Not sure what to say...

[YellowJacket!]

LOL!  Speaking of Airsoft, you have to read this Fox news article.  I have lost all respect for them and they now fall into the Yellow Journalism category.
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2010/05/06/exclusive-toy-gun-sold-easily-turned-real-thing/?test=latestnews

I have disassembled AR-15's and many top of the line airsoft AR-15's.  Heck, I even own one.  Yet the article says that a toy airsoft rifle can be easily converted to a working AR-15 just by replacing the receiver.  LOL.  So, I am going to shoot a 7.62mm projectile that normally goes down a steel, rifled barel down a straight 6mm barrel that is made of either very thin steel or aluminum?  Oh, and where is the bolt, the firing pin, the chamber to chamber that round into?  Its not part of the receiver.

Oh, and the comments really gave me a good laugh.  The guy with the idea about the milk jugs makes a good point.  :-)

David

[Rikugun]

It's unfortunate that relatively few people like you will know that the article is BS. The majority of people will most likely read that and accept it as truth.

[Walt_M.]

I actually read the article and the receiver is the part that can be modified on one particular airsoft model to function with the rest of the parts from an AR-15. So I agree with the article. Misinformation is so easy to obtain, just ingore the facts.

[Rikugun]

I read the article as well and while I'm not as know ledable as David or you appear to be on guns, the article seems a bit dubious. It starts by using typical scare tactics that the dreaded illegals can now easily get their hands on firearms. It states that a toy can "easily" be converted into a semi auto (later suggesting fully auto as well) simply by drilling a hole in the one regulated portion of the (real) gun, the receiver.

I guess "easily" is subjective. Sounds simple enough. Except then you have to purchase all the other (real) parts of the rifle to make it a viable firearm. Oh, and what is stamped turns out not to be the receiver but a more easily stamped part that is less crucial to the functioning of the weapon. This is a separate loophole that apparently needs to be addressed by the manufacturer and the ATF.

The "machine gun version" takes yet another mod and the resulting weapon won't go through one magizine without self-destructing from the resultant pressure in the toy receiver. Anyway, after assembly of all your "real" parts onto your modified toy receiver, you may end up with a purportedly functioning firearm. Except it's no longer a toy gun with a simple hole drilled in one part, is it?

So I guess misinformation is where you look and facts can be manipulated to bolster whatever agenda one subscribes to.
:angel:

[YellowJacket!]

I'd like to see the author give an actual demonstration of how it is supposed to work.  It would probably be her last story for a while.  There are SO many differences between the upper part of the airsoft AR-15 that they are talking about and the real thing that it is just not possible.  Not impossible, just not possibly practical.  Without the solid, rifled barrel and machined upper, there is no way that even a couple rounds would make it all the way out of the chamber with any accuracy, if at all.  Like what one of the other commenters said, a gallon milk jug and some gas would be more effective.

I'm not at all trying to stir up some controversy, I just wish the press would go back to the old ways of getting the facts straight before they publish something. Its on todays fox.com with a bold red "EXCLUSIVE".

Now, FWW, my Tokyo Marui AR-15 is capable of about 350fps stock.  With a piston upgrade kit, I can boost it to well over 750fps.  A mod to the motor and battery will put it in the 1000 fps and adding a competition barrel will increase the accuracy significantly.  So, on a good day shooting some 6mm aluminum airsoft BB's, it is lethal. 
However, my Crossman BB gun that I have had for over 30 years, when pumped 20+ times, shooting a lead pellet is also lethal, in fact, quite accurate with a scope.
So what is the point of conjuring up a story about how to go to great extremes to modify a toy gun with parts of a real gun that are pretty darn difficult to get anyway and very expensive at that, when you can buy an off the shelf BB gun or spend just a couple hundred dollars to modify the airsof gun in its existing state.  Scare tactics. Simply put.

David

[Rikugun]

I think this thread has been officially hijacked!
David, I'm trying to back you on this but now I'm wondering if you read the entire article!  :-\  Apparently there is a specific model airsoft rifle in question, perhaps not yours. Also, the upper half of the airsoft rifle would not be used and neither would the barrel and probably several other parts. Those can be easily purchased as they are not regulated as the receiver is.(or in this case, the lower portion of the receiver).

You just had to stir up trouble with this article, didn't you!? Sheesh! What's next? Politics? Religion? Claims of the worlds best chili recipe? In case you can't tell, I'm just messin with ya.  :laugh:

On a similar note, I just converted my Daisy Red Rider into a M79 grenade launcher. Sweet..

[Walt_M.]

I would NEVER modify my Red Ryder! Not even to put the compass in the stock.