Number of posts : 174 Location / Country : Germany Registration date : 2008-09-10
Subject: Re: History of modelgun industry. Wed Aug 06, 2014 6:52 pm
Sorry for double post!
Just received this in the mail today, directly from Japan
145 pages filled with very nice fotos of some very old and rare model- and airsoftguns. Unfortunately completely in japanese, but I knew this before I ordered. My wife can translate a few single words, but not a whole text (at least not without spending days on it ). Still very nice resource material If there's anyone here who speaks japanese and has the time to translate a few pages once in a while, please let me know
lampwick Modelgun Master
Number of posts : 361 Location / Country : UK Registration date : 2008-09-11
Subject: Re: History of modelgun industry. Wed Aug 06, 2014 7:35 pm
How about a peek inside? Where did you order it and how much was it?
Pydracor Modelgun Enthusiast
Number of posts : 174 Location / Country : Germany Registration date : 2008-09-10
Subject: Re: History of modelgun industry. Wed Aug 06, 2014 8:44 pm
Now that I have checked the book a bit more thoroughly, I'd say it seems pretty heavy on three topics: MGC, pistols (only a few long arms inside) and airsoft. They only scratch the other big classic manufacturers like JAC, Asahi is hardly mentioned at all, but Marui, Marushin, etc. are all there. As far as I can tell only a small percentage of the pages shows modelguns, but the airsoftguns which are shown often are the good old shell ejectors.
I'm still very happy with the book, it's a very special and rare thing to rummage in. I bought it at ebay from a Japanese shop. It doesn't come cheap, but worldwide shipping is included. The shop is very professional, everything worked out flawlessly, shipping even was pretty quick for such a long way
Cerwyn Cerwyn (Site Admin)
Number of posts : 11090 Age : 65 Location / Country : North Wales Registration date : 2008-07-20
Subject: Re: History of modelgun industry. Thu Aug 07, 2014 11:25 am
Pydracor wrote:
Huge HATS OFF! to you smootik, as I already said in my pm This really is a great source for information on modelgun history - not just this thread, but all the others on the specific manufacturers, too. Thanks a ton for this!
One thing I don't quite get: It said here, that Tanio Koba was able to design the cap-driven Blowback mechanism because of the light weight of the plastic slides in the 70s. Nowadays, you see a few ot the MGC MP40 from 1968 with firecap mechanism - are these all custom built internals? Were there no cap-driven modelguns whatsoever before the late 70s?
I stand to be corrected but as far as I've understood things, the first cap firing models used Open cartridges, loaded with Paper Caps cut from rolls. Several caps could be inserted into each cartridge to achieve the right balance between blowback and effect. Taking MGC68 MP40s as an example, the first models used Open Cartridges and Paper Caps, as did the MGC Thompson and MGC M16. As Japanese legislation forced the manufacturers to use weaker materials instead of steel to produce modelguns' receivers (to ensure that no-one could tamper with them and attempt firing live ammunition), design and manufacturing techniques had to evolve. Zinc Alloy, then Plastics became the materials of choice. As with everything else, the need for constant improvement and new products resulted in the plastic bodied caps we still use now. The 7mm and 5mm caps from Kanecaps gave Tanio Koba the opportunity to redesign cartridges completely. The CP and CP-HW type we use most today were the result. Steel MGC68 MP40s were still available on the second hand market and in collectors hands but the old Open Cartridges and Paper Caps became obsolete. To enable owners to keep firing their models, they had to adapt the guns to use 9mm CP and CP-HW cartridges. Basically, it's the Detonator Pin that needed changing from the old "Mushroom Head" Open type to the fine pointed type still used today. Someone (I don't know who) designed and started selling new Detonator Pins that could be swapped over easily. These Pins are the ones still used today.
_________________ Cerwyn
Hobby collector of Replica model guns and Militaria. also member of Living History Reenactment Groups.
jim Modelgun Perfectionist
Number of posts : 988 Location / Country : Hong Kong / Sydney, Australia Registration date : 2008-09-07
Subject: Re: History of modelgun industry. Tue Aug 19, 2014 5:49 pm
Something more special from me ...just spotted it from a small gun shop a couple of weeks ago :
Entire 20 issues of this short-lived modelgun magazine mastered by the great Mr Kobayashi...!
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Pydracor Modelgun Enthusiast
Number of posts : 174 Location / Country : Germany Registration date : 2008-09-10
Subject: Re: History of modelgun industry. Tue Aug 19, 2014 7:03 pm
Awesome! Always fascinating, just how many hobby related things there were. I would so love to go shopping in Hong Kong or Tokyo
Also, thanks for your post Cerwyn! Sounds like a reasonable background info to the development of cartridges
smootik Modelgun Perfectionist
Number of posts : 1823 Location / Country : Poland Registration date : 2009-03-03
Subject: Re: History of modelgun industry. Wed Aug 20, 2014 9:01 am
jim wrote:
Something more special from me ...just spotted it from a small gun shop a couple of weeks ago : Entire 20 issues of this short-lived modelgun magazine mastered by the great Mr Kobayashi...!
Wow! That's a nice find! Please share when you see something interesting/surprising there :-)
jim Modelgun Perfectionist
Number of posts : 988 Location / Country : Hong Kong / Sydney, Australia Registration date : 2008-09-07
Subject: Re: History of modelgun industry. Thu Aug 21, 2014 9:34 am
smootik wrote:
jim wrote:
Something more special from me ...just spotted it from a small gun shop a couple of weeks ago : Entire 20 issues of this short-lived modelgun magazine mastered by the great Mr Kobayashi...!
Wow! That's a nice find! Please share when you see something interesting/surprising there :-)
Sure I will Smootik
lampwick Modelgun Master
Number of posts : 361 Location / Country : UK Registration date : 2008-09-11
Subject: Re: History of modelgun industry. Thu Aug 21, 2014 11:02 am
Did you buy the magazines Jim or just 'spot' them? I'd have been all over them like a rash.
jim Modelgun Perfectionist
Number of posts : 988 Location / Country : Hong Kong / Sydney, Australia Registration date : 2008-09-07
Subject: Re: History of modelgun industry. Fri Aug 22, 2014 9:22 am
lampwick wrote:
Did you buy the magazines Jim or just 'spot' them? I'd have been all over them like a rash.
I bought them immediately after I "spotted" them
Please take a wild guess of how much this entire collection costed me ?
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lampwick Modelgun Master
Number of posts : 361 Location / Country : UK Registration date : 2008-09-11
Subject: Re: History of modelgun industry. Fri Aug 22, 2014 9:47 am
$40 US?
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jim Modelgun Perfectionist
Number of posts : 988 Location / Country : Hong Kong / Sydney, Australia Registration date : 2008-09-07
Subject: Re: History of modelgun industry. Fri Aug 29, 2014 6:34 pm
£2.34 per issue...
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lampwick Modelgun Master
Number of posts : 361 Location / Country : UK Registration date : 2008-09-11
Subject: Re: History of modelgun industry. Fri Aug 29, 2014 6:57 pm
$77. Not too bad for something that hard to find.
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Ron Walker New Member
Number of posts : 26 Location / Country : Isle of Man Registration date : 2015-09-03
Subject: Have I spotted something that got missed?? Sat Sep 12, 2015 2:49 am
If you overlook the substantial collection of cap pistols I owned as a kid, I've been collecting "modelguns" about as long as they've been on sale in the UK - the first item in my collection was a Beretta 1934; I added to the collection and traded models, building a reasonable collection of pretty much any and every type; metal, plastic, Plugfire, Airsoft...AND several examples of another type. These are ALL "long arms" - an M16, a Thompson, a Mk2 Sten gun... and they all fire bright orange plastic "waisted pellets", much the same as a Webley airgun, but roughly double the size (in all directions - twice as long, twice as wide...) The guns were spring powered, using a really rather strong helical spring and they were briefly available shortly BEFORE "airsoft" emerged. I never saw any equivalent pistols.....
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MauriceACrabtree New Member
Number of posts : 1 Location / Country : USA Registration date : 2022-06-21
Subject: Re: History of modelgun industry. Wed Jun 22, 2022 10:25 am
As its old post but still useful information about model gun history.
Wed Aug 06, 2014 6:52 pm
).
