Noob! What gun just for fun target practice?

jimbling

Hey guys.....
I've never been at an airsoft game, and to be honest, it is unlikely I will be either. I'm just looking for something that will prove to be a bit of fun around the place. Mainly just shooting at targets with some friends every now and again.


I think I am more inclined to go with a rifle. I don't want a pistol, and I have no interest in a gun that can fire a ton of bbs every second. Just something simple.
In saying that, I like nice things... so I'm not looking for a cheap ass option here. This may be hanging on the wall for a lot of the time :rolleyes:

I want something that has a very realistic look and feel to it. Obviously accuracy, reliability and durability are also very important.
I have no problem buying second hand if the price is right and the equipment is in good condition. Is there a decent 2nd hand market? Or is it not really too advisable to buy 2nd hand as they get mucked about a lot in the games?


I've been doing a lot of research on the net, but I'm just getting confused by all the new info.

One of my problems is there seems to be a way better variety of AEG rather than spring loaded, but the latter is the one that sits right with me. It seems more natural. Since this piece may spend time just sitting there, then suddenly want to get used... I wouldn't like to have to "charge it up" before use like that. Awkward. Anyone care to change my mind?

I've been reading the SVD Dragunov post, and really really like it. Not sure how suitable it is... but damn, that new one coming out looks savage.
Again though, its AEG, not sure if there's a decent spring loaded version.


So, what other options do you see for me? If you wanted a gun for taking out tin cans for fun with buddies what would it be???
Note: You have a pretty decent budget. Feel comfortable up to 500 if its what I'm looking for.

Cheers for any advice......

EDIT: Mods, move this to getting started if you want as its probably more suitable. sry.

NakedDex

Depends on your style really. There's also the option for gas rifles if you're willing to spend a few bob. Something like the Marushin M1 Garand maybe? Great performer with a bit of kick and looks truly amazing so it's suit being a wall hanger.
If you want something a bit more modern, there's a pretty good choice in both spring and gas, most popular are Remington 700 and Accuracy International AW308 variants. I believe King Arms do a spring SVD but I haven't seen one available for some time.

Beast ASI

NakedDex wrote: »

I believe King Arms do a spring SVD but I haven't seen one available for some time.

It's actually AtoZ that made them, and then KA rebranded some of them and sold them as KA - Bu AtoZ shut down a few years ago .

kdouglas

Honestly, if you want something you can just mess about with and shoot a few targets (in a safe and secure location where it is suitable to do so) with your friends, then you cant beat a pistol. GBB pistols have a kick off them when they fire because the slide comes back just like a real gun, full metal pistols have an even nicer kick off them than plastic and they really are quite nice to shoot. By comparison a spring rifle wouldn't be as enjoyable to just "mess about" with, but if you wanted to actually do some target shooting with it, then a spring rifle would be better.

jimbling

kdouglas wrote: »

Honestly, if you want something you can just mess about with and shoot a few targets (in a safe and secure location where it is suitable to do so) with your friends, then you cant beat a pistol. GBB pistols have a kick off them when they fire because the slide comes back just like a real gun, full metal pistols have an even nicer kick off them than plastic and they really are quite nice to shoot. By comparison a spring rifle wouldn't be as enjoyable to just "mess about" with, but if you wanted to actually do some target shooting with it, then a spring rifle would be better.

I've had a few different pistols over time. No idea of brands etc... but none of them were very accurate..... even for short ranges. Ya, they're a bit of craic all right, but I am interested in shooting targets too.

I had an air rifle when living in the states years ago. It was fantastic fun. unfortunately I had to leave it stateside :mad:

jimbling

NakedDex wrote: »

Depends on your style really. There's also the option for gas rifles if you're willing to spend a few bob. Something like the Marushin M1 Garand maybe? Great performer with a bit of kick and looks truly amazing so it's suit being a wall hanger.
If you want something a bit more modern, there's a pretty good choice in both spring and gas, most popular are Remington 700 and Accuracy International AW308 variants. I believe King Arms do a spring SVD but I haven't seen one available for some time.

Gas seems to be a bit awkward as well. I hadn't been looking at the Garand.. it does looks sweet. Might be an option all right. I'll read up a few reviews on it.

daz801

id go with one of these there a very nice bit of kit but its gas powered http://www.eirsoft.ie/store/product_info.php?cPath=38&products_id=174&osCsid=7496afe95aa1662e6a8e92815dde2e99
and as somone said heres the king arms draganov
http://www.fire-support.co.uk/store/comersus_viewItem.asp?idProduct=2113
heres the dearer version that comes with the scope but is well over you buget at 540 pounds sterling. also it would nedd to be downgraded as its way over the limit
http://www.fire-support.co.uk/store/comersus_viewItem.asp?idProduct=1881
they are both black versions but if you want the wood one heres the GP version dont know how good it is but it would also have to be downgraded
http://www.fire-support.co.uk/store/comersus_viewItem.asp?idProduct=1460
hope this helps you

NakedDex

jimbling wrote: »

Gas seems to be a bit awkward as well. I hadn't been looking at the Garand.. it does looks sweet. Might be an option all right. I'll read up a few reviews on it.

Gas puts a lot of people off but it's not as bad as some think. So long as it isn't used for extended auto fire (20+ shots a burst) it's fine power wise on most rifles. Gas is readily available, cheap and it lasts quite some time.
Something else I forgot to mention with that Garand, it ejects the clip once it's out of ammo, complete with the famous "ping" noise.

If you're looking for an easy to use springer, the TM VSR10 G-Spec is undisputed king, followed by Maruzens M700's and L96's.

Captain Chaos

+1 on the Maruzen L96, if want to go for an AW L96 that is. There is alos the STAR gas powered L96, looks great but needs to be down graded before import. I believe Bullets has one, he'd be able to tell you more about it.

jimbling

daz801 wrote: »

id go with one of these there a very nice bit of kit but its gas powered http://www.eirsoft.ie/store/product_info.php?cPath=38&products_id=174&osCsid=7496afe95aa1662e6a8e92815dde2e99

Just to reply to this one first. Whats the big difference between the above version of the gun and this one:
http://www.eirsoft.ie/store/product_info.php?cPath=38&products_id=215

Seems to be a hell of a price difference???

jimbling

daz801 wrote: »

id go with one of these there a very nice bit of kit but its gas powered http://www.eirsoft.ie/store/product_info.php?cPath=38&products_id=174&osCsid=7496afe95aa1662e6a8e92815dde2e99
and as somone said heres the king arms draganov
http://www.fire-support.co.uk/store/comersus_viewItem.asp?idProduct=2113
heres the dearer version that comes with the scope but is well over you buget at 540 pounds sterling. also it would nedd to be downgraded as its way over the limit
http://www.fire-support.co.uk/store/comersus_viewItem.asp?idProduct=1881
they are both black versions but if you want the wood one heres the GP version dont know how good it is but it would also have to be downgraded
http://www.fire-support.co.uk/store/comersus_viewItem.asp?idProduct=1460
hope this helps you

These guys, although savage, really ought to be out of my price range. This will be just another toy that gets used rarely enough.... no point going nuts on the price.
Thanks for the help....

jimbling

NakedDex wrote: »

Gas puts a lot of people off but it's not as bad as some think. So long as it isn't used for extended auto fire (20+ shots a burst) it's fine power wise on most rifles. Gas is readily available, cheap and it lasts quite some time.
Something else I forgot to mention with that Garand, it ejects the clip once it's out of ammo, complete with the famous "ping" noise.

If you're looking for an easy to use springer, the TM VSR10 G-Spec is undisputed king, followed by Maruzens M700's and L96's.

I've been reading up on the Garand, people seem to rate it pretty highly all right. It's definitely an option.

There's a guy sellign the TM VSR10 G-Spec over on adverts. I'll try and get out to have a look at it. The only thing that puts me off about that one is how light it is... under 2kgs. Will feel more like a toy gun than the real thing.


Ill do some research on the Maruzens M700s and L96s in a bit.
Thanks for the advice... appreciated.

NakedDex

You'll find that's the case with most high end spring rifles, they're light because they're generally bought by serious skirmishers who value lightweight sniper rifles when they're trying to reach a hide. You'll find many of the electric rifles are closer to the real weights. There is room in the stock for including some weight blocks if you did want to make it more realistic or change the balance.

ED E

What about the Kar98? If I remember corectly the wooden version is very impressive, impractical for skirmishing due to the shells, but could be perfect for the OP.

jimbling

Lethal_Bullet wrote: »

What about the Kar98? If I remember corectly the wooden version is very impressive, impractical for skirmishing due to the shells, but could be perfect for the OP.

See post 10 above.
I'm trying to figure out the difference between the two. One is for €170 the other for €399. They look pretty much the same.....

daz801

the dearer one is gas powered and made by a higher end compamy and the other one is spring powered and is made by a mid range company.

jimbling

daz801 wrote: »

the dearer one is gas powered and made by a higher end compamy and the other one is spring powered and is made by a mid range company.

Cheers. Well, I'd rather a spring powered gun anyway. But does anyone know anything about the mid range company? DBoys I think. The dearer one is hardly worth more than twice the price??

NakedDex

I wouldn't call DBoys a midrange company. They're still firmly in the clone camp.

The DBoys Kar98 is a spring powered system (though they also do a gas version), the Maruzen one is a gas action with a smoother bolt and better ejection system.

jimbling

NakedDex wrote: »

I wouldn't call DBoys a midrange company. They're still firmly in the clone camp.

The DBoys Kar98 is a spring powered system (though they also do a gas version), the Maruzen one is a gas action with a smoother bolt and better ejection system.

clone camp been a bad thing I take it??

jimbling

I am trying to find out information on the AEGs. I want to know about charge times and how long they last. Does the charge go just sitting there etc etc etc. I can't seem to find out anything at all on the net.
I realise that the better the battery etc then the longer it will last, but some guidelines would be great.

When looking at a gun you just see the battery details... nothing about battery life.
So, can someone give me the jist of it... cheers.

NakedDex

DBoys are rather good, but they're not to the standard set by JG as a mid range company. They haven't done anything original or outstanding, but they do solid units at a good price. The DBoys Kar98 is pretty popular actually, more so than the Maruzen but that's simply for price reasons.

There's no hard and fast rule with how long a battery will last as each aeg has different power requirements. A good rule of thumb is 1mA = 1bb, so a 1500mA battery will fire 1500 rounds. Some aegs may only get 1200 off, others may get 1700 off before dieing, but it's a good aggregate.

jimbling

NakedDex wrote: »

DBoys are rather good, but they're not to the standard set by JG as a mid range company. They haven't done anything original or outstanding, but they do solid units at a good price. The DBoys Kar98 is pretty popular actually, more so than the Maruzen but that's simply for price reasons.

Well, I might be taking a look at the TM VRS 10 G-Spec thats for sale on adverts later today. Might get that. If not, I'll be considering the KAR98 all right.

NakedDex wrote: »

There's no hard and fast rule with how long a battery will last as each aeg has different power requirements. A good rule of thumb is 1mA = 1bb, so a 1500mA battery will fire 1500 rounds. Some aegs may only get 1200 off, others may get 1700 off before dieing, but it's a good aggregate.

Thanks... thats the kind of guideline i was looking for. Not looking for an exact science, just something to go on.

TerrorFirmer

I've heard a lot of people saying the wood on the dboys is very soft and damages easily?

If you wanted to just pick up something to gauge your interest, something like this is good. I had one; very accurate, powerful (300fps), spring powered, and over 2.5KG - all for a modest price. Now, granted, the postage would be quite high for just the one piece...but you'd still save a lot more then putting down 170-200 euro on a piece you might not like. I used to buy a lot of cheap clone-of-clone cheapo AEG's/cheap spring powered rifles/pistols from there to decide whether or not I liked a particular type of weapon - then sell it on and buy a proper version of said weapon. The AGM M21 is actually a genuinely nice rifle though. Buying in bulk is a good idea because you save on postage, it can be quite high if you're only buying 1 or 2 items. The M21 turned out to be a very good buy, liked it a lot. I actually sold it to someone on here for 35 euro!