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Air Guns The Snowpeak Pioneer pellet pistol: Part One

The Snowpeak Pioneer pellet pistol: Part One

Pioneer pistol
Pioneer pistol.

This report covers:

  • Umarex Markpoint
  • The test
  • More support for the Markpoint
  • Waiting
  • Summary

Sometimes you win and other times the bear eats you. But every so often you and the bear sit down together to enjoy a meal together. Today is one of those times.

Umarex Markpoint

Remember the Umarex Markpoint that I reported on yesterday? I said it is a dart pistol. Well that’s because it shoots light lead pellets at around 300 f.p.s. The low velocity makes it ideal for darts because they won’t stick in the board so deeply that they will be damaged when removed.

No doubt there will be people who want to boost the power of this plastic air pistol and reader RidgeRunner is intrigued enough to comment on it. But BB thinks it’s great at that power level. 

Several have surmised that it’s made by Snowpeak, and that triggered BB’s Rememberer. I have another Snowpeak air pistol that’s been laying around my office for years. It’s the one pictured above — the Snowpeak Pioneer that was also once sold in the US as the Compasseco S2-1X.

This pistol is a cheapie that I might have paid as much as ten dollars for many years ago. I see them at gun shows all the time and if you pay more than $30 for one you’re being robbed. It’s a simple breakbarrel spring-piston airgun that I’ve learned is quite easy to maintain — which means disassemble.

I always wanted to report on this pistol as many folks have one, but it’s so weak that I never did. But weak is idea for darts! While we wait for the Markpoint to arrive why don’t we see what the Pioneer can do?

The test

I had to check it out before writing this report. I shot a “feathered” dart from the Pioneer at my dartboard from about 8 feet. The dart stuck in what I have learned is the ideal way — deep enough to stick, yet not so deep that it can’t be pulled out without damage. In fact it pulls out quite easily.

Pioneer dart
The Pioneer sticks a dart in the dartboard just deep enough to stick.

And when I say I shot “a” dart I mean I stood there and shot many darts. They seem to be accurate in the Pioneer.

More support for the Markpoint

Several readers commented on the Umarex Markpoint pistol in yesterday’s report. Look at what reader Will said,

“The plastic pistol, the Umarex Markpoint springer, actually looks like it could be a lot of fun as a dart pistol.  The steel and plastic bolts weigh about .45 grams, which is the same as a 7gr lead pellet.  It might shoot a bit hard, but then it might be perfect.  Someone I know may have to try it.  Since it’s a breech loader, bolts and the tufted darts can load easily.    

If it did bury the darts too far into the board, maybe that same person could lop a coil or two off one end of the main spring and presto!  Perfect dart velocity.  You’d have to be able to take it apart.”

Waiting

We don’t have to wait long because the Markpoint is in stock right now. But before we go there I thought I’d play with the Pioneer a little. The good news is this pistol is easy to strip, so if any work is needed to the powerplant, it should go quickly.

I’ll condense the velocity report and the accuracy report, but if I take the Pioneer apart that will stand on its own.

Hunting Guide

Summary

It’s funny how a new offering generated interest in a pellet pistol I have owned for over a decade, but that’s what happened. The Pioneer pellet pistol offers a chance to shoot darts without me having to fix anything. It should be interesting.

author avatar
Tom Gaylord (B.B. Pelletier)
Tom Gaylord, also known as B.B. Pelletier, provides expert insights to airgunners all over the world on behalf of Pyramyd AIR. He has earned the title The Godfather of Airguns™ for his contributions to the industry, spending many years with AirForce Airguns and starting magazines dedicated to the sport such as Airgun Illustrated.

31 thoughts on “The Snowpeak Pioneer pellet pistol: Part One”

  1. Tom,

    You didn’t seem to mention it but is this pistol a smoothbore? Seems like an indoor fun pistol especially useful during seasons when one is forced to stay indoors. Maybe this is one category/philosophy of use case? Any more power and it becomes a casual indoor/outdoor can roller.

    Siraniko

  2. B.B.

    I am sure that you have many other airguns that you have forgotten about….

    -Yogi

    PS maybe with the new World Champion Dart thrower being only 17 years old, there will be renewed interest in darts with the Tik Tok generation?

  3. I have two of these I got a long time ago. Think I paid around $10 ea. Can’t exactly remember but it was stupid cheap. Hard to pass up any air pistol for that price. All wood and steel. Might have been a Compasseco close out item.

    I also picked up ‘six’ 3-9 x 40 Absolutely No Name dual reticle rifle scopes for about $5.00 each from some online liquidator around that time. No, they are not plastic. Long and simple. Figured “What the heck, I could always use them to decorate wall hangers in the worst case. CO2 rifles were in mind. Didn’t want to push my luck too far. They even came with see through lens caps.

    Anyway, the trigger guard on this pistol is a genuine pain in the, you know, hand. Your middle finger under it will suffer. I remember sending in a picture of how I bent up the grip end to clear my finger and still clear the trigger. The picture was deleted in my laptop, but I can take another if someone would like. Just took a pair of needle nose pliers.

    Gave a much better grip and trigger alignment. You could actually call it comfortable. Still has the same mount screw position but I believe I even recessed the tang into the grip a bit more.

  4. Well, the truth is I am not really very interested in this or the Markpoint as I have a pile of pumper pistols made in USA to rebuild right now. I also have an old Webley Junior dart shooter to rebuild. Throw in rebuilding the 101 and I could be busy for quite some time.

    On top of those, I still have to straighten the barrel of the Falke 50, finish reporting on the Condor, finish fixing and write up something on the 8mm Giffard, play with my .457 Texan LSS some more and finally try out my “brand new” BSA R10 SE in .22. Oh, I almost forgot. Since BB has run afoul of the import/export laws I just may have to tell you folks about my 1906 Lincoln Jeffries Model BSA.

    There is an awful lot on this old, fat, bald-headed geezer’s plate.

  5. I was intrigued awhile back when our mentor reported on shooting darts and bolts. I ordered some of each and gave them a go. Results were mixed. On the positive side they are quite accurate. But way too deep penetration was a problem for any break barrel pistol or rifle I owned. Loading multi pumpers through the muzzle was too much trouble. This report may get me going again.

    Deck

    • Re muzzle loading darts: I seem to remember a technique for doing that. An appropriately sized plastic straw with a dart loaded the traditional way, then the straw inserted into the muzzle, and then a ramrod of some description to push the dart backwards out of the end of the straw and down the barrel. How far? Shoot them and find out what is best.

      • Roamin

        Thanks, I remember seeing that from you or another commenter. My only multi pumper in .22 caliber is my Dragonfly. I assumed the straw trick needs at least a .22 bore but we know what a s s u m e stands for.

        Deck

          • Roamin

            Better still if the Air Venturi Avenger tests well for BB I’ll likely get one. Although it’s a single stroke pneumatic apparently the breach is quite accessible for loading darts and bolts. I am wondering if 300 fps is too fast. BB will let us know.

            Deck

  6. BB (or anyone),
    I have never been interested in break barrel pistols. I am not sure why, but I guess I assumed that they would be difficult to cock, and they wouldn’t be very accurate. Can anyone speak to the difficulty of cocking and what you might expect for accuracy in one of these?

    CB

    • Ian,

      Having had experience with the Polish copy of the Walther, it can be difficult without the cocking aid. The Diana p-five is very easy to cock. Both of these are quite accurate.

      My experience with the various Webley pistols have been if you know the how to, they are not that difficult to cock and can be somewhat accurate.

      Forget these Umarex pistols. Get yourself the Diana p-five and you will be very content.

  7. Are darts more accurate out of rifled barrels or smoothbores, or is there no difference? Seems to me that if they are more accurate from a rifled barrel, the darts should be made with bronze or some other softer-than-steel metal or plastic to preserve the rifling. In a breakbarrel, it may not be too hard to line up the grooves left on the sides of the dart from the first shot with the rifling for subsequent uses of the same dart.

  8. Shooting darts look like it might be fun to shoot indoors, if you had an appropriate pistol or rifle (smooth bore only?). I have tried my old Marksman and it leaves much to be desired.
    What suggestions are there for something that is readily available?
    Thank you.
    Bill

    • billj

      The Crosman 760 is a great multi-pump for darts. I usually use mine with maribu darts at about 4-5 meters, Two pumps usually sticks the darts into a standard dartboard. I also use a 3 inch Shoot NC to track the shots.

      Have fun

      jda001

  9. Well now,
    Looks like there is another slightly custom metal CO2 Desert Eagle Pistol replica available in select fire with blowback. Waited too long to get the first edition. Gonna’ jump on this one. Sold my real one, just too heavy for a long shooting session.

    Border Patrol friend of mine says morale is through the roof.

    • Bob M,

      Illegal entry into the United States is a federal crime and a felony. It’s prosecuted under Section 1325 of the U.S. Code. Being a Border Patrol Officer must have been frustrating given the illegal ROE restrictions that the previous administration hobbled their job with.
      I hope they have great success arresting the do gooder folks who Aid and Abet and are felons themselves. I also hope they eliminate the For Profit human smugglers like the song dog vermin Coyotes actually are.

      shootski

      • Shootski,
        I asked him why there was always a small group of border crossers, looked like families with kids, near a small bridge all the time. He said they were the ‘real asylum seekers’ waiting for pickup and that the situation was very complicated. Before Trump anyway. Told him to keep his gun loaded. They are getting shot at now.
        Did you know 72% of fire fighters die of fire related cancer? Hard core Americans protecting us.

        • Bob M,

          I have a few relatives and friends who were Firemen (aka firefighters) they were often chain smokers given their 99% boredom 1% Stark Terror work environment; most of them died after retiring.
          I think i survived smoking because you don’t when wearing an O2 Mask. My time in big birds didn’t help but i finally quit successfully because my son asked me to.
          Which leads to the current numbers for firefighters which show the primary cause of on-duty deaths is Sudden Cardiac Death (SDS) in the high 40% range with all other causes significantly smaller percentages including all forms of cancer.

          My opinion is that the BPOs need to use Sniper Overwatch; more so in the coming operations until the Border Wall/barriers are completed.

          shootski

          • FM has a gym friend who happens to be a retired firefighter and would agree 100% with the statements made above; he undergoes frequent medical checkups to make sure there are no surprises or, if so, these are discovered early. His gym routine is part of his plan to preserve his health. We don’t appreciate our firefighters, LEOs and military personnel enough.

            Before FM forgets – he and his son are airgunners; they employ them to keep the home property free and clear of our S Florida obnoxious reptile “uninvited guests.”

      • From your keyboard to God’s ears, shootski. Good to see the morale of Border Patrol officers is up – that is because they are being allowed to do their job, finally.

  10. I have seen those at gunshows as well, and at a lot higher than $10.

    I understand the Pioneer name as it was probably their first marketed pistol.

    Their quality has come a long way during their history.

    Look at the droop in that barrel on the Snowpeak!
    That’s a ski slope angle between the barrel and the main tube.

    Ian

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