[Elf]

Brand wise, go with tokyo marui, and buy an AEG before anything.  as to what kind of gun you should get. . .it's entirely up to you and your taste.  www.airsofttoys.com  and www.redwolfairsoft.com  have some nice prices.  firing, airsofting is in my opinion more accurate than paintball.  pain wise, it hurts but not for very long. . . .  . unless someone shoots you in the lip and you don't have a mask on  Â¬.¬

~Death to the highest Bidder!

[Legs]

Fury-
I am not sure how to help you out here.  I don't know anything about you (your Bio is not filled out) so I don't even know if you are legally able to purchase and own airsoft guns.
You can't compare airsoft to paintball directly, but I'll try to answer your questions.  If you use quality paint and tumble the balls the night before your games, high end paintguns are extrememly accurate and have great range.  Most paintballers don't bother to aim, though.  A paintball hurts a heck of a lot more than an airsoft BB because of the mass involved, even though it is dispersed on impact.  The welts are much larger in paintball and the effects last longer.
Airsoft is much more demanding than paintball in that the player is required to get closer to the target because of the lessened range.  It encourages skill over firepower.
There are no local stores worth looking into.  Prices are outrageous and selection is horrible.  Online shopping from Hong Kong is the only alternative.  Age restrictions are the law, though.
Your choice of an M4 is a good one.  It's a great airsoft gun and there are a million accessories for it, from the basics, like mag pouches, to the popular "must have forty items on my gun" rail items.  Tokyo Marui is a known company and their guns are great.  Classic Army makes an all metal version that met with some problems right off, but a few guys here have them now and can respond to the quality of their guns better than I can.  The metal body adds a lot of realism and strength, but is not "necessary" as much as it is a nice addition to have.
Overall range on airsoft guns, the electrics, usually does not exceed 100 feet, and that is a long shot.  Gusn can shoot farther, but the BBs are so small and lightweight that accuracy beyond that, and sometime out to that range, is poor.  You can learn to adjust for it, but that's about it.
Let us know a little more about yourself and it will be easier to help you, but maybe this can give you a start.

"You are, what you do, when it counts."
-The Masao

"Get on that fifty!  Someone get on that fifty!"

[Airsofter1]

Don't believe my fellow airsofter in his rant about paintball player not aiming... I still paintball and I always aim my shots.  I actually find that with full auto so readily accessable on my M4s that my aiming tends to get lazy and suffer.  They no longer allow full-auto markers in most all paintball events nowadays.  Anyways...

He is correct about the pain factor however.  That is of course you get shot in the face or lip...

I am not sure if I can agree on the the differences in range though.  The hop-up mechanism on AEGs help the bbs travel straighter but affect the range.  With a bb traveling with a back spin they just fall down when they reach the end of their range.  No arcing.  Barrel length seems to affect the range the most to me.  When I had my PSG1 stock its range appeared better than my stock short barreled SR16/M4.  And before when I cut down the barrel on them the range (and accuracy at range) seemed better.

If you are really looking to skirmish with your airsoft gun get an electric (AEG) gun to start.  Much easier to deal with than gas and you don't have to cocking it like a springer.  As for maintance on AEGs there really isn't much involved.  Some players will completely disassemble there weapon all the way down to the gears while others just throw there replicas in the closet after a game (me included).  Every so often you should swab the barrel and hop-up and keep those clean.  Disconnect the battery from it after use, and maybe discharge it if storing it for a while.



<img src="http://www.stopstart.fsnet.co.uk/smilie/shootout.gif" border=0><i>"A team is only as strong as its weakest member"</i>

Edited by - Airsofter1 on 09/27/2002  11:53:08 PM

[Fury]

I was wondering what all your suggestions were for someone who knows nothing about Airsoft besides the sport that it is. I'm looking to get an M4 Carb. Whats AEG and should I get that, spring, or GBB? Any brands on that and spring pistols you recommend? What about accessories/gear? Where to buy both online and shops. I'm not looking for top of the line/the most expensive thing, but something of good quality. Also, can someone tell me how similar the fire-effect is to paintballing? Are the pellits/barrings more accurate and straight then paintballs? It always got to me how inaccurate paintballing was and how the balls always arched in the air. And what about the pain-factor? Also, can someone give me detail on maitenance for a weapon? Cleaning, enhancing, etc... thanks