Three years ago I bought my first gas powered airsoft pistol, a KSC made SIG Pro 2009. It was nice and comfortable, and for what I paid for it, a decent gun. At the time I had been out of the military about a year, and was carrying my trusty Colt 1911 Commander .45 at work everyday (I was an armed security guard). Since my first trip to a pistol range at age 12 with a family member, I fell in love (obsession might be closer to the truth) with John Browning’s tried and true design. As an airsofter I wanted the same thing everyone else wants; the perfect gun. And so began my quest to find a great 1911 style gas pistol for airsoft. My quest may be over now.

Time taught me, as many experienced players will tell you, that there is no one answer on the topic of the perfect pistol, rifle or sub-machine gun for everyone to use. I have owned eight different 1911 airsoft guns, all gas powered. Five of them are Western Arms, one KWC, a Maruzen and the Tokyo Marui 5.1 Hi-cap. I have only kept the WA’s and the TM. The last one I purchased was the MEU pistol by Western Arms. To tell you the truth I could barely contain myself when I heard of the upcoming release of the MEU. Western Arms said the MEU pistol would be a limited production run, making me panic a little. I didn’t want to be left out of owning the airsoft version of my favorite “real steel” pistol from my time in the service. I won’t go into the lore behind the real steel version here, but I know it can be found on many different websites I’ve looked at.

Impression

When the MEU arrived I eagerly tore into the box to get my hands on it. Like a kid in a candy store or with a new toy? You bet! I was truly impressed with the nice look of the simulated parkerized finish on an all plastic frame and slide. The finish, aside from being on plastic, looks amazingly real and authentic. The only trade-marks of any kind are on the left side of the slide which read, “MODEL 1911-A1, CAL .45.”

On the right hand side of the gun are the obligatory “WA AKSG” markings with a serial number, just below the slide. But honestly, the first accurate thing I noticed was the lanyard ring at the bottom of the pistol grip, which reminded me of our fondness in the Marines for “dummy cording” anything to avoid losing it.

In the box with the gun were the usual tools Western Arms’ provides, a bag of 200 BB’s, and a manual for the 1911 series. The manual shows updated information for 2004 to include the use of the new Shibuya Custom Works version 2 system internal parts. The MEU comes standard with a Wilson Combat 15-round magazine, a bumper on the bottom and a silver metal gas valve instead of the older black coated type. I’m still not sure if that is significant in any way, but I have read both before and after the release of the MEU pistol, that the newer S.C.W. gas system was designed to tolerate HFC-22 (a.k.a. green gas) right from the factory.

As for the gun itself, it was very clear just by picking it up, that the weight had been increased. On line the listed weight is 1010 grams, while an older Western Arms Wilson Combat CQB Service Grade pistol is listed at 925 grams. Once I removed the magazine from the MEU, I saw what has increased the weight; the grip panels are all metal and have a rubberized coating on the outside. Most of my pistols by WA do not have this feature, where there is often just hollow plastic. But my Wilson CQB does have metal in the grips, which is still very light by comparison. Aside from giving the gun a much more solid feel and less of a “toy gun” impression, the grip panels were firmly held in place. On other guns I usually found the grips loose right out of the box, but could tighten them up with a regular slotted screwdriver. Another added bonus of the MEU, both one and two-handed grips on the pistol are more comfortable with the heavy rubberized grips.

While turning the MEU over in my hand, I cycled the slide back and forth. The details of the stamp markings on the slide of the pistol appear cleaner and more defined than on previous models. The slide material, although still listed as ABS plastic by Western Arms, feels more rigid and heavier than products made before 2004. Sitting atop the slide are Novak-style low-profile combat 3-dot sights. Of all the sights used on 1911’s in either “real steel” or airsoft, these are without a doubt my favorite. The Novak-style allows you to quickly establish the sight picture and does not snag on your holster when drawing the gun.

Inside the slide is an all black-coated outer metal barrel. While not always found on all Western Arms models, it is a very welcome feature here both for practical reasons and the authentic look of a MEU pistol. What the outer barrel hides is the 6.03 mm accurate inner barrel, a standard feature for the MEU. This will be discussed more in the firing section. Lastly the trigger; the same light-weight aluminum trigger as many other Western Arms 1911 models offer. Firing

Before firing I applied some silicone lube to both the pistol and the magazine, to help with breaking it in. As part of a personal experiment for the new SCW gas system and for this review, I decided to fire a few magazines of 134a gas through the MEU first, and then switch to green gas. Traditionally I only use 134a gas in my Western Arms pistols. My entire shooting test was performed indoors, with distances of 5 to 25 feet and the target was 8”x7” about the size of an airsoft mask. The BB’s were all Stealth .20g. I chose to test fire indoors so the elements would not factor into performance and because it’s about 20 degrees outside where I live.

After loading, I fired five well aimed shots, at 10 feet, using a bench rest. While the grouping of the shots was within the size of a quarter, I noticed that my point of aim (center bull’s eye) and the point of impact were off a bit. All the BB’s hit the target to the left of my aim-point. I wanted to be sure it was the weapon and not me, so I fired another 5-shot string only to see the same results. Taking a small Allen wrench, I adjusted the sights and tried again. The next grouping of shots was well centered. I also had to tweak the hop-up some because I felt some of the shots were varying too much in the vertical, from a rested position. That small adjustment settled things right back down. Moving all the way to the back of my home-range set up, 25 feet, I braced the MEU against a door frame for support. In this farther 5-shot string, I fired at a regular pace, trying for accuracy and was able to keep all but one shot in the 8 ring or better. Compared to some of the other Western Arms guns I have used, I think the tight-bore barrel proves that it makes a difference here, and in overall velocity.

Moving back to 15 feet, in a two handed unsupported position, I loaded two full magazines to do some faster combat-style shooting with the MEU. I set up two targets, one high and one low, with a 6 foot separation in between. For me, the real test on if I will use a pistol in a game is how well it performs double-taps on an upper-body sized target. Double-taps are two shots fired quickly so there isn’t a pause at all in between them. Most airsoft players probably use pistols as a back-up weapon in case their AEG fails or if they are playing in a CQB environment. The same can be said about me; the grips on the pistol and recovery from recoil are very important to me for this reason.

Drawing and firing the MEU was really very easy because of the low-profile sights and the nice rubberized grip panels, allowing the shooter to get into position and engage targets quickly. While transitioning between the targets the weight of the MEU pistol keeps the sight picture, and whole weapon, stable enough to rapidly engage the next target. The accuracy of the MEU when firing “double-taps” is very consistent. At 15 feet away my worst double-tap had holes in the target that could fit a quarter in between them. The average space was more along the size of a U.S. dime or penny.

When using the 134a gas in the Western Arms MEU pistol, there was a small increase in the accuracy of my double-taps or other second shots from unsupported positions. The recoil is a little on the weak side, yet still very smooth with the 134a gas. After changing to green gas, I noticed a significant increase in both the sound and recoil when I fired the MEU. That being said the increase in recoil feels better to me, and isn’t so outrageous for an all ABS plastic gun to make shooting it difficult or inaccurate. Using green gas also cycles the slide faster than the 134a gas. Because I don’t have a chronograph I can’t tell for sure if the velocity of the BB changed at all. Using the “poor man’s” chrony method with a pop can and green gas, one shot went through both sides of the can. A second shot went through one side and put a dent with a break in the metal in the side of another can, but did not make it all the way. Final Opinion

By now I have made you just about cry with how long this review is, so I’ll try and finish it off here. With easily more than 500 rounds fired through the MEU pistol, I can say that many of the reservations I had about taking stock Western Arms pistols on an airsoft field are now gone. I only experienced two jams when firing the whole time I’ve owned it! The MEU is accurate enough for field play or home practice, tolerates green gas without any problems, feels solid and durable and, lastly, has all of the correct features a sidearm should (in my opinion). Despite the higher cost of just about any Western Arms pistol, compared to other brands such as KSC or KJW, this particular model with the second version S.C.W. gas system in it is well worth the extra investment. The last observation on the MEU is the notch where the slide-release pops up to hold the slide open when the magazine is empty. On all of the other Western Arms pistols I own, this little indent wears very quickly, which some times prevent the slide from being locked open. The MEU however, has not shown any of the wear signs in this area that the other pistols have. My hat’s off to the people of the SCW shop for that! The only change I plan to make to my MEU pistol is the replacement of the stock recoil spring, with a 150% spring, because of how much I love the feel of shooting it with green gas. Get one of these pistols while you still can!