Which of These Manufacturers Make the Best Reliable AEG for a Beginner?

[Speedbird_666]

4 minutes ago, EDcase said:

I do wonder if it was a bad batch.  I still think there are many more good ones out there that people just don't shout about.

Now I'm just gloating 😁

 

Problem is, how many 'bad batch' QC Edge V1 guns are still sitting on retailers shelves/walls waiting to be bought by an unwitting new player? I genuinely hope it's not many. Most of the QC issues are easily fixed if you are confident to tech your own guns. But most new players will not be.

 

Apparently Edge 2.0 has sorted the QC issues. If that's the case, great!

 

The 'upgraded' Edge 2.0s are just hitting UK shores (ignoring the rubbish HK416ish Edge 2.0 guns that briefly arrived last year with triggers that didn't work with the Asters) so hopefully we will get some updated reports.

 

Personally, I'm tempted to give the basic (plastic hand guard) £210 model a go, because it's worth it for the parts alone.

 

[Oldsofter]

Have a look at some thing like Arthurian or JG I personally own one of these as a back up and its lent alot of Friends and to be honest im surprised with the range 
 

https://www.socomtactical.net/arthurian-airsoft-excalibur-mordred-sandstone/

[38super]

This is a very informative thread for a newbie like me. It explains the relatively High price of the CM16's for start.

When you're starting out it's difficult to know how much weight to give YouTube reviews like Negative, Bigbird or Pheas. With the best will in the world it's only going to be a review of an individual gun or the reviewers experience. I know I need to do my own research but there is so much contradictory or outdated information around. 

 

Is there any way to find out who makes what for ASG? 

 

[DRay]

On the subject of reviews I think being sceptical is right. Having done a lot (I mean a LOT, watched every video and read every blog) before moving from rental to the lofty heights of walk on recently, I think I arrived at the following;

 

1. Reviewers say it is great because they were given it for free (for the most part) and if they don’t make it clear what their motivations are for the video they are almost certainly biased. Negative airsoft however does do pretty fucking good videos and I think his opinion is very fair and based on a lot more knowledge than the majority of reviewers that bang on about ambidextrous fire control selectors. 

2. Some manufacturers are more reliable than others (everyone seems to have an issue with SA quality control) but ultimately it is a bit of a lottery. You might spend £100 on a belter that never jams, always cycles and shoots like a laser. Equally you could end up with a £400 GBBR lemon that works 10% of the time. 
3. If it does need shimming/crap clearing out of the gearbox it is about £40 in Labour to your local tech and therefore not the end of the world if you do need to get it tinkered with. 
 

I bought a SA E-07 from the classifieds despite the possibility that there might be a QC issue from the factory and it is fine. Not skirmished yet clearly but I have put about 12k rounds through it in the garden and it never fails, shoots straight and feels very solid. 

[Impulse]

I'll weigh in and say that I think Cyma are amazing for AKs and M14s. I've heard bad things about their M4s, but have no direct experience myself. I own a Cyma m14 right now and it's my secondary RIF for if I don't feel like using a boltie and it fires amazingly; all I did was shove a new barrel and hop rubber in it and it's outranging most bolties on my local field, even though it's still only 1J. When I was still in Spain, I had an m14 SOCOM and it performed fantastically out of the box (as I never did anything to it) and I never had any tech issues across all 6 years I played in Spain.

 

I'm thoroughly impressed with Cyma. Both m14s I've had from them have been top quality and punched way above their £150 weight.

[Speedbird_666]

On 17/02/2021 at 11:51, 38super said:

When you're starting out it's difficult to know how much weight to give YouTube reviews like Negative

*Snip*

Is there any way to find out who makes what for ASG? 

 

 

Negative doesn't really review guns - he fixes them as a full-time tech. When he says a gun is Wank, it's generally because he's had quite a few on his bench to fix. Both Pheas and BigBird pay for their own guns/gear, and are fairly honest about their impressions from what I've seen. It's the bigger reviewers that have stuff sent to them for free that I treat with some skepticism.

 

As for ASG, they don't publish a list (that I know of) unfortunately. When you've been around long enough staring at various guns from various manufacturers - you start to recognise the same components being used - enough to put two and two together. Sometimes retailers will say something like 'ASG (made by Lonex)' in their product description. Some guns still have the OEM's name stamped on them (Classic Army M4s). Some guns you won't recognise until the gearbox gets opened and you look at the components e.g. ASG CZ 805 Bren (King Arms).

 

Cyma makes pretty decent stuff these days, but I would stick to their over-£100 offerings. I have both an AK and M4 derivative (SR47) and both are decent, although I've yet to skirmish the SR47.

[Adolf Hamster]

30 minutes ago, Speedbird_666 said:

 

Negative doesn't really review guns - he fixes them as a full-time tech. When he says a gun is Wank, it's generally because he's had quite a few on his bench to fix

 

or maybe if it isn't numerous but something eccentric with a bunch of proprietary parts.

 

tbh you want a review it's really tricky. on the one hand reviewers who get sent stuff for free are inclined to shill in order to keep good relations, but likewise if someone's reviewing something they spent their hard earned money on they might be unwilling to admit to themselves (and by extension the world) that it's actually kinda trash.

 

there's also the issue of day-one reviews/unboxings when you can't really get a feel for something, for example i could review a gbb pistol in the middle of summer and declare it the greatest gun ever, but 2 years and a few thousand rounds down the line in the middle of winter it'll be a different story.

[Speedbird_666]

12 minutes ago, Adolf Hamster said:

there's also the issue of day-one reviews/unboxings when you can't really get a feel for something,

 

Except for that poor bugger with the TSI Tavor unboxing video. You could practically hear his heart breaking when he was trying to review it.

 

Otherwise, you're quite right.

[Adolf Hamster]

36 minutes ago, Speedbird_666 said:

 

Except for that poor bugger with the TSI Tavor unboxing video. You could practically hear his heart breaking when he was trying to review it.

 

Otherwise, you're quite right.

 

don't recall seeing that one, but then i don't watch too many reviews.....

[DerDer]

46 minutes ago, Speedbird_666 said:

 

Except for that poor bugger with the TSI Tavor unboxing video. You could practically hear his heart breaking when he was trying to review it.

 

Otherwise, you're quite right.

That was a very memorable one. Their Galil line was quite decent, the Tavor was a car crash. Although at least he got something. Remember a line of VSS aegs that turned out to be vapourware. 

[Skara]

Link to this review? I don't think I'm hating my life enough today

[DerDer]

12 minutes ago, Skara said:

Link to this review? I don't think I'm hating my life enough today

Sadly it seems lost to time. It was around 2009. Best you can find these days is some companion threads, for instance:

 

https://arniesairsoft.co.uk/forums/index.php?/topic/176972-tsi-tavor-four-part-video-review/&ct=1613664906

 

https://arniesairsoft.co.uk/forums/index.php?/topic/162913-tsi-tavor-update/page/41/