I want a new sniper rif.

[Rickwales]

I know this has been asked a million times so sorry for asking again, ive done a fair bit of research but still can't decide. 

For Christmas/birthday the wife has offered to buy me a new sniper rifle. Although it's my present I suspect the lad will use it more than me as I like the running around and blasting type of game more. But we have 4 M4s, 2mp5s and a krinkov so I fancy something new for the collection. Also have 3 gas pistols as well. 

So which to get? Budget about £400ish, but could go higher for the right one. I already have plenty of scopes, so don't need to budget for them. 

Ssg10 or 11 top of my list, but I'm open to any suggestions. What would you guys spend your money on? 

Many thanks 

Rick 

 

Edited October 18 by Rickwales

[ButcherBill]

6 minutes ago, Rickwales said:

What would you guys spend your money on?

Too many TBH.

 

I already have a WE L85A2 on it's way.

 

What about a bullpup for a change? Most will use Stanags so no need for new mags.

[Rickwales]

Thanks for the reply.

I could consider a bull pup. 

I should have clarified id like to stick with springers as I just sold my dive bottle last week. 

Also light enough for my lad to carry, although he's not a weakling. 😆 

 

Using the mags I have already appeals for sure. 

Rick

[ButcherBill]

Or a DMR?

[Rickwales]

Now that's pretty... ❤️ 

What is it? 😆 

[ButcherBill]

It's a Double Bell Mk12

[Rickwales]

I really have a lot to learn... 

 

I'll look into dmrs a bit more. Thanks 

[AK47frizzle]

I have the b&t spr300. It is by far the best sniper rifle out of the box I've used  and I've used a lot. I only have extra mags for it, and upgraded the spring power and it still works just fine after a year.

[Impulse]

For bolt actions with that budget, and sticking with springers (because I'd 100% buy a gas bolt action if it was me, but I'm weird), I'd go with a Tac-41 Lite with the recon stock. The lite stock is cheaper, but... it doesn't inspire me. The recon stock looks more sturdy and more useful. Still, Tac-41 Lite with recon stock is around £350, so that leaves £50 for a chub nub, a slightly uprated spring (I believe they come out of the box at around 1.9J or so, but I could be wrong), maybe a suppressor and some spare mags. Then if you really like it, there are plenty of other parts you can get, internal and external.

 

Other people can probably talk more about what you can do with the Tac-41 as I don't have one myself, but I do think they're the best bolt action on the market for performance. I just don't like them myself.

[Rickwales]

13 minutes ago, Impulse said:

For bolt actions with that budget, and sticking with springers (because I'd 100% buy a gas bolt action if it was me, but I'm weird), I'd go with a Tac-41 Lite with the recon stock. The lite stock is cheaper, but... it doesn't inspire me. The recon stock looks more sturdy and more useful. Still, Tac-41 Lite with recon stock is around £350, so that leaves £50 for a chub nub, a slightly uprated spring (I believe they come out of the box at around 1.9J or so, but I could be wrong), maybe a suppressor and some spare mags. Then if you really like it, there are plenty of other parts you can get, internal and external.

 

Other people can probably talk more about what you can do with the Tac-41 as I don't have one myself, but I do think they're the best bolt action on the market for performance. I just don't like them myself.

What gas bolt action would you go for? Thanks for the reply. 

25 minutes ago, AK47frizzle said:

I have the b&t spr300. It is by far the best sniper rifle out of the box I've used  and I've used a lot. I only have extra mags for it, and upgraded the spring power and it still works just fine after a year.

Watched a few vids on it, the double magazine seems weird, but I'll do some more research. Thanks 

[Rickwales]

I wear a mask as I wear glasses, will either of these work with a mask? I suspect not, but I'm asking anyway?

[Impulse]

1 hour ago, Rickwales said:

What gas bolt action would you go for? Thanks for the reply. 

 

I'm going to preface this by saying that gas bolt actions are objectively less consistent than springers or HPA sniper rifles, suffer from insane joule creep, the mags are expensive, have low ammo capacity, and weigh a lot. And you need to tweak them at the start of every game day because the weather will affect the power. They're objectively a pain in the arse, but when tuned right they shoot really well, have an effortless bolt pull (there's no tension, all you're doing is priming the firing pin and loading the next BB), are incredibly quiet with a suppressor as it's basically a rifle-shaped mk23, and are incredibly immersive airsoft guns to use since they work just like the real thing.

 

They're also a pain in the arse to find because they're niche. People don't like them because most people aim for power consistency with their sniper rifles and gas just doesn't get the same consistency as spring or HPA when each system is properly tuned (though I'm of the opinion that if you can't hit targets with the level of consistency a well-tuned gas bolt action gives, it's a skill issue)

 

But if I had a budget of £400 and to get whatever I wanted... it's a tough one because the mags are so bloody expensive. It's easy for me because I already have all the mags, but the pre-ban Tanaka m700 (and variants like the m24, m700 AICS, or m40a1) is basically the gold standard and holy grail of gas bolt action rifles. You can find them from time to time, but they tend to be difficult to find as the pre-ban models went out of production well over a decade ago. PPS Kar98k and KJW m700s (police version, NOT the take-down version!) are also good, and tend to be a bit more available and a little cheaper, but it's still hard to get a good setup for under £400 because the damn mags...

 

Basically, gas bolt actions are an investment and don't perform as well, but I just way prefer them because of the look, feel and just how they work (and when tuned well, they perform just fine, with more than acceptable power consistency).

 

Edited October 18 by Impulse

[Rickwales]

6 hours ago, Impulse said:

 

I'm going to preface this by saying that gas bolt actions are objectively less consistent than springers or HPA sniper rifles, suffer from insane joule creep, the mags are expensive, have low ammo capacity, and weigh a lot. And you need to tweak them at the start of every game day because the weather will affect the power. They're objectively a pain in the arse, but when tuned right they shoot really well, have an effortless bolt pull (there's no tension, all you're doing is priming the firing pin and loading the next BB), are incredibly quiet with a suppressor as it's basically a rifle-shaped mk23, and are incredibly immersive airsoft guns to use since they work just like the real thing.

 

They're also a pain in the arse to find because they're niche. People don't like them because most people aim for power consistency with their sniper rifles and gas just doesn't get the same consistency as spring or HPA when each system is properly tuned (though I'm of the opinion that if you can't hit targets with the level of consistency a well-tuned gas bolt action gives, it's a skill issue)

 

But if I had a budget of £400 and to get whatever I wanted... it's a tough one because the mags are so bloody expensive. It's easy for me because I already have all the mags, but the pre-ban Tanaka m700 (and variants like the m24, m700 AICS, or m40a1) is basically the gold standard and holy grail of gas bolt action rifles. You can find them from time to time, but they tend to be difficult to find as the pre-ban models went out of production well over a decade ago. PPS Kar98k and KJW m700s (police version, NOT the take-down version!) are also good, and tend to be a bit more available and a little cheaper, but it's still hard to get a good setup for under £400 because the damn mags...

 

Basically, gas bolt actions are an investment and don't perform as well, but I just way prefer them because of the look, feel and just how they work (and when tuned well, they perform just fine, with more than acceptable power consistency).

 

Your not selling them to me well.... 😂 But I really appreciate the detail and information. Thanks a lot mate. Consistency seems to be the thing to aim for, for accurate grouping. Learnt that in my airgun days. Rebuilt many over the years, always ensuring i stayed well under the limits.

Leaning towards the tac41 now, after some more research. 

Thanks again.

[Cannonfodder]

I don't have a huge amount of experience with bolt action rifles (I tried it but it's not my playing style) but one thing I'll add is that sniping isn't just a case of sitting back our of AEG range plinking people. Being a successful sniper involves alot more fieldcraft so don't be surprised if it takes you a while to properly get the hang of it.

 

Don't get me wrong, I'm not saying don't do it but it's quite common for newer players to buy a bolt action rifle, only to be selling it a month or so later as it's not what they were hoping for

[Impulse]

2 hours ago, Rickwales said:

Your not selling them to me well.... 😂 But I really appreciate the detail and information. Thanks a lot mate. Consistency seems to be the thing to aim for, for accurate grouping. Learnt that in my airgun days. Rebuilt many over the years, always ensuring i stayed well under the limits.

Leaning towards the tac41 now, after some more research. 

Thanks again.

 

I had built two VSRs (one spring and one HPA, using a co2 adapter in the stock because I hate lines and tanks) to a high level of detail before I made the jump to a pair of KJW m700, so if it didn't work out I knew I'd have two reliable and damn good shooting sniper rifles to fall back on. By that point I knew that sniping was for me, but wanted something a bit different, partially to stand out from the crowd.

 

And my honesty is because while I love them and pretty much only use them (my spring SRS is used sometimes, but really it's just a backup gun I bring just in case my main gun has issues), I've been in this hobby for long enough to know what most people look for in their airsoft guns and gas sniper rifles don't tend to scratch those itches. They're niche for a reason, so I wanted to outline the areas where they fall short to make you aware so you can make the best purchase for you, because they definitely do fall short in areas. If I was looking for the "best" sniper rifle setup for both ease of use and performance, I'd probably make a tricked out Tac-41, SRS or VSR. Spring sniper rifles are the "best" when it comes to what most airsofters want, with gas rifles excelling in other ways; it all depends on what you want from your airsoft guns. I'll happily trade a bit of practicality and ease of use for more immersion and a nicer feel, but also because I took that leap and have been using gas guns for years, I have a deep understanding of how all my gas guns work, so the lower practicality, while a bit of a ball ache at the start of a game day, isn't really an issue. I can set up my rifle according to the weather pretty damn quick nowadays.

 

They can be made consistent enough for sure, and mine shoot incredibly well with no noticeable difference between my gas m24 and my spring SRS when it comes to practical accuracy, but a highly tuned gas sniper rifle will be less consistent than a highly tuned spring or HPA setup and I feel that's just an objective fact due to the way gas works in airsoft, but we are talking some slim margins. For me, I'm happy if my gas bolt actions or DMRs have a 0.1J or less variance in their shots, which I know to some people is absolutely unacceptable for a sniper rifle or DMR. Some people will aim for a 0.02J variance in their shots, but to me I just don't see the point since I find the difference between a 0.1J and 0.02J variance makes no difference to the practical accuracy of it, despite 0.1J being literally 5x the variance, which seems to be a massive jump.

 

Something to remember is that our guns are basically air or gas powered muskets firing spherical projectiles at <2.3J that weigh less than half a gram and have awful ballistics, using the Magnus effect to combat gravity. Regardless of the setup, an airsoft gun will never be a precision rifle; they're just not designed to be one, no matter how hard some people will assert that their airsoft gun is.

[Rickwales]

Thanks again for your time and effort in your reply. I played a lot with co2 in my crosman and umarex air/paintball guns, it has it's limits but it's convenient for sure. I have a huge tin full of caplets, never under a 100 or I start to worry. I'm a hoarder for sure. Have about 40,000 bbs here as well and the same amount of paintballs and pellets in all calibres even ones I don't own a airgun for just in case. 😆 

I've looked around and your suggestion of the tac41 recon seems to suit me and my needs best. The sport version is obviously cheaper and lighter, but I'm not tempted that much with the plastic scope rail. But it would give more money for the internals. What do you think?

I suspect it won't get a lot of use, knowing my son. We play on a large 120 acre site so it seems to suit sniping. Lots of trees and things to get the rif bashed against.

Again, thanks for the detailed reply. 

Rick 

 

[Impulse]

6 minutes ago, Rickwales said:

Thanks again for your time and effort in your reply. I played a lot with co2 in my crosman and umarex air/paintball guns, it has it's limits but it's convenient for sure. I have a huge tin full of caplets, never under a 100 or I start to worry. I'm a hoarder for sure. Have about 40,000 bbs here as well and the same amount of paintballs and pellets in all calibres even ones I don't own a airgun for just in case. 😆 

I've looked around and your suggestion of the tac41 recon seems to suit me and my needs best. The sport version is obviously cheaper and lighter, but I'm not tempted that much with the plastic scope rail. But it would give more money for the internals. What do you think?

I suspect it won't get a lot of use, knowing my son. We play on a large 120 acre site so it seems to suit sniping. Lots of trees and things to get the rif bashed against.

Again, thanks for the detailed reply. 

Rick 

 

 

I personally wouldn't go for the sport version. They're great entry level rifles, but the Tac-41 doesn't need many internal upgrades anyway, and I'd much rather have that sturdier shell of the regular one. If you go for the sport version and either you or your son suddenly decides to start sniping as a main way to play, it's much better to have a higher quality shell to build upon with internal or external extras. There are more internals you can throw at it to make it better, but they shoot really well out of the box with a few minor upgrades (chub nub works well with the stock hop rubber, which is a decent rubber in itself).

[Rickwales]

Ok, I'll get the non sport.

Thanks again. 

[Rickwales]

Tac 41 on its way, from firesupport. (They were cheapest and had it in stock) They didn't have the recon stock version but I will purchase the separate stock later along with the silencer and a couple of extra mags. Thanks for the advice, much appreciated. 

[Spartan09]

bit late for OP,  but maybe helpful for others.....

 was also going to suggest the SPR300.  

picked one up myself recently and its a really nice RIF, though i do need to try and get used to the sniper playstyle, as im normally pushing up close with the action to get my moneys worth,  but a recent injury has made me consider having a fallback option so i dont over exert myself,  and after watching videos about the rifle from BZ tactical,  i bit the bullet (pun intended) and bought one

best part is the dual mag system, which i also was confused by....

basically the rifle is set up using VSR compatible internals. with the length of bolt pull, you would be unable to feed BBs into the hop from a magazine in the correct position to look like real steel rifle, so they installed a feed bridge to transfer BBs from the mag, through the hand guard and into a VSR hop unit, so the regular mags act as speed loaders.  but if you pop the bridge piece out (a bit fiddly, but doable) you can then pop a normal VSR mag in the slot and have it feed directly into the hop chamber,  so great if you already have lots of VSR mags, or fancy buddying up with a friend and need to be able to share ammo/mags
 

 

On 18/10/2025 at 21:07, AK47frizzle said:

I have the b&t spr300. It is by far the best sniper rifle out of the box I've used  and I've used a lot. I only have extra mags for it, and upgraded the spring power and it still works just fine after a year.

do you recall what spring you upgraded to?  not sure what i have in my stock one, but if i ever need/want to upgrade the power, i dont want to waste my money by mistake on the same or a weaker spring than i already have

 

[AK47frizzle]

3 hours ago, Spartan09 said:

do you recall what spring you upgraded to?  not sure what i have in my stock one, but if i ever need/want to upgrade the power, i dont want to waste my money by mistake on the same or a weaker spring than i already have

 I remembered incorrectly, I actually cut the spring instead of swapping it. I use 0.45g normally as it was a bit over the limit when i got it, so I just cut a coil.