Newbie FAQ (updated 10/29/08)

[harrisonladd]

Thank you so much for this thread, I didnt know all the gear i should wear and now i have a good idea.

[Gozjh]

Thanks for the info about gear! Could you add a MilSim section to the events section? It would be very helpful. Thanks!

[Bevr]

I have a question, what is the diffrence between picatinny rails and weaver rails?

Sorry that I had to post here.

[Zorak]

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Picatinny_rail

The only differences between the Picatinny rail and the similar Weaver rail are the size of these slots and the fact that they are standardized. Weaver rails have a slot width of 0.180 in (4.57 mm), but are not necessarily consistent in the spacing of slot centers.[3] Some accessories are designed to fit on both Weaver and Picatinny rails; but most Picatinny devices will not fit on Weaver rails.

[Bevr]

Thanks, Zorak. ;D

[lurche]

Thank you for posting this, I read the entire article. Your information is well presented.

I had many questions, and your information answers most of them. I will continue to search the forum to learn more.

[arcticgator]

I am new to this, tank sent me. Found this extremely informative, and it answered a lot of questions i had.

[Zorak]

Jan 29, 2013 16:13:45 GMT -5 arcticgator said:

Im a noob, tank sent me, i found this extremely informative

Welcome aboard, arcticgator. Please take a moment to review the forum rules here, especially rule 7.

Feb 17, 2003 23:05:01 GMT -5 Hadoken said:

7 - Please use proper grammar and punctuation.

[Knief]

I hope you find this section also extremely informative:

miairsoft.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=rules

[Vic (Rattlehead)]

I'm a mag-fed paintballer(yeah, not a lot of games for that), and am trying to get into airsoft because of the higher availability of airsoft games, and the more realistic price of airsoft guns(replicas, as politically correct as it is, I hate that term). I love paintball, but I hate hoppers and air tanks(that's why I bought a Tiberius Arms T9.1), and unfortunately, mag fed games are far and wide apart. I figure, in airsoft, even if there are high cap mags, the guns look better without costing a fortune.

Anyhow, I went off topic there, but my point is I read this article and I thought it was very informative! Doesn't mean much from someone who JUST joined the forum I suppose, but what the hell.

By the way, I would appreciate it if no one would flame me for liking paintball. I'm not one to argue which one is better, so please.

[Knief]

Are you kidding? You're the person that this article is meant for, so it means a lot that you found it informative. If it doesn't help new guys then it's not worth having up.

As for the paintball thing, you won't catch any flak here for it. There's no more or less inherent worth in that hobby than ours, and many players either started with paintball or still play. The little rivalry that seems to exist between the two is beyond petty and the community at large here realizes that.

[Vic (Rattlehead)]

Jul 15, 2013 11:57:40 GMT -5 Knief said:

Are you kidding? You're the person that this article is meant for, so it means a lot that you found it informative. If it doesn't help new guys then it's not worth having up.

As for the paintball thing, you won't catch any flak here for it. There's no more or less inherent worth in that hobby than ours, and many players either started with paintball or still play. The little rivalry that seems to exist between the two is beyond petty and the community at large here realizes that.

Well thank you for the support! I've been lurking on the forums for a while now, and I've been seeing your name pop up many places, so I take it you're one of the well known airsofters in Michigan. Could you reference me to an introduction thread? I looked for one to no avail, was wondering if there even is one at all!

And as for the paintball thing, yeah it seems YouTube is where most people tend to create a war out of two similar yet different sports. I don't like to support either side because I like paintball for certain reasons, but also appreciate airsoft for other reasons(keyword "appreciate", since I'm just starting).

Also, I don't know if this really applies to this thread in particular, but one of the other things I'm worried about is I see so many airsofters who are full-milsim, helmets and comms and all that stuf. I do have full camo gear, MOLLE vest etc., but I don't have any form of Comms, I don't have a helmet, NVG, an EOTech or anything like that, so it is a bit intimidating. Is the general airsoft crowd open to walk-on players by themselves, especially noobies like me? I do play paintball, but I haven't played much so my experience is not much to speak of. I do play a lot of Battlefield 3, if that means anything haha

[Knief]

We actually don't have an introduction thread, but if you'd like to make an introduction post you can start a thread in the Newbie section.

We love new players, particularly at Rec games. You might not want to start out at a milsim game, as they tend to be a bit less forgiving and don't give you nearly as much time to learn the basics. But rec games are a great place to get your feet wet and meet people. If you're in the South East Michigan area, the Suicide Kings put on great games at No Limits/Action Paintball in Taylor about once a month. We just played there yesterday (had about 144 players show up), so the next game should be in the middle of August.

All you really need is a gun, a proper set of goggles, and some sense. Camo helps you look the part and some gear helps you carry what you need on you, so that's a good start. While you don't need comms, and they're often not utilized at Rec games, they're actually really useful in team performance. Even if you just grab yourself a cheap Motorola Talkabout, you'll be set for 99% of games here. It's not an essential piece of gear for today, but as soon as you have the spare cash, go for it. I would buy a radio before I bought a pistol.

[Vic (Rattlehead)]

Jul 15, 2013 15:18:48 GMT -5 Knief said:

I would buy a radio before I bought a pistol.

I already bought a pistol haha Elite Force 1911 TAC. Was a good deal on eBay, couldn't resist!

Also, thanks for the heads up on the introductions thing. I'll go set one up sometime in the next week. It's only unfortunate that I'll be gone for a month in about 2 weeks, going to visit my parents in Canada, so I'll probably miss that Suicide Kings rec game.

Actually, could I get some clarification on that? What's the difference between a rec game and a milsim op? As far as I'm concerned, rec games are basically the equivalent of an FPS "team deathmatch", and milsim can be more objective oriented, but am I right? Is that it?

[Knief]

Well, yes and no. Rec games are typically a bunch of smaller games, anywhere from 30 minutes to 60 minutes long. They often have objectives, but they're relatively simple and involve almost all direct force on force action. Milsim games tend to be one continuous game the entire day, usually with a break for lunch, and it has complex objectives that may or may not involve direct force on force action. Milsim games may sometimes have role players and rules of engagement other than "shoot e'rybody."

At a milsim game I ran a while back, one team had to package sand in bags and deliver a certain amount of that sand, weighed with a scale, to designated points around the field at specific times (simulating drug manufacturing and delivering). Both teams had to do full scale construction of a Forward Operation Base and a Drug Lab using pre-cut and pre-drilled lumber. You won't see that type of thing at a rec game.