Choosing an Airsoft Gun
By Justin Kander
Choosing an airsoft gun that will fit your needs and budget can be difficult. Obviously, the more expensive a gun is, the more powerful it is. Also, guns of a higher caliber (no pun intended) have more capabilities, but you may not need lots of options, depending on what you want to do with your gun.Perhaps you just want to shoot cans; something like would not require much, at most a cheap spring pistol.On the other end of the spectrum, if you want to participate in airsoft games with other people, a gas or electric rifle is basically the only option (and electric pistols would be good sidearms).
People usually make the decision on what gun to buy based on price, and not so much on purpose.Price is crucial, and that is why it’s important to look beyond the upfront cost and see ongoing costs as well.For example, guns with high RPMs (rounds per minute) will exhaust BBs fast, meaning you will have to continually buy BBs to replace the ones you are using.Therefore, if you really just want to shoot cans or other targets, an expensive gas rifle would not be right for you.Also, if you buy a small gas pistol that can only hold a small gas canister, you will need to keep refilling the canisters frequently.If you do choose to get a small gas pistol, a smart thing to do is buy a lot of gas canisters, so you reduce the need to constantly make trips to your local gas provider.
Gas pistols can be used really for anything, as you can usually select between automatic and semi-automatic functionality.While they can be used for airsoft games, it is not wise, as their magazines do not hold as many rounds as a rifle and the FPS (feet per second) is lower as well.However, they are more fun to use than electric pistols because whatever you are shooting at will be damaged more (more FPS = more damage).In a game, FPS does not necessarily mean more pain (unless you are very close), just more distance.
In a wrap-up, here is what you will need to consider when purchasing an airsoft gun:
*Cost
*Upkeep
*Functionality
*Capabilities
*FPS
*RPM
And, of course, your purpose for buying the gun is important as well.