straffham

Cyma are fairly good these days, as well as being easily upgraded if and when you when you want to. As a back up the MP5K should tick all your boxes, and ideal for CQB.

Thing to remember when painting is that surface prep is the most imortant factor. Needs to be completely free of dirt and grease, running some fine wet and dry abrasive paper over it, clean it again with detergent (washing up liquid, diluted, rinse, dry, then ideally use IPA (isoproyl alcohol) and a lint free cloth to give a final clean, before spraying several LIGHT coats of paint from about a foot away, leaving a few minutes between coats. Fewer coats the better. Applying varnish after will not protect the paint if it hasn't been applied correctly to start with. Preparation is key to a decent finish. Also don't mix different types of paint (acrylic with enamel for instance) or you can end up with paint finish resembling crazy paving!

Used Halfords Silicon spray for years, had no problems using it as a general spray used sparingly on GBB pistol internals (NOT IN THE HOP / BARREL), inc TM, and on the OUTSIDE of new AEG hop rubbers when fitting them so they move freely in the hop unit. Would never use it in a gearbox or for cleaning barrels. Use silicon GREASE on the piston head air seal.

Krylon is very good, Plastikote can end up looking satin rather than flat matt if you put too much on. Another good alternative is Humbrol acrylic sprays available from good hobby shops, they do a huge range and cost about a fiver, though its a smaller can. Whatever paint you use it will wear and scratch over time though.

Nice one, glad you sorted it! If it does end up too loose you could always replace the pin with a locking one! Be interested to know how you get on with repairing the crack.

D'OH! So , Taiwan Gun are Polish company, and Specna Arms are manufactured in Asia, confusing lol! Well OK I know virtually all of it is made in Asia but hey!

Dont forget to make sure your UKARA number gets put on the address label if ordering from Asia as otherwise it will prob never get past UK Customs. Also you'll be billed for 20% VAT and handling charges which put the price up quite a bit. You could try ASG (Action Sport Games) in UK, I'm pretty sure they do the same gun but with a warranty for around £145 and without hassle of ordering abroad.

You may need to put a little work into it to get the best out of it, such as reshimming the gears and relubricating, plus the mainspring may well need downgrading before you can skirmish with it. Generally I've found JG guns fairly reliable if maintained properly.

I have a G&P bodied CAR 15 and its only the front pin which holds the upper receiver in place, so I would think yours would be the same? The receiver pins are a VERY tight push fit when new and yes things will break if you're not careful. Spray a little WD 40 onto the ends and centre of the pin so it penetrates into the pin housing and leave for a few minutes. You then need to ensure the area around the receiver pin is supported on something solid when knocking the pins through, eg on a workmate work bench, and knock the pin through one of the holes in the workmate gently, using a small hammer and a wooden dowel ideally as this prevents some of the shock being transmitted which causes the cracking. Once the front pin is out the upper receiver should pull straight off the lower,may need to pull the charging handle back a little though to release it. Use same method of supporting the receiver when refitting the pin.

Try ak2m4 on places to buy on this forum. He should have what you're after. Generally if its a V3 gearbox yes any standard parts will fit.

Could be a wiring issue, either a short circuit due to damaged wire insulation, or damaged wire inside the insulation, or possibly a worn trigger switch contact where not enough current gets to the motor to turn it under load, any of which could cause the problems you encountered. Only other possibility that springs to mind is the shimming is too tight, preventing the gears from turning freely? My hunch would be a wiring issue though.

Anyone know for definite which makes of metal receiver would fit my JG MP5SD6 (clone of the TM one)? G&P? ICS? Classic Army? Cheers!

Agreed. In the shoulder and use the sights.

You could try just the new bucking, that alone may make a world of difference, before splashing out on a new barrel, nothing to lose at any rate.

Its good that Umarex are licensed though as said the licensor in most cases would have had little if any input into the end product. Basically it stops the chance of Umarex being sued for copyright infringement. It does however push the price up and many of the trade markings on the gun are far removed to those on the real steel firearm .

I've used a few Madbull Black Python Version 2's and they are very good with noticably better accuracy. I've never had any jamming issues with them, but bear in mind the tighter the bore, the more likely this will happen unless you're very selective with ammo. I usually use Blaster or Blaster Devil 0.2 & 0.25s. I also mate the Madbull barrel with a bog standard Marui Hop rubber and find this a reliable and economic upgrade on anything other than a super hi grade sniper. Not found some of the more fancy hop rubbers to be better or as consistent as the Marui tbh.

Cheapest option is If its a front wired M4 invest in a Quick Change Spring gearbox shell. 5 min job to change springs then!

Pretty much any nozzle for a VERSION 3 AK gearbox such as Marui,Guarder, G&G, Prometheus etc should work, worth a try messaging ak2m4 on here or have a look on his website. Doesn't charge much for post either. I would try to find how the damage was caused and check the tappet plate that holds the nozzle is OK too.

Ok, so my Ares M4 suffered terminal gearbox failure. Even though it hasn't been used a lot in its 4 years, the monkey metal used in the original shell has disintegrated around the cylinder head. I emailed Ares for prices for a new shell, came back as 73USD posted, plus customs and admin fees when it arrived no doubt. As I wanted to keep the repair as cheap as possible, coupled with my doubts the new Ares shell would survive any longer than the original, made me seek an alternative. The options available were: 1) to buy a standard V2 shell and swap the Ares internals into it; problem here being the Ares trigger / microswitch won't fit into a standard shell designed for standard switch parts, also the spring guide is different as the Ares box has a QD spring guide; 2) buy a complete V2 gearbox such as the ZCI or Specna Arms ones which can be had for around £50; However Forum member ak2m4 suggested a third option; a ZCI shell which is essentially a clone of the Ares shell design, and comes with trigger, microswitch and wiring, plus spring guide. Costing £30 this seemed the best value option so one was ordered from his website with a couple of other bits. Great value and great service too! The shell is a budget one but seems pretty well cast in fairness. The original Ares 8mm bearings and bushings dropped in fine, I had to remove a couple of the Ares shims to get the gears turning freely in the new shell. Whilst apart I fitted a new "Core" vented bearing piston head (I always fit a bearing piston head or bearing spring guide to my gearboxes to remove spring torque) and fitted the cylinder / cylinder head / piston / tappet plate / air nozzle. No fiddling about with the trigger and switch required, they're already in the new shell and deceptively simple in design, as is the selector plate and safety (which worried me slightly initially). All that was needed was to reroute the wiring as its fitted for a rear set up, but my gun needs a front wired arrangement. After a check everything was in place, and a relube, the gearbox was closed up, the spring and spring guide fitted and tested for free movement and function, as per the pic below. The Ares pistol grip and motor were then fitted and the whole assembly tested electrically, and hey presto, all worked perfectly, safety, single shot and full auto! I was advised by Pete (ak2m4) some minor filing may be needed; I found I did have to file a tiny amount where the hop unit locates in the front of the shell as it wasn't quite "round", and a little casting flash from on top ot the shell where the 2 halves meet, plus open the holes out slightly where the small receiver pin passes through the gearbox above the trigger but nothing else otherwise. Time will tell how it stands up to use but I'm pleased to have fixed my M4 at fairly low cost AND been able to retain the quick release spring feature, and it still fires around the original velocity of 325FPS. I would particularly like to thank (and plug) Forum member Pete (ak2m4) for bringing the ZCI shell to my attention, his website www.ak2m4.co.uk is full of useful parts at reasonable prices.

Excellent service from Pete, had never heard of Ak2m4 until he replied on my thread about replacing a damaged Ares M4 gearbox. Sent me out a ZCI shell and a few Core parts, along with a tight bore barrel, all packaged securely, had an email when sent, arrived next day, signed delivery, and parts and postage cost less than competition. Great site for decent low priced aftermarket parts which I will use again.

Be sure to check the battery you buy has a connector compatible with the one in the gun, failing that Component shop can make up connector leads in pretty much any combination.

Looks not unlike the Brit WW2 Boyes recoil-less anti tank rifle if I recall?!

Some cracking deals on ICS at Firesupport at the moment, think you'd be pushed to get better for the money.

I think I read it as it was intended, as a spoof on innacurate media reporting on anything gun related. Made me laugh!

Had prices from Ares finally, USD60 for the M4 shell or USD73 posted airmail - and then the lottery of how much extra I get ripped off for customs and admin fees when it arrives! So - Ares can take a jump, thanks to ak2m4 for another possible route I'm looking into now.