Help needed - Really want to start Airsoft BUT..

[Barry Sayer]

How do you charge the battereis, multiple chargers or do you have one that does all types?

I only charger one battery at a time, I only ever need two on a game day tbh. The charger in the specna arms starter bundle kit from patrol base you linked is what I've got (the blue box). They are cheap, and work as should. Maybe they've had some bad press ?.

Use good quality lipos, don't leave unattended whilst charging, as recommended , ist just common sense. I've been charging batteries for probably over 35 years (RC stuff), never had a single fire. 

When you eventually buy your own gun resist the urge to open it up and most guns will last you a decent amount of time. When you start trying to push the limits of Rate of fire or joules/fps that's when things can go wrong. 

Sound advice ? they work great out of the box. 

 

[Reef]

Well @WillMidz, I’ve been using my VSR10 bolt action rifle and really loving the different style of play compared to an assault rifle. This, along with my pistol have given me hours of fun.

I recently bought a ICS L85 second hand off here to learn how to ‘tech’. I’ve taken the whole thing apart and am in the process of upgrading. I used it at a game the other day and enjoyed the bullpup style, fits with my loadout also.

I’m currently waiting for the Noveske N4’s to come back in stock so I can get my first GBB rifle.

I’ve come to the conclusion that having a few different weapons allows you to mix things up depending on the game. I go with my kids so we tend to share which is great to mix things up.

If I was buying a starter rifle again I would probably go for a Specna Arms Edge. I bought one for my daughter, £170, and it’s fantastic out of the box. I find myself gravitating to this weapon for your standard woodland skirmish, it’s a great all rounder.

 

[WillMidz]

Thank you guys for sharing the safety gear. I will definitely be covering my face aswel as eyes. 
 

Now to try and narrow the gun search down to the right gun for me. 
 

I think I’ve found the best gun I can buy on patrol base for the money (not purchasing until I get my UKARA) Please compare and tell me which one you’d pick and why? (If you have a recommendation that trumps what I’ve found , please shout up): 

CYMA .605 M4 

https://www.patrolbase.co.uk/cyma-cm-605-m4-carbine-aeg?pv=9554

Specna Arms C 19 CoreM4 

https://www.patrolbase.co.uk/specna-arms-daniel-defense-r-sa-c19-core-tm-hal-etu-tm-mk18-m4-ar-15-aeg?pv=24996
 

It seems for my price range it’s CYMA V SA. 
 

If anyone can recommend me a more competitive site than patrol base please do. 

Thanks again for your continued support. Quality Engineers make very picky people ? I do apologise. 

 

[The_Lord_Poncho]

Re. chargers - I have two of these - they do fantastic service - they allow all cells in a lipo battery to be 'balanced' (important, as if one cell has a lower voltage than the other, there is a danger that in use that low cell will drop below a voltage that results in the battery cell being irreparably damaged), and also allow for batteries to be slightly discharged to put them in a storage state to prolong their life. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/365089024868

 

[WillMidz]

@Reef

Just saw your comment my man ! The edge is what I was drawn to but again , people online kept shouting about what parts to replace immediately like the gearbox ! 
 

im a new starter . I’m not taking that gun apart for some time! ?

what do you think?

p.s I think from what the guys in this forum say, for my first gun, an SA for first gun is right at the top end of what I should spend before it’s no longer a “first gun” . 

@The_Lord_Poncho

Thank you for talking batteries and chargers. I need to know about that too but really I need to pick a gun first ?

 

[Reef]

Sorry just checked her rifle, it’s a Flex not an Edge. The local shop I use say they sell loads of them and have no issues. I defo buy another one.

 

[WillMidz]

WOW the Specna Arms Flex! I totally overlooked and ignored this gun! This gun looks great. 
 

What do the rest of you think about this gun? : 

Specna Arms Flex 
https://www.patrolbase.co.uk/specna-arms-sa-f05-rl-flex-tm-hal-etu-tm-m4-ar-15-aeg?pv=26812

 

[TheFull9]

I'd say there's 2 reasons you see so many posts online about guns that broke super quick:

1. I'd bet that in 99%+ of the instances where somebody buys an AEG, goes to a game and the gun works, they don't say anything about it on the internet. Whereas if it breaks there's a strong likelihood they will say something (applies to all conceivable products).

2. People starting out unfortunately don't tend to really know which brands are good so they just buy 'the cool looking gun' (whatever that is in their mind) and some of the turd brands happen to be good at knowing how to design the aesthetics of their guns in order to sell lots of cheesey gearboxes e.g. Ares.

Plus of course there's a possible newbie fudge factor with people jamming dropped-BBs in to mags or other random acts of RIF mis-use. Also crappy uber cheap BBs, mags and/or batteries can be huge contributors, just like bad ammo or mags with real firearms.

 

[Cheeky vimto]

Well @WillMidz, I’ve been using my VSR10 bolt action rifle and really loving the different style of play compared to an assault rifle. This, along with my pistol have given me hours of fun.

Having a variety of play style is always fun. I tend to Snipe during the warmer months and use a M4 for cooler months/CQB games. 

I must admit though, I find sniping more fun ?

 

[Mik3F]

Re. chargers - I have two of these - they do fantastic service - they allow all cells in a lipo battery to be 'balanced' (important, as if one cell has a lower voltage than the other, there is a danger that in use that low cell will drop below a voltage that results in the battery cell being irreparably damaged), and also allow for batteries to be slightly discharged to put them in a storage state to prolong their life. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/365089024868

Will that charge a battery with a Mini Tamiya connector?

 

[Rogerborg]

Specna Arms Flex 
https://www.patrolbase.co.uk/specna-arms-sa-f05-rl-flex-tm-hal-etu-tm-m4-ar-15-aeg?pv=26812

That's a phenomenal amount of features for the money.  It would come down to how good the plastic is, I haven't handled one.  But a fully featured fire control system, quick change spring, and rotary hop are strong arguments.

Will that charge a battery with a Mini Tamiya connector?

Doesn't look like it comes with a mini-Tamiya connector, but Deans-to-mini-Tamiya converters are readily available.

Although if you're any way technically inclined, I'd always recommend binning off Tamiya in favour of soldering on Deans, if you buy a gun that's still pre-wired for VHS.

I know, I know, XT-60 is even betterer, but I run an eBike on Deans, 36V and a sustained 250W / peak 400W hauling 100kg of metal and meat around, without any heat or hassles. It's fine for airsoft.

 

[pyromancer6]

That Specna Flex looks like a real winner at that price - sure you could look into DE's lineup of Falcon Fire M4s for around the same budget but honestly I don't think you can go too wrong with one of those - kinda dig the olive too tbh

 

[Cannonfodder]

people online kept shouting about what parts to replace immediately like the gearbox ! 

Ignore these people, they're idiots. Unfortunately there seems to be a vocal minority of people, particularly on places like faceache and reddit, who think that you need to totally gut any airsoft gun to make it usable and this couldn't be further from the truth. The most I've done to my AEGs is changing the hop rubber.

The specna arms guns are a great choice and even the most budget friendly Core range are solid guns which are better quality than some similarly priced guns, eg the cyma 5XX lines with their bodies made from recycled ready meal trays

One the subject of PPE, get some gloves too especially for cqb as hits to the hand/knuckles bloody hurt 

 

[The_Lord_Poncho]

Doesn't look like it comes with a mini-Tamiya connector, but Deans-to-mini-Tamiya converters are readily available.

Indeed, or a banana plugs to mini tamiya connector- e.g https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/283864354843?

The plastic on Specna flex is not too bad actually. Solid, with a good texture.

 

[Mik3F]

That's a phenomenal amount of features for the money.  It would come down to how good the plastic is, I haven't handled one.  But a fully featured fire control system, quick change spring, and rotary hop are strong arguments.

Doesn't look like it comes with a mini-Tamiya connector, but Deans-to-mini-Tamiya converters are readily available.

Although if you're any way technically inclined, I'd always recommend binning off Tamiya in favour of soldering on Deans, if you buy a gun that's still pre-wired for VHS.

I know, I know, XT-60 is even betterer, but I run an eBike on Deans, 36V and a sustained 250W / peak 400W hauling 100kg of metal and meat around, without any heat or hassles. It's fine for airsoft.

That was going to be my next ask, so its safe to charge a battery using an adaptor as long as its the right kind ie LiPo, NiMH ect

 

[WillMidz]

@DanBow

I would not of guessed those scars came from BBs ! Jeeezzz 

@TheFull9

This is consistent advice across the forum. Thank you. 
 

@Cheeky vimto

yeah I can see me ending up down the sniping route. I’ve always loved the idea of a sniper. 

@Rogerborg

Wow okay! The SA Flex seems like the winner then for my first Airsoft gun! 

@pyromancer6

Yeahhh the olive drew me in straight away. For the UK I’d rather have an olive gun in a forest than a black/ tan one. 
 

@Cannonfodder

Thanks for that Cannon. There’s a lot of noise on places like Reddit that almost derailed my interest in starting this amazing sport. 
 

PPE will be on the list the same time I order my gun . I’ve got some gloves from mountain biking for my first rental sesssion CQB but I will definitely buy some that suit my Airsoft outfit . 
 

Next question: 

What do you guys recommend for safety goggles / mask to cover your eyes and face where anti fog works well? 

 

[Mik3F]

Check out the link I posted earlier for a full face mask

I use it and have had no issues at all

 

[Rogerborg]

That was going to be my next ask, so its safe to charge a battery using an adaptor as long as its the right kind ie LiPo, NiMH ect

Sure. A balance charger is going to charge each cell through the balance connector anyway: it's only using the main power connector to measure the total voltage.

One thing to be aware of is that radio-control (RC) Tamiya and airsoft Tamiya have opposite polarity on the connectors, for ritual reasons  It's easy enough to remove the connectors and swap them over if you end up with one that's barse ackwards.

 

[Mik3F]

35 minutes ago, Rogerborg said:



Sure. A balance charger is going to charge each cell through the balance connector anyway: it's only using the main power connector to measure the total voltage.

One thing to be aware of is that radio-control (RC) Tamiya and airsoft Tamiya have opposite polarity on the connectors, for ritual reasons  It's easy enough to remove the connectors and swap them over if you end up with one that's barse ackwards.

What about if you dont have the balance connector though, safe to still charge using an adaptor

 

[The_Lord_Poncho]

What about if you dont have the balance connector though, safe to still charge using an adaptor

Lipo batteries always have a balance connector attached in addition to the main plug. Or are you referring to your charger not having a socket for the balance connector? If so, time to upgrade your charger. Whilst you can charge a lipo without balancing the charge between cells, it's not great for battery longevity, and ultimately batteries are the difference between a good game day, and leaving halfway through disappointed.