The Steyr LP 10 is a single shot calibre pre-charged pneumatic air pistol designed for the

10 metre air pistol The 10 metre air pistol is an Olympic shooting event governed by the International Shooting Sport Federation (ISSF). It is similar to 10 metre air rifle in that it is shot with 4.5 mm (or .177) caliber air guns at a distance of , and tha ...

ISSF shooting events The International Shooting Sport Federation recognizes several shooting events, some of which have Olympic status. They are divided into four disciplines: rifle, pistol, shotgun and running target. The main distinctions between different rif ...

. It is manufactured by Steyr Sportwaffen GmbH of

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

. To promote comfortable and accurate shooting from a standing position, match air pistols must have fast lock times, shoot practically recoillessly and vibration free, and exhibit minimal movement and balance shifts during discharge. The pistol must also be able to be tailored by adjustable user interfaces and various accessories to individual shooters' personal preferences. Combined with appropriate match pellets, the pistol has to produce a consistent 10-ring performance, so a non-maximal result during the initial phase can be attributed to the participant.

History

Since its introduction in 2000, the LP 10 has proven to be a competitive match air pistol. It was used by top competition shooters to achieve the current (2009) 10 metre air pistol world record and win all the gold medals in the men's and women's

2012 Summer Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics, officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012, were an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

, 2010 ISSF World Shooting Championships,

2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and officially branded as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes fro ...

2006 ISSF World Shooting Championships The 49th ISSF World Shooting Championships were held in Zagreb, Croatia from July 22, 2006, to August 5, 2006. __NOTOC__ Medal count World records A total of 15 world records were bettered or equalled during the championships. Rifle even ...

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad (), and officially branded as Athens 2004 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 13 to 29 August 2004 in Athens, Greece. The Games saw 10,625 athletes ...

and 2002 ISSF World Shooting Championships. In

ISSF World Cup The ISSF World Cup was introduced by the International Shooting Sport Federation in 1986 to provide a homogeneous system for qualification to the Olympic shooting competitions. It still is carried out in the Olympic shooting events, with four comp ...

events, competitors equipped with LP 10s also won multiple medals.

Design details

The pistol uses dehumidified compressed air as propellant for the diabolo air gun pellets. This is stored in compressed-air cylinders that have a maximum filling pressure of 200 bar and built-in pressure gauges that indicate the current pressure level in the cylinder. The air for actual shooting is drawn from the compressed-air storage cylinder and reduced by a reduction valve to the pistol's working pressure of about 55 bar. According to Steyr, their compressed-air cylinders have storage capacity for about 180 shots. A distinctive feature designed by Steyr and called the ''stabilizing system'' incorporates a small tungsten piston to compensate for the impulse caused by the movement of the pellet and some other internal parts in an attempt to stabilize the pistol during discharge. Further, the

barrel A barrel or cask is a hollow cylindrical container with a bulging center, longer than it is wide. They are traditionally made of wooden stave (wood), staves and bound by wooden or metal hoops. The word vat is often used for large containers ...

has three holes drilled on top along its length and a

muzzle brake A muzzle brake or recoil compensator is a device connected to, or a feature integral (ported barrel) to the construction of, the muzzle or barrel of a firearm or cannon that is intended to redirect a portion of propellant gases to counter re ...

to counteract

muzzle rise Muzzle rise, muzzle flip or muzzle climb refers to the tendency of a firearm's or airgun's Muzzle (firearms), muzzle (front end of the Gun barrel, barrel) to rise up after firing. It more specifically refers to the seemingly unpredictable "jump" ...

and reduce

recoil Recoil (often called knockback, kickback or simply kick) is the rearward thrust generated when a gun is being discharged. In technical terms, the recoil is a result of conservation of momentum, for according to Newton's third law the force requ ...

. Finally, the muzzle velocity of the pellets is adjustable to minimize movement and balance shifts during discharge. Like all air pistols designed for the

event, it has fully adjustable

sights A sight or sighting device is any device used to assist in precise visual alignment (i.e. ''aiming'') of weapons, surveying instruments, aircraft equipment, optical illumination equipment or larger optical instruments with the intended target. ...

. The rear sight is adjustable without tools for elevation and windage. The depth of the rear notch is adjustable with a screwdriver to lengthen or shorten the sight line length from 316 up to 365 mm. The pistol has two-stage, three-dimensionally adjustable

trigger Trigger may refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities * Trigger (''Only Fools and Horses''), in the TV sitcom * Trigger Argee, in science fiction short stories by James H. Schmitz * Devil Trigger, a transformation ability of ...

which can be adjusted for overtravel, first stage weight and travel, second stage weight and sear engagement. The trigger pull weight is factory-adjusted to 500

gram The gram (originally gramme; SI unit symbol g) is a Physical unit, unit of mass in the International System of Units (SI) equal to one thousandth of a kilogram. Originally defined in 1795 as "the absolute Mass versus weight, weight of a volume ...

(17.6 oz) to comply with the ISSF 10 metre air pistol rules. The trigger mechanism also has dry fire capability. Dry fire means a shooter can practice/simulate shooting without actually firing a pellet or seeping any air from a mounted pre-compressed air cylinder. The standard anatomically shaped grip made by Morini has an adjustable palm shelf. Rake and rotation can be adjusted with screws under the grip. Visually, the LP 10 is set apart from most similar pistols due to its

shroud. It is also offered in an optional distinctive silver-coloured

brushed metal A piece of brushed aluminium A collection of brushed stainless steel Breville small appliances A DeLorean featuring non-structural brushed stainless steel panels The St._Louis,_Missouri.html" ;"title="Gateway Arch in St. Louis, Missouri">G ...

finish. The pistol comes with four 10-gram barrel weights that fit in slots on either side of the barrel. The pistol is currently delivered in a polymer pistol carrying case with manuals, two pre-compressed air cylinders with built-in pressure gauges, some spare air -sealing parts, an air filling adapter and adjustment tools. Older pistols were delivered in a simple cardbox case with pre-compressed air cylinders and a separate pressure gauge. Steyr factory accessories like an ambidextrous grip, additional 10- and 25-gram barrel weights, various front sight blades, a CO₂ conversion kit, long and short compressed-propellant cylinders, and air and CO₂ fill adapters are available. Aftermarket accessories from other manufacturers, like target pistol grips that will fit the LP 10, are also available.

Variants

In 2009 Steyr released the LP 10 E, which has an electronic trigger. According to the manufacturer two standard 1.5 V AAA batteries provide enough electric capacity for 25,000 shots/trigger release cycles.
In 2016 Steyr released the evo featuring a mechanical trigger and the evo E, which has an electronic trigger as successor model. The evo pistols are technically based on the LP 10 line and feature several evolutionary improvements. According to the manufacturer the

rechargeable battery A rechargeable battery, storage battery, or secondary cell (formally a type of energy accumulator), is a type of electrical battery which can be charged, discharged into a load, and recharged many times, as opposed to a disposable or prima ...

in the evo E provides enough electric capacity for 10,000 shots/trigger release cycles. Besides these pistols the Steyr evo line also includes the evo Compact and evo E Compact shortened somewhat lighter variants.STEYR EVO 2016/2017
/ref>
The Steyr LP 2 is an updated (compressed-air) LP-1P that complements the LP 10 in the Steyr LP line. Slightly less expensive and lacking a few of the LP 10's refinements, it is still a very high quality target air pistol.
The Steyr LP 50 is a 5-shot semi-automatic air pistol that shares many parts with the LP 10 and can be used for the training of dynamic pistol disciplines.
The Steyr LP 1 is the predecessor of the LP 10, available both for use with compressed air and with compressed CO₂ as propellant.

References

{{Reflist
Steyr Match LP 10 Manual

Steyr LP 10 Technical Datasheet

External links

Manufacturer's WebsiteSteyr LP 10 Black High Resolution ImageSteyr LP 10 Silver High Resolution ImageSteyr LP 10 E High Resolution ImageSteyr LP 10 at Shooting Wiki
Pneumatic weapons Air pistols

History

Design details

Variants

See also

References

External links