So, what did I miss?

[jellybeans]

For those that saw my intro thread you will know that I'm returning after about 10 years out of the scene. So I'm thinking, what have I missed? ?

What are the brands currently in play with AEGs and GBBs? What sort of prices are we looking at? How is the quality?

I appreciate that this could be quite subjective but I assume there are pretty accepted brand tiers for reliable skirmishing still. Any help you guys can give would be great. ?

 

[EDcase]

Hey again ?

On the AEG front the budget contenders are JG (JingGong), CYMA, Double Eagle (very good for certain models) and SpecnaArms.

Generally you can get a decent performing shooter for £120-£200 so I'd guess prices have come down a bit with quality and performance going up a bit.

Probably the main difference with AEGs are the batteries as we generally use LiPos now with intelligent chargers. More power in a smaller package.

For GBB pistols & rifles the most common is WE-Tech (WE).  Decent performers but materials do tend to wear relatively quickly.  TM are still going strong and GHK are highly regarded.

I'm sure others will chime in so maybe we should do a poll of everyone's opinion for the rankings

 

[BigStew]

The pecking order hasn't changed that much. Some manufactures have faded into the back ground and most flip flop on build quality. No one has made a quantum leap past TMs getting on for 25+ years old gear box design. HPA has made a comp back from the 90s anyone prepared to wear a tank proclaim the best. There is a much greater range of GBBRs which is ironic as you mostly just get ARs and AKs for AEGs. there is better battery tech and more electronics. However it's still the case that a person with a well set up Cheap AEG and a high cap can still out play geardos. 

 

[DanBow]

Geardos. I like that. ?

 

[Sewdhull]

The main change I have seen is batteries ( lithium instead of nimh or nicads) and MOSFET use.

So far as I can tell there's been little evolution in aegs, gbb pistols seem identical, gbb rifles and hpa are more common and account I think for any progress made over the years.

Oh brushless motors are finally here, not common but here.

 

[jellybeans]

Thanks for the input guys. I do remember that the Chinese and other cheaper Asian brands were starting to make headway into the market back then. Japanese brands such as my old Maruzen and WA gas guns seen to be relegated to collectors duty nowadays it seems.

I remember Li and mosfet tech was brand new, good to see it is now adopted.

I'm hoping my tech knowledge of internals isn't tooo outdated as I do enjoy the tinkering and modding aspect.

Has anyone made a smoother hop up unit than my old TM G3 SAS yet?

People used to vastly underestimate a good hop unit compared to shoving a 110 spring in blowgun and hoping for usable range.

Loads more to ask but I'm off out so will pick up later. Thanks again ?

 

[BigStew]

People used to vastly underestimate a good hop unit compared to shoving a 110 spring in blowgun and hoping for usable range.

Loads more to ask but I'm off out so will pick up later. Thanks again ?

They still do. Though massively over expensive machined hop units that rarely work are thing the Reddit crowd always recommend.

 

[jellybeans]

I also have a stock TM VSR that I will be able to get back at some point in the new year. Would like to take that up to/near the limit to make it viable in woodland games. What are the options for internals for it? Is there a go-to kit for the internals these days?

 

[Badgerlicious]

I'm hoping my tech knowledge of internals isn't tooo outdated

Probably more deans connectors in stock guns nowadays. We are no longer slaves to the backwards wired tamiya. 

I also have a stock TM VSR that I will be able to get back at some point in the new year. Would like to take that up to/near the limit to make it viable in woodland games. What are the options for internals for it? Is there a go-to kit for the internals these days?

Oh, TONS of options for VSRs. It'd be hard to recommend one brand in particular. Action Army hop unit is popular, but there's other TDC (top dead center) hop units. Stalker and sniper mechanic do good pistons and cylinders. EDGI Do excellent barrels. And maple leaf or flamingo hop rubbers are the usual go to. Not sure on the brands of trigger units, but there's some good 90 degree triggers about. 

Actually there's probably a lot more good sniper rifles on the market now. Silverback make the SRS and tac41, both excellent out the box. And ASG Do the steyer scout, which is generally considered the best out-the-box bolt action. 

 

[Cannonfodder]

Welcome back.

Tbh I think most of the changes have already been covered except one. Nowadays you'll see far more people wearing gopro cameras trying to be the next viral thing

I'm hoping my tech knowledge of internals isn't tooo outdated as I do enjoy the tinkering and modding aspect.

I can't see why it would be, 99% of AEGs still use the same gearbox design as back then. The only real changes are that mosfets are more common (but not essential despite what some may say) and some now have recoil systems.

 

[jellybeans]

Probably more deans connectors in stock guns nowadays. We are no longer slaves to the backwards wired tamiya. 

Ahh yes. The reason I ended up with bullet connectors on my custom fit batteries. ?

Oh, TONS of options for VSRs. It'd be hard to recommend one brand in particular. Action Army hop unit is popular, but there's other TDC (top dead center) hop units. Stalker and sniper mechanic do good pistons and cylinders. EDGI Do excellent barrels. And maple leaf or flamingo hop rubbers are the usual go to. Not sure on the brands of trigger units, but there's some good 90 degree triggers about. 

Actually there's probably a lot more good sniper rifles on the market now. Silverback make the SRS and tac41, both excellent out the box. And ASG Do the steyer scout, which is generally considered the best out-the-box bolt action. 

Thanks for info. Will look into those. ?

 

[RostokMcSpoons]

I've got one... Plastic guns

They're sooooo much better than they used to be. 

Case in point, my original old school Tokyo Marui AK47-S was a creaky old thing with fairly unimpressive plastic.  Contrast with my Double Eagle M904G which has a very solid polymer construction. 

There are of course still some poor plastic gats at the cheapest end of the ranges, but the mid-range guns no longer need to be discounted as rubbish, if you want to save weight they're perfectly respectable now.

 

[jellybeans]

So I have a holdall of some of my old AEGs here. 1xICS SD6, and 5 Classic Army M15s.

These are og CA's from years ago. All metal and built like tanks without even a hint of barrel wobble etc. V3 mech boxes, hi torque motors, steel gears etc...

I'm thinking of getting one of the CA's skirmish worthy as I love the rock solid build of these, and will need some bits.

The springs will be dead by now and the hop units will want refreshing. Barrel and other internals should be good though I need to check properly.

All those parts I am good to source except the hop units so far.

Does anyone know if I can even still get complete hop assemblies for them? It seems CA have come out with all sorts of different ranges over the years I've had out. What are my options here?

 

[BigStew]

it's a standardish AR hop you could go CA https://www.bespokeairsoft.co.uk/classic-army-m4-m16-hop-up-chamber-p037 or ZCI plastic hops are decent. 

 

[jellybeans]

it's a standardish AR hop you could go CA https://www.bespokeairsoft.co.uk/classic-army-m4-m16-hop-up-chamber-p037 or ZCI plastic hops are decent. 

That appears to be a newer design with radial adjustment and won't fit the older metal body. It did give me something to go on though and found them in the end here -

https://www.davescustomairsoft.co.uk/classic-army-m4-and-m16-hop-up-chamber-p037p

Naturally they are out of stock so I just need to trawl around for them now.

Tbh the older style never really held their hop all too well so if I can jam a newer one in there it might be an improvement.

 

[GraniteFraggle]

Probably the best place to ask ....

Whatever happened to Marushin and the 8mm BB's? They had some really good HW revolvers - lovely shells & speed loaders.

I've got one - usable in winter - you just need to use the appropriate gas when it warms up weather wise to keep it site legal.

Is it as simple as they didn't sell so they stopped trading?

Glad I bought a couple of bags of 8mm all those years ago!