by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier
Morini 162MI 10-meter target pistol.
This report covers:
- Sight-in
- H&N Finale Match Pistol pellets
- RWS R10 Match Pistol pellets
- Sig Ballistic Alloy pellets
- Qiang Yuan Olympic
- Am I getting tired?
- Second group of RWS R10 pellets
- Second group of Sig Ballistic Alloy pellets
- Full of myself
- Summary
Oh, boy! Today is accuracy day with the Morini 162MI 10-meter match pistol, and I will tell you right now — it was a good day! It was like meeting your high school sweetheart after many years and discovering she is still as interesting as ever.
I did a lot and I plan to show you everything. I shot 5-shot groups, as I do with 10-meter target rifles, because 10 shots gives us a hole that’s difficult to make sense of. And yes, I shot off a rest. The gun was held at arm’s length so the sights were as sharp as I could make them.
Sight-in
I began with a sight-in. Although I normally don’t care where the pellets land — just the group they make — the 10-meter shooter in me could not resist the temptation to sight in the Morini. Also, it has world-class adjustable sights that I knew would be spot-on. Once I was on target, though, I did not adjust for each new pellet, so there is some group movement.
The first pellet hit in line with the center of the target, but high. I shot a second shot that cut the first hole to confirm. Then I cranked in some down elevation and fired 2 more shots. They also touched each other, but were slightly off to the right, so I put in some left adjustment and fired a third pair of shots. These were both 10s and I figured I was done. I did move the group one click to the right after this sight-in was finished.
The first two pellets hit in line but high. The second two hit at the right elevation but right. The third two pellets are both 10s. Sight-in is over.
H&N Finale Match Pistol pellets
The first 5 pellets were thesame H&N Finale Match Pistol pellets with 4.50mm heads that were used for sight-in. Four were 10s and one was a 9 that went high. I think that was me and not the pistol. The 5-shot group measures 0.366-inches between centers.
Five H&N Finale Match pistol pellets went into 0.366-inches at 10 meters.
RWS R10 Pistol pellets
Next I tried 5 RWS R10 Match Pistol pellet. This is where the test got interesting, because these 5 pellets were all 10s and went into 0.231-inches! I thought that was impressive. Given this result, I will try this pellet a second time.
Five RWS R10 Match pistol pellets went into 0.231-inches at 10 meters. This is what a perfect score looks like.
Sig Ballistic Alloy pellets
Next up was the most interesting test of the day. I shot Sig Match Ballistic Alloy pellets in a 10-meter pistol! I have tried lead-free target pellets for years, hoping for good results. Would today be the day?
I have it on good authority that H&N makes these pellets for Sig. And we already know that they know how to make good pellets. The question is — can they make good lead-free target pellets?
The first result was good but not great. Five Sig Ballistic Match pellets gave a score of either 48 or 49 (can’t tell with 4 in the same place) and went into 0.358-inches between centers. That puts them right there with the H&N Finale Match Pistol pellets. While this is only a good result, it is hands-down the best group of lead-free pellets I have ever shot. I’m going to shoot a second group of these, as well.
By the way, these pellets are much lighter than the lead pellets I am shooting, so we expect them to shoot to a different point of impact. If I was shooting these for score I would adjust the sights.
Five Sig Ballistic Alloy Match pistol pellets went into 0.358-inches at 10 meters. This is good enough to warrant a second try.
Qiang Yuan Olympic pellets
The last pellet I tested was the Qiang Yuan Olympic pellet. They didn’t do so well in the Morini. They made a score of 49, but landed in two distinct groups with a group size of 0.397-inches between centers. It was the largest group of the day for the rested airgun.
And this is why we test. Five Qiang Yuan Olympic pellets went into 0.397-inches at 10 meters, which was the biggest group of the day with the rested gun. This is not a pellet to try again.
Am I getting tired?
It’s fair to ask whether I am tiring by this point in the test. Was that the reason the Chinese target pellets spread out? Let’s see.
Second group of RWS R10 pellets
I now shot a second grou of RWS R10 pistol pellets. The first group, as 0.234-inches between centers, is the smallest groupo thus far. The second group opened to 0.367-inches. While that is much larger than the first grouop, it is also realistic. If I shot 10 more groups with this pellet they would range in sizes between these two extremes and might even be larger or smaller. I still like the R10s in this pistol. And, before you tell me to try the Chinese pellets again, let’s try something else.
The second group of five RWS R10 pellets made this 0.367-inch group at 10 meters.
Second group of Sig Ballistic Alloy pellets
The second group of Sig Ballistic Alloy Match pellets went into 0.222-inches between centers. This is the smallest group of the day! Sig, I plan to test the heck out of these lead-free pellets in other target airguns, because they are world-class accurate! I am now solidly on your side! And I know hundreds of clubs (California clubs and JROTC clubs around the world) and thousands of competitive shooters who have been waiting for this news! As a newcomer to airguns, you may not appreciate what you have, Sig, but I do. I said I would become your cheerleader if these pellets worked and I’m grabbing my pop-poms right now!
Sure, the score (47) is lower, but this is the best group of the day. Sig Ballistic Alloy Match pellets are the first lead-free pellet I have tested that really do shoot at the world-class level! Five pellets in 0.222-inches between centers at 10 meters! This group appears larger than the first R10 group, but that’s an illusion. I measured both groups again and got the same results both times.
Full of myself
After seeing that final group of five Sig pellets, I got full of myself and did something I haven’t done in more than 16 years. I put on my shooting glasses and shot 5 shots standing and offhand. I figured beforehand if I could average an 8 that would put me at a match score of 480/600. That’s low. My average in competition used to be 535/600 and I was on the cusp of moving to 545 when I stopped competing. But 480 is a good starting point for training.
I shot with the R10s, because I hadn’t measured the groups yet and the R10s looked to be the most accurate. The pistol was also sighted-in for them and not for the Sig pellets. Well, I threw the first shot into the white — something I only did one time in 4 years of competition, and that was when my CO2 pistol ran out of gas in the middle of a match. But I continued and ended up with a score of 37/50, which is an average score of 7.4. Pretty disheartening.
This one is me standing and holding the pistol offhand. It’s large, but look at the tight lateral spread. There is some potential for improvement here.
Then I looked at the lateral spread. It was close! If my elevation had been on for every shot I would have shot a 49. My hand was shaking and I was wavering, but I did achieve a good torso lock — the tight lateral spread shows that. I need to strengthen my shooting arm and I need to shoot about 20 thousand dry-fires over three months and I think I could do okay with the Morini 162.
Summary
I really like this target pistol. The only thing I would modify if it were mine is the grips. And they don’t need much more than a small tweak. If you are thinking of getting a world class 10-meter target pistol, I can recommend the Morini 162MI.
B.B.,
Yup, those lead free pellets are definately H&N match green pellets, rebranded as Sig Sauer Match Ballistic alloy pellets. I guess since it’s “Sig”, they cost $10 more than H&N’s green pellets. I’ll have to say you still have potential in shooting offhand, but you gotta work on the sub 6 o’ clock aiming with just a thin white line just above the sight blade and below the bull. Look at Joao Costa of Portugal. He’s 51 and still beating the pants off many of his younger competitors in the European Championships!
That they performed well given that they are rebranded H&N Match Greens doesn’t surprise me. I’ve had really good luck with those pellets in almost everything I’ve tried them in. In my FWB602 they work well enough that my groups average about the same as they do with the best lead pellets I’ve tried. I’m far from a world class shot though so I can’t tell for sure how they relate to the best lead match wadcutters. I do like using them when shooting in my “indoor range” a.k.a. a room in my house with the duct seal trap at one end and a “10M at 6 meter” target clipped to it. Since the room is used by children, dogs and cats a lot I want to be careful about lead in there. I’ve read an analysis of lead dust from 10M shooting and it concluded that there is a little bit of it dropped in the area directly in front of the muzzle when fired and some dropped in the region of the target if using a hard backstop. With the deep duct seal trap I have I suppose I would only really have to put out a mat or tray under the muzzle and that would catch any dust that was created but it’s easier to just use the greens indoors and save the lead pellets for the real range.
Ok BB bust out them pom-poms and give us a cheer about what you think makes the Sig pellets work.
I’m curious to see what made them make the score. It’s not everyday you here of alloy making the pellet program you know.
GF1,
I intend pursuing this. I have been looking for an accurate lead-free pellet for many years.
B.B.
I hope the lead free pellets stay inaccurate being they are to much money. I feel the antis want to ban all lead for bullets driving the cost sky high for PB ammo then pellets
Mildot52,
If the sales volume were to increase, the cost of lead-free pellets would plunge. Right now they are priced like the Prius — overpriced because they appeal to a narrow demand. Actually lead costs more than the material these pellets are made from, though their manufacturing process may be more involved.
B.B.
BB
And you know I will be waiting for info about why those pellets work. Because I need a new perspective on alloy pellets. I still keep relating them to the spring gun velocity wars. So what ever they got going on compared to those Gamo alloy pellets needs to be determined. That way I know I will respect the alloy pellets more. Or is it the pistol helping them out?
GF1,
Don’t forget these are wadcutters, which are limited as to the distance they will shoot well. They should never be accurate beyond about 25 yards, because no wadcutter is.
So all my testing will be within the parameters of what is normal for a wadcutter.
B.B.
BB
Yes I do understand that about wadcutters.
And I use the cheapy Daisy wadcutters in my 760 and my long barrel 1399 stocked 1377 I had a while back for pesting. Excellent for mice and birds inside of barns at closer distances. And that flat nose on them acts like hollow point when it hits. Puts a good thump on what you shoot.
So yep I do know what you mean about wadcutters. And that does make me wonder how this pistol your testing today would do out at that 25 yard mark you just mentioned.
BB,
Get the P44.
Nice shooting by the way. Makes me want to drag out my Izzy some this weekend.
RR,
I am supposed to get a P44 when they become available. That’s supposed to be part of this test.
We shall see.
B.B.
BB,
No, I do not mean for you to have PA send you a P44 for a test. I mean for you to just go ahead and get the P44, unless you want to hold out for a P8X. 😉
RR
Was thinking the same thing – a bit of pistoling planned for the weekend 🙂
Why do you own Pom-poms, Tom??
😉
Javagonzo,
They are color-coordinated to the tassels on my white boots! 😉
B.B.
I’m feeling icky now.
It’s the kneehighs and pleated skirt that’s stuck in my mind.
🙂
I know it would make for a long test but did you measure any of the pellets with the pellet gauge? I’m thinking this pistol may be able to tell the difference
Speakski,
No, I didn’t. I shot all pellets straight from the box or tin.
B.B.
Sounds like you enjoyed your shooting session with the Morini target pistol. I have never shot a BB or pellet pistol
Mercury,
This pellet pistol is like the Formula 1 of all pellet pistols. It came with a test target that shows 5 pellets inside 0.058-inches at 10 metes, so what I did was horrible in comparison. I live to shoot airguns like this!
I have bid on and won a Haemmerli free pistol that I hope to have next week. It is a single shot .22 long rifle target pistol that is shot at 50 meters in the Olympics. This model I’m getting won gold in Helsinki in 1948 and again in London in 1952. This pistol has been on my bucket list since before I was a teenager. Ten-meter pellet pistols are patterned after free pistols, so this is the real deal.
Of course I will report on it, as well!
B.B.
BB
I’m for sure interested in hearing about that pistol. Don’t know what they look like. But I’m thinking it’s probably a unique looking gun. But maybe I’m wrong. But it’s sure got my imagination running.
GF1,
Look here, third picture down. It looks like the exact model I am getting.
/blog/2015/09/gamo-compact-target-pistol-part-1/
B.B.
BB
Oh yes I know I’m going to like hearing about that pistol.
Already see things I like. The grips obviously. But two questions. And I know your going to test the one when you get it. How does it load and cock? And kind of hard to tell in the picture. But is the trigger blade just a pin sticking out?
GF1,
It has a Martini dropping block. The lever is on the left side of the action. I will show you everything.
B.B.
BB
Ok thanks. Already got a bunch of questions running through my mind.
I think I better write them down so I don’t forget by time you do the blog about it.
Hi Tom. Enjoy your writing as always. Did you win the actual firearm used in both Olympics or a similar model? I also assume one does not use Walmart .22 ammunition in the Olympics but specially manufactured bullets. Are the shooters able to reload their own ammo or do manufacturers make it to specifications?
I also would appreciate it if you put your white boots with tassels away in a closet when I come to visit.
Thanks
Bob
Bob,
No, it was not the gun that actually won the Olympics. It is the same model and Haemmerli engraved that on the receiver. I believe that both those years they actually swept the podium!
I do hide the white boots and pop-poms when you visit, but sometimes I forget and leave my baton out where it can be seen.
B.B.
Looking forward to the Haemmerli report! I see that Pyramyd sells a Haemmerli 10-meter PCP pistol. Are there any common features between it at the free pistol, other than the name?
Mike U
Mike,
Not much commonality anymore. Umarex now owns the Haemmerli name. The target airguns are still made in Switzrland, I believe, but other guns with the name are made in the orient.
B.B.
BB
I’ve wanted one since I saw one on the cover of the 1959 Gun Digest. They may be a “free pistol” but they ain’t cheap! Congratulations
Fido3030
Fido3030,
While I have no specific notes,.. you are the one that sorted bb’s and played around with “lubing” them, correct? Did you conclude your testing?
Chris USA
I’ve been busy and not much time for shooting. Here’s where I am at:
Best groups sorted Umarex BB’s lubed with Pellgun Oil in a stock Crosman 760 at 10 pumps. Rivals a Daisy 499.
I believe there’s evidence lots of shooting of steel BBs through a mild steel bore will gradually erode the bore. In a dry smooth bore this will cause groups to open up but lubrication will reduce erosion and can often tighten groups depending on bore/BB fit.
More testing is needed such as a longitudinal study of group size with and without lubrication.
Fortunately BBs are cheap. Unfortunately time is becoming more precious as i get older!
How is your testing of the modded 499 going?
Fido3030
Fido3030.
It was you! Sorry, without notes and trying to learn so much,…I forget. As for the 499, I have not shot it in awhile,….bad me,…. as it stays within arms reach. One thing I know for sure, I will not shoot it without doing a bb lube first. Period.
I agree with you on the wear factor,….the lube has to help that. Period. Not to mention more fps and better accuracy. Win, win, win.
My current interest is launching a 259 grain mini arrow, 10 1/8″ from a modded Daisy 880 multi pump. Shroud cut, arrow over barrel. You may have seen previous post as to the progress? It should all come together this weekend. We’ll see. The arrow/bolt is well within the calculations for good flight. Stay tuned as if I get anything going, good or bad, I will post results this weekend. Then,…there is the (homemade) dart testing from the same 880. 30-35 grain on those.
And yup,…I can relate on the time. 😉 Chris
Chris USA
Your arrow shooting 880 sounds awesome!!!!!!
I’m looking forward to hearing about your progress!
Fido3030
Fido,
Darn! You stole my best line! 😉
B.B.
Ooops. You can have it back!
BB,
Thanks for another fine blog, I really enjoyed it. OTOH, it gives me ideas. Which brings the question, what would be an acceptable score for a beginner in 10m competition, say, just to be in the middle of the pack?
Henry,
A score of around 400 should be good enough to begin competing. I competed at the national level where the lowest scores were above 500.
B.B.
Fascinating to see the offhand target. That’s about what I got at 5 yards the other night. I also had an experience with sighting in. For some time, my B30 had impacted about an inch below point of aim at 5 yards. I figured it was just the laws of physics asserting themselves and that the spring in the erector tube of my Leaper’s scope had given out. I continued shooting anyway for group. However, the groups were not very good. I attributed this in part to the distraction of not shooting to point of aim. Elmer Keith, himself, said that he did not like the 6 o clock hold for this reason and that one should shoot to point of aim. Then, the other night over the course of three 10 shot groups, the rounds started creeping upward until finally they were back at point of aim?! What the heck was going on? It seemed unlikely that the scope spring had somehow gotten a second wind and were remembering an old configuration.
Finally, vibration alerted me to the fact that the scope was completely loose. Several thousand rounds had loosened the scope so that it slid backwards as far as it could go. That must have been when the point of impact dropped. So, that answers an outstanding question of how scope movement along the barrel axis affects point of impact. Backwards movement drops the point down. I don’t really have an explanation for why the groups started to rise again unless the screws got so loose that the scope was just bouncing around. When I tightened everything the groups were back on point of aim and small as they should be. So, the good news is that Leapers scopes come through and can retain zero at 5 yards. And I have my rifle back again. That is a cheap version of the RWS 48 that, according to Charlie Da Tuna, was the single best deal in airguns. A single tune could convert a $150 rifle into a fair imitation of the original.
Mike, great idea about the Ballistol to clean the Mosin. I had thought that the Ballistol was to thin to do any serious scouring work. On the other hand, with its use in both World Wars, it apparently was designed to counteract corrosive powders. As soon as I finish shooting corrosive ammo at the range, I flood the bore with Ballistol. And pairing this solution with a good brush could really do something. Between Sweet’s 7.62 and a bronze brush, I must have completely destroyed any plastic in my Saiga barrel which looks utterly pristine. Incidentally, my new bore light works great once I figured out that this one is designed to go into the chamber and not the muzzle. Anyway, I’ll Ballistol and the brush on the Mosin. Too bad drought-ridden California looks to rain out my shooting this weekend.
Fido, good call with the lead fishing weights. I am waiting delivery on 100 used golf balls, and I will try out the fishing weights once I develop some skill.
Matt61
It’s a sure sign of spring. The local Gun Shows are starting up. There’s one this weekend only a 1.5 hour drive from home. I’m not really looking for any one thing but you never know what might turn up. Our local Gun Show will be April 1 (Evening) and 2 (All Day). I’ll have a table at that one to sell a few things. I think the local shooting team still has the old FWB and Walther air rifles for sale. They didn’t go last year except for the Walther I bought.
Mike
Hello BB, I appreciate your efforts, BUT, your accuracy testing is completely not relevant. You must test your pistol
from a vised platform. Off the bench testing is really useless.
Okay, that was harsh, but I mention it so that those unfamiliar with 10 Meter match pistols will not be misled.
The Morini 162 MI, shooting from a vised platform is more than capable of grouping ten pellets onto the inner 10 ring, using any of the pellets you used in this test. After reading Scott Pilkington’s essay on pellet testing 10M
air pistols; and Rover’s pellet testing results, from a vised platform, with every pellet tested, using several different
match pistols; every pellet shot, ended up in the inner 10 ring; I decided to forgo accuracy testing.
I found that even the RWS Basics would go into the inner ten when I did almost everything right. So, keep up the
great and very useful essays, I do follow and read all that you post .
Best Regards; Tony
Tony,
Welcome to the blog.
I don’t know what you have heard, but 10 meter airguns are not tested in vices at the factory. They are tested by hand. Robert Beeman has witnessed it.
I participated in the test of the AirForce Edge rifle and we did test the rifle in a vice. The results were no better than hand-held. All the vice did was allow us to shoot more pellets faster. But the accuracy did not improve.
As for RWS Basics scoring 10s, I find that phenomenal. Yes, they might shoot 2-3 10s in a 10-shot group, but 10 out of 10, or even 9 out of 10? Wow! I have never seen accuracy like that from a non world-class pellet.
Thanks for taking the time to write. Don’t be a stranger.
B.B.
From what I’ve read I agree with Paw080… 10m match air pistol pellet testing is done in a vise. That’s how the test target shipped with each 10m match pistol is shot. Like the setup here: http://www.pilkguns.com/mako.htm and the results show unless the shooter is really good, then buy good cheap pellets (RWS Basic, not Daisy) and work on your ability. Reading about pellet testing on TargetTalk.org confirms this.
B.B.,
First,…congrats on a fine day of shooting. Second,….was that .058″(factory) center to center from a person,.. or,.. a rest/vice? Maybe the next report?
Chris,
It is my understanding that all 10-meter guns are hand-tested off a rest.
B.B.
B.B.,
Well, that is pretty impressive. “Something to shoot for”,….pun intended.
Thanks, Chris
So, if they are rebranded h&n greens, why not try the h&n in the pistol?
Or do you think these are either sized specially for sig, or a special selection grade that bumps up the price over the h&n’s
45Bravo,
Don’tcha know I plan to test this, as well? 😉
B.B.
Matt61—I have and use balistol, but not to clean bores. TRY WIPE OUT! Ed