1IntroductionRealsteel vs Airsoft10 Basics about SnipingWhy a Bolt Action System

„ Hi, I‘m Novritsch and thank you for purchasing the first part of my Sniper Guide Series. You just took the first step in becoming a better airsoft sniper in both a technical and a gameplay way. I will relate to you all airsoft related facts I was taught in my time during the sniper education of the Austrian Military. I will also share all my knowledge that I gained while playing airsoft over several years and technical hacks I discovered building and tuning my gear.

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This is my storyMy Name is Novritsch, I’m 22 years old and I’m living in Vienna, the capital city of Austria. After finishing a technical high school, I completed a sniper education of six months at the Austrian Military. At the moment I am working as a technical engineer in Europe and South East Asia. Airsoft is my biggest passion and I have been playing for more than seven years now. Besides airsoft I love to do bodyweight training, rock climbing, free diving, traveling and video editing.

How it beganI started playing airsoft in 2008 when I was fifteen, even though it wasn’t legal for me, becau-se I was too young. I was so fascinated by the function and performance of these “toys” that I saved my whole pocket money for three months, just to buy one of these crappy china sniper rifles. I didn’t even consider buying an AEG. I simply liked the fact that these bolt action sniper rifles were only mechanic. Movies like Shooter, Enemy at the Gates and Jarhead were certain-ly a big motivation too.

Development of GameplayThe first airsoft match I played was with three friends in a forest we weren‘t allowed to play in. I simply loved the thrill of not getting caught and hit, while sneaking in grass. I also I loved the feeling of waiting for the perfect moment to pull the trigger. Long story short: I became addic-ted to the game. For more than four years I played every single weekend, spent more money on airsoft stuff than on anything else, created my own airsoft association and organized games with more than 40 participants.

I tried almost every modification on my airsoft sniper rifle to get the best possible per-formance - my goal was to become the best airsoft sniper out there.

„Really miss those days - I‘m still seeing my old school friends for a

casual game„

I‘m in the second row, the fourth from the left. The one with the red beret.

Who wasn‘t into toyguns as a child?„

My Time at the Austrian MilitaryI knew in order to fulfill my goal, I had to do way more! I joined the first Austrian Army Drill Com-pany which trains six sharpshooters out of 240 soldiers every year.

At the end of the first month 12 people had made it to the last stage. After marching a who-le night with 40 kg gear most of my comrades gave up. And well - I was among those six who were crazy enough not to stop.

After finishing my sniper education successfully, I left the Austrian Military to focus on other aspects of my life. I became a technical engineer and worked abroad in South East Asia.

Starting my Youtube CareerOne day I saw a video of the French airsoft sniper “Vavann” on Youtube and I was real-ly fascinated by his idea of recording himself playing as an airsoft sniper. I knew I had to do something similar. I immediately built a scopecam, bought an actioncam, created my Youtube channel and uploaded my first footage.

Now what?I’m going to quit my job starting in April 2015 to find out whether it’s possible to make a living with several projects, including my Youtube channel and an online shop while still thinking about returning to the military for a two years deployment.

„Let‘s take this shot. Thank you for your support. You are the reason I‘m

still heading on“

„Cleaning my gear afterwards was fun. ..“

„We had to do a math test while listening to earsplitting

speedmetal“

Airsoft sniper vs Real Steel SniperI thought that once I had completed a professional education as a sniper I would perform much better than I did before. I was using almost the same equipment and tried to behave like I le-arned it in my trainings.

Surprisingly I had a very hard time getting back into the sport. My rifle just wasn’t shooting two kilometers anymore and small influences, like a little wind or accidentally shooting a blade of grass, were affecting my bullets trajectory.

I really don’t like all the beginner airsoft sniper guides I’ve read so far on the internet, where they all tell you to behave like a real sniper: - Always use a ghilliesuit - stay prone and only move if necessary -bring binoculars - don’t leave tracks. For me all of this is bullshit. You may look like a real sniper, but airsoft sniping is a completely different discipline to itself.

I say play active. Support your team at the front. Scare the shit out of your enemies with your coming from nowhere precision shots.

RangeWith a real precision rifle you can shoot more than twice as far as most assault rifles.In airsoft this simply isn’t the case. You are lucky if you own an airsoft sniper rifle which can effectively shoot 30 % further than the AEGs on the field.

So the biggest difference between an airsoft sniper and a real sniper isn’t the overall smal-ler distance you can shoot. It’s the tiny difference in distance between the airsoft sniper rifles and the automatic ones. As an airsoft sniper you need to rely on your camouflage and fieldcraft skills, not on the bigger range of your rifle compared to the others.

Dynamics at the BattlefieldThe airsoft battlefield is completely different too. People are moving much faster. Cra-wling in my heavy military ghilliesuit was way too slow for this type of game.

„My knowledge of how to urina-te silently while crouching was

no longer needed“

Me and my gear at the Austrian Military

Rifle: SSG69

Real snipers need perfect camouflaging ghillie suits. They may need to stay in one pla-ce for several days without getting spotted.

As an airsoft sniper you don’t want to spend your time only prone. Airsoft is a fast game. The hotspots of the battlefields are moving very quickly. You have to adapt to it, other-wise you get ran over or you are too far away from your enemies.

Similarities Still - airsoft snipers and real snipers have a lot in common!

Both need to be a master in precision shooting, camouflage, patience and field craft. Both always need to stay fully focused on what they are doing even in stressful environments.

One of the biggest weapons an airsoft sniper and a real sniper have in common is cre-ating fear. It still fascinates me about airsoft sniping how frightened the enemies are af-ter the sniper takes his first, well placed shot and they don’t have a clue where this shot came from.

Airsoft is a game and you shouldn‘t get too serious about it. The reason why you’re playing airsoft should be to have fun with your friends, not to count your hits and getting mad when you get shot. The basic principle of airsoft is fair play. So call your hits or quit airsoft.

„

„Funfact: the optical zoom of both my airsoft and my military sniper were the

same (x4). They prices weren‘t.“

Tips for Airsoft Snipers

1. Get a good gunIf you want a good setup, don’t save money on your tuning base rife. Go for a high quality brand rifle which has a ton of tuning parts available. Don’t buy newly released sniper rifles, because there are hardly any gun reviews, DIY mods, disassemble- and tuning guides on the Internet referring to them. Also tuning parts are hard to get and you can’t be very picky about them.Buy a sniper rifle of a good old high quality brand such as Tokyo Marui for example or at least one which internals are 100 % compatible to these models.

2. Use the right BBsDon’t buy dark BBs. You can’t see the flying path, so you can’t correct it if necessary.Use heavy BBs. At least 0.28 g. The heavier your BBs the more stable is the trajectory, the more silent is your gun, and the air pressure system of your rifle becomes more effi-cient too which means more muzzle energy. Try to find the best BBs for your setup. You can upgrade your airsoft gun as much as possible; if you are using bad BBs your gun will never shoot straight. Try different weights and brands to find out which BBs work best for you.I highly recommend Bioval 0,3 g BBs. Even if they are a bit lightweigh they are extremely consistent, white and biodegradable.

3. Be patientDon’t shoot if you aren’t sure whether the enemy is in range or not. In most cases you will lose a fight against an experienced AEG player, if he knows your position. Always try to take your enemy out of the game with your first shot.

Winter wonderland. Believe it or not but there is a sniper in this picture.

„My system gains 0,4 joules if I use 0,3g BBs instead of 0,2g BBs“

„Enjoy the nature - why not think about your life. And girls.“

4. Know you rifleDon’t just buy a your sniper rifle and play with it. Get to know your rifle. Disassemble your gun, try to understand the function of every single part and figure out what you could do to optimize it. Search on the internet for tuning parts and modification guides for your rifle, but be critical. There are a ton of useless guides on the internet written by people who don’t have a clue about how an airsoft gun really works.

What’s really necessary for an airsoft sniper is to find out the effective range of his rifle. Do this by shooting at torso sized targets at different distances.

Effective range is a very relative term. My definition of effective range is different for automatic and manually operated airsoft guns. If an AEG shoots for one second, which means in average 15-30 BBs, maybe the first BB misses the target by a few centimeters, but the chances that one of the following BBs will hit are high.

So here is my personal definition of effective range in airsoft: The effective range of an automatic airsoft gun is the distance it can hit a torso sized object with at least 2 out of 10 BBs. The effective range of a manually operated airsoft gun is the distance it can hit a torso sized object with at least 9 out of 10 BBs.

5. Play activelyPlaying with a bolt action rifle isn’t an excuse for being a camper. Don’t just lie down and wait for the enemy to come around. Move. Search for enemies but still try not to get spot-ted. Believe it or not but lying down is in a lot of cases the worst position for a number of reasons. When lying down in the wrong places there can be grass or stuff laying on the ground which is in the trajectory of your BB. You won’t hit anything after your BBs hit a blade of grass. Also you can’t see as good from the ground. Having a good overall field overview is always priority number one as a sniper.

6. No sniping under bad weather conditions Don’t use your sniper if there is strong wind or rain; you will only be disappointed at the end of the day. You won’t hit anything after your inner barrel gets wet. Also if you hit a raindrop the BB won’t hit where it’s supposed to.

Wind is very crucial for the airsoft sniper. Most people think that wind just comes from one direction and that you can correct it, but that’s only the case, if it’s a wide, free area. If there are a lot of objects near to each other, like in the forest, the air swirls around the-se objects. You can’t calculate these swirls. Play with an automatic rifle under bad we-ather circumstances, so you can compensate the wind while shooting automatically.

„At the moment my effective range of my rifle is 70 metres.

My longest successfull hit was approximatel. 82 metres.“

DIY paintjob done

„Don‘t even try. Weather is key“

7. Don’t quitYou will not play the first game with a sniper and hit a ton of enemies while not getting spotted. It simply needs practice to get good, like everything in life. Don’t quit becau-se you were disappointed, of not having a good kill/death ratio in your first few games. Head on, the results will come sooner or later if you try hard and play a lot.

8. Don‘t aim for the headThe head is a very small object, compared to the torso. Aim for the torso - your chan-ces to achieve a hit are way higher. You also don’t want to be the type of guy who inju-res people with his +500 fps gun by giving headshots. Be responsible. A gun this strong isn’t just a toy anymore.

9. Practical gearCustomize your gear so it fits all your needs. Carry as little stuff as possible. If you are on a small operation you don’t need stuff like a compass, a map, a ton of spare mags or a binocular. Think practically. Your gear should make you more effective, not slower, bulkier, louder and sweating.

10. CamouflageIt’s not so much the camouflage you are wearing. It’s more about the type of areas you move in and how you move. I personally don’t like ghillie suits because I am a very ac-tive airsoft sniper. Another reason why I don’t like ghilliesuits is the fact that you can’t feel, if you got shot with a ghillie on.

If you still want to wear one get a light one - maybe just a ghillie cap. Stay away from che-ap, big, heavy ghillie suits with a ton of long burlap strings which get caught everywhe-re. If you want a good lightweight practical ghillie suit do it like real snipers are doing it and make one yourself..

Please don’t be one of the guys who wear ghillie suits but don’t camo their

face, neck and rifle.

Brotip: don‘t stop running or you will turn into a block of ice. It was -16°C.

„Just don‘t“

„Two people of my team already lost a tooth. Brotip: face protection“

Why not an AEGPeople are constantly asking me why I am not using an AEG. Even though an automatic rifle seems attractive for a sniper in trouble, I would still always go with a good old bolt action sniper rifle for a number of reasons

1. FPS limitsMost game rules allow higher fps for bolt action sniper rifles than for automatic/ semiau-tomatic rifles. Use this fps advantage. Your goal is to set up a rifle which can shoot further than any other gun on the battlefield. Again, play responsible with your airsoftgun, don’t shoot people’s head and don’t shoot at small distances, that’s what your backup is for.

2. ReliabilityA bolt action sniper rifle is a very simple weapon. There are no electric components and not as many moving parts as in an automatic rifle. Less can go wrong.I am playing with my tuned VSR-10 for more than seven years now and shot over 50.000 BBs through it. Believe it or not but it never failed so far and I never had to replace a bro-ken part or anything.

3. Trigger responseAn AEG needs time until the sector gear pulls back the piston and lets it go. If you pull the trigger of a bolt action sniper rifle it will shoot immediately. This results in better ac-curacy too because with a bolt action rifle the BB will leave the barrel before the gun starts to vibrate due to the piston movement.

This is my winter camo.

„Over 50.000 BBs and not a single fail. Not bad for a toy gun?„

4. StealthA bolt action sniper rifle will always be way more silent than an AEG. That’s because of the characteristic winding noise of the AEG gearbox which is very hard to silence. The noise of a bolt action sniper rifle is also shorter because there are no gears winding up the piston. Short noises are way harder to locate than longer ones.

5. ChallengeIt requires a lot of skills to properly operate with a bolt action sniper rifle. You need to be a lot more cautious and to rely on your fieldcraft and tactics.

Everyone can spray around with BBs, but only a well skilled airsoft player can send the enemy back to respawn zone with one precise shot. Learn to love this challenge and you will fall in love with the role of being an airsoft sniper.

6. Trigger responseI just like to feel every moving part of the rifle while reloading. The power of the spring, the sears klicking into the piston, the BB getting loaded into the hopup chamber. The short deadly noise when pulling the trigger and the complete silence after you released your shoot and looking at your BB flying towards your unprepared target.

Don‘t forget to camoflage your bare skin. I forgot.

„Almost like a real rifle - except the recoil“

What I want to cover in the future- Accuracy and power - Make the best out of your rifle- Sniper education - tactics I learned at the military- Equipment - What’s the best- Scopecam videos - How to make them properly- Camouflage - What’s important- And much more!

Thank youFor watching my videos and supporting me with the purchase of this Sniper Guide. I hope you liked it. Here you can find out more about me:

youtube.com/novritschnovritsch.comfacebook.com/novritschinstagram.com/novritsch@novritsch

„Please share the link not the product itself with your friends. These few bucks give me the chance to make

more content for you.“

„ To truly realize what airsoft is all about you have to think back to when you were a child: the joy while playing with these mechanical toys - like playing catch - these are things people nowadays just don’t recognize. Unfortunately people tend to just think in templates - they do not even bother that there is more than black and white. In a world where fighting in a real war is seen as being an adult I‘d rather be a playing child.