Looking for Advice on My First Rifle - and Converting a GBB G36c to a G36

[Rubberfile]

Hello, i'm new to the forums and to airsoft in general, even though i have shot airguns for over 10 years. I've only ever used loaner guns the few times i've been to an airsoft event, and i'm wanting to get my first proper airsoft gun. Thing is i'm torn between 2 different choices, and i don't know what the general consensus is on both the manufacturers.

The two guns i am looking at i would consider to be in the starter (but not budget) range, being between £150 and £200. The Army Arnament R36 (G36c Clone, GBB) and the JG AUG (AEG, military model with built in scope) I'm looking at both of these as it's pretty much impossible to get a full metal gun at this price point, and even the real AUG and G36c have a lot of plastic on them, these guns seem to have a similar amount of metal and plastic to the originals, so the weight should be about the same (If anyone can confirm their weights it would be much appriciated)

The question is for me, what is the opinion of anyone who has owned either of these, is army arnament a good manufacturer? I don't know much about them and i know a little more about JG and it seems from what i've been reading that the AUG is one of their better offerings and it comes with a battery & charger. (getting a smart charger will be one of the first accessories on my list of things to get) But then again i also like the idea of a gas blowback - the blowback feature is nice and they sound a lot better than an AEG. I'm also used to gas blowback airguns so maintenance would be a lot more difficult on an AEG for me as i have experience with 4.5mm GBB guns.

I'm certainly not the richest man in the world, in fact i'm quite poor so even something at this price point is a big investment for me - it has to be reliable and sturdy, and that's one of the reasons i'm thinking the GBB G36c is maybe a better option, but the fact it's a G36c puts me off a bit - if it is possible for me to replace the barrel & front handguard to turn it into a regular G36 and not a G36c i will definitly go for the G36c as i much prefer a GBB system over a AEG. However if i'm gonna be stuck with a G36c then i will go for the AUG - as the AUG A1 is my favourite variant of the AUG and i won't need to replace a load of parts.

As you can see i'm torn between the two. I've got plenty of time before i buy - 6 days infact before i'm paid and will get one or the other. In a way i'm hoping i'm told one is amazing and one is rubbish so the decision is made for me, even now as a grown man i'm one of the most indecisive people i know, and the fact i know little about airsoft (I know more about real-steel firearms and airguns) only makes my decision harder.

Any information on either of the guns would be a big help. Any major flaws, if the guns have a good reputation and also what parts they can take - down the line i definitly would want to convert the G36c to a G36 if possible and wouldn't know what parts to buy. Would the WE GBB G36 parts fit? I know a stock and top rail from an AEG would probably be fine, but the barrel would be my main concern. Would i need to replace the inner barrel or just the outer? Would i need to replace the gas system? I know i would have a much better understanding of this with the gun infront of me, but i don't want to buy if i know this isn't possible.

Also if you say 'why don't you just buy a GBB G36 from the get go?' well there isn't any in my price range available. There is some in the £300+ category, but there is none in the £150-£200. but to pick up this £160 GBB G36c and then replace some parts would be much more economical - plus i can switch back to a G36c anytime, which would be nice for CQB. If anyone can advise a G36 at the sub-£200 price point that is GBB that would be great - hell i'll even have a look at an AEG.

Anyway my post is getting rather long. Any help you can give me is much appriciated.

[Adolf Hamster]

is your budget £200 all-in or do you have spare for chargers and such?

 

if it's all in then i'd be really tempted to say something like this:

https://www.taiwangun.com/assault-rifle-aeg/cm-045a-cyma?from=listing&campaign-id=19

 

or if you've got spare then maybe one of the platinum series:

https://www.taiwangun.com/assault-rifle-aeg/cm-097a-upgraded-version-cyma?from=listing&campaign-id=19

 

both are "metal" recievers if that's your preference.

 

i've not used jg's aug specifically, but if it's using the same guts as their ak line then it should be pretty decent, jg's stuff has really come on strong in recent years, not the most solid externals but damn if they don't shoot better than their cost would imply.

 

i certainly wouldn't give gbb a look at all if running costs and budget are a concern.

 

remember if you don't have your ukara setup you're gonna have to factor in paying to get it 2-toned.

[EDcase]

Hi and welcome.

There's loads of info on this site so highly recommended to read lots

 

If you intend to actually play airsoft...

Your choice between those two options is very easy

 

...Get the JG AUG

Reviews show it performs very well

(Coincidentally I've just ordered a JG AUG A3 😄)

 

In general gas rifles do not perform well in cold weather.  Only the expensive ones are usable.

Gas magazines are expensive and because they only hold around 30-40 BB's you need 5+ of them for a game.

Because the AA R36 is a very low budget gbbr it means lower grade materials and so it will not last long before components break and need replacing.  (Mainly in the trigger group)

 

GBBR's are a lot of fun for sure but not a good choice for first gun.

If you want to just plink in the garden then its a bit different as temperature is less relevant and you don't need lots of mags.

[Rubberfile]

Thanks for the replies.

I'm not particularly interested in a AK or a AR, i'm more into the western european guns like the AUG, G36, F2000, L85, FNC, etc but the AK and AR you reccomended do look good quality.

My budget is around £200, but the lower the better. The JG AUG comes with a battery & charger but i'll get a better battery & charger eventually if i buy a aeg, but not straight away i simply can't afford it, however next month i'll get a charger, then a battery maybe at the same time, maybe the month after depending on what they cost.

And the two guns i'm looking at already come in 2-tone, luckily the AUG and G36c are very modular, and when i do get my UKARA set up it's as easy as replacing the stock on the JG AUG and a few parts on the G36c (one of the reasons i was considering a conversion to the G36 in the future)

Running costs aren't really an issue it's more the inital setup which is a problem for me, and neither is cold weather as my closes local site is an indoor cqb one. The real cap mags don't really put me off either, but if a less expensive gbbr won't function well then that would be a problem. I have the Umarex MP40 in 4.5mm steel bb (as in an airgun) and that was £340 but performs superbly, but that of course is useless for airsoft.

I think i may go for the JG AUG.

I'm thinking i may go JG AUG, but i'll continue to shop around, you never know i may find something nice. I have got just under a week before i get paid and i can get something. Been saving up a month to get some kind of airsoft gun, so i definitly want to get the right thing.

[EDcase]

If you'll be doing CQB you could compromise and get a GBB pistol as well as an AEG.

Good plan for battery and charger.  Search for threads about recommended ones...

 

I don't know how compatible the AA R36 is with any other parts so would recommend lots of research to find out if changing it would be possible.

[Adolf Hamster]

4 minutes ago, Rubberfile said:

Thanks for the replies.

I'm not particularly interested in a AK or a AR, i'm more into the western european guns like the AUG, G36, F2000, L85, FNC, etc but the AK and AR you reccomended do look good quality.

 

fair enough, can't blame you i bought an f2000 as my first gun and i'm not against anyone who's down for breaking up the sea of endless m4's out there.

 

afaik jg and cyma both do g36's and the jg version was the rental gun of choice round here for a while.

 

pretty sure jg do a version of the f2000 which supposedly is pretty decent as it's using a v3 box rather than the v6 box and rube golberg trigger mech the g&g version used.

[Rubberfile]

I certainly do want a GBB pistol and have my eye on a Tokyo Marui one, but i need a primary first and foremost. Even though my closest place is CQB there is an outdoor site about an hour away, and even though i haven't visited it yet, i certainly want to when i get my rifle.

I've just looked up the JG F2000 and it's a beauty, definitly one for me to get in the future, but not for my first gun, as i want something i can convert into a RIF by swapping out parts when i get my UKARA, so i'm not stuck with a gun i'll never use. That will be one of the first things on my list of things to get when i do have a UKARA number though!

And i think i'm gonna go for the JG AUG. As there is some nice full length G36's i can get when i do have my UKARA, no parts swaps required.

[Adolf Hamster]

you can always just paint over the shell when you've got your ukara.

 

personally i'd suggest just doing your time renting and get setup with ukara first, but i totally get the feeling of a hole burning in your pocket.

[Speedbird_666]

I would get a JG G36C. Better for CQB. You can fold the stock for those tight corners. Bomb proof, and parts are easier to get.

 

AUGs are fine, but can have issues, especially around magazines and the feed port.

 

But both are V3 Gearbox based, so will perform roughly the same.

 

 

[Rubberfile]

It's less of the hole burning in my pocket and more me wanting a gun of my own. I'll be using the gun for plinking way more often than what i will with actual airsoft, probably will do airsoft fortnightly or monthly when i do have my rifle as i have enjoyed playing it (hency why i'm getting a nice airsoft gun and not another airgun). I already have all my tactical gear etc as i've collected militaria, uniforms, equipment etc for 15 years plus i don't like renting things out, it's expensive, a lot more expensive than the entry fee and paying £20 to rent a gun for the day always irked me. As for painting over, i would rather just replace the part. Having a two-tone gun painted over doesn't look good if/when the paint flakes, and if people don't know you have UKARA your gonna look like a criminal. Would rather just get a new stock moulded in a different color.

As for the JG G36c the only reason i was considering the Army Arnament G36c is because it was a GBBR. I wouldn't of had the issue of being indecisive if the AEG AUG was going up against a AEG G36c, i would get the AUG hands down.

[Lozart]

1 hour ago, Rubberfile said:

It's less of the hole burning in my pocket and more me wanting a gun of my own. I'll be using the gun for plinking way more often than what i will with actual airsoft, probably will do airsoft fortnightly or monthly when i do have my rifle as i have enjoyed playing it (hency why i'm getting a nice airsoft gun and not another airgun). I already have all my tactical gear etc as i've collected militaria, uniforms, equipment etc for 15 years plus i don't like renting things out, it's expensive, a lot more expensive than the entry fee and paying £20 to rent a gun for the day always irked me. As for painting over, i would rather just replace the part. Having a two-tone gun painted over doesn't look good if/when the paint flakes, and if people don't know you have UKARA your gonna look like a criminal. Would rather just get a new stock moulded in a different color.

As for the JG G36c the only reason i was considering the Army Arnament G36c is because it was a GBBR. I wouldn't of had the issue of being indecisive if the AEG AUG was going up against a AEG G36c, i would get the AUG hands down.

 

The AA R36 has been discussed here before: 

Worth a read!

[Nick G]

I've got the JG AUG and it's awesome. Great gun and so easy to work on.  I also have a GBB G36c, it's the WE version which I think the AA is a clone of. It's also a fantastic gun I love GBBRs and now have 3 , L85 the G36 and my new built L119 A1 . They do take more looking after than an AEG and obviously the limited ammo count requires a different play style, but I do enjoy fielding them.

For first gun however, I'd get the AUG.

On the subject of turning a 36c into a regular 36, barrel extension and handguard will get you pretty close, I run mine like that sometimes when I want a long one (ooh er missus) I just leave the inner as is , screw the extension and correct flash hider on and swap the handguard over, takes a couple of minutes if that. Gas block is in the wrong place for complete authenticity , but since its hidden I dont care. 

[Rubberfile]

Thanks i'll definilty check it out!

And aha thank you for telling me about converting the G36c to a G36, if the AA one is a clone of the WE, what make of parts did you use to convert your WE G36c to a long one? Did you just use other WE parts?

[EvilMonkee]

For the love of the God, learn to use your return key.  The wall of text hurts my eyes.   

 

Welcome.

[Iceni]

Augs are all basically the same gun. There are only gearbox differences across the bulk of the market.

There are 2 common main body styles. APS use a style with a raised area on the pistol grip and stock, Snow wolf JG, Classic army, and TM use a smoother design. I have both styles there is no performance difference between them. ASG don't make guns, If you see an ASG it's a rebranded JG or APS.

The uppers come in 4 styles and a few sub styles.

A1 - Fixed inbuilt scope. Folding foregrip, Standard length - Short (para)
A2 - Single upper rail. Folding foregrip, Standard length - Short (para)
A3/A4 - Full upper rail and forward RIS. Fixed foregrip, Standard length - Long (phantom or H-bar with bipod)
Commando - Single upper rail with short barrel and fixed forgrip. (TM high cycle).

 

For internals things are more variable.

TM standard and high cycle stand apart. Those guns are flat out better than the rest but any AUG can be upgraded to the same level.

Classic army has a well specced gearbox and is the only AUG with a mosfet as standard.

The rest are all the standard variable China gearboxes.

JG is generally regarded as been robust with few issues other than shimming and a slow ROF. New models have QC springs but older models don't have that feature.

APS use a cheap piston head that will want changing on the first service, all come with QC main springs, and pretty much all will benefit from shimming, Slightly slower ROF than the JG.

Snow wolf I have never had in bits but they have the JG style body so I'd be tempted to say that is where they are been made. 


What to avoid - A3/A4 models. The front Ris is really heavy and makes the gun feel very different to the stock setup. Augs are good because they work as a nimble platform, Adding the RIS doesn't add anything to the design.

Would I pay the extra for a JG over a Snow wolf - Nope. I would just get whatever Aug variant is also the cheapest. The Commando/A2 para snow wolf is £105 on gunfire. It's got an A2 upper with the commando grip so it's a 50/50 hybrid.

https://gunfire.com/en/products/sw-020tb-carbine-replica-black-1152219201.html

Gunfire will also downgrade it for 1p. Find out what your sites allow for FPS and have gunfire do the downgrade when you buy.

https://gunfire.com/en/products/aeg-replica-downgrade-1152197807.html

 

I don't think you can get more Aug for the money. Even if you were to do a full gearbox rebuild and spend £100 on top end parts to make it a monster it's still cheaper than the TM HC. If you want it to look longer add a long suppressor and a short outer barrel extension for under £20, It'll look fantastic. A little red dot sight is all it really wants.

Added to that because it's only £105 you have budget left over:

Pick up:

Decent batteries (<£10 each from hobbyking ask if you need more information)

A decent charger (Hobbyking)
A nice red dot (gunfire/Solware/Uttings are good places to look)
Gunbag (gunfire)
Magazines.

The JG A2 is now showing as available on Gunfire as well for under £100.

https://gunfire.com/en/products/jg0448a-carbine-replica-1152189528.html

 

Augs are also like lego, Any upper will fit any lower. So if you wanted to get the A1 and none are showing in stock, Get an A2 and look for the upper by itself. They normally cost about £40. If you have the A2 with the folding grip it'll also just come out and drop onto the upper with no tools. The fixed grip variant you will have to remove a pin and put the grip block onto the new upper, but you can get 3d printed blocks that would act as a spare.

https://airsoftpro.cz/en/gun-parts-upgrade/aeg-outer-spare-parts/aug-parts/kovovy-zaver-s-optikou-pro-aug-military-detail

[Nick G]

11 hours ago, Rubberfile said:

Thanks i'll definilty check it out!

And aha thank you for telling me about converting the G36c to a G36, if the AA one is a clone of the WE, what make of parts did you use to convert your WE G36c to a long one? Did you just use other WE parts?

Nope, used a generic barrel extension , just worked out what length it neede to be and ordered of ebay. the 'long' handguard was likewise a used ebay purchase. I suspect it may be a JG one but wont swear to it . Intended for an AEG I think, but fits fine.

[EDcase]

I just received this JG AUG A4

 

Its a bit heavier than the A1 but I thought the front end would balance the gearbox at the back and I was right.

The balance point is exactly at the hand grip.  Based on this I would imagine the A1 to be quite back heavy.

 

As mentioned, it shoots well (20m in garden) and has a quick change spring system if you want more/less power.

Mine is doing about 312fps with hop set for 0.2g

Dual action trigger has a well defined detent between single and auto.

 

(Taiwangun are currently selling AUG high caps at £5.38 and midcaps at £6.50)

...AND get 10% off with the code #blacknovember 

[Speedbird_666]

1 hour ago, EDcase said:

I just received this JG AUG A4

 

Its a bit heavier than the A1 but I thought the front end would balance the gearbox at the back and I was right.

The balance point is exactly at the hand grip.  Based on this I would imagine the A1 to be quite back heavy.

 

As mentioned, it shoots well (20m in garden) and has a quick change spring system if you want more/less power.

Mine is doing about 312fps with hop set for 0.2g

Dual action trigger has a well defined detent between single and auto.

 

(Taiwangun are currently selling AUG high caps at £5.38 and midcaps at £6.50)

...AND get 10% off with the code #blacknovember 

 

Nice.

 

Are you going to do any mods? I would be modding/replacing the safety switch to give proper semi-auto for CQB - I can see the two-stage trigger being a problem at some sites.

 

 

I just wish an Airsoft manufacturer was producing this:

 

 

[Iceni]

2 hours ago, EDcase said:

Based on this I would imagine the A1 to be quite back heavy

They are, but it's not what you might imagine. Because the weight is between the pistol grip and the shoulder the A1 variants don't feel back heavy, They feel locked. It also means they cause very little fatigue. It's hard to describe, but you can have a play with the A4 if you remove the RIS and see for yourself. Remove the top rail screws 2 or 3 on top, 2 under the rail, and the grub screw under the ris where it meets the upper that locks to the barrel. The ris should then slide off the upper.

[EDcase]

@Speedbird_666 Yeah, I'd love that style but don't think I'll do any modding on it unless I see a second hand kit or something.  The semi/auto has enough definition that I'll leave it unless it becomes a problem. I haven't been to any CQB sites yet and if I did I'd probably take the MP5K

 

@Iceni Thanks for the info.  I'll take off the RIS to see what its like but I also find the L85 quite back heavy and a strain on the wrist.

[Iceni]

8 minutes ago, EDcase said:

I also find the L85 quite back heavy and a strain on the wrist

L85's are much heavier I struggle with them as well for the same reason.