WE and TM Hi-Capas
 

are they 100% compatible? or did WE steal the frame design and used their own internals?

They're fully compatible, but get a TM. less headaches

i bag too differ the we is getting better with a lower lemon rate and since its 100% compatible you don't have too pay 100 or so bucks for a metal slide

That's right. You don't HAVE to pay more money to get a nice quality metal slide... Instead, you just get a crappy metal slide right out of the box when you buy a WE! :D

j/k... sorta. I love bashing WE, but the truth is, you get a lot of bang for your buck if you're looking at an out-of-the-box pistol experience.

Accuracy and performance has NEVER been a strong point of WE, and despite being out for so many years, they've done nothing to improve that. They had a huge gap to fill as far as durability and they're still patching that up now. The wobble between the inner barrel and outer barrel - and again between the outer barrel and the slide - and again between the slide and the receiver have always been horrendous, IMHO.

If you're looking for a platform for upgrading, just skip over the WE and get a Marui. You DO get what you pay for, when you're buying a Marui versus a clone.

But if you're just looking for a gun to do some <20' bedroom plinking for sh!tz and gigglez, then a WE can get you there, all metal for a low price.

The TM Hi-Capas are known for their hop-up and that it performs excellent right out of the box.

the one WE hi-capa OP Irene that I had had a really heavy metal slide and it wouldn't get too many shots off with propane, could only be effectively used with co2

Sushi don't your remember Skalnoks WE 1911 now that shows that WE has gotten better but if you are going for the WE hicapa its a stepback in quality.

The WE Hicapa although may be fun at first eventually problems arise sooner.

While that WE MEU I would have to say definitely shows WE is getting better though their parts will eventually break but it seems to function way better than the WE Hicapas

We Hicapa Metal slide cracked after 5 shots. Marui plastic slide on Propane is at 15k, guard 150% recoil spring starting to show wear

I've put a couple of thousand rounds through my WE High Capa and it's worked great so far. I've had no issues with it. The only parts that was replaced was the hopup rubber, and that made a nice difference in its accuracy. Otherwise, I'm happy with it.

I think after fiddling with a bunch WE Hicapas I find its like a lottery

You Crunch won the lottery
I won the lottery too after 1/5 fiddlings with WE Hicapas

Its a great a starter gun don't get me wrong, but definitely a gun that you would need to learn the workings of a GBB as the parts a abundant and TM parts can be put into it too, so you shouldn't have a problem with fixing it that is a advantage

Yeah. I've seen a couple of WE Hi Capas that basically fell apart. I landed a good one. My girlfriend's is also solid and problem free. However, I knew this was a gamble from the start, and it's the reason I went with the Hi Capa instead of a 1911. I knew all the parts were TM compatible, so cheap and reasonably easy to repair should something go awry. So far, I haven't had to do anything to it, and the only "problem" is the right side thumb safety is a bit loose, but that's a common issue with WE Hi Capas that I was aware of before buying. Since I'm right handed, it's not an issue for me at all.

In terms of performance, it shoots 320 fps, has a good range and is reasonably accurate. I forgot to mention in my original post that I also installed a 6.03 tightbore, which helps with the accuracy, but out of the box is was pretty decent.

All that being said though, I do plan to replace the slide in the future with something a bit lighter. My only real complaint with the gun so far as that the slide is big and heavy, so its action is not quite as snappy as I'd like. Gives an awesome kick when you shoot it, but the return to battery is a bit slow compared to all my other guns.

i'm thinking of getting a hi capa soon

someone has offered me a we... the same one crunchmeister has.
Since you guys talk of all the unreliability, i'm kinda having doubts.

And this is where the very nooby question comes in. In chaning parts on a gbb, are there parts for all sections of the hi capas? Like most tm hicapas i don't liek the colour scheme, but with a few changes i could have waht i want right?

The rarest part to find is the Hop-up unit. You can get every single part out there except that part.
Colour scheme? What do you mean? There's only black or black and stainless.

hop-up unit is tough, TM bo-mar rear sight, a few small springs, those are the toughies.

Everything else can pretty much be upgraded with an aftermarket piece.

The hi-capa's colour schemes are generally very limited to silvers and blacks, but you can get different finishes like a matte silver or a mirror finish like RacingManiacs. Other colours that will define your pistol is the plastic grip, shooters design and WE make quite a few colors ranging from black, blue, purple, grey, clear, OD (tanio koba grip), etc.

Midframe wise the only other colour from matt silver, shiny silver, and black is Tanio Koba's kimber mid frame, which comes in OD. although those are extremely rare to come by now. I think Illusions manufacturer can anodize their parts to gold if you really want that bling look.

There are rare limited edition plastic red slides different colours actually and different coloured TM grips. I'll see if I can find the pictures.