Playing with expensive kit...

[Cannonfodder]

One thing I've just thought of. What are the gnus  made of? For example the steel body of my E&L AK will take far more of a beating than the plastic body of my MP5K, so despite being significantly more expensive it's less likely to take significant damage so I'll feel more confident taking a fall (for example) with the AK

 

[rj1986]

The other week i slipped sideways on some wet leaves onto concrete.

Instinctively I took the fall with my shoulder due to

a) many many years of playing rugby, I knew my shoulder could take the fall

b) i had my shiny new mk46, and i would rather break my shoulder than that

 

[gavinkempsell]

One thing I've just thought of. What are the gnus  made of? For example the steel body of my E&L AK will take far more of a beating than the plastic body of my MP5K, so despite being significantly more expensive it's less likely to take significant damage so I'll feel more confident taking a fall (for example) with the AK

Most are polymer or a combination of polymer & metal.

 

[TheFull9]

To me it's that combination of availability and budget.  There are a lot of airsoft guns that exist (especially 90s stuff) that look real cool and are valuable to collectors, but they're made of shit plastic and you'd never ever find an original replacement part no matter how much money you have because they've been out of production for many years.  As I think about it, the number of airsoft guns that are out of production vs currently available is probably huge actually.  Obviously a discontinued version of a plastic G&G AR is probably not something anyone will cry over if broken so there are levels and that's a personal choice, I wouldn't let anyone else dictate that for you.

If something is fixable/replaceable but you can't really afford to fix or replace it, then that's the other consideration and only you know your budget so again, not something for others to dictate.

 

[Leo Greer]

Personally, I tend to run around with about $350 worth of rif, all internal work included, but sometimes I pull something different out and it goes to 1K+. Either way, even $350 is a lot of money... but that money is all spent to enhance the experience when I run, sprint, jump over a barrier, trip on that stick, throw my rif three meters and it lands in the mud, pick the rif back up, and proceed to slay half a dozen rentals.

Figure out what makes the experience for you, and what kind of money it's worth and let that dictate your choices. ?

 

[Skara]

If the gun has weird/proprietary parts then no, don't use it, but solely because it'll be a pain in the ass to fix it.

I have spent a fortune on my guns, some of my RIFs have well over €600 worth of parts invested onto (excluding the base gun price) but I don't mind getting them dirty/scuffed, I see them as tools and as such they need to be used and withstand abuse.

The same applies to the rest of my gear, when I got my Mayflower rig I tore a small hole in one of the side pouches on its first outing.. yeah it pissed me off for a good 15 minutes where I cursed every deity known to the animal kingdom and then some, but after all I bought it to use it and this kind of damage is something that just happens.

 

[Cannonfodder]

View attachment 106831

 

[BigStew]

Yeah if you are going to field an expensive gun make sure you can get parts. just heard a tale of some poor sod dropping and breaking the receiver on a stupidly upgraded TM 417 on it's 1st outing and there are no receivers to be had.

 

[EDcase]

I'd say its similar to gambling or investing.  Don't put in more than you're willing to loose.

A bad fall can show how delicate our toys really are.

Yes, they can usually be repaired but as BigStew said, that's IF you can find parts and they could be expensive.

 

[Smiling-Dutchman]

Hence why I stick to bog-standard M4's for now (gonna try my hand at upgrading soon tho) so I should be able to repair/replace anything that breaks.

As for anything outfit wise: I don't care if anything happens to it, I'm there to roll in the mud (really opens up those pores) and get dirty/scratched. I'm not a big fan of having kit that still looks unused/new. Hell, lot of the stuff comes from army surplus stores anyway so it already looks used and sometimes has visible repairs.

 

[gavinkempsell]

Hence why I stick to bog-standard M4's for now (gonna try my hand at upgrading soon tho) so I should be able to repair/replace anything that breaks.

As for anything outfit wise: I don't care if anything happens to it, I'm there to roll in the mud (really opens up those pores) and get dirty/scratched. I'm not a big fan of having kit that still looks unused/new. Hell, lot of the stuff comes from army surplus stores anyway so it already looks used and sometimes has visible repairs.

I've bought kit just to play in, all second hand & most of it looks it too, but mainly coz I'm a chunk & I bought it when I saw it. (was 100% my combats fitted me tbh). as for boots, well I reckoned my ankles needed some protection.

 

[Tactical Pith Helmet]

Given the way things are going,  with second hand G&G M4s at £130+, we could all be asking ourselves a similar question soon...

Personally I treat all rifs to a bit of deference given their relative delicacy.   This attitude lasts until I get carried away enjoying the game and  inevitably my most used guns are missing various bits and sport a fair few examples of gaffer tape and cable ties.   If the damage annoyed me, I would not use them,  however much they cost.   

 

[Egon_247]

Same argument as "garaging" a nice car over winter. Genuinely dont see the point. Someone designed it (more or less!) to be used. Get in, start it up and drive it. 

Met a guy with an old porsche 911 that had 500,000+ miles on it. It just got used every day. It broke. He fixed it. kept going. 

Granted i dont have any rifs that go past £300 but theyre all there to be used.