Daisy Powerline 5501 Blowback CO2 BB Pistol Table Top & Shooting Review
Type: BB air pistol.
Manufacturer: Daisy.
Model: Powerline 5501.
Materials: Mostly metal.
Weight: 1.44 pounds.
Barrel: 4 inches, smooth bore.
Propulsion: CO2.
Action: Semi auto, blowback, single action.
Ammunition Type: Steel BBs 4.5mm.
Ammunition Capacity: 15 rounds.
FPS: Up-to 430.
Trigger Pull: The trigger pull on the Daisy Powerline 5501 is about average, a bit long but fairly smooth and about a medium pull weight. The first part of the action loads a BB into the chamber and the second part releases the hammer which give the pistol a bit of a creepy first stage.
Accuracy: I was not impressed with how my Daisy 5501 performed in the accuracy portion of this review, it got about a 3 inch 8 shot group from 20 feet out in a semi rested position, in comparison many of my BB pistols can easily get a 1 inch grouping shooting this way. I may try a different brand of BB's even though the RWS BB's I used where of high quality, they just may have not suited this pistol? FPS velocities where a bit under the manufacturers claimed ratings but very close at a respectable average of 386 fps with my 8 shot test shooting on a somewhat cold day. Not bad for a blowback pistol!
Build Quality: The Daisy Powerline 5501 is a pretty much all metal pistol with what looks to be very good build quality. The 5501 is made in Japan, I have found most Japanese made guns to be well made in the past. The frame, slide, trigger, safety, slide catch, CO2 screw, and de-cocker are all metal and of course many of the internal parts too. The only plastic parts to speak of are the grips and the magazine. I would have liked to have seen the magazine with more metal in it but for the most part it is protected within the gun so you should be OK.
Realism: The Daisy Powerline 5501 is loosely styled after the Sig Sauer in combination with a Walther semi auto pistol. It is lacking a cut-out ejection port that would have added greatly to its realism. I would have also liked to have seen a metal magazine as it's seems a bit cheap compared to the rest of the pistol. I do like the fact that the barrel tip has a large diameter opening making the gun look more like the larger caliber weapon it is styled after. It's also one of the few BB pistols with a working de-coker on it.
Available at:Replica Airguns Store US.
Pros:
Lots of metal in this gun!
Nice hard blowback.
Good fps velocity and decent shots per CO2.
The two-tone look is very nice with a stainless look to the frame.
Accessory rail makes adding a tactical light or laser easy.
Warning instructions on slide are color matched to be more discreet.
Very well designed CO2 tightening system and also well hidden.
Cons:
Did not shoot very accurately for me with the BB's I used.
Ejection port is not cut out, takes away from the realism a bit.
All plastic magazine.
No white dotes on rear sight.
Comments:
All in all I liked this Daisy Powerline 5501, other than the poor results I got in terms of accuracy using my chosen zinc platted RWS BB's, the Powerline 5501 was really very good in all other aspects. I think it is a rather nice looking gun with excellent build quality throughout with lots of metal giving the 5001 a nice 1.5 pounds weight. The Daisy 5501 had very heavy and snappy blowback while retaining decent shots per CO2 and respectable close to 400 fps real world velocities. This Daisy Powerline 5501 blowback BB pistol is priced at well under $100 making it very good value in my mind.
My Vimeo Video Comparison Review for the Daisy Powerline BB Pistol: