Airsoft Tips - Using and Maintaining CO2 Powered Airsoft Guns
Using and Maintaining CO2-Powered Airsoft Guns
When the weather gets colder CO2 can be an Airsofter's best friend, or worst enemy, depending on how they use it! Those of us who have been skirmishing for a while have probably noticed the sudden drop off in GBB performance in lower temperatures. There are several solutions to help mitigate this, and by far the most common is using a CO2-powered gun, or a CO2 magazine.
This guide is intended to help you avoid the common pitfalls of CO2 Airsoft guns/mags, keep your CO2 Airsoft gun running in the long run and stay safe while enjoying the superb cold weather performance of CO2. Let's get into it!
CO2 Powered Airsoft Guns - What to avoid
We will start with the common mistakes many players make when using their CO2-powered Airsoft gun. Avoiding these errors should give your gun the best chance of avoiding failure when using CO2.
Leaving a CO2 capsule inserted over long durations
This is a sure way to cause the rubber o-rings inside the magazine to perish prematurely due to the extremely cold temperature of pressurised CO2. We advise that you always empty the entire capsule and remove it from the magazine or gun before storing your pistol between skirmishes to avoid your O-rings failing.
Use of CO2 in a non-CO2 ready gun
CO2 magazines are often available for most common pistol platforms such as the EU series and Hi-capas, but to use these magazines you will in all likelihood need upgraded springs to avoid damaging the internals. Use of a CO2 magazine in a non-CO2 ready gun will cause premature wear and will shorten the life of your gun considerably.
If you are having performance issues in cold weather with your Green Gas pistol we suggest trying Red Gas (NUPROL 3.0 or VORSK V8) but this is only advised if your pistol has a metal slide.
CO2 Powered Airsoft Guns - Maintenance Tips
To keep your CO2-powered Airsoft gun running well in the long term we recommend adding these steps to your standard barrel cleaning/slide rail lubrication maintenance procedure.
Put a drop of silicone oil on the tip of your CO2 capsule before inserting it
This will keep the O-rings around the CO2 piercer lubricated, and should also spread throughout the gun and keep things slick in the same way the silicone lubricant content of Green Gas does. We recommend the Abbey Silicone Gun Oil 35 Dropper for this task as it has the perfect level of viscosity, though you can also use a small amount of 100% silicone spray as an alternative.
Lubricate the Piercer O-rings following CO2 capsule removal
When you have finished shooting and emptied your CO2 capsule we advise removing it from the gun and dropping some silicone oil onto the piercer (the sharp bit that penetrates the capsule) and its surrounding O-rings. This should keep the O-rings fresh when the gun/CO2 mag is stored, though we advise storing all gas magazines in a warm and dry environment regardless.
Some GBB magazines don't allow for direct access to the piercer, and in this case, we recommend a few drops of silicone oil be dropped into the CO2 compartment, or a blast of silicone spray be sprayed inside following the removal of a spent CO2 capsule prior to storage.
CO2 Powered Airsoft Guns - Safety Tips
When using a CO2-powered Airsoft Gun there are certain additional safety issues of which you need to be aware.
Always wear eye protection when inserting or removing a CO2 capsule
While the use of CO2 in Airsoft guns designed for CO2 is generally safe, we always advise wearing eye protection when inserting or removing a CO2 capsule to avoid unforeseen issues causing injury. CO2 capsules can often appear to be empty due to the "cooldown" effect, and if you attempt to remove a CO2 capsule when it is not completely empty it may shoot out under pressure.
When emptying a CO2 capsule make sure you leave the gun/mag to warm up before removing
When removing a CO2 capsule from your gun/magazine it is very important to ensure the capsule is completely empty before attempting to remove it. Shooting your gun until it no longer fires will usually empty the capsule completely, as will pressing the knocker valve on the rear of a GBB CO2 magazine.
We advise that once you have emptied the capsule you leave the magazine/gun for a few minutes to warm up before confirming that the capsule is empty (shoot your gun/press the knocker valve again). Once you are 100% sure the capsule is empty you can remove it safely. Failing to do this can cause the CO2 capsule to shoot out unexpectedly.
NEVER attempt to fill a Green Gas Magazine with CO2, even using a CO2 charger
CO2 in the form of 12g capsules is under considerably more pressure than Green Gas canisters, and as such, CO2 cannot be used in a standard green gas magazine, even with a CO2 charger intended for Air Rifles and certain MOSCART grenades. If you attempt to fill a Green Gas magazine using a CO2 charger it will in all likelihood explode which can have life-altering consequences and cause serious injury. No amount of safety precautions can make this safe, so please, avoid this at all costs!
And with that, you should be equipped with the knowledge to wield your CO2-powered Airsoft gun safely and keep it running in the long term, avoiding all the common mistakes we made in our early days in the hobby!
There is nothing more irritating than having to replace O-rings early in the life of your gun, and nothing more shocking than having a CO2 capsule fire out of your magazine when you thought it was empty. If you follow these tips, you shouldn't need to learn these lessons the hard way!