Umarex Buckmark URX

Casual target shooting, or ‘plinking’ as it is normally known, is a fantastic pastime.

The range of guns available now is huge, pistols are very popular for plinking and the most popular choice being CO2 models. However, there are alternatives and I’d like to show you of a very good one.

It comes from Umarex and is based upon a .22 rimfire pistol from that giant of firearms manufacturing Browning. The Buckmark is a very popular .22 pistol, in fact I owned and competed with a real Buckmark Long Barrelled Pistol for years, winning many medals at Bisley, Derby RPC and Mattersey. It had a 300mm long barrel and a stainless-steel rod stuck out of the back due to our gun laws, having to make it over 600mm long; I have shot the proper sized Buckmark pistols in the USA and man, they were loads of fun.

Umarex’s mechanical version of the Buckmark looks and feels like just like a real Buckmark, as it’s made under licence from Browning. This airgun is mainly synthetic in construction, the detail of the gun’s moldings means that the recess for ejected cartridges is there, as is the top slide release button on the left-hand side, although it’s a non-moving ‘faux’ button. Of course, the top slide does not move. There is a magazine release button on the left hand-side, also non-working of course. The rubber grips are ambidextrous with three finger grooves; it even has the Deer’s head Browning logo on the base of the grip on both sides. It has the Buckmark’s superbly comfortable grip, the lightness and balance of the pistol also helps.

Take a break

The break barrel hinges on an extended arm sitting under the barrel. The spring-loaded detent is above the breech of the barrel, normally below on a break-barrel spring rifle. There’s an O-ring sealing the steel rifled barrel; looking at the end of the URX’s barrel, a bigger hole has the .177 barrel set back in it, right at the top of the hole, not in the middle. The cocking effort is very light and the barrel swings down. The safety catch comes on automatically and speaking of the safety, exactly the same as on my real Buckmark. It sits at the rear on the left-hand side of the action, under the joint of the thumb of the trigger hand for right-hand shooters. It can be reset at any time and the gun has an antibear trap device, it also blocks the trigger blade from moving.

The trigger weight measured in at 3.5kg, a tad heavy although not unmanageable. Over the chronograph the Umarex URX was very consistent, varying less than five feet per second with lead domed headed pellets. Springers give you this level of consistency, something CO2 pistols are incapable of. The average was 297fps, although the manufacturers info states the URX does 320fps; it still comes in at 1.55ft/lb – ideal for short range plinking.

Sighting in

The Buckmark URX comes with open sights; a fixed front post and a low-profile rear sight, which is adjustable for windage and elevation via a small slot headed screw for each one. The sight base is 269mm long, which is long enough for good accuracy. The Picatinny sight rail is 112mm long but only 95mm is really useable thanks to the front of the rear sight, it ramps down to the first groove in the rail. It means you can only fit a red dot that has a Weaver or Picatinny 20mm wide type base or mounting system. I fitted a small red dot sight for accuracy testing at six-yards and it shot sub 20mm groups. The more I shot it the more accurate I got with it.

For plinking, you use the very good open sights on the gun, or do as I did and fit an optical device. The URX likes both domed headed lead pellets and flat headed wadcutter match types. Even fitted with a red dot, the balance was still spot on. I really love this pistol; it does remind me of my LBP but in a very good way. If you like airguns that look like real firearms, this is an absolute gem. The price is a real selling point too; remember that there are no expensive CO2 bulbs to buy. Just pellets and eye protection and you are good to go.

Conclusion

The spring powered Buckmark is a gun you can shoot ALL day long; the effort needed to cock the gun is only 7kg, and not being a CO2 powered plinker, it has an inexhaustible and free power supply. If you are looking for a plinking pistol do not overlook this ‘perfect plinker’.

Many thanks to Della at Armex for help in production of this article.