Chock

Ironically, what those replies your thread received demonstrated to me, was a bunch of wannabe internet warriors with so many self-esteem issues that they could fill a psychology text book. I mean really, if all those embarrassingly childish taunts about not having a life/wife/girlfriend doesn't demonstrate a bunch of people who haven't had a decent relationship in years, if ever, then I don't know what would. If they weren't such tools, I might actually feel sorry for them.

Yup, some fair points here. I'd agree with it not guaranteeing to protect your eyes from a BB because of the clearance between the visor and your face, so I'd probably wear shooting glasses under it if it were me having to use it. But then again, I wouldn't use it personally, as it's really designed to protect against blows from large objects like thrown bricks, bottles etc, which it is doubtless very good at doing. And of course it is a damn site heavier than most airsoft helmet/mask combinations. The fact that it's cheap/available is not much of a bonus if you consider that you only get one pair of eyes, so they are probably worth a tenner to protect them by getting a mask specifically designed for the purpose of airsofting.

Riot helmets typically have a high impact optical grade polycarbonate visor, it's probably way better at deflecting stuff than what most people use at airsoft sites. If you're happy to wear it, it will likely protect you very well, so it's almost certainly legal to do so.

Probably better hiring the gear for the day to kick things off, that way you can see what kind of stuff people use at the site you visit and determine whether you like the stuff you are provided with, which is at least likely to be suitable for that site. Speaking to people at the site(s) you intend to frequent is not a bad idea, most people are happy to talk about their gear and you can pick their brains on things you might fancy owning if you are doing some window shopping at websites. Yes it will cost you a few quid to hire stuff, but it will cost you a lot more if you end up buying a weapon and some equipment which you later find you don't like, or is inadequate for what you want to do. A bit of practical experience is worth its weight in gold with most things and that's certainly true when it comes to determining what kind of stuff to purchase for airsoft, after all, it's easy to make an expensive mistake. For example, if you are at an outdoor site and have to take cover lying down, you very soon realise that the big long banana clip on weapons such as an AK-47 or MP5 mean it is difficult to get them lined up with your eye to take aim when lying low, because the clip hits the ground, so you have to tilt the weapon to the side, you might not like that and so you might choose a bullpup design like the L85, or an AR-15 with a shorter clip, both of which suffer less from that problem. Or you might find that a full protection face mask prevents you from pulling a weapon in close to your cheek to aim, or makes you feel too enclosed or whatever. You might not like the rattle noise a high capacity magazine can make, or you might like the fact that it has a high capacity which may suit your style. Who knows, you might even decide you prefer to dual-wield pistols or some such. Lots of stuff like that can be easily determined from one or two visits and a few skirmishes, and then you're only one visit away from gaining UKARA registration, so enabling you to more easily purchase non-two-toned realistic weaponry at the point where you are also well-informed enough to make a good choice. Don't be in a hurry to buy the wrong thing. Take it easy and end up with something you're going to like. Of course if money is no object, knock yourself out and buy a two tone weapon, but a half decent one will cost you more than it does to hire a suitable weapon for a few weeks. If money is burning a hole in your pocket and you feel you must buy some things, take a look at tactical vests, masks, speed loaders, torches, and possibly back-up sidearms, holsters, water bottles etc. Those things will serve you well for a long time and are more about personal preference than being pitfalls for buying the right or wrong thing, since most of them are comparatively inexpensive when compared to the cost of a decent main weapon.

Memphis Belle is definitely one of the worst war films. And just to be clear here, I'm referring to the appalling fictional movie from 1990, directed by Michael Caton-Jones, not the excellent 1944 documentary directed by William Wyler about the real aircraft. Fortunately, Michael Caton-Jones although directing a few other movies, has not directed a big movie since he made Basic Instinct 2 in 2006 (for which he earned 'worst director at the 2006 Golden Raspberry Awards), but he is still directing TV stuff, so we're not completely safe from his efforts. Why is Memphis Belle so bad? Because unlike most war movies, this one is trying to channel bogus authenticity by pretending to be an only slightly fictionalised account of the true story of a real B-17 in WW2, when in fact it changes just about every occurrence it can and ends up being an insult to all the flyers (on both sides) who served in WW2, and especially to those who served on board the real Memphis Belle. And the direction and acting is, at best, merely adequate. But as craply-directed as it is, it's not all the director's fault. The screenwriter must certainly take some of the blame: As if the real story of the Memphis Belle wasn't compelling enough (and already brilliantly covered in William Wyler's excellent original movie), the writer for this 1990 travesty of a movie - Monte Merrick (who I'm sure we've all never heard of and who has had a similarly non-meteoric career after having written this pile of cr*p) - decided to invent a load of fictional claptrap in an attempt to make things more dramatic - What? like the true story of the aerial campaign by the 8th Air Force in WW2 wasn't dramatic enough already Monte? So we get bogus cliched backstories woven into a preposterous storyline which feels like it was written by a mentally challenged eight-year-old, and all this with turgid direction and some Z-list-esque, phoned-in performances from some fairly big name stars. Adding to the lack of authenticity are the regulation Spanish-built Casa Ha112s playing bf109s, the B17Gs playing B17Fs, P-51D Mustangs instead of P47 Thunderbolts, mixed in with appallingly bad model and matting shots (which one could almost tolerate if anything else in the movie was even remotely okay, but sadly is not). Throw in a host of operational and factual inaccuracies, from start to finish, which even someone with only a basic understanding of how a WW2 bomber works could spot a mile off, to complete the inept mix. As if all this wasn't bad enough, the film-makers managed to destroy one of the few remaining airworthy B-17s that was around whilst using it to make this pile of embarrassing donkey sh*te. Almost as bad, some of the framing and composition of shots in the movie are literally exact recreations of shots from Wyler's original genuine footage from 1943 and 1944, but they still manage to look phoney and forced owing to the p*ss-poor lighting and editing. How, with such an aesthetically pleasing aircraft as the B-17, and access to five of them, plus numerous other aeroplanes, a cast with some major A-List movie stars, a budget of 25 million (and that's 25 million nearly 25 years ago, so a lot more in real terms), and one of the most dramatic and compelling, not to mention bloody, campaigns of WW2 to highlight, can you still end up with one of the most boring, turgid and insulting movies of all time?

There's no requirement in the VCR Act to prove where you acquired an RIF from, so why would you need to do so?

The rules of the VCR Act always apply. But UKARA itself is merely a mechanism to facilitate selling and mailing stuff to buyers and remaining on the right side of the law: it allows retailers to easily check up on whether a customer is actually an airsoft player, without having met that person and checked their reasons for wanting an RIF or had someone vouch for them in person; and it provides a convenient way for buyers to prove that is the case so they can get stuff mailed to them rather than having to go to great lengths to prove their legitimacy for wanting an RIF. But ultimately, both those functions of UKARA registration are in place so that a retailer can conduct their business and can provide a defence if an attempt is made to prosecute them for having sold an RIF to someone who subsequently uses it for nefarious purposes. Nevertheless, if a retailer or other seller has a good reason to believe that the person buying an RIF is doing so for a legitimate purpose, then that is enough of a defence for the retailer, without them or their customer having anything to do with UKARA at all. For example, I work in a job where I do movie special effects, so there is a legitimate reason for me to own RIFs, regardless of whether I do airsoft skirmishing or not. If I did not do skirmishing, but proved that I worked for the movie post-production company that I do work for, then a retailer will cheerfully sell me an RIF, as they can cover their ass in the event of an attempt to prosecute them if I subsequently flip my lid and hold up a bank with the thing. Of course it is simply easier for me to to be UKARA registered if I want to buy RIFs mail order, but if I was prepared to go through the rigmarole of explaining that I work for the company I do work for, then that would be a suitable defence for them having sold and mailed an RIF to me. Similarly, and as per the original post question, UKARA has nothing to do with the legitimacy of someone owning or using a RIF. Someone could tip up at an airsoft site with the most realistic looking RIF ever, and the mere fact that they have turned up with that thing with the express intention to play airsoft with it, is in itself a legitimate reason for having the thing. Thus within the boundaries of the rules of the VCR Act.

Frankly, for a lot of CQB stuff, pistols are just a far more sensible option, in fact, at some sites, having a rifle or SMG is actually rather clumsy and their use can even be forbidden in certain areas. Because of that, I'm going to try a G36 as a back up on a sling across my back (since it has a folding stock). The primary CQB weapons then being two pistols, one in a drop leg holster and the other in a 58 browning holster hung from a belt attached to a tactical vest. Having had reliability problems with a CYMA electric Glock 18 (which resulted in me having to resort to a knife kill the other day lol), I've ditched the electric Glock and am using two springer pistols - a Glock 26 and a Kahr TP45 - with spare mags for both in the vest, plus some spare mags for the G36. Since neither pistol is semi auto, this makes the rate of fire slower, but I've no worries about reliability or running out of juice. I can cock either of them pretty damn quickly anyway. I may see if I can sort the reliability issues with the electric Glock and ditch the G36 altogether for CQB. The TP45 does 300+ fps, so that set up does still have some range.

You could try simply using a good old Fulton MX991 angle head lamp. You can get them for about a tenner. They have a red light filter and a signalling button which makes them good for light discipline and quick on/off glimpses. There are even mini ones which will easily fit in even a very small a vest pocket or attach to a tactical vest D ring or carabiner: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Mini-Angle-Head-Tactical-Waterproof-6-Flashlight-/161219518122?pt=UK_SportsLeisure_Camping_LightsLanternsTorches&var=460271944044&hash=item25896e9eaa You might also consider taking a look at this site, in particular the helmet accessories page, which I've linked directly to: http://www.tacticalgeartrade.co.uk/head-gear/helmet-accessories.html?p=1 If you use a PASGT, ACH, MICH or FAST helmet, then there are a ton of helmet fitting/mounting accessories for lights, NV etc, which can be found on that site, and if you don't use a helmet of that type (which you should, since they add a lot to your flexibility with all the stuff you can mount on them) then you can get a decent airsoft replica PASGT helmet there for less than a fiver. A replica airsoft PASGT weighs less than 600 grams, will stop a 500 fps airsoft BB no problem, and can mount pretty much anything, so it's a very inexpensive solution. Personally, I use a PASGT helmet, and I've found it light and cool enough to wear for long periods, which also means there's plenty of leeway to mount stuff like cameras, lights etc without it ending up weighing a ton like my (genuine) Vietnam-era steel pot does just on its own. You should also consider carrying a couple of small cheap spare torches too. They are good for using as decoys and to set up ambushes, and they can also serve to draw attention away from you when you use your more subdued light as well, since you can afford to throw or roll along the ground cheap torches and not worry about breaking or losing them. Most bargain pound shops will have them. For a bit of CQB sneaky b*st*rd fun in the dark, try sticking oversized card onto the front of a cheap torch to block the light with something like blutack and then throwing them, when they land, the card falls off and you have a light appearing to come on and move about well away from your position and a sudden noise when it lands, and if it breaks, you still get the decoy noise and have only lost a quid, less if you retrieve the battery.

Yeah, maybe so. Just trying to throw some suggestions into the mix

As others have said, a good smack or two with a lump hammer with almost certainly render it unusable, especially if it is made with zamak alloy, which it probably is. Failing that, you could just cut it with a hacksaw, although be aware that even uncocked, the spring might be under tension as it comes apart, so stick your airsoft mask on whilst doing that unless you fancy losing an eye or some teeth.

Depends on exactly what is going to be your typical CQB scenario to some extent, and not everything which follows with real firearms will be relevant to airsoft equivalents. As I'm sure you are aware, the MP5 (usually the very short MP5K with a fore grip) used to be the de facto standard for CQB weapons, which is why it was and - in many cases - is still used by so many elite forces, hostage rescue teams etc. However, in its real form, the MP5's 9mm round does lack penetration against body armour, which has led some forces to switch to using - or at least supplementing team load outs - with weapons which fire ammunition more able to defeat kevlar etc. But of course with airsoft, the weapon type is largely only cosmetically different since they all fire the same 6mm BB at about 350fps, thus there is no real reason to forgo the compactness of the MP5 over something which in the realm of real firearms, would warrant consideration. That is unless you want to take this thinking further... With CQB, the range is by definition of course very short, short enough to warrant a pistol, and in fact some airsoft CQB sites specify only being allowed to use pistols in confined spaces such as stairwells anyway. There are other advantages conferred by this of course, notably the fact that you can operate a pistol with one hand (either in fact, which is good for coming around corners both left handed and right handed), leaving the other free for using flashbangs, smoke grenades or indeed a torch which can more easily be manipulated and probably switched on and off quicker, which is good for light discipline too. Of course you could go for both a pistol and a submachine gun, and if you did embrace the MP5K's compactness, then a believable pistol combination to use with that would be the FN Five Seven, since the Five Seven's 5.7mm round complements the 9mm ammo of the MP5 by virtue of the Five Seven's infamous ability to punch through kevlar armour. Again, this calibre is of course irrelevant for airsoft ammo, but it is a believable and thoughtful combination which would reflect the choice of many in the real world who might have to engage in CQB, not least because it has a 20 round mag as standard and a 30 round extended mag available too. The real thing has all the usual CQB features one might expect, concealed hammer, underslung rail, threaded for a suppressor, can be switched to left handed use for the mag release, etc. Beyond these aspects, for a 'serious' airsofter, the fact that the Five Seven and the MP5 are both available in robust RIF form, means you can get some decent kit with that combination.

Evidently some people have done it and measured the distance with telemetry, although admittedly as far as I know it was not in the UK, so probably somewhere with less stringent joule limits. I'm not saying it would be easy to bullseye something at that range, or even at all, and you'd almost certainly have to have plenty of elevation, but it has apparently been done with a tarted up A&K. Of course, not everything on the interweb is true, or so I've heard Anyway, the point is, the A&K SVD is quite a nice thing for the money, and offers plenty of scope for upgrades if you like fiddling with that sort of thing, which as a dedicated sniper, you probably should.

Trojan does one at their Macclesfield site on Sundays. Bit of a trek from Birmingham, but it is a good site with unusual terrain including water and narrow bridge across it, and they feed you well too: http://trojan-airsoft.com/game-dates/

That's true, unless you want to go mental on spending a fortune with tarting one up of course and aren't adhering to UK limits on power, which would be pointless on any UK airsoft site obviously. In any case, most airsoft sites would never have that amount of open ground anyway, and even if they did it would turn into a ridiculous sniper fest and be very boring. Not to mention painful lol ]

That's with a seriously tarted up one, but yes, that really is possible.

A&K Dragunov SVD can be had for 120 quid from many places, it's two toned green and black if you are non UKARA and all black if you are, but it actually looks okay in two tone anyway: Two tone version: http://www.geniestuff.co.uk/dragunov-airsoft-sniper-rifle.htm Black version: http://www.sofmilitary.co.uk/SearchResults.aspx?s=SVD&cat=0 The A&K version is a very impressive replica of the SVD. It weighs somewhat less than a real SVD, but it is still heavy at just over 2.6kg (which is about 2/3rds of the weight of a real SVD. This means either a bipod or a tree strap is not a bad idea, as holding something that heavy on target for a while without support will result in muscle shake. Being all-metal construction including the magazine, apart from the polymer funiture (which real SVDs have these days anyway) the A&K version is built like a tank. It's actually very accurate with the iron sights, and does have them properly marked too, with settings up to 12, unlike the AK47/74 which has a similar-looking backsight, but which is marked to 8. It is very powerful straight out of the box, in fact, you might even have to downgrade the spring in the thing if your airsoft chronos stuff and won't let you use stuff which chronos over 500fps, because a lot of A&K SVDs produce around that straight out of the box (i.e. expect at least 450fps and probably a lot more). Naturally, you'd want a scope for something like that, and it will take a real PSO-1, but since they are pricey, a knock off airsoft-specific one will probably be more sensible (and cheaper) since you're not really going to be taking down targets at 1200 metres like you could with a real SVD, although you can expect to hit people 450 feet away with the A&K after some practice and tweaking to the internals, which is just as well since you'll be lucky to get four or five aimed shots off in a minute, although in fact, the Russian army only actually expect a soldier with an SVD to get two hits in a minute. So make sure you also budget for an MP5 or something for when and if they close you down. Various bits and pieces for it if you don't want to use it 'stock'... Decent knock off copy of an SVD PSO-1 (V) scope for just under fifty quid (4x26 magnification, electronic illuminated red target reticule, nitrogen filled, etc) can be found here: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/270951265654?_trksid=p2059210.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT 50 round spare mag for it can be found here for fifteen quid: http://www.actionhobbies.co.uk/A-K-Magazine-For-Spring-SVD-Dragunov-50rd_AUSUE.aspx That comes to 185 quid, which is well under your budget. Although I'd recommend a decent pair of thin leather gloves too, as it is hard to cock it with bare hands, i.e. fighter pilot gloves such as these: http://www.tacticalgeartrade.co.uk/airsoft-mid-arm-full-finger-tactical-flight-gloves-od.html If you wanna tart the SVD up a bit, replacement furniture kits can be found here if you want a wooden stock (although it needs modifying to fit the A&K SVD): http://www.airsoftworld.net/gun-accessories/furniture-kits Upgraded internals can be found here: http://airsoftpro.cz/eshop/index.php?cPath=93_204&osCsid=c9fa23ab9cda4240ba0f4a4082cee131 Semi-auto gas conversion kit for A&K SVD can be found here: http://www.evike.com/products/37034/ Hope that helps

As far as I'm aware, first aid training certificates last for three years, or at least the one I have which I did the course for earlier this year does anyway. This is worth noting if you have done a first aid course a few years ago, as there have been some changes to recommended procedures for CPR and AR on adults, but more particularly when doing so with youngsters (this I know because the course I did included covering Pediatric First Aid). Coincidentally, I actually used my First Aid last week at work, when someone I was training exhibited three of the main symptoms of a stroke, although of course the main thing I had to do was to simply call an ambulance and let them get her to hospital after I done the tests to confirm my suspicions. It's worth noting here too, that the girl in question was only 24, so don't imagine that you have to be old to have a stroke, and it's worth being able to spot one, because the sooner you get someone to a hospital if they've had a stroke, the less likely it will be that they'll suffer pernament injury. If you are likely to be at an airsoft site where an ambulance might not get there easily or quickly, I'd recommend a few other things for a medic bag, such as some sort of clamps or forceps (useful for pulling bits out of a wound amongst other things), some small scissors (good for cutting bandages, cutting away clothing to get at an injury, etc), some eyewash (for obvious reasons), a space blanket (to keep someone warm if they are suffering from shock, which is likely with severe bleeding, and very dangerous if not treated). There is also the possibility that you might consider an epi-pen if you are a first aider at a woodland site, although it should be noted that these are not all the same, and specific training is required to know when and when not to use one of these. Nevertheless, it is possible that someone could get an adverse reaction to a bee or wasp sting (particularly when combined with running around) and suffer anaphylaxis, and this can easily be fatal if not treated. You might even go 'all Vietnam' and throw in some cyanoacrylate superglue (which as you probably know, was tested successfully in the Vietnam War for closing wounds, in order to slow down bleeding, and this was before it was actually medically approved for that use, although it did work and apparently saved quite a few lives). A word of caution here though, actual medically approved 'superglue' (branded as Dermabond if you buy it) uses a 2-octyl cyanoacrylate formula, whereas the kind of superglue you get from a DIY store uses methyl-2-cyanoacrylate. This is because the latter can cause skin irritation and it also generates considerable heat as it goes off, although this is only likely to cause a burn if you use a lot of it. Nevertheless, for a really bad injury where you have to stop bleeding if an ambulance is a long way off, you never know, it might actually be useful to have some to hand, after all, you don't have to use it, but you can't use it if you don't have it.

It's true enough that you don't actually need UKARA to be legitimately in possession of an RIF, after all, there is literally no mention of UKARA in the VCR Act of 2006 which deals with RIFs legislation, the Act merely mentions that you need a legit defence reason to have one; something such as: re-enacting, museum work, film and TV productions or similar. But I'm assuming that the original thread question, and the fact that the MP5 in question is two-toned, means the user may not be covered by one of these defences. Personally, I'm covered by two of them, I use RIFs in day-to-day my work to do post-production movie special effects, and I do airsofting too, so I'm kind of 'belt and braces' where Section 36 of the VCR Act of 2006 is concerned, thus not dependent on UKARA registration anyway, which in fact is more about protecting retailers from prosecution for selling RIFs to non-legit users. Although in fairness, UKARA registration would aid in your defence if the police decided to feel your collar and the CPS went for it as well, nevertheless, as you say, several fellow airsofters corroborating your defence would probably work just as well as a UKARA registration.

Personally, I think you might be on shaky ground unless you are UKARA registered, because when you put sticky camo tape over it, you were technically making it potentially more realistic-looking, and the law is very specific about the act of doing that being classed as 'manufacturing' 'a realistic appearance'. That is fine if you are registered and using it for airsofting at a UKARA site and transporting it in a case or the boot of your car, but otherwise, then it is most definitely contravening the law. Essentially the CPS will see it like this: In removing the tape, and as a result, the paint, it was not an accident that the paint came off, but occurred as a result of an attempt to make the thing look more convincingly realistic. This is as opposed to it simply wearing off, which would be more arguable as a defence. Of course if you are using it for skirmishing and have a UKARA registration, then it's no big deal, but if you are not using it at a UKARA site, and perhaps going in the woods or fields to have a battle with some friends or some such, then the gun is supposed to be easily distinguishable from a real firearm. This is for your protection more than anyone else, since if an armed response unit shows up, they might well shoot first and ask questions later, and you couldn't really blame them for doing so if they thought someone had an MP5 that was camo'd up.

Just registered here so I figured I'd say hi.