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Gem CO2 Air Pistol Review – Overview
This Gem CO2 Air Pistol Hard Air Magazine review is somewhat unusual, for a couple of reasons.
Firstly because this is a very unusual product. It’s the world’s smallest airgun, by a considerable margin. At only 3.5 Inches long and an empty weight of 10.8 Ounces, it’s definitely tiny!
Secondly, there’s curiously little hard information to be found on the product. The manufacturer’s website claims a “velocity over 400 FPS using Steel BBs / Velocity over 300 FPS using Airsoft BBs.” Alternatively, the Owner’s Manual also claims “over 375 + FPS” [sic] for steel BBs. That’s about all there is available.
Most of the few other reviewers to date have likewise shied-away from providing much hard data about this airgun, resorting instead to pointless “arm waving” and hype. Others have simply repeated the manufacturer’s website descriptions.
Effectively they have been treating the Gem pistol as a toy, HAM is treating it as a serious airgun!
So this Gem CO2 Air Pistol review is – even more than usual – a voyage of exploration.
This makes our review unique in providing hard data that you can use to make a buying decision. That’s what you expect from HAM, after all!
Spoiler alert. I like it. A lot. Everyone needs a Gem for some winter plinking and trigger time fun!
Below. Compare the size to a 12 Gram CO2 cartridge.
For a comprehensive overview of the Gem CO2 Air Pistol, you can check this HAM post. It gives a good overview of the operation and features of this single-shot, single-action airgun, so we’ll not repeat that here.
What we will concentrate on today is the performance of the Ruby Red model, serial number AG2417877, that we have in-house, courtesy of Airguns of Arizona. But please remember that I am the world’s worst-ever pistol shot, so you will certainly be able to do better than me with on-target accuracy. Let’s go!…
Gem CO2 Air Pistol Review – Value For Money
So here’s the question. The Gem sells for $209.99. That price includes two barrels: one for steel BBs, the other for 6 mm airsoft BBs. Other accessories cost extra – and there’s a wide range of them. Hey, that’s probably why they are accessories!
But seriously, you’ll need to add at least some 8 Gram CO2 cartridges ($9.99 for 5 if manufacturer-branded) or, the 12 Gram adapter ($15.95) should you choose to use that more-common size.
Plus, of course, you’ll need some BBs to get shooting. And you’re definitely going to need shooting glasses too, to counter the inevitable BB ricochets and avoid shooting your eye out…
So can this cute little airgun be worth north of $200?
That’s a question that’s very difficult to answer without adding a fair amount of personal bias. I’ll list my own here, you can modify it as appropriate…
– There’s no doubt that the Gem pistol provides an unique shooting experience.
– It’s an ideal basement or garage range gun for indoor winter shooting. Almost everyone can manage a 6-Yard garage or basement range, after all.
– Likewise, it’s a family-friendly airgun. Everyone can use it. Even children with appropriate supervision.
– It’s ideal for improving the consistency of your pistol shooting. I saw mine improving, even with the few hundred rounds that I fired during the course of this test.
– The Gem is a thing of beauty that’s delightful to own, look at and operate.
– Plus. It’s just plain fun to shoot!
Enhanced by its premium packaging, the Gem is the ideal Christmas or birthday gift for the Airgunner who has everything. Even if you buy it for yourself!
For HAM Community members, it’s a great use for 1,000 HAM Points to save 10% at Airguns of Arizona, bringing the price down to around $189 for the base gun.
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Gem CO2 Air Pistol Review – Speed And Accuracy
Temperature is an important consideration when shooting any CO2-powered airgun, including the Gem. In particular, I long ago proved that the Muzzle Velocity of CO2-powered airguns increases by about 2 FPS per degree Fahrenheit increase in ambient temperature.
Conversely – as CO2 is a refrigerant gas – continuous firing of CO2-powered airguns inevitably results in falling FPS. That’s why it’s important to note that HAM air pistol tests are undertaken in a cool – typically 65 degrees F – basement range.
However, in the case of the Gem CO2 air pistol, there’s another, unique – and possibly more significant – temperature factor at work.
Given the tiny size of the pistol and its frame of highly-conductive anodized Aluminium, the Gem forms a remarkably receptive heat sink. That means that the gun – together with the CO2 contained within it – is heated appreciably by the hands of the shooter. You can feel it happening during the shooting session!
The result is that the Gem air pistol will likely be influenced much less by ambient temperature than other, larger CO2-powered airguns in continuous firing.
In my testing, the first 10 shots in this test averaged 297 FPS. However, after shooting 40 shots, the Gem was producing a Muzzle Velocity averaging 307 FPS with the same Daisy Avanti Precision Ground Shot steel BBs.
That’s higher than I had expected from such a short barrel of 1.75 Inches long. It’s also precisely the reverse of the normal expectation for continuous shooting of a conventional CO2-powered airgun.
There’s another benefit to this heat transfer from the shooter, as we’ll cover in the “Consistency” section of this review, below.
The Gem pistol I tested gave indications that it could be surprisingly accurate. This is despite the fact that least because my trifocals glasses mean I’m unable to achieve a sharp sight picture for both target and sights at the same time. With better eyes than mine, you will undoubtedly do better.
As you can see from the target below, 9 out of 10 BBs hit within the size of a soda can at 6 Yards with Avanti Precision Ground Steel Shot. Not too bad, considering that I couldn’t focus on both sights and target at the same time!
So yes – at less than 1 Ft/Lb – the Gem’s power level is low, but it’s actually surprisingly high for such a tiny airgun. Remember, this is definitely NOT a toy!
The Owner’s Manual contains a firm injunction NOT to shoot lead airgun pellets. So I didn’t try this, even though no reason was provided for this prohibition. But it said nothing about round lead balls!
So I fired a string with H&N Präzisions-Rundkugel lead balls. Actually the copper-coated versions. FYI. Airguns of Arizona stocks these.
As you can see from the target below, my group size tightened considerably when shooting these round lead balls. But the Standard Deviation fell from its superb value with the BBs. Hey, you can’t have everything…
Note that I tried shooting at HAM’s standard Soda Can Target for this review. But I couldn’t sight properly and so resorted to drawing the soda can size on standard bull targets, as you can see.
The Gem’s delightful Owner’s Manual comments that “Shooting proficiency with the Gem will take some practice, as short barrels and fixed sights are less than ideal for pin-point accuracy.”
I resemble that remark!!!
You see, that the more I shot the Gem, the better my accuracy became. To my own surprise!
There’s little doubt in my mind that the Gem air pistol is – as with just about every airgun I’ve ever tested – more accurate that I am. I also believe that it is accurate enough to be WORTH shooting. There’s no doubt that it will improve your air pistol-shooting technique.
Gem CO2 Air Pistol Review – Trigger And Cocking Effort
To be honest, I was not expecting much from the Gem in this respect. However the two stage (it feels like a two-stage, anyway) trigger was easy to operate.
The trigger pull was long and somewhat “mushy”. However the sear release was fairly predictable after a little practice and the trigger blade itself comfortable to the finger.
The average of 10 pull weight tests (undertaken with HAM’s standard Lyman Digital Trigger Pull Gauge) was 2 Lbs 10.5 Oz. That felt just fine…
As a single-action pistol, cocking is very simple. Just pull back on the exposed hammer. It’s easy, natural and almost effortless!
I must say that – initially – I was a little concerned about the Gem pistol’s synthetic trigger components. But this concern faded away with use…
There’s a manual safety, too.
Gem CO2 Air Pistol Review – Comparison To Makers Claims
The manufacturer claims that the Gem is the world’s smallest, commercially-available air pistol. That is definitely true.
It also claims the Gem to be beautifully-finished. Again true.
But there’s some confusion about the muzzle velocity specification. The manufacturer’s website claims a “velocity over 400 FPS using Steel BBs / Velocity over 300 FPS using Airsoft BBs.” In addition, the Owner’s Manual also claims “over 375 + FPS” [sic] for steel BBs.
Either way, there’s no indication of ambient temperature or BB type for these claims.
In HAM testing, the chronograph typically recorded numbers in the 300 – 320 FPS range, as described. Yes, that’s way below the claim, but we really don’t care!
Gem CO2 Air Pistol Review – Shot Count
As many readers will know, I have a lot of experience with CO2-powered airguns going back over 20 years. So the first thing I wanted to know is the shot count that can be expected from one CO2 cartridge.
For this test, in accordance with my usual practice, I added a small drop of Crosman PellGun Oil to the tip of an 8 Gram CO2 cartridge (more is not better). Then this was loaded into the Gem’s pistol grip. The flat end of the cartridge was pierced by tightening the CO2 knob using the supplied 6 mm Allen (hex) key.
A slight hiss confirms that the cartridge had been pierced, if you listen carefully.
Then I began firing, choosing to use 5.44 Grain steel – .177 nominal caliber – Avanti Ground Steel Shot as they are larger than other BBs.
The reason for this was that the barrel accepted a .177 diameter pin gauge, which is large compared to other BB guns HAM has tested.
Below we see a more common BB bore diameter. The .175 Inch pin gauge fits.
The high-level result here is that I achieved 70 shots from the one, 8 Gram CO2 cartridge. As always, this is an approximate figure as it depends how far the shooter is prepared to let the velocity fall before calling it quits with the CO2 cartridge.
Certainly at 70 shots, the gun was still going bang. BBs were still hitting the target at 6 Yards range. However both the report and the on-target drop clearly indicated that they were traveling slowly by then.
By simple mathematics, 70 shots from one 8 Gram CO2 cartridge equates to about 100 shots from a more-common 12 Gram cartridge.
As we know from many other HAM tests, 100 shots from a 12 Gram CO2 cartridge is definitely class-leading performance from a “solid” – i.e. non-blowback – CO2-powered air pistol. This indicates careful design of the Gem’s valve.
Given that most people will probably choose to use the more common – and cheaper – 12 Gram cartridges (with an adapter), 90 to 100 shots per shooting session would likely be ideal.
Below. Compare the Gem to a normal-size Colt 45 CO2-powered replica airgun.
Gem CO2 Air Pistol Review – Consistency
This is where the Gem really surprised me! I almost could not believe the amazingly-consistent Muzzle Velocity.
As the chart below demonstrates, firing 20 BBs gave a Standard Deviation of just 3.00 FPS. This is incredible and the sort of performance to be expected from a high-end PCP, not a CO2-powered pistol.
The reason is almost certainly to be found in the “heat sink” capabilities of the Gem, explained above. The tiny pistol rapidly attracts heat from the shooter’s hand. I believe that – so long as the Gem is held – this human heat source counteracts the cooling effect of the CO2 being fired, leading to this amazing shot-to-shot consistency.
A “WOW!” Is probably in order here…
As if that was not enough, the trigger also demonstrated very good consistency of pull weight. Testing gave a minimum pull weight of 2 Lbs 7.9 Oz while the maximum recorded was 2 Lbs 14.6 Oz for the Gem pistol tested by HAM.
Gem CO2 Air Pistol Review – Noise Level
Shot in an indoor basement range, the report of the Gem was pleasantly loud. It was enough to remind you that this is a real airgun, but not loud enough to cause any issues.
Gem CO2 Air Pistol Review – Sights
The Gem is equipped with a set of open sights. There’s a fixed front post sight, as expected.
The rear sight has no elevation capability. So if you want a different Point Of Impact in a vertical plane, you’ll need to aim off.
However the rear sight does have windage adjustment. To make adjustments, loosen the tiny (1.5 mm) setscrew and drift the rear sight across the dovetail machined in the receiver. Test then tighten the setscrew.
It’s important to note that likely only very small windage adjustments will be required. Due to the extremely short sight base, a tiny drift to one side produces quite a large effect – probably more than you were expecting. You can imagine how I found this out…
Now this is clearly an open sights-only airgun. Don’t even think of trying to mount any types of optical or red dot sight. You can’t. Plus, doing so would destroy the Gem’s whole “tiny airgun” esthetic.
Gem CO2 Air Pistol Review – Shootability
Before starting this review, I was convinced that I would need the 12 Gram adapter to achieve a comfortable hold on the Gem pistol. It seemed so tiny!
However I started shooting using 8 Gram CO2 cartridges and the standard cap. After a couple of hundred shots, I realized that – in fact – I did not need the pistol grip extension provided by the larger adapter. It was actually more comfortable – for me at least – to shoot the Gem in “base configuration”.
The main requirement when shooting this tiny airgun is for stability. YOU – the shooter – need to be as still as possible. I am convinced that this will prove to be the single greatest influence on accuracy.
That single fact makes the Gem pistol a beneficial training tool as its tiny size punishes the shooter unmercifully for shaking while shooting!
Gem CO2 Air Pistol Review – Appearance And Finish
The Gem pistol is beautifully-designed and very well finished. Every lady who saw it immediately exclaimed: “Aw, it’s so cute!”
So here we have a cute little “gem” of an air pistol.
That concern for appearance extends to the packaging, too. The packaging is leagues ahead of anything else I have seen in the airgun world. The presentation is definitely that of a quality gift, which – very often – the Gem is likely to be.
Gem CO2 Air Pistol Review – Buying And Owning
In the USA, the Gem pistol is available from Airguns of Arizona. It’s held in stock, along with a surprisingly-large range of accessories.
You see, the Gem is actually also a complete airgun system. It’s arguably the most versatile air pistol ever in terms of the projectile types it can fire, courtesy of its interchangeable barrel system.
In the box, the Gem contains a .177 caliber steel BB barrel. There’s also a 6 mm airsoft BB barrel. However accessories are available for shooting .50 caliber paintballs (!) and even custom arrows, or bolts, as they should probably be described.
There’s also a “silencer”, that 12 Gram CO2 adapter and more. Check-out Airguns of Arizona for all the additional toys – er I mean vital additional options – that you can add to your Gem air pistol.
As previously mentioned, all instructions are excellent. Plus, there’s a one-year warranty and some spare parts and tools are included in with the gun.
And a final note. 8 Gram CO2 cartridges are unusual and somewhat scare in the airgun world, although AoA has them available, of course. But they’re widely available for soda water makers and easy to find, if needed.
SAFETY FIRST. With all BB-firing airguns, it’s mandatory to wear shooting glasses at all times, even if just watching. Also do not shoot at hard surfaces or water. BBs tend to bounce off these surfaces and may hit you, or something other than what you intended. If in doubt, don’t pull the trigger!
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