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Test Fire: High Power Pistol
By JB
If you look at the Umarex line of BB pistols, you’ll see several, like the HK USP, that reach or top 400 feet per second. And of these, only one has blowback (recoil) action—the HPP (“High Power Pistol”).
BB pistols powered by CO2 require a lot of gas to kick their slides back when they fire a projectile, so until the HPP, it’s been hard to find a BB gun with blowback that legitimately shot at 400 feet per second. In my velocity test using a full CO2 capsule, the highest reading I achieved was 392. A lot of weather elements affect CO2, so I have no doubt that the HPP can legitimately exceed 400 fps under the right conditions.
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Chrono readings for test fire attempts
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My first time handling this gun, I dropped the magazine from the HPP onto the concrete floor as I was looking it over. The bottom popped off and the spring went flying. It was simple to put it back together though and still performed without incident. The magazine is easy to load—just pull the follower down, lock it into place, and put 15 BBs in the hole located in the mag. I was able to put a 16th BB in at the BB exit port, but the gun didn’t seem to want to function with that additional BB. It would jam and the trigger would lock up only to be freed by working the magazine free and racking the slide a couple of times. The HPP worked flawlessly when only 15 BBs were loaded—I recommend that you only load 15 as the manual states. Although I didn’t use one, the Umarex Steel BB Speedloader would have reduced my loading time.
I was pleased to see that the slide locked back when the magazine emptied. Not only is it a clear indication that it’s time to reload, but it saves CO2. With many BB guns, you may end up pulling the trigger a couple of times before realizing that you’re out of ammo. The metal composition of the slide also provided a very noticeable kick in my wrists and a “cool” clank sound. Obviously not as substantial as you’ll feel and hear from your actual side carry, but cool nonetheless.
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This little doohicky was in a plastic bag inside the grip of the Umarex HPP. You can place it over the BB exit port to prevent the BBs from “springing” out of the mag. I didn’t find it necessary when loading to capacity, but useful when stopping short.
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I didn’t test this gun for accuracy, but I had no problem plinking a few objects I had set out at about 15 feet and was able to get six full magazines at a steady trigger pull interval of 2 to 3 seconds before audibly noticing a reduction in power. I ended up shooting two more magazines at a more rapid pace to use up the CO2 until it just wouldn’t function any longer.
Overall, I was pleasantly surprised at the heft and feel of this Umarex BB gun that retails in the neighborhood of $75. The picture in Umarex USA’s 2010 catalog doesn’t do it justice. As with many air guns, you just need to pull the trigger to appreciate it.
Items mentioned in this article:
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