Today one of the most popular forms of recreation is the use of airsoft guns. The market has evolved rather quickly for these neat little toys even though they haven’t been around that long. You may be wondering however, just what is an airsoft gun?

The most simple description is that they are near perfect replicas of the real thing. The only difference in these and their counterparts are the ammunition and how it is fired. Compressed gas such as CO2 is the most common means of firing their plastic pellets, but some models use electric motors and spring driven pistons. They also have an amazing muzzle velocity of about 30 to 250 meters per second and the ammunition comes in a standard 6mm size.

Don’t let these recreational toys fool you though, in cases where heavy projectiles are used they can and will penetrate the skin causing severe damage. If plastic pellets are used as recommended though, airsoft guns are relatively safe for play. The are recommended for ages 16 and up, but in some select areas you must be 18 to participate in any type of tournament. This is for safety reasons of course and children under 16 should never attempt to use one.

The history of airsoft guns is a unique one, dating back to the 70′s in Japan where owning firearms was illegal. People still had an interest in weaponry so they found a loop hole around this law and began to manufacture fakes that looked like the real thing but fired plastic and rubber balls. The 6mm and 8mm size ammunition later became standard. These older models were all spring powered but later became gas powered.

Around the mid 90′s these amazing creations found their way into North America and quickly became a popular hobby for many. The airsoft gun evolved in to what is known today at this point and North American’s have been having fun ever since. Many say its even a great stress reliever too!

Cheap versions of the toy forced the United States to crack down on import regulations of the item and even today each one must be painted with a very bright orange tip before import. This is mainly as a safety precaution because of the similarities to real weapons.

Some airsoft gun models are so life like in fact that there have been a few Japan based companies that have encountered problems with intellectual property laws several times through the years. The United States battles this by restricting certain models from being imported in to the country for sale.

Do airsoft guns sound fun yet? They should because they definitely are. Whole families are enjoying this recreational activity together and some others using it as a way to relieve stress. You can easily find a tournament at any given time somewhere in some state. Winter weather does not hinder fanatics from having a little pellet action fun. This is definitely a sport one should look in to if they are looking for fast paced action without a high safety risk.