Three economy pistols under $100

The need for high end Airguns is always there, but what about for those times you just want to have some fun on a budget? We have found three pistols that offer good value for the money. Over the years we have gotten our hands on a wide variety of BB and pellet pistols and have found them all to be great fun. The nice thing about using BB pistols is they are a bit more economical to shoot along with being easier to pack into a bag and off to your favorite shooting spot. Over the past several years these pistols have become much more realistic in mimicking the function of a firearm. The three pistols we are showcasing are just a handpicked look at whats available to the consumer and we have found them to be nothing more than fun. All three are intended for plinking and not really suitable for any type of hunting, and as always we recommend using safety glasses.

The first gun is the Brodax revolver made by UMAREX. The Brodax is an air-powered revolver featuring futuristic styling along with dual Picatinny rails for mounting a red dot sight, laser or flashlight. This pistol is mostly all lightweight polymer besides the internal parts such as the trigger and hammer. The CO2 capsule is concealed in the frame of the grip as most other similar pistols, and a hex tool for tightening the capsule is integrated into the grip plate to prevent you from losing it. I really like the fact that the safety is conveniently  placed at top of the grip behind the hammer. The pistol came with three 10 shot rotary magazines that are very simple to load with BBs and easily slide in from the side of the fixed cylinder.

This pistol is really difficult to beat for the price point considering the features it includes. We tested the speed and were pleased to find it getting very close to the advertised fps of 375 fps and as high as 392 fps. The fact that accessories can be mounted makes the gun a bit more user friendly and fun to use. This gun wont win any precision shooting matches but has enough to put down some cans at 20 yards along with a good amount of shots per cartridge at around 55. Overall this is a really fun pistol that should give anyone a fair amount of enjoyment without breaking the bank.

The second pistol is the Smith & Wesson 327 TRR8 Revolver made by WinGun.  This is a fairly realistic BB revolver that has some good weight to it adding in the realism. To load the revolver you swing out the cylinder where you load the 6 included shells that are each individually loaded with BBs. To remove the shells the gun has a fairly well made ejector rod that’s very similar to a real firearm. The revolver has a 5.5″ barrel and textured plastic grips. This would be a good gun for maintaining firearm proficiency without the cost or inconvenience of going to a range and the cost of expensive firearm ammo.

We shot this gun over the chrony and found it to be fairly consistent at 400 fps as the company has stated and even as high at 410 fps. A few things noticed were the barrel had a slight wobble and the grips could have been designed better as far as removal to insert the Co2. This gun works both double and single action and in honesty could be a bit smoother. The open fiber optic sights work very well and the gun seemed to have fairly good accuracy for a BB pistol. The TRR8 is a tactical pistol and does accommodate a dot sight very well although the rail can be removed if desired. If your looking for a fun, realistic pistol that has features that are close to a firearm this is a good pick for the money.

The next gun and possibly my favorite is the 250XT TAC-BOSS made by HATSAN.  This pistol is an obvious clone of a Ruger MK111 and will say its fairly close in function and feel. The gun has a very sturdy feel being it is nearly all metal excluding the grip frame, grips and the fiber optic sights. The magazine in this pistol drops down just as the real firearm and holds 17 BBs in a stack along with housing the Co2. The latch to the magazine is a very realistic clone of the Ruger, also adds good detail to the function and use of the pistol.

The TAC-BOSS has a beautifully fluted barrel along with the added detail of the side ejector (non-functioning) and a disassembly lever on the back of the grip that does function in removing the bolt. The safety is on the left side of the frame and easily applied with a flick of your thumb just as the Ruger itself.  The pistol is double action but unlike others this one seems to be fairly smooth and light with a fair amount of over-travel that did take a little getting used to. This gun feels powerful and was shooting at the 430+ fps that was claimed on the packaging, with several shots going over 440 fps. Overall this may be my favorite BB pistol as far as ease of use and efficiency in its Co2 consumption, getting nearly 60+ shots per cartridge.

The amount of Air Pistols on the market now days can make it difficult to decide on one that’s right for you. I always try to look at where the good outweighs the bad, coupled with value, function and durability. The three pistols we have featured are just a few examples of what can be found for under $100 and may offer a good amount of use when properly cared for. Over the next year we will be looking at several budget minded Airguns that will offer the consumer a good value for the dollar.

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