use.
• Extendable units, up to 25 targets!
• Different sound settings.
• Durable rubber.

CON'S

• Not for vertical use.
• Needs 4 AAA batteries per unit, that's 20 batteries in total (included btw)!
• Limitations due to short wiring, you'll need the longer wiring set!
• No timer function included.
• No remote control.
• Quite heavy price tag (250 USD MSRP)

THE VERDICT
We really had fun playing and testing these units. The M.E.T. Units are great for training and you are able to setup a nice airsoft shooting range in seconds. Also for some fun shooting it works great and nearly addictive :) This is the version 1 of the M.E.T. Units which will be very succesfull. We hope to welcome some nice additions to the units soon, like a timer and remote control. This will increase the competition ellement and even makes it perfect for IPCS/AIPS usage! The remote control will improve convenience of use, several game modus en resets can be done for your point of shooting.
The good news is they are already available in several European stores, the bad news however is the price point of 250 euro which is quite expensive! If you can afford it, it's certainly worth it!

EXTERNAL LINKS
G&G Armament - http://guay2.com/

Maintenance Material    
I asked Chris Macdonald from Abbey Supply Ltd, located in the UK, to review several maintenance products and some maintenance gasses. This because of maintenance is very important for the durability of your airsoftgun. And shortly after I requisted some review material there was a box with a lot of products. Here a list with products i will review:

• Predator Gun Gas 134a
• Predator Ultra Gas
• Predator Maintenance Gas 134a
• Silicone Gun Oil 35, aerosol
• Silicon Gun Oil 35, dropper
• Silicone Grease
• Moly G-n Paste
• Universal Sportsman's Cloth

This is a great list of maintenance products, rather impressive if you ask me. Abbey allready produced airgun and shotgun products for some time, so Airsoft products should not be a huge step for them. Let's see how these products perform. I will first let you know what the product exactly is. Next how to use it and what the effect should be for your airsoftgun.

Predator Gun Gas 134a
The Abbey Predator Gun Gas 134a This is the official press release from Abbey themselves:

Abbey Predator Gun Gas 134a will improve power and performance.
Abbey Predator Gun Gas 134 is available from major airsoft dealers throughout the country and on the Internet.
134a is a safe non-flammable gas ideally suited for airsoft gas powered guns. Abbey Supply Company have incorporated a new high specification lubricant UPL to provide maximum lubrication to the seals and the internal mechanisms of the gun. Ensuring the gun is working correctly with the right lubricant essential is for maximum power and performance.
The level of lubricant has been set to make this gas exceptionally good in hop-up guns.
Mr Chris Macdonald, Managing Director of Abbey Supply Company Ltd, says "The economical large sized canister delivers improved performance and accuracy making this the gas best suited to skirmishing or plinking.Abbey press release 19 March, 2003

The Abbey Predator Gun Gas 134a gas can So The Abbey Predator Gun Gas 134a has a new lubricant named UPL, which is esspecially formulated for the seals and internals of your airsoftgun! We will look after this in our tests.
You can use this gas just like any others. Just fill your magazine at the back with this gas. The can itself comes in a nice thick walled can with a good nylon nozzle, and it's certainly more field resistant. The nylon nozzle means that you are able the achieve a good gas filling in your mags. No leaking, spraying etc.

Now we will test this lubricant with several guns. The Beretta M92F Military version from Marui. And also with the KSC Glock 26c.
We will look after the performance of the gas, the leaking of some gas and we will do some targetpractice. But we have to wait for our GBB guns. Because they went down in a skirm.

Predator Ultra Gas
The Abbey Predator Ultra Gas This is what Abbey has to tell about it theirselves:

Abbey Predator Ultra Gas for increased power and performance
Abbey Supply Company Ltd has successfully completed trials of their new airsoft gun gas. Abbey Predator Ultra Gas is being shipped to major airsoft dealers based throughout the country, Europe and on the Internet.
Abbey Predator Ultra Gas is ideally suited for airsoft skirmish sites that permit higher muzzle velocities. The power of Ultra has been set for the airsofter that desires more power than Gun Gas 134a. Users of 134a may prefer Ultra during winter shooting to maintain summer levels of power. Abbey Supply Company have incorporated their new high specification lubricant UPL to provide maximum lubrication to the seals and the internal mechanisms of the gun. Ensuring the gun is working correctly with the right lubricant is essential for maximum power and performance. The level of lubricant has been set to make this gas exceptionally good in blow back guns.
Abbey Predator Ultra Gas is an environmentally friendly, virtually odour-less gun gas. It has been manufactured to give maximum fills and maximum shots per canister.
Mr Chris Macdonald, Managing Director of Abbey Supply Company Ltd, says "This is the ideal gas for maximum power whilst skirmishing or plinking. Press release 14 July, 2003.

The Abbey Predator Ultra Gas canThe Ultra gas is a very nice and powerfull gas. For the rest it's almost identical to the 134a gas. The canister and the filling nozzle are also of a good quality. unfortunately we have to wait for the test till our new guns arrive............

Predator Maintenance Gas 134a
Predator Maintenance Gas 134aYou may use this gas esspecially for new Airsoft GBB hop-up pistols. In the beginning you may experience some performance problems or sticking errors. Just use this gas to get started and the oil your gun from the inside. Predator Maintenance Gas 134a contains an extreme high concentration of UPL, a high performance lubricant, especially formulated for the seals and internals of your gun. The accuracy and performance will be better. Top maintain top performance Abbey advices to use the Maintenance Gas every 10 magazines.

The normal procedure to maintain your pistol is the strip it down totally and to clean all the parts with a silicone spray. The idea of this maintenance gas is to inject it in your magazine and it will clean and lubricate all the internal parts. The method is way easier and it can also reach parts where you normally can't get to. The gas comes in 120g cans and it has a usual red nylon nozzle. Here the official press release of Abbey:

"...Abbey Predator Maintenance Gas 134a cures sticking guns: Abbey Predator Gun Gas 134a will soon be available from major airsoft dealers throughout the country and on the internet.

134a is a safe nonflammable gas ideally suited for airsoft gas powered guns. Many manufacturers specify this gas for their guns. Abbey Supply Company have incorporated a new high specification lubricant UPL to provide maximum lubrication to the seals and internal mechanisms of the gun.

The high lubricant content ensures that where seals and the operating mechanism have dried out in transit they can be reactivated again quickly without stripping the gun. A dry seal may mean underperformance or a misfire. Regular use of Abbey Predator Gun Gas 134a means a gun is operating at maximum performance.

Mr Chris Macdonald, Managing Director of Abbey Supply Company Ltd, says 'Many gun spend a long time in transit and storage before purchase, using Abbey Predator Maintenance Gas 134a restores a gun to its original high performance.'..." Abbey press release 19 March, 2003

If you're looking to store your equipment away a quick blow through with maintenance gas will help preserve the seals. Usuge afterevery skirm with maintenance gas will help keep the internals in good condition, and for pieces with dry seals maintenance gas will help get everything lubed again. Abbey's maintenance gas is a very nice idea and also very usefull.
Silicone Gun Oil 35, aerosol and dropper
The Abbey universal sportsmans cloth "Produces a fine high sheen finish on all guns and accessories that protects from moisture and dirt, eliminating rusting and corrosion. Excellent lubricant for leather and plastic air gun washers."- Abby Supply

And indeed, we used this silicone oil on our TM Beretta and the TM Glock, and this silicone gun is perfect for our airsoft replica's. Abbey provides Gun Oil 35 in either an aerosol or in a dropper bottle. The oil can be used either internally (as a lubricant), or externally (as a polish), the aerosol and dropper both allow differing forms of application.

Abbey's aerosol gun oil comes with a short removable nozzle for easy application so you can either direct a jet, or remove the nozzle extension and spray an area. The can contains 120g of aerosol spray.

Abbey's dropper gun oil comes in a little plastic 30ml bottle with a neat nozzle that allows easy direct application to rubber parts such as gas nozzle o-rings, mag seals and other valve/mag seals.

So the Silicone gun oil products are very important to maintain your gun. Esspecially the rubber parts and the heavy used parts should be maintained with the silicone oil. It also gives a nice and smooth feeling to your gun. Really worth trying it!

Silicone Grease
The Abbey universal sportsmans cloth Next up on the list of handy products to help look after your gas driven replicas is Silicone Grease. This isn't quite the same as Gun Oil 35, as the stuff in these little pots is rather like vaseline. So way more creamy than the Gun Oil. You use this on internal parts that need more long term greasing, and where '35 would not stay long enough. Silicon grease will keep plastic surfaces running smoothly against each other, and when used on things such as recoil springs will not only encourage their friction free motion but also help protect them from moisture and therefore rust. When this grease is used with contact surfaces such as the parts where nozzles and mag/valve seals come into play it will also help reduce power loss through gas leakage.

Moly G-n Paste
The Abbey universal sportsmans cloth What is Moly G-n Paste? WellMoly G-n is also known as Molybdenum Disulphate. This stuff is just great! It acts like a dry grease between metal surfaces. There are more and more metal parts in the airsoft world so this really becomes very important to use. You may use it on upgraded metal slides and frames and other metal parts. Don't use to much of this paste and bring it on smotthly. After this wipe the not usefull remainder of with a cloth. You may find more information on this Moly G-n paste here at the International Molybdenum Association

Universal Sportsman's Cloth
The Abbey universal sportsmans cloth This a a unique cloth from Abbey. You can use it for all your sporting equipment, including sporting guns, scopes, rods, reels, golf clubs, bikes, boats and auto accessories to repel moisture and dirt. Also for airsoft it's very usable. The cloth will give your gun an active and protective layer. This will take care of water, dirt, fingerprints etc. It also prevents rusting and corrosicon of some parts of the gun. You have to use this for about 30 seconds and the cloth will deposit a nice invisible film of protective silicone. After you use this cloth your gun looks as new! It gives a really nice and shiny look over your gun. When you put the cloth back into the plastic you can use it several times. But watch it, don't use it for the heavy work and DON'T WASH the cloth.
I tested it on my pistiol for several times and i have to say it really works great. The gun looks nice and is good protected. And the feeling is still the same, you don't feel any lubricant on your gun. The cloth is also very good reuseble, it maintains his working and the cloth is still soft and ready to use. But don't scrub to uch with your cloth, there will come several pieces of fluff on the gun! I think this is the minimum you can do for your equipment.

The verdict
I have to admit these products are really good. Personally i would never have bought them (guncare, what's that? :P). But after i recieved kindly this package from Abbey Supply i changed my mind. These products really improve your gun and his durability. An airsoft replica's is always a large investment, so from now on i will really good maintain my airsoft equipemnt! And these Abbey products just work great! I didn't have that much experience on maintainance but after i used the Silicone Gun Oil, the Silicone Grease and the Moly Paste the gun feld a lot better. Also the Universal Sportsman's Cloth made look teh exterior of the gun a lot better. Also the protective film was very usefull when playing in the rain. So when you search for maintainence products just grap the Abbey products. Also the gas looks very good and comes in nice bottles, but we still have to test them on our new GBB guns. More inforamtion about that later. Abbey congrats on these products also great that they are made here in Europe!