Note from NonPoly: I’ve been airsofting for about 6 years now, and have gone through many
different guns, including Echo 1, JG, CYMA and G&G.

Airsoft Buyers Guide

Cyma.../vomits

JG is probably the cheapest brand that doesn’t totally suck; their guns have decent fps, are
cheap, and have average accuracy. The only issue is they sometimes come with broken parts, so
open it up as soon as you get it and check out the parts. Overall a great beginner’s gun.

My Second favorite brand, Echo 1, has reasonably priced M4’s, licensed by Stag Arms. It’s
basically a JG, but quality checked (that’s a very good thing). Overall, solid for the price.
Recommended. Ak47(full metal/wood) $185/M4 $155

G&G has been by far the best brand of gun (for M4’s at least) I’ve ever used. The gun looks
VERY nice for a plastic body, and feels more solid than comparable brands. The price is a bit
higher than most other companies ($140 for just the gun and a magazine, no accessories) but
the quality is also much higher. I had been using my G&G Combat Machine “GR 16” (M4-a1) for
about a year without any problems, until I lent my gun to my friend for the weekend. It was
returned to me with a broken hop up, because apparently he used cheap bbs…or something
like that. Anyways, long story short I went on airsoftgi.com looking for a new hop up, and found
my gun, but with $250 worth of upgrades, and designed for cqb, for $180. Bought it. I replaced
the hop up on my old gun, added a precision barrel, and now I have two great guns for cqb and
the field. In short, G&G has served me well, and I highly recommend it.

G&G: Fuck Yes.

AEG Buyer's Guide

GENERAL INFORMATION ABOUT AIRSOFT GUNS:

You need to remember the golden rule about airsoft replicas: Stock electric airsoft replicas are almost
exactly the same in performance except for:

Inner barrel length: The longer the inner barrel, the more accurate a replica is. For example: the
M16A2's inner barrel is 509mm, while the MP5SD6 only has a 229mm barrel, since the M16's barrel is
over twice as long as the MP5's, the M16 is more accurate. However, it is also much longer and
impractical for CQB use.

Battery capacity: Replicas with full stocks can hold a larger battery then other replicas. Batteries come
in three styles: Mini, Large and Stick. Mini batteries are usually 8.4v and 600mAh while Large batteries
are usually 8.4v 3000mAh or ever larger. Stick batteries are usually 8.4v 600mAh. When I started airsoft I
learned that with a stock replica, a very rough guideline for how many shots you could take before your
battery died is a 1:1 conversation. Meaning for every mAh you have, you can fire one BB. Example, you
have a 3000mAh battery, so you are generally going to be able to fire 3000 BBs before it needs to be
recharged. As I stated, this a VERY rough guideline and is only really even that accurate on stock replicas,
once things inside the mechbox start getting upgraded, the battery is forced to use more energy with
each shot. For more information on batteries, please refer to the Battery FAQ (it's below this FAQ and
the Mechbox FAQ).

Magazine capacity: Different replicas use different size magazines and therefore they hold more BBs per
magazine. Standard magazines hold anywhere from 50 to 70 rounds, midcap magazines hold roughly
100 - 120, hicaps hold 200 to 600 and box magazines are known to hold up to 5000 BBs.

Except for those three major considerations, the last one is looks. Do you actually like how the replica
looks? If not, then it probably isn't for you. 9/10 of airsoft is looking cool, so why run with something
that you aren't happy with the looks of?

MANUFACTURERS:

In the last couple of years a number of new airsoft replica manufacturers have appeared on the market

From: www.airsoftpacific.com

and given airsofters much more freedom over who they want to do business with. Here's a run-down:

Tokyo Marui (TM): Tokyo Marui is the standard by which everything else in the airsoft community is
judged. They were the first company to really make the AEG concept work, and many of the older
players have owned quite a few of them. Tokyo Marui makes good quality replicas, with a decent price.
They are reliable and because of the length of time that TM has been in the business, there are a lot of
upgrade choices as well as types of replicas to choose from.

Classic Army (CA): Classic Army is based out of Hong Kong, and they strive to make excellent quality
replicas. All CA AEGs come pre-upgraded (compared to TM standards, anyway) and shoot about 320 -
340fps out of the box. They all come with metal bodies (If the weapon it's modeled after is made of
metal), and the internals also come with metal bushings as compared to TM's stock bushings which are
plastic, this adds durability and life to the replica. They are about a hundred dollars more expensive than
TM, but some of the airsoft players in Oregon have told me flat-out that they won't buy anything else.

I Chih Shivan (ICS): Their M16-series have a unique mechbox design that allows for easy break down,
and remains compatible with TM mechbox parts and therefore 99% of aftermarket upgrades; their
MP5's do not have this feature but do remain compatible with aftermarket parts. Like CA replicas, ICS
AEGs come standard with metal bodies and slight upgrades, another unique feature is that the forward
assist on their M16-series actually releases the spring, lessening the stress on the internals when the gun
is not in use. As long as you get any of their replicas that are Version Two (this number has nothing to do
with mechbox type) or later, they are very reliable.

Guay Guay Armament (G&G):

The first company to come out with the M14, and they have a reputation

for making high quality, durable replicas. Down side? They are fairly expensive, compared to Echo 1 and
UTG, though they are still less than CA and TM and have similar quality.

G&P Laser Products (G&P): One of two companies to make a UMP, they are new to the market and not
much is known about the quality of their stuff yet, though the first looks have been positive.

UTG: A Chinese company that is also just breaking into the US market; they make budget-level beginner
AEGs that are compatible with TM mechboxes and after-market parts. A good buy if you're looking for a
decent gun for a low price. Generally, it will accept all TM compatible upgrades.

Echo 1 (E1): Relatively new the the airsoft market, Echo 1, like UTG is a rebrander of the cheaper
Chinese clones. They've seen moderate success by releasing the same replicas as the CA and TM, at a
fraction of the cost and (usually) similar performance. They don't simply rebrand, though, they give the
replica a pretty good once-over and quality check to make sure all the parts in the gearbox are up to
speed. Faulty or weak components are replaced with higher quality pieces. You may will want to give
the gearbox a check yourself (or have someone else do it for you) to see to make sure the shimming is
done properly and that they haven't under/over greased everything. The quality of AEG you will get
from Echo 1 will vary by quite a bit (which is not so good), depending on who the original manufacturer

was.

TOP: For a long, long time Top was the only airsoft manufacturer to create LMG (light machine-guns)
replicas, and they are still the only company to get an M60 from. Their reputation is a bad one, and to
make any of their replicas into viable skirmish replicas, you will need to spend lots of time and money on
it as well as make sure it receives all the tender loving care you can provide. If you're looking for an
M249, check out the Classic Army variant. For more information about upgrading M60's and other Top
replicas, check out our article here on Airsoft Pacific:

http://www.airsoftpacific.com/content.php?page=21

Systema: Considered by some to be the airsoft gun line. Systema has made each of their replicas to
exacting standards: they are true one-to-one scale in every way, they have a unique and very reliable
mechbox design, along with a host of other features. There are not many Systema replicas in general use
right now because of their restrictive price; it'll cost you anywhere from $1200 to $1500 for a complete
setup and an upgraded cylinder set. Speak to Troy ("

-=OOHYA=-

" is his username on the message board)

for more information about Systema replicas.

Note: If I haven't mentioned the company here, you probably don't want to consider
spending your money on them, because they are not good skirmish replicas.

I will mention one other company, though:

CyberGun (CYMA): No matter how tempted you are, do not buy any of their replicas. Not only are they
cheap and crappy, but the company itself was sue-happy for a while and tried to drive other airsoft
manufacturers out of the United States so they could sell us garbage without a better alternative. They
are bad for the airsofting community, and I have heard of, no joke, their replicas breaking only hours
after being paid for. Stay away from CYMA! Also, be aware that CYMA makes replicas under other
names as well including "Well". Be sure to do your research before giving any of these LPEG (low
powered electric gun) manufacturers your hard-earned cash!

Thank you for reading, welcome to the community, and happy airsofting!

ADDENDUMS:

The follow list of AEGs are replicas that have been found to be lacking by the majority of the local airsoft
community and should be avoided for the reasons stated.

Tokyo Marui CAR-15 - Plastic, inferior parts and discontinued.
Tokyo Marui XM-177E2 - Plastic, inferior parts and discontinued.
Tokyo Marui M16A1 - Plastic, inferior parts.
Tokyo Marui M16VN - Plastic, inferior parts.

Tokyo Marui UZI - Plastic, inferior parts, even a plastic mechbox. Hicaps are known to continually jam.
Tokyo Marui FAMAS - Plastic, inferior parts. As TM's first AEG, it uses an out-dated mechbox and is just
generally constructed poorly. Replacement and upgrade parts are hard to find and a pain to install.
Tokyo Marui SIG 551 - Plastic, inferior parts. Burst chip known to break often.
Tokyo Marui SIG 550 - Plastic, inferior parts. Burst chip known to break often.
Tokyo Marui M1A1 Thompson - Nothing more than a collectors piece, impractical, rare mechbox
version. Hard to find magazine pouches.
Academy L85 - It's $100 and you get what you pay for. No quality control, poor parts and awful
craftsmanship make this an airsoft replica to avoid.
Echo 1 M14 EBR - feeding issues, inconsistencies in muzzle velocity

Echo 1 MP5k - poor overall construction