The Umarex SA10 CO2 pistol - GOLD STAR

Here is the video:
Watch it here!

A massive catalogue from John Rothery Wholesale landed on my desk a few months ago, bringing back memories of the ‘laminated book of dreams’ that Argos used to offer. Of course, the Rothery’s one is not laminated, and it also contains about 295 pages of shooting/field sports-related products, including Umarex airguns. Hurrah! Anyway, it was on page 9 that I saw the Umarex SA10, a CO2-powered blowback air pistol that can fire either pellets or metal BBs, and here it is.

First impressions
Straight away, it is clear that the SA10 looks good, as it clearly resembles one of my favourite centrefire pistols, the Sig Sauer P226. It’s big too, measuring 9.08” in overall length and weighing in at a hefty 924-grams, no doubt due to the significant metal slide, which really adds a sense of realism, durability, and strength to the SA10. This is further boosted by the fact that this pistol uses a blowback mechanism, meaning that the slide slams to the rear as part of the shot cycle, imitating a real semi-auto pistol.
As with most modern pistols, the frame is polymer, and I have to say the quality is excellent. The grip itself fills your hand nicely and it features multiple panels of aggressive stippling on the sides, front, and backstrap. There is even some on the base and front edge of the trigger guard, with some narrow panels further forward on the frame. To further boost appeal, Umarex has incorporated a Picatinny accessory rail, allowing the shooter to add accessories like a laser or light.
What really stands out though is the rifled, 6” gold barrel. It is visually striking and is ‘displayed’ further by three ports that have been cut out at the front of the top slide at 12, 3, and 9 o’clock. It does not end there, as the barrel protrudes from the slide and is screwcut 14mm x 1 for a faux silencer, and it even comes with a thread protector!
Sight-wise, the pistol shows a basic, black, low-profile front blade with no paint/highlight. The rear sight is non-adjustable and shows a deep U-notch with bright yellow spots on either side for faster target acquisition. Overall, a good setup, although adjustability is always welcome.

Controls
The frame includes some durable metal controls, which is nice, but they are all on the left side, meaning southpaws are left wanting, which is a shame. The safety catch is disguised as a slide release, and it moves forward for SAFE and rearwards for FIRE, which seems counterintuitive to me!
Want to take the pistol apart to grease the slide? Well, there is a disassembly lever (not mentioned in the instructions) positioned next to the safety. After ensuring the pistol is unloaded and that the thread protector has been removed, just move the catch down, pull the slide to the rear, and then lift it off, keeping an eye on the recoil spring as you do it.
The mag release, which is positioned perfectly, and the trigger, are both polymer. The latter even shows a pivoting faux trigger safety within the blade, which is a nice detail. The trigger is double-action for the first shot, meaning the pull is heavier, as you are cocking the hammer at the same time, then shifts to single-action as the blowback slide cocks the hammer for you.
In use, and as expected, the first shot on double action always suffered accuracy-wise, because of the heavier pull weight. So, to counter this, I just racked the slide to cock the hammer before starting shooting. In single-action, the trigger is very pleasant, offering a pseudo-2-stage trigger pull, helping you to maximise the accuracy potential of the pistol.

Load up!
To ready the pistol for use, you first need to insert a 12-gram CO2 capsule into the pistol’s ‘magazine’, which is essentially a CO2 capsule holder that accepts a rotary 8-shot magazine full of either .177 pellets or .177 metal BBs. To fit a capsule, just unscrew the sprung finger tab at the base of the mag, insert the capsule, and then tighten the tab up until the capsule is pierced. At this point, I normally re-insert the magazine into the pistol and fire a few blank shots, to ensure the CO2 is flowing correctly and to minimise the chances of a weak blast causing a pellet to get stuck in the barrel! A common occurrence with CO2-powered airguns.
Because the SA10, like most CO2-powered air pistols of this type, is designed for ‘fast-fire-fun’, Umarex has designed the mag to hold four rotary magazines, allowing you to quickly swap out an empty one with one you filled earlier. Nice! The rotaries are easy to fill, just orientate them so the gear points are pointed downwards and insert the pellets or BBs from the rear, ensuring they fit flush.
With one rotary fitted at the top of the magazine, ready for firing, and the others stored in the main body, you are good to go!

Target time
For those that don’t know, the CO2 power source is affected by the ambient temperature, with colder temps often reducing velocity and the number of shots per capsule. I mention this as on the day of the test, it was only 12 °C, so pretty cool! However, I still managed 12 magazines worth, which equates to 96 pellets, even if the last pellet literally fell out of the end of the barrel! In reality, I would replace the capsule much sooner. 
For the test, I focussed on using pellets, as I find BBs are less consistent when it comes to accuracy, plus the chance of ricochets increases! I was provided with some Bisley Practice pellets, which are a flat-head design, making them ideal for use in magazine systems. With these, I managed to print multiple groups measuring around 2” at 8 yards, making it clear that this pistol is capable of shredding tin cans all day long.

Conclusion
I had great fun with SA10, which probably goes some way to explaining why it is a bestseller. It is well made with decent materials, looks good, feels real, and offers commendable performance. Yes, the gold barrel won’t be to everyone’s taste, and the controls are only on the left-hand side, but all is forgiven when you experience the blowback action and watch the holes appear in the target! All in all, a great option for anyone looking for this type of air pistol.