#Airsoft

The folks at  Morphfire have developed an airsoft conversion kit for paintball guns. The Morphfire can be fitted to Spyder Fenix, Electra, Pilot, Sonix, Xtra, Victor, and Aggressor paintball markers manufactured after 2008. It fires .20 gram BBs at 550 fps with a cyclic rate of 900 rpm.

On Demand 3D Printing and CNC’ing might one day change how we buy firearm parts. Instead of finding a retailer with a product in stock, we would buy the part from an intermediate company which would print or machine the part on demand, then ship it to us. The creator of the part would get a percentage of the profit after the materials and labor expenses. Much like buying an app from the Apple App Store.

The sport of airsoft  relies on an honor system because, unlike paintballs for example, airsoft BBs do not mark the person they hit.  Since it is easy for even an honest player not to notice they were hit by a lightweight BBs, the honor system has its limitations. One solution to this problem is the new  Airsoft International ARF Digital system.

Popular Airsoft reports that airsoft maker WE is going to manufacturer a .22 LR version of their new H&K MP7 replica, the  WE SMG-8. The SMG-8 is virtually identical to the MP7 but, in the hopes of avoiding the wrath of H&K laywers, they have made a few changes. The SMG-8 has a number of vents and cutouts, lacks a folding grip and uses different sights to the real thing. In a world where Apple can patent rounded rectangles and Glock can patent rounded cuboids, I can’t help but wonder if these changes are enough to keep H&K at bay.

Magpul took the gun world by storm when they unveiled their prototype  Magpul PDR (Personal Defense Rifle) back in 2006. Unfortunately they never took it further. Now, about seven years later, their airsoft subsidiary Magpul PTS has announced that they will be selling an airsoft version of the PDR.

Simon had the chance to examine a prototype airsoft rifle designed by a Hong Kong airsoft manufacturer. It is not a copy of a real gun, which is unusual for the airsoft industry. The gun has some very nifty features I have not seen on a real bullpup rifle. It has an ambidextrous magazine release situation above the trigger guard to allow easy one handed access. A backup magazine release is situated in front of the magazine (in case something does wrong with the forward release linkage). The bolt release is situated on top of the buttstock but does not protrude above it.

Combat City USA, a gun range in Florida, is offering you the chance to shoot your friends with real guns. They allow you to bring your owns guns to use in their airsoft arena. They swap out a number of parts to convert them to the Ultimate Training Munitions (UTM) Man-Marker Round (MMR) system or the Simunition system. In the video below the rifle is being used with UTM rounds and the revolver with Simunition rounds.

I may have been the last person on the internet to watch this video, but it made my day. It is hilarious.

Izhmash has designed an airsoft version of AK-74M. The press release seems to indicate that they designed it and will be manufacturing it. Most gun companies just license the name to an Asian manufacturer. The dimensions and weight will be the same as the real AK-74M.

Instructables has instructions on how to integrate a $20 battery powered soldering iron into a $16 airsoft pistol. The battery is integrated into the magazine, allowing fast reloads.

Dom took these photos at IWA ’12 of a real KRISS Vector and a the official KRISS Vector airsoft gun. The detail on the airsoft version is incredible.

Earlier this year Chuckyzord guest blogged about his DIY replica SKS. Yesterday he emailed me a video of a replica China Lake (40mm pump action) grenade launcher he has just finished making. The replica is very impressive. It loads, fires and cycles just like the real China Lake.

Former Force Recon Marine and Magpul/Magpul Dynamics CEO turned consultant Travis Haley shares his thoughts on using airsoft to supplement conventional training at the range. It is well worth watching.

These days I do most of my shopping online, but occasionally like to visit stores to discover things I did not know I “needed”. This weekend I payed Gander Mounting a visit. After accumulating a pile of clothes, gadgets and cleaning equipment I ended up at the airsoft aisle and was giving a cheap transparent-plastic airsoft shotgun the once-over. This was the kind of gun no self-respecting airsofter would be caught dead with (see photo below). These two cheeky 12 year olds who were walking past shouted out at me “So you like big guns, huh?” and then ran away. I couldn’t help laughing.

Crosman has entered into a “strategic licensing agreement with the U.S. Marine Corps for the design, manufacture, distribution and marketing of U.S. Marine Corps branded airsoft products.” (marketing speak for licensing/endorsement deal). Crosman is no stranger to licensing popular brand names. Remington and Marlin branded air guns are, for example, actually made by Crosman.