Emergencychimps

I think rogerborg has a good point. Have you played before? If you haven't, the best one is probably one that a site rents to you. Rent the first at least 3 times. Yes it will cost you a bit extra but I swear there are thousands of people who have thought airsoft was the dogs danglies on YouTube, maybe had an awesome first game, but by their 3rd/4th game have lost the hype and they've sunk a small fortune into the hobby and you never get back what you've paid when selling it. It's also a great way to get chatting to other players on site, airsofters love talking about their gear and guns, chat to them, ask to hold them, test shoot them etc. You'll get a better understanding of what you want, what's available and you'll at least get a bit chatty with the other players. If you haven't played before then you'll need to get a two tone, which if you get into the sport you'll probably be keen to replace, so you won't end up saving any cash. If you have played before and like m4s personally I'd suggest a g&g m4, anyone in your price range that you like the look of. They all basically do the same thing and the quality control of g&g seems good for the money, so then just getting one you like the look of is sensible, longer barrels aren't more accurate etc. The performance and functionality of them will all be the same/very similar. Don't like m4s? well......I'd honestly recommend sucking that up and getting an m4. You can get some great cheap ones, Parts are easy to get, they're common so onsite techs aren't working on something weird and they should be good to go out of the box from a brand like g&g or specna. Accessories, kit (chest rigs, mag pouches) are common and cheap. Also, they can be lovely. If you really must have an AK or some other weird shaped one, by the time you can justify spending the money you'll be in a better place to understand what's good, what you're looking for etc. Just don't be one of those people who is like.....I've just bought this gnu , is it any good?

Is this a 24 hour, non stop game or is it one of these ones with a planned break so players can go to sleep? Lots of info around arrivals, signing in, game on etc but not anything beyond that.

Honestly, I wouldn't have gone that high. These weren't the premium PTS Pmags which I would imagine are worth around £10 mag second hand, I'd have suggested around £35 for a box of 5, so around £70 all in. From my experience of these, they were pretty sub par, but looked like the more expensive PTS version and I think more than a few bought these thinking they were getting a pts set and when they weren't as good, they sort of disappeared.

Cracking write up and wonderful to hear you enjoyed what was effectively your first game! Taking on a night game for your first game is brave but something I'd recommend as it definitely can add to it. My first real game in 2012 was a night game and I was hooked! Seems like a good crowd to get into as well, thats how the sport should be! Everyone who loves kit, owns kits etc generally loves chatting about it, so when you see someone kitted up you're just really seeing how much they love the sport and loads of opportunities to start conversations with them. For your fogging issue, there's a whole bunch of solutions and what works well for one person won't for another. However if you want to stay with glasses then I'd recommend a pair that are close fitting (minimal gaps) but not too close as you want air flow around them as well. Also some of them have an anti fog layer on them (bolle siliums are the ones I use) and around £10 a pair. Some glasses are just a bit pants, seems everyone hates (there'll be some that don't) the bolle tracker 2 glasses (which is a shame cause they look like they'd be awesome). I'd also suggest an extra layer of anti fog stuff, some people recommend cat crap, the anti fog wipes etc. I also recommend bob hopes visor spray (for motorcyclists), spray, clean the glasses and then spray again and allow to dry on. Making sure whatever headwear(cap etc) and face protection is right for you is part of it, some facepro can push your hot breath into your glasses (no idea what the delta mike is like for this), I find caps absorb sweat, some find it hinders. I always find any balaclavas or scarf type things hinder fogging issues for me as it prevents me from controlling my temperature (so sweat more) but generally the more sweat there is the more fogging there is. You could just get mesh (check out heroshark on facebook) but there's a whole thing of you might get some fragments etc through, but such low power etc. I don't cause I love night games and mesh at night is like wearing sunglasses at night #dark. I'd never given thought to coloured arm bands and people who are colour blind, I am sure the owner will want to hear about it. It might not be something they can justify fixing now, but maybe on their next purchase of arm bands etc they can.

You used to be able to get ex police ballistic plates that are made of a special type of layered plastic, super light weight (around 1kg per plate) and can give around level 3 protection. However eBay seems sold out....guess that could be a supply issue or Ukraine. Alternatively I've seen people use the cheap plastic ones and fill them with sand, rubber chippings (like at a playground) and then seal them back up with tape once they're at the right weight, they can get quite heavy though!

The way I see this, is are you going to be using the same rif in 2-3 years time? If so then a tm devgru is a good option. If it's likely you'll have stopped again or using a different RIF as your main, get a cheaper one or do something sexy with the scar to make you fall in love with it again (nice optics, foregrip, torch etc) The bolt stop and the recoil are nice add ons that very few aegs do (kwa ergs and bolt, gbls das #megamoney), neither are as good as a gbbr but you have more ammo capacity, less gas concerns, less weather concerns. I personally find them satisfying enough that over a longer period of time I can justify the money. The range will be similar if not the same. Personally, i get the impression that standard aegs degrade more over time, a good aeg lasts (with it's optimal performance) say 1-3 years but a recoil lasts 3-4 years This is probably some fiction I have created in my brain to justify the money.

Newer "budget" Airsoft guns have come on leaps and bounds supposedly. You can get yourself a good rif thats reliable, good range, few bells and whistles (MOSFETs/electric triggers) etc for around £300. Good enough that the TM magic isn't ready a thing. What very few guns give are the following. Bolt stop Recoil An easy gearbox to work on when it needs it. Unlike most gearboxes they aren't under tension when putting back together so I find them easier. I've had both of my recoils for over 7 years. During that time they have had repairs and spring upgrades, but not the excessiveness some do (stock motors, gears, pistons, cylinder,cylinder head, nozzle, barrel) The gate titans are a great upgrade. Obviously these repairs come at a cost but I'm not doing £300 every 2 years on a new rif like it seems most players with standard aegs do. Looked after they're solid and can last a long time If you like changing your rif fairly often or acquiring an armoury as some do, then go for a standard aeg. If you're set on a 416 and expect to like it for a long time then the recoil is a sound investment. For me the bolt stop, reliability, overall quality etc is enough id buy them again. TM mws gbbrs look very interesting, had a ghk and loved it, but I had a brief falling out of love with the sport and couldnt justify keeping it (kept the recoils though). Have picked up a tm mp7 for that gas action and a lower investment point. You do adapt to the lower round count surprisingly well and few contacts need 1000s of bbs, few need more than 30. Stock recoils are good solid guns, not super amazing but the recoil and bolt stop will make up for that. Eventually a stronger spring (m95 with a tighbore barrel or m100) for that extra FPS, if trigger response is important then the titan is the answer, but they aren't essential or needed at purchase. So I guess my answer is, it depends.

To be honest, I think a days entertainment for £25-£30 is amazingly cheap. I don't think there are many activities that are more than sitting on your arse in your own home(Netflix and gaming) that has such a low per hour cost. The rest of the costs (guns, ammo, food, pyro, kit) are up to the player and can be done incredibly cheaply or incredibly expensively, so looking for ways to reduce this further is feasible in the UK. If anything I'd encourage going the other way, charge me more but have paid Marshalls. It's hard to get volunteers to run a site as well as people who are getting paid for it. That's why a lot of sites are based around the one or 2 people who make the cash from it. If they aren't there or they're having an off day the whole site goes down hill. A local site to me has peaks and troughs and it's entirely based around the site managers (not the owners). When they change so does the quality of the site, the games run, the way the briefing is given, the attitude to the whole day/weekend etc. When it's bad it's pretty hard to moan cause they're doing their best and they are just volunteering.

I've done a mix of weekend events ( normally around £100 a time with no food included) and skirmishes. Most skirmishes locally tend to be £25 without food. But I have paid up to £35. I personally prefer sites that don't include food but do provide is on site at extra expense, its then my choice to buy or not. If they do good food at reasonable prices people will buy, bad food or too expensive and people will take pack ups. Honestly, to me what is value is very much site depending. I'd find it hard to pay more than £30 for a basic woodland site but I'd be happy to pay £45 for day sessions if the site is special, such as a mall, the fire college, prison, mod site (stirling games at places like catterick are effectively 2, if not 3 standard skirmish days due to hours played, so £100 ish is cheap). What I find more frustrating is inconsistency in organisers. My local site seems to get great reports one week and then I go and it's awful (maybe it's me?!) etc. I find the fact I've wasted one of my few free days far worse than the cost. If I could guarantee an organiser would provide a good to great day then I'd be willing to pay more, possibly double the above mentioned prices, but it seems that doesn't exist.

The rif is £300 new from anywhere that actually has it in stock, high-pressure advertise £250 but that's plus vat....so £300. There are 4 extra mags with it, generally £40 each, so that's an extra £160, plus the extra 2 things, let's call that £20 plus postage, c £10 (if you can find it all in stock from one retailer) = £490. If you can find them in stock. Tm mp7s seem to hold onto their value better than most rifs, so the 70% rule/guidance isn't accurate for them. So if you apply an 80% figure (which I agree is high for second hand, but I've seen it happen for tm mp7s loads) then you're around £400...... I don't know how the supply line is for tm mp7s at the moment. Sometimes everywhere is out and second hand prices go up, sometimes they're available and prices seem more reasonable second hand.

Tm Mp7s and mags seem to retain their value better than most. If it was mine I'd list it (none of the optional extras) for £425 all in and then consider offers around £400 The extras I'd say sell seperately, if you force a bundle you won't get the full value you could from them and it'll take longer to sell. Suppressor c £50 Sling c 25-30 Clone t2 with mount c £40 Surefire min is £150

Are they worth it? It depends but I'd say for most people no. Any new player and I'd encourage you don't. You're not new though! They can and do get sweaty, even if they have vents, they can increase fogging (more moisture = more fogging) and if you don't have the right size then they can cause headaches too. I generally wear a thin headband and replace it periodically with spares that I have in my pocket, as the next one gets wet the old ones dries in my pocket etc. They can also stick out in woodland environments. However if you want the protection and the look etc then this could be a price worth paying. There are loads of different styles and the quality varies massively. It is often you get what you pay for. Most Airsoft ones are clones of opscore. Whether that's the carbon, fast or the maritime. The height of the "cut" can vary for these, if you run sordins or peltors then I'd recommend a high or super high cut (these can be attached to the helmet) You can get clones of the mtek flux, revision caiman and mich 2000 styles as well. Then there are ex army ones....wouldn't recommend the older ones but apparently the virtus is good, not sure if you can legally get them though yet. Some people run protec/skate helmets - very black hawk down delta look What can vary? The thickness of the shell, the size of the shell, whether they have rails and how it attaches and fits to your head, the quality of the pads and the quality of any NV mounts. I'd recommend seeing any your friends have and trying any you see around your local site (at the start of the day #sweatmess) If you've got an average size head, up to around 59 cm then most Airsoft helmets will work, above that look at the pts mtek flux or a l/XL ops core fast bump but here you're talking £100 plus and the opscore will be more. I've had Emerson, FMA, red dragon and the pts mtek flux (about to list, just got an opscore carbon). Realistically if you actually use it, the pads and retention system fail on Airsoft helmets. The pts mtek flux is by far the highest quality and most comfortable Airsoft helmet I have ever had. It also has the best longevity, but it's for people with larger heads 59+ One thing I do really like about the mtek flux is the cut at the back, it's more curved up and makes looking up (or ahead when prone) easier than standard opscore with a dial types. Depending on what else you use it for, you can obviously run night vision off it, go pro cameras, lights and camo covers etc they can look pretty Gucci. Regarding eyepro and face protection, I've never had an issue with it affecting eye pro, face protection I actually find it easier with the helmet, generally (especially helmets with a rail) you can attach the face protection to the helmet, so it's more comfortable, you could look at using a ops core mandible (clones available). I also find rain can be an issue compared with a baseball cap. It does seem like wearing helmets is becoming cool again.....guess we'll see how long that lasts.

It's a no from me. I think people either want an optic (or certain type of optic) that is as cheap as possible so it's then the easiest/cheapest one that fits their requirements. If so custom engraving isn't going to make it cheaper or easier to get. Or They want the best value optic they can get for their money, whether thats an airsoft optic in a certain style up to a £500 aimpoint. I don't think many people pay for the vortex optic price brand to get a airsoft clone with some engraving. My main point here is I think it's a gimmick that only a few people would be interested in and if they want it enough they can get companies that do laser engraving to do it for them (such as land warrior) on their choice of optic.

I don't know how the adverts get updated by when they are completed or not (guess the seller does that after a period of time) but often I have found that sellers list the item on multiple places. When this happens if they sell it, they're often unlikely to update that places they didn't sell it through unless they just happen to go back to that site. If you are contacting sellers about items that haven't recently had activity, then it's probably sold and they don't check here often enough. Or you're contacting sellers about items that have completed and they can't be bothered to reply, whether they have seen your message or not, as they have marked the item as complete. Also, life happens, work etc so this could be why people aren't replying as soon as you'd like. If I were you, I'd make sure you're contacting only about items that have been listed or bumped recently, make sure your messages are polite and you'll see a good response rate. If you contact me about a completed advert, something from a long time ago or with a message along the lines of "I'll give you 50% of the advertised sale price" - I'd just ignore you.

Welcome to the sport! I'm personally delighted that after that sort of day you've logged on and bothered to create this thread and discuss it. As others have mentioned every site varies. 6 games (depending on length) is about average for a skirmish day, I prefer faster turn around times and shorter lunch breaks. But I tend to find all skirmish sites slack and slow for this, a skirmish caters for all players including players with really different motivation and organisational levels. Losing momentum can be a difficult one to recover and especially if the weather is bad it can be hard to be motivated again to get it going after lunch. Most skirmish players are interested in their game, not whether the objectives been achieved, other people flanked etc and most are there to get kills and they play in an according fashion......sounds like a more structured event would be up your street. Regarding the objectives, at a skirmish they rarely mean anything, they are just a plot for that game, the score for football at the end is important, having a good game less so. Having a good game/experience is the point of Airsoft (or generally that's the accepted view) so which team won rarely matters. I find it useful so that Marshall's can re balance the teams if one side is losing lots. It is nice to know when one side "wins" but I'm sure if you persist you'll have great games you lose and terrible ones you win. My honest opinion is that you experienced a pretty meh day of Airsoft, whether that's because of the site, them having an off day, I've had meh days at what I thought were great sites, great days at sites I had previously thought of a not great. At skirmish days I tend to find all of the issues you've raised exist, some times it's real bad, some times a minor annoyance. I rarely found them at more organised events (such as battlesims)or milsims. Stirling run lots of events at catterick, it's worth the 8 hour return trip for me. You can play bad guys without all the Gucci kit and their themed games there arent non stop. I wouldn't normally advise them for a new player, but I'd rather that than you lose the love for the sport altogether.

I'd say you're looking around £500 -£550. £325 ish for the 416 with the original rail - the new rail is likely to put people off as much as it is draw them to it. Also it looks like a longer barrel and rail than standard (assuming same outer barrel, but with the extension and a longer rail). The fact it's had work done, spectre, spring etc puts as many off as it does attract again, so little value is added in my opinion. Would have priced it lower without the work done. £280-300 ish. £180 for the pmags - £45 each seems to be around the going rate for them. £50 for the rahg rail. I'd probably advise selling the rahg rail separately if you want max cash but more posting to do. Selling the original rail separately isn't easy and doesn't get as much as the rahg as its much more common.

I am not a fan of the owner, but there's a few things I consider. He did serve his time, agree with the sentence or not the whole point of our justice system is that people get punished for doing naughty things and then should rehabilitate. There's an awful lot of stolen mod kit about, most is very low level(pairs of glasses etc), he just went to the extremes and got punished for it. I understand that they went after his finances as well via the tax man. With his diagnosis, it doesn't excuse what he did etc. but considering how awful it is, I don't think he needs a rougher time of it so I'll avoid any personal comments. I actually really appreciate their stance on subjects like 2 tones, binary triggers and pistols with high cap m4 mags. They championed the opinion against 2 tones to their financial detriment. They make money off people attending their sites and by implementing that rule they have fewer players, I am sure whatever "extras" they have made from more rentals or kit sold onsite, it isn't offset by the numbers that don't attend. Their principle was that 2 tone wasn't right and they stuck by that principle and were willing to take the hit to the wallet. Whether you agree with their principle or not, I do admire the conviction(boom boom) to stick to their ideals on it. Personally, not a fan of the idea of binary triggers (no idea if I have ever come up against one, normally these things are based on whether the person who has it is a knob or not) and pistols with high cap m4 mags, it's just not for me and if a local site had that rule I would see it as a reason to attend. I don't like speedsoft, if people do that's fine but the fact there is choice in the market is a good thing. If you want to speedsoft etc then great, go to sites that do it or allow that style, if you don't, I'd like there to be somewhere to go that applies suitable rules. More choice and variation of games, styles etc to me is very welcome, even if it means there are events, sites etc that I end up not wanting to attend. BFGs, had 3 for over 6 years and frankly they have saved me over £1000 in pyro, never had one stolen and I regularly leave them to the end of the game. Maybe I have been lucky or the sites I have attended have been ultra honest. even if they did get stolen I'd still be quids in (though annoyed!). However they do get stolen, I would hazard a guess that the rule is there so marshalls can step in and prevent dead players ruining firefights to collect their bfgs, if the area isn't in contact I can't see collecting used bfgs would be an issue. Have a strict rule in writing, then you can be flexible, don't have the rule at all and it can't be enforced when needed. Just my 2 pence worth.

I have used a lot of optics under nv and your decision is likely to be based on what generation of night vision you have but I think it's sensible to be looking into passive more and more. The last weekend event I did I saw one ir laser, the whole time, there was so much nv on site that lasers just give your position away too much (caveat on that later). Ultimately passive aiming through NV is expensive, you're generally looking for real optics. I currently have/use the following: Vortex sparc ar, vortex crossfire red dot, Holosun (can't remember the specific model) and an eotech 512 (real), holy warrior eotech xps. Previously owned Aimpoint comp m2, comp m4 and an evolution gear eotech. I have owned acm clones of eotechs etc but ignoring them are they arent usable for nv. My recommendation would be a holosun red dot (like a aimpoint t2 style) or a vortex crossfire and put it on a riser, such as the unity tactical fast mount. There are clones that work for airsoft, pts ones around £55 and acm around £15. There is another mount called the scalar works which is higher than standard, but not as high as the unity. I haven't recommended the sparc ar as you can't change the mount and would strongly recommend you do, or at least retain the ability to do so in the future. The holy warrior xps has a night vision mode, but it's lowest nv setting is the same as the highest nv setting on a vortex or holosun. It effectively creates a photonic barrier so you can see it, but not past it onto your target......which isn't that helpful. It's just about useable but compared with vortex and holosun isn't ideal. The eotech 512 on a riser is amazing - easily the best. Has a nice big window to look through, the reticle is just amazing but you're lucky to get one under £350 even second hand plus the riser. The aimpoints were good, smaller windows but did the job well. It's just the holosun/vortex ones do the same job (for airsoft purposes anyway) and are around half the price as again, you'll be lucky to get one for less than £350. The vortex and holonsun, you're looking around £150-£170 new plus the new mount, they're great in the day, the night vision modes work well and they can be set nicely, for not ridiculous money. The holosun has a shake awake feature, which is nice but not essential. Can save batteries though. I would recommend keeping the IR laser, in buildings they're handy for the amount of "splash" they can create where there is less ambient light. I'd also recommend an IR torch on a pressure switch for similar, but can be handy, especially outside. BTW, a night vision mode is nice, its better than using the same optic on a non night vision setting. But it's not mandatory, in fact at some events you're better of using the red dot version of it. The nv mode is essential if you're attaching your NV device to the rif, but when head mounted, for a general look through, aiming etc it should be fine for a standard gen 3 device (has been for me!) The reference to having it in red mode rather than nv mode is once a contact is initiated it's amazing how often it switches to lots of white light and having it in red mode for that can be handy, without having to change it, flip your nods up etc mid contact. you'll just have to play with it to decide what you like.

Check out weapon762, based in Spain but they stock some good airsoft versions of the expensive kit. Very hard to tell the exact vest, would agree it looks similar to a jpc and even if it's not, it's great carrier and likely to do you well (it does pretty much everything well).The real ones are more expensive but airsoft clones are generally fine. There is an argument for real versions, but I'd suggest sticking to airsoft ones and the quality of TMC has improved massively and the price is easier. Some sites like shooter cb gear can be worth looking at too.

Thats a good shout, heard good things about his products and service he provides. Not cheap though

Edgar brothers, though they look out of stock for what you're after. If you're after a real steal tactical light land warrior stock streamlight and their new rifle light is meant to be excellent value. https://www.landwarriorairsoft.com/aiming-devices-mounts-and-bipods-c7/flashlights-c79/streamlight-protac-rail-mount-2-625-lumen-p12246 I don't work for land warrior. Just an available real steel alternative.