Help choosing my first AEG please (Double Eagle M9XXX) :)

[Coupsty]

I've spent weeks researching what to get as my first AEG and after running out of resources to read, I thought what better than to post here for more in depth advice.

So where I'm up to so far. I've come to the conclusion that I want to get one of Double Eagles M90XX or M91XX models. I'm aware that they all have basically the same internals apart from the length of barrel and that the main difference comes in what they're made of/ their shape etc. With it being my first gun and only having played a handful of times, I don't really understand how different parts impact how the gun performs but I saw a post saying that getting an inner barrel length of over 300mm would have a poor air volume because they all use a 3/4 cylinder. I don't know what any of that means and it's just one guy who said it.

I get my UKARA number after this weekend so I've been looking at what's in stock where and choosing from them.

There's 3 on Patrol base:

https://www.patrolbase.co.uk/double-eagle-m904l-fire-control-system-edition

https://www.patrolbase.co.uk/double-eagle-m916b-utr556-long-metal-handguard-version

https://www.patrolbase.co.uk/double-eagle-m918g-utr-ek47-w-falcon-fire-control-system

and on BB guns for less:

https://bbguns4less.co.uk/products/double-eagle-m904a-honey-badger-rifle-with-falcon-system-in-black.html

https://bbguns4less.co.uk/products/double-eagle-m906c-ar15-rifle-with-falcon-system-in-black.html

https://bbguns4less.co.uk/products/double-eagle-m907d-ar15-rifle-with-falcon-system-in-black.html

https://bbguns4less.co.uk/products/double-eagle-m908a-ar15-rifle-with-falcon-system-in-black.html

That's where I'm at, have chosen to go for a double eagle because of the falcon fire system and I like the look of the guns (a bit m4 but a "different" look). I'll generally be playing outdoors and like moving around quite a bit in my playstyle. I know that the 904's are full polymer but don't know the changes until 908 where they're full metal.

Any words of wisdom will be massively appreciated. I know that the most likely advice will be to go for what I like the look of and whether I want to spend more on full metal or less on polymer but I've looked for so long that I just need a fresh set of eyes because I've ran out of resources XD

Thank you!

 

[RostokMcSpoons]

Nah, don't buy a Double Eagle, they're over-hyped shit ?

(That's just a little in-house joke there, I'm one of the resident fan-bois... they're great value guns!)

I've got a 906C.  It's a short carbine size all-metal gun.  The numbering system is a little confusing, I think there is an explanation in one of the threads, but basically you'll need to double check against the particular specification to ensure you'll get a metal handguard, if that's what you're after, as even the higher numbers can have polymer handguards in some instances.  

So the other main difference between the 904/6/7/8 are in the style of the stock.  The 908 gets a crane style stock that can take a nunchuck battery.  That's useful, I charged mine for a PTS EPS crane stock which cost me a good few quid, so any extra cost of the 908 can be justified.

I've had a few beers and it's late, I'll post again tomorrow ?

 

[EDcase]

First off, Welcome ??

(Sniped by Rostok ?)

The Double Eagles are well regarded by many members here (I don't have one) so any of them is probably a good choice.

Someone with more experience with them will likely comment further but I believe its really down to your personal choice for the look and metal vs polymer.

Longer shooters are less suited to the sneaking around play style but it can still be fun.

Longer barrels can be beneficial over much shorter ones but only up to a certain point so don't let that influence you too much.

Ideally you want to visit a shop to handle a few different things to feel the difference between metal and poly.

Keep around £100 for LiPo batteries and a decent charger. (Several threads about choosing batteries and chargers)

And the eyepro, boots, camo, pouches, mags, vest, sidearm, holster, smokes, grenades, BBs ........ ?

Found THIS thorough video testing barrel length.  Still inconclusive...

 

[Egon_247]

Welcome to the madhouse. ?

I have the honey badger m904g. It's awesome. 

It's my first AEG and you can't go too far wrong with it. I've added parts, tuned it, removed parts, got a pat on the head from Kevin at Q in the states (original designer of the honey badger and all round nice bloke) too.

Learn the steps to program it and it's a hoot. ?

I've added: battery box extension, maple leaf bucking, +50mm tight bore, gearbox shimmed and greased, paint job, go faster motor.

I've messed with springs and managed to lock the gearbox ARL (anti reverse latch) and it still came back for more.

Currently just under 1 joule on 0.28's.

I love it.

View attachment 108636

 

[Rogerborg]

Ahoy, and welcome.

You've rather spoiled our fun, as now we can't belittle and mock your choice and say "Just get a Double Eagle M9XX!".

I know that the most likely advice will be to go for what I like the look of and whether I want to spend more on full metal or less on polymer

Well, it's solid advice.  They'll all perform much the same (don't make me break out the meme...) so there are few technical considerations other than battery space (but that's just a case of buying more and smaller rather than fewer and bigger) or the AK mags on the M918G.  You can make anything work.

Whatever gives you hardest PP when you think about slinging BB really is the right choice for you.

Have you had a chance to handle both plastic and metal bodied guns?

Oh, top tip, if do go with BBgnuz4less, put whatever you want in your basket, then leave it for 24 hours and you might get sent a 5% discount code.

 

[Krisz]

I've spent weeks researching what to get as my first AEG and after running out of resources to read, I thought what better than to post here for more in depth advice.

So where I'm up to so far. I've come to the conclusion that I want to get one of Double Eagles M90XX or M91XX models. I'm aware that they all have basically the same internals apart from the length of barrel and that the main difference comes in what they're made of/ their shape etc. With it being my first gun and only having played a handful of times, I don't really understand how different parts impact how the gun performs but I saw a post saying that getting an inner barrel length of over 300mm would have a poor air volume because they all use a 3/4 cylinder. I don't know what any of that means and it's just one guy who said it.

I get my UKARA number after this weekend so I've been looking at what's in stock where and choosing from them.

There's 3 on Patrol base:

https://www.patrolbase.co.uk/double-eagle-m904l-fire-control-system-edition

https://www.patrolbase.co.uk/double-eagle-m916b-utr556-long-metal-handguard-version

https://www.patrolbase.co.uk/double-eagle-m918g-utr-ek47-w-falcon-fire-control-system

and on BB guns for less:

https://bbguns4less.co.uk/products/double-eagle-m904a-honey-badger-rifle-with-falcon-system-in-black.html

https://bbguns4less.co.uk/products/double-eagle-m906c-ar15-rifle-with-falcon-system-in-black.html

https://bbguns4less.co.uk/products/double-eagle-m907d-ar15-rifle-with-falcon-system-in-black.html

https://bbguns4less.co.uk/products/double-eagle-m908a-ar15-rifle-with-falcon-system-in-black.html

That's where I'm at, have chosen to go for a double eagle because of the falcon fire system and I like the look of the guns (a bit m4 but a "different" look). I'll generally be playing outdoors and like moving around quite a bit in my playstyle. I know that the 904's are full polymer but don't know the changes until 908 where they're full metal.

Any words of wisdom will be massively appreciated. I know that the most likely advice will be to go for what I like the look of and whether I want to spend more on full metal or less on polymer but I've looked for so long that I just need a fresh set of eyes because I've ran out of resources XD

Thank you!

I'd advise against that M904L type stock it's extremely easy to lose that battery extension. The plastic piece is barely hold by two tiny tabs. Fell off on my first game I was lucky I played indoor and I found it...

Internally all of them the same. If you fancy an UMP style gun M917C could be at least a bit more unique choice.

 

[RostokMcSpoons]

Here's a couple of recent pics of me with my beloved 906C ...

View attachment 104076 View attachment 104366

Changed the stock, as mentioned previously, and added various red dot and LPVO sights, a stubby foregrip, and a suppressor for Tacti-Coolness.

I use Lonex flash mags because I hate winding high caps, but they sometimes unwind slightly on insertion.  Still worth it though.

I have a Titan 11.1v 3000mAH in the stock.  I have a heavy trigger finger so that lasts me most of a day.  (There's a separate discussion about that elsewhere... My gun might need a tweak or a re-lube as it shouldn't be that hard on the battery)

I changed the hop rubber and nub for a Maple Leaf Macaron 50deg plus Omega nub.  That's a fairly standard way to improve any AEGs accuracy, I found it didn't seem to make any difference from the out of the box accuracy tbh, but I'm delighted with the long range performance of the gun to this day ?

Typically I run 0.28g BB's, but I've run a full bottle of 0.32s through it with good results on a windy day.  So that hop system is working pretty well for me.  Others may recommend changing in a ZCI unit, but I'd see how you go first.

The one thing you'll need to change fairly early on is the spring.  The standard one seems to lose its mojo quite quickly.  Easily done thanks to the quick change system, and an M105 spring costs only £10-15

Job done!

 

[Fatboy40]

Adding to the above it's the M906C all the way from the seven you've listed. Out of the box it's very good for the money, however do be careful with the following (for all Double Eagles with the Falcon controller)...

- Using a heavy amount of full auto is not great, the motor will get very hot / you'll use a lot of battery capacity / the Falcon controller can fail due to it. Set the full auto to a three round burst and increase the life of your rifle, plus most places that allow full auto usually want players to stick to short bursts and not overshoot other players.

- The Falcon controller doesn't have great battery management, so you 100% must remember to disconnected any batteries after playing.

Some good points about the M906C...

- It has a 230mm inner barrel, so perfect to swap out with a Maple Leaf AEG 230mm inner barrel.

- Add an MR bucking and Omega nub to the above inner barrel and you have an "out of the box" R-Hop (what this means is that you'll be able to shoot heavier BB's like 0.32g or 0.30g and get amazing range.

- A Maxx Model M4A-PRO hop unit fits perfectly (FYI the Retro Arms CNC hop unit does not fit, it's too long). Also if using a Maxx hop unit you'll need to swap to a 21.25mm Maxx nozzle as well.

- The quick change spring is easy to swap out, and you'll get better power from the right spring (the springs as standard in the DE M900's aren't that good). Go to https://www.ak2m4.co.uk/ and get an XT M100 spring which will take you close to around 345 FPS on 0.20g, and if you go with heavy BB's the M105 is spot on.

- Swap to a PTS EPS stock on the rifle and you can fit in absolutely any battery you'd ever want to.

Bottom line is that out of the box they're very good, but with a few careful upgrades you can have a rifle shooting 0.32g BB's out for a massive distance and get other players who can't get you but at the same time be within the limit to shoot someone a meter or two away / CQB.

 

[Coupsty]

Nice one  Thanks for all the comments.

Read them all over and over again and think I'm going with the m906c. The only reason that one didn't appeal to me as some of the others was that I generally prefer the look of the longer ones and the idea that a longer barrel might allow me more space to play around with where attachments would go along the hand rail.

For that price though, finding out that it has an all metal build has sold it to me (and will sell it to me when I my UKARA number finally comes through.)

I'll have to look into batteries and whatever else now but if anyone feels like just telling me what batteries and other bits to get then I'll be super grateful as I've spent more than long enough looking at Airsoft guns for my brain to handle. I've already bought the other gear (camo, eye pro etc).

Since my last club day on Sunday, I cant wait to have my own gun. The rentals are all over the place with something being broken on every gun I've used. I can't wait to have my own

I will probably just copy the exact upgrades everyone has suggested.

Thanks again! Just out of curiosity are the 907d and 908a also full metal? I just love the length of the barrel in the pics. I have an internal battle going on. Go for the shorter gun which suits my love for getting in close and having a lot of manoeuvrability vs the longer barrels which I like the aesthetic XD

I've been going over this in my head for DAYS!

 

[Rogerborg]

I'll hold off on battery recommendations in favour of someone who's got that exact model.  Charger, we're liking the SkyRC S65, which is overkill for airsoft, but there's not much between that and the sub-£20 "smart" (i.e. dumb) chargers that are rolling dice with your batteries and fire insurance.

There's enough room on the 906C to add a grip, torch, PEQ box, and all the other stuff that you don't need.  If you end up with length anxiety, you can sling a silencer or tracer-silencer on.

That said, life should be lived without regrets, and if you fancy the aesthetics of any of the longer ones, they'll all work.  Follow your heart, and all that hippy jazz.

 

[Dan Robinson]

For reference, here is my 904 with it's current attachments.  Different stock to yours, so batteries will be different. 

View attachment 108779

 

[RostokMcSpoons]

Thanks again! Just out of curiosity are the 907d and 908a also full metal? I just love the length of the barrel in the pics. I have an internal battle going on. Go for the shorter gun which suits my love for getting in close and having a lot of manoeuvrability vs the longer barrels which I like the aesthetic XD

I've been going over this in my head for DAYS!

Yes the 908a would be an excellent choice if you really want the long handguard look... It is metal.

(You can make a 906 look a lot longer just with a chonky suppressor.. they look cool regardless, so you might find yourself wanting to add one to a longer gun too)

For the £230 you'll also get the crane stock which will take nunchuck batteries, and which adds some value too, in my opinion

https://bbguns4less.co.uk/products/double-eagle-m908a-ar15-rifle-with-falcon-system-in-black.html

 

[Coupsty]

Thank you all so much for your advice. Never found a forum so full of knowledge and genuinely helpful information. I've decided to go for the M908A, simply because I like the length of the handrail as my first gun and everyone said that at the end of the day, just go for what you like the look of. Knowing that the stock will hold the bigger capacity batteries from the get go is a huge plus so thank you Rostok for that info.

Thanks to Rogerborg I know to go for the SkyRC S65 as a battery charger.

Can anyone recommend some batteries? I'll go for some 11.1 Lipo's. Which nunchuck batteries should I go for?

One final question about the gun itself. The gun that attracted me to the DE series in the first place was the M904H. I like the way that the suppressor was sunk into the handrail. Is this possible to do with the M908A and if so, is it simply a case of buying a special type of suppressor or would I have to change the barrel for a shorter one. Or would this not work at all because the handrail would be in the way.

Is there anything else I've missed out on in buying the gun. I will have the gun, batteries, a charger and BB's once I know what to get. Once I look at upgrading the internals I'll drop fatboy40 a message. He seems to know his stuff.

Thanks.

(Also, really enjoyed seeing all of your pictures. Your guns look ace.)

 

[RostokMcSpoons]

Congratulations on your choice, I hope it's as good as for you as it's been for me ?

I run a Titan 3000mAH 11.1v Li-Ion nunchuck in mine, but as has been pointed out, the Falcon unit drains batteries even when not in use, so it rather spoils the main advantage of a Li-Ion, that "it can stay in the gun because you can't kill it".  You can kill it, and I did, twice ?

As these are more expensive than standard Li-Pos, I'll leave it you to decide whether it's worth it.  Just make sure you always disconnect the battery at the end of the day whatever you choose.

Warhead and Geoff's are highly recommended for your BBs.  0.25s will definitely be fine with the stock hop setup.  You will probably be ok at 0.28 too, but see if you can borrow a few to test, when you can shoot out past 40m, to make sure they are being lifted properly.  A Maple Leaf Macaron 50 Deg plus Omega nub will lift 0.32s, but that is for the future!

The Sky charger recommended by @Rogerborg is similar to mine (I went for the T100 so I could charge 2 batteries at a time), it's done me very well. So a thumbs up on that too

 

[Dan Robinson]

Congratulations on your choice, I hope it's as good as for you as it's been for me ?

I run a Titan 3000mAH 11.1v Li-Ion nunchuck in mine, but as has been pointed out, the Falcon unit drains batteries even when not in use, so it rather spoils the main advantage of a Li-Ion, that "it can stay in the gun because you can't kill it".  You can kill it, and I did, twice ?

As these are more expensive than standard Li-Pos, I'll leave it you to decide whether it's worth it.  Just make sure you always disconnect the battery at the end of the day whatever you choose.

Warhead and Geoff's are highly recommended for your BBs.  0.25s will definitely be fine with the stock hop setup.  You will probably be ok at 0.28 too, but see if you can borrow a few to test, when you can shoot out past 40m, to make sure they are being lifted properly.  A Maple Leaf Macaron 50 Deg plus Omega nub will lift 0.32s, but that is for the future!

The Sky charger recommended by @Rogerborg is similar to mine (I went for the T100 so I could charge 2 batteries at a time), it's done me very well. So a thumbs up on that too

I use one of these and do all mine at once:

LiPo Life Parallel Charging Board Balance Charger Charging Adapter, for Li-Ion Batteries https://amzn.eu/d/8mYtfrx

View attachment 108992

 

[RostokMcSpoons]

Wow that's a cool thing Dan.  I guess all the batteries need to be exactly the same for it to work safely?

 

[Dan Robinson]

They need to be the same voltage so it can balance the cells properly through the charger, but the little white plug pins are all wired in series on the breadboard so the cells in each battery balance themselves against each other whilst your charger regulates the in and out volts.

If you mix the voltages your charger will throw up an error message.

Well my Sky B6 charger does anyway.

different mahs do not matter as its all down to individual cell voltages (which makes one wonder why battery voltage matters).

 

[Fatboy40]

Once I look at upgrading the internals I'll drop fatboy40 a message. He seems to know his stuff.

@Coupsty Happy to help in any way I can as a fellow DE M908A owner, however I run mine as a DMR...

... and have made quite a few changes to it.

Out of your list of things you'll be buying you missed one crucial thing off, and that's a sling for your rifle! Being fully metal the M908A weighs quite a bit, so if you have to carry it around all day your arms will be sooooo tired

I like this sling a lot...

https://www.vipertacticalshop.co.uk/viper-vx-sling.html?variation_id=4840

... it's very comfortable and the quick adjustment helps when you need the rifle tight to your body if you need to run around. Also with batteries if you do decide on 11.1v Li-Io split ones Valken also do them and they're a little cheaper than Titan's.

Edit: Me pretending to look all cool and tactical at Ironsight with my M908A...

 

[Dan Robinson]

Wow that's a cool thing Dan.  I guess all the batteries need to be exactly the same for it to work safely?

View attachment 109321

There you go... All out 7.4s ranging from 1100 to 2700mAh getting put in storage voltage.... 

 

[RostokMcSpoons]

View attachment 109321

There you go... All out 7.4s ranging from 1100 to 2700mAh getting put in storage voltage.... 

Unsure whether to use the 'Cool AF' or 'Careful Now' button ?