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Currently, airsoft guns fall under this ‘mid-velocity’ category as they are mandated to muzzle velocities of between 366 and 500 feet per second.
Airguns that fire projectiles faster than 500 feet per second must be registered as firearms.
“That confirms our worst fears,” said Matt Wasilewicz, who owns Canadian Airsoft Imports, an airsoft supply wholesaler.
He told the Sun on Thursday that the bill, should it be passed into law as-is, would shutter an entire industry overnight instantly outlawing safe and vibrant a hobby enjoyed by hundreds of thousands of Canadians and closing thousands of businesses.
Canadian police services and military also regularly use airsoft as a safe and inexpensive training tool.
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“All BB guns and airsoft guns do look like a gun, so everything meets those two criteria.”
Similar to paintball, airsoft is a competitive sport where enthusiasts use realistic-looking ‘firearms’ to shoot 6mm plastic pellets at the opposing team.
“It’s really overtaken paintball as the shooting-sports fun game,” Wasilewicz said.
Part of the draw is the realism, with many spending thousands to ‘look the part’ with realistic-looking weapons and gear not to mention its use in both police and military training programs.
Both Chong and Wasilewicz stress the high levels of safety embedded in the culture, particularly when dealing with guns that resemble the real thing.