alxndrhll

I'd completely forgotten to check back in on this thread, I love that you still refer to the one in the post above this one as 'the Novritsch one', dare I say 'The Artist Formerly Known as the Novritsch One'.
 
Markings came out super nicely, the inks make it much easier to do than it should be! Really helps tie the frame and slide together!
 
I took delivery of a PDI barrel for mine yesterday, no idea what it does to performance because my ability to test is pretty much non-existent at this point in time so intrigued to see how that works out. At the very least it's a slightly tighter bore so means I'll be able to run at a lower PSI to get the FPS/Joules where they need to be... assuming we're ever able to play again/there are any sites left local to me when all is said and done.

Slings will always be personal preference, I’ve moved to using two point slings over single point because cracking yourself in the nuts in ‘the heat of battle’ is not my favourite and I find two points much more comfortable across a day of playing.
 
The ‘new wave’ of quick adjusting two points are all very similar, my personal favourite is the Ferro Concepts Slingster (having also tried the VTAC and Haley slings of a similar ilk) just found it has the best quick adjustment system and the padding is perfect for me... but one of those plus decent fittings/hardware (I use the Ferro QD fittings) is going to set you back £70-80. Comfort is important, what works for one may not work for another etc etc.
 
Some would like scoff at spending that much on a sling when others do the job just fine, these days I tend to use as much ‘RS’ kit as I can largely because it holds value much better than repro kit if you come to sell it on... aside the fact it’s better quality (for the most part). The reason holding value is important to me is because I sell things on if they aren’t working for me. Once you start down that rabbit hole of ‘perfecting’ your kit you have to accept that things you buy might not be suitable for you.
 
Tldr, don’t skimp out on your sling because it’s the only thing between your rif, gravity and the ground should you let go of it. If your kit isn’t working with you, it isn’t worth using.

Weirdly identical situation for me, sold up the vast majority of the various Warhammer bits I had last year having realised it's just gathering dust, some of that went into savings and the rest was deemed 'other hobby money'. There were definitely some impulse purchases I somewhat regret, largely kit to try and 'perfect' my load bearing so I have a massive pile of 'not going to be used' cordura and nylon I need to sell at some point, but looking forward to the postman arriving is about as exciting as it gets at the moment!

Did this thread just go full circle? For anyone first joining the thread here, no the initial topic wasn’t talked about for 9 pages.
 
What was discussed? Gun laws, stupid people, the phrase ‘checks and balances’ appeared a lot, various hand to hand weapons (some conventional, some less so), charts and graphs... and I’m pretty sure a UKARA question some how snuck in there.

Did this thread just go full circle? For anyone first joining the thread here, no the initial topic wasn’t talked about for 9 pages.
 
What was discussed? Gun laws, stupid people, the phrase ‘checks and balances’ appeared a lot, various hand to hand weapons (some conventional, some less so), charts and graphs... and I’m pretty sure a UKARA question some how snuck in there.

Did this thread just go full circle? For anyone first joining the thread here, no the initial topic wasn’t talked about for 9 pages.
 
What was discussed? Gun laws, stupid people, the phrase ‘checks and balances’ appeared a lot, various hand to hand weapons (some conventional, some less so), charts and graphs... and I’m pretty sure a UKARA question some how snuck in there.

Did this thread just go full circle? For anyone first joining the thread here, no the initial topic wasn’t talked about for 9 pages.
 
What was discussed? Gun laws, stupid people, the phrase ‘checks and balances’ appeared a lot, various hand to hand weapons (some conventional, some less so), charts and graphs... and I’m pretty sure a UKARA question some how snuck in there.

Did this thread just go full circle? For anyone first joining the thread here, no the initial topic wasn’t talked about for 9 pages.
 
What was discussed? Gun laws, stupid people, the phrase ‘checks and balances’ appeared a lot, various hand to hand weapons (some conventional, some less so), charts and graphs... and I’m pretty sure a UKARA question some how snuck in there.

Did this thread just go full circle? For anyone first joining the thread here, no the initial topic wasn’t talked about for 9 pages.
 
What was discussed? Gun laws, stupid people, the phrase ‘checks and balances’ appeared a lot, various hand to hand weapons (some conventional, some less so), charts and graphs... and I’m pretty sure a UKARA question some how snuck in there.

This threads taken a real journey eh?

Ahhhh, those were the days... packed lunch too if I was lucky. Granted back then for me UKARA wasn’t a thing and two tone was reserved to market stall specials. 

This threads taken a real journey eh?

Hahaha, we've reached a terrifying time with this hobby buying shit has become the actual hobby in lieu of being able to play (I imagine this is nothing new for some). Suffice to say I have bought copious amounts of crap I have no use for at this point in time, but my UKARA is good till June. The advice to wait was based purely on the fact he's not convinced his defence sees his items arriving with him. The last person on Earth to take financial advice from is an airsofter... swiftly followed by someone that plays tabletop miniatures games.
 
But yeah, buy whatever the hell you want if it makes you momentarily happy and you can afford to do so. Any additional risk you take for being impatient... well that's on you. Much like folks that moan about hang overs, you've done it to yourself bud, I have zero sympathy.

HERETIC ! Burn him ! Burn him with fire ! 😱
next thing he’ll be coming out with “use a bit of self control” when buying more crap ! As if !!!!🤯
Bro , do you even S’oft ???? 

I'm aware this is very easy to say and much harder to do when you have money seemingly burning a hole in your pocket and buying new things momentarily cures the brain numbing boredom... but why not just wait? It's not like we can do much with our gnus at the moment.

Not that I’ve ever had to change any out but the main thing you’d likely need to swap out would be o-rings. I got a full replacement set with my Forged, can’t speak for the Billet as mine were both second hand. As for the electronics the most frequent thing I’ve seen need replacing is the switch which controls the selector, folks more competent than me solder a new micro switch on others replace the board entirely (no idea of the cost). Outside of those the only other thing which comes to mind is the feed tube for the Billet, I honestly have no idea how folks break them... but they do.
 
If you get a new one and you register it Wolverine have a warranty and they seem to ‘look after you’ pretty well assuming you haven’t gone out of your way to break something. Again, this is anecdotal, I haven’t had to replace or repair anything on mine.

If you want the ‘bolt stop’ (it’s literally just a micro switch, no tactile/mechanical feedback... very much intended for muscle memory training more than it is ‘simulation’) you’ll need to use the Wolverine mags (120 round mid caps) which are proprietary. If you don’t care about the ‘bolt stop’ then a bunch fit and feed. I’ve personally used the Wolverine ones, PTS EPMs and PTS Pmags. EPMs needed a bit of electrical tape to make them fit snug. Reports from others are that the EPM-1s fit and feed fine, most stating they fit better than the original EPMs... but I’m also aware the jury seems to be out on if the EPM-1s are actually any good and I’m not in a position where I particularly need/care to find out for myself.

Aye, fingers crossed someone that's used both a TIppman and an MTW can weigh in. I always find trying to be 'useful' in a comparison thread somewhat difficult because it's not a simple case of 'get this because it's generally regarded a good option'.
 
I expect the MWS would require more maintenance than an MTW, though the maintenance on both is very easy. MWS has the benefit of recoil, but you're somewhat restricted to a drum mag to run it with HPA. With appropriate hop tuning I imagine performance is pretty equivalent, the MTW possibly more consistent because of the nature of how the system works and the way alignment is maintained. The MWS would end up needing more things to be replaced over time, but nothing overly expensive. Main consideration there is supply given how impacted stock levels are at present.

That's about as much of a relatively informed comparison as I could give on those, though a decent portion of it is based on suspicions of using an HPA'd MWS formed from having used an MWS, and HPA... but never the two together.

If you're running a tank and line whatever you go with I have a hard time not recommending a Billet series MTW. I've had two Billets and they've run great (both second hand), I picked up a Forged when they first came out because the quality of life changes seemed ace and I like having the 'proper' upper receiver. I can't recommend it though, not because I've had any issues thus far, just purely on the fact that Tier 3, Tier 4 and eventually lockdown happened so I haven't done any proper testing or played with it yet. I don't tend to give any recommendations/advice until I actually believe what I'm saying rather than allowing the 'hype' to overcome me.
 
Worth noting I have zero knowledge or experience regarding the Tippman, though I can tell you anecdotally that I've seen a fair few go from the Tippman to the MTW and at least in terms of performance the MTW seems to be seen as an upgrade. Take that as you will, as I say, anecdotal.

Having had both I'm inclined to agree. Either way it's a decent chunk of change, if you've owned and know you liked one of your options it's a no brainer to me that, that is the one you go for.
 
I found myself in the decision of MWS versus MTW recently. I'm sticking with the MTW largely because of the drop off on return on investment for selling out of HPA is too severe a hit for me personally. Had that not been a factor I would have gone with the MWS, with the main reason being ditching the backpack (the tank and line don't themselves bother me at all, but I miss running a 'slick back'). The MTW has CO2 and tank stocks available, but something never mentioned with those two options is the restrictions they put on your length of pull. Not a big deal at all for many, but I've run my AR stocks at the same length for years... changing that feels decidedly weird and uncomfortable.
 
I also got lucky and snagged a backpack which is exactly what I've been after for carrying my tank on eBay, which cemented my decision for the time being. In case anyone wants to ask what it is, it's a Source 10L assault pack... they've been discontinued for a while (as far as I'm aware), hence the 'luck'.
 
TLDR - Following 'Any help spending (or saving) my money would be most welcome.' If you're not already invested in HPA, go with the MWS imo.

I used a semi-opaque liquitex ink rather than a wash (stronger pigment), took 2-3 passes to get it looking entirely filled. Assuming the consistency of the ink is right it shoud just run in to the detail off the brush, leave it to dry and clean up the surrounding edges with a q-tip and white spirit (the exact chemical you use here will vary on what 'paint' you use). Some use nail polish rather than paint, at which point use an acetone free nail polish remover. Truthfully if I didn't already have all the stuff to do I probably wouldn't have bothered, but it was a decent bordeom cure for all of 10 minutes haha.
 
I tend to cheat with most of miniature painting and use a combination of an airbrush and enamel washes to make things look like they look me far longer to paint than they actually do, so it was nice to something which required a slightly steady hand for a change.
 

 
That’s probably the last miniature I painted (about a year ago I imagine). I have an obsession with glowing details and tinted metallics.

What’s the best way to get in touch with him regarding incoming bits? I’ll shoot him a message on the off chance he has any black adv frames left because that’s absolutely what I’m after.
 
I do indeed, with the caveat there is nowhere in this house that the lighting works for even half decent photos. Figured I’d keep the mag adapter on to see how many folks I can trigger, because that’s half the fun at this point. Hope the short versions of the the EPM1's surface over here at some point because that's what I'm planning to feed it with.
 

 

Haha, fair. My brain always seems to attach 'something to mess around with' as 'something to tinker on while we can't play'.
 
TLDR - Performance wise the MTW is the best RIF I've ever used, maintaince is very easy, but the tank and line will be an issue for some... alongside the price of both getting a HPA setup and the cost of the RIFs themselves.
 
I'll breakdown the engines first:
Inferno Gen 2 - Controlled by an FCU so needs a battery, programmable in terms of dwell, rate of fire. Operating pressure is 60-140 PSI. Reaper Gen 2 - Being honest, I have no idea about the details of this engine. I personally see it as a choice between the Reaper M and the Inferno Gen 2 so have never looked into what the Reaper Gen 2 actually offers. Reaper M - Mechanical so no battery needed, semi only. Operating pressure of 80-140 PSI.
They have 3 versions available:
'Cheapest' The 'Billet series' which is the OG one, upper receiver is pretty much naked on the right hand side so no forward assist or dust cover. Comes with an M-lok rail (7", 10 and 13/14" options available), can be fitted with a variety of the engines and runs on the Spartan board (you adjust your FCU settings using the trigger). Comes with the original plastic black hop unit, engine retention clip and feed tube. 'Middle Ground' The 'Milspec series' new release toward the tail end of last year. Conventional AR receivers so has the forward assist and dust cover (worth noting the dust cover doesn't close without modification).  Comes with a quad rail (10" only I believe)  and the Reaper M engine. Comes with the fancy Phoenix hop unit and an updated engine retention clip/feedtube (tldr, people kept breaking the old design of feedtube so they changed it on the new models, the Billet still uses the old one). 'Big Bucks' The 'Forged series' new release toward the end of last year. Conventional AR receivers so has the forward assist and dust cover (worth noting the dust cover doesn't close without modification).  Comes with an M-lok rail (10" and 14" versions available) and the Inferno Gen 2 engine, runs on the Premium FCU board so a separate board with it's own buttons rather than having to program the FCU with the trigger. Comes with the fancy Phoenix hop unit and an updated engine retention clip/feedtube.  
I've only used the Inferno Gen 2 personally, largely due to operating pressures and the fact I run mine at the standard limits rather than as a DMR (turns out I hate minimum engagement distances). On the various groups surrounding the platform I see far more issues with the Reaper engines than the Inferno ones, how much of that is user error and lack of research versus issues with the engines themselves I have no idea. I'll leave a chart below regard AEG/real steel parts compatibility. All this is very much a brief overview.
 

 
Worth noting that a variety of hop units can be installed on it, but require some modification to fit and hinder the ability to strip the RIF quickly. Entirely not worth it in my eyes, the stock plastic unit is fantastic. I haven't been able to test the Phoenix but reports seem to be that it's very good once you've taken the time to tune it properly.
 
I've tried to be as concise as I can, but realistically you're best off doing some research of your own because trying to cover entire product lines via a forum post is... challenging haha.

I could be mis-remembering but generally speaking you just get the tube screwed in to the point it’s flush (or as close to flush as you can get it) with the lower receiver, with the sling plate being correctly orientated. If you fit it and have issues with the bolt lock (or are using a HSB) just back it off one rotation and jobs a good ‘un.
 
Trial and error is fine, the only thing you can really do much damage to (assuming you’re using the right tool to loosen off the castle nut, that ideally being an armourers wrench of some description) is the small spring which keeps the part behind the trigger in check. Just be sure to remove your buffer/buffer spring before you start taking anything off.

All airsofters are annoying to a point, because most people are annoying to a point.
 
As many have said, if playing in a particular way is where you find your fun then you do you. Nothing I’ve ever had happen or seen happen during a game will ever come close to how annoying I find ‘safe zone chuntering’. But I don’t think any of the various sub-sets of airsofters are more prone to doing it.
 
It’s a hobby, that is done to have fun. People draw that fun from different places. As long as that is acknowledged I have zero issue.
 
At least I think that’s what my opinion is, it’s been that long since I’ve played I almost miss people grumbling in the safe zone after a game about alleged cheating that they ‘didn’t see the point’ of telling a marshal about.