by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier
Beretta model 92A1 full- and semiauto BB pistol from Umarex.
This report covers:
- Similar but different
- So, what is this?
- Disassembly
- Single and double action
- Lots to test
Every once in awhile I get to test something that is brand new to me. Today is such a day. Full-auto pistols have been around for more than 50 years, but they aren’t common and I have only had limited exposure to them. Beretta’s model 92A1 from Umarex looks a lot like the regular 92 that’s we know so well, but this one is different. This one has a selector switch that allows the gun to dump all its shots in seconds with one pull of the trigger. I know that will be music to the ears of many of our readers.
The selector switch (arrow) is in the semiautomatic position.
The selector switch (arrow) is in the full-auto position.
Similar but different
While this gun carries the M92A1 title and is similar because it has a Picatinny rail at the lower front of the receiver, it isn’t an exact duplication. The rounded triggerguard differs from the U.S. Marine M9A1 that has a flat front triggerguard. The 9mm M92A1 firearm magazine holds 17 cartridges. The BB magazine holds 18. And the full-auto M92 firearm lacks the selector switch found here, but uses the right-hand safety switch to select the firing mode.
But the similarities are greater than the differences. This BB pistol is all metal on the outside, so it carries realistic weight of 2.4 lbs. The fixed sights resemble the military night sights that have tritium inserts. On the BB pistol there are bright white dots that your eye picks up immediately.
The full-auto Beretta 92 firearm is very controllable in the full-auto mode. That is a fault of all the earlier machine pistols that would climb rapidly in recoil. I can’t wait to try in full auto on a target to see what this BB pistol does.
So, what is this?
What the Beretta M92A1 BB pistol? For starters, it is a semiautomatic BB pistol with realistic blowback action that simulates recoil. That much of it doesn’t differ much from the Beretta model 92 FS I’ve already tested. Of course the features I’ve mentioned like the rail and the selector are new, but at its heart this pistol is exactly what BB gun fans want these days — a reliable and (hopefully ) accurate pistol that’s also incredibly realistic looking and feeling.
But on top of all that you get full auto operation. We’ve seen that in BB pistols before. The Umarex M712 is also full auto. But that gun bounces around as it fires. This one may do better. I will test it and see.
Disassembly
Can the gun be disassembled? Yes. Should you do it? Maybe not. Remember the Hammerli K31 trainer and the 2 ball bearings?
I swung the disassembly latch down and pulled the slide off the frame. So far, so good. Then I looked inside the slide. The mainspring was held in place beneath the barrel by — ping! In the next instant I had the naked slide and the mainspring laying on my desk. But something that held the mainspring in place was gone. I didn’t know what it looked like, but by looking at the places it had to have been it looked like a 4-inch rod with a head on one end.
Pistol apart, except the barrel is still inside the slide. There is the spring guide that escaped for awhile.
I searched my cluttered desk several (dozen) times, then wrote an email to Umarex, describing the problem. Was I looking for the right thing?
Turns out I was, as I found it on search number 25. It was almost exactly as imagined except for the part that was different.
My point is — there is no reason to take the gun apart and you may not be as lucky as I was. I have people on several continents trying to keep me from being an embarrassing boob. You don’t. So consider that before you do what I did.
On the other hand, the gun went back together as it came apart and it still works. So disassembly is possible — even if it isn’t mentioned in the owner’s manual.
Single and double action
The pistol is both single and double action, but since the slide blows back to cock the hammer after every shot, single action is the way you will shoot it. The 2-stage trigger is pretty mushy at stage 2, but the release is also quite light. If this gun is accurate, I think this trigger will do well.
The overall finish is matte black. Some A1 firearms have a special finish that’s resistant to sand, but this BB gun is most likely painted.
The CO2 cartridge and BB magazine are located in the same drop-free stick. The CO2 cartridge has a large-headed screw that’s removed by an Allen wrench that comes with the gun. Then the cartridge drops in — small end first.
Lots to test
I’ll test the gun for velocity next. I’ll test it for both semiautomatic and we’ll also see what full-auto does. There will be accuracy in the semiauto mode and then we will also look at how it fares on full-auto. Stick around — this test promises to be interesting.
BB,it’s really great to have you back! I have been anxiously awaiting this report for awhile as I shoot a model 96A1(40 cal).
Carry on, Sir! I’ll be waiting to see how it performs.
Bruce
Ok I got a question.
Since this pistol and the firearm version are full auto.
And I have to ask this first. Don’t you have to have some type of license or permit to own a full auto firearm rifle?
And back to the firearm pistol. If the firearm full auto rifle does need a license or whatever to own it. Does a full auto fire arm pistol need the license or whatever?
Then that makes me think. (If) no special license is required for a full auto firearm pistol why wouldn’t someone choose it over a semi auto pistol.
Ok maybe to many questions. But if it was me and I could. I think I would have a pistol with the full auto option over a semi-auto version. Maybe reliability is the issue with a full auto?
You need a licence to be able to own any fully automatic firearm whether this be a Pistol, SMG, Rifle or full blown Machine Gun as far as I know.
As BB mentioned most machine pistols climb rapidly in recoil. Which made most machine pistols unattractive to actually use.
Other than the fact that the rapid climb of the muzzle would pull you away from your target there is also the other problem that pistols have only limited magazine capacity. That is why the Beretta 93R and Glock 18 are limited to three shot bursts.
Siraniko
I think I could live with the 3 round burst in the firearm. Maybe that is why they limit it also because of the barrel rise.
GF1,
Each Class III weapon you own (that is a firearm that is full-auto, or a silencer, etc.) needs to have a $200 tax stamp. You have to apply for that stamp, and it takes the permission of your local police chief, fingerprints and an application to the BATF&E NFA branch that must be approved.
When you get the permit, it must be with the class III weapon at all times.
B.B.
BB
Well that would take the fun out of owning a full auto firearm.
Cool, I’ve been waiting for an alternative to the M712 in a full auto pistol.
This time we have H&N smart shot to keep the ricochets in check.
Good to see you back.
Please correct me if I am wrong.
I believe the real production Beretta 9mm that’s full automatic (actually a 3 shot burst) is the 93r. Not the m92.
B.B.,
In the “So, what is this” section you mention the 92FS, which I have. Your statement of “doesn’t differ” would lead one to believe that the 92FS has blowback, which it does not. Tried to re-read several times but I could not interpret it any other way.
On the tear down,…. I can relate, having had the 92FS torn down 100%, including the valve internals. Would I do it again? Yes, but that is just me. Would I recommend it? No. On the blow-backs, I would think being well lubed would be of utmost concern, at least the top end. One has to wonder how the “mystery metal” will hold up to repeated cycling abuse, hence the being well lubed.
On the pistol, very cool. I look forward to the testing.
Chris
Chris,
Good point about the blowback. I guess I was focussing on the parts of the gun and the design. I overlooked that important feature.
B.B.
BB
Let alone the 92FS is a pellet pistol with drop in circular 8 round clips…Must have some good pain pills there. Just kidding. Not too many chances to mess with you !
If any one is interested the Swiss Arms P92 which was the GSG 92 has a fairly easy conversion to full auto on u-tube under GSG 92 conversion. Did a similar one with the Mini UZI.
I just ordered the new Crosman PDM9B instead of this Beretta basically because I have two of those converted 92’s already and the new Crosman looks extremely interesting with four switchable circular BB / pellet clips held in the mag housing. If this 92A1 turns out to be a winner I may have to feed the addiction again. Looking forward to this review.
BM
I own one of these. I will agree with the ‘Don’t disassemble’ statement. I spent a good 15-30 minutes putting mine back together. The nice feature that is different than the M712 is the slide stays back when the mag is empty. For a full auto blowback it uses co2 quite conservatively. The full auto feature puts a smile on my face everytime I ‘let her rip’.
B.B.
Welcome back!
I can identify with you on the disassembly. When I first received my Walther P38 BB pistol a few years ago, I sat down to read the manual and test the basic mechanical functions. One of those functions was the removable barrel which was documented in the manual. While I had the barrel off, I moved the slide too far and the slide spring popped out. BIG OOPS! Because I couldn’t figure out how to reinsert the spring, I had to send the pistol back in for exchange.
Now regarding this Beretta 92A1, is it another pistol manufactured for Umarex by KWC or is it actually made by Umarex in Germany?
Charles,
It’s made in Taiwan.
B.B.
B.B.
It’s probably KWC then. Their website, kwcgun.com, says they are located in Taiwan.
The KWC versions use the safety in a third position as a selector switch, and many have modified the semi auto versions to do this, why Umarex went with the separate ,unrealistic looking lever is strange. It seems that this pistol like most blowback pistols feels powerful but throws out bbs at anemic velocities. Long overdue is a carbine like a an M2 , or Ak that throws bbs out at 450 plus and even better over 500fps. Carbines have the advantage of being able to use dual 12gm co2 or 88 gm cartridges. A game changer would be a Thompson with a drum mag containing multilple 12 gm cartridges and having a 50 round stick mag in the middle of the drum. Long overdue. Full auto wit h18 shots is no fun .The best I have fired so far is the UZI select fire. An extended mag for the Mauser 712 would be nice,as would a bolt that locked back when empty
BB and All,
Help please. I’m trying to evaluate some Crosman 1377, 2240, 2400kt series moded pistols for accuracy. The trouble is they shoot better than i can offhand with iron sights. I’ve tried shoulder stocks and Leapers scopes from a rest but get parallax problems since i can’t get a good spot weld with the skeleton stock from a rest. Likewise with a red dot. Best results so far is with a laser aiming at a quarter size black dot. Adjust till the reflected red light is dimmest surrounded by black. I’ve also tried six o’clock hold with the laser. Groups still vary a lot. I’ve tried several pellets with Boxed Premier Heavy and R-10’s being best I don’t think it’s the guns. How i envy those sub .400 groups i see reported!! Suggestions please! Thanks!
Fido3030
Fido3030
If your gun is .177 caliber try these.
/product/jsb-diabolo-exact-heavy-177-cal-10-34-grains-domed-500ct?p=388
If it’s .22 caliber try these.
/product/jsb-diabolo-exact-jumbo-22-cal-15-89-grains-domed-500ct?p=584
And what I do with the 1399 stock. I get a 8″ peice of that round foam air condition insulation that has a slit in it. I attach it on the top part of the stock where you rest your cheek with a couple of those plastic tie straps.
Also here is a link to the RAI website. He has adapters for those guns to be able to put a AR style butt stock on the guns you mention. And it will adjust for comb hieght and shoulder anngle and legnth of pull. Basically it can be adjusted in more ways than you can imagine or will need.
http://www.rarmsinnovations.com
Also I use the Long Benjamin Discovery barrel in .177 or .22 caliber. Of course with the steel breech. You can order direct from Crosman if you have the part number. I just ordered a .177 barrel for a 1377 I made into a rifle by adding the Discovery trigger assembly. And did some cutting and routering on a Discovery stock. So it looks like a Discovery now put its a pump gun. But here is the Discovery .177 caliber barrel part number. And it was like $24 shipped to the door.
Item #13 1760SE-001
And at what distance are you trying to get a .400″ group at? The gun I just told you about I made will get around .750″ groups at 50 yards bench resting. And that’s at 10 pumps with the JSB 10.34’s I provided the link to above. And it also has a Hawke scope on it. One of these.
/product/hawke-optics-3-12×44-ao-vantage-side-focus-rifle-scope-1-2-mil-dot?a=4431
So if your trying for .400″ groups. Maybe 25 yards would be the distance?
GF1,
So,.. what,…… now you are into “custom fitted stock’s” as well? 😉
I like it!!!! 🙂 That is some “serious” modding when you start messing with the wood.
Chris USA
A little while back I emailed you some pictures of the 1377 with the wood Discovery stock and long barrel and Hawke scope.
You mean I did that good of job on it and you thought it was a production gun. 😉
And I made one out of a 1377 about 8 years ago from a Discovery stock that I cut the butt of the stock off a couple inches for a shorter legnth of pull. And had a 14″ barrel on it if I remember right. It was a gun for the daughters to shoot. They where around 8-10 years old at the time and it was a gun that they shot along side a 760 that I modified the legnth of pull on also.
Hard for a kid to shoot with a long legnth of pull you know. There arms have to straighten out to much to reach the trigger. Then that makes them shoulder the gun wrong. Along with hard for them to get there line of sight right.
But you know what I could still shoot those guns with a short length of pull. So maybe a shorter length of pull on a gun makes the gun more versatile to use for various size people.
Fido3030
Here’s the .22 caliber Discovery barrel part number. Don’t know the price. Should be comparable to the cost of the .177 Discovery barrel I would think.
Item #13 2260SE-001
I can attest to the effectiveness of the pipe insulation GF1 recommends below, it’s a cheap and quick fix and you can get as fancy as you want with it.
Reb
You been getting any shooting time in? Ain’t heard much about your hi-pac gun lately either.
Not much shooting lately.
Had a electric bill to deal with after I got outta the hospital and still doing follow up appointments on that along with getting exercise to get my left leg back in shape.
I guess all that exercise I put in last summer did more harm than good due to lack of sufficient blood flow.
Reb
Guess that could be a problem if something ain’t acting right.
Well hopefully you get that under control.
I finally found out where they put the stent, it’s in my left iliac artery, the opposite side of my stab wound and the Dr said he cleared out the rest of the arteries in my leg.
He said they were clogged with cholesterol but we’re still trying the same therapy with no change in treatment until I get my next appointment,I guess?!
Reb
So can you walk?
I was carrying my cane and getting in about1/4 mile a day for the first week after the surgery so it’s much better than it was but my arthritis puts a halt to that when it’s cold or wet.
Reb
Know what you mean about the arthritis. But I still get up and make myself do some exercises.
Tell me about it! My leg was cramping up at about 100 yards, now I can do almost 4 times as much at a time.
Willy was starting to act up too but the surgery helped so now I’m in search mode for someone to help me with that rehab.
Reb,
Good idea on the pipe insulation. I hope to find something other though.
I did stop by TSC and the dot site peg was empty. I will stop by again this weekend. Like I said, the TSC is pretty bare bones on BB/pellet gun stuff.
Best wishes on continuing to get better and getting back to full operational mode.
Next time I cut risers I’m gonna wrap them with athletic tape.
Chris USA
Yep the air conditioning insulation that Reb said that he can attest to that I recommended works nice.
That is a problem with the 1399 stock. They angled the comb down to much. Almost everyone I ever heard talk about has problems with cheek weld being to low.
Maybe that would be a good stock for you. Ain’t the comb always to high for you?
GF1,
No. I would not say that is the case. Too low if anything. Take 2 people,.. (standing),…..a small adult and someone 6’4″. From the point where you would shoulder a rifle, to your eye., will be different. The rifle will shoulder at the same point on both people. However the taller person will have to “come down” much lower to get a cheek weld or line of sight. And, the shorter persons head will “crane” down quicker and closer to the butt. The taller person neck will end up further from the butt or more forward. I am talking “natural” feel or fit,.. not something that one has to adapt to.
That is about the best I can describe it. That’s is why I am looking at adjustability options so hard for an M-rod.
On the above modding,……. your a “cool Dad”. 😉
Chris USA
That makes sense about having more distance to bring your head to the gun if your a bigger person.
You get the RAI setup for the Mrod your getting and think you will be happy.
Fido3030,
You need to shoot a LONG distance from a rest — the gun, not you. You can’t clamp a multi-pump easily, so develop a rest that always returns the gun to the same spot. Forget shooting at targets. Shoot at white paper for group size.
B.B.
Fido:
If 177, add the JSB RS 7.33 grain pellets to your test. Both my 2400 and 1377 prefer the JSB RS pellets. PA has a great sampler with different different weight JSB pellets and an H&N sampler with several different pellets. I have a 1377 with an 18″ barrel and the 2400 with an 18″ barrel and both with skeleton stocks. Most of my shooting is from a bag rest. After a lot of practice and with concentration, I can maintain, most of the time, consistent cheek wells. The pipe insulation works well for me.
Jim
I should have added both have 3-9 bugbuster AO scopes. I believe that for 10M shooting an AO scope is a must.
Jim
Jim
It sounds like you got your 2400 and 1377 set up pretty nice.
They are pretty accurate guns. And I will add they are priced pretty reasonable.
Fido3030,
This is an older post, so I don’t know if you are still interested, but I use a device called a “Jawhorse” ,made by Rockwell, to clamp my guns into when I am testing them for accuracy with different pellets. “Vising” your gun takes the shooter’s ability out of the equation and is how many gun makers test their guns for accuracy. It won’t really tell you much about how ” shootable ” the gun is, as that considers trigger quality and balance and other factors, but it will reveal what pellets shoot best from a particular gun’s barrel.
The Jawhorse is a three-legged, portable, soft-jawed vise that costs under $140. It is incredibly handy for lots of other things that it was actually designed for. I have always found a way to clamp my pneumatic guns into it and adding a few pant leg sandbags will make it steady enough for any testing you may want to do.
Half
B.B.,
This one looks very promising. I’ve been looking forward to this report because 92A1 based air pistols fit my hand perfectly. They are so comfortable for me that it doesn’t even feel as though I am holding anything. Plus it has an ambidextrous safety! If I ever were to buy a firearm pistol, it would probably be a Beretta 92A1.
Thanks very much for doing this.
Michael
Wow! Thanks all for great ideas! I’m trying for consistent < .400 at just 10m across the basement. I'm sure the 2400kt with LW barrel is capable as is the 2240 with 14" so it's me and my technique. Thanks again and keep ideas coming
Fido3030
Fido3030
So if it is your technique. What makes you think that? That’s a big step forward in improving if you already have a idea you know.
Fido3030,
Since you are using a laser, try (cheap), (shiny) scotch tape over bull. Trim it as small as you can. When the laser hits it, it will “light up”. Pretty cool. That will give you a positive sign when the laser is in the center of the bull. Try a bigger piece first to get the idea of what I am talking about and modify to you your own needs.
Fido3030,
Because of my not so great eyesight, what I have done in the past for my pistols that have lasers is to also use some form of magnification to see the target. Since I have a spotting scope and tripod, I set that up to see the target I’m shooting at, while I’m resting the pistol on a bag. Seeing the laser dot on the target at 10 meters at 16x magnification will show you how much coffee you’ve had that day! Binoculars would work too.
David H.
David H
A laser will show how much you shake no matter what distance you shoot at.
Of course if you can see the laser on the target.
I know 16 magnification at 10 m would look like you were in a earthquake. Of course if you could focus at 10 m at 16 magnification.
Other than the magazine release, this 92 looks a lot like the original 92’s that were first imported. My father had one of those, my son has it these days. It’s a great shooter, very reliable. This one looks like fun IF it is well made and not prone to break down with just a little use. I would have styled it after the 93r, but that’s just me. BTW, since a law was passed in 1986 no more full auto firearms that were not already licensed for civilian ownership could be licensed. This froze the number of available full auto arms for sale which cause the prices to go out of sight. Prices of $10,00.00 to $20,000.00 EACH and up are common. So, start saving you dimes! 🙂
Mike
Thank you all again!! This Blog is like the best airgun book ever written, plus you can add a new chapter just by asking a question!
The foam works great. I’m ordering the suggested pellets from PA tonight.
Fido 3030
Fido3030
What’s to loose. At least you get to have fun with some trigger time. 🙂
B.B.
I apologize for this reply coming so long after this report, but a feature of my Beretta model 92A1 just came to my attention this past weekend, and I wanted to ask if you had observed it on your review pistol. I saw a take-down video of this Beretta 92A1 which pointed out a silver knurled knob inside the slide positioned just behind the slide spring. I carefully took the slide off my pistol and found the same knob in the slide.
When you had the slide off of your review pistol, did you see this silver knurled knob?
I just received an email from Umarex confirming that it is a hop-up adjustment. Now everything I have read said that hop-up was used only on 6 mm airsoft guns, not on 4.5 mm (0.177) steel BB guns. I’m rather surprised then to find a hop-up adjustment on this 0.177 steel BB shooting Beretta 92A1. The manual didn’t say anything about this feature. I haven’t had a chance yet to see if this hop-up adjustment knob actually has any noticeable effect on the steel BBs.
Charles,
Way too late for me to remember.
Sorry,
B.B.
In NJ, airguns are considered firearms. This Beretta, and my select fire Umarex Steel Storm would get me arrested and a quick ride to jail.
Sling shots are illegal.
Thank God I am out of that horrible state.
Terry,
Welcome to the blog.
B.B.
Hi. I purchased my new Beretta Mod. 92A1 by Umarex Germany.
It is too similar to the images posted in this blog except that
It lacks the fire selector switch.
Now my issue is i am trying to add the “Fire Selector switch”.
Although i have achieved to convert it to full automatic and back to semi-automatic by disassembling, i want to be able to achieve the same with just that switch without having to disassemble and reassemble again and again.
If anyone has any suggestions or want to achieve the same, plz contact me on whatsapp on +918882407007.
N30H4X0R,
Welcome to the blog.
B.B.
Thanks mate. 🙂
Someone plz look into the issue. Thanks
Please could you help me just purchase a m92a1 but due to me being in the UK it doesn’t have the full auto switch is they a mod you can do to this pistol to make it full auto ? I herd you can file down a peace to make it full auto not sure how true that is and if it will brake the gun
Thanks
ibritgamer,
Welcome to the blog.
I am not into modifying airguns this way, so I don’t know how this is done. Maybe one of our readers knows.
But are you sure you can do this and not break the law? That would be a concern I would have.
B.B.
Ibritgamer,
Welcome too. There is LOTS of people here that tear into airguns and modify them based them on mods. that are already well tried and also those that also push the limits and even come up with new stuff. What you will (not) find here is people that would encourage someone/you into doing something illegal, even though it may be legal here.
Being from the UK, you have to play under a different set of rules,… unless you are firearm permitted and can also shoot/own higher powered air guns. Even so, maybe a full auto air gun is still out of the question?
Either way, if you proceed with something,… it is all your responsibility. A lot of the YouTube stuff is just plain dangerous and down right stupid. Done correctly, there is also a lot of good stuff on YouTube.
Also, some parts are only surface hardened and if you (file) that hard surface away,… that part will wear very quickly. Don’t do it!
(Come back and post again sometime). Lots of good stuff here. Great folks as well. Plus, it is always nice to have another perspective/view on things from people in other countries. 🙂
Chris