What Is A High FPS For Airsoft Guns

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Do you know that you can go beyond 400 FPS in Airsoft?

Heck, you can even have a 700 FPS airsoft gun!

But stop right there.

What is a high FPS For Airsoft Guns One of the mistakes most airsoft newbies make is looking for and choosing the high FPS guns.

Is it not the point to have a powerful airsoft gun?

If that’s what you’re thinking right now, then you need to know the things I’m going to cover in this mini-guide!

What does FPS mean, really?
Does FPS matter?
If yes, how much FPS do I need to start off with for my brand new gun?

Hint:

FPS is not everything – but it sure is a strong factor.

We will also be looking at other issues, components, and accessories that can affect the power of your airsoft gun.

So let’s not keep you waiting.

Ready…aim….

And fire!

Q. What Does FPS Mean In Airsoft?

Airsoft FPS means Feet Per Second.

Simply put…

FPS only means the speed of the BB as the gun shoots and it leaves the airsoft gun’s barrel and eventually, the muzzle.

FPS or muzzle velocity is calculated by adding up the power of the airsoft gun itself and the BB weight, because how heavy or light your ammo is will also affect how fast and how powerful your BB will travel.

While FPS is certainly not everything and won’t make you a champion on its own, you’ll definitely need higher FPS guns if you’re using much heavier BBs, because the heavier BBs are, the slower they can move.

And the slower they move, the weaker the impact of the BB is. There’s also a bigger chance that you’ll miss your target if you’re using a lower FPS gun.

Wait, did an insect bite me? Oh, it’s a BB? You shot me? Sorry I didn’t realize.

Yea, much like that.

The standard FPS that most airsoft fields accept is around 250 to 350 FPS.

Anything lower than that could ruin the whole airsoft game and anything much higher can potentially hurt or even injure people, so watch out for your airsoft guns FPS if you’re planning to play in a field.

But that’s not all.

The standard mentioned above isn’t the fixed cap FPS for all airsoft fields around the world. It also depends if you’re playing indoors or outdoors.

A typical indoor field limit is 350 FPS while outdoor fields have a higher FPS gun limit which usually ranges from 350 to 400 FPS.

Now, now. You might be thinking…

So why not just get the highest FPS airsoft gun?

Well, aside from FPS is not the only factor you should consider, and you might even be rejected from playing in an airsoft field with deadly powerful FPS guns…

….and of course, the FPS limit of the field you will be playing in.

Aside from your BBs, there are also so many factors that can affect your airsoft performance.

And that’s what we will be exploring next.

Related: Best Airsoft Sniper Rifles

Q. How does Airsoft Gun FPS Affect BBs

You’ve most probably heard seasoned airsoft players talk about the importance of your BBs in your game.

Get this…

A sniper rifle with 250 FPS with 0.20 BBs can be less powerful than a .12 BB out of an 800 FPS airsoft sniper.

But why?

While it isn’t always the case, this only illustrates the effect FPS has on your BBs.

As I’ve mentioned earlier, it’s literally the power and speed that pushes the bullet out of your gun.

So you’ve heard that the heavier your BB is, the more powerful your shots will be.

Well, try using a gun with115 FPS with 0.20g BBs and see if it hurts.

But aside from FPS and BBS, there are also other factors you want to look into if you are aiming for a powerful shot in your game.

And that’s what we’ll be talking about in the next sections.

Q. How BB Weight Affects FPS?

Let’s look at another example.

You can have a 350 FPS airsoft rifle with 0.49 grams of BB and the same rifle but with the standard 0.20 BB can hit the target within 60 meters faster than you do.

Yeah, that’s kinda a turnaround of what we’ve talked about earlier!

Basically…

…the heavier your BBs are, the slower they will move and travel towards the target. Also cheaper BBs are made from lighter weight material that’s more susceptible to going off course.

In that way, your BB also affects the FPS of your gun. A heavier BB can hit your target with a much heavier “punch” or impact than a lighter BB.

On the other hand…

Your lighter BB can travel faster but with less impact on the target.

Q. Does FPS Affect Accuracy And Range?

As was mentioned above, a lighter BB can hit the target way faster than a heavier BB.

But what makes it tricky…

…is that lighter BBs tend to be more inaccurate in hitting the target than heavier ones.

Wait, what?

In reality, the lighter the BB is, the inaccurate it tends to be. Not to generalize, but lighter BBs can get blown by the wind, displacing them away from the target.

Of course, you can always play with lighter BBs in indoor fields where natural variables such as the wind, won’t get in the way of hitting the target and bringing home that bacon.

Q. What Is The Recommended FPS For Different Types Of Airsoft Guns?

Recommended FPS For Airsoft Pistols And Revolvers

In most common cases, an airsoft player, especially if he plays with an airsoft sniper rifle, keeps a pistol or revolver as a secondary weapon, and for close combat. For that, you don’t need much FPS. 250 to 350 will do.

Recommended FPS For AEGs

As mentioned earlier, for outdoor fields, you’ll want a greater FPS for your AEGs. While there are 500 FPS airsoft guns, I wouldn’t recommend that as it can hurt real bad.

That is, if you want to get banned by the local airsoft station.

350 to 400 FPS will do and 300 to 350 for indoor fields.

Recommended FPS For Airsoft Snipers

I’ve mentioned 500 FPS guns, didn’t I?

If you’re looking into playing with sniper rifles, then you have all the right to use 400 to 500 FPS guns as snipers shoot through long and wide distances. Most snipers have very strong springs or concentrated gas along with the metal barrel assembly and barrel length, which helps in launching your BBs across a great distance with high velocity.

Recommended FPS For Airsoft Shotguns

Like pistols, shotguns are also used in close-quarter combat. For that reason, you don’t need too much FPS. 280 to 350 FPS will get you through.

Q. What Are The Airsoft Guns With Highest FPS?

If we’re talking about real power, the Novritsch SSG24 Airsoft Sniper Rifle is a real beast with FPS up to 650.

Not many airsoft guns reach an FPS of over 600. And anyway, not many airsoft games need one because of the FPS limits in fields.

If I’m going to recommend you a high FPS airsoft gun, it would be the 550 FPS spring bolt action sniper rifle gun with a scope from BBtac. Thanks to its longer inner barrel length and rear iron sights, this is a beast of a primary weapon in the field.

But wait.

Not all powerful guns are snipers. You can also have a badass pistol with 500 FPS power, like WG’s 1911 non-blowback CO2. It doesn’t have a full metal body but its internal parts are metal and are able to take the heavy blow from every BB hit.