Hi folks,
As the title says, I've been away from Airsoft for a long time but am looking at getting back into it. Used to be I'd just go on Arnie's Airsoft but was shocked to find it had closed.
Anyway, seems like everything has changed, some brands I recall being regarded as the mutt's nuts I see reviews and feedback online saying they now suck, so it's all very confusing.
Long story short, I am looking for something fairly specific
- Based on a RS .300 Blackout chambered PDW style firearm
- Prefer metal body unless the real deal is polymer
- Licensed Trademarks
- As compact as possible; ARP style short barrel and handguard; the kind of thing you could have under a jacket on a one-point sling.
- I would really like a sliding stock similar in style to the classic MP5 slider where it'll go quite close up to the pistol grip when compacted
- Prefer under £400 - I don't mind needing to swap out some external parts to get what I'm after though (shorter barrel/handguard, stock change etc.)
I've looked at a few possibilities:
SIG MCX Rattler
-------------------
So this would probably be ideal in many ways, particularly with the collapsible stock design available for the platform (more compact than the M4-style buffer tube stocks) but there are a few potential problems.
The official SIGAir versions appear to be made by VFC, which when I was in airsoft before was a well-regarded company, but I've seen quite a few comments of buyer's remorse over these VFC MCX models as having some design flaws and quality issues, as well as being thought of as "overpriced" for what they are. They are also a bit outside my preferred budget.
Then there's the E&C MCX Rattler. I know next to nothing about E&C so I've no idea what I'm dealing with in terms of quality, only that I understand from my research that what they offer is a cheaper clone of the VFC which has fixed many of the design and build issues. Price wise they are much more in my preferred territory. There is some issue of availability of my preferred model though, as the 6.5in seems readily available in the UK, I note there is a shorter 5in version available overseas but have not seen any UK supplier.
Most version of the Rattler seem to come with a side-folding stock, so I would have to source the sliding stock from one of the larger models, I've seen this is available seperately though it is quite expensive.
EMG Daniel Defense DDM4 PDW
-------------------------------------
I might have the wrong end of the stick but my understanding is that EMG is affiliated in some way with ICS, which in my memory was quite a well regarded brand, and that it uses CYMA Platinum internals on this model (which is weird because I remember CYMA being the King of cheap Chinese clone brands, but again, times have changed).
DDM4 PDW ticks most of my boxes, the only thing I'm wondering is if the stock collapses as far as I'd like (looks like a mini buffer tube?) and whether I could get a shorter front-end on there.
Ares AM-014-BK Short Honey Badger
-----------------------------------------
Another 180-degree flip on what I remember, Ares was a top tier brand as I recall but I've seen a few reviews online saying they are not so hot these days. Again, it's all hearsay to me, I really don't know what to believe. Anyway, similar to the DDM4 PDW although it has a polymer body (upgrade available?) and again I'm not sure if the stock when collapsed is compact enough.
Anyway, thanks for reading all that, and thanks in advance to anyone who replies. Generally any advice, tips, suggestions are most welcome.
As the title says, I've been away from Airsoft for a long time but am looking at getting back into it. Used to be I'd just go on Arnie's Airsoft but was shocked to find it had closed.
Anyway, seems like everything has changed, some brands I recall being regarded as the mutt's nuts I see reviews and feedback online saying they now suck, so it's all very confusing.
Long story short, I am looking for something fairly specific
- Based on a RS .300 Blackout chambered PDW style firearm
- Prefer metal body unless the real deal is polymer
- Licensed Trademarks
- As compact as possible; ARP style short barrel and handguard; the kind of thing you could have under a jacket on a one-point sling.
- I would really like a sliding stock similar in style to the classic MP5 slider where it'll go quite close up to the pistol grip when compacted
- Prefer under £400 - I don't mind needing to swap out some external parts to get what I'm after though (shorter barrel/handguard, stock change etc.)
I've looked at a few possibilities:
SIG MCX Rattler
-------------------
So this would probably be ideal in many ways, particularly with the collapsible stock design available for the platform (more compact than the M4-style buffer tube stocks) but there are a few potential problems.
The official SIGAir versions appear to be made by VFC, which when I was in airsoft before was a well-regarded company, but I've seen quite a few comments of buyer's remorse over these VFC MCX models as having some design flaws and quality issues, as well as being thought of as "overpriced" for what they are. They are also a bit outside my preferred budget.
Then there's the E&C MCX Rattler. I know next to nothing about E&C so I've no idea what I'm dealing with in terms of quality, only that I understand from my research that what they offer is a cheaper clone of the VFC which has fixed many of the design and build issues. Price wise they are much more in my preferred territory. There is some issue of availability of my preferred model though, as the 6.5in seems readily available in the UK, I note there is a shorter 5in version available overseas but have not seen any UK supplier.
Most version of the Rattler seem to come with a side-folding stock, so I would have to source the sliding stock from one of the larger models, I've seen this is available seperately though it is quite expensive.
EMG Daniel Defense DDM4 PDW
-------------------------------------
I might have the wrong end of the stick but my understanding is that EMG is affiliated in some way with ICS, which in my memory was quite a well regarded brand, and that it uses CYMA Platinum internals on this model (which is weird because I remember CYMA being the King of cheap Chinese clone brands, but again, times have changed).
DDM4 PDW ticks most of my boxes, the only thing I'm wondering is if the stock collapses as far as I'd like (looks like a mini buffer tube?) and whether I could get a shorter front-end on there.
Ares AM-014-BK Short Honey Badger
-----------------------------------------
Another 180-degree flip on what I remember, Ares was a top tier brand as I recall but I've seen a few reviews online saying they are not so hot these days. Again, it's all hearsay to me, I really don't know what to believe. Anyway, similar to the DDM4 PDW although it has a polymer body (upgrade available?) and again I'm not sure if the stock when collapsed is compact enough.
Anyway, thanks for reading all that, and thanks in advance to anyone who replies. Generally any advice, tips, suggestions are most welcome.
, a few rail covers will fix that. I see a lot of rattlers advertised so there's either a ton of them out there or players decide they don't like them.
