New to airsoft: Need assistance

[Blitzninja]

Hi all,

First off, my account is a little old only because I was interested in airsoft before but lacked the funds and life happened (my account name makes me cringe, save me admin).

I have finally saved up about $800 and want to get started. I've read most of the sticky threads including the one about what to consider when buying your equipment.

What I am looking for in this thread is either tips not already mentioned or specific recommendable guns or gear/sets of gear. I understand that I must verify myself whether or not any recommended gear will fit my liking, situation and person.

The problem is since I lack any meaningful experience, I have no way of judging which specific guns I should consider. I know my general play style and what I am kind of 'aiming for' (listed below) but as I said I don't know what products are of 'quality' in specific outside of the general brands (TM, VFC, etc.).

Notable points of interest in airsoft play style:
- I've always loved military simulation play of airsoft.
- I much prefer outdoor, nature arenas (forest, bush, etc) over urban and indoor arenas.
- I don't like 'speedball' style; I much prefer taking my time and planning my attack.
- I prefer stealth and ambush/guerilla style over 'brute force tactics' so to speak. The exception is raiding storming (a building, etc.).
- I prefer close to mid-range engagements, this is defined for me as 20m to 100m; my eyesight and leading will fail after that range generally.

Also, I've been dying to do those 'whole day' or nighttime airsoft games :smile:.

As for me:
I'm 232 lbs, 5'10". Average-to-large build. Locale is Brampton, Ontario. I am willing to drive about 1 hour give or take to any location.

My goal here is a good mid-range starter platform (think M4 or other AR) that is decent at stock but can be upgraded pretty easily (plentiful aftermarket) and a reliable sidearm for close combat.

[SuperCriollo]

Best bet it to try out some guns, and gear before spending money. The best way to do so is going to a game ! I was considering taking a friend to Siege or this Saturday, so you could use some of my equipment and try some of my guns in exchange for a ride since we both live in Brampton :P Cheers !

[Desmodus]

Originally Posted by SuperCriollo

Best bet it to try out some guns, and gear before spending money.

If this is an option for you, do it. Otherwise, go with VFC. They are quite good in stock form and as far as AR's go you can do practically anything to them and they generally will retain their re-sale value due to their higher quality.


To one of your other points, Ontario generally has a shit-ton of Milsim events going on with various levels of intensity. I suggest you go to a shorter Milsim like an eight or twelve hour one to get your feet wet before diving into a 18-24hr. Milsim's are all about endurance, you have to make it until the end!

However, since we are now heading towards winter, the season is going die down for these games.

[Drakker]

You don't need a pistol to start out. Actually, you never really need a pistol, in most games its just an expensive dead weight sitting in a holster. Get a good rifle and don't make it overly powerful (<350fps) and you will be able to engage people up close without hurting them. The range difference between 350fps and 400fps is negligible (about 3 to 5 meters most of the time) and the 300$+ you'd have spent on the pistol can go on a better rifle or better gear.

And as SuperCriollo said, try holding a few rifles first. You might find that a Sig or an M14 is more comfortable for you than a M4 or an AK.

[ThunderCactus]

Get any good brand rifle you think you might like with NO regard what so ever for barrel length.
A pistol is just as accurate as a full length SR25, so don't think you need to buy something long just to be accurate. You can be a sniper at 300ft with a 10" M4 CQBR.

If you want to do long games, get some good lightweight boots, a good radio, and a 3L hydro bladder (camelbak or source)

[lurkingknight]

order of priority of items needed to play:

rifle
safety (eyewear, boots)
extra mags and batteries
gear to hold extra mags
water carrier
radio
pistol

You can insert camo and dress up items in there at any point, but they aren't necessities to get playing.

skirmish games are great to figure out what you want and what you need, you may prefer milsim styled organized games, but you can play heavily tactic influenced styles provided you have the right crew that plays with you, that way you get your shit straight when you go to the bigger milsims. It sucks to show up at a milsim under or overequipped or with the wrong setup, especially if it'a longer game. A casual day game is a great testing ground for how you want to play and what to bring.

800$ might be a bit tight to jump into milsim if you want decent gear, which is why I suggest playing it smart and seeing what you need as you play and gain experience. Definitely start with a nicer rifle though if you can afford it from the start. VFCs are nicer not just because they look nice on the outside, they take upgrades and off the shelf parts very well when things go wrong. Lesser guns may not.

[Blitzninja]

Originally Posted by SuperCriollo

Best bet it to try out some guns, and gear before spending money. The best way to do so is going to a game ! I was considering taking a friend to Siege or this Saturday, so you could use some of my equipment and try some of my guns in exchange for a ride since we both live in Brampton :P Cheers !

I work on Saturdays so I can't sorry. I am open for Sunday though!

Originally Posted by ThunderCactus

Get any good brand rifle you think you might like with NO regard what so ever for barrel length.
A pistol is just as accurate as a full length SR25[...]

If you want to do long games, get some good lightweight boots, a good radio, and a 3L hydro bladder (camelbak or source)

Noted. Nice idea with the hydro bladder; I am planning to walk with some refillable bottles since that might strain my budget for now.

Originally Posted by lurkingknight

order of priority of items needed to play:

rifle
safety (eyewear, boots)
extra mags and batteries
gear to hold extra mags
water carrier
radio
pistol

You can insert camo and dress up items in there at any point, but they aren't necessities to get playing.

skirmish games are great to figure out what you want and what you need, you may prefer milsim styled organized games, but you can play heavily tactic influenced styles provided you have the right crew that plays with you, that way you get your shit straight when you go to the bigger milsims. It sucks to show up at a milsim under or overequipped or with the wrong setup, especially if it'a longer game. A casual day game is a great testing ground for how you want to play and what to bring.

800$ might be a bit tight to jump into milsim if you want decent gear, which is why I suggest playing it smart and seeing what you need as you play and gain experience. Definitely start with a nicer rifle though if you can afford it from the start. VFCs are nicer not just because they look nice on the outside, they take upgrades and off the shelf parts very well when things go wrong. Lesser guns may not.

Yeah, I don't plan on buying all my gear at once. Right now my focus is on a gun, safety equipment, batteries/mags and one set of durable clothing (nothing fancy) that won't rip or wear easily. Your order seems nice but I'd probably opt for a basic vest (w/ velcro straps) with mag pouches before I get more than a couple of spare mags.

I'll am planning to play casual for a while (you do this in ANY game) so I can learn the ins and outs. I just listed milsim because I wanted to state the direction I want to head in; gear is expensive and I would rather not waste too much money (I will waste some while I learn but that is to be expected).

[lurkingknight]

would just use some old clothes for now, camo isn't important until you decide what patterns you like or if you want to play green or tan at milsims or both for that matter. If finding old/cheap camo fits in the budget then all is good. Find gear that doesn't look like ass on both green/tan as well. ranger green, coyote or olive are generally good gear colors, just keep in mind availability of things you might need, especially if you go into camoed gear. shit gets expensive.

[AnthonyG]

You seem to have a good grasp on things. My only recommendation would be to go for a chest rig as your first "basic" vest. Something like the Condor Recon. For the love of milsim avoid the condor crossdraw and similar "vests". Despite the apparent value they are not very adaptable. You will get much more utility out of a chest rig in the long run.

Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

[Drakker]

A chest rig is an excellent idea. When I started I got the same recommendation and got a Pantac AK chest rig like this one but in coyote brown:

http://www.redwolfairsoft.com/redwol...est_Rig_RG.htm

I still use it to this day. It fits 2x AK mags or 3x M4/M16 mags per pouch, the pouches are tall enough to fit Thompson and MP40 magazines, I'm pretty sure I could fit P90 mags in there. There's also two molle spots on each side. I normally use them for a radio pouch on one side and a utility pouch on the other to hold my canteen. The AK mag pouches are big enough to fit pretty much anything, flash lights, compass, energy bars, etc. Even in real capacity games where I'd carry 10x 30 rounds M4 magazines, it would only use 3 of the 4 pouches. You can also fit a lot of things in the "map" pouch section, that's basically the whole interior of the chest rig, so it holds a LOT. And with the padded harness it's super comfy.

Also, on a hot July day, you will MUCH better off with a chest rig than a vest.

[Blitzninja]

A chest rig is a good idea; I think I'll pick that up instead.

[_Whiskey_]

Another option that is out there is a battle belt for load bearing gear, Is very cheap to get and can be modified and added to as time goes on. This has been my go to system for the last 2 years and has been going strong since. Light, Breathes well and can be modified quite a lot (at least I like to think so)

Pistols are not really needed, I'll be honest I the last 2 times I've gone to a local CQB field my pistol has sat in my holster and seen no use.

As others have said I WOULD HIGHLY recommend trying out a few guns at the local field or shop and find what style you like. You could find that the M4 Doesn't fit you well but you could love the fit of the M16, AK, MP5, M14, AUG etc.

Best of luck!

[Drakker]

A battle belt is great, I use both chest rigs and belts, sometimes even together, but as a starter, battle belts can get expensive fast. A good chest rig will have many pouches built in, so you don't have to pay for much except specialty pouches like radio pouches. A battle belt comes empty, so you need to buy many pouches, maybe a harness if its your style, most of the time it also requires an inner belt that is a few points bigger than your size, etc. The total price can go up real quick.

With that said, battle belts are great, just not that cheap to start with unless you get a great deal used.

[Blitzninja]

Originally Posted by _Whiskey_

(...)

As others have said I WOULD HIGHLY recommend trying out a few guns at the local field or shop and find what style you like. You could find that the M4 Doesn't fit you well but you could love the fit of the M16, AK, MP5, M14, AUG etc.

Best of luck!

Do you know which retailers in the GTA allow trying out different guns or which fields offer a variety of tryout options?

Originally Posted by Drakker

A battle belt is great, I use both chest rigs and belts, sometimes even together, but as a starter, battle belts can get expensive fast. A good chest rig will have many pouches built in, so you don't have to pay for much except specialty pouches like radio pouches. A battle belt comes empty, so you need to buy many pouches, maybe a harness if its your style, most of the time it also requires an inner belt that is a few points bigger than your size, etc. The total price can go up real quick.

With that said, battle belts are great, just not that cheap to start with unless you get a great deal used.

I will look into which is cheaper, I like the modability. For perspective, I'm a PC/IT enthusiast. I'm used to spending multiple hundreds of dollars on stuff XD and I've been trying to translate my 'learning curve' experience over to airsoft buying.

[Desmodus]

Originally Posted by Blitzninja

Do you know which retailers in the GTA allow trying out different guns or which fields offer a variety of tryout options?



I will look into which is cheaper, I like the modability. For perspective, I'm a PC/IT enthusiast. I'm used to spending multiple hundreds of dollars on stuff XD and I've been trying to translate my 'learning curve' experience over to airsoft buying.

Siege and Ultimate airsoft have rental guns (usually basic M4's or MP5's) that you can use, but aside from that you'll need to go to a retail shop and hold the guns in person if you are looking to find whats comfortable for you.

I'd also suggest looking at chest rigs with MOLLE on them, you'll probably appreciate the flexibility of being able to configure the pouches exactly how you want them.