HBrebel 5 Posted February 21, 2011 Report Share Posted February 21, 2011 (edited) Any of you guys involved in airsoft? I was wondering because I want to find ways of training in tactics and basic battle readiness. I am in good physical condition and am a good shot with most weapons but I have not spent any time in the military or law enforcement so I really have no training in that area but would like to. I have done paint ball a few times and this taught me how much I don't know about combat but the guns are stupid and clumsy. Has playing airsoft helped any of you in this area? Edited February 21, 2011 by HBrebel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
volkov 318 Posted February 21, 2011 Report Share Posted February 21, 2011 (edited) Havn't played but I'll throw 2 cents in there. probably helps a little, but mostly it's a completly different situation. you can have a 300 round mag (guess some people don't allow them but I don't play), bullets don't penetrate cover.. at all, and more importantly- don't kill.. They're just little plastic balls that some guy hiding behind a tree (impenetrable cover in this case) is going to spray at you with 300 a clip and your not going to treat it the with the same respect as a gun, nor will your foe. But I suppose running around the woods learning to pick out guys in camo while lugging around a replica of your gun and ammo has some lessons that could be learned. Also could likely teach you a lot about how people go about searching for targets and whats effective to fool them. So yeah, I guess it would help in certain aspects. Plus if it looks like fun you've got nothing to lose. I'd think the best training you can do on your own though would be to use your own weapon and try different positions (rather than bench firing) and maybe setting up a course if you have enough private land sort of three gun style. But be safe, obviously. Sure other people will have better input in a few Edited February 21, 2011 by volkov Quote Link to post Share on other sites
csspecs 1,987 Posted February 21, 2011 Report Share Posted February 21, 2011 I have, but not for training just for fun. Suggestions for training. Use low capacity mags (30s) keep everything close range Use semi only Use black BBs of the heaviest weight for forest (.30s) and light weight for anything inside of 100 yards without brush (.20) Get a mask that allows sight picture Use a gun under 320fps for inside of 30 yards Practice safety use at all times Use the charging handle each mag change Use a 9.6v battery or higher if possible (AEG only) Obviously some of the suggestions are clear. Close range is to reduce the hang time of the BBs, inside of 20 yards its not bad. Black BBs makes it so you can't see the BBs in flight, forcing you to use the sights. At 100 yards a .20 gram bb will be past by a .30 gram bb as the .30 holds speed longer. Heavy weights also deflect less when hitting brush and leafs. Inside of 30 yards a gun over 360fps can break the lenses of some masks, best to be safe. Battery voltage is one factor that controls the cyclic rate of an electric gun, higher voltage and time from trigger pull to firing is lower. There are other things like mosfet trigger groups that speed the cyclic rate of the gear box... But thats another story. The number of upgrades that can be applied will just boggle your mind. V-hop up, Helical gears, tight bore barrels, silent pistons the list just goes on and on. Oh and a well made AK is more accurate then an AR as the gas piston area reinforces the barrel.. Funny huh? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jamesavery22 54 Posted February 21, 2011 Report Share Posted February 21, 2011 Force on Force using airsoft organized by the right people is some of the best training civilians can get. Most of this is going to be concealed carry hand gun stuff. It doesn't take much to setup an exercise that teaches very valuable lessons. Set rules around being shot. If you know you've been hit end the exercise. Past that you can do whatever you want. I'd suggest scenarios that are most likely for you. Car jacking, squaring off from some drunk dude(at 1 yard and at 10 yards). Mix up whatever you can think of. Everyone has a gun, one person has a knife, etc. The lesson I see most people get is that everyone gets shot. There are just some things you can do that help you get lucky more often. As for those airsoft games kids play in the forest? Nothing more than a game. Other than basic organization I don't see any lessons that can be applied to real life extreme scenarios. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
HBrebel 5 Posted February 22, 2011 Author Report Share Posted February 22, 2011 (edited) thanks guys. maybe I will try it out for shits n giggles. I'm not really looking to invest in a new hobby nor do I want to spend a bunch of cash on tactical training courses. Maybe paint ball is a better bet as I will know for sure when i get hit and all. I am mostly looking to to get some combat related physical/ mental conditioning. I shoot pretty good already and am in good shape but last time I did paintball I got my ass kicked pretty good. I was going against real paintball teams most of the day though. thanks for all the advice Edited February 22, 2011 by HBrebel Quote Link to post Share on other sites
postbanben 9 Posted February 22, 2011 Report Share Posted February 22, 2011 i think this shit sounds awesome.mostly for exercise but there are lessons to be learnt no doubt.i did a little research and the cyma aks look to be the best deal.anybody know different? Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jamesavery22 54 Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 thanks guys. maybe I will try it out for shits n giggles. I'm not really looking to invest in a new hobby nor do I want to spend a bunch of cash on tactical training courses. Maybe paint ball is a better bet as I will know for sure when i get hit and all. I am mostly looking to to get some combat related physical/ mental conditioning. I shoot pretty good already and am in good shape but last time I did paintball I got my ass kicked pretty good. I was going against real paintball teams most of the day though. thanks for all the advice Ever look into taking Tactical Response's HRC course? Paintball/airsoft games etc aren't going to teach much more than how to play paintball/airsoft on whatever course/field. Of course any teamwork is good experience. You could take the best professional soldiers in the world, have them play on a paintball field they've never seen before, and they'll get beat 9 times out of 10 by a bunch of fat 16 year olds that have been playing that field for years. It can be fun but don't hope to get anything more than entertainment out of it. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
AzPatriot 1 Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 Best training would be to join up and go play in the sand box. When you get back you can set up fun gun drills like these Marines, Army doggies and some civilians having fun in the desert... and However, some are not comfortable moving and shooting this quickly using their vehicles for cover, transitioning behind someone while locked and loaded and having some downrange while moving forward and shooting. Other best best, take some tactical shooting courses from a reputable company like Gunsite. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
jamesavery22 54 Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 ... Other best best, take some tactical shooting courses from a reputable company like Gunsite. Any training is better than nothing but Gunsite? They were top notch 10 years ago... Now? Search around. Not many people ranting and raving about their classes. Gunsite has been around a long time and I've been told they have an awesome training facility. But all of their courses are individual skill based. Don't think the OP is looking for weapons handling and accuracy classes. Of course Ive been wrong before "I am mostly looking to to get some combat related physical/ mental conditioning" Quote Link to post Share on other sites
AzPatriot 1 Posted February 23, 2011 Report Share Posted February 23, 2011 Never been to Gunsite, but the local LEO's like going there. The ones I've talked to say they get something new from it each time they go, which is about once a year for the ones I know. Maybe it's just that the training is different from civilian classes or they like spending a week on the range. If he OP is wanting combat related physical/mental conditioning, without any previous military/offensive level weapons training, it may be good to start with the basics of weapons handling, threat awareness and avoidance, and accuracy (not speed) with what weapon you shoot as that is paramount in your learning curve. Just saying, it takes a lot of rounds and muscle memory to get good at any weapon platform that's held in your hands. Rounds down range in many firing positions is the best start. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
HBrebel 5 Posted March 1, 2011 Author Report Share Posted March 1, 2011 As a mentioned earlier, I have enough marksmanship skills and weapons handling. Not that i ever stop practicing those. I do all the drill I can at home plus I get to the indoor range weekly and outdoor monthly. I have practiced threat awareness most of my life, have some martial arts training as well. I am in pretty good physical conditioning, I was just thinking paintball or airsoft might help keep me in that shoot, run, shoot from cover, run etc. conditioning. I mean, I could go run around at the park and stuff but what would you do if you saw a 200lb white guy with tattoos, shaved head, beard, in sweats running thru the bushes doing rolls and sprinting from tree to gazeebo, to fence and such, all while carrying a prop gun or cheap bb gun? I am a little old for a trip to the sandbox and I cannot afford to take a "tactics" course at this time. seems like alot of guys are selling paintball shit for cheap lately so maybe I'll give that a try. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
BpS12 512 Posted March 1, 2011 Report Share Posted March 1, 2011 HB, go for it. Either Paintball or Airsoft. You will always get out of it only what you put into it. Hook up with some players with Mil/LE experiance and let them know what you want out of it. And don't think you have to stay with one group/place, shop around till you find what you're looking for. Or get some like minded people together and start your own training. If you have the basics down, you can get alot out of Mil. training manuels. Airsoft rocks mostly because of the weapon replica quality. Provided you stay realistic and not use the hi cap mags, etc. Paintball has more of a "learn to avoid pain" feel to it and is less realitic weapons wise. But the Tac training is great if done right. One of my peaves in either is that ANY hit tends to be a kill. While in more realistic training, a hit to an extremity makes you loose its use and have to take time to bandage it. And all the intriquesies(sp) that go along with it. Getting to cover, staying alert so as not to get caught off gaurd while bandageing, reloading/moving without said extremity, etc. A second hit would then be a kill. You can play the games to train, but you will likely get slaughtered in the process. Make a game of your training and it will be more useful to you in the end and more fun. Quote Link to post Share on other sites
t3mac21 1 Posted March 2, 2011 Report Share Posted March 2, 2011 I can assure you that "airsoft" and "paintball" are not going to train you for combat. At all. No matter how organized. They're fun activities though. And, nobody can really tell you "if it's helped" them become combat ready. Why? Because besides those who have deployed, people don't often find themselves in on a 2-way range having an extended firefight. Enjoy your saiga, convert it. Learn to use it as proficiently as possible. Play airsoft or paintball if you want to have fun, but don't confuse it with actual combat and bullets flying at you. Also, enjoy your firearm and your right to recreationally shoot and hunt. You'll find it's a very fun hobby, and doesn't have to be about shtf and combat all the time. 1 Quote Link to post Share on other sites
epicwarrior78 0 Posted March 2, 2011 Report Share Posted March 2, 2011 For realistic weapons + pain = there are 'RAM' Guns: http://www.umarexusa.com/catalog/Paintball,7.htm This is what you get if Airsoft and Paintball had a baby - Low Capacity Mags - Realistic weapons and weight - Requires maintenence like real weapons - Fires paint/powder/rubber balls and leaves a visual mark - ejects shells like a real gun Quote Link to post Share on other sites
HBrebel 5 Posted March 3, 2011 Author Report Share Posted March 3, 2011 thanks fellas, time to kill this thread though. I realize that nothing but real combat or live fire drills will prepare one for combat. And I do enjoy shooting at targets and doing drills at home, I am not obsessed with shtf scenarios but I do not want to be that sucker that is not prepared if it does happen. I was raised to always be prepared, always. Just looking for ways to upgrade my skills as much as possible for a civilian without spending a ton of money. I got a handle on it nowthanks for all the advice Quote Link to post Share on other sites
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