The Origins of Airsoft

Airsoft was first played in the late 1970s. It was based off of the concept of realistic looking guns that shot non-lethal projectiles for sport and simulation purposes. There were guns of this style before airsoft, such as the Mattel Shooting Shell guns of the late 1950s. The U.S. military even tinkered with ideas of this type after World War II. The BB guns that existed before shot metal BBs that could do a lot of damage to a person and in rare cases kill them. Mattels' guns were an innovation at best though.

Airsoft originated in Japan, where owning real guns was illegal. The first manufacturers were long standing toy companies like Masudaya, Fujimi, and Matsushiro. These companies saw a great business opportunity and filled a void. They believed it would be a great idea to market BB guns that could safely be shot at any one person and not seriously injure them. They got the idea from paintball guns, which were fast becoming very popular at the time. The airsoft guns were spring powered, single shot weapons. Many of the first airsoft guns used unusual ammo such as the 7mm long range and the soft rubber ammo used by Trademarks' guns. Later, they would realize that a normal size round BB would be cheaper and more proficient to manufacture.

Soon after the Daisy Company, who was known for over a century as the premiere manufacturer of BB guns in the US, decided to start marketing airsoft in North America during the 1980s. Until then, airsoft was unheard of outside Japan.  Daisy had contracted the Maruzen Company of Japan to manufacture a line of spring powered guns to sell in the US. Many of which already existed in Japan and were being repackaged and sold in the States. These guns used special ammo that was loaded into shell casings. The airsoft guns included rifles, shotguns, pistols, and submachine guns. All of these were made created by Maruzen except for one model which was manufactured by the Falcon Toy Corporation. The airsoft guns that were being manufactured were so realistic in appearance that many anti-violence organizations showed disfavor towards them in America.  

Several Japanese companies started to manufacture guns using BV, or bullet valve, around 1985. BV used a direct flow of gas from an external tank which usually was Co2 or compressed air. This powered the mechanism which allowed the airsoft guns to fire in a fully automatic mode.The Japanese economy hit an all-time low in 1990. A lot of large companies had invested in factories and during the recession these companies were unable to survive the debts that they had acquired and were forced to sell out. This created the end for gas driven airsoft in the 1990s.

Many companies were forced to close their doors and the most memorable of these companies had to be JAC. Their ambitious World War II line of guns, featuring the BAR and the Thompson, were made of metal and wood and used real gun parts like the mag shell, but it proved to be too expensive to produce during that period and caused them to declare bankruptcy. Now, contrary to belief, Tokyo Marui was not a factor in the closure of classic companies.  

In the late 90s', classic airsoft guns began to see a bit of a new start. Companies like Youth Engineering started to manufacture guns using the old BV system. Now, in recent years the Escort Company of Japan began a vigorous campaign new gas powered guns. Escort began creating new airsoft guns in-house such as the MP5 and others. These guns appealed more to skeptics because many of them used the AEG magazines. Escort was also the first to branch out into other ideas including the first truly functional airsoft gas hand grenade and the remote detonated Claymore mine. Escort guns also offered a degree of realism that had never been seen before in airsoft when they offered the full-stroke blowback in their guns.  

Airsoft is a fun sport to play and the origins of airsoft are important for anyone who loves the game to know. Airsoft guns are not the real thing and they are not dangerous, but an airsoft gun should certainly be handled with caution and care!

Eric Short is owner and operator of GetSomeAirsoft.com, and he loves airsoft guns and the sport. Eric is also an Internet Consultant who helps others create websites of their own and teaches them the basics of marketing a website.

If you would like more information or would like to take a look at some great airsoft products take a look at this website: [http://www.GetSomeAirsoft.com]