Why not get a Pistol as a first gun?
 

I was just wondering why it would be a bad idea to get a pistol before an AEG.
I was assuming because in outdoor games a pistol is pretty much useless but I love CQB (favorite part of my Infantry training) so I wanted to lean towards those games more than outdoor large field games. Would getting a pistol work out a little better for me?

I'm very new to this hobby and I went to my first game at TTAC3 in Toronto where it was all CQB. I needed to rent a gun and got a Mp5, after playing with it for awhile I asked to switch to a pistol to get the feel for that. To me, I ended up playing alot better with a pistol in a CQB game that with a rifle(well Mp5).

But I'm obviously the new guy so I just wanted the oppinion from the older players on this manner. I understand the use for an AEG in open field/larger playing grounds but if I wanted to stick to close quarters (at least for now) does that kindove change the outlook on getting an AEG first?

(I don't know if this will come up but I'm just gonna put it out there first. I am in the process of being AV'd, been waiting for almost two weeks for them to update my account.)

Thanks for your time.

Your AV is through lol, look under your name.

Ideally pistols are secondary weapons and not primary. Even in indoor fields most players will be using aegs and not just pistols. While fun you would quickly find yourself out gunned very quickly. Not all indoor events follow the semi only and real cap loads like at TTAC3.

TTAC is a very small field, pistol primary there is a viable option because it's so tight and engagement distances are rarely greater than 15ft. If you go and play anywhere else with a little open ground between cover you'll surely get out ranged and out gunned by any AEG out there. IMO it's necessary to carry both as they have advantages in different situations.

An AEG is necessary to be competitive in a skirmish and a pistol is a luxury that will be useful in certain situations.

I started with a pistol in a CQB field... and even though I have good CQB rifles and a shotgun, I usually play with a pistol only. My usual primary is a TM Glock 18C AEP (an electric pistol that can fire full auto) and although it has low power, it's VERY accurate, and I found that it's more than good enough for CQB. I also have a TM 1911A1 with a TK twist barrel that works marvels in CQB. I also got to play with a few KJW pistols and WE hi-capa and those don't cut it. The quality of the pistol you use WILL make a difference. Having a lot of spare magazines also helps.

Yes, you will sometimes find yourself at a disadvantage in bigger firefights, but most of the time, your quicker reflexes and lighter load out will be a much bigger advantage than being able to fire a lot of rounds in full auto. Beside, you have teammates that will have full auto rifles, so stick to what you can do best with a pistol (sneaking, recon, fast movements for ambushes, etc) and you will be an asset to your team, not the under-gunned little guy.

Alternatively, you can get a machine pistol, like the Mac11, MP9 and MP7. Those might be a good compromise between a pistol and a rifle and they work marvels in CQB.

Right on, thanks for the help

Well, don't consider only my opinion. Others have valid points too. Besides, a good pistol cost almost as much as a good rifle, so if you want both, prepare to spend mucho $$$.

It all comes down to your budget, and when other recommend that you buy an AEG first, they are probably right, as having an AEG allows you to play both in CQB and outside. If your budget is limited, getting an AEG first is probably a better choice. If you have a lot of money to spend, they by all means, get a good pistol first, and whenever you get tired of it, buy an AEG and you will have both.

Another point is that AEG mags may be cheaper. Especially M4/M16 mags. Pistol mags also need other purchases (propane adapter, propane, stuff for maintenance like seals, o-rings, silicone oil)

You can always get something like a gas MP7 or MP9. Pistolish, rifleish, a bit of everything. Mags aren't cheap or easy to find but when you're fully setup it's ton's of fun.

I started way way way back with a TM USP Springer. I got some "kills" but it usually required me to be very sneaky. Frankly Airsoft is a game where range is subjective and an accurate good quality pistol can perform well if you are willing to put the effort into it.

I highly suggest that if you do get a pistol as a primary you get something of decent quality and read reviews and field testings before you commit.


Cheers

Not just pistols, but gas guns in general require significantly more routine maintenance and cleaning, and are also much more prone to breakdowns and performance issues (especially GBB pistols). They're also affected greatly by the ambient temperature.

Whereas an AEG is only mildly affected by temperature, most notably shorter battery life, which can be avoided by using LiPo batteries. Although some AEG's break down fairly quickly stock, most AEG's given some basic upgrade parts have pretty good track records. Fully upgraded AEG's like the ones I do don't break down for a minimum of 2 years, and that's with zero maintenance and zero cleaning.

Across a broad spectrum of playing conditions (throughout a whole season), and especially since newer players generally don't know how to take care of their stuff, AEG's are your best bet.

While this thread is generating mostly a consensus of 'Yeah, pistols rock', I'd advise the OP to take a look at the join dates and post counts of the majority of the repliers. Using a pistol against AEG's is very doable, but takes alot of skill and experience. I would highly recommend against any newcomer to the sport trying this, as they would likely come away with a negative experience. For the newcomer, a pistol is good for emergency backup and the occasional pistols only battle, but little else.

Think about it: A pistol usually firing a couple of rounds a second at 320ish fps from a six inch barrel, with a 25 round mag and iron sights. Versus a full auto AEG firing 10 to 30 rounds a second at 350-400 fps from a foot and a half barrel, with an 80 round mag, optics and a shoulder stock. Without a lot of skill on the side of the pistol wielder, who do you think will win the majority of the time?

Pistols do indeed rock, I love my KJW 1911 to pieces. But I wouldn't use it in battle against an AEG unless my M4 was bone dry of ammo. And in that instance, I wouldn't have high hopes of winning. If you want to go light-weight in battle, think about a good subgun like a p90 or mp5k-pdw rather then pistols.

This man speaks the truth. If you want something for CQB, I would highly recommend a compact SMG type AEG as a first gun, as it will be far more useful than a pistol. I wouldn't say to NOT get a pistol, but if you're new, chances are that the AEG will be far more useful and you'll get a lot more enjoyment out of the game.

That being said, skill with a pistol can make it a viable option as well, both indoor and out. I was at an outdoor game on a rather large field yesterday. 12 of my 14 kills were pistol kills (FN 5-7 rocks!). It's just not recommended for a noob.

Get used to the game with a good AEG. Once you have that, then a pistol will become a useful tool to use as a primary for CQB.

My first airsoft gun was an army 1911. It was then, and still is my weapon of choice for cqb scenarios.

Pistol as Primary.

Works fine in a CQB situation where most engagements happen within 5M or so

For example, at TTAC3 .. all you need is a pistol and 2 mags and you can do just fine ( as you found out) But in most other places, CQB forms just part of the action.

Even at a place such as CQB paintball there are opportunities for long range shoots that a piston can do .. but is not good at. Certainly you *can* play with just a pistol and some people choose to do so. But I would not recommend it unless you plan on playing at TTAC3 mostly.

Alright, definatly alot of helpful posts, thanks alot!

I am pretty new to airsoft myself. I would say if you have the money drop it on a combo kit (Rifle and pistol - not the cheap ones, see if your store will give you a deal if you buy both). As Kuro_Neko said I also love my KJW 1911 but I wouldnt put much faith in it on the feild (in terms of survivability). You cant even squeeze off those 25 rounds in one charge (for the KJW 1911) and mags are hardish to find. A subgun would sort of be the best of both worlds but ultamitally your call. If your going to get into feild play I would say AEG. And also keep in mind your consumables and maintance (eg - Green gas vs battery).

What kind of pistol do you have your eye on?

Well I am getting a KSC USPc this week and am already researching M4s as my next purchase. I decided to grab the usp first because after looking around on these forums, finding a KSC USP Compact isnt the easiest thing to do plus it is by far my favorite pistol so I wanted to grab it while I got the chance.

Depending on certain pistol you can game as primary (TM Mk23 NBB for example)
We just had a game where first round everyone was using pistol, quite fun actually. (It was an outdoor paintball field)

If you really do plan on using your pistol as a primary, I would strongly suggest to not get a compact pistol. In term of pistol accuracy, an extra inch of barrel makes a HUGE difference. If you really want a USP, look at the KSC/KWA USP tactical, they are easier to find and will serve you much better as a primary. Alternatively, look at the Tokyo Marui USP AEP (electric pistol), its accuracy is amazing, though its power is low (~220fps), but it still works very well as a primary in CQB.

If you decided to forget about the idea of using a pistol as a primary, then a compact pistol is a good backup, and KSC is a very good brand.

TM Highcappa Full stop, shoot 350 on propane + in the heat of summer

full size pistol, good mag capacity .. and accurate out to 100 feet ( if you know how to run a pistol)

This man knows what he is talking about. I'm not a Hi-Cappa fan myself but they are rock solid performers.

I never wanted to use a pistol as a primary weapon I just wanted to know why people were so against buying one as their first weapon. I am getting one as my first just because it is a little difficult to find and I'd rather get it now then be looking for it later.

Wasn't it already said that pistols weren't noob-friendly?

As much as I love my 1911, the points you make are valid. the metal slide plus the smaller gas reservoir of the single stack mag means you're getting 15 rounds tops. I realcap mine to 7 anyway, so that doesn't bother me. If you want a 1911 that fires the full 25 rounds then you need one with a abs slide, like the tm or wa. As to mags hard to find, I found that as well, but luckily I found out that tm mags fit just fine, in fact they fit better.

For a pistol as a primary, there's no quesiton, as much as I love my 1911, it's the hicappa all the way.

I'm a fan of the M4 as well. I don't know what your budget is but I did extensive research and settled on the Tactical Carbine version of the Classic Army M15A4 (basically a full stock m4) 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.

As you can probably tell, I'm a big fan of Classic Army. One thing to keep in mind about Classic Army is they now have two lines, a proline and a sportline. Originally they were easy to tell apart because the proline had the metal body and the sportline had a plastic body but recently CA has been releasing their sportlines with metal bodies. The price tag should still allow you to easily tell the difference, the sportline being $300-400ish and the proline never being cheaper then $500, usually more like $600 or more but it's still something to keep in mind. All the pros that I went over above were regarding the proline model. The sportline model has cheaper everything internally and externally.

Now for some gun pron:

My Classic Army M15A4 Tactical Carbine without external addons:
http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/u...l-Carbine1.jpg

My baby, CA M15A4 Tactical Carbine with m203 grenade launcher, red dot sight and taclight:
http://i645.photobucket.com/albums/u...ineextras1.jpg

It's nice but I'm not a fan of the full stock and that's just because of my time in the army it's a pain in the ass if you a smaller person, I love the adjustable stock!

How about Umarex H&K USP CO2. It has no BB, It's not cool. But It is cheap. It is indestructible. You can pick bbs of the floor and shoot. Play it as your primary, if you won't like it and decide you need an AEG, at least no significant money loss there.

+1 TO Kuro's post on the CA m15a4 tactical carbine I use the same thing and its been a very reliable primary first purchase for me. The TM pistols also seem like a good choice. I haven't seen to many reliability issues with them.

There's nothing wrong with getting a pistol first. And actually, they're simpler than an AEG.

NBB's pack more punch than GBB's because they don't use excessive gas to cycle the action, and they're easier on parts as a result.

In...jesus I don't even know how many years now...15 years maybe..anyway I think I've fired my pistol 3 times in-game.

I can understand that, I'm not a big person myself and would have gone with adjustable stock except for a few differences between real steel and airsoft. When it comes to airsoft there's a few things you have to keep in mind regarding full stock vs. adjustable stock. The first being the size of the battery you can use. Unless you use a PEQ or a battery bag, you're going to be stuck using small batteries which don't have nearly the run time of a large battery. Second, with a adjustable stock, the battery is going to have to be in the front hand-guard which is going to make the gun front heavy, especially if you plan on mounting anything on rails. And third, changing batteries in a front grip is an extreme pain in the ass and not something I'd want to fart around with in the field, doubly so if you have anything mounted on rails.

Just going to speak from experience here....

My first gun ever was the TM Socom Mk23 NBB. All the guys from the old Windsor Airsoft Club can attest to the fact that their paranoia on the field went up excessively when I was out there with that. That little gun fired 330fps out of the box and the suppressor on it ACTUALLY FUCKING WORKS. It's goddamn hard to hear firing more than 30 feet away and it's ridiculously accurate for a pistol.

One favourite moment with it is the time I took out 3 guys in an advancing squad with it before the rest of them realized they were under fire.

So yes, in my experience even outdoors a pistol CAN be a viable option for a primary weapon, but I don't think there are many handguns that have the performance characteristics of the Socom Mk23 NBB.

I started with a CO2 NBB from Canadian tire, playing outdoors. I was usually about as outclassed as you might expect, but I did manage a couple of killing sprees with it (so my ego remained intact), and it taught me to be sneaky. The best thing about it, though, is that when I switched to an AEG, having a few games under my belt pistol only was a huge advantage because I could hide and move better than anyone else at my level of experience.

So, despite a lack of performance I would recommend starting with a pistol to improve your abilities once you get an AEG.

Don't discount the inexpensive Ruger MK1 Nbb either. It's very accurate and equally gameable.

pistols as a primary ...or as your first gun... gonna echo some peoples opinions

is it doable? yup! .. but it the tactics, play style and the spendature (aka $$$$) are completely different.

this also depends ALOT on which pistol you choose. and again how you use it.

http://i56.photobucket.com/albums/g1...0530001831.jpg

these match the range of 90% of the rifles I run into on the field. now.. even with a pair.. how do you match the ROF of an Aeg? well nearly everyone I get near hits the ground when they start going off now LOL ... they are rather distinctive.


the downside.. they are damn big for a pistol, holster options are pretty much just big ass universals ... the cost, for the price of the pair... mags.. etc ... I probably could have just built an uber TM m14 and just hung back picking them off.

Honestly NBB's are the best performance vs cost. Heck the KJW mk 1 ruger is only about 100 bucks. But the down side is.... It's an NBB. Which isn't as big of a deal with the Mk1 where the real one doesn't have a slide either but the other NBB's are a let down to shoot after shooting GBB's in my opinion.

NBB's Work great but GBB's are more fun though less reliable and accurate in some cases.