Review of the WE M9A1 GBB pistol.
I’m a firm believer that you get what you pay for. For the most part, this has held true with regards to airsoft guns and gear. But there have plenty of times where I came across guns that were way overpriced and others priced so low that my “red flags” went up.
9 times out of 10 I check the price on something first, then decide if it’s worth checking out. For some reason though, when I tested the WE M9A1, I completely overlooked the price and went right to the gun.
When I came across the WE M9A1, I was immediately impressed with how it looked, its hefty (and solid) weight, the rubberized pistol grip, and general appearance of the gun. It seemed like it just melted right into my hand- great fit, great weight, almost like a real gun. I then test fired it and was highly impressed with the action. With the heavier gun, the recoil felt better as well, and the gun fired flawlessly at about 330+ fps. I also put a tight group together at about 25 feet.
As expected from a GBB, the receiver locked back to the rear when I was empty. As part of my test, I smoothly extracted one mag and quickly inserted another. Again, flawless performance as I changed mags and emptied a second.
The pistol grip is a bit larger than many other pistols I own or test, but it fits me perfectly (I’m 5’10”, weighing 200 pounds). I’m not a very large guy, more on the average side, and I really like the grip. For those that prefer a smaller grip, then I recommend at least testing the feel of this before totally discounting it.
Another feature that really caught my eye was the emblem in the grip- the Marine Corps emblem: Eagle, Globe and Anchor. As a retired Marine, I just could not pass up a gun that not only fit naturally in my hand, performed flawlessly, and then came with the Emblem. It was too much a good deal. What made it a better deal was that on the same day I got this gun, I heard that US customs confiscated an entire shipment of these (and other) guns that bore the emblem- an obvious trademark infringement. Since that day, I haven’t seen another M9A1 with this emblem on it- they are now arriving with a “WE” emblem instead. So, now this particular gun is a rarity- cool!
Anyway, I wanted this gun on the day I tested it and quickly pulled out my wallet. As I stated in the first paragraph, you get what you pay for. With the performance and features of this gun, I immediately thought it would be comparable in price to many high-end pistols ($180+). To my shock, the clerk rung it up at $125.00! I was floored! It was at this point that some red flags went up. An all metal gun for only $125? After a bit of research, I found out that WE models use pot metal and that the gas efficiency could be better. However, as long as I've owned one, I've not had a problem with any metal parts, nor have I run out of gas while I still had bb's in the mag. As a personal habit, I always reload gas when I reload bb's, so as long as I continue to do so, I don't foresee ever running into the issue of gas inefficiency, although I'm probably going through a bit more gas than some higher end guns.
As for the mags, I’ve heard from some sources that the WE mags tend to leak. I don’t know how true that is, nor do I have hard statistics, but unfortunately, one of my mags leaked when I got it home. I took it back the next day and between the tech and I, we quickly replaced the o-ring (slight tear in it), then resealed it. Works perfectly now.
As with all M9 variants, the take-down is exceptionally easy and clean-up is a snap.
Pros:
-Great performance and tight grouping at 25 feet.
-Hefty, solid weight
-Great action and recoil
-In an airsoft world where GBB pistols can cost $180 or more, this is a good deal at $125!
-Great fitting pistol grip (personal choice)
Cons:
-Mags that may leak (no stats to back this up, and what GBB is not prone to this?)
-Pistol grip may not appeal to those who prefer a smaller grip.
-Pot metal
-Reputed gas inefficiency, but not experienced personally.
-$125 may be a bit much for those that shop online and go for GBB’s that cost $60. To each their own, I guess.
Final verdict: For it's price range, it's a good pistol option.
