Heckler & Koch MP7A1 - Tokyo Marui
Following on from their AEP Glock 18C and a Beretta M93R version, Tokyo Marui extended the appeal of the AEP/MAEG concept by announcing a range of SMGs powered by a minaturised AEG gearbox.
The first example of this was the much hyped and anticipated Heckler & Koch MP7A1, which TM promised would deliver AEG performance in an SMG sized form.
I was lucky enough to be asked to review the MP7 by Airsoft International magazine and a more extensive review can be found in Volume 2 Issue 1 of AI (available from your local Airsoft supplier or - in the UK - newsagent).
Could it deliver on these promises or were they all hype?
In the Box
The gun certainly looks the part in the box, which seems large for those used to pistol boxes.
The box art is very much like that on the SIG P226, dark and moody.
Inside, the MP7 sits on a black cardboard insert overlaying a polystyrene bed with cuts for the gun, magazine and various accessories.
As well as the gun, magazine (a second magazine can be fitted into the gun), manuals and a small bag of .2g BBs, there is a 7.2V battery and micro charger. The charger is 110V only, so you will need to obtain a transformer or adapt the charger to plug into a larger charger, unless your retailer has already made the modifications.
First Impressions
The MP7A1 certainly looks and feels very good.
Although not that big, it's about the size of a H&K MP5K, it feels very solid and the plastic shell is made of, what feels and looks like, heavyweight ABS material (usually seen on GBBs).
The MP7 abounds with neat details, including flip up sights, front and rear, rails top and both sides, a collapsible stock and lots of metal controls.
The gun is fairly heavy, especially if wielded one handed (which is certainly possible), but the stock gives you the option to shoulder it as a small rifle if you tire or want the ultimate in accuracy.
Metal parts include trigger, rails, sights, selector switch, most of the stock assembly, outer barrel and flash hider.
Closer Look
Closer in, too, the H&K MP7A1 is impressive.
The shell is flawlessly moulded and the, many, metal parts finely cast.
These include the two part trigger (with a working trigger safety, much like that on a Glock pistol), extending stock, rails, on the top and either side, selectors and flash hider. There is a visible joint on the underside of the body, but this is more forgivable on replicas of polymer bodied guns.
The MP7 is, as the box promises, much bigger than any pistol. With the stock closed the gun is 340mm long (which extends out by 200mm with it open, which makes the gun quite a lot longer than a FN P90 AEG). However, as one comes to expect of H&K products, the ergonomics are very good and the gun is reasonably manageable used pistol style. Weight, too, is good at 1,505g with the battery (which weighs very little), about the same as the real thing loaded.
Trademarks, although limited, look excellent. I cannot say exactly how realistic they are, but they look highly convincing and the TM specific ones are nicely understated and integrated.
The left side of the gun is marked Cal 4.6mm x 30 above the trigger. On the right the gun is marked with TM markings in the same place. There is a small metal serial number plate on the underside of the rear of the receiver and each side of the grip is marked with the H&K logo and MP7 A1.
The 50 round magazine is a little disappointing. It is nicely marked (4.6 x 30 and 5/05 on the side and an H&K logo on the baseplate), but feels light and a bit fragile, despite being full-sized, in contrast to the thin, but solid magazines of the Glock AEP.
The front folding grip, which doubles as a handgrip when folded up, simply pulls down, although you must slide down a catch on the lower part of the grip to close it.
The H&K fan will instantly recognize the familiar ambidextrous, 3 position trigger group, where the (nicely positive) selector can select safe, semi or full-auto.
The extending stock has only two positions, fully open or closed, but is reassuringly solid when extended. It can be removed completely by depressing a small catch on the left side.
The H&K fan will instantly recognize the familiar ambidextrous, 3 position trigger group, where the (nicely positive) selector can select safe, semi or full-auto.
The sights are particularly good (although many will fit optics to the full length top rail). They are folding metal units, removable if you want, but folded down, present a three-dot pistol sight, ideal for one handed shooting. Folded up, you have a well-defined loop and blade combination.
The two halves of the cocking handle, right at the back of the gun, must be pressed together to pull back, which opens the chamber (a little) to allow (limited) access to the rotary hop-up adjustment.
The magazine is released by tiny (and a little fiddly, but this is not TMs fault) levers at the lower rear of either side of the trigger guard. I also found the magazine difficult to fill, even with the provided loading tube.
Shooting Impressions
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Carrying out my standard 5m/6 round, off hand test, the MP7 produced a best 5 diameter of 35mm (with 4 in a group just 30mm across) as a pistol. All the shots fell low of the aim point (using .25g BBs), but I am sure some more work with the hop-up adjustment could have resolved that, but I suspect that repeated use in this mode would soon tire most people's arms and accuracy would suffer as a result.
Extending the stock, but still using the iron sights, I engaged a target at 20m or so (down my garden).
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Hitting the target everytime at this range posed no problems, although, again, hit to aim point would benefit from a little work on the hop-up.
Over 10 shots, the MP7 averaged 253 fps (using .2g BBs) indoors.
| Shot | FPS |
| 1 | 251.2 |
| 2 | 251.7 |
| 3 | 265.0 |
| 4 | 254.1 |
| 5 | 247.0 |
| 6 | 250.4 |
| 7 | 247.9 |
| 8 | 252.2 |
| 9 | 258.7 |
| 10 | 256.1 |
Better than the pistol sized Glock 18C AEP, but not really good enough for a woodland skirmish primary, even if the stable hop-up delivers good accuracy.
Rate of fire, in full auto, is plenty good enough, too, with around 750rpm from the standard battery. Using an external battery, with a higher voltage, would provide even more, but you will regret that with the standard magazine's limited capacity.
Click here to hear the TM H&K MP7A1 in action.
Conclusions
Overall, the MP7 is an excellent, if flawed airsoft product.
The fit and finish is probably the best I have seen on any TM product and the gun offers anyone looking for a CQB primary or a sidearm pretty much all they could need with plenty of options for accessorizing, thanks to the three built in rails.
On the downside, the limited power means it cannot be seriously considered as a woodland skirmish primary and there are limited options for getting more power, although getting longer life and better ROF is already addressed with the tac-light and the option of an external battery.
What will bother many people is the price - It's more than a FAMAS (one of the best all round AEGs available) and virtually the same as a TM P90.
If you have deep pockets or only need CQB range, seriously consider the MP7 - It IS very good.
If you want a primary skirmish weapon for a mixture of fields, buy a P90 instead.
Weight : 1,505g (with battery)
Realism : ****
Quality : *****
Power : ***
Accuracy : ****
Thanks to Airsoft International for the loan of the MP7
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