ICS will finally be releasing its SIG 552 AEG next month. It will feature stamped steel upper receiver with diecast aluminum lower receiver. The quick takedown upper receiver can be disassembled with just the removal of a body pin and press of a button. The mechbox can then be removed with the removal of one additional body pin and the mode selection lever. The bolt mechanism also features full length retraction, unlike the other SIG 552 AEGs in the market. No pricing information is available at this time. Pictures can be found at ARMS-COOL.

ICS is also readying its L86 AEG, following its success with the earlier L85A2 release. No pricing nor release date has been confirmed yet. Pictures can be found at ARMS-COOL as well.

Lastly but not the least, WE is releasing its gas blowback entry of M4A1 this month. MSRP is NTD 8,500, or roughly US $257. The system appears to be based on the ESCORT design, so it will unlikely be compatible with the WA and Inokatsu components.

At the 2008 Tokyo Hobby Show, Tokyo Marui has unveiled its next product featuring the "Shoot & Recoil Engine," which was first featured in its AK74MN AEG. The new SOPMOD M4 features full metal aluminum diecast upper and lower receivers, following the trend set after Tokyo Marui's first full metal AEG release with the Type-89. It is clear that Tokyo Marui is serious in competing with the full metal AEG offerings from other manufacturers.

The new M4 series specific V2 mechbox has the entire compression mechanism shifted backwards to allow the use of the new full length "real size" magazines (82 round capacity for standard, and 430 round capacity for high capacity). It is quite evident with the extra long nozzle being used. This allows the magazines to sit directly below the hop-up chamber and feed every single round into the system. Traditional hop-up unit designs with integrated feed tube always wasted 3 to 4 BBs per magazine load. Backwards compatibility with the current AEG magazines is likely non-existent though without some sort of an adapter.

With the gear spacing, it is quite plausible that the new mechbox uses the same gear set from the other AEGs featuring the recoil system. So upgradeability will be limited for some foreseeable time with the lack of aftermarket parts.

Furthermore, the mechbox is integrated with the stock tube due to the design of the recoil system. A long weight piece is placed inside to the stock tube to simulate recoil. As such, an adjustable crane stock is used for housing the battery pack. The new battery pack features cableless direct connection. The design is likely similar to Tokyo Marui's microAEG offerings with the use of a proprietary connector. This also means the use of aftermarket battery cells would require a connector transplant.



One notable feature of the new AEG is the functional bolt catch. Apparently the system will cut off power after the last round has been fired. The feature is probably limited to the standard capacity magazines though. Due to the design of high capacity magazines, such function is likely difficult to implement.

The SOPMOD M4 is currently scheduled for release at the end of the year. No MSRP has been posted yet. More photos of the SOPMOD M4 can be found at L.A.GUNSHOP's blog page and Hyper Douraku.

WGC sent in more photos of the VFC EGLM prototype. Supposedly the launcher is now about 95% complete. The MK13 standalone module is still missing some details, and the modular leaf sight is still in the works. From the photos, we can see the trigger units for the standalone module, SCAR-L, and SCAR-H. Hopefully all of the trigger units are included, or are available for purchase separately. It would be pointless to have the modular trigger units if they could only be purchased with a specific launcher model.