Want to be a warrior for a weekend? Then consider trying the popular sport of games using airsoft guns.

In fact, a BB gun might be considered an ancestor of today’s airsoft guns. These types of guns are used in the sport of airsoft play, which ranges from short skirmishes through organized scenarios to historical reenactments and military simulations. Participants – who must be at least 18 years old in most commercial settings — are eliminated from play when they’re hit by one of the spherical plastic pellets fired from an airsoft gun. Fans of the hobby insist that airsoft games are safe with proper caution, such as not permitting children or younger teens to participate.

Airsoft players compete according to an honor system, in which participants are expected to admit honestly when they’ve been, because airsoft pellets don’t leave marks, unlike paintballs. Airsoft pellets also are light enough that, depending on the airsoft gun’s muzzle velocity and the players’ distance between once another, a targeted player may not even feel the “hit.”

Airsoft guns trace their history to Japan in the early 1970s. It was illegal then to own a firearm, but the Japanese nonetheless were very interested in them. Manufacturers took note of this potential market and created the first spring-powered airsoft guns. The hobby was brought to North America around 1995.

A key component of games involving airsoft guns is the honor system of play. Since airsoft pellets are so light, and fired at such a slow velocity, they don’t leave a mark on skin or clothing, unlike a similar game, paintball. Consequently, a player targeted from far away might not even feel it if hit by an opponent’s projectile. However, when they do feel a hit, airsoft players are honor-bound to report it, which eliminates them from play.

From their early beginnings in Japan, airsoft guns today often are minutely detailed firearm replicas. In fact, airsoft guns have become so realistic that they must be fitted with a distinguishing bright orange tip in order to imported or sold legally in U. S. Markets.

While most airsoft gun bullets are rubber or plastic, some are metal. The non-metal pellets usually are too light to injure a player, but metal projectiles have been known to break a player’s skin if fired at close enough range. Usually, however, airsoft guns’ projectiles travel too slowly to do any damage to a player. Muzzle velocities for spring-power or compressed-gas airsoft guns vary from 30 to 260 meters per second (100 to 850 feet per second). Electric-powered airsoft guns fire pellets at 150 and 500 feet per second (60 to 150 meters per second), sometimes firing as many as 3, 000 rounds a minute. True bullet speed ranges from 370 to 1, 500 meters per second (or not as fast as Superman!).

Projectiles shot from spring-power or compressed-gas airsoft guns travel at velocities from 100 to 850 feet per second (30 to 260 meters per second). Electric-powered airsoft guns fire pellets at 150 and 500 feet per second (60 to 150 meters per second). Genuine bullets shoot out at speeds from 370 to 1, 500 meters per second.

Airsoft guns powered by electricity contain a rechargeable battery that runs an electric motor. This motor drives a piston-spring device that launches the pellets. Battery power led to the creation of automatic or semi-automatic airsoft guns that are now the most popular. These guns can achieve projectile velocities between 150 and 500 feet per second or 60 to 150 meters per second, and can fire from 100 to 3, 000 rounds per minute. Not bad for a plastic replica gun.

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