A few noobie questions

[JinxDuh]

Hey guys,

So - My regular site is semi only, it’s the only site I play at or plan to in the foreseeable future. From what I’ve seen, most people tend to get HPA for full auto and rapid shooting on semi. I’m pretty selective of my shots so spamming the trigger isn’t very important to me either. 
 

The thing that’s got me drawn to HPA is how “simple” it is for the reliability. I’m looking at the gate pulsar specifically to fit into my Umarex HK416A5 AEG.

My main question is:

Given my play style, only playing outdoors (with a million things the HPA line can snag onto) would it be better to spend the money on AEG upgrades to get it shooting the same as/better (hopefully)?

My biggest concern, as touched on above is running the line and catching everything on it. I also have back issues (scoliosis) so I’m worried a tank may be an issue due to weight and it’s a fair chunk of money to drop on a system that I may not enjoy using. 
 

No doubt this form of question gets asked time and time again but from what I’ve seen it’s primarily people asking if AEG is better.

Help me make my mind up please ?

 

[RostokMcSpoons]

I'm an as-yet mostly innocent bystander in the HPA scenario, but given you're talking about a VFC HK416 as the shell, I'd say "go for it".  You'll have a lovely solid externals, and none of those pesky VFC AEG internals.  It should end up being a really nice gat (if a bit pricey!)

(For context I have an a similar '416 GBBR, and I'm looking to buy an HPA adapter for it)

And good news in the fact your playstyle would mean you could maybe run a small air tank instead of the standard bottle - saving a bit of weight on the webbing...?   It's a thought - I'd let a 'proper' HPA'er confirm or deny that!
 

 

[JinxDuh]

I'm an as-yet mostly innocent bystander in the HPA scenario, but given you're talking about a VFC HK416 as the shell, I'd say "go for it".  You'll have a lovely solid externals, and none of those pesky VFC AEG internals.  It should end up being a really nice gat (if a bit pricey!)

(For context I have an a similar '416 GBBR, and I'm looking to buy an HPA adapter for it)

And good news in the fact your playstyle would mean you could maybe run a small air tank instead of the standard bottle - saving a bit of weight on the webbing...?   It's a thought - I'd let a 'proper' HPA'er confirm or deny that!
 

That’s the main reason I’m looking at HPA to be honest. No motor, no gears, none of the horrible to work with stuff ?

I did look at the smaller tank (28 iirc) and the size of it was a lot more realistic for me to carry!

 

[xaphor]

If you're going HPA and going "As simple as possible" why not go Kythera? Just runs off air with no battery! Could be worth looking at

 

[JinxDuh]

If you're going HPA and going "As simple as possible" why not go Kythera? Just runs off air with no battery! Could be worth looking at

Because I like the adjustability that I’m getting from the Titan, and if for some reason I do end up venturing out to a different site it would be nice to have the option to have full auto - not to mention the krythera is £320 & the pulsar is £65 more with a Titan included ?

 

[Krisz]

Building and fine tuning a DMR isn't that simple compared to HPA that's for sure. And you can adjust a hpa on a whim it's just way more comfy.

I'm sure polarstar has some engines where you can attach a CO2 capsule or tank. Also, if you have deep pockets you could still buy an used MTW and buy a wraith stock later down the line.

You can buy carbon fibre tank for silly money if weight is a real concern. Altough those cheapo 13 CI tanks weight literally nothing so it shoudn't be a big problem.

Personally I'd spent the least of money on this adventure because if you don't enjoy it at least you're gonna lose less money on it if you resell it. You could buy used HPA kit or gun as well to be honest.

I'm an avid HPA player but outdoor can be problematic because of the line.

 

[concretesnail]

A well tuned aeg will work just as well as a hpa setup for semi, as they should be imparting the same amount of energy into the small balls we play with. 

Unless you are specifically after wanker gun rates of fire or play at sites with differences in limit which would mean constant changing of springs, when turning down a reg is easier, there isn't much to gain. 

Cost wise if you sent you rif to a solid tech, negative airsoft say, you could have the performance you want for no more than the parts of the hpa build cost.

If you do go hpa then regards the line, when I've used hpa setups I used molle mounted single point slings and then ran the line looped or sleeved with it. Just give yourself enough slack in it so that it doesn't interfer with griping the rif. With the line sleeved it didn't catch on anything i wasn't going rhe catch the sling on anyway.

 

[JinxDuh]

Seems to be the popular choice. I’m going to speak to some of the HPA users at the site Sunday. I saw a video of a guy using the comms/water routing loops in his plate carrier to hold the line tight, which seemed to be a good idea too but I do like that sling idea!

 

[Fatboy40]

So - My regular site is semi only, it’s the only site I play at or plan to in the foreseeable future. From what I’ve seen, most people tend to get HPA for full auto and rapid shooting on semi. I’m pretty selective of my shots so spamming the trigger isn’t very important to me either. 

The above pretty well describes my very local site that I play at quite often, Ironsight Airsoft in north west Hampshire, and there may be similarities between it and where you play.

It's got a history of paintball as well so due to this has very good facilities for HPA, a powerful on-site compressor and multiple points to fill up tanks. If you're a site member you get free HPA refills, so this has led to a lot of people there using it for Airsoft. There's a sizeable group of "speedyboys" as well, so a lot of HPA users are using pistols and adapters.

From the years of playing there I'm not sure I'd personally say that HPA is any more reliable, or a HPA RIF is "better" than a well setup AEG, however it can certainly be more convenient. For example no battery charging, the time it takes and associated risks, you just turn up and fill up your tanks and play (and if you're a site member, and have lots of tanks, you can fill them all up and quite a supply of them at home ready to go).

 

[JinxDuh]

The above pretty well describes my very local site that I play at quite often, Ironsight Airsoft in north west Hampshire, and there may be similarities between it and where you play.

It's got a history of paintball as well so due to this has very good facilities for HPA, a powerful on-site compressor and multiple points to fill up tanks. If you're a site member you get free HPA refills, so this has led to a lot of people there using it for Airsoft. There's a sizeable group of "speedyboys" as well, so a lot of HPA users are using pistols and adapters.

From the years of playing there I'm not sure I'd personally say that HPA is any more reliable, or a HPA RIF is "better" than a well setup AEG, however it can certainly be more convenient. For example no battery charging, the time it takes and associated risks, you just turn up and fill up your tanks and play (and if you're a site member, and have lots of tanks, you can fill them all up and quite a supply of them at home ready to go).

I believe my site allows for free refills too as it’s also a paintball site. I haven’t seen anybody using a HPA rifle there yet, as they all seem to run pistols but in theory it’s the same principle I suppose! 
 

I think it’ll be my next venture for sure!

 

[RostokMcSpoons]

Cost wise if you sent you rif to a solid tech, negative airsoft say, you could have the performance you want for no more than the parts of the hpa build cost.

This is true, but would you want Luke saying "oh my god another VFC AEG, arrgggghhh" to be shown forever more on YouTube   ?