Just curious if any of you have any experience with these. I have a younger cousin that is very interested in getting one, and I told him that I would check the board and see what your experience has been with them.

Thanks!
Chopperdave

mine was a blast to play with.just make sure you get lots of bbs and dont show it to the younger kids my 5 year old nephew now owns it

Are you looking at the spring powered ones or the electric, pistol or long gun? There are also some co2 pistol ones that use PC duster type cans to fill.  These diffences make a huge diffence in cost.  i.e.  a spring powered pistol is $18-25 and a spring powered mp5 is about $50.  On the other end of things is a fully tricked out fully auto m16 or mp5 for about $400-500.  The gas-blowback pistols are about $100.  I have a mini (1/3rd scale) electric Mp5 that I got for about $20.  It is fun to mess with but not really that impressive.  Also had a spring powered Desert Eagle but it broke.

Tell him to get a Tokyo Marui Airsoft electric gun, if he is serious about getting into airsoft as a sport.
he should also check out
[url]www.airsoftzone.com[/url] for good information on getting started

Its sortof a gay sport now though, before it was mainly upperclass people and mainly asians playing, but now the whitetrash paintball crowd is catching on.

I have a replica Beretta M92 and it is real nice. I had several airsofts as a kid (In the 1980s, but at some time or the other they made it 18+ to buy. That stinks since me and my friends used to shoot 'em at each other. They stung but nobody cared. We had fun. Now fun isn't PC anymore. In some states you have to technically be 16 to possess w/o a parent present. I'm pretty sure that Kalifornia/NYC/CT and a few others ban many airsofts because they are too realistic.

I'm looking at the battery-powered ones that 747 imports have, spec. the MP5. I have an HK 94 and my cousin LOVES it. I told him about the Airsoft stuff and he went nuts. He's 14 and a pretty good kid. Has his own 10/22, and is REALLY careful about safety, etc. Kid was out with me last fall and I let him take down a rabbit that ran right in front of us. Kid balled for a week! Loves guns and safety, hates to kill.....

Here is what one of the members here had to say the last time this was asked.

Author Topic:   Airsoft: all of your questions answered
     SEAL
     Junior Member  posted 12-31-2000 03:40              


     Hey all, My name is Scott and I am fairly new to these forums. I am
     however a veteran airsoft player, and when I ran a seach for airsoft, I
     found that some here know about it, own some, or are curious about them.
     Please note I am not a retailer, I am just trying to help you all out by
     clearing a few clouds.
     Airsoft rundown- Airsoft originated in Japan back in the 80's due to
     restrictions on guns in Japan. The result is VERY realistic replicas that
     often times cannot be distinguished from their "real steel" counterparts,
     until the trigger is pulled.
     AEG's (automatic electric guns)- these are airsoft guns which use a
     battery to power a motor, which turns 3 gears, which draws back a piston
     and lets it go, letting the air gathered in the cyliner expel a 6mm
     plastic projectile forward, at apx 285 fps (of course, this is for a stock
     gun) and at a fully automatic rate of fire, from 700-1000+ rounds per
     minute. However, costly modifications and the addition of a systema
     (aftermarket company) or PDI (aftermarket company) main spring such as the
     M160 or 300% spring can make these guns shoot at 500-550 fps, yet many
     airsofters feel that 450 fps is the maximum acceptable velocity. The main
     manufacturers of AEG's are Tokyo Marui (which is favored), TOP, and the
     recent additions of Airsoft Elite and Classic Army. Older manufacturers
     are Toytec, JAC, and a few others, whom no longer manufacture guns. Here
     is a list of the Tokyo Marui AEG's
     M-16 series: A1, A2, VN model, CAR 15, XM177E2, M4A1/RIS model, SR-16
     MP5 Series- A4, A5, SD5, SD6, K, PDW
     G3 Series- A3, A4, SG-1, MC51, PSG1**semi auto only
     Others- M1A1, SIG 550/551, FAMAS F1/SV, Steyr AUG military/civlian,
     AK47/s, UZI
     Other Manufacturers of AEG's make guns such as; 4 versions of the M-60,
     MP5 series, M134 vulcan.
     New guns to be released- FN P90, FN M249
     Please note that the airsoft Vulcan does infact fire at 6000 rounds per
     MINUTE, and there is only one known owner in the US
     AEG accessories/upgrades. Upgrades are a pain to talk about so I'll make
     it short. Unless you upgrade all the internals, your gun will not be as
     reliable/durable as it was stock. Of course, I am talking about if you
     "upgrade" the parts that affect velcocity, such as the main spring.
     Upgrading the spring and doing nothing else has the potential to kill your
     gun. Basically, what I am saying is dont buy one of these and put in the
     biggest spring available. IF your gun can even fire with it in, the first
     few shots will crack open your whole gun***
     Systema and PDI are the 2 main upgrade part manufacturers. Of course,
     accessories for your AEG's can be found at most gunstores like scopes,
     lasers, carry handles (I have a bushmaster carry handle on my M4) and
     stuff like that. Specialty airsoft parts such as the tracer unit
     (explained below) autoloaders, and suppressors can be had at most airsoft
     retailers.



cont

cont

GBB (gas blow-back): These guns are powered by HFC134a (1,1,1,2
     tetrafluoroethane), or HFC22 chlorodifuloromethane with silicon additive
     for lubrication purposes, the latter being a stronger gas. GBB's are the
     most fun to shoot, and the most common form of GBB's is in the automatic
     pistol form. These guns work EXACTLY like real steel pistols. (gas and
     BB's placed in real size magazine, loaded into gun in the handle, slide
     racked, gas pushes BB forward, slide back and does produce recoil, hammer
     re-cocked/next round loaded, repeat until empty, slide locks back via
     slide lock lever) There are lesser expensive GBB's out there which are not
     as exact as some of the more high end pistols, which if ordered out of
     country run from 100-300 dollars. The most popular GBB makers are Western
     Arms, KSC, Maruzen, Tanaka, and Tokyo Marui. These guns come in the
     following forms: Beretta- M9, 92, centurion, brigadeir, 92 INOX, 92 elite,
     84, Cougar, 93r (full auto)
     Colt- 1911A1, 1991 black or silver, MKIV series 70 and 80
     Walther- P99 (suppressor avail) PPk (suppressor avail)
     H&K- MK23 SOCOM, USP .40, USP tacical, USP custom
     Strayer Voight INFINITY- 6", 5", 4.3", 3.9" in black or silver
     SIG- 220, 226, 228, 229, 230, 232, sigro 2340
     GLOCK- 17, 26, 18c (full auto)
     Other- DE .50, CZ 75, browning HP, etc
     Tracer Unit- This item looks like a suppressor, and basically has a light
     in it which is activated when a BB passes through the clear tube. This
     does not suppress the gun, or affect velocity or accuracy, but it does
     provide a nice little "muzzle flash" or, when using special green tracer
     BB's, will give an AWESOME starwars affect...but it does give away your
     position.
     Spring Powered- inexpensive, not very powerful, nuff said. UNLESS you get
     a Tokyo Marui Spring Shotgun, Benelli M3 or SPAS 12, which fire 3 BB's per
     trigger pull and are very powerful and fun to shoot. And then the hi-end
     single shot sniper rifles...but those are a whole new topic.
     Those are the main types of airsoft guns. Basically, AEG's are all
     automatic assault rifles and SMG's, and *most* GBB's are pistols, and the
     only really fun springers are sniper rifles and shotguns.
     Airsoft guns are basically used for inexpensive yet very fun plinking,
     tactical training, and skirmishing in a similar fashion to paintball
     (which we laugh at when we all see orange and purple colored guns) yet we
     play by an honor system, because airsoft BB's leave no visible markings
     behind. Yet when skirmishing, we take all the needed precautions to
     prevent injury- eye and face protection, which is MANDANTORY. And because
     we play with such realistic replicas, we almost always carry our gear and
     spare magazines with us the same way that the SEAL's or the Rangers do.
     Many of the hardcore airsofters invest alot of time and money into thier
     gear and guns, for example, here is my total loadout:

cont


AEG- Knights Armament SR-16 M4. Base gun- TM M4A1. Additions- Systema KAC
     metal body, bushmaster carry handle, tight bore barrel, all systema
     upgraded internals, aimshot 6300 laser sight, 4x20 scope, dual magazine
     clamp, retractable 4 position stock. Soon to add replica M203 (fires like
     spas 12/M3), surefire replica M500A tactical light, C-more flat-top
     tactical sight.
     GBB- TM M9 (full metal, on order), USP .40 with threaded barrel and
     suppressor.
     Gear- Woodland BDU set, Eagle Industries tactical vest and thigh
     holster/pistol belt combo, M12 holster, Balaclava, ESS CBCAM goggles,
     ALTAMA combat boots, BDU cap, Motorola 250/w headset, camelbak hydration
     system, 6 spare magazines for the M4, 2 for the M9, 1 for the USP, pistol
     lanyard for M9, nomex flight gloves.
     Can you say special forces? Cause when you play airsoft, you sure can feel
     like a SEAL, or SWAT, or whatever youre into.
     LAWS- all airsoft guns come with orange paint on the muzzles, and with
     trademarks puttied over. Yes, these guns are so exact that they even have
     identical trademarks on them, liscensed of course in japan. However, it is
     possible to reverse them both, which is not a good idea because it is a
     felony to do so. (nobody does it...really)
     Basically, airsoft is a great sport, and I hope this answers some
     questions for you all.
     US retailers that I recommend:
     www.airsoftdepot.net www.midwestairsoft.com
     Hong Kong retailers I recommend:
     www.redwolfairsoft.com www.dentrinity.com www.wargameclub.com
     These are all legit retailers with the best prices around, and with great
     customer service and product selection, and they are the best around.
     Have fun, and please do it safely.
     Take care all,
     Scott
     SEAL
     Junior Member  posted 12-31-2000 03:47              

     also, I forgot to add, great sources of airsoft information can be had at
     the site and forums at www.airsoftzone.com
     You can register as a member there for free and you can view a forum that
     has over 30,000 useful posts. However, if you do, please search for your
     questions first, or your post will be deleted. Many new people come and
     post questions that have been answered a few times, so if you go, please
     be forwarned.
     The best forum for information that is not as widely used anymore (server
     problems so we couldnt post, and everyone moved to airsoftzone, but then
     it got fixed but nobody posts there anymore) is none other than
     www.airsoftguns.com This has TONS of information on it, and will be very
     helpful to you all.
     BTW, my alias at all of these forums is "SEAL" so you can identify me
     should you go. If you have any questions for me, please send them to
     [email protected] and I will reply ASAP
                   


       

Rip Meyer-
Jeez, thanks for the info, I appreciate you going the extra mile and digging that up for me! I knew someone here would know about them. Thanks to everyone else also, If anybody has any personal thoughts, please let them rip!!

Chopperdave