Handyman firing 3,000 rounds a minute from a machine gun becomes unlikely star of YouTube with 20million hits

Rab Hailstones, 40, filmed firing £3,000 gun in 'airsoft' battle in a forest

Video of mock battle has attracted 20million YouTube views in four years

American fans have flocked to Scotland after watching the video



A handyman who is obsessed with guns has become an unlikely online star after a video of him firing 50 rounds a second in a battle roleplay attracted 20million views.



Rab Hailstones was filmed deploying his £3,000 'machine gun' filled with plastic bullets during a playful skirmish in a Scottish wood.



The clip has apparently become Scotland's biggest amateur YouTube hit ever thanks to millions of fans of a new military-based sport, and has turned its star into a minor celebrity.

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Star: Rab Hailstones has become a YouTube hit after he was filmed deploying a machine gun in an mock battle in a Scottish forest involving fans of 'airsoft'

The video shows an airsoft battle - a growing sport in which participants run around woodland dressed in camouflage shooting each other with plastic pellets from military-style guns.



It was posted online via a YouTube channel dedicated to airsoft fights in Scotland, which has received 130million visits.

The nine-minute video shows the progress of an entire battle which took place in a forest in Fife - but the undoubted highlight is the appearance of Mr Hailstones with his multi-barrelled machine gun.



The 40-year-old can be seen spraying enemies with 3,000 pellets a minute from the weapon, which is one of only 30 in the world.



Firepower: The £3,000 gun is one of only 30 models in the world and can fire 50 rounds a second

Mr Hailstones owns around 50 airsoft guns, but he says the machine gun - nicknamed 'Old Painless' - has a 'fear factor' which his other weapons cannot match.



'When you walk into a room with it people say, "I think I'll go now,"' he said. 'The whole kit weighs five stone, you have to try and trudge. Everyone wants to fight it.'



The father of two says his antics with the gun have made him a recognisable figure in his home town of Glenrothes.



'One time in the street I was taking the bairn to classes and some kids started mimicking the action of the minigun,' he said. 'They said, "It's him, it's him!"'



The clip was first posted online in 2009, and has been viewed more than 20million times.



Celebrity: Mr Hailstones says he now gets recognised on the streets of his hometown of Glenrothes, Fife Page: A YouTube channel dedicated to Scottish airsoft has now had 130million views

It was filmed and edited by John Welsh, who runs the YouTube channel 'Scoutthedoggie' dedicated to airsoft in Scotland.



The 48-year-old believes he owes his success to the sport's growing popularity in the U.S. - and a Scottish character in hit video game Call of Duty.



'It's been a rollercoaster ride,' he said. 'I never expected to have 130million views.



'Google and YouTube have been in touch, they've had us down to London to discuss optimising it.



Many of the channel's most dedicated fans come from California, and they often take to the YouTube comment section to write about the players' thick Scottish accents.

