New to Airsoft

[Loaye]

Hi, I'm new to airsoft, and was wondering where to start. I just need some type of push in a direction, so I know what to do. I love CQB, some of my buddies went to CQT to check it out and absolutely loved it. So any recommendations for a smaller type gun that could function in close-quarters and outdoor? The other thing is that the type of pistol. I know I want to get a GBB of some type, but don't really know where to start on that with all the brands/makers out there. I would love mid-range guns, not to cheap so they break, or too expensive and have to pay some un-godly amount. Any help in any type of direction of what's recommended would be nice...Thanks.

[Knief]

Welcome to the boards, loaye.

I hate to say it, but your question doesn't really have a straight answer. There are so many guns on the market made by so many different companies, all with so many positive and negative attributes that narrowing it down to any one gun based on your criteria (not to mention personal tastes in aesthetics and ergonomics) is all but impossible. We can get you on your way to making your own choices, though. For a start, you'll want to read every stick at the top of the Newbie section here, especially this one:

miairsoft.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=newb&action=display&thread=18703

And this one is in the AEG section, but also a good read if you're new to AEGs:

miairsoft.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=aeg&action=display&thread=14657

But don't just read those two. Really, read them all. I promise you that there's more in those stickies than you think, and after you've read through them you'll have a much better grasp on the basics of airsoft. Once you've done that, the best way to get an idea of what's out there is just to browse the major Hong Kong retailers. I like www.wgcshop.com, www.redwolfairsoft.com, www.uncompany.com and www.ehobbyasia.com. If you can't find a gun there, it probably doesn't exist.

From there, just get an idea of what kind of gun you like. What do you see yourself holding? What looks good to you? Hell, what looks the best in your favorite movie? You're going to be carrying the gun, not us, so it's more important that you get something that you like.

All the same advice above applies to GBBs as well. The only difference is, there are fewer quality brands available. TM and KSC are really the best there is. If you have way too much money, you can get a WA, which are also great but over priced for anything but a collector. After those, KWA is solid and KJW for the most part isn't too far behind given the cost (fair warning, some of their older models like the USP are pretty bad).

[Loaye]

I read the things you recommended and some more that I found on the forum. Just one big question, since I love CQB type games; will a gun with 350FPS transition from indoor to outdoor play easily. Or will the gun need upgrades and downgrades in order to play in both type of scenarios?

[Loaye]

Oh, and wanted to thank you for all of the things you recommended, took my airsoft knowledge from little to much more. Now actually understand acronyms and such.

[sunshine]

Oct 10, 2011 22:24:04 GMT -5 Loaye said:

Oh, and wanted to thank you for all of the things you recommended, took my airsoft knowledge from little to much more. Now actually understand acronyms and such.

Answer is yes, the FPS doesn't effect the distance your rifle can shoot out to so much as the hop up would or the type of barrel you have. I use my CQB rifle for outdoor games and wouldn't have it any other way.

[Knief]

As for barrell you can buy a barrel extender which is very helpful and a nice thing is most G&G guns come with a built in TBB (Tight Bore Barrell) which will allow for greater accuracy.

But WE also makes a solid pistol.

Please please please know what the hell you're talking about before you start talking. Some G&Gs come with tight bore barrels, the full metal line. The cheaper plastic series do not come with tight bore barrels. This is an important distinction to make, lest loaye or some other new player read your post and think that any G&G they get is likely to have a tight bore. As for a barrel extender, in what way is that helpful or nice? It's an aesthetic option for sure, but there's no reason to recommend one over say, a new pistol grip, a different foregrip, a different stock and so on. If what you mean is, you can run a longer barrel through a mock silencer, then say that. Talking about barrel extenders in vague terms of "nice" and "helpful" is as uninformative as you can be. Comments like that do more to confuse new players than help them.

Lastly, WE's pistols are mediocre at best, if you're lucky and get one that fail within a month or or two. They're full metal and cheap, and that's about all they have going for them. They're unreliable, finicky, underwhelming performance wise, suffer terrible cool down and have poor fit and finish. They're hardly "solid."

[edit] The above quote was written by user Justified, who then deleted it. Just for the sake of clarification and all.

[Myers]

Lastly, WE's pistols are mediocre at best, if you're lucky and get one that fail within a month or or two. They're full metal and cheap, and that's about all they have going for them. They're unreliable, finicky, underwhelming performance wise, suffer terrible cool down and have poor fit and finish. They're hardly "solid."

I'd have to disagree with you on that Knief. I know that your going to get a much better GBB with a WA, but I had a WE 1911 for about a year and I loved it. It had great accuracy with the stock barrel and hop up, and it felt very solid in your hands. I put a ton of rounds through it as well, it was so dang fun to shoot. Probably the majority of the rounds put through it were just plinking around in my basement, because I just couldn't put it down. The blowback has a nice kick as well. My only complaint was the slide was a little bit loose. I wish I never would have sold it, but I didn't use it nearly enough in-game to justify carrying a sidearm.

As for a good starter AEG, you can't go wrong with the G&G Combat Machines. Just get one, you won't be disappointed. The G&G Combat Machines are MUCH better than all the clones around the same price range. They have full G&G internals, so they're identical to their pro-line, minus the metal body. And honestly, the plastic bodies on the Combat Machines are very solid.

[Knief]

I own a WE MEU, along with a number of other GBBs to compare it to, including KJW, TM, KSC, KWA and WA. The WE is by far the worst of the set, aside from a very old KWA, which I bought broken with the hopes of fixing and that has the problems many old KWAs had. Everything I've said about WE stands. They're just not very good.

[Loaye]

Ok, I don't know if I am suppose to re-post this in this area or make a new subject, so i'll just put it here for right now(Please let me know for future references). I have two questions regarding a gun. I found the gun I wanted(G&G Combat Machine 16 Raider on Evike.com), so question one: The whole camo thing, does it really matter? I don't really care about the color of the gun, was just going to get all black, but then saw all different types of things on the forums about camo, and what people have done to their guns. Just confused on that topic, and second question is the battery. Since it doesn't come with a battery and have to buy it, recommends a 9.6v small butterfly type. I read some place else if you want to upgrade your battery from 8.4 to 9.6 that you might have to change wiring in the gun. Is that true? or can you just basically plug-in play with them? Thanks guys.

EDIT:
Sorry didn't see the modify thing.
So is it better to buy a bit more expensive? My thoughts were that I'd buy a decent priced gun, to see if I enjoy the sport before going all out, and get top of line stuff. Or am I going about this all wrong?
(Is this right? As in what I am suppose to do for the modify?)

EDIT 2:
Alright thanks guys, I'll continue to look around for the gun/accessories. Due to family being a Law/Military based, I'm set on some BDU's and ACU's. Just need to get some type of vest, so thanks for all the tips, I can take that money and invest more into the gun itself.

One last question though, not meaning to bug you guys. At this point is a sidearm essential?

[Gimpalong]

Having owned two WE 1911, I've never encountered any internal problems. The fit and finish of the pistols, however, is atrocious. The slide on my current pistol wobbles and clatters around with just the smallest shake. Of the four magazines I own (WE magazines) one of them is too fat to even insert fully into the magazine well.

On topic:

The cheap and simple choice is, of course, the G&G plastica series. Everyone raves about these based on their decent performance at such a low cost.

If you have $250-$350 to throw around, I recommend looking at G&P ARs. The most recent models have solid gearboxes combined with pretty much the best externals (barring Systema, maybe) I've yet seen on an AEG. In the past I've owned TM, ICS, KWA and CA ARs and my G&Ps (M4A1 and M733) equal or surpass them all on differing levels in terms of reliability and appearance. While my G&P M733 might not be as reliable as my old TM M733, it looks and feels quite a bit better and should something go wrong internally, replacement parts are easy to find and install.

Mind you, you'll need to look at overseas retailers (Ehobby Asia and Airsoft Global stock many G&P rifles).


edit: response to the above post:

The color of the gun is a matter of personal preference. Black is pretty standard. Many people spray paint their own rifles (tan, flat dark earth, brown, etc) to fit their taste. Pick whichever color you like.

9.6v batteries are pretty standard and should work in a Combat Machine with no troubles. No need to upgrade the wiring.

I would caution about ordering from Evike. They are a notoriously bad retailer.

[Knief]

You should probably just get a black gun. Those polymer bodies in other colors always look like crap in person. If you get the gun and want it tan, a good paint job will look far better than a body manufactured with tan polymer.

As for a battery, you certainly don't need to rewire it to run a 9.6v. Most folks these days run 9.6v batteries in their guns if they're not using lipos. The old "8.4vs are safer" line of though died out long ago, and for good reason. A 9.6v doesn't put enough stress on a gearbox with its extra speed, especially one running a 350ish spring, to offset the advantages of the extra voltage.

Buy your battery either from an R/C car site or www.cheapbatterypacks.com (or its subsidiary http://www.eliteairsoftbatteries.com). Airsoft sites sell bad batteries at a huge mark up because most new and casual players won't take the time to research batteries on their own. You can get better batteries made from better cells for cheap, even accounting for shipping, from just about anywhere else that sells batteries. Depending on your model, you likely either store the battery in a crane stock or the foregrip. If it's the former, I'd go with this battery. If it's the latter, then this is probably your best bet.

If, for some reason you don't want to order from EAB, know that your crane stock cannot accommodate sub-c cells. A cells are the largest G&G crane stocks can hold. For your foregrip, there's a bit more variation depending on the capacity you're looking for. But a 9.6v battery in a cell that's thicker than a AA is going to be a squeeze. You can use 2/3A cells (why?) but not in a nun-chuck configuration. The two I linked give you just about the best capacity you'll find in a size that fits.

[edit] This conversation is moving too fast for us all!

How much you want to invest in this hobby is up to you. For me, I would buy the G&P or a full metal G&G (I'd go G&P right now, because as Gimpalong said, they're absolutely gorgeous and shoot very well, though they're maybe just a touch less reliable than G&G) rather than buy a cheaper gun now and a more expensive gun later. AEGs are easy to sell, and most of the time, assuming you kept it in decent condition, you're looking at a 66%-75% return, sometimes more. If you find that you really hate airsoft, then you can always sell your higher quality replica.

But there are other things to consider as well. If money is tight, you need to make sure you leave funds for some essentials. You absolutely must have a set of full seal goggles that meet or exceed ANSI Z87.1 2003 standards, and you're better off buying good goggles over shitty goggles. There's nothing worse than not being able to see anything in the middle of a game. On top of that, you'll need bbs, a battery or two, a good smart charger (again, buy from an R/C or hobby store for the best price on a good charger), spare mags (don't get hicaps), something to carry those mags, and good boots (your feet with thank me). Camo is a good idea too, if you want to look and feel the part instead of just paying tag with guns. All of that costs money, and you need to factor it into your budget. If you can stretch it to accommodate a better gun, then I would. If you can't, then maybe the cheaper option is the way to go now. That's a choice that you have to make looking at your personal finances and how much you want to piss off your girlfriend/wife/mommy.

[Gimpalong]

Loaye,

So is it better to buy a bit more expensive? My thoughts were that I'd buy a decent priced gun, to see if I enjoy the sport before going all out, and get top of line stuff. Or am I going about this all wrong?

My view is that you should estimate the amount of money you want to spend on your gun, accessories (battery, magazines, etc) and gear (load bearing equipment, plate carrier, camouflage) and then take that amount and devote a bit extra to the gun itself.

So if you're initially planning on spending $200 on the gun, and $200 on gear and accessories, I suggest spending $300 on the gun and scrimping on gear and accessories. Aside from batteries and good eye-protection, you don't absolutely need a plate carrier, mid-cap magazines or even camouflage right away. These are items you can pick up as you play more. Investing in a good gun, however, is always a good decision. Additionally, if you wait to buy your gear and other accessories you'll have time to figure out "what works for you," get a little experience under your belt and decide whether or not you feel like committing on a higher financial level.

Just remember, all you need to play is:

Eye protection
AEG
hi-cap magazine (yes, serious airsofters hate these, but they work fine in the short term)
decent smart charger
batteries
Random clothes you already own for a "contractor"/"rebel" look.

[Loaye]

Why is Evike.com bad?

[justified]

Just bad customer service and their system is not very good. You can very easily get a back ordered item. But make sure if you order from them you take advantage of their holy cow specials. www.evike.com/product_info.php?products_id=33011 if you get that G&G here is one that works for you.

[Loaye]

I know you guys said G&G and G&P are great and KWA is good. I found some guns that I absolutely love, maybe you guys can tell me a little bit more about them. Oh some are over 380FPS how would you make it to be at or under 350FPS?
shop.ehobbyasia.com/aeg/kwa-taiwan/kwa-m4a1-cqb-airsoft-aeg-marine.html
shop.ehobbyasia.com/aeg/g-p-hong-kong/gandp-sentry-airsoft-aeg-black.html
(The sentry gun is at top of price range, I just don't want to be spending tons on first gun)
shop.ehobbyasia.com/aeg/g-p-hong-kong/gandp-m4-eod-airsoft-aeg.html

EDIT:
Also, what do you do for out of stock things? Do you wait or email them?