Airsoft choices for practice.

[carpediem]

Hi all,

So I'm searching and see that some people suggest that airsoft can be helpful in practicing certain areas of firearm practice. Basic safety/handling/manipulation/etc.

Although not a substitute by any means for real practice, this would be convenient for me when I can't make it to the range.

What, if any, airsoft longarms/handguns would you recommend as being realistic enough to be a decent training/practice aid.

 

[Odd Job]

I have a KJ Works SIG P226R replica. It is all metal and has a proper slide-lock, decocker, DA/SA trigger and is gas-blow back. Slide locks back on empty and magazine changes are as you would expect. It is reasonably accurate at short ranges, but you cannot adjust the sights. It takes a small amount of fiddling to get the gun working sweetly and reliably. If you get one of these I will give you all the tips I found out about this gun.

There are other options: you could buy a Tokyo Marui SIG P226R replica (which is plastic). This is much more reliable than the KJW version. There are 3rd party metal kits for that, but then you have to strip the whole thing down. In the end you will pay more than a stock KJW too.

 

[hso]

carp,

What do you mean? A good quality airsoft that replicates the weight and function of what you've got are the price of a good one day defensive handgun course. Perhaps that would be the best thing to spend money on instead.

If you haven't learned to handle a defensive weapon properly then an airsoft may only engrain bad habits.

Practice does not make perfect. Perfect practices makes perfect.

 

[carpediem]

Thanks odd job (cool name btw). I'll look into that.

Hso - Agree with you about the practice. My aim is to practice techniques after I've had proper instruction to further refine motor skills and/or proficiency. I'm talking really basic, fundamental stuff here (like handling/safety), not tactical what-not. I'm open, however, to any suggestions about what might be better (aside from taking multiple lessons or coaching, which I can neither afford nor attend).

However, I'd also like to start researching airsoft guns now so that when the time comes I'll know what to look for and can keep an eye out for deals. FYI, I'm 18 and will not be able to purchase a handgun for several years, so what I've got is moot. I'm looking into firearms training as well. Any recommendations for a good intro course for handgun safety, manipulation, and shooting? (Has to be in SoCal and allow <21 participants who don't already own a handgun).

It seems a little tough finding something w/in these parameters, most classes I've looked into are for CCW holders.

Thanks

 

[The Good]

i think airsoft practice would be good in learning how pull the trigger properly.. as in avoiding shooting down to the left, up to the right, etc.

btw, has anyone tried airsoft paintballs?

 

[Phenom]

Paintball bbs aren't a very good idea unless you're going to use them in spring guns.

 

[hso]

The Good,

We should keep in mind that airsoft triggers rarely have the feel of the equivalent firearm trigger. Much of what goes wrong with trigger pull is the anticipation/reaction to the report and recoil that shooters react negatively to.

I guess the advantage to airsoft in practicing trigger pull would be in shooting at close range to point of aim and making sure that the sight picture is maintained. Doing this with airsoft would be cheaper than doing it with even .22 out of a dedicated .22 upper on your handgun. After a thousand perfect repetitions you would have conditioned yourself to not flinch. Of course dry firing would produce the same results, but without the reinforcing enjoyment of actually hitting a target. BB guns with a reasonble pellet/BB trap would serve as well.



I'm very skeptical of using airsoft as a replacement for live fire on the range. OTOH, I do think it's a great force on force alternative to Simunition, but only if coupled with proper training.

 

[Zero_DgZ]

Paintball bbs aren't a very good idea unless you're going to use them in spring guns.

Uuuurgh! Paintball BB's BAD!

They tend to jam up in the works of semiautomatic airsoft guns (especially gas guns) and then break, filling the internals of your gun with gook. They're alright in single shot spring guns, but most of those don't have the power to throw the paintballs hard enough to break them... You see where the hole in the bucket is, here.

As far as handguns go there are plenty of gas powered airsoft guns that would fit your bill. Anything "gas blowback" is generally a pretty good operational replica, though the quality obviously varies by brand, model, price point, and so forth.

Most airsoft long arms are either spring or electrically powered (by means of an R/C car style battery) and aren't really realistic training aids. There are a few gas blowback rifles, but they are rare and usually fairly expensive.

There are also airsoft 'classics,' which are CO2 powered rifles that were popular in Japan before legislation technically outlawed them; They aren't manufactured anymore but there is still a thriving market for them in places other than Japan (e.g. right here) where CO2 powered playthings are perfectly legal. Classics are powerful, usually quite realistic in heft and operation, but expensive (they don't make them anymore) and tricky to find parts for if they break (again, they don't make them anymore...) so probably not a good choice for a beginner.

However, there are a few companies striving to bring back the concept with updated models in the USA. Mad Bull Airsoft makes a conversion kit for Tokyo Marui (and their oodles of Taiwanese and Chinese knockoffs) M-16's that replaces the gearbox and provides CO2 blowback operation with real chambering, a moving bolt, &c. They also contracted Systema (I think?) to build the shell of a gun to install the thing in if you don't have an M-16 already, and offer a complete gun to buy with this setup.

Real Action Paintball also make an updated CO2 powered AR-15/M-16 (also an M4, I think) that not only has an accurate working bolt mechanism with blowback but also ejects spent shells. It's spendy, but it's reportedly built like a tank and functions nicely.

The curiously named Youth Engineering (they're China based, I think, and don't seem to have a website) are also rumored to be reviving the old Escort gas system from the Classics days, updating it, and sticking it in an MP5 shell. Nobody's seen any product yet, but it's "coming soon."

 

[Thefabulousfink]

The best use for Airsoft training that I have seen/done is practicing weapon retention/disarm tecniques. Decent quality spring pistols can be had for under $50 and function very similarly to their real counterparts. The trigger pulls is different, but you will know when some one pulls it in a struggle.

I have practiced some of this with my LEO and martial artist friend and it is fun. The Airsoft is a close enough duplicate that you can practice jamming trigger fingers, blocking firing pins, and taking the slide out of battery. We usually practiced with the gun empty so we didn't have to worry about taking a bb to the face.