Look out – Steel Storm!

B-r-a-a-a-p!

The Steel Storm packs a lot of rapid-fire fun into an air pistol.

The thing in my hand chattered off six shots faster than I could blink, faster than I could think.

Holy BLEEP, I wasn’t expecting that.

I squeezed the trigger again. Braaap. Six BBs punctured the target with the speed of a lightning stroke.

Braaap. Like Dr. Jeckyll’s potion, I could feel the object in my fist working a change within me. Sure, I was gripping it, but it was definitely exerting some sort of power over me. I was beginning to like this power in my hand.

Braaap. A fiendish chuckle issued from my lips, and I began to look for things I could shred.

At the back edge of the lawn I found a tall weed, and I didn’t like the way it was looking at me. Braaap. It won’t be doing that again for a while.

********

Normally, I think of myself as a mild-mannered marksman who enjoys the challenges of shooting well and who prefers slow accurate fire over a torrent of projectiles. The Steel Storm from Umarex, however, has opened my eyes to the pleasures of an area of airgunning I hadn’t considered before: extreme rapid fire.

The Steel Storm Tactical BB gun is really an air machine pistol. About 15 inches long and weighing about 2.7 pounds, it is powered by two 12-gram CO2 cartridges and can fire either single .177 BBs or six-shot bursts.

Made mostly of matte black engineering plastics, the Steel Storm looks like an elongated brick with a pistol grip attached. The aft end is squared off and unadorned. On the left side, a couple of inches from the end, is a rotary switch for selecting single shot mode or six-shot burst. Forward of that is a slide switch that can “safe” the trigger.

The magazine drops out the the pistol grip to reveal a holder for two 12-gram CO2 cartridges.

Below that is the pistol grip that houses the twin CO2 cartridges. A button on the left side of the grip near the trigger guard releases the CO2 carrier, and another button on the “heel” of the pistol grip allows the CO2 magazine to be removed completely.

That long slot above the trigger is for the BB magazine and BB follower.

Forward of the pistol grip, the black plastic trigger guard surrounds a black plastic trigger. Moving forward again, the underside of the Steel Storm is fitted with a Picatinny rail for mounting a flashlight, laser, or other accessory. Above the Picatinny rail on the left side is the BB magazine with a sliding BB follower. Forward of that, the muzzle is surrounded by a short, fat cylinder that looks like it could be fitted with an ersatz “can.”

Above the muzzle, at the top front edge of the receiver is the front post-type sight. To the rear of that is another Picatinny rail, running all the way back to the fixed, notch-type rear sight. Finally, at the top rear edge of the receiver is the cocking lever.

Here's the small hex wrench inserted into the righthand piercing screw.

To ready the Steel Storm for shooting, put the action on SAFE, drop the CO2 magazine out of the pistol grip and remove the front cover. Inside the front cover, you’ll find a small hex wrench tucked into a small compartment provided for it. Use the hex wrench to turn counterclockwise the two piercing screws at the bottom of the CO2 magazine. 

Put one CO2 cartridge in each of the slots (having anointed the small end of each with one drop of RWS Chamber Lube), and turn the piercing screws clockwise until the cartridges are pierced. Replace the hex wrench and front cover and slide the CO2 magazine back into the pistol grip until it clicks in place.

The front sight pulls back to open the loading port for the BB reservoir.

Next, pull the front sight back toward the rear of the receiver to open the loading port for the BB reservoir chamber. Pour in up to 300 BBs and slide the front sight back to its original position. Next, slide the BB follower toward the muzzle and lock it into place. Now shake or rock the Steel Storm until 30 BBs load into the BB magazine. After that, gently release the BB follower.

Pull the cocking lever all the way back and release it. Put the selector on single shot or burst. Move the safety to FIRE. Squeeze the trigger and let’er rip. At 4 lbs. 13 oz., the shot goes off, launching RWS Match Grade Precision Steel BBs at about 420 fps.

Here's the Steel Storm with a Walther Shot Dot green dot sight mounted on the top rail.

At seven yards, I found the Steel Storm would put at least some of the BBs from a burst through the side of a soup can. I shot it only a few times in single shot mode, mostly when I was adjusting the Walther Shot Dot green dot sight I mounted on the top rail. I also tried the FLR 650 flashlight/laser combo on the bottom rail and found that the combination of the green dot and red laser made a neat sighting duo.

The Big Fun with the Steel Storm is the burst mode. It made me feel like a ten-year-old boy on the first day of spring, ready to go out and conquer the world, or at least the neighborhood.

Is this rapidly firing BB gun actually good for any practical use? Perhaps for shooting mice or rats in a warehouse.

But really, after you fire that first burst, you won’t care . . . you’ll just know that it is fun.

Til next time, aim true and shoot straight.

-          Jock Elliott