Upgrading M4 handguard to metal
 

I have a TM M4 with G&P metal body and I would like to upgrade my plastic handguards to metal. Does this mean i will have to rewire the battery to the stock first? Do all the metal handguards come in one piece, or are some the same format/function as the plastic ones but metal? I'd prefer to keep it as simple as possible and just get two-piece metal handguard and continue to keep my battery in there.

Is this what i'm looking for?

Any advise is appreciated!

it all depends what size battery u want to run, with most RIS (front wired) you will need a peq box.

I currently have the regular 8.4v 1100 mAh battery. It seems to suffice for the time being. I suppose i'd like to upgrade to something stronger soon enough - with out having to switch to lipo and upgrade internals. I really don't want a peq box!

So does this mean that in order to have a RIS i'll need to rewire battery to back and switch to a long thin battery (vs the current === kind of battery) so it fits in the stock?

yes and u would need a new battery that fits your specific stock, i also ran into this problem when i had bought my last m4. another option if the look of the ris isnt as important as the function would be to mount 2 tac rails on the top/bottom of the hand guard which still gives u your option of mounting what you need while saving u the headache of rewiring not to mention the amount of money you can save. but in the end its all upto you

Pretty much, yes.

The RIS you linked to would allow you to keep your wiring unchanged, though it might have slightly less room inside. You can safely switch to a 7.4V LiPo either way (check hobbyking.com )..

If you want to go with something more like one of those free float style Daniel Defense rails or any of the Madbull product line, etc, you'll need to wire to the rear stock. It's not too hard. You will need to choose your battery carefully. One way to keep using big batteries and go rear-wired is to just go with a crane stock or a mod stock.

Another option is to go with a massive buffer tube like the Madbull ACE stocks. I have a rear-wired M4 that can fit a 2000mAh 7.4V LiPo no problem, with spare room for a second backup 750mAh battery in the vertical part of the stock. Loads of room, but the style requires you to have a longer front. Here's a picture of mine:

http://dl.dropbox.com/u/1149620/airs...ll_1_small.jpg

As you can see, the buffer tube is gigantic. The following batteries fit in the buffer tube:

7.4V
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/s...SOFT_Pack.html

11.1V
http://www.hobbyking.com/hobbyking/s...SOFT_Pack.html

In addition, there's just enough room for a smaller backup LiPo in the butt part of the stock.

That JG handguard you linked looks like it may support a nunchuck NiMH or nunchuck 7.4V Lipo in it.

Thanks for the replies gentlemen! So it looks like the easiest way for me to upgrade to metal handguard would be to get a 2-piece one like the JG one or similar. I don't think i want to rewire/get new battery right now as i've got two batteries already and they seem to be enough.

The follow-up question is this: would getting this 2-piece metal handguard prevent me from performing other upgrades down the road? Would i have to replace it for one reason or another?

why dont you get something like this??

http://www.airsoftgi.com/product_inf...oducts_id=4717

youu do need a real style handguard but then go to ebay and search magpul moe rail... and you will get some cheap rails to put on it

PLUS IT FITS YOUR BATTERY :D

CASV hand guards too feature Rails and can fit your battery

Is this and this what you're talking about? Any reason for a 3x difference in price? Looks like its one-piece. How does the battery get in/out? from the front? Does it attach by the rail that is sticking out attaching to the receiver?

Those are CASV's. The cheaper one is made by DBoys (a low end brand) and the other is made by King Arms (who typically makes top notch stuff).

The price difference between low end (craptastic) brands and good brands is something you'll see over and over...in that the part/piece will "look" the same but the build materials, details, finish, fit and durability will typically be very lacking with the low end stuff.

Bendy parts, skewed/crooked alignment, fragile bits, etc...are all typical with low end stuff.

The KA version is solid. The DBoys version isn't worth the paper box it comes in.

It is indeed a two piece system...take your handguards off...fit and clamp the top piece on (the handguards rail clamps onto your receiver rail)...then position the lower part into the upper half and swing it up into postion. The lower is held up front by two spring tabs that lock into the upper half.

It's not a bad system at all....you can position rails wherever you want, it's a very comfortable grip/hold, it can hold a mini NiMh battery...or a variety of LiPo packs.

There's a couple of different versions of the CASV...some with an opening for your standard front triangle/A sight...others that are meant to be used with a low profile gas block, and have RIS bits that allow either a flip up front sight or a detacheable front sight.

From all the questions you've posted...it sounds like you might want to find a local gun doc/builder and just have them take you through a build and some of the options/questions that you're probably going to encounter. A half hour conversation with someone who's done this stuff over and over can save a lot of Q&A posts/threads/time here...

Great info, thanks!

Yes i agree, i'll get in touch with a gun doc and have all my questions answered.

I bought the same gun. I just want to know if I can import the CASV's?

no nvm it does