Right, I've a feeling this will devide opinion but....rifles! As a (still class myself as new) player who skirmishes with SMG's but likes the idea of rifles where do I start!? I've read a bit on S&S No4 Lee Enfield but am worried about quality (I've heard tell of some negative feedback) as £500 is a lot to pay! I bought a DBoys Kar98 but quickly realised the ejecting shells and split barrel etc made it unsuitable. I'm wary of buying 2nd hand as the last 2 weapons I bought this way failed on me! So, who can recommend a rifle which is reasonably priced, reliable and fun and effective to skirmish!? Not much to ask but if you don't ask, you don't get! Thanks!
I wouldn't mind having a few ideas too. Bolt actions can be fun and challenging to play with.
I'd say a good compromise is an M1 Garand if you can find one converted to a wood stock, though the Shoot and Scoot ones are ok? Though I'm not very experienced in what is possible or out there........!
Right, I've a feeling this will devide opinion but....rifles! As a (still class myself as new) player who skirmishes with SMG's but likes the idea of rifles where do I start!? I've read a bit on S&S No4 Lee Enfield but am worried about quality (I've heard tell of some negative feedback) as £500 is a lot to pay! I bought a DBoys Kar98 but quickly realised the ejecting shells and split barrel etc made it unsuitable. I'm wary of buying 2nd hand as the last 2 weapons I bought this way failed on me! So, who can recommend a rifle which is reasonably priced, reliable and fun and effective to skirmish!? Not much to ask but if you don't ask, you don't get! Thanks!
if you still have the dboys K98 why not try of the vsr/bar 10 conversions? 
if you still have the dboys K98 why not try of the vsr/bar 10 conversions?
I'd echo this, it's a surprisingly easy conversion. To start with, I'd pick up a VSR/Bar10 and use it at a game, just to see if you get on with using a rifle. If you do, drop it in the K98 body.
if you still have the dboys K98 why not try of the vsr/bar 10 conversions?
I'd echo this, it's a surprisingly easy conversion. To start with, I'd pick up a VSR/Bar10 and use it at a game, just to see if you get on with using a rifle. If you do, drop it in the K98 body.
Not sure if wood effect VSR10s are still available? I've had a look and can't find any? Just in black.......
Just to bring this discussion back on track, he sold the DBoys a while back so a conversion is not on the cards.
If you do want a bolt action then a VSR based conversion is your best bet. Like dieselmonkey says using one unconverted first might be a good start, that way you can always sell it on if you don't like it. It need not be wood effect as you can always scrim it up. If you do like it then you can always convert it to whatever you fancy
If you're not sure about a bolt action an M14 might be a good place to start. Using them semi only with limited ammo can be a good induction to see if rifles are for you. They can pass for a Garand, SVT or G43 under look a like rules and again you can always do a full conversion later. They also tend to be cheaper than a WWII bolt action.
Yes some S&S No4s can be dodgy. Mine was a pretty good one, but I have seen some lemons. I think (though I'm not sure) that warren now makes them differently so the lemon problem should have gone away.
I converted a VSR10 to an SMLE and I love it. The only really difficult bit was joining the stock and forewood together. I needed help with that. Of course if you don't make an enfield then you don't have that problem! I think in the end the SMLE cost about £300 ish... as I managed to get a good 2nd hand VSR.
If you do yank, then I'd wait and see what the upcoming ICS garand is like. The M14 conversions I've seen are very variable. Mine was a right pain in the bum to start with and I've lost count of the number of times I've seen M14 to garand conversions fall apart or break in various ways.
got a verry cheep vsr compatible fake wood boltie at rsov verry recently,a tercel m007 £79.00 delivere an absolute bargin,its the basis of the k98 im doing at the moment for a mate.its been a piece of cake to make.as previously said get a basic bolt action rifle and just dress it up a little to test the water,you might hate it and regret spending big money,the other thing is windy days really ruin the fun for bolt actions it must be said so its allways best to have an aeg anyway although my opinion is that i'd love to see more bolt action guns fielded.
armoury
m1a1 Thompson,sten mk2,mp40,stg44,sterling,mk2 bren gun,lee Enfield no4 mk1,Mauser Kar98, Walther ppk,smith and Weston m10 and Mauser m712
Give me a big enough hammer and a place to stand and I could fix the world.
i'll kill a man in a fair fight or if i think he's going to start a fair fight or over a woman or.......
a problem shared is a problem halved ,but an advantage shared is no advantage at all
if a job's not worth doing then its certainly not worth doing well
I don't think it's too difficult to paint wood effect onto a plastic stock. There appears to be quite a few commercial options. Should really involve a bit of gentle sanding and decent undercoating and hiding a black plastic stock should be ok........
When you say "easy" referring to a dboys Kar98/VSR etc conversion, for the technically inept with little access to tools is it really a viable option? I would assume there would be a reasonable amount of milling out of the interior of the stock and some cutting of bits of metal etc? I'm not to be trusted with saws or hammers! I've never attempted a project like this with anything more technical than Lego, as I think have my immediate compatriots....
I'm very interested in this ICS Garand. If something like a bog standard Nagant, Kar98 or Enfield came out at a price up to £300 I would seriously consider it.
I'm the same, as I'm as technical as a crayon! DIY conversions all seem far too complex and I'd surely bugger it up! I'm really suprised there's no "out the box" rifles knocking about!! After playing with the Dboys in the garden I loved the action and ejecting shells but only as a gimmick. The distance, inaccuracy and scattered shells which required retrieving all made it un-skirmishable! The ICS garand sounds like it, but I take it it isn't out yet!? I've also heard tell of gas M1 carbines. Any info available on these?
Don't bother with the gas M1 carbine, they're not very reliable and not tremendously skirmishable.
I have one and the problem is they shouldn't really be used as a rifle and are really just a backup, like a bigger pistol. So should be usable close up as well as at medium distance. The proper WWII M1 should be semi-auto, but the marushin version requires cocking each shot and hence becomes less useful at close range. In addition the power is a pain in the butt. Being 8mm is a pain and you either run them on HFC134 and get really short range, but within close up power levels, or run them on green and get power levels that even higher than an 500fps sniper.
Mine is mostly used as a prop for my public re-enacting where it is a cheap and nice looking alternative to an expensive deac. Well it is now I've converted it to WWII spec and restained the stock.
Basically, just don't even go there... it's not worth the pain. Oh and the same stuff pretty much applies to the 8mm garand as well, except in addition you have the hassle of a semi-auto gas mechanism that is prone to breaking and expensive and hard to source mags that fly into the air after 8 shots.
I may as well throw BB's at the enemy! 
lol! Looks like I'd be just as well buying a PPSH and have a smg for each load out. I've said it b4 but I'm amazed non of the manufacturers haven't exploited this obvious gap in the market! Its such a shame as the rifle is THE iconic weapon of the period! Smg's weren't widely used as I understand it! So, the general info I've gleaned here is if you can't make one then the compromises and risks you take seem to point in the direction of "don't bother"!! 
No, I don't really want to put you off!! We all want more riflemen!
It is a right bugger though to get a decent rifle. However they are out there. Keep an eye on the 2nd sections to avoid having to pay top dollar and do consider an M14...
No, I don't really want to put you off!! We all want more riflemen!
It is a right bugger though to get a decent rifle. However they are out there. Keep an eye on the 2nd sections to avoid having to pay top dollar and do consider an M14...
Indeed! Though the only M14s I can find in my quick procrastination exercise are TM, so a little bit expensive but meant to be the best. My Garand is based on one of these and the actual TM components appear rock solid. If you can get hold of some small (no idea what they are really called) shotgun style mags to avoid using a mid or hi cap mag it can look pretty good. Plus they're convenient and made in a factory! Most M1 Garands are based on M14s of various mfg and I'm told they can pass for WW2 rifles in most armies (if you squint in bad light! lol! Not really!). If I didn't already have a decent Garand it's the gun I'd go for (and I'm actively considering one as a proper back up and for skirmishing where I don't want to risk the nice woodstocked Garand...).
if you want a dboys k98 based custom vrs conversion then pm me as id be happy to discuss making one for you to order or a lee enfield smle or no4 but those would be dearer as the parts would be real steel at leaast to some extent but i could still be cheeper than s+s.otherwise its just wait and see what the future brings.
armoury
m1a1 Thompson,sten mk2,mp40,stg44,sterling,mk2 bren gun,lee Enfield no4 mk1,Mauser Kar98, Walther ppk,smith and Weston m10 and Mauser m712
Give me a big enough hammer and a place to stand and I could fix the world.
i'll kill a man in a fair fight or if i think he's going to start a fair fight or over a woman or.......
a problem shared is a problem halved ,but an advantage shared is no advantage at all
if a job's not worth doing then its certainly not worth doing well
