Gamo Compact experience

[zooma]

The GAMO Compact is a remarkably accurate SSP air pistol at a remarkably low price, so it can be a very good first choice for a budget target air pistol.

The wooden anatomical grip with an adjustable palm shelf is also excellent (especially for the money) but fairly chunky, and this can easily be re-shaped to give a better individual fit if required.

We had two of these in our club for some years and they both performed really well, and gave really good results with no failures. One was sold some time back and we still have one in the club.

Upgrading may not automatically give you higher scores than you could achieve by working with the GAMO to get the best out of it, but many do upgrade when funds permit to a higher quality air pistol when they find something that works better for them.

What people buy after a GAMO depends entirely on what they can afford and what fits and works best for them, so I suggest that you don't upgrade by buying anything else until after you have tried as many different types as possible at your local club to find out what type works best for you.

[CB200]

The GAMO Compact is a remarkably accurate SSP air pistol at a remarkably low price, so it can be a very good first choice for a budget target air pistol.

The wooden anatomical grip with an adjustable palm shelf is also excellent (especially for the money) but fairly chunky, and this can easily be re-shaped to give a better individual fit if required.

We had two of these in our club for some years and they both performed really well, and gave really good results with no failures. One was sold some time back and we still have one in the club.

Upgrading may not automatically give you higher scores than you could achieve by working with the GAMO to get the best out of it, but many do upgrade when funds permit to a higher quality air pistol when they find something that works better for them.

What people buy after a GAMO depends entirely on what they can afford and what fits and works best for them, so I suggest that you don't upgrade by buying anything else until after you have tried as many different types as possible at your local club to find out what type works best for you.

Thanks Zooma, I appreciate your reply and your wisdom. I look forward to the day when I get an upgrade.

[bootneckbob]

Hi, I'd actually considered down grading. I used to have a Compact years ago when they first came out. Not sure why, I wasn't doing comps back then. Anyway, now I do shoot pistol. My best with my Steyr Evo10e is 573x600 in practice. Not shot a shoulder to shoulder comp since Covid kicked off.

If I could, I'd let you try my Walther LP400 and I'd shoot your Compact, but I'd need £750 to let you do that!

[bootneckbob]

Biggest reason to upgrade or why SSP didn't last long is they were / are more tiring to use over a 60 shot comp than PCP. Zooma would probably know the answer to this but I wonder if the times for a 60 shot comp have changed since the introduction of PCPs? My first comp at Bisley was over in 24 minutes and I think we had 75 mins overall.

[bootneckbob]

Having refreshed my memory by watching a couple of reviews spending your money on a top end one will give you far more adjustment on pretty much every aspect of the pistol, grip, trigger and sights, which in turn will help consistency and ultimately your accuracy. It will also give your arm a rest between shots without all that pumping!

[CB200]

Having refreshed my memory by watching a couple of reviews spending your money on a top end one will give you far more adjustment on pretty much every aspect of the pistol, grip, trigger and sights, which in turn will help consistency and ultimately your accuracy. It will also give your arm a rest between shots without all that pumping!

Yes that’s right, and will probably be easier to load the pellets to, some of the Gamo Match ones are a b.....r to load in the breach: and some don’t even fire when they are loaded! I have to scrape them out!

[bill57]

Yes that’s right, and will probably be easier to load the pellets to, some of the Gamo Match ones are a b.....r to load in the breach: and some don’t even fire when they are loaded! I have to scrape them out!

I bought a sleeve of Gamo Match for my Compact, what a waste of money that was. As you say, incredibly inconsistent sizing with half of them so tight they won't fire. Total sh*te.

[zooma]

Zooma would probably know the answer to this but I wonder if the times for a 60 shot comp have changed since the introduction of PCPs?

Definitely - we needed a lot longer when we used flintlocks

[trajectory]

The Compact is a very capable pistol, but it's true it has its limitations in adjustability that the more modern (& expensive) match pistols have. That can be a bit of a disadvantage but it can also be an advantage too. The desire to tweek & adjust insessently in the pursuit of perfection can be a distraction in itself & can cause a dip in your average score thus unsettling you to the degree you might try further adjustments to get back to where you were. Whereas with a more basic bit of kit you struggle through concentrating on technique which usually pays dividends in the end. You have to persist with subtle changes to see the true effect.

I reprofiled the grips on my compact & also made up a new trigger blade as I wasn't keen on the profile or position of the original which improved the general feel & handling characteristic. Scores crept up a bit, but then with time & practice they might have done so anyway, but a comfortable well suited grip is pretty essential so the grip reprofiling was a must, the trigger, well that was more personal preference.

SSP are different to PCP or CO2, (muscle v gas), theres quite a few match pistols available, current & secondhand to choose from, maybe not much to choose in the way of performance differences between them so maybe it's down to what feels right, money, aesthetics, spares/ service support/ availability.
Personally quite liked Steyr lp10 but the compact helps with muscle tone too. Pistol shooting isnt all about the kit.

[bootneckbob]

[QUOTE=trajectory;8106875]The Compact is a very capable pistol, but it's true it has its limitations in adjustability that the more modern (& expensive) match pistols have. That can be a bit of a disadvantage but it can also be an advantage too. The desire to tweek & adjust insessently in the pursuit of perfection can be a distraction in itself & can cause a dip in your average score thus unsettling you to the degree you might try further adjustments to get back to where you were. Whereas with a more basic bit of kit you struggle through concentrating on technique which usually pays dividends in the end. You have to persist with subtle changes to see the true effect.


This is very true, and I originally put in my reply if your Compact fits you, there will be very little benefit to the upgrade to a top end pistol (cost Vs scores) but I deleted it.

I've got arguably the best (one of) 10m match pistols you can buy, with the Steyr Evo10e, but after 3 years or so of use I'd reached a plateau and was unable to break through 550x600 with 546 frequently being my PB. I ended up getting the Walther LP400 as I'd had one before the Steyr and despite my reasons for selling it, I remembered it / I used to 'seem' to group tighter with it. My records show I wasn't as good back then (around the 525) and the Steyr had moved me on; although far more likely it was just better practice. Anyway, long story short, I shot them both at home on my 10m range to death during the lock down and my scores with both pistols were almost identical with less than 1% variation using my target score app. So in the end I read up on pistol shooting technique again, from the start with all the things I knew (natural alignment, breathing, position & hold etc etc) but this time I went back to the range and religiously stuck by them. Broke my PB straight off with my Steyr, I think from memory from 546 to 563,, and then I shot another series with the Walther and increased it to 569. The 573 came much later with the Steyr.
The point being it was me that was the barrier, not the pistol/s.

[CB200]

The Compact is a very capable pistol, but it's true it has its limitations in adjustability that the more modern (& expensive) match pistols have. That can be a bit of a disadvantage but it can also be an advantage too. The desire to tweek & adjust insessently in the pursuit of perfection can be a distraction in itself & can cause a dip in your average score thus unsettling you to the degree you might try further adjustments to get back to where you were. Whereas with a more basic bit of kit you struggle through concentrating on technique which usually pays dividends in the end. You have to persist with subtle changes to see the true effect.

I reprofiled the grips on my compact & also made up a new trigger blade as I wasn't keen on the profile or position of the original which improved the general feel & handling characteristic. Scores crept up a bit, but then with time & practice they might have done so anyway, but a comfortable well suited grip is pretty essential so the grip reprofiling was a must, the trigger, well that was more personal preference.

SSP are different to PCP or CO2, (muscle v gas), theres quite a few match pistols available, current & secondhand to choose from, maybe not much to choose in the way of performance differences between them so maybe it's down to what feels right, money, aesthetics, spares/ service support/ availability.
Personally quite liked Steyr lp10 but the compact helps with muscle tone too. Pistol shooting isnt all about the kit.

Thanks Trajectory, I understand what you are saying and it makes sense, although even after fettling the trigger on the Gamo, It’s still too heavy: as soon as I can upgrade, it’s going.

[CB200]

Hi, I'd actually considered down grading. I used to have a Compact years ago when they first came out. Not sure why, I wasn't doing comps back then. Anyway, now I do shoot pistol. My best with my Steyr Evo10e is 573x600 in practice. Not shot a shoulder to shoulder comp since Covid kicked off.

If I could, I'd let you try my Walther LP400 and I'd shoot your Compact, but I'd need £750 to let you do that!

Thanks BnB, that’s a persuasive offer, although I live 250 miles away in the northwest! Your top score is indeed a top score! - it’s national standard! Are you still shooting comps?