What makes our BB so consistent and accurate?
Why are they the evolution in airsoft BB’s?
Why are they the evolution in airsoft BB’s?
Material
NON biodegradable BB : Our non bio BB is an abs blend. Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS) blended with other polymers and bonding agents. . That’s is much as we will share as far as the formula goes. Most BB manufactures have a similar characteristic however the initial formula is only a small part of the process. The properties of Abs are such.Acrylonitrile butadiene styrene (ABS)) is a common thermoplastic. Its melting point is approximately 105 °C (221 °F).[1]
It is a copolymer made by polymerizing styrene and acrylonitrile in the presence of polybutadiene. The proportions can vary from 15 to 35% acrylonitrile, 5 to 30% butadiene and 40 to 60% styrene. The result is a long chain of polybutadienecriss-crossed with shorter chains of poly(styrene-co-acrylonitrile). The nitrile groups from neighboring chains, being polar, attract each other and bind the chains together, making ABS stronger than pure polystyrene. The styrene gives the plastic a shiny, impervious surface. The butadiene, a rubbery substance, provides resilience even at low temperatures. For the majority of applications, ABS can be used between −25 and 60 °C (-13 and 140 °F) as its mechanical properties vary with temperature. The properties are created by rubber toughening, where fine particles of elastomer are distributed throughout the rigid matrix. Our ABS blend and strict manufacturing process has produced a very consistent BB in a wide array of environments,temperatures and playing conditions.
Biodegradable BB : We again use a certain blend of materials to give us a extremely precise consistent product. The main chemical we use is PLA. (PLA) is a thermoplastic aliphatic polyester .derived from renewable resources, such as corn starch (in the United States), tapioca products (roots, chips or starch mostly in Asia) or sugarcanes (in the rest of world). It can biodegrade under certain conditions, such as the presences of oxygen and is difficult to recycle. P life or (Programmable life) is also used in our BB to help aid in the degradation process.P-Life” is a specially formulated degradant catalyst which leads polyolefin polymers such as polyethylene and polypropylene, considered as non-biodegradable polymers, into “*Oxo-Biodegradable Plastics”.P-Life degradant additives provide the chemical environment that subsequently and inevitably leads to the total degradation of the polyethylene product into carbon dioxide, water and a benign, non-toxic residue at the molecular level, which is then totally assimilated back into nature. So how long does it take to break down. Well that is a tough question. Break down speed depends on several factors such as UV exposure , oxygen , water and heat. However it will break down completely into carbon dioxide , water , and sugars.
The Manufacturing Process
Our BB’s unlike other BB’s are formed as a one piece unit right out of the thermoplastic mold. Other manufactures create two spherical hemispheres then bond them together. This process creates a ring or ridge which if not properly removed will cause feeding and jamming failures. The fore mentioned process needs extensive polishing and added quality control steps increasing the price of the end product. So we do not use that method. We use a highpressure thermoplastic injection mold that produces a one piece BB. Our molding process also gives our BB a hardened “skin” eliminating smashing and creating a more consistent BB. Getting from raw materials to a product ready for polishing is an 8 step process with 5 quality control checks in between for consistency of product.
Polishing
Our polishing process schedule and polishing media material Is what sets us apart from other manufacturer s. Our BB’s undergo a 17 step polishing procedure with strict quality control in between steps. This assures media is still performing and product is receiving the best surface finishing possible. This is where the quality control is so important. Too much polishing and you remove too much material shrinking diameter of BB. Not enough polishing can leave imperfections from the mold and can cause failures and inconsistent BB’s. Once the final polishing step is completed the BB’s go through the strictest of quality checks ensuring spherical geometry, spherical diameter measurements, and concentricity from BB to BB. Not only does this process create symmetrical BB’s but makes for incredibly reliable ammo.
QS 9001 is being currently established
Utilizing the best materials, processes, and quality control measures creates an accurate consistent product.
What is accuracy???
1. Conformity to fact.
2. Precision; exactness.
3. The ability of a measurement to match the actual value of the quantity being measured.
What is accuracy mean for airsoft players?? Well in my opinion, just like any other projectile it’s the ability to place as many rounds into the smallest group as possible. An accurate BB is a consistent BB. The more homogenous and uniform one BB is to the next the more accurate a BB will be. There is no magic BB. Why do you think match Palma shooters load their own ammo? It’s not because they make their own bullet. They just use standard match bullets. Its because they can make every single round an exact match to the previous one. Powder charges, case concentricity, primer depth, bullet seated depth etc.. What im getting at is whether you are shooting at 1000 yards or 40 feet the more consistent the projectile the more likely you are going to hit your target the first shot. The smaller the group the more accurate the BB!!! This does not take into account other variables, Temp., altitude, wind, spin drift, humidity. For airsoft these topics are negligible.
2. Precision; exactness.
3. The ability of a measurement to match the actual value of the quantity being measured.
What is accuracy mean for airsoft players?? Well in my opinion, just like any other projectile it’s the ability to place as many rounds into the smallest group as possible. An accurate BB is a consistent BB. The more homogenous and uniform one BB is to the next the more accurate a BB will be. There is no magic BB. Why do you think match Palma shooters load their own ammo? It’s not because they make their own bullet. They just use standard match bullets. Its because they can make every single round an exact match to the previous one. Powder charges, case concentricity, primer depth, bullet seated depth etc.. What im getting at is whether you are shooting at 1000 yards or 40 feet the more consistent the projectile the more likely you are going to hit your target the first shot. The smaller the group the more accurate the BB!!! This does not take into account other variables, Temp., altitude, wind, spin drift, humidity. For airsoft these topics are negligible.
ACCURACY = CONSISTANCY
How do we get more accuracy out of a BB?? The answer is backspin. Call it what ever you want , hop up, spin up, backspin. The point is we are imparting spin on the BB to increase our accuracy. Barrels will also increase accuracy. However, we will not discuss that at this point.
Why??? How???
Pull up a chair.
Bernoulli's Principle : Fluid particles are subject only to pressure and their own weight. If a fluid is flowing horizontally and along a section of a streamline, where the speed increases it can only be because the fluid on that section has moved from a region of higher pressure to a region of lower pressure; and if its speed decreases, it can only be because it has moved from a region of lower pressure to a region of higher pressure. Consequently, within a fluid flowing horizontally, the highest speed occurs where the pressure is lowest, and the lowest speed occurs where the pressure is highest. What does this mean for an airsoft player? For starters this applies to gases as well. If we do not apply a pressure differential on the BB you would have far less range due to loss of lift. How ever this is only a principle. We need to apply this to an effect. The Magnus effect.
Why??? How???
Pull up a chair.
Bernoulli's Principle : Fluid particles are subject only to pressure and their own weight. If a fluid is flowing horizontally and along a section of a streamline, where the speed increases it can only be because the fluid on that section has moved from a region of higher pressure to a region of lower pressure; and if its speed decreases, it can only be because it has moved from a region of lower pressure to a region of higher pressure. Consequently, within a fluid flowing horizontally, the highest speed occurs where the pressure is lowest, and the lowest speed occurs where the pressure is highest. What does this mean for an airsoft player? For starters this applies to gases as well. If we do not apply a pressure differential on the BB you would have far less range due to loss of lift. How ever this is only a principle. We need to apply this to an effect. The Magnus effect.
The Magnus Effect :
When a body (such as a sphere or circular cylinder) is spinning in a viscous fluid, it creates a boundary layer around itself, and the boundary layer induces a more widespread circular motion of the fluid. If the body is moving through the fluid with a velocity V, the velocity of the thin layer of fluid close to the body is a little greater than V on the forward-moving side and a little less than V on the backward-moving side. This is because the induced velocity due to the boundary layer surrounding the spinning body is added to V on the forward-moving side, and subtracted from V on the backward-moving side. One explanation of the Magnus effect is since there is more (forwards) acceleration of air on the forward-moving side than the backward-moving side, there is more pressure on the forward-moving side, resulting in a perpendicular component of force from the air towards the backward-moving side. However, this layer of spinning air is very thin, and it is more likely most of the Magnus effect is due to the earlier detachment of the air flow on the forward-moving side, which results in a diversion of the flow (acceleration of air) with a perpendicular component towards the forward-moving side, coexisting with an opposing aerodynamic force with a perpendicular component towards the backward-moving side. Backspin equals lift. Top spin equals drop.
Bernoulli's Principle + Magnus Effect = A spinning object creating sides with high and low pressure imparting a lift opposite the low pressure side. This is why hop up is so important in airsoft. We can essentially more than double our ranges without increasing FPS at the muzzle. So if someone made a BB more susceptible to reacting to backspin would nt it be a better BB???? At Hailstorm we took this into extreme consideration in our polishing process.
***One Final Note on Accuracy***I would never say that our BB’s will turn anyone’s AEG into a super hit machine. There are so many variables that come into play when it comes to accuracy. Every gun is different. Just like on centerfire rifle ammo a $50 dollar box of match ammo may shoot poorly in one gun and make a ragged hole in another. Hailstorm BB’s are a super premium product that will perform reliably in many AEG’s.
