Need Suggestions For My First Gun

[kalnaren]

There's another thing to consider. M16 and variants (M4's, etc) have V.2 mechboxes. G36's and AK's use V3 mechboxes. A v3 mechbox is stronger and generally more reliable than a V2 mechbox and slightly easier to work on.

The G36 series also comes apart really easily. You can do a barrel swap in a G36 in < 5 minutes. New hop-up? < 5 minutes. Take the entire mechbox out? < 5 minutes.

For a "first gun" I highly recommend a G36. For your budget I'd try and find a Classic Army one. Internal they're pretty good, but externally their bodies are excellent -probably second only to STAR/Ares for quality.

Originally Posted by Freeze

Warning if you get a G36...the fuse will pop out easily (if there is one) and don't use LiPo....my wires burnt and melted, yes, melted, after only about 6 or 7 uses of shooting targets at home....
However, I'm willing to bet that mine was a lemon since I don't think many other people managed to do what I did....

My CA36 has been going strong for years. If your wires melted you were using a battery that was WAY too powerful, a spring that was way too powerful, or had some binding issues going on and didn't fix it. Did you upgrade the wiring before upgrading the spring to 430? If not, that was probably your problem.

[ramdipam]

Well, i think G36 win ahah. Lot of people told me that G36 are better for beginer, cause they are easier to tune, customize and repair etc. And cause they got great internals, stronger internals etc.

I heard that VFC SCAR is hard to beat too. What about this gun ?

[kalnaren]

I don't know much about that model specifically. VFC makes good guns though.

[Hooobers]

VFCs are fantastic, but they are probably out of the $500 price range, especially if you buy new. I bought a VFC SR16 E3 10.5", beautiful externals and it works like a charm, but it was more than $500.

[Boyso]

If you are looking for alternatives, Cyma Thompson is a hell of a good gun. For 260$ shipped and 35$ for 5 mags, it's an amazing gun.

Won't require much money to keep it up to beat also.

Barely upgraded mine with a new spring guide and bushings and at 330 fps, it shoots laserz.

[kalnaren]

I HIGHLY recommend you try a thompson before you buy one. Some people (including myself) find it a very uncomfortable gun.

[Eeyore]

Cyma AK is one of those diamonds in the rough that comes along every so often.

[CJay]

Vfc is a bad idea. Yeah they are pretty but internal wise they seem to have a few really irritating proprietary parts. G36 are good but only if u get a decent brand. The src gen 4 guns are ok but still clearsoft. I'd shoot for a Tokyo marui in te g36 line. In terms of overall modification ability external and internal, a tm compatible m4 is still top of the pile. No difference in modification internally between m4/16 an g36. There are however more readily availlable parts for m4 though but not by much. External mods are far more readily availlable for m4 style guns whereas g36 have very few in comparison.

Stay away from any guns branded by echo1, jg, or kwa. Waste of time and money. Also avoid the classic army sportline version.

The newer g&g line (MAX) guns are fantastic but even then u shud downgrade the spring as soon as u get em. Ares are surprisingly good these days again provided u downgrade te spring. Ics are great guns but there are a couple of proprietary parts that can be a bitch to find.

Vfc are ok but I'm personally not a fan after having worked on a few of em. The scar is a terribly engineered beast and the m16/m4s are different internally than most other brands and therefore rather less modifiable than alot of other brands.

Absolutely stay away from ptw/ctw style guns. Biggest waste of time and money on the planet unless u buy one completely premodified. Wen then u better have a second gun to back it up when it breaks and believe me it will break...alot...and cost 10 times as much to fix...and piss off the repair guy.

If u can find a Tokyo marui then buy it no questions asked provided its in good condition.

Airsoft is unfortunately one of those games where u get what u pay for. U shud be spending about 500-600 bucks on a decent gun or ull be a bit disappointed. Even then ull be paying about 800-1000 for a full setup including good batteries magazines and gun.

There's a good reason airsofters are continually broke lol!!!!!

[kalnaren]

Originally Posted by CJay

G36 are good but only if u get a decent brand. The src gen 4 guns are ok but still clearsoft. I'd shoot for a Tokyo marui in te g36 line.

I have to disagree. A TM is definitely reliable, but externally a CA is FAR above the quality of the TM body. Fiber reinforced nylon > ABS plastic.

No difference in modification internally between m4/16 an g36.

V3 mechbox (G36) is similar but not identical to a V2 mechbox, and requires different parts. The G36 in particular, depending on the brand, requires certain unique parts (cylinder head for example). So yes, there is a difference.

Stay away from any guns branded by echo1, jg, or kwa.

I'd honestly take either of those over a TM G36. I've examined an Echo 1/JG G36 and the body is on par with TM. Internally it won't be quite as reliable but it's also 1/3 the price. For another $50 and a shim job it will shoot better than a TM. I own a KWA G36 and aside from a $15 cylinder head, it is by FAR the best shooting stock AEG I've ever owned. I threw a T/N barrel in mine for good measure and it out shoots my SL9.

Only downside to my KWA is the smoked body.. and the selector sticks a bit.

Most external accessories are made for TM, so you may have fitments issues with some.. but nothing some creative gunsmithing can't overcome. It's even worse with M4s.

Absolutely stay away from ptw/ctw style guns. Biggest waste of time and money on the planet unless u buy one completely premodified. Wen then u better have a second gun to back it up when it breaks and believe me it will break...alot...and cost 10 times as much to fix...and piss off the repair guy.

I have to agree here. I've seen more PTW's break down at games than any other brand. Especially when it rains.

Some guys love them and swear by them, and externally they can't be beat. Feel like the real deal in every way. I've just seen enough of them go down to never rely on one as my only gun.

If u can find a Tokyo marui then buy it no questions asked provided its in good condition.

Again, depends on price. If I had a choice between TM and CA/VFC, I'd take the CA/VFC any day. Unless it was an M14.

Airsoft is unfortunately one of those games where u get what u pay for. U shud be spending about 500-600 bucks on a decent gun or ull be a bit disappointed. Even then ull be paying about 800-1000 for a full setup including good batteries magazines and gun.

Used to be true. You can get a good gun now for less than that. Though I still think $1,000 is a good start for a capable kit.

[MMatersk]

I Swear by my VFC "Quake" M4, got it brand new for $530... Had it almost for a year shot the shit out of it over 15k worth of bb's... NOT a single misfire or jam. Although for the price now come to think of it id probably settle with a King Arms and mod the daylights out of it or pay a little more and go with a G&P. Like others said VFC is proprietry so not very customizable when it comes to internals over all very happy with the VFC

Go with a King Arms as others mentioned!
goodluck mate

[CJay]

Lol bud honestly the best advice is do ur own research. Check out reviews and read up and most importantly don't rush. As u can probs tell we all have differing opinions all colored by our experiences and when u get down to it all Airsoft guns are overglorified cheaply made clockwork toys.

And kilnaren I didn't mean to say v2 and v3 were the same just that it's just as easy to get v2 as it is to get v3 so sorry if I mistyped there lol.

[ramdipam]

For a SCAR, i am tempted for VFC.

For a G36 Serie, i am tempted for CA.

I'm not a fan of Tokyo Marui, due to the external. Also, note that i will prefer a full metal rifle (except for the G36). I both like these 2 models so much, so i can't take a decision. For sure i'll get the two, but i don't know which one first. I'm gonna read much review and wait for next opinion. I will take notes and maybe take a decision someday ahah. But thanks all for your help ! Anything else to add to this post is welcome, i think i still need advices from experimented airsofter !

[FreelancerInc]

i'm amazed noone has said this yet. DONT BUY A GUN YET!!! goto a game and ask permission to hold evey gun at the game, you will find one that feels awesome in your hands and will do what you want it to do. who knows you might goto your first game and find out you absolutly love how the m14 feels in your hands. thats how i decided to get a ca g36 as my first gun. i went to my first game held everyones gun and found that the g36 felt the best.

don't turn this into a ptw vs aeg thread, each has there pros and cons. and rain on your ptw is like rain on your cellphone, if you know what your doing you wont wreck either one. there are 14+ ptws on the team i play with and over this season we had 2 motors that were 3 years old go down on us and that was all.

as for AEGs each brand has there pros and cons. everyone will give you there opinion and its just that. my opinion is this stick to TM and there clones. why? because there are millions of parts for them. they are interchangible ect ect. as for m4/m16 vs g36 i think that the g36 is easier to work on but has fewer parts then the m4/m16. HOWEVER, there are still millions of parts for both.

[ramdipam]

I already held a M4, for a long time (cheap one, kinda wal-mart gun lol) but i'm very comfortable with. I customized it a lot, even if its cheap.

But i always loved SCAR and G36. I want to own an other model of gun than M4. Maybe i'll get a M4 finally, but for sure i would like to test and hold a G36 and a SCAR before. I'll try to go at a game first, maybe i'll find some answer to my questions, and finally fall in love with a gun, who know !?

Thanks for the advice bud !

[FreelancerInc]

lol as long as the m4 you held wasn't a clearsoft then ok....but do remember the good airsoft guns are almost 1:1 ratio with the real ones, clearsofts might be .75:1 at very best lol.

also, in my biased opinion g36s are better because they weight less lol and if you play 24hrs straight u'd notice the difference lol