BBs and Ammunition
Lots of players want to know what weight of bbs they should use, or what brand of bbs. What makes bbs good, what are somethings they should look out for when buying bbs? Well, let's see how many of these questions we can answer for you.
Q: What brand/s of BBs should I get?
A: There are many different brands of bbs. SQA carries as many as 10 different brands of bbs at any given time. The reason for this is bb manufacturers change quickly, and sometimes the bbs will be different between batches. One batch might be good, the next might be bad. We work hard to only stock bbs we know and trust, but that doesn't mean the bbs we do stock are the only ones you should use.
Our advice is that if you find a brand you like, stick with them. If you are thinking about trying out a new brand of bb, do some research and ask some questions. Find people who have used them and see what they think about them.
A: There are many different brands of bbs. SQA carries as many as 10 different brands of bbs at any given time. The reason for this is bb manufacturers change quickly, and sometimes the bbs will be different between batches. One batch might be good, the next might be bad. We work hard to only stock bbs we know and trust, but that doesn't mean the bbs we do stock are the only ones you should use.
Our advice is that if you find a brand you like, stick with them. If you are thinking about trying out a new brand of bb, do some research and ask some questions. Find people who have used them and see what they think about them.
Q: What BB weight should I use?
A: The short answer is that you should use whatever bb weight you want as long as it's heavier than 0.20g.
The long answer is a bit more complicated. To keep it simple, we recommend that if you are playing indoors, you should use 0.20g-0.25g bbs. If you are playing outdoors, we would recommend using heavier than 0.25s. 0.28g bbs are a good outdoor bb. Heavier bbs can fly further and can fly more accurately than lighter weight bbs. But heavier bbs often cost more than lighter weight bbs. Those limits and requirements will be different for every person, we would love to help you find your perfect bb weight.
A: The short answer is that you should use whatever bb weight you want as long as it's heavier than 0.20g.
The long answer is a bit more complicated. To keep it simple, we recommend that if you are playing indoors, you should use 0.20g-0.25g bbs. If you are playing outdoors, we would recommend using heavier than 0.25s. 0.28g bbs are a good outdoor bb. Heavier bbs can fly further and can fly more accurately than lighter weight bbs. But heavier bbs often cost more than lighter weight bbs. Those limits and requirements will be different for every person, we would love to help you find your perfect bb weight.
Q: What makes bbs good or bad?
A: There are a few things to look out for when looking to buy bbs. The first and most obvious thing to look for is the external quality of the bb. Then, if you have time, breaking them apart to look inside to find out if there are bubbles. Good brands have smooth bbs and no bubbles.
On the outside of the bb, you are looking for seams, injection nipples, off-set or malformed bbs. Stuff that doesn't fit the shape of a circle. Seams and nipples can mess up your hop up and scratch your bucking. Malformed bbs can cause jams, break your nozzle, and ruin your hop up. You want bbs that are polished and have a smooth, round surface.
Inside the bb, air bubbles will make them less accurate. You won't damage your gun shooting bbs with bubbles, but your accuracy might not be up to par. Bubbles change how the bb sits, so it can have all sorts of weird and strange flight patterns when leaving the barrel. Most of the time it's not terrible to have bubbles in your bbs. Yes, they will perform better without bubbles, but you might not see the difference until 100ft+, so depending on your play style, you might be fine, especially with full auto. For accurate guns, you definitely want bbs without bubbles.
This is why we don't let people use .12s in our rentals and why we suggest using .20g bbs and up. Almost every .12g bb is sub par in quality, seams, nipples, misshapen bbs, you name it. They can mess up guns.
A: There are a few things to look out for when looking to buy bbs. The first and most obvious thing to look for is the external quality of the bb. Then, if you have time, breaking them apart to look inside to find out if there are bubbles. Good brands have smooth bbs and no bubbles.
On the outside of the bb, you are looking for seams, injection nipples, off-set or malformed bbs. Stuff that doesn't fit the shape of a circle. Seams and nipples can mess up your hop up and scratch your bucking. Malformed bbs can cause jams, break your nozzle, and ruin your hop up. You want bbs that are polished and have a smooth, round surface.
Inside the bb, air bubbles will make them less accurate. You won't damage your gun shooting bbs with bubbles, but your accuracy might not be up to par. Bubbles change how the bb sits, so it can have all sorts of weird and strange flight patterns when leaving the barrel. Most of the time it's not terrible to have bubbles in your bbs. Yes, they will perform better without bubbles, but you might not see the difference until 100ft+, so depending on your play style, you might be fine, especially with full auto. For accurate guns, you definitely want bbs without bubbles.
This is why we don't let people use .12s in our rentals and why we suggest using .20g bbs and up. Almost every .12g bb is sub par in quality, seams, nipples, misshapen bbs, you name it. They can mess up guns.
Q: Why are there different sizes and what kind of difference does that make?
A: If you've done a little research, you probably have come across 8mm bbs. Most guns and most bbs are 6mm. No, you can't use 8mm bbs in a 6mm rifle or vice versa, it doesn't work. No, 8mm bbs don't hurt more, and they don't fly further or more accurately. It's a little complicated to explain why this is the case, but I'll do my best.
One weight for 8mm bbs is .43g. 6mm bbs also have this weight, .43g. Few things going on here. One is density. Yes, the two bbs weight the same, but one is much smaller than the other. Believe it or not, but the 8mm bb is almost 2.4x larger than the 6mm bb. It's considerably less dense, that means that it won't have as much power as the 6mm bb.
The second thing to keep in mind is wind resistance. The larger the surface area, the more wind will effect a bb. An 8mm bb has twice the surface area as a 6mm bb. That means there's twice as much area for the wind to blow on as there is for a 6mm bb.
When you combine the large surface area of 8mm bbs with the fact that they are not as dense as 6mm bbs, you'll realize that wind affects them way more and they won't go as far because of it. They will be less accurate and have less penetrating power through brush.
So, now we know why 8mm bbs don't perform as well, but why don't they hurt as much, it's larger, so it should, right? Wrong. Remember the surface area is much larger on the 8mm than it is on the 6mm. Think of it as a slap vs a punch. Punching something will do more damage than slapping it will. Your open hand has much more surface area than your small balled up fist.
8mm bbs might seem all scary and intimidating, but they aren't when you start to look at them and realize they are weak. But still, 8mm rifles are usually really neat, they are rare and still can be a lot of fun to use.
A: If you've done a little research, you probably have come across 8mm bbs. Most guns and most bbs are 6mm. No, you can't use 8mm bbs in a 6mm rifle or vice versa, it doesn't work. No, 8mm bbs don't hurt more, and they don't fly further or more accurately. It's a little complicated to explain why this is the case, but I'll do my best.
One weight for 8mm bbs is .43g. 6mm bbs also have this weight, .43g. Few things going on here. One is density. Yes, the two bbs weight the same, but one is much smaller than the other. Believe it or not, but the 8mm bb is almost 2.4x larger than the 6mm bb. It's considerably less dense, that means that it won't have as much power as the 6mm bb.
The second thing to keep in mind is wind resistance. The larger the surface area, the more wind will effect a bb. An 8mm bb has twice the surface area as a 6mm bb. That means there's twice as much area for the wind to blow on as there is for a 6mm bb.
When you combine the large surface area of 8mm bbs with the fact that they are not as dense as 6mm bbs, you'll realize that wind affects them way more and they won't go as far because of it. They will be less accurate and have less penetrating power through brush.
So, now we know why 8mm bbs don't perform as well, but why don't they hurt as much, it's larger, so it should, right? Wrong. Remember the surface area is much larger on the 8mm than it is on the 6mm. Think of it as a slap vs a punch. Punching something will do more damage than slapping it will. Your open hand has much more surface area than your small balled up fist.
8mm bbs might seem all scary and intimidating, but they aren't when you start to look at them and realize they are weak. But still, 8mm rifles are usually really neat, they are rare and still can be a lot of fun to use.