Airsoft Gas Masks

[Baz JJ]

Did a search and found a couple of old topics on here on the subject.

 

I'm thinking about using a replica gas mask for an airsoft game.

 

There seems to be a difference of opinion about the M04 type as some people think they are fine for UK fps but then there are some You Tube videos from the US of the lens being shot out. It looks like the lens pops out on impact rather than shatters, but still undesirable as the next shot is going to go in your eye.

 

There is also a more expensive copy of the UK GSR sold by Airsoft World and which uses mesh instead of a lens and there is the US M50 replica which seems to have a wider angle of vision than the M04 but questionable ballistic qualities on the visor.

 

What are peoples experiences ??

 

I'm aware of the S10 with the ballistic over lenses but I'm not really interested in the real thing as they are very uncomfortable to wear and run around in and the S10 has a terrible field of view.

 

Has anybody used the Airsoft M50 type which is also called the DC15 by the makers.

[djben9]

A guy at the urban assault game few weeks back wore a mask from work used for spraying....got a bit foggy in there!!

 

Not sure if he or his mate is on here???

 

Sorry, not much help

[Baz JJ]

You can use all kinds of full face masks for spraying, etc but the main issue with airsoft is the ability of the lenses to withstand a BB strike e.g. in CQB.

Most masks arent designed for this.

[Russe11]

I tested an M04 gas mask and the lens does get shot out easily. The simple solution is to put epoxy glue around the inside edge of the lens.

[Uprising]

I have to use gas masks at work some times when spraying chemicals. If you are like me and have a bit of facial b*m fluff then it gets itchy very quickly, you also sweat like anything just from walking around after 20 mins so unless you get the ones with built in fans I can see you getting very hot in no time at all

[Ian_Gere]

My concern with those replicas is not so much ballistic, as although we heard a few stories a while back about the M04 lenses being less than secure, I feel pretty sure that the manufacturers would have addressed that issue, and surely we would have heard a lot more if they had not, eh? Besides I seem to remember people saying it was an easy fix to glue the lenses. No, it's about our age old nemesis, fogging. The thing with the S10 is that the way the internal mask works is to draw the incoming fresh air from the filter across the eye space first so, as long as it is fitted correctly, it will not fog much. You know I have real problems with polycarbonate lenses fogging, so if an S10 works on me well enough to skirmish, it should work for pretty much anyone. That was with an unmodified filter too - I expect that a filter with the guts removed would make them even more usable.

 

As you say though, there are issues - I didn't find visibility too bad in the S10, but you do have to keep your neck on a swivel more because they do restrict your periphery a bit. Simply breathing through the filter is not straightforward - i was told by ex-military blokes that the trick is to breath in long slow breaths, regardless of what you're doing. Obviously that means ignoring your desire to breath more deeply and quickly the more you exert yourself, but actually thinking about each breath is very unnatural - i imagine that if a person had a tendency to claustrophobia they would find it really quite disturbing. Personally I only wore it for an afternoon, 4 games IIRC, and took it off in the safe zone between times, so I can't say if you can get used to that way of breathing enough to do it without 2nd thought. My main problem however was sweating - wearing the mask on a warm-ish day probably didn't help but i expect that the ambient temperature really didn't make that much difference, I'm sure I'd have sweated that much anyway. Upshot = it gave me a slight rash along my lower jaw.

 

TBH i'm pretty sure that would happen whether it was a converted real gas mask or a replica.

 

Looking at the M04's lens shape, it seems as if the peripheral vision issue has been addressed by the lens shape, but I suspect it only seems that way, because actually the position of the lens is far enough off the face that the curve really doesn't make any difference - the opening is not actually any further round to the side of the head than the angled circular opening of an S10. I think the M50 is a little bit better, however even though the lens wraps right round onto the side of the head, the inner opening does not go as far, but worse the lower edge of the opening on the side is actually quite high, so i doubt you could see someone crouching to your side or, for eg, someone lying in cover off to either side. So actually in use you'd have to keep your head on a swivel anyway...

[Baz JJ]

The M04 and the M50 are fitted with PC fans and the reviews that I read on Amazon etc said that fogging wasnt a big issue.

The GSR is mesh so nothing to fog.

 

What amazes me is that one reviewer says they shot the lens up close and it was no problem and another says the product is unsafe because they shot the lens and it broke.

Probably different fps and ranges, but you would have thought the makers would be able to rate their products with a proper test or ballistics certification.

 

How can you risk using one of these products if you dont know the threshold - its not worth risking your eyesight.

[Albiscuit]

I have a ex issue S10 mask which I wanted to use with my SAS iran embassy look loadout but wanted to know A) if the lenses were up to the job and If I could whack a pc fan in the filter to assist with airflow, seems Ian answered both my questions

[Ian_Gere]

^^No no! The original S10 lenses are not safe for airsoft - you have to replace them with Lexan. There's a geezer on fleabay does the lenses who is also a member here, but he's not written anything for quite a long time - blueangelical is his username IIRC and also his eBay tag.

 

I recently-ish had lenses made for a Russian PBF gas mask by someone else on fleabay though, who was much cheaper than t'other geezer. I'll look it up now, but it could take some time, but i thought i'd best let you know while you're likely still online...

[Ian_Gere]

This is the place. You'll have to message them to ask for a price for what you need. 3mm of acrylic is sufficient for BB proof, but you may want thicker to make it fit into the rubber better - off the top of my head i can't remember the dimensions you need for S10 lenses, but i put 5mm into my PBF/EO-19.

Edited November 4, 2015 by Ian_Gere
clarity

[ImTriggerHappy]

This is the place. You'll have to message them to ask for a price for what you need. 3mm of acrylic is sufficient for BB proof, but you may want thicker to make it fit into the rubber better - off the top of my head i can't remember the dimensions you need for S10 lenses, but i put 5mm into my PBF/EO-19.

Makrolon polycarbonate is the best material. I use it to make scope protectors.

I dont trust acrylic it can snap relatively easy.

[Ian_Gere]

As far as I remember that seller deals with a variety of materials, but I hosed my PBF once i'd swapped the lenses out from 25mm with 0.25g BB's at about 400FPS and it left just the merest scuff mark. I also tested one with my SVD which was firing at 494FPS on 0.2s and that didn't leave a mark - those lenses are just bog standard acrylic.

[Greg147]

I tried the M04 mask once (after epoxy-ing the lens in place so they wouldn't pop out when shot), but I wouldn't recommend it. Fogging wasn't an issue due to the fan, but it was uncomfortable and didn't fit properly, plus the straps on the back broke pretty easily. Being a Chinese product, it seemed like it was designed for players with more Asian facial features, so if you're like me (Caucasian with quite a prominent nose structure), it might start to put an uncomfortable amount of pressure on the bridge of your nose after five or ten minutes of use.

 

It's also difficult to get your face close to the stock of your weapon as well, so using iron sights (of anything that isn't elevated) is pretty much impossible.

[Baz JJ]

We were planning to use gas masks at our upcoming crimesim game at Tuddenham but Ive also heard that the M04 is only rated by the maker at 400fps, so I wont be risking that.

 

Thanks for all your answers, but we will do it another way.

[Mtemprell]

Can I ask why the s10 lenses aren't any good? As I have shot mine with a 480fps sniper at a range of 5m and the BBC just bought ced of with no damage so I assumed they're good for airsoft.

[jcheeseright]

The lenses in an S10 are made of brittle plastic and definitely do shatter if hit the wrong way by a BB. I've broken the lens on an S10 by dropping it!

 

As for wearing a gas mask for an airsoft game... you must be mental, they're horrible!

[Ian_Gere]

Can I ask why the s10 lenses aren't any good? As I have shot mine with a 480fps sniper at a range of 5m and the BBC just bought ced of with no damage so I assumed they're good for airsoft.

You may get away with it 9 times out of 10, but the plastic is definitely brittle, and the one time you get hosed at close range may be the time it gives up the ghost and not only cracks but then splinters, allowing the rest of the stream of BB's into your eyes.

[Mtemprell]

You may get away with it 9 times out of 10, but the plastic is definitely brittle, and the one time you get hosed at close range may be the time it gives up the ghost and not only cracks but then splinters, allowing the rest of the stream of BB's into your eyes.

Cheers. I'm glad I know that now. Used a gsr in airsoft too but had glasses on under it as I don't trust that flexible lense.

[Josh95]

I would wear some shooting glasses underneath a gasmask, dont trust these chinese brands that say its "balastic rated", its most likely not.

[Ian_Gere]

I would wear some shooting glasses underneath a gasmask, dont trust these chinese brands that say its "balastic rated", its most likely not.

Or you could just replace the lenses with Lexan or some other polycarbonate of sufficient thickness to be BB proof.

[Russe11]

I have used an M04 gas mask and found all the issues mentioned previously. I did quite a few alterations.

The mounting points for the straps are weak and break so I removed them and drilled holes and bolted the straps to the mask.

The lenses themselves are pretty sturdy but the way they clip to the mask isn't so I epoxied them in place.

The fan kept cutting out and it was only just strong enough to prevent fogging so I removed the internal structure of the filter and inserted a CPU cooling fan. This runs off a NiMH battery in a shirt pocket. This was a bit of overkill, but definitely no fogging issue now. There is a bit of a noise issue

The mask just would not sit right so I added padding to the top of the mask. This also means that when worn with a hood or helmet air is blown over the top of your head due to the fan upgrade.

[harveyspecter]

Not sure if he or his mate is on here???

[Ian_Gere]

Not sure if he or his mate is on here???

Who/se?

[callumbagshaw]

Haven't read through all the comments above properly but worst case scenario, can't you just fit some safety specs under the mask for good measure?

[Ian_Gere]

Haven't read through all the comments above properly but worst case scenario, can't you just fit some safety specs under the mask for good measure?

In theory you could but they would likely be very uncomfortable with the arms pressed against the side of your head. Plus if they were polycarb lenses they would probably fog/rain out at first, until they warmed up.