Whenever we talk about airsoft, the subject of upgrades will always come up in the conversation. The question I hear many times is “I want to run a lipo, do I need a mosfet, and can I just use a basic plug-in mosfet?” There is a very simple different between the wired in mosfet and the plug in mosfet, so let’s set the record straight.
Let’s start first with the plug in mosfet. This particular style of mosfet is not a mosfet at all; rather it is a burst controller. It will give you programming options so your gun can shoot 3 round burst, 5 round burst, dedicated single shot, etc., but it will not protect your gun from trigger contact arcing when using a lipo battery. Why then do they call it a “mosfet”? Well a mosfet can serve two different purposes: being programmable and protecting your trigger contacts when you use a lipo. Yes a plug-in mosfet will allow you to program your gun, but will not protect you from your lipo battery.
If you are going to do any kind of modification to your gun, or you are planning on running a lipo battery, it is advisable to wire in a mosfet. Yes this is much harder to do, and requires soldering skills, but your gun will thank you. I’ve always said, “if you are going to do something, do it right”. The concept of the mosfet is such that the gate wire is soldered to the trigger contact in place of one of the positive wires. The gate (or signal wire) is only providing the signal to the mosfet that says “the trigger contacts are touching, so fire the gun”. It is dealing with a very low voltage, thus, reducing the amount of arcing on the trigger contacts.
Modifying an airsoft gun is an art, and there are right and wrong ways to do it. When dealing with these complex machines, it is best not to cut corners, or you will be spending more money in the long run. Modifying a gun correctly will help it to last for years. Thanks for reading, and as always, happy modifying!
