You want to stay away from stock TM M16/M4's, the creak and barrel wobble are pretty bad.

+1!

If your going to save up 500 bucks for stock TM M4, why not just save a little longer and get a CA?

Or!

Get a Cansoft G&G and a can of krylon, then spend the extra 200 buck you would have spend on the TM on mags and BBs

i would recommend waiting until you are age verified before buying a gun, there is much more to be seen here.

and if you go the route of the g36 i will recommend classic army and nothing else.

+1 to Classic Army recomendations, I absolutely love mine.

I did extensive research and settled on the Tactical Carbine version of the Classic Army M15A4 as my first gun. If an Armalite is what you're looking for then I think it's the best of all possible versions. You have the shortened M4 carbine barrel, which makes you less likely to smack your barrel off something when turning quickly, combined with the full stock which houses a large battery. Small batteries don't have near the run time of a large battery, not to mention that the reinforced slip ring (the ring that keeps the fore-grip on) is really stong. While this is mostly a good thing and a big step up over CA's previous M15 versions, it makes changing small batteries in the field very difficult if not impossible.

CA's M15A4 series in general is a big step up over their previous versions and as far as stock armalites go they're probably the best. All metal where the real steel version is, the plastic parts where the real steal version is plastic are made of high quality enhanced nylon fiber rather then abs for great texture and feel. Classic Army has a deal with Armalite so you get all the proper markings. Plus that deal also goes to show the quality of the manufacture, Armalite wouldn't put their name on a shoddy product.

Internally the gearbox is reinforced metal and all the gears are metal as well. It fires hotter stock then Tokyo Marui's as well, firing at 300-320 fps where your average TM only fires 280-300 fps.

All in all this is a great starter gun if you can afford it. Because it's all metal you don't have to worry nearly as much about breaking it and you won't get any of the wobble or creaking that is infamous in stock TM M4/M16's. Unfortunately affording it is the biggest problem, they're not cheap. For reference I got my CA M15A4 from the classifieds, upgraded with a bunch of Systema internals to fire 390fps, for $600 shipped which was a great price.


http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/u...ineextras1.jpg

Ok, so for the G&G GR16 I was looking at, I can't seem to find any parts for it, so I guess it is not a good choice if I want to customize it overtime. Is it compatible with something else? This is really hard to navigate with all these models and parts.

G&Gs are TM compatible, so they'll work with most spare and after-market parts out there. This is my G&G CAS version M4 after extra goodies and some paint...

http://img12.imageshack.us/img12/764...eapr252009.jpg

http://img44.imageshack.us/img44/605...ejune72009.jpg

I did all the work myself, and I'd never worked on an airsoft gun before.

G&G seems to be pretty acceptable rifle but, wait till youre aved, and take look into the classifieds before buying a clear lower gun. my 2 cents

Yes will do for sure, I will be AV tomorrow, can't wait.

Very nice paintjob, what kind of paint do you use? I have an airbrush already.

Krylon Camo spray-paint can be found at Canadian tire, and is generally what is used for painting airsoft guns.

But, if you can use an airbrush, that would probably work better

Yup, Krylon. Satin Black for the base layer on the M4 lower, as well as the frame on the KJW G23 (it's the Cansoft version from 007). Then I used a muddled, oversprayed mix of gray primer, camo tan and OD on the rifle. It works well where we play, lots of gray rocks around, as well as pale birch bark. ACU works well in th YK area.

Keep up to date -.-
New TMs no longer creak or wobble at all.
I've seen some go for $500 or less.
Airbrushes can be used to make your own sexy and awesome pattern, especially if you have experience airbrushing stuff.
CAs are good too, if you can afford them. Or build your own custom one =p (lemegacool)

hep hep hep! its a custom G&P/madbull i built lol!:p

But it's not airbrushed, so HA!
I find no end to G&P's annoyingness, even after I replaced every single part besides the mechbox shell and spring guide...(Okay okay... and the trigger n wires)

Electric - CA CA25
[AR014M] - [Classic Army] $379.99
Specifications:
* Length: 510mm
* Capacity: 470rds
* Weight: 8.4lbs
* Velocity: 390-410FPS
* Battery: Large Type

GREAT Starters buy

http://basscommand.com/armoryairsoft/dept08/ca25.jpg