I bought my sniper rifle at the beginning of this summer, a UTG MK96, starting completely new to the world of airsoft sniping. I therefore am still rather green in the area of combat. But through a series of extremely unfortunate online transactions, I have learned a few hard lessons. They consist of a few extremely amateur mistakes, that can be a little costly when details are overlooked. I'm writing these mistakes down, in the hope no one else will make them
Firstly:
Power does not guarantee distance or power. All it guarantees is that your bbs will hurt more. With that in mind, don't go out and but a nice, strong, lethal spring that makes you cackle maniacally when you put it into your cylinder. The only thing that spring will be lethal to is your trigger box.
Secondly:
This parts a little tricky if you're completely green like I was. Some websites post the details of the product like this:
Angel Custom PSS10 Mega-Up VSR-10 Power Up Spring - SP190 (520~600 FPS)
Model : [AC-VSR-SP190]
What does this mean? Well when I looked at it my eyes shot straight to the part I cared about; the 520-600 fps (coincidentally the same detail that would destroy my stock trigger). A lot of products have the tasty details tacked onto the end of the product like that. What my eyes glossed over was the "PSS10". What that meant for me was that it was probably not even compatible for my rifle. For those who don't know ( I was one of you until about 40 minutes ago) this is what those pesky little codes mean.
(the following is a quote from fuzzywolly, god bless his soul)
PSS2=APS2
PSS96=l96
PSS96=MK96
PSS10=VSR10
Some PSS2 parts work for PSS96 but not all of them.
Itso facto, that PSS10 is not compatable for my gun
Thirdly:
Chinese puzzles can be really fun. But not when thats what your gun turns into, after you disassemble it with the mentality "I'll remember where that went!
". For all that is holy, use one of the magnificent disassembly/reassembly guides provided on this forum, that some nice people took time out of their lives to write. It is a sign of intelligence, not weakness, to use help.
Fourthly:
Use a website that has been verified as a reliable one. I currently have a UTG upgrade trigger back-ordered somewhere in Russia, because I did an amazon search. Airsoft Atlanta, Trinity, Evike, and other high profile sites would be good places to look.
Lastly:
Chinese knockoffs are cheap for a reason, and its not because their labor is all that cheap (wages in Asia are actually rising at 20% a year). Its because minimal effort and quality went into its construction. My friend bought what he thought was a bargain AEG M4; it came with a box mag, grip, lazer site, red dot site, and (supposedly) all metal internals, and all for 200 dollars! Well the reallity is much less apealing. Its fire rate is probably half of what mine is ( I have a M4 I bought locally) and its gears make an ominous whirring sound. Long story short, with airsoft in general and especially airsoft sniping, the amount you spent has a dirrect corelation to the quallity and effectiveness of your gun (I actually have evidence to support this statement).
I hope this was helpful, and I am sorry if this was in the wrong section!

Firstly:
Power does not guarantee distance or power. All it guarantees is that your bbs will hurt more. With that in mind, don't go out and but a nice, strong, lethal spring that makes you cackle maniacally when you put it into your cylinder. The only thing that spring will be lethal to is your trigger box.
Secondly:
This parts a little tricky if you're completely green like I was. Some websites post the details of the product like this:
Angel Custom PSS10 Mega-Up VSR-10 Power Up Spring - SP190 (520~600 FPS)
Model : [AC-VSR-SP190]
What does this mean? Well when I looked at it my eyes shot straight to the part I cared about; the 520-600 fps (coincidentally the same detail that would destroy my stock trigger). A lot of products have the tasty details tacked onto the end of the product like that. What my eyes glossed over was the "PSS10". What that meant for me was that it was probably not even compatible for my rifle. For those who don't know ( I was one of you until about 40 minutes ago) this is what those pesky little codes mean.
(the following is a quote from fuzzywolly, god bless his soul)
PSS2=APS2
PSS96=l96
PSS96=MK96
PSS10=VSR10
Some PSS2 parts work for PSS96 but not all of them.
Itso facto, that PSS10 is not compatable for my gun

Thirdly:
Chinese puzzles can be really fun. But not when thats what your gun turns into, after you disassemble it with the mentality "I'll remember where that went!

Fourthly:
Use a website that has been verified as a reliable one. I currently have a UTG upgrade trigger back-ordered somewhere in Russia, because I did an amazon search. Airsoft Atlanta, Trinity, Evike, and other high profile sites would be good places to look.
Lastly:
Chinese knockoffs are cheap for a reason, and its not because their labor is all that cheap (wages in Asia are actually rising at 20% a year). Its because minimal effort and quality went into its construction. My friend bought what he thought was a bargain AEG M4; it came with a box mag, grip, lazer site, red dot site, and (supposedly) all metal internals, and all for 200 dollars! Well the reallity is much less apealing. Its fire rate is probably half of what mine is ( I have a M4 I bought locally) and its gears make an ominous whirring sound. Long story short, with airsoft in general and especially airsoft sniping, the amount you spent has a dirrect corelation to the quallity and effectiveness of your gun (I actually have evidence to support this statement).
I hope this was helpful, and I am sorry if this was in the wrong section!