Am I nuts for wanting a .308?

[Madhouse]

Afternoon all,

 

I just booked game no.3 which means UKARA should be sorted by December, so I guess it's my turn for a 'WhAt aM bEsT gNu?!?' thread ... sort of.

 

What I'm really after is some kind of validation that I'm not potentially making my life harder than it needs to be by either buying something that's built of cheese or is just wrong for what I want to use it for - there's been a number of RIFs in pole position but I think I'm settled on one.

 

So here goes. I'm currently thinking of getting the G&G TR16 SBR 308 mk2, it appears to be made well so I don't have to upgrade it instantly, but I mainly want it because I like the way it looks and isn't an M4 (not that I don't like M4's, it's just nice to have something else). Downside is proprietary mags, upside is I like it and you've gotta like whatever you're using to sling BBs.

Currently in second is the (still G&G) SR30, it was my previous first place choice till I came across the 308. Downside is it's an M4 and everyone has them, upside is it's an M4 and everyone has them and as such there's a ton of aftermarket parts.

 

I know G&G are on the pricier side of things but I've had my fair share of 'buy cheap, buy twice' so I'd rather get the right RIF from the start. I like the idea of being able to drop in a Perun ETU++ without needing to go into the gearbox, although the idea of teching my own stuff doesn't scare me at all. What I don't want to do is spend that kind of money and regret it.

ICS, Specna and CYMA have been on the shortlist at one point or another. Bullpups are a no from me.

 

Thinking some kind of holo sight for whatever gun I get. Already got a tracer and light.

 

Pistol's gonna be the TM FNX-45 and nobody's talking me out of that (fingers crossed black ones will be back in stock when I'm looking to buy it, or one appears in the classifieds).

 

I predominantly play CQB hence going for a short-barrelled rifle.

 

So there we go, am I crazy for wanting something that's not an M4 for my first rifle? will I regret a G&G?

[Impulse]

You aren't nuts for wanting a .308. As someone who owns pretty much all RIFs where the real-steel versions are 7.62x51mm, I can vouch for a whole bunch of good ones. If you like that AR style platform, the Cyma SR-25 is absolutely amazing. A little pricey as it's part of their platinum series, but having taken mine apart and put it back together, I can vouch for the internals; they're really impressive out of the box. 

 

Ok, so you play predominantly CQB so ignore all of what I just said as I was attacking the .308 side from a sniper perspective; yes, I'm taking a 1.1J BASR (complete with 3.5-10x scope!) to a CQB game this weekend, but I'm weird. Don't be like me.

 

As to your concerns, you don't have to get an M4 as your first rifle and there are plenty of parts available for other gearbox types. V3 gearboxes are used by both AKs and mp5s, both of which will do CQB pretty well, or at least have variants that will do CQB well like a folding stock AK. I typically try to avoid G&G because they love doing weird proprietary things that make them a bit weirder to work on, but I can vouch for Cyma. Every Cyma gun I have ever had has been an absolute workhorse of a RIF. The m14 socom I had 12 years ago was one of the best performing RIFs at the site I played at in the south of Spain out of all the players, my Cyma m14 that I have built as a 1.1J m21 has people with 2.3J BASRs fearing it for its range and accuracy when I'm counter-sniping them, my Cyma mp5k is probably my all around best gun that I would take to a game if I wanted to play to win and be the most effective player in game I could be and my Cyma SR-25 is... broken because I can't do AEG gearbox teching (but it will soon live again and once more terrorise the enemy team!). Also, Cyma AKs have been consistently great for over a decade now.

 

I used to be a TM shill (and still am for their gas guns), but now I'm a total Cyma shill. I'm constantly impressed by how consistently well they perform with the most minor of modifications, which is generally just a ML rubber, nub and maybe a ZCI stainless steel barrel if I'm feeling spendy. No idea on their M4s though, and back in the day their M4s were crap.

[concretesnail]

I have a the g&g 308 and throughly enjoy it. The gear box is v2 compatible when it comes to parts. The magazines are proprietary, but I've not had any issues with any of mine, and the magazine actives the last round cut off, which I love as I came to it from gbbr rifs.

Pouch wise, there's options; m14, scar H and tacos are your best bet for quick and cheap, personally I use short ak open pouches. Get the perun in straight away it's so much better than the G&G mosfet.

Edited November 9, 2022 by concretesnail

[Tactical Pith Helmet]

I'll second the two comments above.

 

What I will say I that one doesn't admire the fireplace whilst stoking the fire as it were.   Unless you are going to hang it on the wall, what it looks like is secondary to ergonomics.  If I play competitively I use my G&G M4.  For themed games I never use an M4.   

 

I have eight CYMAs and all behave flawlessly.   

[Hatchet]

There's a fairly comprehensive review of the G&G TR16 here if that helps.

[Rogerborg]

If it gets your PP hard while slinging the same BBs as everyone else, it's the right toy for you.  Life's too short for regretting purchases that you didn't make.

 

The one thing I'd mention is that sooner or later you're likely to run into some muppet of a marshal who declares "That's a DMR, mate, you can't use that in CQB, mate, it's way too hot, mate".

[Madhouse]

Thanks for the input so far, given me even more to think about!

I totally get the arguments that I'll not be looking at it while I use it, but also that it's got to be a toy I want to look at in the safe zone and I'm on board with both of them. Handily I'm not averse to an M4 😉

 

The CYMA CM.097F Platinum is on my short list and actually comes up shorter & cheaper than my G&G contenders and by the look of the reviews I've seen so far is a lovely piece of kit - although there is the microswitch trigger and the potential for the receiver to crack. The Specna SA-H23 is also the same money with a Gate Aster but is that at the expense of quality?

 

[Adolf Hamster]

16 hours ago, Madhouse said:

So there we go, am I crazy for wanting something that's not an M4 for my first rifle? will I regret a G&G?

 

No, theres nothing wrong with wanting something different. If you like it then you like it and that's all the validation you need.

 

The only thing you might struggle with is parts that are proprietary, it's the downside of straying from the path of generic m4 or ak. But thats only if you're the type to tinker and try to squeeze every last drop of performance from your pew.

[Madhouse]

14 hours ago, Adolf Hamster said:

only if you're the type to tinker

 

I do like to tinker, but mostly for tinkering's sake rather than maxing everything out so it's 'fully upgraded', whatever I get will be more than a match for my talent out of the box so most tinkering will be service related and fixing anything that breaks.

[Keldon]

As an owner of the MBR 308 SR and the SBR mk II. 

 

Like you I got the MBR (my first) because I liked the look of it then got the SBR because I wanted a shorter rif for cqb and thought why not ad i can use the same mags. 

 

So far not had a problem with my mosfets in either though I have since upgraded my MBR into a DMR with a perun mosfet. 

 

Did that after got my SBR so use SBR as main and when I want a little more power and range I use the MBR, plus i now have a spare G&G mosfet if it does go. 

 

I would say just go for it, if its what you like the look of you wont regret it. It shoots well out the box and i do love my 3 round burst. Single and 3 is my default settings, my mid caps at first would jam if fully loaded at first but once spring had bedded in not a problem.

Would say at first leave fill them most of way to bed in then fully load them. Saying that the low caps never been a problem and have a single high cap which is never been a problem either. 

 

Im still enjoying them both still oh and the acetech lighter (I have BT version) tracer unit looks awsome on it too. 

[The Waco Kid]

What no MC51 fan’s? Had Noboby gone G3 SAS slap happy?

 

Call yourselves airsofters? I am ashamed!

 

G3 AM BESTEST GUN!!!!! GOAT!!!!!

 

Anyway enough if that.
 

I do find it amusing when the post starts with “I am being controversial for not using an M4, but something that looks rather like one, but with a slightly thicc(er) mag.”  😆

[Cannonfodder]

1 hour ago, The Waco Kid said:

What no MC51 fan’s? Had Noboby gone G3 SAS slap happy?

 

Call yourselves airsofters? I am ashamed!

 

G3 AM BESTEST GUN!!!!! GOAT!!!!!

 

Anyway enough if that.
 

I do find it amusing when the post starts with “I am being controversial for not using an M4, but something that looks rather like one, but with a slightly thicc(er) mag.”  😆

I'd been thinking of getting a MC51, but as I've started doing cqb my priorities changed to even shorter gnus. 

 

Also im glad I'm not the only one who thought that about a 7.62 AR. For once I was being nice

[Madhouse]

17 hours ago, The Waco Kid said:

I do find it amusing when the post starts with “I am being controversial for not using an M4, but something that looks rather like one, but with a slightly thicc(er) mag.”

 

When you put it like that it does sound a bit daft 😂.

 

The angle I was coming from was making sure I wasn't going down some rabbit hole of weird gearboxes made of pot metal or parts that are as hard to find as hen's teeth, rather than being looks-based. 

[concretesnail]

Sr25 rifs can be a little like that with the 2.5v gearbox, long nozzles etc. But the g&g 308 and their new sr25 use standard v2 hop and gearbox types. They make the part of the other barrel that carries the hop unit reach deeper into the upper, carrying the hop back to the gearbox. It's means mags are proprietary but I'd bet with a thick spacer in the front of the mag well you'd be able to put a standard 5.56 type mag in and have it feed.

So unless you want to change outer barrels it's like working on a v2 platform.

[Impulse]

18 hours ago, concretesnail said:

Sr25 rifs can be a little like that with the 2.5v gearbox, long nozzles etc. But the g&g 308 and their new sr25 use standard v2 hop and gearbox types. They make the part of the other barrel that carries the hop unit reach deeper into the upper, carrying the hop back to the gearbox. It's means mags are proprietary but I'd bet with a thick spacer in the front of the mag well you'd be able to put a standard 5.56 type mag in and have it feed.

So unless you want to change outer barrels it's like working on a v2 platform.

 

See, for me it's the other way around. I would never touch an SR-25 with a v2 gearbox because I want that long cylinder from the v2.5 for the setup I want to do with it (being either a 1.1J or DMR power).