Gunboat Diplomat

The boy is generally happy with his G36 (very much so on the ergo and looks front), but inevitably has had his head turned by the snappy trigger response, high rate of fire and less agricultural sound signature of more modern AEGs. I'm loosely thinking a motor upgrade and shimming the gears (if it needs it, presume it will) will get him towards his goal, but I'm loathe to chuck triple digits at it as the upgrade path is likely to dictate new gun at some point or another. It's a budget AEG after all (albeit a pretty admirable performer if you set aside the fact it sounds like an old VHS player ejecting a tape when it fires). Accuracy and range are not a problem with it and he's no desire to sling particularly heavy weight BBs so no need for upgrades on that front at least. Note this is not the G36 High Speed variant that Cyma also do, so lacks the 13:1 gearset and full metal toothed piston that one comes with, in hindsight I should have gone for that but was ignorant of the option at the time.

They’re fine, ordered 2 guns and bits from them with no issues, though I’ve never had to use their return process so can’t comment on that front. If you add something to your cart and leave it they usually email you a 5% off code (though mine ended up in spam so I missed it when I ordered).

Is it just the low FPS you're bothered by? I'm assuming that 240fps is on 0.20 BBs which is pretty low. Since you're happy with a bit of DIY I'd be inclined to have a go at fixing it (assuming its out of warranty etc). You might only be a spring change or poor air-seal fix away from a working gun. I'd personally avoid used, too easy to buy a lemon unless you really know these things inside and out or can be sure you trust the seller. It's becoming a bit of a meme around these parts, but the Double Eagle M9xx range of M4s are universally approved of as a well priced, reliable and decent performer.

Ha! And I thought I was the only one using the weekly Gousto box as a ballistic gel substitute.

Cheers @gavinkempsell - any experience with this retailer? Are they reliable?

I’m pretty much sold on one at this point. Just waiting for someone to have the tan colour back in stock as it’s sold out everywhere at the moment.

I wonder if it's worth considering a bullpup? The rear weight bias that you can tuck under your arm rather than having out in front might reduce the stress on your shoulder.

So it would seem. Found a few places listing TM MWS mags at £50ish, but alas no stock.

I wouldn't use GT85 myself, other than maybe to wipe down the outside of the gun with. I suspect AEG gearboxes are lubricated with lithium grease, GT85 is just going to thin that out. GT85/WD40 are more similar than they are different and both are reasonably effective degreasers - you want your gearbox grease to stay where it is. I'd put them somewhere dry with a couple of bags of silica gel if I was worried about damp and be done with it.

I storage charge all my LiPos when not in use (I have FPV quads as well as airsoft kit so have quite a lot of batteries). Aside from longevity reasons, if I storage charge them UP from a low voltage state after a game then it will save 20 mins or so of charge time before game day. If I bring them DOWN to storage levels (say if I haven't used them) then they are significantly more chemically stable so less likely to suffer a LiPo fire, plus the stored energy is lower so in the worse case scenario the reaction is smaller. Fortunately I seem to find that half a day on the field brings a battery down to storage voltage naturally, so usually I just plug them into a cell checker at the end of the day and find they at 3.7v per cell so good to go back in the box. The relatively small low stress LiPos I've got for my RIF aren't really a concern, but the big 6S packs that suffer huge current drain and multiple crashes on my FPV quad I treat as a riskier proposition.

Were I to make a hasty purchase, does anyone know a source for reasonably priced compatible mags? At £65 a pop its going to get very expensive very quickly.

I presume being MWS compatible, in the worst case you can circumvent any potential inadequacies by uprating parts if they fail. So you may end up with a bit of an expensive Trigger's Broom but at least have something that works rather than say a first gen VFC that either works or it doesn't? That said, anecdotal stuff on Reddit and YouTube seems to suggest this thing is reasonably comparable to a TM.

I'm really tempted by this as an entry to GBBRs. I mean by all accounts you're broadly getting a TM MWS but without a nice box unless I'm missing something. If this particular M4 wasn't nearly identical (aesthetically) in most respects to my current one I think I'd have one, but I really fancy something a bit different visually. 'spose I could go for the tan version...

I think me and the boy have to take partial responsibility for that one, 30 meters out of respawn I hear an almighty crash behind me, turn round and he is on is back, leg pointing at a jaunty angle and gun god knows where. His first words were 'Is my gun okay?' - he's a good lad. A good half dozen or so of our team stopped to make sure he was okay rather than just bundling past which I was very grateful for, but it probably meant the objective had no defensive line to speak of. By the time he was back on his feet the game over whistle had blown. Thankfully being an elastic teenager he'd not done himself any serious damage but the fire selector on his G36 had vanished in the tumble so I'll have to source a replacement. Same (apart from being in the bath..), watched this last night, wondering what is the max weight BB our stock guns can hop. Going to order some 28s and 30s (using 25s currently) and see how we get on.

Without knowing your specific gun it's impossible to make any recommendations. Your choice is going to come down to what will physically fit. Vapextech are a decent supplier, though I think they may have put their prices up since I last ordered from them.

Half day for me and the boy on Saturday. He met up with a friend from cadets who had a great time and is planning his next visit, so looks like we've added another to the rank and file of Spec Ops roster. Second day out with my Double Eagle and his Cyma G36. Again, both performed flawlessly and just took the abuse and shrugged it off. I did a lot more shooting this game as I found myself in some great positions affording me sweeping arcs of fire as the opfor team tried to push objectives or flank. I think I went through 12 midcaps in the morning session which is a lot for me. Think I need to invest in an Odin or clone as my speedloader/thumb can't keep up at that rate of use. Only brought one battery each as we were on a half-day and was starting to wonder if I'd regret that decision with the amount of firing, but surprisingly when I got back the LiPo from my DE was only down to around 25% so needed just a brief charge back to storage voltage. The boy's LiIon pack was down to 10%, about 3.6v per cell so was pretty done. Was a busy day with a lot of rentals but it all went remarkably smoothly and I had one of my most enjoyable days yet. The games this weekend were staged from some of the more peripheral areas of the Spec Ops map and it seemed to create some new and fun corridors of action that were better suited to funnelling people and objectives through. Good to finally meet @Dan Robinson, hope the knee mends up soon and thanks to @RostokMcSpoons for letting the boy have a play with the GBBR... I can hear a birthday list being furiously scribbled out at this very minute. Highlights of the day for me... Saying 'This is the longest I've ever lasted in a game of Zombies...' before immediately being shot in the forehead. Finding a perfect tree that afforded good cover and a great spot to rack up kills from. Not being able to find said tree after returning from respawn. How does a man lose a tree in a forest...

@guyus10 - that exact battery came with my son's Cyma G36. I don't know if you've tried it out yet, in our case the battery doesn't last very long at all (think 30 mins or so). It may just be a duff, we've never actually used it on the field, only for test firing at home. Both been using LiPos from day one. If yours is okay, then aside from the decent suggestions above my vote is for the HTRC C240 Duo. Around £50 and can charge 2 batteries simultaneously. If you want to upgrade to LiPos instead of your NiMh then https://www.vapextech.co.uk have proven to be cheap and reliable. No affiliation but I've used them and have no complaints.

I think my site has the same rule, to stop people spamming the entrances to buildings with fire to just get ricochet kills, but I just play it safe now and unless it's patently obvious I'll take the hit. In general, I must say coming into airsoft I wasn't prepared for how half your hits would be barely perceptible and easily confused with a falling leaf, drop of rain or a squirrel farting at 25 yards. My first games were just utter confusion, wanting to play by the rules but not wanting to rob myself of precious game time or look like an idiot for calling a hit that was never there. Adopting the 'if in doubt, take the hit' mantra has ironically made the game easier and more enjoyable as I'm no longer wasting precious cognitive capacity worrying about if something was a hit or not. I'm sure I can still do better on this front and no doubt still miss things. Oddly some of my most satisfying moments have been taking a hit I wasn't sure on and then hearing a nearby marshal who had seen it say 'good call'.

Think of re-enacting a role from a Carry On film, that's your typical Airsoft skirmish in my experience.

That was a great write up, sounds like an incredible event. Definitely something I'd like to do once a bit more experienced. How did it work for those who were cast as civilians or the ineffective national army roles? If the former, are you expected to act as a bit of an NPC and not do much/any fighting? Do the national army players just take bribes to lay down their arms or run away at the first sign of trouble? Seems like an awesome way to create a real feeling world, if you get cast in a more passive role but were hoping for front-line action is that just part and parcel of participating or was there some flexibility that meant all the factions got a decent amount of trigger time over the weekend?

Yeah I suspect it’s just not the game for him, I think he just learnt that during an unusually tough session. Possibly a blessing in disguise, rather than getting invested and then deciding its not for you several £££ down the line. Like you say, might just have been heavy BBs. For the benefit of balance, it was notable but not something that spoilt our day or gave me any concerns about safety. Even the heaviest impacts were negligible compared to stubbing your toe. Under yours and @RostokMcSpoons revised parameters I’ve elevated my performance to ‘genius’. In any case I’m having a whale of a time in the thick of it so no intention of changing my strategy. Yeah sorry, for the avoidance of doubt, I’m quite happy being shot and consider it an essential part of the game. Me and the boy are regularly in the thick of it and as far as we’re concerned its all good stories to tell on the way home. My gist in this example was that we had a particularly heavy morning (by airsoft standards) which I think, at least in part, put off the first timers we brought along. Nothing inherently bad about it, just one of those luck of the draw scenarios.

Yesterday was our first game with our own gnus instead of rentals, so there was much excitement in the lead-up to the day. First thing I realised was how much extra prep there is now. Make sure then gnu's are fit to fight, get LiPos charged ready to go, check mags are feeding, don't forget your speed-loader, bring a USB LiPo charger in case you need an emergency top-up at lunchtime... On the plus side, both my Double Eagle and the boys Cyma G36 performed flawless all day long, bar some intermittent feeding issues on full auto for the G36. Reading around it seems the HiCap G36 mag may be to blame, I have a spare for him to try next time. First time going through a chrono check, his clocked in at 313 on .20s and mine at 290 on .25s. Was surprised to just be asked what weight I was using, I had assumed I'd be asked to load a few of the sites own BBs so that people can't under report to get through chrono. Game highlights for me were managing to push up a central line unnoticed whilst the enemy were trying to flank on the left. As they encountered resistance in their push they started to bunch up, effectively stacking themselves up for me to pick off. Also managed to get a few CQBish kills in some clearance action walking into enemy held positions. Got the drop on a couple of guys, then I heard voices in a tower, so rounded the corner and loosed off a couple of shots. A trio of rental kiddies started yelping and looked like rabbits in the headlights, so I stopped at that point as it was pretty close range. The two survivors repaid my mercy by lighting me up, no good deed goes unpunished. We had a couple of friends (Dad and son) with us for their first go at airsoft who did the morning session. Sadly I don't think they'll be back, the young lad didn't enjoy being shot and I think was a bit overwhelmed by the whole affair, the morning session was pretty heavy in terms of incoming fire, which allows me a segue into... I'm still too new to the game to really have enough insight, but I've played a few games now, been hit many times (I'm crap) and at close range and never had much of a mark to show for it. Yesterday felt much heavier in terms of incoming fire. I had a few hits that stumbled me, you had a huge welt on your neck, some other guy had one even bigger than that. The boy has some decent impact marks on his chest even through a couple of layers of MTP. As you say, not sure if that was a someone shooting hot or just something that can consistently get a lot of rounds down range right up to the FPS limit. We've come into the game as newbies expecting some variation both in terms of sportsmanship and game-days, so we just include this alongside poor hit-taking or team-balancing issues in the bottom line figure of what makes a good day vs bad day in the world of airsoft.

I use one of these: https://www.bat-safe.com It’s pricier than an old ammo tin, but I considered it pretty cheap as an insurance policy as I have a fair few packs. LiPos are typically safe if treated sensibly and at storage voltage they are as close to inert (from spontaneous ignition sense) as makes no difference. During charging or afterwards when stored on a full charge, say the night before a game day, they do have a chance of catching fire. How likely that is depends on too many variables to consider. Anecdotally I think cases like this are mostly from the RC world where LiPos are subjected to much more abuse, both in physical damage and discharge load alongside much higher energy density per pack, resulting in a bigger boom when they let go. Airsoft by comparison is pretty low stress, so barring misuse or a manufacturing defects the LiPos used in AEGs should be about as safe as it gets. Still worth a few quid spent on caution though.

Ordered a couple of LiPos from them on Monday, delivered today so I'm happy. If you log in to your account they have an Order Status tab so you can track your order.

Cheers for the tip. Flash hider undid fine as I toon it off to fit my suppressor. Not tried the motor screw yet though. What kind of sadist puts red locktite on a service item.