The_Lord_Poncho

Yes, this isnt normal. That kind of reduction should only happen if you are cranking the hop enough to lift depleted uranium BBs. Assuming you don:t have deep enough pockets to feed that habit, it would seem that either the bucking is torn/nub incorrectly fitted, or something else weird is going on with the hop bucking combo. Either way, the way forward is swapping to a good quality bucking and nub combo - and crucially a combination that is known to play well with your particular hop unit and gearbox/nozzle length (or if there is a paucity of Info on this, be prepared for some trial and error).

Many thanks for taking the time to write this up - given the low price (and the lack of need to find a donor gearbox) it's something that I’ve been keeping an eye on too. Appreciating that you don't have a reference point in other HPA systems to compare to, nonetheless, does the quality of the components, finishes etc seem OK? Looks like you have it sorted now anyhow, but I've had a good experience with an Aliexpress clone of the Balystik HPR800 regulator (and I believe others have had favourable experiences too) - about £20 with postage.

Ha, sorry. I mean, bringing RC car terminology onto this forum, it's all fair game!

Actually, I wonder if the '3s' comment was actually referring to an 11.1 battery - 11.1 three cell batteries are frequently (especially in RC car territory) referred to as being '3s'. What the guy was saying is that he has happily run on a 7.4 without a drama, but he had heard that 11.1 may risk the mosfet (which is true). There - i bet you all feel bad now for taking the p$ss!!

I've spotted these too - they do look enticing - please report back on your findings!

Yes of course - if you are using NiMH batteries, there is no need (or possibility) to balance charge them. That charger that i linked to earlier in the thread can happily charge NiMH batteries as well (just via the main connector), and has a specific programme for it.

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.

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.

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

I'm a great fan of HobbyKing for batteries: https://hobbyking.com/en_us/batteries-chargers/batteries/lipo.html?srsltid=AfmBOorewg7W7txZBp1sQQReaQMzHMCWYjhJXlxPgrnOlK4NhYdpUR7t&___store=en_us#q=airsoft From what I can see, that M908 looks like it uses deans connectors. In terms of space, the M908 uses a 'crane' style stock, which does allow you to use 'nunchuck' style split battery packs. Personally though, I have a load of this type - they will fit your gun either in the stock or the buffer tube (bit that the stock slides onto), and are a versatile size that will fit just about any gun you choose to run in the future. I would get at least two, maybe three. They are only £6 each. Each one should last you at least 1000 shots/an hours intense woodland skirmish. https://hobbyking.com/en_us/turnigy-nano-tech-1300mah-2s-25-50c-lipo-airsoft-pack-t-connector.html

You would be wise to pair these with a cheap mesh face mask - to protect your teeth (and your face!) e.g.: https://www.patrolbase.co.uk/nuprol-mesh-lower-face-shield-v3?pv=5289

Yep, CQB as a first experience is a touch bold, but many get into airsoft that way. Personally i prefer outdoor play as I find there are more opportunities to be cunning/stealthy - and it usually hurts a lot less. As a top tip, you probably have some anti fog spray for the mountain biking (or even access to some rainex) - take that along with you and a microfibre cloth - fogging up of eyewear is a big problem indoors, especially on rental masks.

Plenty of very reliable options for not much money (and frequently, more expensive does not equal more reliable). Most things start to go wrong when people tinker with them (albeit, that is part of the fun to be fair). If you haven’t actually played yet, go along to a couple of days and rent the kit so you can see if you like it. But once you do, you can get some good solid guns for less than £200 that should last a good while. Obviously, nothing is perfect, and you might get unlucky. but the good news is that parts are cheap, and - with youtube as your guide - fixes are usually easy.

It's only a matter of time before you get a gun.. And a backup, and a backup backup!

Those activated charcoal hand warmers work too - as a low tech alternative option.

If they re-do the L1A1, I'll be clearing some space on the wall for it!

An MP5 with MLOK and 'Tasteful are, I'm afraid, mutually exclusive!

If you are looking for pure mechanical, Mancraft is also an excellent option. I have had absolutely superb after sales service form those guys.

Well,the S&T no.4 had it's first skirmish yesterday. I'd already swapped the barrel to a slightly shorter and better quality one than the stock brass coloured aluminium (!) barrel it comes with, popped in a silicon Maple Leaf Deception, and upgraded the spring with a heavily cut down L96 M150. Oh, and swapped out the loading plate with a filed to shape alloy L96 AWS plate to stop the original plate retaining c-clip pinging off every 10th shot. It was running at circa 1.3 joules after that, with a decent long range and impressive accuracy. I had an excellent game with it- the paltry six or so 'kills' I had with it each being incredibly satisfying. I would have given myself a high five after each one if that wouldn't have been just too weird (and my screaming biceps had any remaining energy to give). Many admiring comments from the sea of AR users!

A horizontal pouch to house a little 13CI HPA bottle, keeping it nicely tucked out of the way and not bouncing around on the back of the belt. Primarily for use with my recently converted L96 with a Mancraft SDIK. I couldn't find any ready made solutions on the market, so resorted to making my own with leftover bits and bobs that I had+ a 20 year old sewing machine!

It is rather unusual that your rifle has gained power, usually it is the other way around, especially if you haven’t been inside the gearbox or changed the hop rubber (which if you have, might have improved the air seal and given you the power boost). Also a variance of 30FPS is very high. My first suspicion is that you have got a bottle of mixed weight BBs - the lighter BBs will be giving you you the higher FPS numbers, and the heavier ones the lower output. But if you are certain that this is not the case, and you haven’t mixed up your BBs with some from a variety of sources, then probably the next thing I would do would be to swap out the hop rubber/bucking. If you haven’t done this before, this is a very easy task - plenty of YouTube videos on it (the process for your gun will be the same as any other 'M4' type, so search for that rather than your exact model of gun, which would probably not give you as many/any hits). Maple Leaf MR Hop AEG rubbers (yellow/60d degree) is my preferred choice, combined with an omega nub. But these don't fit particularly well in all hop chambers/guns. A slightly less well performing but still good choice (and one that seems to fit in a wide variety of hop units) will be the G&G green hop rubber.

I suspect the Nov and the Cyma that you mention will be good options (I don't know enough about the E&C to say either way), but plenty of other very good options for that price bracket, and many good options for actually a little less money. Some of the higher end Specnas, Double Eagles for example. Delta Armories seem to be churning stuff out at the moment too that I suspect is half decent (the fit and finish of the £35 Delta Armories receiver that I bought is really superb). The AR15/M4 style you seem to be leaning towards is a good option to start off with - a huge range of available guns, and one of the easiest to strip down and work on if you ever feel the inclination. Don't forget the AK platform though if you like the form factor - some very good options in your price bracket from the likes of Cyma and E&L for example.

Right - added to the new tax year purchase list then, thanks! It would be lovely if you could also get them in Mitchell pattern like the Helikon's, but beggars can't be choosers!

I was literally looking at those on Aliexpress the other day! What's the quality like? Standard poncho liner type thickness?

As per Impulses reply - Cyma MP5 is a classic choice. I've played a lot indoors and out with mine. They are solid. The only slight downside is the sliding hop unit can sometimes seem to self adjust - a known problem, and very quickly sorted out with a small O'ring placed against the slider to add more friction. Mine is an A3 version - CM041J Blue Edition - and has been cracking. I also have a very budget (£110) Specna SA-FX01 FLEX - ar9 style gun. Its super light (as its entirely plastic), super cheap, and phenomenally, comes with a programmable ETU. It's not bad at all, although the hi-cap mags seem to frequently jam with BBs caught in the mechanism - requiring the mags to be stripped to free them up. Mid caps are available. The other gun that could make it onto your list is the Double Eagle UTR45 (M917). A little heavier than the Specna mentioned above (but lighter than the MP5), but feels nice and solid despite being fully plastic, and again comes with a programmable ETU. Generally a well regarded gun. One of the downsides are that the mags are huge - albeit that is a key part of the .45 calibre aesthetic. I seem to recall that the stock motor that comes with them is a little lacklustre. All three of the above have quick change spring systems for their gear boxes - particularly useful for downgrading the power for CQB purposes. If you ever want to start investing more money over time in them, all three of the above are readily upgradable with new inner barrels, hop buckings, and motors if you ever feel the inclination, and the AR9 and UTR also have the advantage of using M4 style hop chambers too, with a plethora of after-market options (albeit that doesn't necessarily translate to better). Of course, if you want something short and stubby, and real world aesthetics aren't too much of a hang up, then the world is your oyster for super short M4/AR 15 style blasters with tiny out barrels and PDW stocks, but personally I’m not overly keen on the look.