by Tom Gaylord, a.k.a. B.B. Pelletier

Winchester model 11 16-shot BB pistol
The Winchester model 11 semiautomatic BB pistol is an attractive M1911A1-way BB pistol.

Today we start testing some other BB pistol in the grade of a Colt M1911A1. I've already tested several of these Colt airgun clones over the years, simply Edith has recently noticed a trend of shooters who are using these airguns to maintain proficiency with their firearms between trips to the range. Of grade everybody has talked about doing just that for years, but now it seems it is actually happening. I guess at that place is a large crop of new airgunners coming over from the firearms side of the business firm, and they run across the value in the training these inexpensive airguns can offer.

At $90, the Winchester xvi-shot semiautomatic BB pistol is sitting toward the loftier finish of BB pistols made in the style of the 1911A1 Colt. Information technology has blowback, which means the slide comes to the rear at every shot and cocks the hammer for the next shot. So, the trigger is unmarried-stage, which bodes well for a skilful trigger-pull. And blowback gives y'all a feeling of recoil that many shooters enjoy.

The gun also has a realistic spring-loaded grip prophylactic that feels bully but has no outcome on the trigger. You can shoot the gun with or without the grip safe being depressed. That's non such a bad affair because 1911 firearms often have bug with their grip safeties if the grip is not grasped correctly. Various things are done to fix this problem, such as speed bumps (protrusions) on the grip condom that assist the mitt to depress the safe, pinned grip safeties that have been inactivated so the gun volition shoot without them beingness depressed, weakened grip safety springs and even certain models of 1911 clones like the Ballister Molina that don't even have a grip safety. All of this is done in the hopes of making the gun a more than reliable shooter.

Winchester model 11 16-shot BB pistol speed bump
A "speed crash-land" on a Filly 1911 grip safety is a protrusion that ensures the safety is depressed by the web of the hand, fifty-fifty with a poor grasp of the grip.

Winchester handgun?
You may be surprised to see the Winchester name on a handgun, but this isn't the first time it's happened. At the end of the 19th century, the company built one prototype revolver that was very avant-garde for the time. It was taken to Filly and shown to senior management, ostensibly for their feelings about the blueprint, but really to requite observe that if Colt persisted in the industry of lever-activity rifles, Winchester could enter the market with a highly competitive revolver. Zippo formal was said, just Colt stopped the product of their Burgess lever-action rifles within the yr and Winchester never put the handgun into production.

This gun isn't actually made by Winchester, of course. It's fabricated in Nihon and imported past Daisy nether the Winchester label. The pistol is remarkably well-scaled to the firearm, and the finish is quite like to a military finish. The one drawback I meet is that both sides of the slide and frame have been used to impress out the about important parts of the owner's manual — sort of like a Ruger pistol carried to absurdity! And whoever checked the words was not a shooter, because the magazine release (and this gun does have a jump-loaded 16-shot stick magazine) is labeled "clip release." This is what happens when the uneducated are given a job for which they are not qualified.

Winchester model 11 16-shot BB pistol right side
Lotsa words on the right side of the pistol. And now I see even the Germans are dumbing downward, considering the meaning of the Freimark (F in a pentagon) is spelled out, as well!

Winchester model 11 16-shot BB pistol left side
More than words on the left side of the gun. Perchance the side by side version of the gun will have the words "Trigger — press here" printed on the forepart of the trigger and "Don't look into this end" printed around the muzzle!

In truth, however, the words on the gun seem to vanish equally the viewer steps back, so it isn't every bit obnoxious as it first appears. The gun's end is matte black, which hides the lettering well.

Do the controls work?
The magazine release works exactly the same as the firearm, and the stick mag drops away freely. The slide release also works the aforementioned and holds the slide open up subsequently the last BB has been fired. The hammer is real and does human action upon the firing valve as you look it to.

The safety has been modified to require two hands, which I find to be a serious design flaw because it defeats the training value of cartoon a cocked-and-locked gun (condition one) and flipping off the prophylactic when yous're on target. To remove the safety on this pistol, you must press in on a small button located in the heart of the safety lever while simultaneously pushing the lever down the conventional way. I'yard certain information technology looks good to the lawyers, but it's a serious disruption to an otherwise fine air pistol.

Winchester model 11 16-shot BB pistol safety
The prophylactic requires two hands to operate.

Realism
This pistol cannot be disassembled. The barrel bushing and leap guide are but very accurate casting details, and the slide release is convict. The grips look similar they're removable, only the left 1 is really a complex casting that forms part of the CO2 cartridge containment. The mainspring arch pulls out and down as part of a complex articulated lever, releasing the left grip and giving access to load the CO2 cartridge.

Winchester model 11 16-shot BB pistol grip open
The mainspring arch swings upward and out, releasing the left grip and allowing the CO2 cartridge to exist exchanged.

I installed a CO2 cartridge to weigh the pistol and discovered that the process is not like other CO2 pistols. Information technology works well, simply you probably should read the owner'south manual before yous try to do it. The pistol weighs 33 oz. with a CO2 cartridge installed, against 39 oz. for a authorities M1911A1 empty with a mag.

Sights
The sights are fixed, merely as they are on a conventional M1911A1. The rear sight is almost as high every bit the one on the firearm, but the notch is foursquare and abrupt as opposed to vague and narrow on the firearm. The front sight looks like a 1911A1 front sight from the side, but it's wider and appears foursquare when viewed from the rear. These volition be easy sights to utilize. If this pistol is accurate, information technology should be like shooting fish in a barrel to obtain a proficient score.

Overall impression
This is an interesting and apparently well-fabricated air pistol. But they picked a part of the marketplace that has a lot of competition, so it'south really going to accept to perform on target.