someone give me a small brekdown on upgrading guns

Nicole22

i been reading on here and some airsoft forums about upgrades but the text kinda talk about parts is going over my head

do people with AEG's always upgrade there batteries and charger over what comes with the gun as standard for faster charging or longer periods of use ?

also are metal parts be they barrels or internals better than plastic

and lastly for now gearbox's
some one give me an explaination on these
once again are steel ones better than plastic or are they all same material
so many people discussing different types of gearbox ?
whats best ?
cheers

sorry just to add i also see people upgrading motors as well ?

damagegt

It all comes down to what your upgrading the gun to do,i.e high speed or high toqure or somewhere in between.The general feel is metal is better then plastic but not all metal is good.The cheaper clone weapons sometimes use whats called pot metal and it terrible quality.As with anything if you buy from a reputable maker then ull be fine.As for batteries and chargers most of the higher end guns(not clones) dont come with batteries or chargers and the stuff that does come with the clones isnt great so thats why people change them.

Inari

I think the most important point is that there is no single 'best', but rather an 'optimal' for specific goals. I'll do what I can to help & explain.

Batteries and Chargers. The batteries and chargers that come with AEGs are usually low quality, and rather basic. To illustrate the point, batteries & chargers tend not to come with high-end guns...usually limited to clones and starter packs. The bundled charger is typically just a basic transformer, with no cut off. Most people tend to buy a higher voltage battery (higher voltage = more power; most guns come with 8.4, and people tend to use 9.6) and a smart charger. The smart charger charges batteries much quicker - the bundled one can take 8 hours, whereas a smart can be as short as 30 minutes.

Is metal better than plastic? No. Metal parts can be more durable, more realistic, and more effective...but all of those things can also be attributed to plastic, depending on the gun. It's all about the quality of the plastic, and of the metal. For example, steel is better than pot metal.

There are many different types of Gearbox. There are different versions for different replicas, for example Sig series use Version 3, M4/M16 use Version 2 etc. Some versions have superior performance, and have different advantages e.g. Version 3 has a motor cage, which is a plus over Version 2. Metal gearbox shells tend to be more durable, but as above, it all comes down to the quality of the piece. There are also different sizes of gear box within the versions (6mm, 7mm, 8mm and I've also come across a 9mm). I've heard 7 & 8mm recommended most. But that's hearsay...I've no idea why.

People tend to change their motors for either a better trigger response, higher rate of fire, or for torque/pulling power (this is for higher strength springs i.e. more FPS, and is usually a setup reserved for trips abroad)

Mando Commando

The most instantly gratifying upgrade you can do is to put in a tightbore barrel and Guarder hop up rubber. Your AEG will immediately be more accurate, have longer range and have slightly higher FPS (feet per second). Very satisfying!

Nicole22

Mando Commando cheers for that info
does changing the spring and bringing the gun up to .9 joule or .95 also increase the rage in a good way

and by tightbore barrel you mean a barrel where the bb exits the gun is
closer/smaller in size then standard and closer to the size of the bb ?

hop up rubber not something im too familiar on yet
are there prop and cons on upgrading or fitting hop up rubbers ?

Inari

A tightbore barrel is basically where the barrel's internal diameter is tighter, and much closer to the 6mm of the BB. The tighter you go, the higher quality BBs you need (a much smaller tolerance/percentage differential in size).

The hop up rubber on the other hand is what imparts spin on the BB, which allows it to cut through the air (less resistance on the BB due to the changing surface area (wrong terminology - basically the area in which the wind resistance would be felt is constantly changing due to the spin)). For lower FPS (i.e. Ireland) a softer hop up rubber will yield superior results. Most people here swear by Guarder Clear (including myself).

A higher power output (i.e. FPS), will not increase range dramatically. You will get much greater range from changing barrel + hopup. Power will mostly just change how fast the BB gets to the target.

I can't help you on spring guides etc I'm afraid.

Mando Commando

Like Inari said, a tightbore barrel is just a barrel with a smaller inner diameter, usually an aftermarket tightbore barrel will have a better finish on the inside, which counts apparently. Your stock barrel will be around 6.08 inner diameter, your standard tightbore will be around 6.03/6.04, and like Inari said you'll be using better quality bbs to avoid jams and things.

As for hop up rubber, thats something you'll inevitably find out about because they wear out in time, so you'll have to change it eventually. What kind of AEG do you have? Usually it's easy to get to the hop up. Thats the best way to see how they work.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0XfF9itDss0
Here's a youtube link about hop up, I have no sound on this computer at the moment so I don't know if it's **** or not.

Here's some theory about how the bb maintains it's flight when backspin is applied.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bernoulli's_principle

As for changing out the spring, don't do it unless it's needed. Get your AEG out to an airsoft site and have it chronoed (measures the muzzle speed/energy) then you'll know if it really needs changing. You don't really have to be within a hairs breath of 1j to have an effective gun. Get to know your AEG, compare it with others and see how it performs, then you'll have a better handle on it.

The best advice any of us can give is get out to a legit site, meet some heads and start talking airsoft and most of all - play!