What Are the Best Airsoft-Gun Gifts for Tween and Teens?
During the most wonderful time of the year, some kids ask for action figures modeled after the latest box-office success. Others ask for the latest box office success itself, while still others ask for books, Lego sets, and many other things. But what if your child (or children) ask(s) for an Airsoft gun?
Well, never fear! I have compiled a short list of my picks for the top five “best” – both with respect to overall “statistics” (for more on which, see below), and with respect to how easy they are for children[1] to operate Airsoft.
Important Note for Parents: If you are concerned with the safety of any given Airsoft weapon – and you should be! – then you would probably like to know that every Airsoft gun on the market right now has a certain level of risk involved when handling it.
I will not get too far into a discussion of safety, here. For more information, check out my other articles, for instance: “Airsoft Safety Tips From Lawmakers and Police Officers,” “Does an Airsoft Gun Have to have an Orange Tip?” and “Is It Safe to Be Shot With an Airsoft Gun?”
Since you are truly worried for your child, then there are two choices.
Number one, just don’t get them an Airsoft gun! You might consider getting them a completely fake plastic gun instead. This would be one with no firing mechanism. And then, once they are used to it (and you are satisfied that they are not pointing at themselves or at other people), then you could consider getting them an Airsoft gun.
Number two, get your child an Airsoft gun, but also get them proper protective gear. I have an entire article (“What Kinds of Protective Gear Do I Need to Play Airsoft?”) sketching your options, and I won’t repeat myself here. (You might even enroll your kids in an age-appropriate gun-safety course.)
Disclaimer: These are the recommendations that I would make given my current level of experience and understanding. But! I am new to Airsoft. I know I have a lot to learn. And this website is a chronicle of my journey. So, check back occasionally for updates.
My point is that the list that is to follow shortly is not gospel. If any or all weapons on the list seem like they wouldn’t work for you (i.e., given your needs, preferences, wants, etc.), then don’t get them!
The “stats” (statistics) that I am concerned with are as follows: velocity, pellet spray, type, style, safety level, color availability, price, magazine size, brand, category, power, range, beginner level, grip, weight, and accessory compatibility.
Now, we will move to a brief explanation of each of the aforementioned statistics. Just skip this section if you already know what all of this means.
- “Velocity” is the speed of the actual pellets as they leave the gun; could also be referred to as “FPS” (Feet per Second).
- “Pellet spray” is typically only in shotguns, but this term is used to describe a certain randomness of the destination of the bullet; wind is typically the main, if not the only, factor; measured on a scale of one to five, one being only during the wind, and even then it is hard to notice, and five being even inside, it is hard to tell exactly where the pellets will go.
- “Type” is the way it is powered; is it spring powered, gas powered, or electrically powered?
- “Style” describes the size and how it should be handled; is it a handgun or a long rifle?
- “Safety level”; measured on a scale of one to ten, one being obscenely unsafe, ten being the safest.
- “Colors” doesn’t really need any explanation, but the term describes the colors that the weapon can come in.
- “Price” is how much the gun is worth; this is the deciding factor for most people.
- “Magazine size” is the maximum amount of BB’s that the gun can hold in the magazine (or cartridge) before it needs to be filled up again.
- “Brand” is the name of the manufacturer that made the weapon.
- “Category” is the archetype that the gun falls under; is it an assault rifle, a sniper rifle, a shotgun, etc.
- “Power” is the term used to describe how much damage the weapon can do; measured on a scale of one to ten, one being not very hard hitting, ten being that the gun causes regular bruises upon the pellet impacting the skin of another player.
- “Range” is the maximum distance that a gun is effective at.
- “Beginner level” is how easy is it to handle for beginners; measured on a scale of one to five, one being beginner, two being easy, three being intermediate, four being difficult, and five being advanced.
- “Grip” is the style of handle the weapon has.
- “Weight”; in pounds (abbreviated lbs); how heavy the gun is.
- “Accessory compatibility” is how easy it is to attach extra accessories; measured on a scale of one to five, one being not accessory compatible hardly at all, five being fully equipped with accessory rails.
Caveat: The statistics of each weapon are the original-equipment statistics. Many weapons can be changed, modified, and/or upgraded, affecting the stats.
Now, without further ado:
Gabinator’s Top Five List for Best Airsoft-Gun Christmas Presents
| Accessory compatibility: 1 Beginner level: 2 (Easy) |
| Brand: “Golden Eagle” Category: Assault Rifle |
| Colors: Black |
| Grip: Horizontal Magazine size: 450 BB’s |
| Pellet spray: 1 Power: 6 |
| Price: $190 Range: 250 ft |
| Safety level: 7 Style: Long rifle, M16 |
| Type: Electric powered Velocity: 420 FPS |
| Weight: 11 lbs |
This assault rifle is lightweight, accurate, and easy to hold and to manage. Its ability to switch between fully automatic and semi automatic comes in quite handy.
Colt M4A1 RIS Airsoft Rifle
| Accessory compatibility: 4 Beginner level: 2 (Easy) |
| Brand: “Colt” Category: Assault rifle |
| Colors: Black |
| Grip: Horizontal Magazine size: 350 |
| Pellet spray: 1 Power: 6 |
| Price: $200 Range: 200 ft |
| Safety level: 7 Style: Long rifle |
| Type: Electric powered Velocity: 390 FPS |
| Weight: 10 lbs |
This Airsoft assault rifle is easy to manage, and it is pretty good for engagements at any range; but where it really shines is around 100-125 feet. Its ability to switch between fully automatic and semi automatic is, while not especially unique, is quite useful. Equipped with an accessory rail, this weapon can be upgraded to have a vertical grip, a tactical flashlight, a laser pointer, and more. (Click HERE to check its current price on Amazon.)
Lancer Tactical M870 Airsoft Shotgun
| Accessory compatibility: 1 Beginner level: 3 (Intermediate) |
| Brand: “Lancer Tactical” Category: Shotgun |
| Colors: Black |
| Grip: Horizontal Magazine size: 30 |
| Pellet spray: 4 Power: 9 |
| Price: $100 Range: 20 ft |
| Safety level: 5 Style: Long rifle |
| Type: Pump action or Spring powered Velocity: 295 FPS |
| Weight: 6 lbs |
This is a high-powered shotgun, perfect for close range engagements. It has a decent range for a shotgun, and is the only weapon on this list that has “Shotgun pellet spray”, which is the term used to describe the certain randomness of the pellets as they come out of the barrel of the gun. This randomness should not be a major concern, because you are typically going to be close enough to your opponents that this hopefully won’t be an issue.
AGM MK96 Bolt Action Sniper Rifle
| Accessory compatibility: 1 Beginner level: 4 (Difficult) |
| Brand: “AGM” Category: Sniper rifle |
| Colors: Black, Green |
| Grip: Horizontal Magazine size: 24 |
| Pellet spray: 2 Power: 9 |
| Price: $115 Range: 500 m |
| Safety level: 7 Style: Long rifle |
| Type: Bolt action or Spring powered Velocity: 450 FPS |
| Weight: 8 lbs |
This a great long-range rifle because of the high-zoom scope. You have to pull back a lever before every shot in order to prime it, but you will find this in practically every Airsoft sniper on the market. It won’t especially endanger you anyway, as you will be away from of the action anyways.
Tokyo MARUI G18C
| Accessory compatibility: 2 Beginner level: 2 (Easy) |
| Brand: “Tokyo Marui” Category: Sidearm or Pistol |
| Colors: Black |
| Grip: Angled Magazine size: 17 |
| Pellet spray: 3 Power: 5 |
| Price: $59 Range: 30 ft |
| Safety level: 8 Style: Handgun |
| Type: Electric powered Velocity: 210 FPS |
| Weight: 4 lbs |
This Airsoft pistol, from Japan, is fully automatic, meaning you can hold the trigger and completely empty the magazine. This is a great backup weapon, because you don’t have to pause to pull back the slide before every shot. It is typically used as a “Sniper’s pistol”, meaning that this is a sidearm used a lot of times by snipers.
Notes:
[1] I’m thinking especially children between of the ages of ten and fifteen. Full disclosure: I’m fourteen right now.