Air pistol for training: S&W 586 vs Rohm Trainer vs. Drulov DU-10 Condor?

[foxmoor]

I'm completely new to air pistols, but I see the advantages of using air pistol shooting in my garage as a way to improve trigger control and sight perception for shooting my centerfire and rimfire pistols. I've narrowed down my choices of a multi-shot air pistol to the S&W 586 (6"), the Rohm Trainer (Combat version) and the Drulov DU-10 Condor. All are reported to be accurate, with the Rohm and the Drulov near target shooting status. The first two have ambidextrous grips, which might be an advantage in applying my centerfire two-handed grip to the air pistol. The Drulov has a one-handed grip, which might be an advantage if I ever got involved in air pistol shooting, and I suppose that I could grip with my other hand as well. Does anyone have experience with these pistols that they could share? Any input is appreciated and thanks in advance for your help.

Foxmoor
Michigan

[Utopian]

Haven't fired the other two but I've a 586-6"/8" and its fantastic. It wont put a window out but it'll hit the mark regularly and it looks great too.

I would recommend the 8" barrel as theres a difference of about 40fps over the 6". The only downfall of the 8" is the weight. If you don't have a relatively strong wrist it'll throw off your aim.

[foxmoor]

Utopian - Thanks for the input, as the S&W 586 is a good deal less expensive than the others (half the cost?) and if it's reasonably accurate, it should do the job in helping me train, as I don't intend to do target air pistol competition. Besides, it's 10 shots per magazine - what's not to like about that.

Foxmoor
Midland, MI
USA

[Snooper601]

I have all 3, except that my Rohm is the top and still has the option of a magazine.

The S&W and the Rohm triggers are poor if you use them in double action mode, i.e. not cocking the action by hand, before firing. They are quite heavy with lots of travel to operate the hammer.

The Drulov has a very good trigger action but always recoils slightly due to the true semi-auto operation.

The Rohm is the most accurate of them in single action, mode due to the lack of recoil and it's target pistol heritage, and can be tuned to 5+fpe.

It depends on what you need from your choice and what you are using it as a trainer for.

If the speed shooting of only 5 shots is important then the Drulov wins.
If it's ultimate accuracy the Rohm wins, 8 shot mags too.
If it's ease of reloading and shot count that's important then it's the S&W with it's 10 shot mags.

Do what I did and get all of them, with the full set of barrels for the S&W

Cheers

John

[foxmoor]

John,
Thanks for the terrific post - very informative! I hadn't considered the true semi-automatic nature of the Drulov and that could be a key feature, as I want to try and simulate a bit of the rimfire or centerfire recoil and ability to follow-up shots - the Drulov would have an edge. I had assumed that the S&W and the Rohm were single action for all shots but the first and that doesn't appear to be the case, based on your response. Thanks again.

Kent
Midland, MI
USA

[Jerry Cornelius]

I have the Drulov and the S&W.

As far as trigger control and sights are concerned I honestly don't think there is much to choose between them. The S&W is surprisingly accurate for what is really a plinker. Feels well made too. I second the comment that its far better single action, but don't agree the 8" barrel is worth the extra wobble. I have never shot centrefire pistols (well, almost never, and it was a long time ago), so I can't really comment, but of the two the S&W will obviously be closer to the feel of a centerfire if only because of its grip. The Drulov has a target grip and you won't want to shoot it two handed.

The Drulov has an adjustable trigger and adjustable power, which is nice, if you like adjusting things For the UK, semi auto is a plus, but you lucky Yanks probably wont be as excited by that

The truth is they are both good and both a lot of fun, I doubt you would regret getting either. My guess is of the two the S&W would be better as practice for your centerfires though.

[Utopian]

One other thing, the S&W 586 has issues with power if you fire in too quick a succession. The cold affects the mechanism and you get more jams. Also, beware of using cheap pellets with the 586 as any dent or distortion in the pellet makes it likely to jam.

Fired with a 2sec interval between shots you can get 10 shots out to within about 1.5" group overall at 10m

HTH

[foxmoor]

I've read that the Drulov was designed to allow all 5 shots to be delivered in 2 seconds or less, as it was intended to be used in some rapid-fire training or sport that is no longer widely practiced. This might be an advantage for my purposes.

Stupid question - the Drulov returns the trigger to single action mode once a shot is made, as it is apparently a true semi-auto in that regard. Does the S&W 586 do the same or do you have the pull the trigger back yourself for single action operation? Thanks.

Kent
Midland, Michigan
USA

[Jerry Cornelius]

I've read that the Drulov was designed to allow all 5 shots to be delivered in 2 seconds or less, as it was intended to be used in some rapid-fire training or sport that is no longer widely practiced. This might be an advantage for my purposes.

Stupid question - the Drulov returns the trigger to single action mode once a shot is made, as it is apparently a true semi-auto in that regard. Does the S&W 586 do the same or do you have the pull the trigger back yourself for single action operation? Thanks.

Kent
Midland, Michigan
USA

You have to pull the hammer back. In that respect it works just like any revolver, pull hammer back for single, or a hefty squeeze on the trigger for double.

The Drulov will indeed fire five shots in two seconds or so. They come with a bulk fill adaptor, or, if you use 12g carts, the gas actually vents from the cart into the resevoir in the grip. I've a feeling that because the gas is in contact with more metal, it doesn't cool as much shot to shot. (Also of course you have to reload after five shots which slows things down a touch).

[Korium]

Can't really help much if we don't know what disciplines you shoot, or whether you favour either a SLP or revolver.
Personally I wouldn't choose any of the aforementioned, and would instead opt for the HW45.

[foxmoor]

Thanks for all the advice and suggestions. I shot a friend's S&W 586 and enjoyed it but I think I'm going with the Drulov DU-10 because I don't want to pull the hammer back for single action shooting each time. The Drulov reportedly has a better trigger than the S&W's DA trigger and it is a bit lighter in weight. Thanks again, and I'll let you know how it shoots.

Kent
Michigan
USA