Posts Tagged ‘CO2 pistol’
Mayhem .45 Sport Tactical air pistol: Part 3
by B.B. Pelletier
The Mayhem .45 Sport Tactical air pistol is a big, heavy airgun.
Well, it all came down to accuracy, and the Mayhem .45 Sport Tactical air pistol has it in buckets. However — and it’s a big one — the trigger is so hard to pull and it’s also double-action only that it creates a problem shooting the gun accurately. If this had a single-action trigger, I bet I could shoot half-inch groups with it — especially at 15 feet. But I’m getting ahead of the story.
The first BBs I used were the RWS BBs that I’ve mentioned in the past. They seem to group just as tightly as Daisy’s zinc-plated BBs, and I wanted to give them a chance in this pistol.
I started the test at 15 feet, and the nature of my range dictates a one-hand hold at that distance. I didn’t expect very much until seeing the BBs all go to the point of aim. However, I wasn’t able to hold the gun still enough to pull the trigger, which requires over 12 lbs. of effort, and still keep the pistol steady.
At 15 feet, the pistol shoots to the point of aim, but the heavy trigger-pull caused it to move around more than a little. This 10-shot group measures 1.468 inches between centers.
Since it shot so straight at the close distance, I decided to back up to 25 feet and try it. Normally, I don’t shoot BB pistols that far back, but at that distance I could use a barricade rest and this pistol might surprise me.
Barricade rest
A barricade rest is a very steady hold for a handgun — especially an air pistol that doesn’t recoil. I grab onto the barricade, in this case a door jamb on my right side, with my left hand and rest my right (shooting) hand on top. Then, I lean into my hands to further steady myself. This eliminates the shakes and allows for a good arm’s-length sight picture.
The Mayhem trigger-pull is so heavy that, after the first group at 15 feet, I had to pull the trigger with my middle finger because my index finger was out of strength. The BBs also went slightly higher at 25 feet.
A fair group from 25 feet with a BB pistol. There are 9 shots in 2.192 inches.
After this group, I reloaded the magazine with Daisy zinc-plated BBs for another try. My trigger finger was giving out at this point, so this was the last group I would be able to shoot with any accuracy.
This time, I gave it my best for 10n shots. From where I stood, every shot looked like a perfect release; but when I walked to the target, I saw that the group was more spread out. Ten shots went into 1.873 inches.
The final group of Daisy BBs did best at 25 feet.
Summary
The Mayhem BB pistol has several things going for it. It gets an incredible number of shots per CO2 cartridge, yet the velocity remains high. The BB magazine is very easy to load and manage. Accuracy is also well ahead of many BB pistols.
On the down side, the sights aren’t adjustable. As we see from this test, it would have been nice if they were.
But the trigger is the biggest sticking point I had with this pistol. It’s double-action only, so there’s no possibility of relief from the excessive pull. I’m usually pretty neutral when it comes to triggers. I shoot so many airguns that I can adapt to just about anything. But this one is too much even for me. I know I could have shot better with a trigger-pull half as heavy or with a single-action pull.
Mayhem .45 Sport Tactical air pistol: Part 2
by B.B. Pelletier
Announcement: Before we begin, I want to mention a correction I’ve made to the review of the Evanix Conquest. Apparently, the dual mag is not included with the gun. It was simply sent with the gun for testing. I’ve edited the review and noted the edits. The dual mags are available for purchase.
The Mayhem .45 Sport Tactical air pistol is a big, heavy airgun.
Today, we’ll look at the power and velocity of the Mayhem .45 Sport Tactical air pistol. As you recall, this pistol is double-action only (DAO), which means the trigger retracts the striker before firing. So, the trigger-pull will never change as you shoot. It’s always going to be heavier than a single-action trigger.
Don’t confuse single-action and double-action with single-stage and two-stage. They describe entirely different things. Single-stage triggers are those that have no movement when the gun is cocked. You just pull until the gun fires. Two-stage triggers have a lighter first stage that stops at stage two, which then should break or release crisply when the gun fires.
The test
I always learn something from every test I conduct, and this time was no different. For the first time in my experience, I found a CO2-powered BB gun that needs a short break-in! I tested the gun with Daisy zinc-plated BBs. The initial shot went just 351 f.p.s., and I was stunned to see that it was 80 f.p.s. below the advertised velocity. But the next shot went 404 f.p.s., then the third went 373 and so on throughout the first 10 shots.
I saw a high of 429 f.p.s. around shot 10, but the average was far below that number. I reloaded the stick magazine and tried again!
The second time was similar to the first. Shot one went 399 f.p.s., and then the velocity dipped as low as 384 f.p.s. Shot six then went 423 f.p.s., which was the fastest shot in the second 10-shot string that averaged 407 f.p.s.
Then, the gun started performing better and better. The average of the third string was 427. String 4 averaged 421 and on and on until the 11th string averaged 408 f.p.s. That was the final string that made over 400, but there were still about 20 more usable shots left.
Yes, this pistol gave me over 130 shots on a CO2 cartridge! It was as close as I have come to cold fusion in quite a while. I almost had to break the velocity test into two parts because the testing was taking so long. Is that music to your ears? This is the ideal air pistol for those who lament the cost of buying CO2 cartridges.
The fastest recorded shot went 435 f.p.s., so the gun seems to be right on spec. I even got used to the DAO trigger and believe I can control it during the accuracy test.
The gun doesn’t seem to need much recovery time between shots to maintain its velocity. At times I was firing as fast as a shot every 5 seconds without hurting the velocity at all.
Yes, this pistol gave me over 130 shots on a CO2 cartridge! It was as close as I have come to cold fusion in quite a while. I almost had to break the velocity test into two parts because the testing was taking so long.
Magazine
I said in Part 1 that the magazine looked to be easier to load than most stick mags — now I can say that with confidence. The follower locks down in place positively, yet a flick of the finger releases it after the magazine is loaded.
Safety
The safety on this pistol is located on the right side of the frame and is one that requires a forward push on the milled plate to unlock the safety lever, which then moves up and down. It’s a design that requires some thought to operate, but it completely disconnects the trigger from the striker, rendering the gun incapable of firing.
The safety takes a bit of getting used to, but it works fine.
Made for a silencer
The Mayhem has deep roots in the world of airsoft. One of the ways you can tell is by examining the muzzle, which is threaded for a fake silencer. While it wouldn’t change the minimal report (the gun really isn’t very loud), it will probably appeal to many shooters. I don’t know that there’s an optional silencer for this handgun — yet; but if there’s enough demand, one probably could become available in the future.
The muzzle is threaded for a fake silencer.
This is the ideal air pistol for those who lament the cost of buying CO2 cartridges.
So far
All things considered to this point, the Mayhem has a lot going for it — especially the gas economy! But at the price, it’s going to come down to accuracy.
Mayhem .45 Sport Tactical air pistol: Part 1
by B.B. Pelletier
The Mayhem .45 Sport Tactical air pistol is a big, heavy airgun.
If you liked the Dan Wesson revolver we looked at a couple weeks ago, here’s another realistic airgun for you — the Mayhem .45 Sport Tactical air pistol. This one is a semiautomatic pistol style, and the owner’s manual says that it fires semiautomatically. Without a 12-gram CO2 cartridge installed, all I could feel was a double-action-only trigger-pull, because every pull of the trigger was obviously also cocking the internal striker. So I installed a cartridge to see if it really is semiautomatic once charged.
Not a semiautomatic
Indeed, this is not a semiautomatic! When you pull or squeeze the trigger, you’re also retracting the internal striker against a powerful spring. A true semiautomatic would cock this striker spring for you by the action of firing. In a firearm, the moving slide would push the external hammer back until the sear caught it and then all you would have to do is squeeze the trigger a little each time to release the sear. That is the definition of semiautomatic. The exposed hammer you see on the gun is a solid cast piece that doesn’t move, so the real striker (the correct name given to a weight that is internal and doesn’t pivot on an axis, but moves straight back and forth to impact the end of the valve stem) is inside the frame of the gun and hidden from view.
Some people insist that double-action-only applies to just revolvers, but that is incorrect. Glock sells only firearm pistols, but they label their triggers correctly as double-action-only. The Mayhem trigger is also DAO.
General impression
The Mayhem is very large and heavy. The grip feels wide — like the grip on a double-stack firearm pistol in which the cartridges in the magazine are offset to accommodate twice as many in the same magazine height.
The entire exterior of the pistol is metal except for the grip. That’s where the weight of 2.29 lbs. comes from.
The sights are the fiberoptic type that I usually criticize for their lack of precision, but this is a BB pistol and probably capable of shooting to the same precision as the sights can control. So, in this case, the sights match the capability of the gun very well. There are no adjustments for these sights. The front is a red tube that is largely unprotected from impact and the rear is a curved green tube that appears as two green dots.
The entire top of the pistol is a stylized Weaver rail that Pyramyd Air calls an optics rail. Under the muzzle, there’s also a short Picatinny rail for accessories like tactical flashlights. Weaver bases will attach to Picatinny rails, but not vice-versa.
Looking down on the top of the pistol, we see the stylistic “Weaver” sight rail that extends the length of the gun. It should accommodate standard Weaver bases, but it has non-typical scalloped notches instead of the usual square Weaver notches.
Underneath the slide at muzzle, there’s a short Picatinny rail for tactical flashlights and lasers.
The whole plastic grip panel pulls back to expose the CO2 cartridge housing. Loading is quick and easy and the screw that tensions the CO2 cartridge does not show when the grip is forward.
The grip pulls back to expose the CO2 receptacle. The BB magazine is a metal stick-style.
The 19-shot BB magazine is a stick-type located in the front of the grip. It’s made of metal and better-made than 90 percent of the stick magazines I see in similar airguns. The spring-loaded follower pulls down and locks at the bottom so you can load the magazine with one hand. There’s a wide opening for loading the BBs. When you’re finished, push the base of the follower that protrudes through the bottom of the magazine, and it’ll unlock and spring forward to tension the BBs.
The slide doesn’t move on this gun, nor is there any blowback sensation. The trigger stacks toward the end of the pull, allowing you to control the gun for more precision. It isn’t as easy to control as a gun with a single-stage trigger, but you can learn to control this kind of trigger pretty quickly. I imagine a gun like this will be chiefly used for plinking at soda cans and targets of equal size, though I do plan to test it on bullseye targets.
Power
The power is rated at 430 f.p.s. Since this is a steel BB gun, there can be no confusion about what that means. Only steel BBs will be used in the gun, so any that I try should go approximately that fast.
Airsoft heritage
This is another air pistol that made the transition from airsoft. You can see that in several places, starting with the threaded muzzle that’s obviously meant for a silencer. A second clue are multiple references made in the owner’s manual, where the instructions refer to this as a “soft air” pistol.
There’s nothing wrong with transitioning from an airsoft gun, We saw that in the Dan Wesson revolver and liked it very much. But this pistol must stand on its own merit, so it’s going to be treated the same as all other BB pistols. As nice as it feels, I hope it does well!
Smith & Wesson M&P R8 BB revolver: Part 3
by B.B. Pelletier
Photos and test by Earl (Mac) McDonald, unless otherwise indicated
S&W M&P R8 BB revolver. Photo provided by Pyramyd Air.
Today we look at the accuracy the S&W M&P R8 BB revolver offers. Because this is a BB revolver Mac tested it at 15 feet, but he also tested it at 25 feet as well. So we’ll get a look at what is considered to be a long distance for any BB pistol.
Oddly, Mac found the revolver more accurate when fired double-action and timed-fire. Timed fire means he got off all eight shots in about 20 seconds. It gets its name from a type of handgun shooting in which the competitors are given a certain amount of time to fire all their shots. So perhaps it is best understood as deliberate aimed fire, rather than slow aimed fire.
There was some question last time as to whether the velocity reported was obtained from single-action or double-action fire. Mac says it doesn’t matter because both ways produce the same results. The hammer on double-action releases at the exact same place as it does single-action, so the only real advantage is that in single-action you can slow down. However, that brings up a second controversy.
Several readers wondered about the high number of shots from a single cartridge. Mac advises that he charged the pistol twice and got the same results, so it isn’t s fluke. It really does get 120 good shots per cartridge, as long as the shooting is deliberate.
Many of you commented that the single-action trigger pull seemed very heavy, and at over nine pounds I guess it is. Mac says it doesn’t feel that heavy when you are shooting, but he does admit that the single-action pull is a bit stiff. He thinks that may be linked in some way to this action that is different than most other BB pistols he’s tried.
He felt the light weight of the gun did not hinder him while shooting, but adds that if he were keeping it, he would find ways to increase the weight. Putting lead in the cavities in the grip is one way to do this, and adding accessories is another.
During all the testing Mac used Daisy zinc-plated BBs.
From 15 feet Mac got an eight-shot group that measured 1.2-inches between centers. He shot this group single-action, using Daisy zinc-plated BBs.
The accessory rail under the barrel of the S&W M&P R8 revolver is the perfect place for a compact laser. At BB-gun distances, the dot would be easy to see. Also, Mac feels the extra weight would be nice.
Next he moved back to 25 feet and tried again. This time he tried it in both the single-action and double-action modes.
Shouting single-action the best Mac did was this two-inch group at 25 feet.
When he switched to double action at 25 feet the group tightened to this 1.85-inch size.
One more observation
Mac also noticed that one of the chambers in the plastic BB clip seemed loose. He noticed that there was always one or more fliers in his groups and he thinks this may be the reason why.
Evaluation
Mac feels there is a lot to like in the S&W M&P R8 BB revolver. He likes the realism and the large number of shots he gets from a single CO2 cartridge. For the price he thinks it’s a pretty good buy.
Smith & Wesson M&P R8 BB revolver: Part 2
by B.B. Pelletier
Photos and test by Earl (Mac) McDonald, unless otherwise indicated
S&W M&P R8 BB revolver. Photo provided by Pyramyd Air.
I overlooked mentioning the S&W M&P R8 BB revolver in the first report on lookalike airguns last Friday, but of course it is one, as well. I’m not familiar with the firearm M&P R8 revolver, so it was natural to think of this as a standalone model. But there is a firearm counterpart, if that is of interest to you.
I also neglected to mention the short Picatinny rail on the underside of the barrel near the muzzle. I suppose it is for mounting a compact laser with a pressure switch located close to the firing hand, though since most shooters use two hands to shoot handguns these days I suppose you could also turn it on with your non-firing hand.
Plastic fantastic
We heard a complaint about the use of plastic and I thought I would comment on that. Guys, I don’t like plastic, either, but more and more firearms are being made with at least some of it these days. You have to understand that when you get into this price range for an airgun, there are very few options. Basically it’s either plastic or zinc. The dies for these two materials are very expensive, so the maker has to calculate how many guns they think they can sell against the tooling costs to produce. And there are also short-run tools that are less expensive, but which wear out faster and long-term tooling that lasts longer but can cost many times as much as short-term tools. All of this is a gamble on how well the manufacturer thinks the gun will sell.
Then there is the general public’s acceptance of plastic as a legitimate manufacturing material. As crass as this sounds, if a manufacturer can sell a hundred thousand pieces of a product, the fact that it is criticized by a few hundred or even a thousand aficionados makes little difference. That is the reason there are so many firearms being made with engineering plastic these days.
And finally there is the fact that if the part is correctly engineered, plastic has few shortcomings and actually offers significant advantages, like strength and resistance to wear (over zinc), corrosion resistance, the ability to accept a finish more uniformly, and even things like providing a low-friction surface that doesn’t have to be lubricated to work well.
Don’t think that I like plastic in airguns. I’m simply acknowledging the reality that exists today, when our telephones are also GPS devices, televisions, alarm clocks and 157 other things. But the “buttons” that work them are mostly in software, and if they don’t respond you can be in a serious pickle. Also, you can’t repair plastic when it breaks. That is just one of the reservations I have about plastic guns.
Good reception
The overall reception of this revolver was positive and enthusiastic. Many readers commented on the realistic look. The manufacturer even went to the point of copying the V notch in the rear sight. The reason for this is that on the firearm the front Patridge sight has a white dot, so the BB gun has it as well. If you can see the dot, the V-notch is entirely appropriate, making the centering of the dot quick and easy. If you can’t see the dot, you just have to struggle to estimate where the sides of the front post are. Since most handgunners don’t shoot at targets (the assumption must be), this is a compromise in favor of rapid target acquisition.
Mac really enjoyed shooting his M&P R8. He was very impressed and tells me every time we talk. So my opinion has to be that this revolver is worth your consideration and the money, if you buy it.
Today is velocity testing day. I went to the manual to see how the 8-round clip is loaded and believe it or not, it doesn’t specify. However, the photo shows loading the BBs from the front of the clip, which is how many other similar BB pistol clips have to be loaded, and that is how Mac did it.
The clip is loaded from the front.
The loaded clip is inserted in the back of the cylinder. Notice the ridge around each chamber that helps seal the gas behind the BB.
Mac used Daisy zinc-plated BBs, because experience has shown they are the most accurate and the most uniform BBs on the market. Another BB that also works well and is actually finished even smoother than the Daisy is the Walther BB, but Pyramyd Air doesn’t carry them. Though these BBs are slightly larger than Crosman Copperhead BBs they usually get higher velocity and almost always the velocity variation of the shot string with them is tighter.
The 12-gram CO2 cartridge goes in the grip, like everyone assumed. Push in on a tab under the grip and the back opens to receive the new cartridge.
The back of the grip swings opens to accept the CO2 cartridge.
The screw that pushes the CO2 cartridge into the piercing pin is entirely concealed by the grip when it is locked closed. That satisfies those who dislike being able to see the mechanism. I am surprised no one mentioned that about the Walther PPK/S in the lookalike report, because it is the number one complain I hear about those replica air pistols.
Trigger pull
Mac measured the single action trigger pull at 9.6 pounds and the double action pull at 10.2 pounds. Remember that single action means the hammer is pulled back to the cocked position which also rotates the cylinder to the next BB, so when you pull the trigger all you are doing is releasing the sear to let the hammer fall.
Velocity
The temperature was 60 degrees F (15.6 C) when Mac tested the gun. That is close to the bottom temperature at which CO2 should be used. Because it is a refrigerant gas, CO2 will cool the gun as it is fired, thus decreasing the velocity on each successive shot. On a 60-degree day, there isn’t much ambient temperature to warm the gun back up again, so once it is cooled, it tends to stay there. Mac allowed a minimum of 15-20 seconds between shots for the gun to recover from cooling, but on this day, there wasn’t much recovery.
He fired a string of eight shots, getting an average of 359 f.p.s. That works out to 1.52 foot-pounds of energy at the muzzle. The low was 336 and the high was 379 f.p.s., so the spread was a bit larger than we normally see, but on a cool day that is to be expected. Also expect to see higher average velocity when the temperature warms up 20 degrees.
Remarkable!
What Mac noted that surprised him was the great number of shots he got from a single CO2 cartridge. After shot 120 the gun was still sending them out at 320 f.p.s., which is petty astounding. There are certain BB guns that get many shots from a cartridge, but their average velocities are always well below 300 f.p.s.. So the evidence points to the fact that the design (barrel mating with the cylinder and ridges around each chamber in the clip) is very economical.
So far
This pistol just keeps getting better and better, as far as Mac is concerned. It’s a delight to shoot and now we find that it conserves gas like a hybrid car. Accuracy comes next, and I don’t think you will be disappointed.
Smith & Wesson M&P R8 BB revolver: Part 1
by B.B. Pelletier
Photos and test by Earl “Mac” McDonald, unless otherwise indicated
S&W M&P R8 BB revolver. Photo provided by Pyramyd Air.
Mac’s back! As we enter the end of year season and approach the Christmas holidays, I want to review as many new guns as possible, while continuing to address my ongoing tests, so I asked Mac to give me a hand. Today, he starts with the S&W M&P R8 BB revolver.
I’m conservative, so whenever a company starts to use a model name inappropriately (in my opinion) it bothers me. When Benjamin used the name Super Streak for a breakbarrel spring rifle — where the name Streak has always been used only for Sheridan multi-pumps — it bothered me. When Smith & Wesson used their time-honored Military & Police (M&P) title to designate a semiautomatic pistol instead of a revolver, I was deeply concerned.
It seems the people in the marketing department that select these product names either don’t know the fine history of the company they work for, or they think the established name brings a lot of fetch with it. Of course it does, but look at what happened to the Weihrauch HW50 when the configuration of the gun was changed. Remember the lengthy conversations we’ve had on this blog and the lengths some people have to go to differentiate between the older HW50 and the one that’s now produced?
There’s still an M&P revolver, and today we’ll start looking at a CO2-powered BB gun by the same name. So, now you know what the M&P means, what about the R8? Well, it’s pretty simple. It’s code for a revolver that holds eight shots.
Mac was very impressed by this handgun. Even though it comes in a blister pack, it has many interesting features that are worthy of note. The first is that the cylinder is released from the frame to swing out to the left side of the gun just like the firearm it copies.
Though it comes in a blister pack, the M&P R8 has advanced features.
The cylinder swings to the side just like on the firearm. Photo provided by Pyramyd Air.
Gas control
Perhaps the most exciting feature of this BB revolver is the length to which the designers went to control gas. The pistol is powered by a conventional 12-gram CO2 cartridge that fits inside the Hogue-like grip. Normally a gun like this might give 50-60 good shots on a single cartridge. But this one has several features that more than double that number without sacrificing power.
Like a Nagant firearm revolver, this CO2 BB revolver mates the cylinder to the rear of the barrel to reduce gas loss when firing. The 7.62 Nagant moves the cylinder forward to seal with the rear of the barrel. The M&P R8 has a spring-loaded barrel (a soft, weak spring) with a rounded rear that rides over the mouth of the cylinder, popping into each chamber in turn when the gun locks up.
The rear of the barrel is rounded to move over the mouth of the cylinder as it revolves. The barrel is held in place by a weak spring, so it always pops back to this position, yet doesn’t hinder operation of the mechanism.
And the front of each chamber in the cylinder is shaped to receive the rear of the barrel to form a gas-tight junction. It really works, according to Mac.
Safety
Of course, revolvers don’t have safeties, except in cheap novels and the one exception that nobody ever hears about, but these days the transfer bar that connects the hammer to the firing pin only when it’s safe to fire is considered a safety. And this gas pistol has one! It’s not a bar at all, but rather a piece of thick wire that moves up when everything is right to fire the gun. It won’t prevent a fool from shooting himself or someone else, but they better not get me on the stand if that happens, because shooting this airgun requires a deliberate act!
This photo shows the transfer bar in position to connect the hammer to the valve stem that is analogous to the firing pin. You can also see the V-shaped rear sight notch that ought to be changed to a square one.
Sights
The M&P R8 has a decent front post and a ridiculous rear V-notch that’s better-suited to a .22 autoloading rifle. That kind of front sight needs a square rear notch, and I am surprised by its lack — especially given all the thought that went into the rest of the revolver! However, it IS entirely accurate, because the firearm has the identical rear sight. The front sight has an unnecessary white bead, but it goes away in the right lighting conditions and the post appears square against the target.
The manual says the sights are fixed, but Mac found that they are, indeed, adjustable. The rear notch can be slid sideways after the locking screw is loosened and actually be shimmed with paper for up and down adjustment. Had the makers put a spring under the sight, there’s even a screw that would allow vertical adjustment; so they’re selling themselves short by excluding it.
It uses a clip
Besides the cylinder swinging out to the side, this revolver also uses a circular BB clip. Only one clip comes with the gun; but as Mac reports, you could carry loaded clips easily and use them like a firearm revolver speedloader if you wanted. He noted while loading the one clip that one chamber always seemed looser than the others. We’ll see if that had any effect in the accuracy test.
This shot shows the circular clip out of the cylinder.
Robust action
Mac was particularly impressed by the robust appearance of the revolver’s action. The hand (lever connected to the cocking mechanism) that advances the cylinder with each pull of the trigger is metal. Mac noted that it didn’t appear to wear from his shooting test. He ended up firing well over 100 shots. Not showing even a shiny spot means the part is correctly hardened for the task it’s been given. While you shouldn’t expect a BB gun at this price to last forever, this is a good sign that it will shoot well for a long time.
Here you see the hand that advances the cylinder. Mac says it looks rugged.
Bottom Line
I guess Mac really likes this one. We’re going to be looking at a lot of new guns in the coming weeks, so it’ll be interesting to see how this one plays out!
Smith & Wesson M&P 45 air pistol: Part 3
by B.B. Pelletier
Smith & Wesson M&P air pistol is highly realistic. It shoots both pellets and BBs.
Today is the day we answer the long-awaited question of how accurate the Smith & Wesson M&P 45 air pistol really is. Is it capable of shooting out a one-inch bullseye at 23-24 yards, as one owner claimed, or does it conform to what we know about this level of air pistol?
Two different types of ammo
For starters, this pistol shoots both BBs and pellets. Usually when a gun does that, it has to give something away for the compromise, because BBs are much smaller than pellets. They are also made of steel and cannot take the rifling; so when you shoot a BB, you have to shoot it as a smoothbore. I tried them first.
BBs — not that hot
As expected, eight BBs did okay at 25 FEET. Nothing spectacular, but eight shots did land in a group that measures 1.747 inchs across the two widest centers. That’s minute-of-pop-can accuracy, but nothing more. I shot Daisy zinc-plated BBs for this.
I did discover during this session that the sights needed a lot of horizontal adjustment. The group of BBs at 25 feet was slightly low and three inches to the left. I loosened a locking screw on the rear sight and slid it to the right to correct this, and it took two corrections to get it right. When the shots were centered on the bull the rear sight was noticeably over to the right.
Now, on to pellets
I had suspected that it wouldn’t be BBs that were so accurate, but lead pellets. So I was all set for a surprise when I shot them. The distance to the target was 25 FEET from a supported standing rest. I shot single-action and I can report that my eyesight has returned to about where it was in the past.
I shot many different types of pellets, but two stood out enough to be worthy of mention. The first were H&N Finale Match Pistol pellets. They shot to the point of aim and grouped well, though there was always one or more that opened up the group.
I actually shot several groups of this pellet, because they were teasing me with groups that were almost perfect, but never quite. Finally I came to the conclusion that we are seeing the best the pistol can do with the two groups I’ve selected to show.
Eight H&N Finale Match Pistol pellets made this 25-foot group, which measures 0.936 inches.
Another eight H&N Finale Match Pistol pellets made this 0.955-inch group. It’s very close to the other group and also to the groups not shown.
The other pellet that really did well were JSB Exact RS domes. I tried them because they are lightweight and very accurate in lower-powered air rifles, so I thought that might carry over to pistols.
Apparently, it does, because one of the many groups I shot at 25 FEET was the best of the session. Eight pellets went into a group measuring 0.928 inches.
Although this group is the smallest of the test, don’t be mislead by the appearance. There is a ragged hole at the bottom of the bull to the left of the number six that enlarges this group to 0.928 inches. That’s good, but not that much better than H&N Finale Match Pistol pellets.
Here is another target shot with JSB RS pellets that will fool you. It looks great, but a stray shot that cuts the five-ring (to the right of the dime) enlarges what looks like a tight group to 1.342 inches.
What is the conclusion?
Is the S&W M&P pistol capable of one-inch groups at 23-24 yards? Of course not. It would be one of the most accurate pellet pistols on the market if it were. But at 25 FEET it is more accurate than I expected. Especially with JSB RS domes and H&N Finale Match Pistol pellets. This gun wants to group.
I didn’t shoot at 25 yards because there is no point. It will probably group eight shots in the 3-5 inch range if everything is done right and the best pellets are used. I don’t think this pistol gives us any surprises other than it is very capable for a blister-packed air pistol.
At the price, I doubt you’ll find a more accurate pistol capable of shooting both BBs and pellets — and that says something. With Christmas coming soon, maybe this is one for your gift list.
