Rubber BBs

[Fensome]

Re: Rubber BBs

That's a really good idea. It would improve hop units greatly and it like doubles the range of a golf ball, although they do fly in more of a porabula than Airsoft bbs do, could make an awesome bb mortar with that concept though. Would manufacturing cost of bbs rise? I have no idea how a bio bb is made.

[StargateP90]

It has been tried. Bioval did it, however while the accuracy and range was greatly increased but so was the energy transferred. A .25g bb at 320fps managed to brake a car window, well not shatter it totally but the round did imbed itself in the window.

Google it, theres pics online im sure.

Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 2

[Fensome]

Re: Rubber BBs

That sounds fun, although a. 0.25 at 320 fps is the equivalent of a 0.2 at 357 fps, what would that do at point blank range to a car windows screen? I haven't the courage to shoot my mums volvo to find out :L

[TomFahey]

Re: Rubber BBs

So how does it increase the energy transferred? You mean transferred from the firing mechanism to propel the bb, or from the bb to the target on impact? Surely it shouldn't matter either way, because our guns are calibrated to a certain safe muzzle energy using the assumption that there will be a 100% efficient transfer of that energy i.e the energy the BB leaves the barrel at is the energy it imparts on its target?

[ScoobySnacks]

Re: Rubber BBs

To answer a question asked earlier, a standard BB at 1280 fps would have a muzzle energy of 11.1 ft.lb. The legal limit for an air rifle before it needs a licence is 12 ft.lb. So at close range it would be near lethal, and would certainly break skin and embed to a good depth. Of course as a spherical projectile it would shed speed fast, but I'd not want to get hit by one at anything less than a couple of hundred yards. My air rifle, running 19 grain .22 pellets at 11.5 ft.lb will kill rabbits and other thin skinned vermin at 70 yards (if I can hit it, realistic hunting range is more like 40 yards, but it has sufficient energy to do the job to a much greater range)

Of course, the pellet is supposed to impart all of it's energy to the target rather than bouncing off.

As for rubber BB's, you could make hard rubber, not much different in feel to a plastic BB, but it would make little difference. A plastic BB seems to offer a good compromise between hardness, energy transfer, shootability and, of course, cost. Rubber would likely cost significantly more, so would need to offer significant performance benefits to sell.