Shadow ops L96 barrel upgrade
 

Hello,
ok i am very new to upgrading airsoft guns. but what i am after is info on what to look for to upgrade the accuracy of my Shadow ops L96. i have seen that a new inner barrel will help, but am unsure as to what to get. Also i have enclosed a link to my gun in case that makes it easier.

Prommy barrels are top of the line. If budget is an issue check out the Madbull barrels.
Doing a barrel polish is a cheap alternative for swapping out a barrel off the bat.

To increase shot consistency get a good hop up and hop up rubber.

"Prommy" here stands for Prometheus, a maker of high end upgrade parts.

The first thing to note about your gun is that its innards are ultimately cloned from the Maruzen APS2, so it doesn't matter that it's been called a "Shadow Ops L69" or anything else, you can just search for APS2 upgrades on this forum or other websites. Most airsoft spring snipers are internally either based off the Maruzen APS2 or the Tokyo Marui VSR-10. Keep in mind that APS2 is only the internal system and while internal parts for the APS2 will be compatible with your gun, external parts might not be.
With this in mind, I can more clearly answer your question. To upgrade your gun's accuracy, the most important parts are (roughly in order of importance) the hop up rubber (needs to be a hard type rubber if you're shooting ~2J or ~450 FPS with .20s), the hop up chamber (the PDI hop up chamber is good, and it lets you use AEG barrels and hop up rubbers), the inner barrel (6.03mm is considered about ideal), and the air/loading nozzle. Though these aren't really an upgrade part, probably the best thing you can buy to improve your accuracy is to use high quality heavyweight BBs, with weights of 0.3g or higher. Note that while it's tempting to install a stronger spring to increase your FPS, doing that won't have a significant effect on your accuracy but it will tear your trigger assembly apart, plus it'll make it hard to find a field that will let you use it.
Search around, try to learn as much as you can about upgrading spring sniper rifles in general and APS2/Type 96's in specific. Depressingly, it will probably take a lot of time and money to get a significant improvement, in the end you might end up replacing basically everything in your gun. Welcome to upgrading!

so would replacing the hop up be better than just replacing the rubber in the hop up? from what i can tell new hop ups come with rubbers.

ok from what i have been able to gather and from what you guys have told me, i think this will work. please take a once over and offer any suggestions. and yes i would like to not spend more than $200 on my rifle. only paid $89 for it.
http://www.actionvillage.com/madbull...l#.UO9UC2_hq-4

http://www.evike.com/product_info.php?products_id=35641

http://www.evike.com/product_info.php?products_id=34004

1. Check with the seller if the Madbull barrel is made to work with a stock APS2 hop up chamber, if not it is cut like an AEG barrel and will require an upgrade hop up chamber.
2. I'm not sure what field FPS restrictions are like around where you live, but if I got that Angel Custom kit I wouldn't use the spring it comes with, instead I'd just use the stock spring. Higher FPS setups will eventually destroy your gun unless you basically rebuilt the whole thing around the new spring.
3. The metal trigger assembly looks like a good idea if your gun was built with a plastic trigger box.

Edit: a cheap thing you can throw into this purchase which can help quite a bit is a sorbothane ("Sorbo") pad which you can glue to the end of the piston head. These will reduce the wear on your piston and make your gun quieter (sneaky!).

Hey Wolf. I understand that you're new but you should have read the rules for this forum. I seriously doubt that the moderators would enjoy having links to an airsoft rifle in the newbie tank. After all, not everyone registered on this site is of age of majority.

Apologies. I have removed the link.

ok found out from the seller that the barrel will work withg the gun. an the fps restrictions are 600 for snipers

+1 to everything said here. I upgraded my aps2 system all the way, except for a new trigger assembly, piston cylinder, and spring guide is still stock. I started with the pdi aps2 hop up and mad bull tb barrel. The pdi hop up took a lot to get working right. (difficult to install all the little springs included etc) but DEFFINITELY worth the time and money. Also put a hard type rubber in it, this made a huge difference. Barrel spacers is another cheap easy upgrade that helps, as decreasing barrel vibration is important. I also put a lightweight teflon piston in, and a better piston head. if you cant afford the piston right now, (which I highly reccommend) at least put a better piston head in it. Airsoft Parts.ca sells pretty much everything you need. Hope this helps

Good that you found that out. The stock hop up unit and rubber aren't ideal, but it's at least not a bad start. Look for APS2/Type 96 disassembly videos on Youtube, those will help out quite a bit, especially when it comes to taking apart the hop up unit, those things are fiddly.
If you get the tightbore, some things that will help:
1. Use only high quality ammo, diameter 5.95 ± 0.01 mm with a high polish. Check this with calipers if you have them. Anything less could scratch it and thus ruin its effectiveness. Recommended weight for 500+ FPS would be 0.40g or heavier. Don't worry about expensive ammo, the higher quality it is, the less you have to use to achieve the same effect.
2. Clean your barrel with a non-linting cloth before the game. Also, get used to unjamming the barrel. Make sure your cleaning/unjamming rod won't scratch the inner surface of the barrel.

Edit: yay I've been +1'd!

The stock rubber will shred very quickly, giving a terrible bb trajectory.

Ok i went to that airsoft Canada store and they only had springs and spring guides for my rifle. also i have gone to 5 different stores and not been able to find a full set. i have basically decided that i am just going to replace all the internals. but i am somewhat confused about the pistons and mixing and matching springs and spring guides. does any one know some kits or even offer some more info? and no i dont have an fps limit. i mainly play with my group in farms and in the woods. the states don't even have official tournament rules.

I'll link what i put in mine.
cylider head. screws into the
end of the piston tube: http://www.airsoftparts.ca/store2/in...oducts_id=1095

lightweight, much stronger piston: http://www.airsoftparts.ca/store2/in...oducts_id=1096

piston head: http://www.airsoftparts.ca/store2/in...oducts_id=1541

pdi hop up chamber. works only with aeg barrels. http://www.airsoftparts.ca/store2/in...oducts_id=1469

tightbore barrel: http://www.airsoftparts.ca/store2/in...roducts_id=299

barrel spacers to reduce barrel vibration: http://www.airsoftparts.ca/store2/in...oducts_id=1095


you will also need the silencer adapter, as the barrel will protrude a little bit out from the end. I anyways find that the silencer dampens the sound somewhat: http://www.airsoftparts.ca/store2/in...oducts_id=1478

And this hop up rubber: http://shop.ehobbyasia.com/upgrade-p...hard-type.html

Remember that if you use the pdi hop up chamber you will also need the aeg barrel. It will not work with the barrel that comes with the L96. Also dont forget that when you install the hop up rubber, turn the rubber a half a turn. The reason for this is the pdi hop up uses two independent arms to aply pressure the top of the bb. This allows you to adjust the accuracey very precisely. If the little nub on the new hop up is in the way, it will render the two arms useless.
Also, the Airsoft Canada store and Airsot parts.ca are two very different places.

Almost forgot to mention, .30 gram bbs. .28s at the very lightest.