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Useful Information About Airsoft Guns

By Anthony Carter
Nov 7, 2009
Airsoft is now a very popular pastime for both young and old Americans. Thousands of people enjoy playing in these realistic combat simulations every week. Most airsoft guns and pistols are realistic looking replicas of well known fire arms. They are classified depending upon the type of mechanism that they use to fire the pellets.

The firing mechanisms can either be spring, gas, or electric powered. Airsoft guns can have various characteristics which give different degrees of performance. This includes their range, battery life, accuracy, capacity, weight, and size. The earliest forms only used the spring mechanism, then during the early 1990s gas powered variations were developed which are today referred to as classic airsoft guns. These used what is known as the BV (Bullet Valve) system that directed a flow of gas that powered the firing mechanism. This gas came from an external tank of compressed air or carbon dioxide.

Automatic electric guns (AEGs) are the latest form of airsoft guns. They are fairly popular with certain players of the game. Their firing mechanism works by a small amount of air being displaced through the power given by the rechargeable batteries. Even though these are a more modern invention, some individuals still prefer airsoft guns with gas mechanisms as they claim that they have a more realistic feel to them.

Gas powered airsoft pistols often use propane gas. It is now possible to acquire magazines for pistols that have a built in gas cylinder with adequate capacity to fire the pellets contained in the magazine. Many players enjoy the realism this creates as it is a more similar feel to an actual pistol.

Originally airsoft guns were almost completely made out of plastic with just a couple of metal pieces internally. Nowadays they will have internal and external metal components. The weight of a typical airsoft pistol or gun is not so heavy when compared to an actual gun. To add another realistic dimension you can now get hold of airsoft guns that have had extra weight added to provide a greater feeling of reality.

There is an assortment of magazines available for different types of airsoft guns. Pistols often have only a small capacity of up to 30 pellets, but it is possible to get hold of hi-cap magazines that may contain as many as 50.

Automatic electric guns have magazines that are sold in three different capacities - low, mid, and high. Low capacity means between thirty to eighty pellets, mid range have eighty to one hundred and fifty, whereas high capacity AEG magazines can hold up to five hundred or even more pellets.

Many people may also use replica grenade launchers and mines when taking part in airsoft combat games. These are mostly powered by compressed gas and have been designed to appear very lifelike. A grenade launcher can hold up to 300 projectiles. The airsoft mines mostly have a pyrotechnic effect in so much as they are likely not to contain pellets but do release a large amount of smoke.

There are also anti-tank weapons available but due to their weight and cost they are not so common.
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