Post by Cats (Doom) on Jun 6, 2012 23:37:22 GMT -5
I may not the best person to be writing this since, while I've been playing for 6+ years, I don't usually go outside my own team/field to play. However I have dealt with many visitors to our field and many people in my community who don't know what airsoft even is, so I'm writing this very short brief for them. These are mostly the "duh questions" that airsofters are sometimes to elitist to answer; which is sad because I hear these questions ALL THE TIME, and not answering them just leads to confusion and even condemnation of airsoft by the community. If you have suggestions/comments about this post then please PM me so we can update this to be as useful to new players as possible
THIS IS NOT AIRSOFT:
THIS IS AIRSOFT:
^ About these videos ^
It's been suggested that I clear something up about the previous "THIS IS NOT ARISOFT" statement. There are many airsofters that start-out just like in the first three videos I posted and thats fine. It takes time for players to understand the airsoft community, buy gear and guns, and even learn to act like honorable gents on the field. So don't be discouraged If it looks like you in one of the top three videos, and don't let your blue-jeans and Walmart gun discourage you from coming to an airsoft event. Everyone has to start somewhere and it takes real experience to learn. The videos I posted were mostly to clear up stereotypes about how other people view airsoft.
Now that we've cleared that up it's time to move to the reason behind this introduction.
What is Airsoft?
Airsoft is a "Tactical Sport", like paintball, consisting of individuals attempting to complete an event goal by shooting at, and hitting, their opponents with airsoft "guns". Sometimes the goal is competitive and purely about how many people you can hit, sometimes its a complex series of goals requiring the cooperation of 100 or more players, the vast majority of the time the goal is to just enjoy yourself.
Why would I play airsoft?
While everyone has their own reasons, some common reasons to play airsoft include: Role-playing a soldier, taking video games to a new level of reality, enjoyment of competitive sports, testing your person athletic ability, engaging in a social activity, playing in a non-centralized sport, the guns look "cool", etc etc etc Ultimately what it boils down to is someone has tried it and thought it was fun, and thus they keep playing; so get out and try it.
What are the rules?
Airsoft is not an organized sport and therefore does not have a single set of rules; rules differ depending on the group of players you are playing with. However the most common rule is that when a player is hit they are considered "out" for a certain period of time or until a team, or player, is declared the winner of an activity. MiA is a Michigan based organization that has successfully promoted a set of standardized rules across the state, however not all groups play by or even agree with MiA's attempts to standardize rules so don't assume a group plays by MiA rules. Their rules can be read here:
miairsoft.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=r-n-r&action=display&thread=6786
What are the laws concerning airsoft in Michigan?
In Michigan it is illegal to display an airsoft gun in public, this includes state land or in a visible location on your own private property. Additionally some counties and cities have local ordinances that governing the use of airsoft guns, so you should check with your secretary of state if your not positive about the legality in your area. The orange tip on an airsoft gun may be removed or covered after purchase, however it is important to remember it is on there for your safety; many airsofters remove the tip to better simulate a real firearm but this also makes it confusing to people who don't understand that it is not a real gun. It is frequently accepted that you should always treat an airsoft gun as if it were a real firearm, and you should always treat a real firearm as if it was loaded; therefore it is recommended that you acquaint yourself with proper firearms safety. ALWAYS REMEMBER, an airsoft gun is not a "toy" and should NEVER be treated like one. Here are a few links concerning safety measures:
www.nrahq.org/education/guide.asp
miairsoft.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=r-n-r&action=display&thread=6789
I don't like guns, should I play airsoft?
Your political affiliation does not determine if you should or shouldn't play airsoft; although liking guns and shooting at people with "toy" guns doesn't hurt when your participating in an activity that's all about running around with a "toy" guns and shooting at other people.
I'm a girl, can I play airsoft?
Really this is a "duh question", of course a girl can play airsoft. Airsoft is a predominately male activity and because of this guy players have tried to form reasons why women don't play and some have even discriminated against women for playing. So if your a guy then stop saying "wow thats a girl" every-time a woman shows up on the field, and if your a woman please try and ignore the guys who can't control themselves and try and enjoy airsoft for what its worth.
Is an airsoft gun like a BB gun?
No. While a BB gun and airsoft gun sometimes share similar mechanics they should not be confused or used together. They use different types of ammunition and are designed for very different purposes. A BB gun WILL hurt you, it is designed to KILL small animals. An airsoft gun may leave a small welt or in rare cases draw blood, break teeth, blind and eye, or cause soft tissue damage at close distances(usually less than 15 feet) but are designed to be safely fired at a person (despite what any packaging says). However it is important to note that because airsoft guns can cause permanent damage to a person that they should NEVER be treated like a child's toy gun.
Does getting hit hurt?
This is a purely subjective question and spawns many different answers. An healthy adult who plays airsoft in tight buildings may tell you it is incredibly painful, while an healthy adult who plays in open fields and forests may tell you that its difficult to tell if you've even been hit. Some people like to wear tons of military gear, which acts as additional padding when you get hit; this is good in confined areas but may cause you to accidentally cheat when playing at long range events. Often people talk about how when the adrenalin from a game kicks in, you completely forget about the pain because your having so much fun. So the only answer I have to this questions is go try it for yourself and try different types of airsoft; usually the first time someone gets hit it dispels much of their irrational fear. DON'T let the fact that you can lose an eye scare you, safty is FIRST in any good airsofter's mind and situations were someone is hurt VERY RARELY occur. I've personally seen more injuries caused by people who come dressed improperly to airsoft activities than from an airsoft gun itself.
How far does an airsoft gun shoot?
All airsoft guns are different, and it is important to note that the guns you see at your local Walmart or big chain-store are not usually good representations of what an airsoft gun is and is capable of. In fact, when we talk about an "airsoft gun" we are usually excluding this category of low-quality guns entirely; some airsofters simply like to pretend they don't exist because it's toys like these that give airsoft a bad reputation as a "child's hobby". Most "real" airsoft guns shoot BBs at 300-500 feet per a second, and have an effective range of 100-300 feet.
How should I act at an airsoft activity?
Be yourself but be respectful of other people. Always follow the rules and act with good sportsmanship. Remember that you should always treat your host and the field with respect; so don't leave messes. While there are other things that could be said many of them will differ depending on who your playing with. Some groups are all about rules/laws/regulations while others actually break the law to play. It is never recommended that you break any laws, and anyone who does break the law or behave disrespectfully is only helping to add to the negative stereotypes surrounding airsoft.
What should I bring?
This is entirely up to who you are playing with. However I would always recommend boots with ankle support, bottles of water, thick clothing (Jeans) that provides full body protection, and proper fitting Z87.1 goggles or paintball mask.
I want to buy a gun, what should I buy?
Do not buy a gun from Walmart; most airsofters will clearly point-out that places like Walmart sell guns that are often made of clear-plastics and fire at only ~200fps, these should always be avoided if you are seriously looking at playing airsoft. The best way to find a gun is RESEARCH! There are many many articles online about the quality of airsoft guns from well known manufactures. Ask the people you play with about what you should buy, and try their guns to get an idea of what you might expect. Finally there are huge online communities for airsoft players to meet and these very ask questions. Often all it takes is for one or two people to buy a "quality" airsoft gun and next thing you know their friends or family may want one too!
If you have questions about what gun you should buy then you can always post in the MichNAA Gun Talk section here: michnaa.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=guntalk but you should always do as much RESEARCH as you can first, this usually includes actually playing airsoft before running out to buy a gun.
What's the diffrence between airsoft and paintball?
Often you'll hear "it's like paintball", in fact I used this explanation earlier, but it's not entirely true. This is simply an easy way to explain to people what airsoft is but there are key differences between the two sports. So here's a few reasons why you would play airsoft instead of paintball: 1) No messy paint 2) More emphasis on team play and objectives 3) Less competitive, there's lots of competition in airsoft but professional paintball has organized leagues with cash prizes which lead to more competition and 4) Cheaper start-up costs, just to name a few.
I still have questions
Then browse the rest of MichNAA, ask questions of our members, go to other airsoft sites, and ask airsofters in your community. One popular place to ask questions is here: miairsoft.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=newb
Further Reading
A Quick Review
Common terminology used in airsoft and on airsoft forums
Sometimes unfamiliar terms can turn people away from something; we don't want you feeling like an old person trying to read a text message so the following terms will greatly aid you in your airsoft experiences.
FPS
FPS denotes the Feet Per a Second that the BB travels. This is usually used when talking about how fast a particular gun shoots or what a game's limitations are on how fast your gun can shoot. FPS should never be the main reason you buy a gun; it does not tell you how far or accurately a gun will shoot, it does not tell you the quality of a gun, the FPS on retail sites are frequently wrong, the FPS of a gun will change as it ages, many gun factors influence the FPS and can be changed, and most importantly the FPS will changed depending on what weight of BBs you are shooting. Most games will limit guns to below 330, 400, or 500 FPS since it is generally accepted that a gun firing to fast is a big danger to players. In comparison a BB gun generally shoots at a minimum of 700FPS or higher. In real airsoft situations FPS is measured using the standard .20gram BB, however gun boxes often display FPS measured using the lighter .12gram BB to make it appear to shoot faster; the .12g BB is almost never used in an airsoft game and is used purely for very low quality guns.
"Hop-Up"
Hop-up is one of the defining features of an airsoft gun. It is a small rubber bump in the barrel of an airsoft gun that rubs against the BBs as they are fired; this makes the BB backspin and provides it with significantly increased range. Cheap guns will advertise this on the packaging like it is something to boast about, when really this is a very standard feature.
"Hi-Cap"
Hi-Cap, meaning "High Capacity", describes a part of the gun that holds the BBs and has a manual or automatic winding mechanism; it feeds the BBs into the firing part of the gun. Hi-caps usually allow an airsoft gun to hold between 120-5000 BBs at one time and may not be favored by all airsoft players. Some alternatives to hi-caps are mid-caps and low-caps.
"Spring" or "Springger"
This denotes a gun that is powered purely by the user manually pulling back the spring that causes the gun to fire before each trigger pull. You pull the spring back, fire a BB, and repeat the process over again. This is sometimes used in a derogatory fashion because spring guns are the simplest and most common types of guns sold; however in airsoft only a limited few spring guns are used when playing airsoft, they are mostly limited to use as display pieces or experienced players using spring shotguns or spring sniper rifles.
AEG
Automatic Electric Guns, or AEGs, are the most common airsoft guns used when playing airsoft. Like spring guns they are powered by a spring however, rather than being manually pulled back by the user each shot, a battery and motor does the labor for you. AEGs come in a huge range of quality and prices, some start at as low as $15 while others will set you back well over $1,000. Choosing the right AEG for your play style, body style, price range, field requirements, and other personal preferences make this an important part of your entry into airsoft.
GBB
Gas Blow Back guns are guns powered by some sort of compressed gas and operate in a variety of different ways; popular types are A134 "green gas", CO2, or even Propane. GBB guns represent the highest level of realism you can ask for in an airsoft gun; however they usually need more maintenance than an AEG or Springger, require you to fill the gas reservoir, and have other various drawbacks. Because of all these facts most GGBs are pistols and not frequently used by people just starting airsoft.
"Real Steel"
No surprise that people who like airsoft guns likely have an interest in real guns, however the two interests must never mix for the sake of confusion and safety concerns. Because of this you will frequently hear real guns or gun parts referred to as "real steel" by airsofters. This prevents confusion when discussing the quality of guns/airsoft guns, what guns/airsoft guns someone owns, parts (since almost all gun/airsoft gun parts are not interchangable), etc. Sometimes camouflage and other accessories will also be denoted as real steel, this is because many airsoft accessories are lower-quality items produced by Chinese manufactures when compared to their American produced military counterparts. This is not exactly a bad thing, since it allows more players to look like military personnel without having to shell out the high cost to do so; more players in military garb adds a greater depth of realism to the game for all players involved.
TM, JG, A&K, WE, and other various abbreviations
You will frequently see something like one of the above abbreviations used when talking about an airsoft gun. This denotes the manufacturer of that particular product and is important since there is a large variety of manufactures that produce very different quality products. It is likely one of the key things you will be looking at when buying/trading an airsoft gun.
THIS IS NOT AIRSOFT:
THIS IS AIRSOFT:
^ About these videos ^
It's been suggested that I clear something up about the previous "THIS IS NOT ARISOFT" statement. There are many airsofters that start-out just like in the first three videos I posted and thats fine. It takes time for players to understand the airsoft community, buy gear and guns, and even learn to act like honorable gents on the field. So don't be discouraged If it looks like you in one of the top three videos, and don't let your blue-jeans and Walmart gun discourage you from coming to an airsoft event. Everyone has to start somewhere and it takes real experience to learn. The videos I posted were mostly to clear up stereotypes about how other people view airsoft.
Now that we've cleared that up it's time to move to the reason behind this introduction.
What is Airsoft?
Airsoft is a "Tactical Sport", like paintball, consisting of individuals attempting to complete an event goal by shooting at, and hitting, their opponents with airsoft "guns". Sometimes the goal is competitive and purely about how many people you can hit, sometimes its a complex series of goals requiring the cooperation of 100 or more players, the vast majority of the time the goal is to just enjoy yourself.
Why would I play airsoft?
While everyone has their own reasons, some common reasons to play airsoft include: Role-playing a soldier, taking video games to a new level of reality, enjoyment of competitive sports, testing your person athletic ability, engaging in a social activity, playing in a non-centralized sport, the guns look "cool", etc etc etc Ultimately what it boils down to is someone has tried it and thought it was fun, and thus they keep playing; so get out and try it.
What are the rules?
Airsoft is not an organized sport and therefore does not have a single set of rules; rules differ depending on the group of players you are playing with. However the most common rule is that when a player is hit they are considered "out" for a certain period of time or until a team, or player, is declared the winner of an activity. MiA is a Michigan based organization that has successfully promoted a set of standardized rules across the state, however not all groups play by or even agree with MiA's attempts to standardize rules so don't assume a group plays by MiA rules. Their rules can be read here:
miairsoft.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=r-n-r&action=display&thread=6786
What are the laws concerning airsoft in Michigan?
In Michigan it is illegal to display an airsoft gun in public, this includes state land or in a visible location on your own private property. Additionally some counties and cities have local ordinances that governing the use of airsoft guns, so you should check with your secretary of state if your not positive about the legality in your area. The orange tip on an airsoft gun may be removed or covered after purchase, however it is important to remember it is on there for your safety; many airsofters remove the tip to better simulate a real firearm but this also makes it confusing to people who don't understand that it is not a real gun. It is frequently accepted that you should always treat an airsoft gun as if it were a real firearm, and you should always treat a real firearm as if it was loaded; therefore it is recommended that you acquaint yourself with proper firearms safety. ALWAYS REMEMBER, an airsoft gun is not a "toy" and should NEVER be treated like one. Here are a few links concerning safety measures:
www.nrahq.org/education/guide.asp
miairsoft.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=r-n-r&action=display&thread=6789
I don't like guns, should I play airsoft?
Your political affiliation does not determine if you should or shouldn't play airsoft; although liking guns and shooting at people with "toy" guns doesn't hurt when your participating in an activity that's all about running around with a "toy" guns and shooting at other people.
I'm a girl, can I play airsoft?
Really this is a "duh question", of course a girl can play airsoft. Airsoft is a predominately male activity and because of this guy players have tried to form reasons why women don't play and some have even discriminated against women for playing. So if your a guy then stop saying "wow thats a girl" every-time a woman shows up on the field, and if your a woman please try and ignore the guys who can't control themselves and try and enjoy airsoft for what its worth.
Is an airsoft gun like a BB gun?
No. While a BB gun and airsoft gun sometimes share similar mechanics they should not be confused or used together. They use different types of ammunition and are designed for very different purposes. A BB gun WILL hurt you, it is designed to KILL small animals. An airsoft gun may leave a small welt or in rare cases draw blood, break teeth, blind and eye, or cause soft tissue damage at close distances(usually less than 15 feet) but are designed to be safely fired at a person (despite what any packaging says). However it is important to note that because airsoft guns can cause permanent damage to a person that they should NEVER be treated like a child's toy gun.
Does getting hit hurt?
This is a purely subjective question and spawns many different answers. An healthy adult who plays airsoft in tight buildings may tell you it is incredibly painful, while an healthy adult who plays in open fields and forests may tell you that its difficult to tell if you've even been hit. Some people like to wear tons of military gear, which acts as additional padding when you get hit; this is good in confined areas but may cause you to accidentally cheat when playing at long range events. Often people talk about how when the adrenalin from a game kicks in, you completely forget about the pain because your having so much fun. So the only answer I have to this questions is go try it for yourself and try different types of airsoft; usually the first time someone gets hit it dispels much of their irrational fear. DON'T let the fact that you can lose an eye scare you, safty is FIRST in any good airsofter's mind and situations were someone is hurt VERY RARELY occur. I've personally seen more injuries caused by people who come dressed improperly to airsoft activities than from an airsoft gun itself.
How far does an airsoft gun shoot?
All airsoft guns are different, and it is important to note that the guns you see at your local Walmart or big chain-store are not usually good representations of what an airsoft gun is and is capable of. In fact, when we talk about an "airsoft gun" we are usually excluding this category of low-quality guns entirely; some airsofters simply like to pretend they don't exist because it's toys like these that give airsoft a bad reputation as a "child's hobby". Most "real" airsoft guns shoot BBs at 300-500 feet per a second, and have an effective range of 100-300 feet.
How should I act at an airsoft activity?
Be yourself but be respectful of other people. Always follow the rules and act with good sportsmanship. Remember that you should always treat your host and the field with respect; so don't leave messes. While there are other things that could be said many of them will differ depending on who your playing with. Some groups are all about rules/laws/regulations while others actually break the law to play. It is never recommended that you break any laws, and anyone who does break the law or behave disrespectfully is only helping to add to the negative stereotypes surrounding airsoft.
What should I bring?
This is entirely up to who you are playing with. However I would always recommend boots with ankle support, bottles of water, thick clothing (Jeans) that provides full body protection, and proper fitting Z87.1 goggles or paintball mask.
I want to buy a gun, what should I buy?
Do not buy a gun from Walmart; most airsofters will clearly point-out that places like Walmart sell guns that are often made of clear-plastics and fire at only ~200fps, these should always be avoided if you are seriously looking at playing airsoft. The best way to find a gun is RESEARCH! There are many many articles online about the quality of airsoft guns from well known manufactures. Ask the people you play with about what you should buy, and try their guns to get an idea of what you might expect. Finally there are huge online communities for airsoft players to meet and these very ask questions. Often all it takes is for one or two people to buy a "quality" airsoft gun and next thing you know their friends or family may want one too!
If you have questions about what gun you should buy then you can always post in the MichNAA Gun Talk section here: michnaa.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=guntalk but you should always do as much RESEARCH as you can first, this usually includes actually playing airsoft before running out to buy a gun.
What's the diffrence between airsoft and paintball?
Often you'll hear "it's like paintball", in fact I used this explanation earlier, but it's not entirely true. This is simply an easy way to explain to people what airsoft is but there are key differences between the two sports. So here's a few reasons why you would play airsoft instead of paintball: 1) No messy paint 2) More emphasis on team play and objectives 3) Less competitive, there's lots of competition in airsoft but professional paintball has organized leagues with cash prizes which lead to more competition and 4) Cheaper start-up costs, just to name a few.
I still have questions
Then browse the rest of MichNAA, ask questions of our members, go to other airsoft sites, and ask airsofters in your community. One popular place to ask questions is here: miairsoft.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=newb
Further Reading
- A resource guide for noobs looking to get into airsoft: miairsoft.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=newb&action=display&thread=18691
- A very simple guide to camo patterns: michnaa.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=infoboard&action=display&thread=114
- An outdated guide to airsoft gun brands: miairsoft.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=newb&action=display&thread=7937
- A great guide to airsoft guns and accessories: miairsoft.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=newb&action=display&thread=18703
A Quick Review
- Airsoft is about having fun and shooting at each other
- Anyone can play airsoft for any number of reasons
- There is no one set of Airsoft rules
- Airsoft guns are not "toys" and should be treated like real guns
- Safety is always #1
- Obey all Laws, otherwise it will end bad for you and reflect poorly on all airsofters
- In Michigan it is illegal to display an airsoft gun in public
- Always be respectful of other players and their property
- Research is your best friend, always research a question first
- If I can't find my answer through research, then ask people who play airsoft; such as the members of MichNAA or MiA
Common terminology used in airsoft and on airsoft forums
Sometimes unfamiliar terms can turn people away from something; we don't want you feeling like an old person trying to read a text message so the following terms will greatly aid you in your airsoft experiences.
FPS
FPS denotes the Feet Per a Second that the BB travels. This is usually used when talking about how fast a particular gun shoots or what a game's limitations are on how fast your gun can shoot. FPS should never be the main reason you buy a gun; it does not tell you how far or accurately a gun will shoot, it does not tell you the quality of a gun, the FPS on retail sites are frequently wrong, the FPS of a gun will change as it ages, many gun factors influence the FPS and can be changed, and most importantly the FPS will changed depending on what weight of BBs you are shooting. Most games will limit guns to below 330, 400, or 500 FPS since it is generally accepted that a gun firing to fast is a big danger to players. In comparison a BB gun generally shoots at a minimum of 700FPS or higher. In real airsoft situations FPS is measured using the standard .20gram BB, however gun boxes often display FPS measured using the lighter .12gram BB to make it appear to shoot faster; the .12g BB is almost never used in an airsoft game and is used purely for very low quality guns.
"Hop-Up"
Hop-up is one of the defining features of an airsoft gun. It is a small rubber bump in the barrel of an airsoft gun that rubs against the BBs as they are fired; this makes the BB backspin and provides it with significantly increased range. Cheap guns will advertise this on the packaging like it is something to boast about, when really this is a very standard feature.
"Hi-Cap"
Hi-Cap, meaning "High Capacity", describes a part of the gun that holds the BBs and has a manual or automatic winding mechanism; it feeds the BBs into the firing part of the gun. Hi-caps usually allow an airsoft gun to hold between 120-5000 BBs at one time and may not be favored by all airsoft players. Some alternatives to hi-caps are mid-caps and low-caps.
"Spring" or "Springger"
This denotes a gun that is powered purely by the user manually pulling back the spring that causes the gun to fire before each trigger pull. You pull the spring back, fire a BB, and repeat the process over again. This is sometimes used in a derogatory fashion because spring guns are the simplest and most common types of guns sold; however in airsoft only a limited few spring guns are used when playing airsoft, they are mostly limited to use as display pieces or experienced players using spring shotguns or spring sniper rifles.
AEG
Automatic Electric Guns, or AEGs, are the most common airsoft guns used when playing airsoft. Like spring guns they are powered by a spring however, rather than being manually pulled back by the user each shot, a battery and motor does the labor for you. AEGs come in a huge range of quality and prices, some start at as low as $15 while others will set you back well over $1,000. Choosing the right AEG for your play style, body style, price range, field requirements, and other personal preferences make this an important part of your entry into airsoft.
GBB
Gas Blow Back guns are guns powered by some sort of compressed gas and operate in a variety of different ways; popular types are A134 "green gas", CO2, or even Propane. GBB guns represent the highest level of realism you can ask for in an airsoft gun; however they usually need more maintenance than an AEG or Springger, require you to fill the gas reservoir, and have other various drawbacks. Because of all these facts most GGBs are pistols and not frequently used by people just starting airsoft.
"Real Steel"
No surprise that people who like airsoft guns likely have an interest in real guns, however the two interests must never mix for the sake of confusion and safety concerns. Because of this you will frequently hear real guns or gun parts referred to as "real steel" by airsofters. This prevents confusion when discussing the quality of guns/airsoft guns, what guns/airsoft guns someone owns, parts (since almost all gun/airsoft gun parts are not interchangable), etc. Sometimes camouflage and other accessories will also be denoted as real steel, this is because many airsoft accessories are lower-quality items produced by Chinese manufactures when compared to their American produced military counterparts. This is not exactly a bad thing, since it allows more players to look like military personnel without having to shell out the high cost to do so; more players in military garb adds a greater depth of realism to the game for all players involved.
TM, JG, A&K, WE, and other various abbreviations
You will frequently see something like one of the above abbreviations used when talking about an airsoft gun. This denotes the manufacturer of that particular product and is important since there is a large variety of manufactures that produce very different quality products. It is likely one of the key things you will be looking at when buying/trading an airsoft gun.