The Barra 400e Gen2 Polymer – Cheaper And (Even) Better!

The Barra 400e Gen2 Polymer is the latest version of the original Gold Award-winning model tested by Hard Air Magazine. In fact, Barra says that it’s cheaper and – even – better!

In our review of the “Gen One” 400e, we rated this as the most accurate BB gun we had ever shot. It received an outstanding 96% score, too. All pretty impressive for the first AEG (Auto Electric Gun) to fire steel BBs.

At the 2025 SHOT Show, Barra Airguns launched the Gen 2 version of the 400e. It’s available now and – unusually – is available in two versions. One uses the same metal structure as the original model. The other uses polymer moldings.

There’s a significant price difference between the two versions – and by significant we mean around $140! So this gives the new Barra 400e Gen2 Polymer a Street Price of just $300. But – for anyone wanting the metal version – it’s available too.

Compared to the original 400e, Barra has made a large number of changes, while not deviating from the original winning concept.

Apart from the price reduction due to the synthetic structure, there’s another “hidden” price reduction. That’s because the Gen 2 models include the required LiPo battery and USB charger. These were an additional cost item with the Gen 1 and had to be purchased separately. Bundling these items definitely makes sense!

Feature improvements include a new spring that increases the Muzzle Velocity by about 10 per cent.

In addition, there’s a new polymer magazine that has a 100 BB capacity instead of the 50 round original. The new mag also dispenses with the the projecting BB follower that was exposed every time the magazine was released.

Then there’s additional internal mechanical improvements that make the gun less liable to jam and easier to clear if it does. Not that we found any issues in the HAM testing…

All-in-all, the Barra 400e Gen2 Polymer (and metal version, too), is definitely a worthwhile improvement on the already-excellent original.

Plus Barra has a video explaining maintenance and jam-clearing for the Gen 2 models. It’s definitely worth watching.

To view this content we will need your consent to set third party cookies.
For more detailed information, see our cookies page.

Accept third party cookies

BUY FROM PYRAMYD​

Barra 400E Polymer BB Rifle 0.177​

The post The Barra 400e Gen2 Polymer – Cheaper And (Even) Better! appeared first on Hard Air Magazine.

 

[Farmplinker2]

Ooooh! Looks like a sweet can killer! 100 round mag..... so maybe a 1928 Thompson version with a drum mag?

 

[Beanflip]

So tempting!

 

[DMoneyTT]

I have to be honest, I have been a long time reader of hard air and a long time firearms and airgun enthusiast. I typically trust the reviews from hard air, but I couldn’t disagree more about calling the Barra 400e anything but a novelty at best, and more aptly would call it junk. The fact that when you pull the trigger nothing happens for an uncomfortably long time as the little motor starts to turn and wind up whatever catapults the bbs makes it not feel in any way like an airgun or firearm. It only looks like one. I can easily fire a semi-auto faster than this thing can fire bbs in the auto setting. The speed loader jams constantly, and so does the rifle and magazine combination, despite using the bbs that came with the gun. If you just want a novelty toy that does fire bbs at some point after you pull the trigger (but never at the actual time) to knock over drink cans, I guess this was meant for you. But for me the accuracy is meaningless if it doesn’t respond like an airgun when I pull the trigger. I paid $220 for mine and regretted spending that money the moment I pulled the trigger and waited for something to actually happen. I bought it so I could practice for steel challenge in my yard, but the response is so slow I would be on my second or third target by the time it actually sent a bb. Again, if you just want to knock things over, this is fine until it jams, but a garden sprayer is cheaper and arguably more fun. I give the Barra 400e an F. No gold medals or stars. Just disappointment in the poor product, and in spending $220 that I can’t get back. I could have bought a lot of quality pellets with that money instead, and I should have.

 

[Roamin Greco 1]

DMoneyTT, you seem to have valid concerns. Can you describe a bit more precisely how much time between trigger pull and first shot? Is there a semi-auto mode? Is the delay the same as full-auto?

Perhaps this gun is simply not suitable for your intended purpose, but for someone else, defending the homestead from hoards of soda cans on full auto, perhaps it is better than CO2 or HPA.

 

[DMoneyTT]

The BB gun does have selectable fire control, and the selector works the same way as a select-fire m-16 type rifle. However, the internal mechanism works the same whether in semi-auto, or full auto. Without using high speed video capture I can’t easily measure how long the delay is, but I know that I can pull the trigger quickly five times in semi-auto mode and it may fire two to three shots.

With a firearm I can usually have “splits”, which is the time between shots fired, of roughly 0.15 seconds with good consistency. Trigger travel and weight can dictate varying split times, but the trigger on this BB gun is electronic, so it’s fairly light and nothing mechanical happens with the trigger anyway. Using my usual split times to estimate the delay in time between pulling the trigger, and the time a bb actually leaves the barrel, I would guess it is around 0.2 to 0.25 seconds. That may not sound like much to someone who doesn’t shoot, but maybe to someone who plays video games the analogy of a controller that does what you wanted, but 1/4 of a second after you gave the input may hit home more. You would not do well in any game if your reflexes are being deadened by a 1/4 second every time. Would you want to drive a car that turns, brakes, and accelerates with a delay after every driver input? Shooting is no different.

You are often competing in a game of speed with semi-automatics, and the delay in shots being fired would be crippling. You need that shot to break the moment your target is within your sight picture.

In other shooting sports where speed is less crucial but precision is key, like position shooting, you typically hold the rifle and it has minuscule movements induced by your hold. Your heartbeat, breathing, and involuntary muscle movement all contribute to slight movement of the gun. You have to train your brain to only break the trigger when the eyes see that the crosshairs or front post have hit the exact moment where they cross over the bullseye of the target. This must happen the instant the firearm is on target, because it is always about to move some due to the aforementioned influences. This is a key concept in precision shooting. Participating in any type of precision or speed shooting with a gun that delays your input not only defeats your chances of building skills, but also induces bad habits.

I have no interest in teaching myself bad habits with a tool that also does not reward me with positive results when I do my part to achieve speed and accuracy.

Now I can assume there are people who do not care to achieve high level precision marksmanship, or to develop the skills required to excel in speed shooting events. They just want to send shots downrange quickly with minimal effort or practice. If that makes them happy, then good. People deserve happiness and if this BB gun makes them smile, I get it, let them be happy. I just don’t want anyone who aspires to any level of marksmanship to think this is a good choice simply because it is accurate for a BB gun. This is simply a toy and the opposite of a good training tool for learning marksmanship. I would regret this purchase at any price. A Red Ryder is nearly as accurate, and it actually fires when you pull the trigger, not later.

EDIT: I recorded the gun at high frame rate and it looks like a single shot from semi-auto takes aournd 0.12-0.14 seconds. In a firearm the time between the trigger being pulled and the firing pin igniting the primer is called Lock Time. The average lock time for an AR-15 (what this bb gun is patterned after) is around 0.010-0.012 seconds. Ten times longer to fire a round is very much noticed, despite the time still being small on paper.

 

[Roamin Greco 1]

The BB gun does have selectable fire control, and the selector works the same way as a select-fire m-16 type rifle. However, the internal mechanism works the same whether in semi-auto, or full auto. Without using high speed video capture I can’t easily measure how long the delay is, but I know that I can pull the trigger quickly five times in semi-auto mode and it may fire two to three shots.

With a firearm I can usually have “splits”, which is the time between shots fired, of roughly 0.15 seconds with good consistency. Trigger travel and weight can dictate varying split times, but the trigger on this BB gun is electronic, so it’s fairly light and nothing mechanical happens with the trigger anyway. Using my usual split times to estimate the delay in time between pulling the trigger, and the time a bb actually leaves the barrel, I would guess it is around 0.2 to 0.25 seconds. That may not sound like much to someone who doesn’t shoot, but maybe to someone who plays video games the analogy of a controller that does what you wanted, but 1/4 of a second after you gave the input may hit home more. You would not do well in any game if your reflexes are being deadened by a 1/4 second every time. Would you want to drive a car that turns, brakes, and accelerates with a delay after every driver input? Shooting is no different.

You are often competing in a game of speed with semi-automatics, and the delay in shots being fired would be crippling. You need that shot to break the moment your target is within your sight picture.

In other shooting sports where speed is less crucial but precision is key, like position shooting, you typically hold the rifle and it has minuscule movements induced by your hold. Your heartbeat, breathing, and involuntary muscle movement all contribute to slight movement of the gun. You have to train your brain to only break the trigger when the eyes see that the crosshairs or front post have hit the exact moment where they cross over the bullseye of the target. This must happen the instant the firearm is on target, because it is always about to move some due to the aforementioned influences. This is a key concept in precision shooting. Participating in any type of precision or speed shooting with a gun that delays your input not only defeats your chances of building skills, but also induces bad habits.

I have no interest in teaching myself bad habits with a tool that also does not reward me with positive results when I do my part to achieve speed and accuracy.

Now I can assume there are people who do not care to achieve high level precision marksmanship, or to develop the skills required to excel in speed shooting events. They just want to send shots downrange quickly with minimal effort or practice. If that makes them happy, then good. People deserve happiness and if this BB gun makes them smile, I get it, let them be happy. I just don’t want anyone who aspires to any level of marksmanship to think this is a good choice simply because it is accurate for a BB gun. This is simply a toy and the opposite of a good training tool for learning marksmanship. I would regret this purchase at any price. A Red Ryder is nearly as accurate, and it actually fires when you pull the trigger, not later.

EDIT: I recorded the gun at high frame rate and it looks like a single shot from semi-auto takes aournd 0.12-0.14 seconds. In a firearm the time between the trigger being pulled and the firing pin igniting the primer is called Lock Time. The average lock time for an AR-15 (what this bb gun is patterned after) is around 0.010-0.012 seconds. Ten times longer to fire a round is very much noticed, despite the time still being small on paper.

Thanks for the detail. Much appreciated. I can see where you are coming from. I would agree that this electronic action is not quick enough to be a good training tool for shooters at your level in your circumstances.