oldironsights
Member
Decided to spend this beautiful & cool morning at the range today.
Brought along three gas operated pistols & use this new Samsung Galaxy S4 to take the pictures.
Sunlight was very bright, so there is some harshness to the view.
My old Sony SLR type camera takes better pictures, but I have to charge about six pairs of AA batteries overnight as I can only capture about 15 pictures per charged pair. This S4 battery will last all day & can capture hundred of shots on a single charge. So handy.
First up is an older Maine made Magnum Research Desert Eagle 44.
It uses the gas from the burning charge to act upon a piston below the muzzle that pushes the slide rearward, automatically unlocking the rotating bolt, extracting & ejecting the spent case, then spring pressure returns the bolt & slide into battery with a fresh 44 cartridge.
The ported barrel's bore sports a polygonal shape. It appears smoothbore with some slightly twisting shadows instead of rifling.
This is said to provide a better seal & less friction resulting in projectile speeds similar to a standard non-ported bore.
For those that do not know an autoloading system uses some of the energy from the expanding gases to cycle the action resulting in less energy available to push the projectile down the bore, so the bores on these use a smooth, polygonal chrome plated bore to address these losses.
This Desert Eagle 44 seems to favor a jacketed 185 grain bullet with 28 grains of 2400 behind it. A 240 grain bullet with 23 grains will barely cycle the action resulting in "short stroking" & a stoppage.
Takedown is a breeze & the pistol is joyfully accurate & fun to shoot. The heft of the pistol & the gas system really tame the 44 mag round.
It can be fired comfortably with just one hand.
It is single action with a safety system like a 1911.
Next up is a Steyr GB. I always thought it was pronounced Steyr as in" Tire", but have been twice corrected by others more in the know that Steyr is pronounced like "Stair" or "Stare".
This pistol uses gas from the cartridge not to cycle the action, but to put pressure on the slide to keep it in battery until the bullet has left the muzzle.
Once pressure has dropped, the slide will move to the rear. The design seems very simple, using a ported barrel as a stationary piston that seals pressure in the front cylinder/bushing. The bore uses the smooth polygonal rifling & is chrome plated.
Takedown for cleaning is very easy with few parts.
The Steyr GB is very comfortable to shoot & the 18 round magazine loads just like a rifle, whereas you just push the rounds straight down to load; no pushing down & sliding the round back beneath the feed lips. Just a simple straight down push. Really easy.
Safety system consists of a slide mounted decocker & when decocked, the hammer is prevented from hitting the striker like the SIG-Sauer system.
Lastly is the itsy-bitsy HK P7 PSP. This was an all matching grade "B" that has been reblued. Damn slide turned out a dark plum at first, but seems to be lightening to bronze in the dark confines of my safe. Higher nickel/carbon content, I suppose. Both frame & slide were boiled together at the same time & temperature.
The P7 was innovative & a very safe pistol to carry loaded.
You really have to put forth an effort to squeeze the front strap cocking lever which cocks the striker & links the trigger to the sear. To decock the striker, simply release the grip.
Also innovative was the fluted chamber, polygonal rifling & the piston below the slide.
Like the Steyr GB, this little gem uses gas pressure as a brake to keep the action in battery until the bullet leaves the muzzle.
The Steyr uses a plastic triggerguard to prevent inflicting a minor burn on the shooters trigger finger; The PSP's steel triggerguard will conduct heat to the shooters trigger finger & cause a minor skin burn.
I apologize for the sizing of the photos. I was trying to keep every photo a 600x800 pixel size, but some came out too large & others too small.
I need to learn the tricks to posting consistant sizes.
At least the Galaxy S4 works well.
The pictures of the target were too fuzzy & vague to post, although I am not ashamed of the groups each pistol shot offhand.
Enjoy!
Brought along three gas operated pistols & use this new Samsung Galaxy S4 to take the pictures.
Sunlight was very bright, so there is some harshness to the view.
My old Sony SLR type camera takes better pictures, but I have to charge about six pairs of AA batteries overnight as I can only capture about 15 pictures per charged pair. This S4 battery will last all day & can capture hundred of shots on a single charge. So handy.
First up is an older Maine made Magnum Research Desert Eagle 44.
It uses the gas from the burning charge to act upon a piston below the muzzle that pushes the slide rearward, automatically unlocking the rotating bolt, extracting & ejecting the spent case, then spring pressure returns the bolt & slide into battery with a fresh 44 cartridge.
The ported barrel's bore sports a polygonal shape. It appears smoothbore with some slightly twisting shadows instead of rifling.
This is said to provide a better seal & less friction resulting in projectile speeds similar to a standard non-ported bore.
For those that do not know an autoloading system uses some of the energy from the expanding gases to cycle the action resulting in less energy available to push the projectile down the bore, so the bores on these use a smooth, polygonal chrome plated bore to address these losses.
This Desert Eagle 44 seems to favor a jacketed 185 grain bullet with 28 grains of 2400 behind it. A 240 grain bullet with 23 grains will barely cycle the action resulting in "short stroking" & a stoppage.
Takedown is a breeze & the pistol is joyfully accurate & fun to shoot. The heft of the pistol & the gas system really tame the 44 mag round.
It can be fired comfortably with just one hand.
It is single action with a safety system like a 1911.
Next up is a Steyr GB. I always thought it was pronounced Steyr as in" Tire", but have been twice corrected by others more in the know that Steyr is pronounced like "Stair" or "Stare".
This pistol uses gas from the cartridge not to cycle the action, but to put pressure on the slide to keep it in battery until the bullet has left the muzzle.
Once pressure has dropped, the slide will move to the rear. The design seems very simple, using a ported barrel as a stationary piston that seals pressure in the front cylinder/bushing. The bore uses the smooth polygonal rifling & is chrome plated.
Takedown for cleaning is very easy with few parts.
The Steyr GB is very comfortable to shoot & the 18 round magazine loads just like a rifle, whereas you just push the rounds straight down to load; no pushing down & sliding the round back beneath the feed lips. Just a simple straight down push. Really easy.
Safety system consists of a slide mounted decocker & when decocked, the hammer is prevented from hitting the striker like the SIG-Sauer system.
Lastly is the itsy-bitsy HK P7 PSP. This was an all matching grade "B" that has been reblued. Damn slide turned out a dark plum at first, but seems to be lightening to bronze in the dark confines of my safe. Higher nickel/carbon content, I suppose. Both frame & slide were boiled together at the same time & temperature.
The P7 was innovative & a very safe pistol to carry loaded.
You really have to put forth an effort to squeeze the front strap cocking lever which cocks the striker & links the trigger to the sear. To decock the striker, simply release the grip.
Also innovative was the fluted chamber, polygonal rifling & the piston below the slide.
Like the Steyr GB, this little gem uses gas pressure as a brake to keep the action in battery until the bullet leaves the muzzle.
The Steyr uses a plastic triggerguard to prevent inflicting a minor burn on the shooters trigger finger; The PSP's steel triggerguard will conduct heat to the shooters trigger finger & cause a minor skin burn.
I apologize for the sizing of the photos. I was trying to keep every photo a 600x800 pixel size, but some came out too large & others too small.
I need to learn the tricks to posting consistant sizes.
At least the Galaxy S4 works well.
The pictures of the target were too fuzzy & vague to post, although I am not ashamed of the groups each pistol shot offhand.
Enjoy!
)
