Airsoft- care to explain it to me....

[Citrusheights5]

DH told the boys that when we move out to the mountains he would buy them a bb gun. One said good.. the other asked for paint ball. Well now they have come home asking for Airsoft. (huh?) I did a quick look up.. read wikipidea.. but everything seams geared towards adults. I think I saw something here about it on these boards. My boys are 11 and 10. DH has never heard of it.. and I want to know what other moms think about it

 

 

Lee

[awanama]

My ds has a couple of Airsoft guns. It's basically like a BB gun except the pellets that are shot are plastic. It's the same as owning any other gun, safety first. My ds was trained to shoot them only at targets/cans. For a long time, he wasn't allowed to use the Airsoft guns unless we were right next to him. Now we will let him go out in the yard (we live in the country with no other houses around) to shoot targets with it as long as our dd is in the house.

 

I personally would not let my ds own a paintball gun for using around our own property. He's not old enough for one. My dh does have one and goes to the local paintball place to play. They are just to messy for using at home!

 

We also own BB guns but those are only to be used with a parent. The Airsoft gives him a little more freedom.

[Montana Peach]

Ditto what Awanamom said. My dh has an airsoft gun and enjoys it. I'd second the paintball mess and they can be more painful if you get hit with one I think. Granted, airsoft pellets can break the skin if you get hit at close range but not nearly as seriously as bb's can injure.

[wagnfun]

My ds has a couple of Airsoft guns. It's basically like a BB gun except the pellets that are shot are plastic. It's the same as owning any other gun, safety first. My ds was trained to shoot them only at targets/cans. For a long time, he wasn't allowed to use the Airsoft guns unless we were right next to him. Now we will let him go out in the yard (we live in the country with no other houses around) to shoot targets with it as long as our dd is in the house.

 

I personally would not let my ds own a paintball gun for using around our own property. He's not old enough for one. My dh does have one and goes to the local paintball place to play. They are just to messy for using at home!

 

We also own BB guns but those are only to be used with a parent. The Airsoft gives him a little more freedom.

 

 

:iagree: TOTALLY!! I have boys 12 & 9, they both own a few airsoft guns. They have to wear goggles when using them but they & the neighbor kids use them all over the neighborhood. Walmart, targer & any sports store sells them ranging from $10-$350. My boys have both pistols and automatics and I'm CONSTANTLY picking up little plastic colored bbs off the ground. For us, they are like nerf guns only for a bit older kids. My boys also have bb guns and 22s but are only allowed to use them when mom or dad take them shooting. I agree with above, the airsoft gives the kids more freedom.

[mcconnellboys]

We've had a rash of kids with eye injuries around here due to shooting at each other at too close range and not wearing safety goggles when shooting. These don't hurt at a distance the way bb's can, but they do pack at sting a point blank range or up to about 3 feet and if struck in the eye, the damage can be irreversible (per a local optometrist who has treated a number of these cases). Also, the plastic does not disintegrate and my front yard is still full of these brightly colored pellets from last summer's raids. They are probably attractive to birds and small wildlife and there will probably be problems related to wildlife eating them, as well as the build-up within the sewage system over time as they wash into our drainage system. Can you tell I'm totally against them after one summer of initial contact?

 

Regena

[Blue Hen]

My boys have 5 airsoft guns a piece and ironically, are presently outside playing with them. This coming Saturday we are having an airsoft party at home, which is quite popular in this area. My boys have already been to a few of them. The boys will form team and play capture the flag type games. If you get hit with a bb then you are out of the game. We have a few rules; safety first, no guns are fired without full face masks in place; no firing at anyone unless they also are playing airsoft, and each must be at least 20' apart. Yes, the kids shoot at each other in these airsoft games, just like in a paintball game. Yes, there are plastic bb's all over the place. We do not permit shooting at any animals, never.

[Remudamom]

Get goggles and have fun. If your boys are like mine you need to buy one for yourself too.

[Natalieclare]

My dd14 and dd13 LOVE airsoft wars. My ds11 has only recently enjoyed going out and getting hit; before the change of heart, he only shot targets. We are VERY strict about eye protection and it's always been respected.

 

Good goggles are a must. When we first started, we had dollar store goggles. Um. Not. Good. Enough. My dh was playing with my teenage nephew who had a new CO2 cartridge on his gun. He shot my dh in the face and the pellet went through the goggles! Blessedly, my dh wears glasses and no harm was done. This, however, precipitated our house rule of NO CO2 cartridge guns. They are just a bit too powerful for our usage.

 

My son, who has not yet internalized the desire for bragging rights, likes to wear 2 pairs of pants and 2 shirts, one being a hoodie. This minimizes the impact if the shot. My girls, on the other hand, like to show off their wounds. (I know, I don't really get those girlies either.:confused:) Cheaper than Dirt (a catalogue) sells airsoft gloves if you want hand protection, too.

 

Around here, Capture the Flag and Last Man Standing are the games to play and the more people, the merrier. I am not much of a party planner, but spontaneous airsoft parties are something I can handle. A bag of chips and a crowd of kids running around the property is just our speed.

 

Biodegradable pellets are available, but they shouldn't be used with the full face mask. I think I heard they can shred in the mesh of the full mask.

 

My kids have been running around only loosely supervised for a couple of years now. But they are pretty responsible...and the one who isn't so responsible is ultra law abiding, so it's all working out pretty swell. The only problem is when Dad enters the picture and forgets he is warring with CHILDREN. sheesh!

[Karenciavo]

Ds14 & da13 have Airsoft guns, as do a number of friends from the neighborhood. They enjoy them very much and use them for target practice as well as "Airsoft Wars" in the woods. They always wear googles; denim long sleeves and pants help too.

[Caroline]

We've had a rash of kids with eye injuries around here due to shooting at each other at too close range and not wearing safety goggles when shooting. These don't hurt at a distance the way bb's can, but they do pack at sting a point blank range or up to about 3 feet and if struck in the eye, the damage can be irreversible (per a local optometrist who has treated a number of these cases). Also, the plastic does not disintegrate and my front yard is still full of these brightly colored pellets from last summer's raids. They are probably attractive to birds and small wildlife and there will probably be problems related to wildlife eating them, as well as the build-up within the sewage system over time as they wash into our drainage system. Can you tell I'm totally against them after one summer of initial contact?

 

Regena

 

I am with you. I am so tired of those little plastic pellets in my yard. I am also tired of my kids having to come inside because the neighbor boys don't understand that not everyone plays airsoft, and not everyone outside is wearing protective gear.

 

In fact, someone called the police on some kids playing airsoft around here, and didn't realize they were airsoft guns. We had a number of scared to death teenagers as the cops arrived with their guns pulled. But hey, what are the neighbors to think when after dark there are people with masks and guns skulking around the houses?

[Diana in OR]

I am with you. I am so tired of those little plastic pellets in my yard. I am also tired of my kids having to come inside because the neighbor boys don't understand that not everyone plays airsoft, and not everyone outside is wearing protective gear.

 

In fact, someone called the police on some kids playing airsoft around here, and didn't realize they were airsoft guns. We had a number of scared to death teenagers as the cops arrived with their guns pulled. But hey, what are the neighbors to think when after dark there are people with masks and guns skulking around the houses?

 

Around here, we have to be a little "stealthy" about it too. In fact, Airsoft is not allowed in the city limits. My boys have found an indoor paintball arena that will let Airsofters in. They rotate the Airsoft and paintballers (so they're not all in at the same time).

[mcconnellboys]

Oh, yes, the police were also at my house last summer. My own sons do not actually own airsoft guns, but that didn't stop boys who did own them from congregating in my general area of the world and shooting them, LOL - *and* loaning them to my sons so that they, too, might partake of this wonderful experience.

 

So two boys came over one morning and brought their airsoft guns. They were sitting on the front porch with my son, shooting the two trees in our front yard, shooting me as I left to take younger ds to his piano lesson and run to the store for a couple of things during that 30 minutes, and shooting our mailbox.

 

Twenty minutes after I'd left the house, as I was checking out, my son calls me *screaming* into the phone that they shot the garbage truck as it went by the house and the garbage men were jumping up and down in our yard screaming at them (they were now in my younger son's upstairs bedroom window, which looks out over the front yard). I told them to stay put until I could get there to talk to the men, envisioning at least 3 burly men having fits in my front yard - oy.....

 

Two seconds later he called again - and again before I could get out the door. The clerks were in hysterics of laughter.....oy vey......

 

I *had* to pick up my younger son and he called at least twice more before I could get home. By this time a man in another truck had arrived. I told him that this was probably the supervisor (and it was).

 

When I arrived, I spoke to the supervisor and the garbage man (singular) of our recycle truck. The boys were shooting at our mailbox and our recycle can sits right beside that at the end of our drive. The truck always comes zooming up very quickly. There is an open doorway, such as a bus has, and the man steps out backwards to grab the can. The boys (two boys - two guns - my son doesn't have one) were shooting at the box as he pulled up and when he stepped out very quickly he got hit with a pellet. Now, this was at a distance of, wow, about 50 feet, I guess. I'm not even sure how he really even felt it at that distance.

 

But the man was insulted. He's evidently had other boys shoot bb guns at him and he thought this is what it was. Neither of them even knew about airsoft guns. Once I explained, apologized, and told them that the boys had just been shooting me and that the pellets are purposefully made in a way to avoid injury, I think they felt a little sheepish. But they'd already called the police. I also explained that I didn't know how many large, angry men were in my yard and had told the boys to wait until I got there to come out. The boys did come out as soon as I called them and all apologized profusely, also.

 

The policeman came, was very stern with them, and stayed until the other boys' parents came to get them. Needless to say, I was blamed and my son was blamed by these parents who bought their children airsoft guns and allowed them to bring them to my house. Airsoft guns have thus been banned from my property and from the hands of my children, LOL. We'll hope that this summer we escape any sort of similar incident, but the boys will be on lock down the first week of July, just in case (as it's the second year in a row they've gotten in trouble with me during that same week)...... Tomato staking is a good thing......

 

Regena

[Jackie in AR]

Ds14 & da13 have Airsoft guns, as do a number of friends from the neighborhood. They enjoy them very much and use them for target practice as well as "Airsoft Wars" in the woods. They always wear googles; denim long sleeves and pants help too.

 

My 13yo boys have Airsoft guns. They always wear eye protection (full paintball masks, yep we have paintball guns, too!) when they play.

 

They have lots of friends who play and they enjoy it very much.

[Jenn in Mo]

My boys (10 & 8) join in the neighborhood fun with their Airsoft guns. Lots of fun, hoodies & eyegear required. All know not to shoot at close range and they observe the rule because they know it hurts.

 

To avoid the confetti look to the yard, we require the boys to buy their own pellets. They get the fluorescent orange pellets that are easy to find and they scrounge the yard looking for them. Obviously, they don't get them all, but I'm thrilled they make the effort.