Can Airsoft Guns Kill? Not Really and Here’s Why

Can Airsoft Guns Kill

The resemblance between Airsoft guns and real firearms is uncanny. Because of this, you may be concerned for your safety and others around you. After all, an airsoft gun can initially scare anyone as it looks like a real gun.

With the orange tip taken out, you won’t be able to tell the difference between them. This particular resemblance can lead one to wonder, can airsoft guns kill?

Airsoft Guns Can’t Kill

Stock Airsoft guns can’t kill. They can barely penetrate the skin when shot from point blank. It is therefore nearly impossible for an airsoft gun to cause an injury that would lead to death.

Even with modifications, your airsoft gun would only fly fast enough to penetrate the skin but not deep enough to hit any organs that would result in death when they are hit.

There’s nothing to worry for a bystander’s perspective as accidentally being shot will most likely leave you with only a bruise. There are also airsoft gun laws and safety rules that airsoft players follow. But just in case, it’s still best to call the authorities if you feel any threat from anyone. 

But as an airsoft player, there are other things to worry about than being killed by an airsoft gun. Let’s delve deeper. First, let’s see why airsoft guns aren’t capable of killing anyone. 

Why Airsoft Guns Can’t Kill?

Airsoft guns shoot BBs which are plastic bullets designed to be non-lethal. The guns propel the BBs using a string, gas, or electricity. These are not fast enough to cause injury.

This design is intentional and most airsoft manufacturers design guns this way since airsoft is not a game where you want to hurt people. Airsoft is merely a sport that aims to provide the same feel and intensity without the lethality that is seen on real battlefields.

A Simple Calculation

An average airsoft gun fires a .20 gram bb at 360 feet per second. This gives the gun muzzle energy of 0.89 foot-pounds, or 1.14 joules.

In comparison, a common 9mm round has a muzzle energy of around 383 foot-pounds, or 519 joules.

That’s almost 500 times as powerful! A common air rifle, which isn’t quite lethal, is still about 20 times as powerful.

Injuries You Need to Be Careful About in Airsoft

The injuries that you need to be careful about when playing airsoft are more related to the kind of field you’re playing on. It’s also important to note that gear and equipment play an important role in airsoft. 

Injuries From Falls

Falling is one of the biggest dangers that you could face playing airsoft. With your adrenaline pumping, you may not be well aware of your surroundings and this can cause you to:

  • Step on a piece of rock and lose your balance
  • Fall off a ledge of a building
  • Fall in the stairwell 
  • Puncture wounds from nails, metals, branches, and other debris in the field

Playing in abandoned buildings and old factories, these dangers are not far-fetched to hear. Being careful becomes important when playing airsoft along with having the appropriate quality gears. 

Being Shot in the Eyes

Wearing good eye protection will save you from a trip to the hospital and possibly avoid losing your eyes. While airsoft guns don’t kill, airsoft bullets are still powerful enough to damage our eyes.

Even an average airsoft gun that shoots a BB at 350 fps is likely to cause permanent damage to your eyes. This occurs especially if you’re not using quality goggles. This makes higher FPS guns more dangerous in hitting your eyes.

Always protect your eyes and that’s one of the most important rules in playing airsoft.

Fire Injuries

If you are using fire hazards like smoke grenades you can get injured by not handling these hazards correctly. The manuals are there to guide you and you should always follow the instructions on how to handle such weapons.

When using these weapons, always expect the worst-case scenario and prepare yourself. It is always better to be on guard than to be sorry.

Ankle Injuries

With most airsoft fields being abandoned, filled with debris, has lots of rocks and trees, another danger would be rolling your ankles when you’re running in an airsoft field.

Like in any sport, twisting your ankle is a common thing. In airsoft, this can be prevented by having the right kind of boots. Look for sturdy ones that also prevent puncture from nails. Puncture wounds are common in an airsoft field as well.

Being Mistaken for a Real Firearm

With airsoft guns looking very similar to real firearms, it is easy for someone to mistake your airsoft gun for a real one. This can become quite hairy if law enforcement is involved.

Having an airsoft gun can lead to death if you’re stupid enough to point it at a police officer. This goes the same way if you’re brandishing it in public and people mistakenly think you’re holding a real firearm. They could report it to the police or retaliate on their own. 

In public safety, here are some precautions that you have to follow:

  • Always keep your guns safely stored 
  • Attach an orange tip to your gun to separate it from real guns
  • Never use your gun in public
  • Treat your airsoft guns as you would treat real firearms

Airsoft Safety Gear You Need to Wear in the Field

Having good safety gear will help you reduce your chances of injury when playing airsoft. As we’ve mentioned, goggles are the most important gear. The rest of the gear will just help you reduce the pain of being shot on the bare skin.

But you can still have fun playing airsoft safely even without the other gears. Just expect that there will be pain when you get home.

Airsoft Protective Vest

Airsoft Protective vests help in guarding your chest against BBs that may be shot at close range. It’s also a great way to store your other gears so you can easily access them. 

Airsoft Goggles

 

The proper airsoft safety goggles should naturally exceed ANSI Z87.1 High Impact Requirements. This keeps your eyes safe even when high-velocity BBs come at you from close range.

Airsoft Mask

Airsoft Masks help protect your face from the sharp sting caused by BBs hitting your face. Plus they look tactical and cool. 

Airsoft Protection Kit

Padding on your knees will help you prevent scrapes when you hit the ground if you trip over a branch or rock. Falling is common in an airsoft field, so try investing in lower body gear. 

Airsoft Helmets

A good airsoft helmet will help you prevent serious injury if you trip and fall when on your airsoft game.

Being a common injury, this gear becomes an important one as well. Plus they also look cool when you have them on.

Airsoft Gloves

Aside from looking cool, Airsoft gloves help shield your hands from BBs which might also come from close range.

Your guns become visible in the dark or corners of buildings which makes your hand prone to being shot. Having a glove on solves that problem.

Airsoft Neck Protection

A normal scarf would do when you want to protect your face but you may also want to have custom gear.

Airsoft Gun Cases

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A good airsoft gun case will protect you from a world of legal challenges. It also helps you get your airsoft gun to and from an airsoft game without brandishing it in public which is a crime and can get you in serious legal trouble.

Can an Airsoft Gun Kill a Bird?

Concerning how moral that is, this is something that you have to consider if you want to use it that way.

It may be possible to kill a small bird with an airsoft gun, but not very easy. It will depend on:

  • The size of the bird you are shooting
  • The type of gun you are using
  • How far you are from the target
  • The size of the BB that is in your gun

Since airsoft guns are not primarily designed for this purpose, you may not have a lot of success if you want to use Airsoft guns as your way of hunting.

Given that it’s not very effective, it would leave the animal in pain and eventually die from other causes like being a prey of a larger predator, starvation, or internal injuries. You may want to think twice about using your gun as a hunting tool. 

Using Airsoft Guns for Pest Control

When it comes to pests, people may think differently about moral standards but let’s not dive deeper into that. You can certainly use an airsoft gun but it is not the best strategy out there.

There are far more effective means of eliminating pests in your yard than shooting at them with an airsoft gun. Traps might even work better and hiring an exterminator is just a phone call away.

However, to answer your question, airsoft guns are capable of eliminating small rodents but you will have to be a really good shot to be able to achieve this. Rodents are good at hiding, run fast and small targets to begin with which makes them highly elusive and hard to kill in the first place.

Conclusion

Airsoft guns can’t kill and most likely never will. They are toys designed for military simulation games and gun enthusiasts around the world. There are still laws applying to them as they can still harm and cause pain. 

If you’re wondering about your safety, don’t worry, they are not equipped to kill anyone. Or if you want to use them in self-defense, check out this article for a deeper explanation.