Some old new guy here...

[obsolete]

Originally Posted by TaroBear

You should try and hold a P226 before you buy one. I love SIG rifles, and the look of the SIG pistols, but once I laid my hands on a P226, I decided it wasn't for me. The grip feels like it's swelled up in the middle.

Yeah I know what you are saying. I have held the real steel 226/228 and they have the right feel for me. The 1911 and other single stacks feel too small. I think the length of your hand has a lot to do with it.

Lots of great advice and lots to think about here guys thank you for your help.

[Styrak]

Originally Posted by obsolete

Yeah I know what you are saying. I have held the real steel 226/228 and they have the right feel for me. The 1911 and other single stacks feel too small. I think the length of your hand has a lot to do with it.

Lots of great advice and lots to think about here guys thank you for your help.

If you've held the real steel and like it, then go with that. Most good airsoft is pretty near 1:1 dimension. Weight may be off, but that's understandable. For full metal pistols, they can be nearly the weight of a real one because of the heavy metal mag.

[z0ng]

For Hydration I've always used water bladders. I started at first using the ones from Canadian Tire and other shops but really hated the fact that I was drinking plastic. After an hour or so the water starts to taste like the container as chemicals leech into it from the bladder itself.

Enter this product:

http://www.cpgear.com/StoreBox/hydr/6057_0.htm

It has a special lining on the inside of the bladder so you don't get that wonderful chemical plastic taste to your water. Worth the $33 investment if you give a damn about that sort of thing.

[m102404]

I've been testing out a hydration pack made by Source. They've got more than a few nice design features...without going all go-go-gadget-failure.

Roll-over-clamp top so you can get your whole hand into the bladder to clean it out. Standard 66mm (? maybe) cap so that you can attach std 1L nalgene compatible water filters to it. Two "harness" points on the back...one 360deg rotate hanging point on the front (great if you're doing a pack to pack filtration system or want to hang it at basecamp). QD plugs that block the flow of water when disconnected...and there's tap/filler adaptors that can socket directly into those. And probably a bunch of other features...

I've now had water sitting in it for almost 3 weeks...going to check it in another week and see if anything is growing in there

[z0ng]

Yeah, I've honestly left the thing for two months at a time and just given it a rinse and kept using it. Haven't died or gotten ill yet!

There is a cleaning guide, I believe it was something along the lines of mix in a few drops of lemon juice with water and rinse it out with that. It said to not put soap into it too I believe.

Regarding the guns you were looking at. How many airsoft guns have you handled? If you haven't had a chance to check many out in person or try firing them see if you can go to the next game in your area. Then you'd at least have the opportunity to try out some of the various guns out there. Regarding your comment on single-stack 1911's, you might want to check out the TM Hi-Cap 5.1 (or 4.3, but the 5.1 is arguably better), it's modeled after a double stack pistol so the grip is larger. They're very reliable and have lots of after market parts available for them.

[obsolete]

Originally Posted by z0ng

Regarding the guns you were looking at. How many airsoft guns have you handled? If you haven't had a chance to check many out in person or try firing them see if you can go to the next game in your area. Then you'd at least have the opportunity to try out some of the various guns out there. Regarding your comment on single-stack 1911's, you might want to check out the TM Hi-Cap 5.1 (or 4.3, but the 5.1 is arguably better), it's modeled after a double stack pistol so the grip is larger. They're very reliable and have lots of after market parts available for them.

I like the TM Hi-Cap in the Commander size... That's nice!
Believe it or not I haven't touched an Airsoft gun yet. Most of my experience has been with real steel. I'm in touch with someone local who plays at a private field so I'm sure I will experience a few guns soon. That being said I still have my hard earned cash burning a hole in my pocket.
The 1911 style of pistol I find I have to pull the trigger with the middle knuckle of my finger where I like the trigger further out and use the ball of my finger or the first knuckle. (I don't know if I'm explaining this right but I hope you understand)
I like that CPGear hydration unit too.
Again all great suggestions guys thank you.