How did you first learn about Airsoft?

[jawinn]

I’m still surprised that it took me so long to find Airsoft. I’ve only known about the sport for about three years. Before then, like most, I played paintball.

I first saw an Airsoft AEG at gun store in Chantilly, VA. It was a TM MP5. If I wasn’t such a fan of the MP5 I probably wouldn’t have asked the surly gun store owner about it. He told me it was Airsoft. After that I spent about a month doing nothing but reading online about Airsoft. I finally ordered my first AEG, my TM M4 that I still play with now, and proceeded to sweep my house for tangos.

[crafty_0ne]

got introduced to the sport through a friend of Davin's 'bout a year ago. We actually got 4 people together and took Tims intro class before I went out and bought my first(and so far only) AEG, my ICS MP5 A4. Ive been addicted ever since, ITs just a matter of finding time to play.

[antix]

I really can't remember exactly how I got started, but once I found out about it, I did what you did, Jason. I did nothing but online research on it, and my friend and I (who is currently inactive, as he is busy with school) orderd our first AEG. Although it wasn't our official first AEG, because they were crappy, AA-run boys-series M4's...I'm still embarassed to admit that. My first official AEG was an ICS MP5 SD6. I realized that I didn't quite like the SD series, so about a month later, I traded it in for an A4. My friend then bought the A4 off of me, as he was still renting at that time, and I bought a CA M15A4 S.P.C. which I still use today for outdoor games, since I've had upgrades done to it to push it up to 400fps.

[Smukatele]

I found out about it from a loud-mouthed obsessive co-worker....A co-worker who eventually became so obsessed that he started an Airsoft website ;)

[mr7q]

I played paintball, and was always looking for a more realistic alternative... I knew about airsoft, but nobody I knew played it, and nobody I knew was willing to spring the couple hundred dollars to get started.

Now that I'm close to AirsoftCQB, I finally bought a gun. My brother played with it, and then bought one. My coworker played with mine and my brother's, and then bought one.

And now we all find ourselves at AirsoftCQB on Fridays, shooting at each other and having a jolly good time.

[DAN]

I think mr7q just said how i got into it. saw his g36... played around with it... got my p90...

he and i also played around with some cheap springers a while ago...

[itsahak]

I used to play at a LAN party every Friday nite at my bro's house. We mostly played Sum Of All Fears and Ghost Recon, and every now and then Unreal Tournament # whatever. I was walking thru Dicks Sporting Goods one day and saw the M9 EBB's they sell. We bought a couple, and the rest was history. Before I knew it, I'd started a team, secured 3 fields to play on, bought a couple of LPEG's, then some gear, then some more gear, then a TM, then some more gear, found another local team to skirmish with, then bought another TM, then won some gear, and right now am getting ready to buy... you guessed it, more gear!!! Wow, i'm pathetic!!!

[Bob the Angry Potato]

Hmm...
A few years ago (2002, I believe), I was spending time in the United Arab Emirates. I picked up the aforementioned spring-AK-47 for about 7 dollars (US, 8 dollars Canadian. 20 Dirham at the bazaar itself), just for replica quality. Surpringly enough, it came with a box of about 200 BBs, and after talking to friends around I realized that it was a bit of a local fad. However, this was done with overpowered springers with no gear- when I got back to Canada, I was in the dark about the scene until about 2 years ago.

[JohnnyDime]

My friend Dave introduced me to it. He was introduced to it by Stillman, who some of you might know from ACQB, although he hasn't been there in awhile.

I never played paintball, but played lots of PC shooters, like the ones Itsahak mentioned. I also have experience with real guns so Airsoft is a natural hobby for me.

Anyway, it's been well over a year and still going strong.

[Gator76]

I started about a year ago with some co-worker/friends with wally world springers. every monday night after we did inventory we would run around and shoot at each other behind our store. About 2-3 months later one of us bought a TM on E-bay, after we got a look (and feel of it) we got our own. Now me and two of the original 6 that started come out to ACQB on a regular basis.

[crafty_0ne]

I never played paintball, but played lots of PC shooters, like the ones Itsahak mentioned. I also have experience with real guns so Airsoft is a natural hobby for me.

Seems to me that there are 3 types of people that find there way into playing airsoft......ex-paintballers, FPS Gamers, and people who deal and work with Real Steel.

[shadow]

One of my friends had a boys TM M4, a cheap version of a hicapa, and some Russian looking gun, played with him & two other friends, and got obsessed, like I am today.

[M3 guy]

Started like August 05. Play Once got hooked and got serious about playing.. Can't wait for some outdoor games this summer...

[L33T Pwnage]

About 2 years ago, when my friend told me about this amazing place (cqb)where they do real tactics with guns. he invited me to play and i fell in love when i first steped in the cqb. with all the money i saved up, i bought me a ca MP5. Paintball is just too expensive for me. i probrobly spent around 1000 dollars on paintball stuff. airsoft is alot cheaper than paintball, take my advice.

[matshark]

i got my intro to airsoft when itsahak invited me over to his house one night... i was over there all the time so i didnt think anything of it and said id be right over (its all of 3 min away)

it was cold...like 20 degress... so khitass wait outside in the cold for like 40 min before i finally get there and hides behind the bushes by the street, lights me up when i walk down the stairs... actually he waited until i was halfway between the street and his porch so i couldnt duck behind anything... bastard... it was fun though...

that said, we played our first game a week later in his backyard and around his house...lol i think it ended in a draw... house clearing for tango's soon followed...lol

[Predator]

i found out about ACQB about six months ago by a friend that i now work with, but i got my first shit airsoft gun in a mall, M82, it's ok but would not play with it at ACQB, it doesn't pack a pouch like my MP5 and Navy Seal SOCCOM pistol does

[jawinn]

Seems to me that there are 3 types of people that find there way into playing airsoft......ex-paintballers, FPS Gamers, and people who deal and work with Real Steel.

You forgot to mention people who have friends who are Airsofters. Pretty much all of the Culpepper Mafia get started that way; as well as Commie, Death Squid and Smukatele.

[Commie]

I used to work with Jason.....in that he introduced me to the cult of Airsoft and I've been here eversince unloading pain!

[Kyle]

im a paintballer and still am(speedball is what i play, not woodsball), but actually, paintballing is not what got me into airsoft. i was watching Tactical to Practical on the history channel, and they featured airsoft once. i looked online and got an HFC G17 springer, sold that, got a KJW M9, sold it, got a KWA G19, sold it, then rented a gun and went to cqb with some friends who have been going there for a while, loved it, then got a TM AK-47s and been playin ever since

[afroman794]

im with kyle on this one heard about it through paintball (speedball) but i just thought it was how police and SWAT practiced. i had no clue their was a place i could play less than five minutes away from my house. i went and played with a couple friends and thought it was insane

addicted ever since

[Jaberwaki]

I stumbled on airsoft purely by happens chance(fate for those of you who believe in it)
My wife and I were bored one saterday and went to wallyworld looking for a arrows for our compound bows thinking we might have some fun blowing the dust off of them and doing some target practice.
While in the guns and ammo section, Liz said hey hun check these out.
She was holding 2 springer clear plastic tauris p92's.
I bought them and we went home to give em a try we had a short lived blast when she said, "you know I think i saw some of these but they were rifles."
we went back to wallys and picked up a few springer M-4's...
30 mins later we were back and found full auto minis...
That did it.. We were hooked.
I got oneline at work that week looking for new "toys".
I stumbled on ACQB's website.
We loaded up all our "toys" and went to go play... When I saw the stuff on the wall I decided that we would not be opening up our gun case... (I did not feel like getting laughed out of the joint)
We both took an instant liking to the staff at ACQB and I bought my first M5.
a year and 3000 bucks later its all history :D

[chick]

I found out about airsoft last summer when Davin shot me and I went, "hey... cool..."

[Sniper270]

I dont remember how i got started but my first gun was a Crosman P30.

[Alacris]

mr7q was wasting company resources looking at airsoft guns one day and I was like -- "you thinking of buying a G36C? Good luck." His response was "no, it's an airsoft gun . . ."

"airsoft?" I asked

And the rest (and several hundred dollars) is history. :)

[XD40B-CM]

There was a skinny little dude who brought this to me. It's a rap from there.

[Raven02TA]

i got into it thanks to jaberwaki, he ranted and raved for weeks before i could come out.

[XD40B-CM]

Actually that's the same thing that happened to me. Jake begged for 3-4 months. I thought that I would hate it and that it soaked up time away from my family...., but now i'm cured and my priorities have shifted....., I love this game (but never more than B-Ball).:)

[bishop]

itsahak introduced me. I had played paintball a few times, but never got into it because of the cost. I had seen some of these "bb" guns, but thought what a waste of money (I had only seen the AEG's in passing, and their "high" prices), for shooting at a paper target. Had no clue about what they were really for. Now I'm an addict. And bishop 1.5 is becoming one too!!

[Rob]

I was looking for training tools for live fire.
Started web searching, and eventually found this site.
Just visted ACQB yesterday and I like it.

[jayson]

I got started when we had to do a video project for high school. We ripped off Max Payne's storyline and I got to be a badass (up until I get shot right in the face execution style) mob-leader. The props we used were full metal springers.

Consequently, I got the bug, got my own springer. Then my own mini-auto, but I never could quite find the funds or the guts to buy a tokyo marui. Finally, after a friend said he was going to get one, I got one too, and 5 years later, and who knows how many thousands of dollars (mostly in Tac Gear that I try and dont like.. mmmmfff), I am hooked, line and sinker.

Now I just got to get me some of them new fangled night vision things. Going to my second night game on Sunday and it gets a little tedious trying to see in the dark... you look at blobs, blobs who may be your teammates! AHHH!

[chemdog54]

I was in the army and we used to run training sims at drills and FTX's and such with MILES gear, which was like glorified laser tag. I had a friend who started playing and he invited me and I was instantly hooked. Only played one game with an LPEG and had to spring for the CA M4 SPC and now am a member of BRASS.

[mrkrinkle]

A year ago, my cousin got a mini STG77 for easter. I still had no clue what airsoft was so I went over there and checked it out. The next week, I ordered a CYMA AK-47 (highly regret buying that gun)

[al3xd4gr34t]

Airsoft came to me through some friends from school, about 4 months ago. They asked if I wanted to start so i agreed and one of them gave me his AK47 (LPEG). Since then, I've been switching around with weapons. I went from an AK, to MP5, to M16, to M4, to a sniper. As of now, I'm looking for a good AK to convert to an SVD.

[Stan187]

I took my son and some of his friends out to ACQB, I was hooked after that. I had my first AEG about two months after that.

[L33T Pwnage]

My friend took me to airsoft CQB when it was first new. Went there 2 times and since my birthday was coming i decided to buy my first AEG CA MP5. i luved it. Ever since i play airsoft and gave up on paintball.

[new kid just watch]

i liked guns and the only thing i could get is airsoft or painball guns and i chose airsoft

[jawinn]

i liked guns and the only thing i could get is airsoft or painball guns and i chose airsoft

You have chosen wisely.

[itsahak]

You have chosen wisely.

You forgot to add, "My young apprentice"

(Sorry, I'm watching Star Wars Attack of the Clones.)

[Stealth1]

Back in FL we had a friends house we ould all go to party at.. one night my girl bought a plastic toy gun at the grocery store that shoots "space rings", little flying discs. I got tired of getting blasted by little yellow flying discs so i was at the flea market and passed a store selling lpegs and springers... bought a 5$ springer... somebody shot me with it coming out of the bathroom one night so the next weekend I bought my first lpeg and started a WAR in my friends house... me having a full ato (double eagle M83 - M4 wanna be) and everybody else having springer pistols... it was me vs all and from there I found a local course that rented TM guns per hour... went and played and got hooked immediatelyy and trasfered from paintball to the po mans paintball. Airsoft

[soldieroffortune]

My brother and his friends had little springer pistols and one day his friend showed up with a Panther Arms shooting 300+fps and it began to be everyone vs him. My brother bought two uzis and every day he would secretly sneak me out to the backyard to go airsofting. 2-3 months ago I got my first gun the M87 SOS Super shotgun and became the official team shotgunner for my brothers team. :D

[crazyak47_555]

I found out about airsoft years back at SportsmenWarehouse with a crossman m9 handgun.

[thesuhpaman]

pac man

he let me use the 36c...which i use today at base (EXACTLY like the airsoft version...besides shells fllying out the side and 30 rounds a mag of course)

[BugattiV3]

My friend. He bought a CYMA shotgun that came with a cheap pistol and showed it to me, afterwards I got hooked. I finally convinced my parents to let me buy an airsoft gun, and so I bought a WELL M4 with all the accessorys...for $40.:rolleyes: Afterwards more and more cheap spring guns and minis came into possession of my friends and we starting having airsoft wars. I looked at airsoft guns online way too much, then I really wanted an electric gun, and when I saw the CYMA CM022 AK-47 for only $50:cool: , I bought it. I then fired it and became disapointed, and tried to take a shortcut into AEGs by buying a UTG Warhawk, but I still needed to go all the way, since then I have aquired alot of spring guns, and moved on to real AEGs and GBBs and games at airsoftcqb. Although every now and then I play games in the woods usually with spring guns. I sort of miss when I was a noob thinking my WELL M4 was the sweetist gun and playing backyard wars.

[thesuhpaman]

ha...beating those little kids that think theyre AMAZING because they own their friends in the backyard...priceless...though one had a CA mp5 and i had a UTG mp5...didnt matter...hay day for me 1v1 on a sat morning :D

[tyler {332nd} ham]

I got into it in late 03'

My brother and I were bored with just shooting stuff with BB guns, so we got some airsoft guns and shot at eachother. I stuck with it, he dropped it. Then, my gun broke and I didnt have another one for a long time. I had gotten into paintball, and still am really into paintball, although I play airsoft more.

Lately, I've been getting more and more into airsoft. I love the realism and I find less people cheat in airsoft than in paintball...

Although, I'm going into the Air Force in march, so all summer I'll be at basic and wont be able to play =(.