Trigger Pull: The trigger pull on the Barra Cowboy Series 1858 CO2 BB Revolver is a single action only trigger, so you will need to cock the hammer back before each shot which does take away almost all of the trigger pull length and weight, making it short and light and easy to shoot. Perfect for slowed down accurate shot placement, but less effective as an action shooter.
Accuracy: I have not tested out the Barra Cowboy Series 1858 CO2 BB Revolver but it is a lot like the Crosman Fortify SA CO2 BB Revolver so I am thinking it will perform at lot like that CO2 BB Revolver, if you want to get an idea on how the Barra 1858 might perform, you can watch my Crosman Fortify Filed Test Shooting Video to get a heads up before I make my official Filed Test Shooting Video for the Barra Cowboy Series 1858 CO2 BB Revolver.
Build Quality: When it comes to the build for the Barra Cowboy Series 1858 CO2 BB Revolver, there is not a lot to really get super excited about. It is basically a mostly all plastic gun with some metal parts internally like the barrel, trigger, hammer and CO2 area. The Barra 1858 has that lower cost Airgun, two halves, screwed together build which generally looks better on the side without the screws showing. As it is mostly plastic it is very light in the hand at only just about a pound or so. Overall there are not a lot of moving parts so it should be reliable enough just because there is not much to break or go wrong. All the mechanical components do what they need to do and feel solid enough.
Realism: The Barra Cowboy Series 1858 CO2 BB Revolver at a glance looks a lot like a Remington 1858 Single Action Revolver, it has the same shape and size but the weight is way less being mostly plastic. The lack of actual bullet holes in the cylinder looking at it from the front of the revolver also takes away from the realism. I guess I am really used to the new generation revolvers with working cylinders and real loadable shells but these guns are more expensive and hold less ammo as they are genuine to the 6 shooter capacity. The barrel is however recessed which is nice.
Pros:
Inexpensive revolver as compared to other shell loading styled revolvers out there.
A decent looking replica of a Remington 1858 Revolver.
Single action only trigger is short and light and well suited to careful shot placement shooting.
400 claimed fps is about perfect for plinking at ranges up 30-40 feet.
18 round magazine has a nice high capacity and easy to load when empty.
Should get lots of shots per CO2 as there will be very little CO2 leakage with a non shell loading design.
Safety is well well hidden just in front of the trigger so easy to get to.
Has a recessed barrel for added realism.
CO2 Allen key is built into grip so always have it on hand and will not lose it.
White markings as an warnings are not super obvious, could be a little lighter.
Comes with two starter CO2’s and some 4.5mm Steel BB’s.
Cons:
Almost all plastic builds makes it a bit light in the hand.
No fake shell holes in the front of the cylinder, could have added this for a more genuine look.
Sights are non adjustable but fairly normal for an inexpensive plinker.
Comments: The Barra Cowboy Series 1858 CO2 BB Revolver is a completely new concept in design over what we have become use to in todays Single Action Legend Revolvers with their shell loading design, the Crosman Fortify as I have mentioned is the only other new classic cowboy Revolver on the market like it so perhaps there will be more in the future. My shooting experience with the Crosman Fortify CO2 BB Revolver was about what I expected, it shot pretty close to the claimed fps and got around a 2 inch 10 round grouping shooting at a paper target 30 feet down range. So we will see if the Barra Cowboy Series 1858 CO2 BB Revolver performs about the same which was respectable. For a low cost BB Revolver you kind of get what you pay for here, which is not a bad deal at the end of the day considering the lower cost to get you up and shooting.
Type: Non-blowback CO2 BB Pistol. Manufacturer: Distributed by Barra. Model: Barra 380. Materials: Mostly plastic. Weight: .93 pounds (422 grams). TotalLength: 6.89inches (175mm). Barrel: 4.25 inches (108mm) metal non-rifled. Propulsion: CO2 x 1. Action: Semi auto non-blowback, DOA trigger. AmmunitionType: .4.5mm steel BB’s. AmmunitionCapacity: 20 round drop out metal stick magazine. FPS: Claimed 410.
TriggerPull: The Barra 380 NBB CO2 BB Pistol has a typical double action trigger with a longer trigger pull that requires more length and effort to pull, but I would say is still usable as an action shooter. Your finger will get a bit tired after several magazines of action shooting. The Barra 380 trigger pull makes the internal metal barrel move forward and out of the front of the barrel opening enough to see it clearly, then when you reach the release point it snaps back into the BB Pistol acting like the hammer and releasing CO2 and shooting a BB.
Accuracy: I have yet to shoot the Barra 380 NBB CO2 BB Pistol or even performed my standard Field Test Shooting Video as of yet, so I can not comment at this time on the actual performance other than what is claimed in terms of fps - 410fps by the way. I have shot several similar CO2 BB Pistols which share almost the exact same internal components but have a different external skin on them. One benefit is that all this style of metal stick magazines are the same so they will be interchangeable. My previous experiences with similar BB Pistols is that they will get mid 400fps velocities and in general will shot around a 2 inch grouping or so. It is hard to say how close theBarra 380 NBB CO2 BB Pistol is going to shoot to the bullseye, as out of the box it may shoot a bit high or low or left or right. We will find out during my shooting test.
BuildQuality: The Barra 380 NBB CO2 BB Pistol is a pretty much almost all plastic Airgun with only a few metal parts I can see on it. The trigger is metal along with the inner barrel and the area where the CO2 goes in. Because of the plastic build, it is rather light weight which can actually be good if you where to drop it on a hard surface as the mass is low resulting in less damage. Scratches will also be less noticeable on a plastic Airgun over a metal Airgun as the material on a plastic Airgun is all tan/black throughout the material rather than a painted surface that will show blemishes a lot more. The simplicity of the design means you should get a lot of use from the Barra 380 before encountering any issues.
Realism: The Barra 380 NBB CO2 BB Pistol is not a replica of an exact real steel gun in production but it does take after a compact Beretta when you look at the open barrel and similar trigger guard. There are few external mechanical working parts on the Barra 380 CO2 NBB BB Pistol other than the trigger, safety, magazine and inner barrel. The barrel is slightly recessed and the CO2 tab is hidden in the grip which helps in terms of it looking the part.
Pros:
Nice compact size BB pistol easy to transport.
Decent FPS rating of 410.
Should get lots of shots per CO2 as it is non-blowback
Picatinny rail on frame for adding accessories.
Does have a white dot sight up front.
Finger groves on pistol grips for a secure grip.
CO2 tab is well hidden within the grip.
Double action trigger pull is long but not too firm.
Uses a generic all metal stick magazines commonly found on lower cost BB pistols.
Simple design with not a lot of moving parts will make it reliable for a long time.
Cons:
All plastic gun for the most part.
Not many working parts, pretty much all moulded gun.
Grip can pop of kind of easy if you pull a bit hard.
Sights are non adjustable and no white dots on the rear sight.
Comments:
I often mention how I prefer blowback Airguns that have a more solid weight and feel to them with more working parts, but again there is a lot more that can go wrong and complex parts wear out over usage a lot quicker than a more simple design as in the the case of the Barra 380 NBB CO2 BB Pistol. Price is also going to be a lot less when looking a more simplified Air Pistol like the Barra 380, as the plastic build is a lot cheaper to produce over more expensive metals. Another bonus with non-blowback CO2 airguns is that they do tend to have a higher velocity with more shots per CO2 than a similar CO2 Blowback Pistol, so less expensive to shoot over time. It really depends what you are really looking for? A couple other strong points to mention about the Barra 380 NBB CO2 BB Pistol would be the compatibility with other similar styled CO2 BB pistol metal stick magazines and if you like the look of a Beretta then you may also like the look of the Barra 380.
Last week I individually tested out the Barra Black Ops M4 Viper MK5 and the Krytac LVOA-C AEG Airsoft Rifles here in the Replica Airguns Indoor Sea Can Shooting Range to see how well they would perform. I was very surprised at how closely they performed considering the Barra Black Ops is around a quarter of the cost of the Krytac LVOA-C.
My testing in the Indoor Sea Can is a bit limited in terms of range as I can only set a target to about 30 feet away given the limitations of my 40 foot Sea Cam. I really wanted to take both of these AEG Airsfot Rifles and test them out at much longer ranges to see if the much lower cost Barra Black Ops M4 Viper MK5 could compete with the Krytac LVOA-C Airsoft Rifle at 50 feet and 100 feet respectively. So that’s exactly what I did! I did use a bit heavier Airsoft BB’s (.28 gram) for the longer range outdoors and much windier shooting conditions but I do have to say it was a bit windy on my testing day which I am sure played a roll.
I did place a few pre-test shots downrange at my 100 foot target to get an idea of where I needed to place my aim point and this did help me a bit to get in the ball park but by no way was a bang on in terms of sighting in. Because of this I did have to make some on-the-fly adjustments as I tested but was able to get rounds on paper at 100 feet even with the wind gusts.
In this first video I test out the cheaper option Barra Black Ops M4 Viper MK5 AEG Airsoft Rifle on its own, my next video will be exclusively the Krytac LVOA-C AEG Airsoft Rifle in which I will wrap up with my conclusion of both AEG Airsoft Rifles. I think you will be surprised at the results but you will have to wait a bit to find out!
