Modelguns information

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Modelguns are Japanese replica or toy guns, which are usually made of zinc alloys or plastic materials. Most modelguns commonly available today are designed to highly replicate the physical appearance (some bear the authentic trademarks and markings too) and in full scale of the real gun counterpart. Many are even made to highly replicate the internal mechanisms so that they are able to strip-down exactly and imitate closely the functionalities of the real counterparts. They operate exactly like a cap gun, using a small plastic percussion cap to produce gunfire sound, spark and blowback operation (for automatic models), but strictly not able to shoot any projectiles.

There are very strict gun control laws in Japan to restrict the mechanisms and material of modelguns so that modelguns appearing in the Japanese market are safe and cannot be converted into anything that can shoot live cartridges or projectiles. Their high resemblance to the real guns and complete safeness make them very attractive to many gun enthusiasts, especially in those countries with very strict gun control. Best of all, they are only a fraction of cost to the real ones and some even replicate the very rare out-of-reach original models. Modelguns are legal to own in many countries and don't require license for ownership. Having said that, it is recommended that the respective law regarding imitated firearms of individual country should be consulted. Modelguns are not illegal in some countries but it is very hard to pass their Customs. Whilst they are free to import and own in some other countries but the cap is illegal to sell and own there. They may also have trademark infringement issues in some countries.

Besides private collection by hobbyists, they are often used in movie production, re-enactment, authority training and museum display purposes. On the other hand, even the airsoft guns look very close to the real guns, their internal design is very different from the respective real ones. Therefore, airsoft is generally not regarded as modelgun.