Giving up on gbb pistols.

[RobHedley]

I second what @sonofsammo says about the CZ SP01 Shadow. I have one that I have run on GG without fault. I mainly run it on C02 now as I have a ready supply of C02 bulbs. It means I can run it all year round no matter what the weather is and it shoots consistently.

 

I also have a couple of TM Hi-Capas which as everyone says are faultless. As with most things in life, buy cheap buy twice. The majority of the time there is a reason why something is cheaper and with something as technical as a pistol or rifle that will be parts quality and consistency.

[EvilMonkee]

My VFC VP9 is a piece of shit that gas dumps in the cold.  Avoid VFC.  I will be using it purely for summer.  My TM PX9 is excellent as is my WE Makarov now I feed it black gas.

[Guest DrAlexanderTobacco]

The KJW P226 is a bit naff imo, they do make some good RIFs but the P226 was (iirc) their first or second GBBP design - It's poor quality metal with a thick black finish which looks slightly off, and cooldown is a massive problem around the winter.

 

 

[KOBK81]

Thanks for all your honest input guys I really appreciate it as apposed to just getting slated on fb. I've been into airsoft now for nearly a year an I honestly thought that the pistols I brought were of good quality and would give me lasting performance.  I maintained them regularly and always used the best consumables available. Since posting I have sold all of my pistols and am looking to buy a nice 1. Now having spent the last week glued to reviews I have witled  my search down to just 3 guns that I like and get excellent reviews.  

1 tm 5.1 hi capa gold match

2 aw custom 5.1 hi capa race

3 jag precision jw3 sti 

I really like the tm it's in the middle of price range compared to others I just don't like the plastic slide but after some research I found a tarran tactical jw3 alloy upper slide from a guy called Mike cripps which will fit along with a few choice upgrades.

9ball Inner barrel

Maple hop and rubber

Gateway 125% recoil spring

Masterpeice Blowback housing 

180% nozzle spring

Guarder nozzle

9 ball mag nozzle seal

Short stroke kit

All these upgrades I have collaborated from a heap of different reviews so I'm not 100% it will all work in harmony. 

As I progress with it I shall probably get other bits.

I have £350 to play with so wondering which of the 3 would you guys go for. Now the winter is here I'm going to be doing more cqb and going to be using a pistol a lot more so Im  wanting something light which has a quick response but will hit like an AEG. 

[Tackle]

Personally, I'd buy the TM, & maybe the 9 ball mag seals, & that's it, use it & maybe over time assess & drip feed any upgrades ONLY if they become necessary.

Throw it all in at once & you may end up with an unusable tangle of parts that will be difficult to sort out.

 

[Guest Yukarin]

Adding the metal slide to the TM may start giving you some of the problems that you had with your previous pistols. Plastic slides perform well in the winter on green gas (maybe red if really really cold). You have to decide whether you want to have a snappy pistol with a plastic slide or a sluggish one. Personally I'd say, buy the TM Hi-Capa, leave it stock over the winter and as it warms up consider upgrading it.

 

[Musica]

9 minutes ago, Yukarin said:

Adding the metal slide to the TM may start giving you some of the problems that you had with your previous pistols. Plastic slides perform well in the winter on green gas (maybe red if really really cold). You have to decide whether you want to have snappy pistol with a plastic slide or a sluggish one. Personally I'd say, buy the TM Hi-Capa, leave it stock over the winter and as it warms up consider upgrading it.

 

This sounds wise to me. I'm sure everyone will ignore it and replace the recoil spring, short stroke it, find c02 magazines and complain that TM is shit. 

[KOBK81]

Thanks guys really appreciate it. I was looking at the upgrades as next summer a local group is going to be setting up a free shoot comp site so maybe I'm getting a  little ahead of myself.  So I will take your info on board and stick with it stock through the winter or until something breaks and upgrade closer to the summer. Cheers.  I shall keep you all posted of how the gun performs over the coming months. 

[Asomodai]

 

1 hour ago, KOBK81 said:

Thanks for all your honest input guys I really appreciate it as apposed to just getting slated on fb. I've been into airsoft now for nearly a year an I honestly thought that the pistols I brought were of good quality and would give me lasting performance.  I maintained them regularly and always used the best consumables available. Since posting I have sold all of my pistols and am looking to buy a nice 1. Now having spent the last week glued to reviews I have witled  my search down to just 3 guns that I like and get excellent reviews.  

1 tm 5.1 hi capa gold match

2 aw custom 5.1 hi capa race

3 jag precision jw3 sti 

I really like the tm it's in the middle of price range compared to others I just don't like the plastic slide but after some research I found a tarran tactical jw3 alloy upper slide from a guy called Mike cripps which will fit along with a few choice upgrades.

9ball Inner barrel

Maple hop and rubber

Gateway 125% recoil spring

Masterpeice Blowback housing 

180% nozzle spring

Guarder nozzle

9 ball mag nozzle seal

Short stroke kit

All these upgrades I have collaborated from a heap of different reviews so I'm not 100% it will all work in harmony. 

As I progress with it I shall probably get other bits.

I have £350 to play with so wondering which of the 3 would you guys go for. Now the winter is here I'm going to be doing more cqb and going to be using a pistol a lot more so Im  wanting something light which has a quick response but will hit like an AEG. 

 

 

The problem with upgrading a TM is very similar to upgrading recoil shocks AEGS. Its a fine balance and stock are tuned to be good. To get "Brilliant" You have to replace everything and hope it all marries up 100%. Gas pistol upgrade parts need to work in exact harmony with each other. One part out of whack can destroy another part.

 

You were going to give up on Gas pistols before because you bought terrible ones, we have recommended you get a TM because it just works out of the box, and now you want to upgrade it to make it LESS reliable?

 

If you have 350, buy two TM pistols and leave them alone

 

With the spare cash buy an Army Armament Hi Cappa or 1911. Those are 95% TM compatible and come with metal slides stock. Upgrade that to your hearts content and don't touch the TM's. 

[KOBK81]

9 minutes ago, Asomodai said:

 

 

 

The problem with upgrading a TM is very similar to upgrading recoil shocks AEGS. Its a fine balance and stock are tuned to be good. To get "Brilliant" You have to replace everything and hope it all marries up 100%. Gas pistol upgrade parts need to work in exact harmony with each other. One part out of whack can destroy another part.

 

You were going to give up on Gas pistols before because you bought terrible ones, we have recommended you get a TM because it just works out of the box, and now you want to upgrade it to make it LESS reliable?

 

If you have 350, buy two TM pistols and leave them alone

 

With the spare cash buy an Army Armament Hi Cappa or 1911. Those are 95% TM compatible and come with metal slides stock. Upgrade that to your hearts content and don't touch the TM's. 

I was looking into the upgrades for next summer to have a crack at some competition shooting.  I found a guy called Mike cripps who works on upgrading a lot of tm for people who shoot competition.  For now I will keep it stock. 

[sonofsammo]

27 minutes ago, KOBK81 said:

I was looking into the upgrades for next summer to have a crack at some competition shooting.  I found a guy called Mike cripps who works on upgrading a lot of tm for people who shoot competition.  For now I will keep it stock. 

I've only heard of him by reputation, but if I was going to get a hi-capa, I'd get one from him. His upgraded pistols are supposed to be legendary.
If you've got the dosh, a pistol from him would be dreamy 😄 

 

[Musica]

37 minutes ago, KOBK81 said:

I was looking into the upgrades for next summer to have a crack at some competition shooting.  I found a guy called Mike cripps who works on upgrading a lot of tm for people who shoot competition.  For now I will keep it stock. 

 

10 minutes ago, sonofsammo said:

I've only heard of him by reputation, but if I was going to get a hi-capa, I'd get one from him. His upgraded pistols are supposed to be legendary.
If you've got the dosh, a pistol from him would be dreamy 😄 

 

 

His custom jobs are probably the price of 3 stock TM pistols. http://www.eliteshootingcentre.co.uk/Gas Guns/Gas Custom Pistols/Gas Custom Pistols.htm

 

Get a stock TM hi-capa. 

 

Save the rest of your money play with your stock TM on suitable gas then if you find it doesn't do the job i.e you see someone else out performing you speak with Mike for what you want it to do better and he can advise you what to get. If you keep breaking the same part more than once then consider replacing that part with a better part but again it's sometimes better to break a cheap part 10 times than upgrade that one part and it breaks an expensive part instead. 

 

If you really want a tricked out one then buy a custom job from Mike he really seems to know his stuff. He has recommended stock TM parts to me 3 times when I've asked him about doing work on my hi-capa. 

[emilianoksa]

I had a stock Hi Capa 5.1 and was not confident about fitting custom parts and getting the balance of different items right. So I spoke to Mike Cripps on the phone, asked for advice,  and then sent the gun to him. He sold me that parts I wanted and fitted them for me at no extra cost. He then sent the customised gun back with all the parts left over from the original. My Hi Capa now has a lovely Airsoft Materpiece slide on it and some upgraded internals, and can run on Guarder Power Up black gas.

 

I plan to get another one and try fitting parts myself over time.. Then I will put left over parts from the two guns together with some spares I will have to buy, to make a stock gun, and probably use that most of the time.

 

And put my customised Hi Capas on display stands and probably just look at them a lot.😂

[MAX DICKER]

4 hours ago, KOBK81 said:

I really like the tm it's in the middle of price range compared to others I just don't like the plastic slide but after some research I found a tarran tactical jw3 alloy upper slide from a guy called Mike cripps which will fit along with a few choice upgrades.

9ball Inner barrel

Maple hop and rubber

Gateway 125% recoil spring

Masterpeice Blowback housing 

180% nozzle spring

Guarder nozzle

9 ball mag nozzle seal

Short stroke kit

 

 

I'm in work and have only skimmed this thread so if this has been stated already please excuse me.

 

If it isn't broke don't fix it.

 

TM pistols are fantastic. In my opinion which is backed by first hand and anecdotal experience; if you go down the road of 'upgrading' a TM pistol, you'll end up with something worse than what came out of the box.

 

My friends and I joke that TM guns contain invisible Japanese pixies which make them work. When you open the gun they escape.

[Cromulon1994]

18 minutes ago, MAX DICKER said:

 

I'm in work and have only skimmed this thread so if this has been stated already please excuse me.

 

If it isn't broke don't fix it.

 

TM pistols are fantastic. In my opinion which is backed by first hand and anecdotal experience; if you go down the road of 'upgrading' a TM pistol, you'll end up with something worse than what came out of the box.

 

My friends and I joke that TM guns contain invisible Japanese pixies which make them work. When you open the gun they escape.

 

I've heard the pixy dust thing said too. 

 

Just leave it alone. 

 

Though have you handled a hi cappa? I really like 1911s, but hi cappas have a wider grip, and I don't like it. 

 

 

[Teo]

Some Hi Capa ‘Upgrades’ can easily end up being worse than the stock parts. Discovered that yesterday when I cracked my Guarder recoil guide and hop chamber on my 4.3. Not quality parts.

[Adolf Hamster]

All a marui pistol needs is a pdi barrel, maple leaf bucking, and geoff's .4's

[emilianoksa]

10 hours ago, MAX DICKER said:

 

I'm in work and have only skimmed this thread so if this has been stated already please excuse me.

 

If it isn't broke don't fix it.

 

TM pistols are fantastic. In my opinion which is backed by first hand and anecdotal experience; if you go down the road of 'upgrading' a TM pistol, you'll end up with something worse than what came out of the box.

 

My friends and I joke that TM guns contain invisible Japanese pixies which make them work. When you open the gun they escape.

I have a TM Sig P226 E2 and M9A1 and will keep them stock.

 

The Hi Capa however is a different sort of beast. It is a relatively simple gun to strip down, and lends itself well to customising. All I really wanted was a metal slide, but once you get one there are a couple of things that also need to be changed - changing the recoil spring and  loading nozzle is essential and eventually getting a stronger recoil guide rod is not a bad - and that's it really. 

 

The trick is to use compatible parts. If for example you want to change the hammer assembly get all the parts from one manufacturer.  Best to stick to higher quality makes like Airsoft Masterpiece or  Gunsmith Bros for slides and frames (they aint cheap though), and the likes of Cow Cow and Dynamic Precision for internal parts. You get what you pay for. I'm sure that for all the changes, the gun won't perform any better than it did stock, but I am  a collector. 

 

I didn't want to go to town on a Hi Capa but I did want to try a cnc aluminiuim slide, and I'm glad I did. Any other Maruis I might pick up in the future will stay stock.

[MadMole]

Just stick with a hi-Capa and get Mike to build it for you

 

http://www.eliteshootingcentre.co.uk/Gas%20Guns/Gas%20Pistols/Items/5.1%20Hi%20Capa.htm

 

His guns are great and he gives good advice. I own 2 from him, very happy

 

 

[emilianoksa]

There is a big difference between a light weight aluminium cnc slide and a heavy pot metal cast factory slide.

[KOBK81]

On 05/11/2019 at 15:27, MadMole said:

Just stick with a hi-Capa and get Mike to build it for you

 

http://www.eliteshootingcentre.co.uk/Gas%20Guns/Gas%20Pistols/Items/5.1%20Hi%20Capa.htm

 

His guns are great and he gives good advice. I own 2 from him, very happy

 

 

Ive already spoke with Mike regarding the upgrade choices and he doesn't see any issues with what I want to do with it.  A lot of the parts I can get from him which he has in stock but for the time being I'm going to stick with it stock and see how I get keep some records on its performance but will definitely be upgrading for next summer when I take up the competition shooting.  I'm going to buy a little bit at a time and build it all in one hit then do a comparison between stock and upgraded

Update! Have to wait 2 weeks for it to arrive as they are pretty order only apparently.  

[heroshark]

On 04/11/2019 at 18:23, Adolf Hamster said:

All a marui pistol needs is a pdi barrel, maple leaf bucking, and geoff's .4's

 

Only other thing I would add to that is 9ball routes and lpe mag shims in the mags. Added them in all my tm pistols for the past 15 odd years. They are a great efficiency upgrade.

[Adolf Hamster]

37 minutes ago, heroshark said:

 

Only other thing I would add to that is 9ball routes and lpe mag shims in the mags. Added them in all my tm pistols for the past 15 odd years. They are a great efficiency upgrade.

 

might be tempted to try that, although stock efficiency is fine for my needs (ie can it fire 1 full stack of bb's and lock back before recharge)

 

as a general rule outside of hop tweakery i tend to leave my gbb's alone, it's a finely balanced system and i've learned the hard way that if you screw with them too much it can be very hard to recover.

[Musica]

On 04/11/2019 at 18:23, Adolf Hamster said:

All a marui pistol needs is a pdi barrel, maple leaf bucking, and geoff's .4's

 

Like an autobot or decepticon one?

https://eagle6.co.uk/shop/catalog/product/view/id/5951/s/pdi-6-01mm-inner-barrel-113mm-for-tm-hi-capa-5-1/

 

28 minutes ago, heroshark said:

 

Only other thing I would add to that is 9ball routes and lpe mag shims in the mags. Added them in all my tm pistols for the past 15 odd years. They are a great efficiency upgrade.

https://www.fire-support.co.uk/product/laylaxnineball-gas-router-for-marui-hi-capa-and-p226-2-pcs

https://www.fire-support.co.uk/product/lpe-cnc-machined-precision-mag-shim-for-marui-pistols-10-pcs

 

Tempting upgrades all of it.

[Adolf Hamster]

3 minutes ago, Musica said:

 

Like an autobot or decepticon one?

https://eagle6.co.uk/shop/catalog/product/view/id/5951/s/pdi-6-01mm-inner-barrel-113mm-for-tm-hi-capa-5-1/

 

i'm running an autobot in the hicapa and the makarov both with i keys.