As promised, here's the review of the VFC Romanian AIMS

VFC (Romanian) AIMS

DATA
Barrel: 455mm
OA Length: 698mm/899mm
Weight: 3730g
Velocity: 336.1 (10-shot string using a mad bull chronograph)
Grouping: 12.2cm @ 20m
ROF: 850-950rpm

Most people would say good things come in small packages. Though this is usually true, there are exemptions to this rule of thumb. The VFC AIMS is such an exemption. It is large, “loud” and proud. It is a long rifle that feels comfortable in medium engagements as well as cqb fights.

EXTERNALS
Some times when you remove a full metal AEG from its packaging, you’ll feel slightly disappointed at what would seem to be less than full metal. Either the metal doesn’t look right, it feels too light to be metal, or the tolerances are too much for a full metal AEG. None of these things apply to VFC’s AKS74 AIMS. It’s one of few AEGs available that demands the utmost respect.
The first thing you’ll notice on this AEG is the metalwork. You’ll not see the typical aluminum or the cheap pot metal of other full metal AEGs. The majority of the metal used in this replica is made from steel. The folding stock, the receiver, outer barrel, flash hider, and top cover are all made of steel with a wonderful finish. Not at all shiny like from other manufacturers, instead it has a nice matte non-reflective finish. Despite the beautiful finish, it doesn’t look like the typical Kalashnikov we’ve so typically see in the media. The fit and finish of the AIMS certainly lives up to the reputation VFC has made for itself over the years.

The other thing that will grab you by the collar and forcibly change your field of view is the woodwork. Granted, there are only two pieces of wood on this AEG, and what a beautiful set of woodwork it is. It is beautifully crafted in laminated wood and stained to a dark red finish. The bottom hand guard has a hollow grip which allows the use of a small lipoly battery. The top hand guard covers the tube that partially houses the typical AK stick battery. There’s plenty of room to hold a stick battery from 8.4V to 12V. Should your upgrades demand the 12V stick battery, the pack runs from the top of the gearbox into the front end of the gas tube.

INTERNALS
Moving on to the guts of the AEG, you’ll find a robust gearbox typical of the VFC brand. It is the 7mm gearbox version 3, obviously as it is an AK. In it you’ll find a vented piston head, though without bearings. Steel gears and what appears to be a chrome-plated metal cylinder. The sector gear has one advantage; it is already fitted with a sector gear chip. Though it is the round/circular type which is just so slightly less effective as the non-circular chips available. The gear set also has an unusual way of shimming the spur and sector gears. Instead of using multiple shims and multiple sizes, there is one pair of shims per gear – one per side – and a small spring to align the gears. The gears are paired to a set of black plastic bushings. This setup is working for VFC quite remarkably.

There are some things that would seem to be a drawback to some people. The piston, tappet plate and selector plate are made from plastic, though not the typical plastic we’re so used to seeing inside clone AEGs. These plastic parts appear to be a copy of the Angel Chopaya clear polycarbonate plastic. One thing to note about the plastic piston is that the 2nd tooth has already been taken out, or omitted is more like it. One plastic piece that isn’t of the same material as the other parts is the spring guide. It is of the non-bearing variety. The cylinder head is also made from the same material as the spring guide.
The motor on this particular sample did not have any markings to signify what kind of motor model it is. It is simply in a purple casing. The hopup appears to be similar to Marui hopups but is not interchangeable to the Marui and its clones. The feature of the gearbox that we were not able to investigate is the blowback feature. The blowback feature came to us with a broken arm. The arm is attached to the fake bolt on one end and to the spring inside on the other end.

PERFORMANCE
The Romanian AIMS is certainly one performer of an AEG, delivering an fps average of 336.1fps over a 10-shot string, and a rate of fire rating of 870 rounds per minute. The AIMS delivers a decent accuracy with a grouping of 12.2cm at 20 meters away.
The metal magazine, that comes with the AIMS is made of metal and plastic parts (internals), allows the delivery of 600 BBs downrange. The magazine with our sample had a slight problem that may appear to other AIMS. The sample had quite a considerable wobble front to back. The front lip of the magazine was loose allowing the wobble, though it did not affect the performance of the magazine.
TESTING
The AIMS is a delight to use. It isn’t designed for CQB but it is just as comfortable to use in close quarters as its little brother, the AKS74UN. The AIMS is, however, first and foremost a rifle and is best suited for medium engagements. The side folding stock is very rigid whether extended or folded. It gets the job done when extended, but it isn’t the most comfortable stock to use. The small-ish size of the stock end is barely enough to fit on an average shoulder. The iron sights is similar to any AK rifle we are so familiar in using. There is a side mount rail for attaching a picatinny rail for using optics, if iron sights isn’t the user’s cup of tea.

SUMMARY
The AIMS, much like any Kalashnikov, is simple and it gets the job done. It looks simple with an added bit of sexiness. The performance is decent when taken straight from the box. The blowback system could be better without adding more strain to the battery. When given the option between the VFC AIMS and any other Kalashnikov, you’d be hard pressed not to choose the AIMS.

RATINGS
Externals – 4.5/5
Internals – 4.5/5
Accessories – 3/5
Performance – 4/5
Testing – 4/5
Overall – 4 /5

THANKS
Thanks to King David Airsoft for the loan of the VFC AIMS used in this review.
1432 S. Butterfield Rd
Mundelein, IL 60060
http://www.kdairsoft.com
847-816-0820

[color=blue][b]Next review up: VFC SCARs Light and Heavy[/b][/color] >:D