Reasons to sell or not to sell my Aimpoint CompM4

[fivezerothree]

Hey guys, I'm really new to this sport but it actually feels weird saying that given how at home I am with it all.

Within two months I have bought all my gear including a G&G CM16 Raider as a safe starter AEG. I mentioned starting the sport to my neighbor who's an ex-marine now PMC and he mentioned that he has a spare sight from his old M4. Basically I got an Aimpoint CompM4 for nothing – lucky I know!

I'm one of those over enthusiastic idiots that gets into a new hobby and wants to go all out and after my first skirmish (my next is this weekend) I want to keep up with the big boys in terms of AEG performance and have already systematically planned all of my wanted upgrades for the rifle. Gears, cylinder, hop up, barrel, motor, mosfet and a higher voltage lipo. I thought it'd be a good education to upgrade this one as much as I can before I move onto more expensive AEG's – although after all of the upgrades I may not need to; I'm unsure at this point.

Anyway the sight is worth a fair few doll hairs and if sold would enable me to upgrade as I desire but I would only do it on the basis that the replicas are pretty good. So once sold or exchanged, I'd buy a good replica and spend the left overs on the upgrades

Can I have your opinions on whether you think I should sell or not, plus any experience with the replicas would be a bonus. I'm worried I may have already been spoilt with this little slice of 'Gucci' as you guys say. Please correct my usage if I got that wrong haha!

Few pictures below for those who are interested.

http://goo.gl/Zolth

http://goo.gl/bQNdK

http://goo.gl/Q5veQ

 

[Simon Rees]

My neighbour is an inconsiderate git who wouldn't pee on me if I was on fire, so I have all of the jealousy.

Firstly, nice optics! If I had a RS one I wouldn't know whether to keep or sell either, so I can't really give any useful guidance. Go with what you feel. for airsofting purposes, as £25 clone would do just as good a job.

As far as your planned upgrades are concerned, I would suggest a better upgrade path would be a tightbore barrel and a quality hop rubber. These will give you the best bang for your buck in terms of tangible improvements for minimal outlay. The other changes give smaller incremental improvements for greater outlay. Esp the mech box changes.

I think if it were me I would change the barrel and hop and get a clone aimpoint, sell the RS aimpoint, use the cash to get a higher end weapon, take the barrel and hop over to the new weapon then systematically upgrade the new weapon. Sell the Raider or keep it as back-up or a loaner.

No point putting high end upgrades into a starter weapon, IMO.

Just my $0.02 and what I'd do. I would be tempted to keep the Aimpoint tho! LoL.

First world problems for you matey!

Good luck with whatever you decide.

 

[geoffreym]

Having used a clone eotech, and currently own and use a RS eotech. I wouldn't sell it short of for an amount that would allow me to buy another and have a profit. The image is so much more clearer, and they are so much more stronger than clones. And as above, a TBB, new hop and excellent ammo will allow you to keep up with the "Big Boys".

 

[fivezerothree]

My neighbour is an inconsiderate git who wouldn't pee on me if I was on fire, so I have all of the jealousy.

Firstly, nice optics! If I had a RS one I wouldn't know whether to keep or sell either, so I can't really give any useful guidance. Go with what you feel. for airsofting purposes, as £25 clone would do just as good a job.

As far as your planned upgrades are concerned, I would suggest a better upgrade path would be a tightbore barrel and a quality hop rubber. These will give you the best bang for your buck in terms of tangible improvements for minimal outlay. The other changes give smaller incremental improvements for greater outlay. Esp the mech box changes.

I think if it were me I would change the barrel and hop and get a clone aimpoint, sell the RS aimpoint, use the cash to get a higher end weapon, take the barrel and hop over to the new weapon then systematically upgrade the new weapon. Sell the Raider or keep it as back-up or a loaner.

No point putting high end upgrades into a starter weapon, IMO.

Just my $0.02 and what I'd do. I would be tempted to keep the Aimpoint tho! LoL.

First world problems for you matey!

Good luck with whatever you decide.

Sorry a 6.03 tightbore is on the list, Madbull rather than Prometheus given it's my first time and I'm also after a 'H' hop – although I must consult my Airsoft expert friend and see what he recommends. One thing I have struggled to find is a non-vented cylinder? Apparently they make more noise.

I do want to quiz you now you've mentioned you wouldn't bother yourself. If I replace most of the gear box and by most I mean all that matters with top notch aftermarket parts then technically it's no longer a G&G right? Personally I think I would end up shelling out more to get a new gun and upgrade it to the standard that I have planned for my G&G...right?

 

[Simon Rees]

Geoff, there's no disputing the RS one would be better. Maybe I got lucky, but I have a clone 552 and it is pin sharp and clear as crystal. That said, I've not looked through a RS one so I defer to you better frame of reference. For airsoft use, there's no NEED for RS kit, but if money were no object I'd be Gucci'd right up! LoL.

503, I am actually in a similar position to you. I stared playing about a year ago and got myself a Classic Army M15A4 sportline. It's the CA equivalent of the G&G CM range. Cheap and cheerful, but decent quality for starters and intermediates.

I did the same as you and mapped out an upgrade path for pretty much every component on there.

Once the enthusiasm got under control, I have put some useful external mods (torch, clone Eotech 552 with laser, single point sling mount) and a couple of aesthetic mods (xtm rail covers, PTS BUIS, suppressor) and simply put a madbull black python v2 in with a madbull 3 in 1 hop and a guarder clear 50 degree bucking. It now shoots at 340 - 345 fps consistently (up from 320 before) and I can hit a dinner plate sized target 9/10 times at 60 feet (not measured it beyond that). This is from a weapon that's of similar quality to yours. The internal upgrades have cost me <£60 and I can hold my own against mates who have systemas and TM M4 recoils. Theirs are better, but at what cost.

And therein lies the nub of the issue. Think of the performance of your gun in percentage terms and try and ascribe a value to the percentage increase.
I have a gun that cost £160. Out of the box it fires at 100% of it's potential as it stands. £60 got me an increase in performance of, say, 30 percent when you factor in the FPS, range and accuracy improvements they brought. So, that upgrade cost me £2 per percentage point.

If I then replace the cylinder, air nozzle, spring guide, gears etc, I might spend another £60. What tangible benefit might I see? maybe a slight increase in FPS (bear in mind the site limits and the fact that I am almost there anyway), maybe a faster trigger response (recently at the mall people complained to the marshalls that I was firing on full auto and I had to show the marshalls I can actually fire REALLY quickly in semi due to a quick finger and an already great trigger response). Mech box upgrades will do nothing for accuracy, so what benefit am I looking for?

I figured out it is better to do the lowest cost/highest effect upgrades and then save for a higher end gun. Or alternatively piece together upgrades and keep the old ones until I have replaced the whole gun at which point as you say, it is no longer the original gun, but I can re-assemble the old parts and have the standard M15 again.

I'd like a metal body for the gun, but then I'd want a DD RIS and some MOE furniture etc.

I think that it would be more cost effective to get a better quality gun and do the VFM upgrades (barrel & hop rubber) than to replace the whole gun piece by piece.

Does that make sense?

 

[fivezerothree]

Does that make sense?

Completely! i think my problem lies with wanting awesome things straight away. The reason I wanted to upgrade most of the parts I mentioned was because I wanted to improve the RoF from 5-6rps to around 25rps – thus needing more than just a TBB and new hop etc.

Anyway, if you were in my position, would you get rid of the sight? It goes for ~£600 brand new and mine only has wear and tear from military use.

 

[M_P]

Personnaly I'd keep it. When you get more serious about playing you may end up regretting selling it if you did so.

They hold their values pretty well so I'd keep it till you actually needed it gone.

 

[Simon Rees]

M_P makes a good point. Might be worth getting hold of a decent quality clone and comparing them side by side and then decide what your priorities are.

If you get rid of it now, you might regret it later on once you have a more high end gun etc. You could replace it, but it's a lot to shell out.

Horses for courses.

If you are after a greater rate of fire, perhaps up the voltage of the battery etc rather than go with a mechanical solution.

A mate has just bought a CM16 Raider and I was quite impressed with its RoF. On a 9.6v NiMH it was pretty quick. Listed RoF is about 14 RPS which is plenty fast enough (IMO).

High RoF tends to just get through more ammo. Ask yourself why you want a high RoF. If it is actually a priority, higher voltage (maybe LiPo - I'm not qualified to talk about them) and maybe a lower spring count might be some easier ways, but you still have to split the mechbox open to change the spring.

I'd suggest the low cost, easy to do, effective results approach first, as with the barrel and hop. Play with it a while and re-assess your priorities and upgrade path. That also allows you to research and look at what's available etc. I am often guilty of the "bull at a gate" approach, wanting all the shiny things yesterday, so I feel your pain.

 

[fivezerothree]

M_P makes a good point. Might be worth getting hold of a decent quality clone and comparing them side by side and then decide what your priorities are.

If you get rid of it now, you might regret it later on once you have a more high end gun etc. You could replace it, but it's a lot to shell out.

Horses for courses.

If you are after a greater rate of fire, perhaps up the voltage of the battery etc rather than go with a mechanical solution.

A mate has just bought a CM16 Raider and I was quite impressed with its RoF. On a 9.6v NiMH it was pretty quick. Listed RoF is about 14 RPS which is plenty fast enough (IMO).

High RoF tends to just get through more ammo. Ask yourself why you want a high RoF. If it is actually a priority, higher voltage (maybe LiPo - I'm not qualified to talk about them) and maybe a lower spring count might be some easier ways, but you still have to split the mechbox open to change the spring.

I'd suggest the low cost, easy to do, effective results approach first, as with the barrel and hop. Play with it a while and re-assess your priorities and upgrade path. That also allows you to research and look at what's available etc. I am often guilty of the "bull at a gate" approach, wanting all the shiny things yesterday, so I feel your pain.

14RPS really? Hmmm. I might record it and have a look at the sound waves. The reason I wanted a higher ROF is because when shooting at longer distances the chance of external factors such as wind changing the course of the BB is higher. I so wanted to spray a bit more to increase my chance of a hit. Also I want it to piss the people off who don't call their hits!

I'm running a 7.2v 2600mah LiPo at the moment. Apparently works the same as a 9.6v NiMH performance wise but I'm open to being corrected. I'm also under the impression that to handle the higher voltage, better internals are required. There are different ways of achieving what I want, but 13:1 gears seem the best route with a high torque motor to increase trigger response – something I'm really not impressed with. Then again I'm used to shotgun and rifle shooting without electrical triggers.

Oh and the first thing I did after unloading a full clip after purchase was to open the mechbox and pull it all apart and reassemble it. I've taken it all down to the component level to understand it all and most importantly know how to upgrade. Yes, I am a proud little pup.

 

[fivezerothree]

Yeah, so sites say 750RPM / 12.5 RPS. You said your mate is getting ~14 RPS and I am getting 11 RPS exactly.

Link to screenshot of recording.

 

[Simon Rees]

If it is 7.2v then it is more likely a NiMH. With cells of 1.2v the NiMH voltages are multiples of that (7.2, 8.4, 9.6 etc).

Lipos (IIRC) come in multiples of 3.7v (typically 7.4 or 11.1) with a bunch of other numbers that are all witchcraft to me, to be honest, as I don't run them so I don't know much about them.

RPS of 11 would suggest a lower voltage which ties in with the 7.2 NiMH theory. That said, there's any number of other variables which may affect it.

Mates one was running a 9.6 NiMH. Have you tried it with another battery?

You're right in that the voltages in LiPos are not directly equivalent to their NiMH counterparts and give results of higher voltage NiMH units. Also correct in that upping the voltage to crazy levels does put more stress on the GB and internals, so upgrading is probably advisable to help longevity so if you are going down that route, swapping out for other internals might be good.

I *Think* that a weaker spring also helps increase RoF on the basis that the GB has to work less hard to cycle and is therefore faster in doing it. It puts less stress on the GB and may be worth considering? Ed did a post on this subject recently I think. Might be worth having a search for it.

Good work on the GB strip. Did similar recently myself. Not for the faint hearted! LoL

 

[Ian_Gere]

You don't get luck like that very often: keep it ffs!

Also you don't want to risk your neighbour thinking "Gave him a gucci sight for him to have a good laugh using it - if i wanted him to just sell it I would have just given him the fcuking money!" You never know, he might help you again.

Just buy your upgrades a bit at a time. +1 to TBB & hop rubber 1st.

 

[fivezerothree]

If it is 7.2v then it is more likely a NiMH.

Oh, yeah. It's 7.4v upon inspection. I assure you it's a Lipo.

I *Think* that a weaker spring also helps increase RoF on the basis that the GB has to work less hard to cycle and is therefore faster in doing it. It puts less stress on the GB and may be worth considering? Ed did a post on this subject recently I think. Might be worth having a search for it.

Good work on the GB strip. Did similar recently myself. Not for the faint hearted! LoL

I don't want to lower FPS at all mind. I think the best route for me personally is the 13:1 fast gears and a motor that can handle all the hard work fast.

To be honest I have pulled stuff apart from a young age and things like this don't scare me that much. Then again the V2 gearbox on the M4 is probably very simple in comparison to others.

You don't get luck like that very often: keep it ffs!

Also you don't want to risk your neighbour thinking "Gave him a gucci sight for him to have a good laugh using it - if i wanted him to just sell it I would have just given him the fcuking money!" You never know, he might help you again.

Just buy your upgrades a bit at a time. +1 to TBB & hop rubber 1st.

Thanks for the wisdom Ian. I think I will stick with it. As soon as I thought about the fact I will want one again at some point, I made my mind up!

Yeah a TBB was always first on my list. But, I never knew the hib rubber was significant at all..? I was literally going to buy a 'H' nub and maybe use the included rubber with that.

 

[Ian_Gere]

The 'H' nub or Fishbone spacer is to improve accuracy. A better, stickier, rubber will give you good results in a variety of conditions with various weights of BB. The G&G one you have will probably be OK, it's just that there are better ones. As somebody said above, you'll get more noticeable benefit from it than from gearbox upgrades. Also bear in mind that Version 2 gearboxes have a reputation for being a real ballache to work on...