What are Airsoft Guns?

Status
Not open for further replies.

Mastrogiacomo

Member
Joined
Dec 31, 2002
Messages
2,414
Location
Boston
I've been dying to buy a 92 Beretta in Nickel but they're only available as an Airsoft Gun. What is it exactly -- a B.B. gun? I've always wondered why someone would purchase an Airsoft, although in my case it's just to own a replica of the 92 Nickel. Is it to practice shooting at home? If so, how safe is it shooting with pellets?
 
Airsoft is popular with alot of kids my age. I dont own one but i have seen them.
What they shoot are 6mm plastic BBs. The most guns themselves are made mainley out of plastic and such.

They do have tactical advantages for police to practice with a replica gun so they do not have to worry about beaing shot, but still be able to shoot with the same gun they carry, so there is no re-fillimarization.

Instead of buying a replica gun just for looks, Id go with a real one in Stainless Steel. Looks just as cool and 50 times more usefull. Just my .02.
 
Doesn't Beretta already make one called "Inox?" Is there a difference between nickel and Inox?

Airsoft guns are 1:1 replicas of real firearms. They are usually made of plastic, and shoot 6mm plastic BBs.

There are three major types -

Spring-cocking:
You have to cycle the slide/bolt for each shot, even if it is a replica of an automatic firearm.

Gas:
You fill the magazine with a gas (usually tetraflouroethane, or run-of-the-mill PC duster). The gun will fire in semi or full-auto without having to manually cock the gun each time.

AEG:
Or automatic electric gun. It uses a battery to drive a motor which compresses a spring and piston that drives BB forward. These are what the majority of airsoft skirmishers use.

There are many reasons why people are into airsoft. For one thing, you can shoot at other people (with their consent) without killing them and suffering the consequences. However, the BBs travel at sufficient velocity (~280-400fps) to damage exposed eyes and teeth. ANSI Z87.1 rated goggles are mandatory, full face mask is up to you. Getting hit on bare skin is like a strong rubber band snap, and usually leaves a welt. It is safe to shoot around in the house, provided you have a backstop to catch the BBs. They can ricochet pretty good when they hit walls, and have the capability to shatter lightbulbs and other such household items.

For more information, check out:
http://www.airsoftplayers.com
http://www.arniesairsoft.co.uk/main/main.htm
 
Thanks for the info, I didn't know much about them and was a little concerned about how safe it is to use them. I actually have two Beretta compacts type M. One of my compacts is inox but obviously you've never seen the nickel. It's the most beautiful looking gun around but sadly Beretta has discontinued the 92 in nickel. Who the Christ knows why....

At some point, I hope to bribe the police chief here so I can get my Class A and buy the full size instead of being limited to 9 and under for gun capacity. Thank you again.:D
 
I like to use my gas beretta and desert eagle for trigger practice by firing in the hall way. I have a small BB catch setup and a target, real fun, at least for me. :)

For a more steel and heavier experience, www.airsoftatlanta.com was selling some gas Glocks with a steel slide already installed.
 
Many airsoft cost as much as a real gun...

One platform that is really cool is to buy the P99 in 9mm, P22 .22lr & P?? pellet.

You then have 3 guns made from the same mfr that look identical on the exterior. Real cool. Although, I'd hate to pick up the pellet pistol by mistake to enter into a shootout.
 
"I've always wondered why someone would purchase an Airsoft"

I don't own an airsoft gun, but I have thought about buying one a couple times. I have heard that they got their start in Japan. As the story goes, the subjects there arn't allowed to own the real thing, but with airsoft they can buy exact replicas that do fire, although they fire plastic BBs. As was mentioned, another reason people buy them is to engage in a sport similar to paintball, only you get to use a gun very similar to something you might already own. I know if I was going to do this, I would rather do it with a replica AR15 or a replica M3 Greasegun than a paintball gun. And, you don't have to worry about the paint. I know some guys that play with these at their place of employment after hours. It is a fairly large building that allows close quarters practice, but they wouldn't want to be splatering paint all over everything. They also use paintball guns loaded with marshmellows although this is a single shot affair. Yet another reason to buy an airsoft would be to have a replica full auto gun. If you don't have the money or can't legally own NFA weapons, you can still play around with full auto. I am not sure how accurate these airsoft guns are, but it could possibly provide a viable method of practice with a replica of your carry piece in areas where you can't shoot your real gun. I went to look at some airsoft guns for this reason, but I ended up buying a CO2 BB gun that is pretty much an identical replica of a Walther PPK. It appears to me that the frame and slide are metal. It fires semi-auto. You have to work the slide to cock the hammer and the slide reciprocates as you fire. It isn't a tackdriver, but it is accurate enough to make practicing with it worthwhile. I shoot it indoors at an Outers bullet trap. If I actually carried a PPK, I could use my regular holster and practice drawing and firing etc.
 
I used to own an M4A1 airsoft weapon since I was living in PRK and was not allowed to own the real thing. I played with it in several skirmishes and although it was fun, I think it was just a phase and it got old quickly. The high price tag also nagged me a lot. Eventually I sold it and used the funds to buy a P99. :D
 
Here's a couple pictures of my UHC 'Heavy' Beretta copy. Sorry fo the quality, it was my old crappy camera. :mad:
 

Attachments

  • airsoft1.jpg
    airsoft1.jpg
    78.8 KB · Views: 63
Mastrogiacomo,

Have you looked into having a 92M nickel-plated? I believe an electroless nickel is the finish Beretta used...
 
I find the sport of airsoft intriguing for it's potential training purposes. Studies (danger: poster about to talk out his nether regions concerning an unspecific reference to studies that may or may not have ever happened) have shown that a person's fine motor skills go out the window in a crisis situation. "Scrimmaging" with these toys probably does have some value due to the target being another human being who is returning fire, instead of a static target that really poses no danger to you.

But, IMO, it's cost prohibitive. For the price of a typical GBB (Gas Blow Back) pistol, you can buy a Bulgy Mak. And then there's the matter of finding enough people in your area to train with.

And you have to wonder how much longer these realistic looking replicas are going to be legal. This article shows the issues they are having in England with these toys:

http://www.manchesteronline.co.uk/news/stories/Detail_LinkStory=40958.html
 
Training:
I think there is a lot to be said for training with one of these. Certainly law enforcement agencies and the military train with combat simulations. I know when I was in the military we had the MILES system which used a laser which was fired by blanks in your rifle. I have heard of something called Simunitions (?) that seems to be more current. As far as space, I don't think that is much of an issue considering the fairly short effective range of the airsoft gun. Certainly you could easily train for close range encounters in buildings, or even your house. I think the important thing would be to find someone or some other people who were serious about the trainng aspect of it and less serious about the game of it. I have never done this, but I would think it would b e about as close to actual combat as you could get without seriously hurting someone. All you would really need is one other person to train with if your idea of training was to train for typical self defense situations. As far as the cost, I agree that the good replicas seem to be surprisingly expensive, but I don't really see what the comparison with a Makarov has to do with it. If you are looking for a training tool where you can actually shoot at each other, the Makarov doesn't fill that role so it is comparing apples to oranges. If I was going to get into this, I would much rather pay more money to get a good quality replica that worked well rather than buying a toy.
 
Like 444 said, I've also thought they could have some good training potential for CHL people - in the right setting under very controlled conditions. Have not yet had time to seriously check out.

I believe it was a similar gun tho that nearly got a teenager shot by a local LEO in Coppel (TX) a few weeks ago. There was also a controversey discussed at TFL a few weeks back after City of Carrollton passed a related ordinance.

I had a 20-something year old in a hunter ed. class last night who had has an upcoming court date in Plano. Got caught playing paintball game with a couple of friends outside of an apartemnt complex. Someone had called in to 911 as "automatic weapon fire". After semi-scarey takedown, Plano police wrote 'em up for "discharging an air gun" in city limits. He said charge was subsequently upgraded to "discharging a firearm".

:confused: :eek: :fire: Plano supposedly has their own definition of "firearm". Anyhoo, it sounded like :cuss: lawyer time to me ...
Careful with any of 'em out there ...
 
Airsoft (with quality weapons, not the cheap junk) is incredibly fun to play "wargames" with. It beats the pants off paintball. I've got a gas blow back KSC M9 copy (which I got because it is nearly identical to my real Taurus 92, should be good practice) and it is very nice. Slide cycles with each shot, slide locks back on any empty mag, you drop the mag, slam another home and hit the slide release and continue shooting just like the real thing.

That said, the pistols are really only any good indoors. If you're playing outdoors, with people with AEG rifles you get outranged/outgunned. I barely ever use my pistol because of this, just carry it along in a drop leg holster for backup. Everyone else I play with (6 of us total) have rifles, one has 3 or 4 so I always borrow one of his. It is so much fun running through the woods with a Sig 550 or a MP5 or AK or whatever shooting at others. Mags and such function just just like the real thing, so reloads and stuff are good practice (you don't cycle the bolt on the electric guns though unfortunately). The realistic weapons thing just beats the crap outta playing paintball with goofy looking spaceguns with 200 rnd (or more) hoppers on every gun... I keep waiting for the cops to get called on us, lol. We're all wearing BDUs with LBVs with mags and stuff strapped all over us, with realistic looking Evil Black Rifles. LOL, talk about scaring your soccer mom-type people...

The AEGs shoot around 280fps stock, and can hurt/break the skin (really more like a blood blister type thing) should you can a good close range hit to bare skin. And you can upgrade them significantly. They'll tear up a coke can... I've actually had my thumbnail split down a bit (that hurt) from a solid close range hit, not to mention the slight broken skin/blood blister welts I got all up my forearm from 3 or 4 other hits from the same burst... Usually it is less painful than paintball, since the bbs are fairly light. Getting shot where clothed is not painful at all, just a quick sting. Every gun we play with is running up around 350fps and shoots real nice. Nice range, and nice accuracy. Killer fun. I also happen to be close to the airsoftatlanta.com storefront, so there is no shortage of people to play with should I choose to branch out of the group of friends I currently play with. Plus I get to handle all the cool equipment in store. I'm going to be picking up my own AEG here shortly, probably a AK or M4. It's just hard to justify sometimes since they run around $300, and mags are $20+. I can get another real AK for that, and 4 real mags for the price of one of these. But alas I can't run through the woods playing with my real stuff shooting at people, lol.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top