BB guns

pulliptears

ktj wrote: »

Hi,
Advice on the above needed please.

My son's best friend has one of these and after much persuasion we are allowing my son to have one. He has been saving for one and is now trying to decide which one to buy. Can anyone with experience of these guns advise on how to get best value for money? He has about £50 to spend. Obviously he wants to spend as little as possible and doesn't know if things like electric v battery; rapid fire; laser; etc. are worth paying extra for.

Thanks in advance for any knowledge of these devices that you can pass on. kje

I think OP is looking for advice from gun owners,

morganedge

http://bbgunsuk.co.uk/xcart/catalog/Co2-Firepower-Raider--p-16637.html

pipsta

heretolearn wrote: »

BB guns are not glorified paintball guns. Paintball pellets sting when they hit but don't do more damage than a bruise. Fine, you could be unlucky and get one right in the eye and lose an eye, I suppose, but that's it. I don't think you'd manage to smash a window with one, for example.

BB guns will kill birds and small mammals, seriously injure larger animals (including children), and can smash windows, dent cars, damage property etc... A BB pellet will actually enter flesh, like a bullet, not just bounce off and leave a bruise, if at short enough range.

don't be talked into something just because his mate has one.

If you are talking about airsoft BB guns then the above is utter tosh. Airsoft is a up and coming sport played with replica guns and this is where the problem lies. If he is responsible enough let him have one but these guns come with serious responsiblity.

The law states that these replica bb guns must now be painted over 50% of the gun to show jo public they are not the real thing. If he wants to leave them unpainted so they still look real he must be a registered member of an airsoft club to make it legal.

They guns will not kill animals (well very small ones if lucky) they will take your eye out so eye protection is recommended and must never be waived around in public as you will find armed police turning up he stands the chance of being shot. Dont mean to scare you but the police dont mess around.

If you take this all on board im sure he will be fine.

I had them as a kid and respected the law and had no bother but he must must understand the consequences as imitation firearms carry the same minimum sentance as the real thing (5years) if you mess about!

hope this helps

puppypants

I was at work with a colleague on a medical admissions ward (both nurses), when she was called to A& E. Her son, who was 13 the week previously, had been shot. The pellet entered behind his ear and lodged in the brainstem. This was not anything to do with larking about, showing off to peers, it was just him and his cousin sitting on sunloungers in the cousins garden (auntie was looking after my friends son while she was at work). What happened was that her son asked the cousin for the gun and as he passed it over to him, it went off (the inquest found it to have a faulty trigger mechanism).

I will never forget the screams of my colleague as she learned how serious it was. He was on life support for 24 hours, then they had to make the decision to turn the machine off. The doctors said that he was actually killed at the scene. Things can happen no matter how careful and supervised kids are.

pokerpad

I used to have a few BB guns when growing up. I think they cost about £30 back then.

You probably don't want one that is gas powered as they are more expensive and very powerful.

We used to shoot targets mainly but we did have BB gun fights a lot.

I'm not saying your son will do the same, but looking back they could be dangerous if hit in the face. Great fun though!

I'd get one from ebay or a fishing/hunting/sports type shot.

TheEffect

One of my family members had a BB gun when he was 14. He thought it would be a good idea to take it into the street with his friends. To cut a long story short, armed police were there within minutes and the parents did not get off lightly. He was so terrified after he never touched a BB gun or airgun since.

Tell him to wait until he's 18, then he can buy what he wants.

liam8282

I too had a bb gun when I was younger, 13 - 15 say.

It used to shoot lead pellets and darts. Was just spring loaded. Also moved on to a more powerful air rifle, but just to shoot targets from a further distance, as we had a big field at the back of our house.

Never used it to shoot animals or people, was just used to shoot targets.

A lot of things can be viewed as dangerous for children, you could stop them playing darts on this basis I suppose, or riding a bike in case they fall of it.

Sometimes you just need to use your own judgement, of your own child.

I would agree that fishing shops are a good place to go to have a look at bb guns / air pistols etc.

They will be able to tell you a lot about them, have all the equipment, targets, and you can judge for yourself what you actually need.

MackemPunk

puppypants wrote: »

I was at work with a colleague on a medical admissions ward (both nurses), when she was called to A& E. Her son, who was 13 the week previously, had been shot. The pellet entered behind his ear and lodged in the brainstem. This was not anything to do with larking about, showing off to peers, it was just him and his cousin sitting on sunloungers in the cousins garden (auntie was looking after my friends son while she was at work). What happened was that her son asked the cousin for the gun and as he passed it over to him, it went off (the inquest found it to have a faulty trigger mechanism).

I will never forget the screams of my colleague as she learned how serious it was. He was on life support for 24 hours, then they had to make the decision to turn the machine off. The doctors said that he was actually killed at the scene. Things can happen no matter how careful and supervised kids are.

Not a nice thing to happen, but the lads did break one of the fundamental rules of handling guns (real or air), NEVER hand someone a loaded weapon.

rachbc

My only experience of these is my best friend's son - who lost his eye due to being shot during some 'high japes' - he was also a 'very sensible' 16 yo

puppypants

MackemPunk wrote: »

Not a nice thing to happen, but the lads did break one of the fundamental rules of handling guns (real or air), NEVER hand someone a loaded weapon.

But kids don't often think of fundamental rules...