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Post by 63busman on Feb 11, 2012 9:38:28 GMT -5
Looking at trying airsoft after 16 years of reenacting. Have all of the field gear to do either Thompson or Garand (K98 too) but looking for opinions/reviews on what is out there for both. Just started carrying a semi-auto Thompson when reenacting and love it but yikes .45ACP blanks are expensive! Andy
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Sgt_Tom
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Post by Sgt_Tom on Feb 11, 2012 10:10:06 GMT -5
For the Garand your only good option is a custom one made from an M14. The only other choice is the Marushin M1 Garand but they are known to be problematic. For the Thompson you could get the King Arms Version, the CYMA Version or the Tokyo Marui version which the other two are copied off of. All three are good. As far as the Kar98 you could get the Tanaka version or the G&G version. The tanaka is well known for being very well made. There is not much known about the G&G version yet. Check out this page I made on WW2 Airsoft weapons. wwiiairsoftreenactorsofmichigan.yolasite.com/wwii-airsoft-weapons.php
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2nd Bat
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Post by 2nd Bat on Feb 11, 2012 13:19:54 GMT -5
Unlike blank fire reenactments where the Thompson is by far the more expensive option over a Garand. In airsoft (at the present time). The Thompson is the less expensive choice. there are several brands available with some quite inexpensive and (with rare exception) most have proven quite robust and reliable. The range and power in airsoft tends to be fairly consistent whether you are carrying a long rifle or a short sub machine gun but hopefully in time steps will be taken to standardize things so long rifles provide some edge. we haven,t reached that level of sophistication yet. The challenge with this situation is that sub machine guns. MP 40s and Thompsons are way out of proportion with Garands and carbines are fairly rare on the field. Hopefully an electric version of both the carbine and Garand will be offered at a reasonable price and will be available soon. Both are available as excellent replicas in gas blow back variations but gas guns are typically plagued with reliability or consistency issues that prevent them from being used in airsoft skirmishes. (as mentioned above).
Incidently welcome to the hobby. Since you have the gear and uniform already, your primary expenses are out of the way. The savings in ammo with airsoft will quickly pay for your weapon even if you go with an expensive custom gun. That's just the first of the pleasant discoveries you will make with regard to WW2 airsoft. Suppression clear recognition who is being targeted and adrenalin being my favorite discovery. While both blank fire and airsoft have obvious limitations both have wonderful strengths and many of our members do both.
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Post by aj czarkowski on Feb 11, 2012 13:34:27 GMT -5
There are a few custom made M1 Garands for sale on here, all made out of the M14. And besides them there is the $600 Marushin Garand but like SGT.Tom said they are pretty crappy and known to break litterally in the first eight shots. I know someone whose bolt snapped in half after the first 2 clips. The custom made M1 Garands are very reliable mine still works perfect after 3 years and used it tons.(But it definitly doesn't look perfect anymore lol). They are usually made by Tokyo Marui or clones of it, mostly King Arms, CYMA, or Cybergun. They use modified shotgun clips or M14 Magazines. Mine is Cybergun and King Arms or CYMA Magazines don't work in it, and I believe some of them have different mag wells but I just took a file and fixed it.
The exact same companies Tokyo Marui, King Arms, CYMA, and Cybergun also make the Thompsons so the quality for both are the same. Of course these come ready to fire, so they're not like the M1 Garands where you will need an M14 first. My friend had his thompon for alteast 3 years and he hasn't had a single problem (CYMA). They have tons of different magazines in the 30 rnd variant low caps, mid caps, and high caps. For the 20 rnd magazine only Tokyo Marui makes them and they are high caps, for the 50 rnd drum they are made in high caps by every company except for Tokyo Marui. The Thompson are built very sturdy and very reliable the TM, King Arms are going to last forever and CYMA and Cybergun are known not as high of quality but still almost never have problems except for the occasional jam. I got a Cybergun at Christmas and its been fired alot and has'nt had any problems.
If you decide to buy an M1 Garand, I bought a pre finished one from 2nd Bat here on the forums he does a very nice job and also sells kits if you already have an M14. The molds for them broke a month or two ago so I don't know how many are left.
The Thompsons are far the most common because they are cheaper and alot easier to get, about 85% of players use them. Garands are the second popular, but M1 & M2 Carbines and M1 Garands made by marushin are almost never seen because of their quality. I owned one of Marushins older M1 Carbines and I wouldn't buy another.
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HornetWSO
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Post by HornetWSO on Feb 11, 2012 14:25:37 GMT -5
there's always the Grease Gun as an alternative too! ARES and ICS both make M3 Grease guns.
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Sgt_Tom
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Post by Sgt_Tom on Feb 11, 2012 17:50:38 GMT -5
What he said ^. It's nice to see something other then a Thompson on the field.
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Post by aj czarkowski on Feb 11, 2012 22:12:36 GMT -5
there's always the Grease Gun as an alternative too! ARES and ICS both make M3 Grease guns. Yeah they use the same magazine pouches, and you'd be one of the very first people to own one they just came out
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roadwarrior
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Post by roadwarrior on Feb 12, 2012 2:51:25 GMT -5
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Post by germanshepard on Feb 12, 2012 8:56:00 GMT -5
They actually are just coming out with a brand new AEG M1 garand that doesnt fire 8mm. its full metal and has both a real wood stock and a fake wood stock. Im not sure the price range but im pretty sure its lower than any other M1 out there.
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Post by aj czarkowski on Feb 12, 2012 11:43:18 GMT -5
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HornetWSO
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Post by HornetWSO on Feb 12, 2012 12:00:28 GMT -5
That would be the Herman Goring WWII edition
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Sgt_Tom
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Post by Sgt_Tom on Feb 12, 2012 14:03:37 GMT -5
This Thompson is the best one out there right now. However if you want something cheaper the CYMA version is completely fine too. It could be at least another year before this Garand comes out though.
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Adler69
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Post by Adler69 on Feb 12, 2012 14:31:33 GMT -5
That is perfect for a Mexican Drug Lord impression , make sure you also get a pair of gold plated 1911's to go with it tough.
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Post by 63busman on Feb 18, 2012 12:59:32 GMT -5
Looks pretty much like my semi-auto SBR one. Wish mine had a selector switch though! Wood looks nice too. Thanks for the recommendation! Andy
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2nd Bat
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Post by 2nd Bat on Feb 18, 2012 15:12:37 GMT -5
The Garand AEG mentioned (ICS) is at least a year away from production and sale but should provide a reasonably priced and hopefully competitive performer. Pending offerings are always a vaporware issue that never seem to show up when promised (if at all) although this one looks promising.
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roadwarrior
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Post by roadwarrior on Feb 29, 2012 22:03:29 GMT -5
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