Why not train, or play with Simunitions??

[sturmruger]

So if I want to go out and play some games I currently have two options. I can play Airsoft, or I could go with paintball. I have never tried Airsoft, but I have tried paintball. The game it self was a ton of fun(capture the flag), but I was a little disapointed in the mechanics of the paintball guns, and balls. My expierence was they were not near as accurate as even a cheap gun. I also noticed that the wind tended to blow the paintballs off target. It was quite a few years ago, but I still think it would be allot more interesting to be able to use Simunitions for playing capture the flag. I imagine it would be expensive, but think how much fun it would be to be able to use real guns to play capture the flag. It would be a great chance to get all dressed up like a mall ninja and kick some butt. After browsing the Simunitions website it looks like they do not sell their conversion kits or ammunition to mere citizens such as us. Does anyone have any idea how much it would cost to buy some of their items through a third party?? Has anyone ever trained with Simunitions??

 

[Ktulu]

I believe there is another company that makes a product similar to Simunitions but sells to civilians and non-LEOs. Can't for the life of me remember the name.

 

[Joe Demko]

It does sound fun; but, as I understand it, Simunitions hurt.

 

[Wilhelm]

I think it is Airmunitions.

 

[sturmruger]

In my expierence paintballs hurt like a I will have to look into the Airmunitions thing.

 

[Ryder]

think how much fun it would be to be able to use real guns to play capture the flag

I never play with guns. They are not toys.

 

[orangeninja]

I did some simunitions training a while back, sponsored by my employer


which is good, because I'm here to tell you that 2 hours of simunitions can run into the 1000s of dollars range for ammo. No joke. 1 10 round mag can be as much as 35 bucks....either way, paintball and simunitions are not anywhere near the same.

1.) Simunitions can be DEADLY if you do not follow STRICT safety precautions that can be tedious and seemingly intrusive at times. For instance, no firearms allowed on the course, no ammo allowed on the course, everyone must be inspected and "frisked" to ensure safety before every exercise etc.

2.) Simunitions is all about tactics, not shooting. In fact you can do 90% of the simunitions training using ordinary redguns or 95% of it using airsoft guns. The only real difference is the range and bang of the simunitions. The air soft would be great for indoor sweeps and room clearing. The simunitions is better, but remember, its all about tactics.

3.) My experience with simunitions was somthing of a let down....I expected big long shoot outs etc. Instead I was put in a painball mask and cleared a building. Moving slowly, carefully, sweat rolling down my back, intense concentration and then "verbal judo". Meaining, if we get the drop on the perp, we challange him and force a surrender. A perfect score was not even firing a shot. A shootout meant you failed in some area.

Consider this when you decide to do this.

 

[CannibalCrowley]

sturmruger

In my expierence paintballs hurt like a I will have to look into the Airmunitions thing.

If pain is the problem, then you'd be better off using airsoft. IMHO simunitions hurt worse than paintballs. Sometimes the plastic portion will even tear the skin enough to draw blood. Our mags were also a PIA to fill.

 

[mattHP]

i did some mout training with simunitions a couple years ago, and we all loved them. they're pretty accurate out to 30-40 yds, we were firing them out of specialized m16a2 uppers. if i remember correctly, they were 9mm rounds, and though the value of being able to train in such a manner with your 9mm pistol or carbine is undeniable, i really don't think i could bring myself to trust that a live 9mm round won't find its way into someone's magazine. we lost a marine in mout training a couple of years ago when a ball 5.56 was in a magazine of blanks.

 

[Bob F.]

Crap! I'm gonna be a bad guy Sunday in a Level III Tact pistol class. Bought acup today, they supposedly supply all other "necessary" body armor. Taking lots of water 'cause I'm damned sure gonna wear lots of padding!

Stay safe (Me too)
Bob

Edit: report Monday, if I'm able!

 

[Bob F.]

I survived! ACtually only took one hard hit right at center of mass (on the sternum) through a t-shirt. We also wore paintball masks and throat protectors along with cups (for the guys). I was actually hit with a Code Eagle round at about 10 feet. I'm told they have about 1/2 the velocity of Simunitions. The Sims are expensive, 65 cents a round IIRC and ship only to LE Departments! They require changing the barrell, etc (also expensive).

Almost forgot: didn't really hurt but did scrape the skin off a little; same on some other students. The Code Eagle rounds were for .38 revolvers and, I understand, easier to obtain.

We also used an 870 w/ paintballs. Wouldn't want to take a hit at close range!

VERY STRICT SAFETY PRECAUTIONS WERE FOLLOWED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Stay safe!
Bob

 

[sanchezero]

Airsoft is a fantastic FOF tool for civvies and those on a budget. If you get once of the better pistols, it should hold up to a good amount of abuse as well as duplicate your carry rig.

I'd recommend taking a structured FOF class from a good trainer so you can get an idea of how to structure the scenarios. Airsoft has a tendency to devolves into live action counterstrike pretty quickly unless you have a fairly solid agenda.