Home
The Gamo P23 Air Pistol
By Keith DyerCourtesy of Gamo Precision Airguns
click the ad to visit this advertiser, View All Advertisers On This Page
The Gamo P-23 is a 177-calibre air pistol styled to resemble a real handgun, the SIG-Sauer P-230. I must confess that I have always felt that an air pistol should look like a ... well, like an air pistol. But this is an undeniably handsome piece, and is well-balanced and nicely made into the bargain. The main frame and grip are polymer, the barrel assembly an alloy. The P-23 measures 190x137x24mm, weighs 470g and has a 4.3" tip-up rifled steel barrel with 10 grooves, right-hand twist. (The number of grooves is surprising, considering the smallness of the bore.)
Although I have used the term 'air pistol' this is not strictly correct, as the P-23 is a powered by a 12 gram CO2 cylinder which is good for about 60 shots. To instal a cylinder first gently prise free the left-hand grip panel. Loosen the cylinder retaining screw in the butt, press the cylinder into place with the nozzle uppermost, tighten the retaining screw and replace the grip.
The P-23 will fire conventional pellets as a single-shot or plated BBs as a semi-auto. To load a pellet engage the safety catch, which is positioned at the left-forward edge of the frame and above the trigger guard. Rotate it so that it points horizontally to the rear; this effectively blocks trigger movement. At the left-rear of the barrel housing is the barrel release catch; pressing it forward allows the barrel to be tipped up. Insert a pellet into the breech, close the barrel, release the safety catch when rotated forward a red dot is exposed and the pistol is ready to fire.
When the trigger is pressed the trigger bar raise and trips the hammer, a nipple on the hammer face operating a valve which meters a jet of pressurized CO2 into the barrel to force out the pellet.
To load BBs, proceed as before, but with the barrel raised you will note a small red lever projecting from the right-hand side of a narrow raised platform. Pull this lever forward as far as it will go until it locks into a recess. Just to the rear of the lever you will see a hole. Insert up to 10 BBs and carefully release the lever. Snap the barrel housing shut. As the trigger is pulled a lifter raises a BB pellet into line with the barrel.
Although there is an exposed hammer at the rear of the 'slide' this cannot be cocked, the P-23 operating purely on the double-action only principal. No doubt this is intended as a safety measure; certainly it will not be possible for a novice to lay down a cocked pistol while changing targets, etc. Trigger pull is fairly heavy; at an educated guess I'd say 33.5kg, a limiting factor somewhat magnified by the light weight of the pistol. However, the trigger is by no means unmanageable and tight shooting is possible.
The sights are good, as good in fact as those found on many expensive cartridge weapons. The 2.8mm front blade appears to be machined from the alloy barrel assembly The polymer rear sight is retained in a dovetail by an Allen screw. Loosening the screw (key supplied) allows the sight to be drift adjusted for windage. The 2.9mm rear-sight notch could be a little wider. The rear sight assembly had a slight tilt to the right the Allen screw had been over-tightened. Turn the Allen key just enough to prevent lateral movement this is a 177 air pistol, not a 45 Auto. The full-length rib above the barrel assembly is grooved to take a scope mount.
Overall fit and finish is very good. The polymer frame is a pleasing matt-black while the alloy barrel assembly is blued. The polymer grip panels are cleanly moulded and chequered in Sig P-230-style with a neat thumb-rest left and right. Each panel appears to be retained by a blued and polished cross-cut screw. In fact these screws are part of the moulding, but the illusion is effective someone had tried to unscrew one of them and had marred the 'cross-cut'.
The P-23 was an instant hit at Magnum headquarters and before actually evaluating this pistol I was forced to let every other member of the staff try it first. Having wrenched it back I proceeded to shoot it for accuracy at a distance of 10 meters over a Millett pistol rest using Gamo Match, Daira, Crossman Copperhead and locally-made Radius pellets, all in 177 calibre of course. Also tried were Crossman Copperhead BBs.
Gamo 177 Match pellets weigh on average 7.56gr, the German Daira 6.92gr, the locally-made Radius 7.75gr, Crossman 7.9gr while the BBs averaged out at 5.25gr. The BBs are copper plated over a mild steel core. Average diameter is .171", so there is about 6-thou leeway, making it unlikely that they will harm the rifling.
At 10 meters, shooting from a rest, best results were obtained with Crossman Copperhead pellets - 10 shots into 40mm. The German Daira pellets were good for 9 in 37mm, with one stray bringing the total to 50mm. Gamo's Match pellets placed 9 in 40mm, but with a flyer making the final total 70mm. The Radius gave a 10-shot group which was 20mm wide but 80mm deep. (On reflection I am inclined to believe that this vertical string was the result of low pressure in the CO2 BB pellets a maximum of 10 are loaded into the magazine through the hole indicated cylinder.) Copperhead BBs gave a 10-shot group measuring 70x63mm.
A Gamo ad which runs in American shooting magazines claims that the P-23 can fire 10 BBs in two seconds I managed it in three, but with practice I am sure that this could be reduced. Probably around 200 shots in all were fired through this pistol with no real malfunctions. All went smoothly when shooting pellets, but I did experience the occasional stoppage when using the BBs. The P-23 gives of its best with BBs when the muzzle is pointed slightly above horizontal, allowing gravity to aid the feed process.
I worked my way through four of the five CO2 Powerlets provided, changing cylinders whenever pellets began to drop significantly below point of aim. Avoid waiting too long to change the cylinder; if Cal. 177 pellets are loaded singly, directly into barrel. You continue to shoot with cylinder near empty you run the risk of a pellet becoming stuck in the barrel, which will require a cleaning rod to dislodge.
Accuracy results may be disappointing to those accustomed to competition-type air pistols, but for informal target shooting and recreational use the P-23 is an excellent choice, particularly when it comes teaching a novice shooter the rudiments of safe pistol handling, hold and sight alignment. One other useful function of the Gamo P-23 would be to provide the owner of a real Sig P223 with safe fast-draw practice from the holster. Compared to many hi-tech air rifles, the P-23 is fairly low powered, but nevertheless, a word of caution is in order here. At 10 metres a pellet fired from this pistol will dent a 340 ml soft drink can but not penetrate it. However, at 5 metres assuming a full cylinder a pellet will easily penetrate both sides of the can and a BB will make a surprisingly deep indentation, or penetrate one side. The P-23 is definitely not a toy and should only be used by young people when supervised by an adult. If handled irresponsibly it is capable of inflicting serious injury.
Gamo is not the only manufacturer to offer a model which looks very much like the real McCoy, both Colt and Smith & Wesson offer CO2 powered pellet-firing handguns which are close copies of their own cartridge firing guns. But so great is the resemblance of this pistol to the Sig P-230 that in the excellent manual Gamo have taken the trouble to add a warning: "This product is designed to handle and function like a pistol. Do not carry or use this product in any situation where it might be mistaken for a firearm."
Nothing is for free in this life, but however you look at it shooting an air pistol, even one powered by C02, is cheaper than shooting with a 22LR pistol or revolver. Crossman 'Powerlets', cost about RS.95 and are good for about 60-shots = 10 cents per shot. Gamo Match pellets, say R11.00 = 4.5 cents per shot. All told 14.5 cents per shot. These, incidently, are local prices; they may vary slightly in your area. BBs are even cheaper to shoot. A 600 pack of Crossman BBs costs R11.50, say 2 cents each, which means that you can now shoot at 12 cents per shot.
Air guns need be cleaned as often as cartridge guns and local manufacturers Ram offer excellent air pistol and rifle cleaning accessories. You can either buy the bits and pieces you require separately cleaning rod, jag and nylon brush or take the complete kit, which comprises a 3-piece cleaning, rod, jag, brush, patches, gun oil and nitro solvent, all for R92 inc. If you are wondering about the nitro solvent keep in mind that these kits are popular with riflemen who shoot the 17 Remington.
Used sensibly the Gamo P-23 should give you many years of shooting pleasure. Our thanks to Nicholas Yale cc for kindly providing the test pistol.
click the ad to visit this advertiser, View All Advertisers On This Page
| Model | P23 |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | Gamo, Spain |
| Type | CO2, 12 gram |
| CO2 Capacity | 80 Shots |
| Caliber | .177 |
| Velocity | 410 fps |
| Energy | 2.4 FP |
| Capacity | BBs - 12 Pellets - 1 |
| Trigger | Double Action Only |
| Overall Length | 7.5" |
| Weight | 1 lbs. |
| Barrel | 4.25" |
| Sights | Iron or Laser |
| Grip | Polymer |
| Safety | Manual |
Back to Review Page
Back to American Airgun Home
Top of Page
click the ad to visit this advertiser, View All Advertisers On This Page
© Copyright 2006 by Brad Troyer & American Airguns