Speedbird_666

Bye bye pile'o'shite Specna Edge Orion gearbox - hello E&C replacement thanks to @ak2m4 Took the removal of the bolt catch mechanism and a tiny bit of dremelling to fit the Edge series receiver but the gun is shooting nicely now.

Ignoring the age issue (I assume your parents will be doing the buying), the G&G Raider 2.0 will do you fine. Combat Machines have been the go-to beginner gun for over a decade. But they are not the no-nonsense budget option that they used to be - their prices have been creeping up over the last few years, but their feature set has not. You do get more for your money by looking at other brands. Specna Core series (starting at £95) comes in a fair bit cheaper with extra features and parts. Evolution uses the same manufacturer as Specna to produce their series of (slightly different) guns. You've got Cyma, who have come on leaps and bounds in recent years, and the new Double-Eagle guns that seem to be gaining market traction too. There's also rebranded Classic Army AEGs from ASG that punch well above their weight given their £140 price tag. There's a huge choice now in the ~£150 market. It's a great time for new players. There are very few genuinely bad guns now (but avoid Nuprol!) - you just have to pick the look/feature set that suits you best.

TL:DR? Yes, it can be done with non-ICS parts but it's probably not worth doing at all. To explain: I have three ICS guns - two of which definitely fit 'standard' AEG rails/outer barrels. The third is a much older ICS gun and I haven't tested the barrel threads but I assume that will be OK too. I would not be swapping the barrels/rails over on the existing upper receiver on a regular basis - unscrewing and re-screwing the barrel nut and rail will eventually knacker something - most airsoft guns (Including ICS M4s) are only made from relatively soft Zamak metal. Buying a replacement MARS upper and building a complete short front-end off that instead would be a more sensible approach, because it would only be the matter of pulling the receiver pins and swapping the upper before game day. Problem is - you could end up spending a fair bit of cash buying an upper receiver, rail system, inner and outer barrel. You might need to think about another hop unit/rubber/nub because you don't want to be swapping that over between your inner barrels. Then there's the problem with volume-matching cylinders between the different barrel lengths if you choose to go really short, so a new upper gearbox might be needed too. Overall, you could be looking at well over £100. Frankly, you might be better off buying another gun altogether. I did this by buying an ICS CXP-15 to complement my longer guns. You can get a plastic one for £130 brand new. I run mine with a stock adapter and Stubby stock and it's brilliant in CQB. You could run it as a straight-up pistol just attaching a sling on the back and that works extremely well too. Another thing - and you might not like me saying this - is that your gun is already pretty short, well within CQB norms. If you struggle with the length of it (ooh err), it could be a gunfighting technique issue. Perhaps look at attachments that will help better control what you already have (e.g vertical grip) and try to remove as much unnecessary weight from it as you can (you don't need gucci red dots with magnifiers etc.) Just my 2 pence.

Condor kit is pretty decent. I wouldn't worry about the quality. I had a near-identical Bulldog rig. The only issue with this style of rig is that some of the mags end up under your arms/armpits (they sit higher than a plate carrier), and it can be a bitch to re-index the mags back into the rig whilst wearing it. It's the reason I sold mine off in the end. *Edit* Just realised the Condor Rig only holds 6 mags. The Bulldog takes 8.

Looks like a ball-ache. I would tighten by hand and the use a drift/Flat punch on the lugs to tap it tight - assuming it's not made of cheese. Not ideal, but G&G don't have any tool for this rail on their website. Other options: - email G&G customer support and ask their advice - there might be a real steel tool that they use. - Buy a tube that's about the same width as the nut, and cut notches into it to create something akin to this: -Find someone who's got a 3d printer that can create a tool for you

Because G&G don't produce a Raider with a 368mm inner barrel. I was enjoying being pedantic. I would like to know the chronograph readings for both guns. You own a chronograph don't you? I'm sure someone with your depth of wisdom and experience would have one in their kit bag... Actually, I don't care. Nothing we say will ever convince you.

Actually, Raider (v1.0L and 2.0E models) inner barrels are 357mm. The difference is 237mm. 😘

I have an ICS CXP-15 - 200mm inner barrel I also have an ICS Peleador - 375mm inner barrel Internally identical bar a Mosfet in one. So identical that I can hot-swap the upper gearboxes with almost no FPS change. There's a 10-15fps difference between the guns which I put down to cylinder/barrel volume as they use the same cylinder. Same ICS hop unit, hop rubber and nub in both. Same ICS barrel, just differing in length. They shoot the same. Same range. Same accuracy. Only the noise signature differs. I could use them interchangeably all day and not notice any performance difference.

I just got my new dog from a puppy rescue that brings them in from Romania - picked him up last night:

Old skool 'new old stock' ICS M4 Commando with Stubby Stock. So old, it still has (somewhat crappily implemented) Cybergun-Licensed Colt trades. It weighs practically nothing - I will be be keeping this one as light as possible.

I'm in Burton, Christchurch. It's just a short trip over the Avon Causeway for me to get to the site.

Are they stock CYMA bushings or have you upgraded those too? Have you checked each gear individually to see how they spin? Is the GB one of those 'reinforced' types with the extra metal around the spur gear and rear of the 'box?

I'm probably going to book into the Bournemouth game in May, seeing as it's only 10mins from my front door. @CamouflageAirsoft how will the day be run? I've played Paintball on the site, and some of the games I played just wouldn't work for Airsoft on the small game areas, for example the bridge game was a bitch even with paintballs - you could shoot spawn-to-spawn way too easily - with a 450FPS Airsoft sniper - you're fucked if you are on the other team. And that middle field in the 'valley'. That's going to be mental with 30v30 and full-auto guns. Will the games run across larger areas (or indeed the whole) of the site instead? If you are going to use Paintball Marshalls, trying to get people to play Paintball games, you're not going to have a happy group of Airsofters. I'm sure you have all this covered - you run a slick operation for Paintball, but a little more info will help the Airsoft crowd understand if it's the kind of venue that works for them. **Edit** My bad. I can see that your website has the games and maps. Adrenaline looks......tight.....

Further up this very thread I posted a video on how to swap the pins on a mini tamiya using a biro. I also covered the reverse-polarity issue with Airsoft connectors.

Indeed. £50 is a steal really for what you got.

Ever buy a boneyard gun for a bargain price thinking - 'this will be a quick fix to get back up and running', and ended up with a complete money pit? Yeh - I'm in the same boat with one of my guns....

The TM promo video was, quite frankly, ridiculous. Dudes on Snowmobiles, shooting BB's at each other. Gotta love Japanese weirdness. The gun itself - it does tickle my interest, but I'll hold off until an SD variant is produced. As @hitmanNo2says, there's a lot of mileage in the MP5 platform. But I would give my left testicle for a NGRS AR-18 though.

Well, it's been officially announced - NGRS MP5A5:

Raider V1 came in two lengths, S and L Raider 2.0 comes in one length, with a 275mm inner barrel. Raider 2.0E (ETU model) comes with the longer barrel. 7.4v with a Hi-Torque is no issue. I have been running that combo for years. I would recommend two batteries, with a lunchtime battery swap. I recommend hobbyking batteries as they can be had for £6 each from their UK warehouse. They can be had with Deans or Mini-Tamiya connectors (which is standard on G&G guns) pre-fitted so yep, plug in and go. You don’t need any electronic upgrades such as Mosfets to run 7.4v LiPos.

Nope. Leave it alone. Don't touch the gearbox until it breaks. First (and most noticeable) upgrade - SHS Hi-Torque motor Second - 275mm ZCI barrel inner barrel Third - Hop Rubber and Nub (the stock Raider G&G green rubber isn't bad at all, so I wouldn't worry for a while) Run on a 7.4v Buffer Tube LiPo and you are good to go.

Yep - they are marginally better specified internally. To be clear - virtually all entry-level AEGs have metal gears - G&G Raiders included. It could be argued that G&G gears might actually be slightly better finished than Specna's (I'm basing that on a small sample of 2 G&Gs Combat Machines and a single Specna that I've owned, so others may claim otherwise). The MOSFET is a very new addition to the CORE lineup - not all models have been equipped with them yet so make sure that the vendor specifically states that one is fitted if that's a selling point for you. It's not a great MOSFET by any stretch though. I have the same MOSFET in a higher-end Specna model that has died after one day of use (again - small sample). A 'standard' trigger switch (like the G&G) is no bad thing - they are very reliable as long as you don't try to stick a monster of a LiPo battery on it. But for a tenner more - this gun beats both (IMO) but the proprietary nature of ICS ain't everyone's cup of tea.

I would lean (slightly) towards the G&G* - only because the quality of the receiver plastic is better than the others. There is nothing remarkable about it internally, but they get the job done. The inner barrel is pretty poor though - but you can upgrade that later. The Specna has a better internal specification - better barrel, rotary hop, QD gearbox spring etc - It's also available in a plethora of colour and rail configurations. A decent option for a new player . The Core series that I've handled in the past felt OK in the hands, but not quite as nice as the G&G. The Valken is made by SRC - I wouldn't touch one personally. Any starter gun would benefit from an upgraded inner barrel (ZCI is a good, cheap option), hop rubber/nub and a High-Torque motor. You'll get decent performance that will not leave you feeling out-gunned by those with higher-end stuff. * Edit I would only consider the Raider 2.0 in G&Gs Combat Machine lineup - the rest are waaaay too expensive for what you actually get. G&G have really jacked up their prices in recent years, and once you move past the 2.0 the prices rise steeply for very little in return. I would not recommend any of their ETU-equipped guns unless you are happy to drop money on replacement electronics.

Ahhh.....no thread lock on the grub screws? Yes, you should be able to replace the outer barrel - but there's a catch. You will need to remove the barrel nut (Part #1 in the picture below) to do so, which is a bitch without the correct tool. The tool, which is available here for £12 allows you to remove and re-install the nut without damaging it. The metal is fairly soft and easy to mulch. If you know anyone with a 3D Printer, you can produce this tool to do the same job. There is a ghetto way of removing the nut in this thread, but you might struggle to tighten it down again. I should think that a standard M4 AEG outer barrel should fit, but you may need barrel shims to ensure that the new barrel and rail mount (Part #2 below) doesn't wobble once the nut has been tightened down. Yes - ZCI barrels are very good for the money.

I bet Dave is pretty pissed that he can't sell his £1000 version of this now....

Bloody hell, you actually bought one? I would be interested to hear what you think of it. My non-recoil Lonex shooters are/were decent guns - I still own one and regret selling the other.