Guide to AEGs/Electrics (READ ME FIRST!)

[Nightshade]

Note: While this guide is very, very, very out of date, most of the information still holds true. There have been a lot of new manufacturers entering the market and some of them aren't even that bad.

Addendum: IF IT ISN'T TM, CA, ECHO 1, SYSTEMA, G&G, ICS OR G&P YOU DO NOT WANT TO BUY IT! SAVE YOUR PENNIES FOR A REPLICA WORTH A DAMN. THERE ARE NO "ENTRY-LEVEL" AEGs (LPEGs) THAT ARE ON PAR WITH ANY OF THE COMPANIES I MENTIONED ABOVE.

This is a website for serious military-simulation airsofting, not "bakyard warzzz". From now on if I see a topic asking about any LPEGs, they will be removed without warning. We are getting a hell of a lot of these and it's getting tiresome to answer them. If you don't like it, go play somewhere else.

AEG Buyer's Guide

NOTE: This is a forum for discussion on airsoft AEG replicas. We all like airsoft and enjoy meaningful discussion on the subject, so I made this post figuring that I could help save some people a lot of time and frustration. New players, I know you're excited to just jump right into the forums and ask the experienced members of the community for their opinions on what airsoft replica you should get. Before you do that, however consider a few things:

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 ever 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?

If you have looked through this post, and dug up information on the replicas you are still interested in, please feel free to post a question. There are a million little pieces of information about certain replicas that I will not post here, because it would make your eyes hurt just learning it all in one sitting. For example, the MP5A4 and -A5's are all known to be very weak between the back of the foregrip and the front of the upper receiver, and have been known to snap.

I posted this to save everyone on the forums a bunch of time and grief. Because if you do not read this, and you post a subject like, "What is better the MP5K or the M16?", you're going to get nailed with a bunch of negative comments or responses like, "Use Google". Please, use the resources that are available to you before asking very general questions like those on these message boards.

Also note that this new version of our forums has a Search feature built-in to it, and I highly suggest that you use it before asking any questions.

MANUFACTURERS:

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

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 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

If I find people still posting questions like, "What should I get, this or this?" I am going to reply simply with a link to this post. Do not be surprised if you quickly find that your post is locked after that.

[DMitri]

Mechbox Guide

First of all, it's important to note which version of Mechbox you have. To make it easy since none of you like to do research, here's a list:

Version 1: FA-MAS F1, FA-MAS SV
Version 2: CAR15, M16A1, M16VN, M16A2, M4A1, M4A1 RIS, SR-16, XM177e2, M733, M4-S, G3A3, G3A4, G3 SG-1, MC-51, G3 SAS, MP5A4, MP5A5, MP5K, MP5K-PDW, MP5SD5, MP5SD6, MP5RAS, MP5-J
Version 3: G36C, SIG 550, SIG 551, SIG 552, AK47, AK47S, AK Beta Spetsnaz, AUG, AUG Military, UMP
Version 4: PSG-1
Version 5: UZI
Version 6: M1A1, P90, P90 TR
Version 7: M14

You'll want to make sure that the parts that you put into your mechbox are made for it's particular version. If you have an ICS M4 or Systema PTW some of the parts listed below may have slightly different arrangements and functions. This guide mainly focuses around the Tokyo Marui, Classic Army, G&P, G&G, and STAR replicas, aswell as the ICS MP5 Series.

The Guts (or Internals if you want to be PC)

Cylinder: The Cylinder is a metal tube which the piston/piston head passes through when firing. It's the channel for the air to reach the barrel. There are two standard types for AEGs, Ported and Non-Ported.

Cylinder Head: The Cylinder Head sits infront of the cylinder and is what converts the volume of air from the size of the piston head to the 6.05mm stock inner barrel.

Gears: This is a no-brainer, The Gears connect the motor to the piston, allowing you to fire your replica. There are many types of gear sets with various effects; High-Speed, Torque-Up, Super Torque-Up, Flat, Helical. Helical Gears are cut at an angle which allow them to mesh better thus decreasing resistance and increasing duribilty. There are three gears in a mechbox; The Bevel Gear, which is the gear which rests on the motor, The Spur Gear, which is the intermediary for the Bevel Gear and the last Gear, The Sector Gear, which pulls back the piston and Tappet Plate/Nozzle. The Sector Gear only has teeth half way around where it meets with the piston, when the teeth stop, the piston is freed and allowed to move forward.

Motor: The Motor is what drives the mechbox, it spins the gears which pull back the piston. There are motors to match different types of gear set. There are also three sizes of motors, so make sure that if you upgrade it, you know which one you need.

Nozzle and Tappet Plate: The Nozzle and Tappet Plate sit on the Cylinder Head and is what closes the connection between the Hop-Up and the Mechbox. When firing the Nozzle and Tappet Plate move back after each shot to allow the next bb to be loaded into the Hop-Up chamber, then it moves forward again before the piston is released.

Piston/Piston Head: Think of this as the plunger in a syringe. It's what moves through the Cylinder to create pressure for firing a bb. They make both Metal and Poly-Carbonate Pistons/Piston Heads, but it's generally accepted as a bad idea to use metal, as it puts a tremendous amount of strain on the mechbox casing.

Spring: The Spring sits behind the piston and pushes it through the cylinder when the piston is freed from the gears. Upgrading to a tighter or higher rated spring will put more force on the piston thus increasing the velocity of the bb. (Buzzword - FPS)

Spring Guide: Holds the Spring in place and usually secures the mechbox to the stock of the replica.

Selector Plate: Changes the fire mode from Semi, Auto, and Safe.

Anti-Reversal Latch: Sits on the Bevel Gear and prevents all the parts from moving backwards.

Bushings/Bearings: These are Bushings for the gears, they hold the gears in place against the casing of the mechbox. Tokyo Marui replicas come stock with plastic bushings, and it is suggested that you replace these with metal ones, even if you don't upgrade anything else. Some Bushings also have bearings in them to decrease resistance, however these require special mechbox casings which have bigger slots for the bushings to fit into.

Switch Assembly: Connects the Motor, Battery, and Trigger Assembly together to provide power to the Motor when the trigger is pulled. They have Low-Resistance Switch Assemblies as an upgrade option to increase (or rather decrease less) battery life and output.

Trigger Assembly: When the Trigger is pulled, contact is made between the Trigger Assembly and the Switch Assembly to close the circuit between the battery and the motor, providing power.

Upgrade Guide coming soon...

[DMitri]

Battery Guide

Voltage (V): The most common battery voltages in airsoft are 8.4V (7-cell) and 9.6V (8-cell). The voltage of a battery can be figured by simply counting the number of cells and multiplying by 1.2. (As most of the cells used in airsoft are 1.2V rechargable cells.) This is simply a power rating, how big of a current your battery will provide. If you increase the resistance of your gearbox onto the motor, you may need to increase the voltage of your battery to be able to operate it.

milliampere-hour (mAh): I'm just gonna steal this from wikipedia, cause it's pretty much perfect. It's for ampere-hour (Ah) but it's applied the same way, just at a different scale.

An ampere-hour (abbreviated as Ah) is a unit of electric charge. It is a common measurement of how long a battery will last (or in the case of a rechargeable battery, how long it will last when fully charged). The ampere is the SI unit of electric current. One ampere-hour is equal to 3,600 coulombs (ampere-seconds), and indicates the amount of electric charge that passes either terminal of the battery when it provides one ampere of current flow for one hour.

However, in reality, the available capacity of a battery depends on the rate at which it is discharged. If a battery is discharged at a relatively high rate, the available capacity will be lower than expected. Therefore, a battery rated at 100 Ah will deliver 20 A over 5 hours, but if it is instead discharged at 50 A (coulombs per second), it will run out of charge before the theoretically expected 2 hours. For this reason, a battery capacity rating is always related to an expected discharge time, which is typically 5 or 20 hours.

The relationship between current, discharge time and capacity is expressed by Peukert's law.

In general, the higher the ampere-hour rating, the longer the battery will last for a certain device. Installing batteries with different Ah ratings will not affect the operation of a device rated for a specific voltage.

The Ah rating of a battery is related to, but not the same as, the amount of energy it stores when fully charged. If two batteries have the same nominal voltage, then the one with the higher Ah rating stores more energy. It would also typically take longer to recharge.

The energy E available from a battery is approximately given by

* expressed in joules: E=3600CV
* expressed in watt-hours: E= CV,

where

C is the capacity in Ah, and
V is the nominal voltage.

This is only an approximation though, due to the fact that the voltage during discharge is not actually constant.

Water Bucket Analogy: Simply think of a bucket with a hole in the bottom. Think of the size of the bucket as the mAh rating of your battery, bigger the mAh, the bigger the capacity. Now think of the hole in the bottom as the Voltage of the battery. The bigger the hole (Voltage) the quicker and more powerful the drain of the bucket (mAh).

NiCd vs NiMH:
NiCd:
Pros -

Keeps Hi-Output as it drains.
Won't drain as quickly when stored.
Cheaper to produce than NiMH.

Cons -

Lower mAh (Negligible since it's different between NiMH and NiCd*)
Must be discharged before charging.
More toxic than NiMH.

NiMH:
Pros -

Higher mAh (Again, negligible*)
Doesn't need to be discharged.
Less toxic than NiCd.
Low Internal Resistance.

Cons -

As battery drains power output decreases
Drains quickly when stored.**
More expensive than NiCd.

*NiMH really weren't made to be used in hi-output applications. Since they lose output power as they drain you'll notice your upgraded replicas losing power at a constant rate until they can no longer cycle, this'll happen long before the battery is considered completely empty. An exception to this would be the newer model electric cars with NiMH batteries, but remember, they also have alternators keeping them at high capacity/power.
**It's safe to keep them in a freezer/fridge to slow their self-discharge. If you do decide to store your batteries in the freezer or refrigerator, make sure you keep them in tightly sealed bags so they stay dry. And make sure that you let them return to room temperature before using them again. And keep them away from your food!

My personal opinion is that if you want a battery that will last you a long time in a stock replica, get a NiMH. But if you start increasing the performance of your AEG, you'll need a battery that can keep step. Don't let the mAh ratings fool you, they're applied differently given the chemistry of the cells and the application of them.

Battery Size: There are three sizes of battery packs available; Large, Mini, and Stick. Large batteries consist of Sub-C size cells which offer much less internal resistance than the A cells used in many Mini and Stick batteries, thus allowing for marginally better performance out of your battery. Mini and Stick batteries are used for replicas which don't offer enough space to house a larger one.

Tamiya Connector: Airsoft uses the same batteries that you'd find in model plane and RC kits, so they use the same connectors. But it's important to note that there are two sizes, both Large and Small. If your replica uses a large battery, it'll come with a large Tamiya connector, and vice versa, if your replica uses a mini or stick battery, it will come with a small Tamiya connector. (An exception would be replicas fitted with a crane stock or other custom battery housing.)