This thread is for comparing the various sniper rifles. I'll begin by giving the most comprehensive accounting of the various sniper rifle options out there, and compare their pros and cons. Comparisons will be grouped by price range--budget versus high-end, and by power--spring versus gas. I will briefly discuss why I think that sniper rifles should not be electric, and why I think that the proper domain of AEG's is as DMR's, not as SWS's.
Why not an AEGThis topic is rather controversial, since the option of full-auto certainly seems attractive for a sniper in trouble. But I will always come down on the side of a bolt-action rifle for a number of different reasons.
1. Realism. In real steel, nothing can beat the inherent accuracy of a bolt-action rifle. While in airsoft, AEG's can come close, a bolt-action is still slightly more consistent and accurate, and if you're interested in realism, most sniper rifles ARE bolt-action.
2. Stealth. An AEG is a lot harder to silence, since you have to deal with the characteristic gearbox whining noise, as well as the muzzle noise. Stealth is very important to a sniper, so I prefer to stick with a quieter bolt-action rifle, with less mechanical parts to make noise.
3. Simplicity. A spring-powered bolt-action is much simpler, and easier to fix in the field when something goes wrong. This circumstance isn't very likely, but it's a much simpler gun, which also means there's less that CAN go wrong.
4. The Skill Factor. If you have the capacity for full-auto or rapid semi-auto, you'll be inclined to use it. That means you won't conserve ammunition, and you're more likely to get yourself into situations that require you to fend off large numbers of enemies with full-auto. Basically, those snipers that I've seen using AEG's tend to get themselves into trouble a lot more often. If you have limited ammunition, and low ROF, you're required to be a lot more cautious, and to rely on your skill, fieldcraft, and tactics, rather than your gun. And that, I think, is as it should be.
There are plenty more reasons supporting either side of the debate. But I come down on the side of bolt-action rifles, so I will not include an AEG section in this review.
Spring Section:Spring powered bolt-action rifles are my weapon of choice for sniping. They are always reliable, regardless of the temperature (unlike gas rifles), and are simple and easy to fix or upgrade. Although spring rifles require more upper body strength to cock, they're the most popular type of rifle for a sniper, who relies on fieldcraft, skill, and tactics, rather than ROF and sheer numbers. There are several excellent options available for those wanting a spring sniper rifle (along with some not-so-excellent options).
Budget RiflesThere are several options out there for affordable spring sniper rifles. I will provide a brief mini-review on each rifle, and then compare them at the end, with my recommendations, depending on what you're looking for.
1. The Super 9/Tac 9, in all of its incarnations.
The Super 9 is probably the first rifle that beginner players encounter, since it's cheap, readily available on lower end retail sites and on eBay, which is virtually useless for getting airsoft guns, aside from a few select sellers like evike and ehobbyasia. The Super 9 is supposed to be one of the most powerful stock spring sniper rifles in the budget category, typically listed as shooting over 450 fps. Something to note--those fps measurements are with .12g bb's, which no experienced airsofter uses except in mines and grenades.
The Super 9 also has some interesting features. It doesn't have the usual type of magazine, but rather a stick magazine which holds something like 25 rounds, and a rotary magazine, which holds a small number of shells (6, I think), in which you insert the bb's. This feature is very cool if you like realism, since it will eject an empty shell when you cycle the action. The Super 9 also comes with a bunch of extras, such as iron sights, scope mount, scope, bipod, and sling. However, I do not recommend the Super 9 for anything, even backyard wars, for a number of different reasons.
The Super 9 and the other UHC sniper rifle series are universally known by the moniker "Craptastic 9," or some variation thereof, due to their relatively horrible performance. It is completely unreliable past 80 feet, which means even a low-end MPEG can outrange it in terms of effective distance (some people have had better experiences, but on average, they have a minimal effective range), and are virtually unupgradeable. That means no tightbore without heavy modification, no cylinder upgrades, no hopup upgrades, nothing.
The magazine system is also irritating, because the stick magazine is unrealistic and harder to load than other sniper rifle magazines, and the shells are easy to lose. More, the gun is very toy-like. The build quality is okay, but not great--mostly middle quality plastic, which doesn't have the greatest feel, and the bolt is designed poorly, so the bolt-pull is much stiffer than it should be.
All in all, the Super 9 in its various incarnations is suitable only for backyard skirmishes, and even then, there are better guns to get.
http://springer.airsoftretreat.com/articles/super9.htmhttp://springer.airsoftretreat.com/reviews/super-9.htm2. The UTG M324 Master Sniper/ DE M50.
The M324 is commonly called a VSR-10 clone, although it is actually more similar to an APS-2. However, it isn't actually a clone of either, having it's own internals. The M324 shoots about 350 fps stock with .2g bb's, and has a number of nice features.
The M324 comes in 3 colors--black, olive drab, and desert tan. The stock is nice and textured, with very little flex, although the look is somewhat spoiled by the various screw holes. The barrel and receiver are held into the stock by three screws of different sizes. Many people that break their guns do so by screwing the wrong screw into the wrong hole. The gun is not upgradeable with high-end aftermarket parts, but there are custom cylinders that allow power upgrades, various performance enhancing modifications, and a dbcustom 6.01mm tightbore available. Also in the plus column is the cheap and easy Leapers (UTG) customer service, which makes it very easy to replace broken parts of all kinds.
The M324 comes with scope mount, bipod, sling, extra magazine, and front accessory rail, which are all very nice touches. The sling is a very nice nylon sling, and is one of the better knockoff slings. In addition, the gun has a silent cylinder--it's about 80% quieter than most other spring sniper rifles, and with the addition of a foam-filled suppressor, is virtually silent. This feature is, for me, the biggest draw of the M324 aside from the Leapers customer service, since it allows for much more efficiency while sniping.
It does have some problems in stock form. First, the compression of the stock cylinder is very poor (although much better on the v.3's, which shoot about 400 fps stock), and requires a teflon tape modification to achieve its full potential. The cylinder is sealed, and cannot take upgrades, and the stock inner barrel is both aluminum (and hence lower quality than the brass barrels that come with most other guns), and enormous--a gaping 6.14 mm. This means that the M324 is not great in stock form. It is still capable of decent performance out to 100 feet, but is not effective past that. However, once upgraded with dbcustom tightbore and the teflon modification, it will shoot about 450 fps (perhaps closer to 470 fps with the v.3's), and will be effective out to about 180 feet.
Overall, this gun is great for backyard wars (probably the best budget sniper rifle for that purpose, due to the silent bolt), and is capable of competing with stock AEG's in the sniper role, or middle-range sniper rifles. Although it lacks the range of an upgraded high-end or some of the other more powerful budget rifles, the silent bolt, coupled with a suppressor, means that you can take shots from much closer in without giving away your position. In my opinion, that feature makes the M324 a force not easily dismissed, and all in all, an effective and affordable spring sniper rifle.
http://www.airsoftretreat.com/reviews/showproduct.php?product=104&cat=39https://echo1og.forumotion.com/Site-Discussion-c3/Reviews-f13/Double-Eagle-M50-UTG-M324-t11.htm3. The UTG Mk. 96/WELL Warrior 1 L96A1/BE L96A1.
These guns are all actually different guns, but I'm grouping them together due to their similar price, and the fact that their internals are essentially the same, with a few differences that I will cover here.
These clone L96A1 guns are the most powerful stock spring sniper rifles on the market, with the exception of the various SVD models. They shoot about 500 fps with .2's stock, and are also upgradeable (or downgradeable), since the cylinder can be opened. The various models differ in terms of build quality and extras. The UTG Mk96 comes with a bunch of extras, like all UTG guns, such as bipod, scope mount, sling, extra magazine, etcetera. The BE L96 has almost entirely plastic construction, including inner body construction, while the WELL Warrior 1 has metal construction for many of the parts, meaning it is more durable.
The major thing that should be mentioned about this gun is that the trigger box is made out of plastic. IMO, that was a very stupid thing to couple with a 500 fps spring, but these guns are probably not terribly reliable in stock form. Fortunately, the spring is very easy to cock, with a bolt-pull light enough that some have called the spring magical. That's a good sign that the construction is pretty solid. The gun performs reasonably well in stock form, with an effective range of about 150 fps, but the high fps exacerbates inaccuracy problems at longer range.
Fortunately, this gun is upgradeable. I do not suggest leaving this gun in stock form, but rather to replace the stock trigger with an APS-2 trigger assembly or an APS-2 L96 zero trigger assembly. The hopup and inner barrel should also be replaced, and eventually you may want to replace parts in the cylinder as well. Since the gun is fully upgradeable with aftermarket parts, it's a great platform for building a fully upgraded sniper rifle, but probably shouldn't be left in stock form. I would suggest this rifle as an option for those wanting an upgraded sniper rifle, capable of competing with the best rifles, but would probably not rely on it in its stock form. The UTG and WELL versions are also probably better deals, as they have stronger internals than the BE version.
4. The USR-11.
The USR-11 is a fairly venerable VSR-10 clone. And that's right, it is a full clone of the VSR-10, compatible with all of the aftermarket parts. It's got a solid build, and is quite durable, although not as durable as an actual VSR-10. The cylinder can be opened and upgraded by drilling out some pins, and that will increase the FPS from a fairly low stock fps to a more respectable 350+ fps. It can be upgraded with teflon mod and tightbore to approach 430 fps with .2's, without any internal upgrades.
Basically, the USR-11 is the option for those who want an upgraded VSR-10, but don't want to pay as much for the starting platform. It can take all the aftermarket upgrades, comes with iron sights, but no scope mount, and also has a gas cylinder available, although there is very little information on the gas version. All in all, the USR-11 is always a good choice if you want to upgrade, but not the best choice if you want a competitive rifle in stock form.
Helpful thread:
http://www.airsoftretreat.com/forums/index.php?topic=12470.05. The AGM MP001 Sharp Shooter (sometimes called the JG MP001).
The MP001 is one of the most recent clone rifles out of China. Visually identical to the VSR-10, it is nevertheless not a true clone, and is not upgradeable. The only upgrade it can take is a dbcustom or madbull tightbore. However, it makes up for the lack of upgradeability with truly superb performance with a small amount of easy modification, and its ability to take a number of replacement parts from other guns with slight modification.
The MP001 comes in three colors--faux wood, olive drab, and matte black. The stock is well-made, and has some of the best fake wood available, which was a surprise. Almost all of the rest of the gun is metal. It shoots 400 fps stock, but with teflon mod, tightbore, and a few other performance-enhancing modifications, can get up to 470 fps on average, and 491 fps if you do a really good job.
Stock performance is very good, but not spectacular, with a 170-190 foot effective range, but post modification, this gun is easily capable of 250+ foot shots, which makes it competitive with all but the very best rifles. It does have a very wide inner barrel, at least 6.1mm, but it is made out of brass, and is surprisingly accurate. It is also the cheapest rifle on the market, so if you're willing to take a little time learning about the internals of your gun and working on it (you'll have to spend no more than 5 dollars on upgrade parts), you'll have a very competitive rifle. There is a ton of information available on this rifle on ASR (I'll get links up in a while), and I know this gun inside and out, so if anything goes wrong, I can almost always give you a quick and easy fix. All in all, I recommend this rifle for almost any type of player--beginner or expert, backyard war or full skirmish.
http://www.airsoftretreat.com/reviews/showproduct.php?product=114&cat=626. Kart M40.
There is very little information available so far on this gun, so I will update as I learn more. Internals seem to be loosely based on the VSR-10, but not an actual clone. It doesn't have magazine compatibility, and finish is rather poor. It is probably not upgradeable, but may still be comparable in performance to the MP001 with modifications.
This concludes the budget spring sniper rifle section.
Subject: What should I buy for my first sniper rifle? 
Sat Feb 24, 2007 12:36 pm
