by B.B. Pelletier
First, a big THANK YOU to all the volunteers who are answering reader comments for me. Your help has given me back a couple hours a day, and it has made a difference.
Today, I’ll look at velocity of the Gamo Big Cat. Before I do, I want you to know that I spoke with the new Gamo CEO Lou Riley at SHOT, and he confirmed that the company is now finishing the trigger parts better than before. That’s why I noticed such a big improvement in the trigger-pull during the first test, and you will, too. The trigger is now a real two-stage with a repeatable first-stage stop. It comes out of the box feeling like a vintage Gamo trigger with 4,000 shots on it. I can’t say enough good things about how much better it feels.
Second, I remember that the Whisper was a delightful gun because of easy cocking. Well, the Big Cat is exactly the same. The breech detent is light but smooth, and cocking is a dream. Only 26-27 lbs. is needed to cock the rifle–almost as easy as a youth gun. With the power potential Gamo advertises, that’s a Beeman R9 by another name. No Rekord trigger, of course, but it’s also less than one-third the price.
Air Arms domed field pellets
Air Arms domed field pellets are made by JSB, I believe. They weigh 8.4 grains and are ideal for a spring rifle of this power. They averaged 906 f.p.s., and the spread was from 899 f.p.s. to 919 f.p.s. That’s just 20 f.p.s. for a brand-new spring rifle! The energy calculates to 15.31 foot-pounds for the average velocity.
RWS Hobbys
The 7-grain RWS Hobby is the vintage speed-demon of pure lead pellets. It averages 983 f.p.s., with a spread from 971 to 996. Gamo advertises the Big Cat at 1,000 f.p.s. with lead pellets and this is pretty darn close! The muzzle energy comes out to 15.02 foot-pounds.
Raptors
Gamo’s own 5.2-grain Raptor is the only lead-free pellet I tested. It averaged 1151 f.p.s. with a low of 1133 f.p.s. and a high of 1167 f.p.s. That’s a total spread of 34 f.p.s. for a pellet close to the sound barrier. Not too shabby in my book! Muzzle energy averages 14.71 foot-pounds for this one. Gamo advertises 1,200 f.p.s. with PBAs, so it’s off by a little but in the same neighborhood. I tell you guys and gals, I’m pretty impressed by all the performance I’m seeing here.
Gamo Master Point
Another Gamo pellet, the Master Point, was the only one of the four that fit tight in the breech. It’s a pure-lead pellet that weighs 7.9 grains, so it’s in the same weight range as the Air Arms dome. They averaged slightly slower than the Air Arms pellets at 905 f.p.s., and I think the tight fit is the reason for that. The spread went from a low of 893 f.p.s. to a high of 919 f.p.s. Muzzle energy calculated at 14.37 foot-pounds.
The test rifle shoots with almost no vibration. The easy cocking, smooth trigger and smooth shot cycle combine to make the Big Cat a winner in my book. It’s easier now to see where all the good customer reviews are coming from. There is but one more hurdle to clear–accuracy.
Sounds like another winner so far! I look forward to the accuracy testing and can’t wait to hear comments on how easy this rifle is to shoot accurately.
The NRA Edition Gamo (Shadow I think?) I own seems to be very technique-sensitive, as I’ve not yet gotten good accuracy out of it. I’m SURE that I am to blame, as I know Gamo can make a good gun.
Thanks much and keep up the great work!
-ben
BB –
Do you plan on continuing your review of the Air Venturi Avenger 1100?
Thanks
BB and others,
I’ve heard from several “sources” that the springs Gamo uses wouldn’t hold up under heavy usage. Now before the rest of the blog and commenters come back at me, I want to emphasize that this is ONLY what I’ve heard, I do not speak from experience. Can anyone offer their experience as to whether this is a fact or not? Whether Gamo has improved their spring technology or a gas spring should be an option down the road?
Fred,I’ve owned silver shadow,220 hunter and 440 hunter,hunter 1250[extreme]…many thousand shots each…never had a spring problem.fiberoptic front sight blade issues are my only peeve.they are fragile plastic construction dovetailed in with a snap fit.some break,others just vanish one day. FrankB
Avenger 1100,
Apparently not. I returned the rifle to PA at Roanoke. I don’t know what I was thinking!
B.B.
B.B. & All,
Well, you have my attention, with this "Big Cat"…
So, is it possible to change the trigger to a match grade? Not that I would want to shoot it, but it might work for some customers, if it had a decent trigger.. to me, even 10,000 shots on the standard trigger, still leaves the worst trigger on any air gun I've tried so far!!..
But it sounds like it might work, if a trigger job is possible and affordable… and it makes it over that high hurdle of accuracy.. I'll be watching for that test too!!
Wayne,
Ashland Air Rifle Range
This is a question to the air gunners who know the guns, not to B.B. Not that I don’t trust BB’s wisdom, I just think he has too much to do without this question.
Planning to add to arsenal. Want 22 for hunting and plinking.
Should it be Benjamin 392 or Daisy 22SG.
If Benjamin, what sights: ie:open, peep or scope.
Thanx.
Bill D
Your opinion b.b.
I’m really getting into the pistol shooting with the Gamo Compact.
In my area (Edmonton in Canada) there are few airgun events, but when there are the pistol shooters outnumber the rifle 5-1.
(and I don’t get it, but most of the pistol shooters seem to be young women in their 20’s and 30’s which doesn’t hurt 😉
But I digress.
Are shooting glasses (the kind that have adjustable iris and such) going to make a huge difference in my ability to shoot well?
I’ve found someone who has a pair of used ones for sale for $75 (plus I’ll need to pay for the prescription lens).
Should I go for it?
CowBoyStar Dad
Anonymous that wants a new .22 cal. hunting gun,
The relatively low power in both the 392 and 22SG are a jpotential concern. What do you plan to hunt and at what distances?
Normally if you pump before spotting your target you get one shot. Not much game or many pests will wait for you to pump your gun another 8-10 times to allow for a second shot. Does that concern you?
kevin
B.B.,
Your first part on the big cat intrigued me. Now you’ve got my attention. The 4+ pound trigger is an improvement. I owned a cfx for about 30 days last summer. Installed a grt III trigger and it was an enormous improvement. I never could get the gun to group well. Probably me but that gun was sure jumpy.
Looking forward to the accuracy segment on the big cat.
kevin
Everyone,
Do you know of a rail or accessory that will allow me to attach this to an airgun?
http://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2009/01/20/ipod-touch-mounted-on-m110-sniper-rifle/
I hope you know that I’m kidding.
kevin
To bad about the Avenger, got an email promo from PA including this gun so I read your review on it. This quote got me excited –
“This is a $150 breakbarrel with all the power anyone could expect to use. If it holds up to the advertised velocity claims and if the accuracy is anything close to the test target, this will be a best buy. Imagine knocking $50 off the price of an RWS Diana 34 Panther. This will be an exciting test!”
I see PA has a used one right now for $130!!
Anybody else have any experience with this rifle? Avenger 1100 by Air Venturi?
Thanks.
CBS Dad,
Women and older men like air pistol because they are lighter to carry and you don’t have to weak special jackets to shoot. I’m not joking.
Yes to the glasses, if you want to be serious. They will add 5-15 points to your score
B.B.
Bill,
I think most will recommend the Benji, however I have a soft spot for the Daisy set-up. I think the handle allows easier cocking, but sadly it is no longer metal. With 3 pumps they are fun plinkers and either will do duty on small pests with a full charge.
As Kevin suggests, one shot is all you will get while hunting but that is the same for spring guns usually too.
As far as a scope, I like the Leapers brand for the value they offer and it will be inline with the price of your rifle. I would avoid the short style “bug buster” due to the eye relief and off set mount required.
Bill D, I have no experience with the Daisy 22SG, but the Benjamine 392 is an important part of my collection. I’ve had mine scoped, but much prefer the Williams peep that she now wears. Easier to pump without a scope in the way and she just looks better.
A Necco waffer at 20 yards is history. A squirrel 20-30 yards away is in big trouble. There are lots of Mods out there also. Let me be the first vote for the 392. Mr B.
Thanks b.b.
Just as a note…I had my children late. I was 46 when my first son was born.
So at 54 I can relate to the ‘less to carry’ aspect, and it does seem I can save about a grand as the rifle shooters do all seem to have special jackets, shoes, etc. As you mentioned in your series on pistols a while back, those shooters seem to show up in sweats and runners.
And the young girls don’t hurt either (hahahahaha)
The glasses are a done deal.
CowBoyStar Dad
Bill,
copy and paste this link:
/blog/2005/9/daisy-22sg/
Thank you for your input, “anonymous” on your experience with Gamos.
Anonymous on a .22 hunting rifle, I second Kevin’s opinion on the 392. Great value for the money. I removed my bladed rear sight and installed the Benjamin peep sight. Works fine for me and I use it for close-in work (10 yards or so) so I don’t have to bother with a scope. It also makes it difficult to pump depending on the scope you try to fit. My other rifles are all scoped (breakbarrel, under and side lever and Benj PCP) so I would grab those for longer shooting distances.
CSD brings up a great point at matches regarding the dress for pistol shooters vs. rifle. I remember at this past olympics all the men shooting pistols looked like they were ready to go out for a beer after the match, with jeans and t’s. The women in the 10m rifle contest were seriously dressed with jackets, shoes (of course)and so on. I didn’t catch the men’s rifle competition so I don’t know how those dudes dressed.
Avenger 1100,
This was one of the first air rifles I bought… We bought 2, because we liked the first one so much.. Randy & I shot them a lot.. we got 3,000 shots on the first one in about a month.. with lots of 1/2"- 10 shot groups from a rest at 20 yards indoors…. But, after those 3,000 shots, the rifle became loose at the barrel pivot.. fixable, but…
The new ones might be better.. I would try one again, if I was into springers..this is a very well made rifle for the money.. and the trigger is so much better than anything on the market in that price range!! Mendoza makes the best, (fit, finish and TRIGGER!!) and most accurate air rifles, FOR THE MONEY, in my humble opinion..
Wayne,
Ashland Air Rifle Range
To Mr. B and Fred,
Would like to know what brand of pellets you guys shoot with your 392s?, mine is all over at 20 yards with CPs,RWS etc…..will appreciate replies and thanks….
Hank
As I digest the fantastic new crop of offerings from the SHOT Show, it seems like a lot of really exciting offerings have less to do with a new invention than in reducing a high end product to something the average consumer can get. This applies to the Discovery/Marauder series, the new Challenger FT gun, the green laser from Leapers, the new target sight for the Air Force Edge. McDonald’s did the same thing with its rather ordinary burgers and Bill Gates with the personal computer. I wouldn’t be surprised if this phenomenon is based in the way our economy has been set up since the Industrial Revolution to allow giant profits from large production runs at low prices.
So, if one could figure out an existing high-end product that will appeal to the masses (before Wayne does), success would be guaranteed. Surely, this must be an affordable night vision scope (or headset) from Leapers! Recent developments have been promising. From prices of thousands of dollars, I’ve seen some devices come down to a few hundred dollars. But this is just not quite low enough, especially when people ask me what I would do with it. But anything below $200 would look be very tempting. With the way Leapers has brought down the prices of scopes, they seem set up to do this. Why not run this by them, B.B.?
Matt61
I was using RWS’- superpoints and the domed pellets (I’m at work so I can’t remember the name or weight but they were all in the 14 gr range BUT I didn’t shoot at 20 yards, more like 23 feet in my basement so I can’t help you here. My suggestion for you is to try the JSB Exacts or the Crosman Premiers – both domed. The JSB’s appear to be the most accurate at 30yds in all my rifles regardless of make or power plant.
I have a Daisy 22SG. It came with a 4×32 scope and open sights. The Daisy is light weight, economical and easy to pump.
The Benji is a little more poweful, a little more expensive, but only require 8 pumps instead of 10 for full power. Personnally, I feel it’s built with more attractive materials.
I’ve bagged rabbits upto 20 yards with the 22SG, but I do recommend using well placed head shots with either airgun. The packaging22SG had had 625 fps on it, but 600fps is probably more correct. For me, I find that JSB Exact Jumbo Express pellets rule in the 22SG with Gamo Magnum points a close second. Before I added a 4x32AO scope I loosened the objective lense ring on the original daisy scope to ajusted the lense to suit my px needs. The original px setting is set for 20 yards.
Matt,
Your comment to Leapers is on its way to them.
B.B.
Bill D,
RE: Daisy 22sg or Benjamin 372
Have them both. I have been trying to control some squirrels.
Kevin was right – What do you plan to hunt and what distances?
* Neither has the power to make a hollow point expand used domed pellets. JSP exact express gold standard for both of mine.
* The 372 has a BIT more power
* The 22SG is easier to pump.
* The 22Sg has dovetail to mount a scope. (You need to use two piece mounts so that you can load under the scope.)
* Really like bolt action of 372
* The 22SG has decent open sights, the 372’s stock sights are awful in my opinion.
* The 372 has more of a “real” rifle look and feel.
* Neither has a real option to mount a peep rear sight and a “globe” target sight. Since you’re shooting close anyway (less than 20 yards) open sights would keep trajectory better than scope mounted 2 inches above boreline. I can use Daisy’s see-through mounts with front sight for close shooting.
* With adapters and scope rings, any scope on 372 is likely to be high above boreline.
* With scope 372 will be harder to pump, doesn’t create a problem on 22SG.
* Daisy has a sharp edge where pellets load. Flat head and hollowpoints with sharp shoulder are hard to load. Domed are no problem and what you should be shooting to hunt with this gun anyway.
* 372 probably a longer lasting gun, but neither is an expensive enough gun to have a real gunsmith work on them.
* Some Daisy’s have had a loose barrel. The barrel itself is a tube which is supported at the end of the barrel by a plastic part which is combination bushing/sight/plug. Evidently the interior connection for the “real” barrel is loose in some guns.
Still haven’t scoped my 372. I have a peep sight, and I want to mount a red dot laser out front. Adapter rings are now out of stock at PA.
All that being said, I like the 22SG better.
Herb
Sorry for the off topic post but Im about to move in on my first pcp.
Wayne:
If I remember correctly, a while back you mentioned putting a LDC on your discovery. I’ll assume it was from mountain air, correct? How were the results? How loud was the report after the LDC? Any drop in accuracy?
Thanks John from Jersey
PS: I’ve settled on the disco, the only hard part now is getting it here. Unfortunately, I’ll have to look somewhere else from pyramyd air :-(. Then again they are just following the law.
My preferences between the 22SG and Benjamin “flavor” multi-pump rifles:
I owned an 22SG briefly. It leaked air and I returned it to PA. Aside from that it seemed light and flimsy. I have three Benjamin/Sheridans: 392, 397, and a CB9 (.20 cal). All of them are robust, accurate guns. Each of them has a Williams peep sight and is more accurate and looks better than with the OEM sight. I have tried the 2-piece scope mount with a pistol scope (for the long eye relief needed when mounting a scope that far from the receiver) on the CB9 and went back to a peep sight because the two-piece mount would not stay secure on the barrel; it slid forward and aft, even though accuracy was excellent.
I have toyed with the idea of getting a Silver Streak, basically a CB9 with a nickel finish instead of black paint.
The triggers on the Benjamin/Sheridans are OK, very good once you get used to them, and made of metal. The trigger guard is plastic, which doesn’t bother me. Of all those I own, I like the .20 cal the most because it is the only one of them that can shoot the “cylindroconical” Benjamin 14.3 grain pellet.
–Witt
John from Jersey,
I feel your pain, try this.
http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/product/standard-item.jsp?id=0065875229694a&navCount=1&podId=0065875&parentId=cat20742&masterpathid=&navAction=jump&cmCat=MainCatcat602007-cat20742&catalogCode=IK&rid=&parentType=index&indexId=cat20742&hasJS=true
BobC NJ
BB and all,
OT…Have we discussed air rifle benchrest competitions here before? If not, I would love to hear what BB has to say about airgun benchrest, rules, targets, scoring, and equipment. A quick google will tell us there are different rules in different countries. Which one do you think offers the most fun and enough challenge to keep us “addicted”. Thank you.
Abe
B.B.,
After reading a custom tuner’s explanation of the firing cycle of a spring operated airgun (he said the same things you have said)he made this following statement. What are your thoughts on this? Is this reason enough to stay away from gas pistons?
“…The above firing cycle is why we do not work on gas ram airguns. The piston hits the end of the compression chamber with out bouncing back off a cushion of compressed air and can cause stress cracks in the compression chamber or damage to the compression tube in the rear where everything is secured together.”
-Chuck
John from Jersy,
Try this link.
http://www.airgun-supply.com/benjamin_discovery_pre_charged_pneumatic_air_rifle_and_pump.html?category_id=0
And ask this guy to send you pictures and info about his LDC.I can email you the details too if you like. http://home.comcast.net/~peterdragin/index.html/
Ok BB
I know you have been pushing it hard lately. I do not think you answered this question, so will ask it again.I bought the IZH Baikal from your recommedation and love the gun, since then I have purchased the model 60 and the Pistol 46m. Great guns. Question? how is the new model 514 compare? I know it has more power, is more compact, etc. But is it the same quality and greatness of the 61. (Forgive me if you did answer on another post. I have been working hard as well)
Thanks for a great job!
Dave
BobC:THANKS…Now its just a little drive away. Its funny you should post this, about two months ago i called cblas multiple times and complained over 3 different email addresses begging them to carry the discovery. It was always a maybe. I would have never known.
UW: THANKS…Price is great still running into restrictions though :-(. Talked to rich briefly about LDC, sounds good
thank you guys!
oh nevermind i didn’t fully read restrictions. Heres the scoop: being retired law enforcement from NY,im kind of stuck. The boundaries of my concealed carry technically is Ny only. However, while carrying numerous (oops…) NJ state troopers have pulled me over, ann after seeing my ID not have a problem. have to check how the air gun distributors feel
john from jersey
Chuck:
RE: Gas spring guns
Sounds like hogwash to me. Were you talking to the company’s tuner, or the company’s lawyer?
All the gas spring guns that I remember seeing being sold by PA were retrofitted with the gas spring. Is there a company manufacturing a gas spring gun?
The problem as I see it is that the last guy to work on a gun is at the most risk if there is some kind of disastrous malfunction.
I’d love to shoot several different rifles with the steel spring and then with a gas spring.
Herb
Herb,
The guy is an air gun tuner/repairer and the statement is on his web site where his repair/tuning/trigger mods and prices are displayed. I believe he’s saying this regardless of how the gas ram got in there, plus don’t ask him to install one.
-Chuck
CowboyStarDad,
Punch a hole in a piece of tape and stick it on you glasses. Move it around until you can see your sights through the hole. If your near sighted this will provide a much clearer sight picture.
You can test this at your office desk with a piece of paper and a pencils. Punch a small hole (1/8 to ¼ inch) in the paper. Look through the hole and hold up the pencil. Now use the pencil as a sight and target something far away. Take not that how well you can see the pencil point and the target.
Now take away he paper and try to focus on the pencil and the same target. It should be less clear unless you have very good eyes.
DB
B.B.,
Wow, thanks. Who knows what Leapers might come up with.
BG_Farmer, I finally got to your discussion of Quigley–makes me want to see the movie. I don’t know of hardly any that do justice to the sport of shooting. Your speculations are very ingenious. So, they amount to shooting a 3 inch target offhand at 127 yards. Sure, why not. My only reservation is that I believe the wind resistance on pellets is quite a bit more than for bullets, so scaling down the situation based on muzzle velocity only seems overly optimistic to me about what an airgun can do. I suspect you would need a closer airgun shot to approximate Quigley.
Maybe someday. But I may as well try for another, colorful feat of shooting. I recently learned that the number one American sniper in Vietnam was not the famous Carlos Hathcock, but a fellow by the name of Chuck Mawhinney who was so secret that his own wife did not know he was a Marine sniper. He shot about 110 enemy soldiers. His commander said that Chuck was capable of running half a mile and then dropping a target at 700 yards with an offhand shot.
By the way, I am deep into another book which I would recommend to all. It is called American Rifle: A Biography by Alexander Rose, and it purports to show how the rifle is a uniquely American creation in terms of invention, engineering, and cultural forces. It’s quite readable and answers all my questions about firearms technology including projectiles, barrel manufacture, various forms of ignition, everything. It also brings to life as people the names we are familiar with now only as trade names. There’s Eliphalet Remington whose idea of a good time was reading Paradise Lost…. Anyway, it’s a good and informative read.
Matt61
John from NJ,
I’ve gotten A couple of air rifles from there and A Gamo pistol,no problem.
I am also retired from NYC(TBTA) and like you, have been stopped by the State troopers more then A few times. Always courteous and never A problem.
Good luck down in Hamburg, really A nice place.
BobC NJ
Bill D, my 392 likes Crosman Premeirs and RWS Meisterkugelns. You need to play with your gun to see what number of pumps produces enough power and accurrancy for it’s chosen task. Alot of mine is in the back yard. 3 pumps accurate and quiet. :)Mr B.
Matt,
Thanks, everyone seems to agree with you that the air rifle shot is too far. I think that’s because the original rifle shot was in a movie:). The scaled shot was not based on muzzle velocity, but rather flight time (pellets do slow down faster than bullets). Since it wasn’t an ordinary shot for a buffalo rifle, I don’t think it should be within ordinary air rifle range either, but it looks like I’m losing. You would like the movie; I assumed you had already seen it.
I like the story about the marine; need to look him up.
The “American Rifle” sounds like good reading. Hard to argue with that thesis.
“Punch a hole in a piece of tape and stick it on you glasses.”
Great idea DB! I tried this with a couple magazines in my open sight Walther Lever Action at 10m and improved my groups significantly. I went from an 8 pellet 1.5″ group to an 8 pellet 3/4″ group made up of two 1/4″ groups. One shot was even in the bull.
I have two different peep sights coming in over the weekend so this little test is very encouraging in regards to them.
Oh, and does anyone know how to get tape goo off a plastic lens?
-Chuck
The tape on the glasses is an old shooter trick. Low cost and it works.
BG_Farmer,
3″ at 127 yards with my Air Arms s410 and 8-32x56AO leapers is a real possibility… maybe even offhand with enough practice or luck:)… The rifle could do it, in a bench rest I once got a 2″ 10-shot group at 75 yards.. I think that was with 10.6 .177 kodiak on full power (muzzle 1041fps), and the drop was about 10″ from my indoor 20 yard sight in range….
But the next 52 yards will probably see 20″ or more of drop, I would think… You might be able to adjust a scope for that.. or at least enough to get the bull at the bottom edge…
But, can a person with good eye sight see a 3″ dot 127 yards away?.. and if they can, how do they see the dot, through the lifted barrel?..
I could be off in how much the barrel needs to be lifted…(depends on the power of the rifle).. maybe it’s not an issue.. if the movie guy shoots a buffalo rifle.. the AAs410 is more fitting than the R-7… but I can’t ride a donkey and shoot… let alone a horse.. come to think of it… I might do alright from my 1966 Mustang fastback.. I scored pretty well in the prone position, shooting stars.. or watching them.. back then:)… what ever happened to that car:)
Would the sitting Field Target position be allowed?…3″ @ 127 yards with the scoped AAs410 sitting FT is possible… or are we talking standing, off hand, open sights.. to make the grade?
Wacky Wayne
Wayne,
The shot in the movie is offhand (standing), (tall) tang mounted aperture sight, three shots. It is a buffalo gun, but from what I can tell, it was praised for its flat-shooting up to 300 or so yards, not the range Quigley shoots; a modern but related (.45-70) cartridge drops hundreds of inches at the ranges Quigley is shooting.
I think the 127 yard figure was for the lower powered rifles (based on projectiles’ time of flight). I had picked 2″ at 100 yards the other day as a compromise (slightly smaller target than 2.4 moa to make up for the reduced flight time). Maybe 2.4″ at 100 yards or 3″ at 127 yards are hard enough? I could possibly even see 2″ at 80 yards, for people whose vision requires it. I really believe that the range needs to be somewhat uncomfortably long to stick to the original.
Aperture does make a difference in seeing the target over open sights, not as clear as a scope, though. The rear sight has to be very tall, but I don’t think you should be looking through the barrel yet:). I’ll give it a try when I have a chance, but I know my open sights have no problem adjusting to 80 yards, and the Mendoza peep I got recently starts at 30+ yards (making it useless for anything but this type of shooting:)).
Visual acuity is a difficult topic, but it should be good for sub-minute of arc, as it is in special cases capable of even sub-arcsecond resolution. 3″ at 127 yards subtends ~2.4 minutes of arc and is about the same as 2.4 inches at 100 yards or 1.2 inches at 50 yards, or 0.6 inches at 25 yards. So if you can see 0.6 inches at 25 yards, you should see the others, if that helps.
Dave,
I have answered this before, but perhaps you haven’t seen it.
In my opinion, the MP514K is a travesty! It is a poorly-designed BB gun that I think costs way too much.
There is no comparing it to the models 60, 61 and 46, because they are real airguns. The 514 is a hoillow plastic contraption that has no accuracy.
I thought so little of it that I didn’t write a report on it. I couldn’t find anything good to say about it.
B.B.
CJr,
I think that airgunsmith is self-serving, as others have indicated. In my experience, these “stress fractures” don’t occur. Gas springs do work and they work just fine. If I ever see evidence to the contrary I’ll report it, but so far I haven’t.
B.B.
Abe,
What airgun benchrest competitions are you referring to? There aren’t any that I know of.
The last one was called BRV, and was the final evolution of BR-50. But it certainly wasn’t long-range. They shot at 30 yards in the open class.
Benchrest is simply settling into a bench and shooting at targets – a solitary act. Some day there may be competitions, but today they don’t exist.
B.B.
Air gun bench rest:
Try Airgun BenchRest (AGBR) at
http://www.airgunbenchrest.com/
and
United States BenchRest (USBR) at
http://usbr.benchrest.net/
Self serving mode is now on. There are links to both at http://www.nagsc.net
BB,
While doing some googling on air rifle benchrest competition, this is what I found:
http://www.erabsf.org/home.htm
http://accurateshooter.wordpress.com/2008/07/23/first-ever-world-rimfire-benchrest-championship-in-milan-next-week/
They sure do enjoy airguns over there too.
Do we have this thing, or similar here?
Abe
in modding an air rifle, what would “polishing the lead to the rifling” mean??
John, I’m guessing that this means smoothing the entrance to the barrel at the breech end. Sometimes there’s a little roughness there or a tiny bur that makes loading a pellet a bit difficult. If there’s a bur it oughta be removed, but you’d probably feel it if there is.
Oh thanks vince I was thinking lead not lead:-)
Jersey John,
This is where the correct spelling really matters. You have been writing lead, but meaning leade. A leade is the entrance into the rifled bore. A polished leade would mean that entrance has been polished.
B.B.
BB
I got one of these (trigger and tuned now) and did a a GRT3 conversion and let do a blog for you.
This is an amazing rifle for the price and even with a tune, it is still affordable fun that tops the scale.
I will do a blog for sure tonight.
🙂
gino
Gino,
I’d love to have your guest blog.
Contact me at this address, so I can give you the codes you need:
blogger@pyramydair.com
B.B.
it souds to me like you’ve sold out. how much are you getting for these comments??
If this gun was left cocked for 35 minutes, how much velocity would it lose?
Anonymous,
Re: If this gun was left cocked for 35 minutes, how much velocity would it lose?
The short answer is none or an immeasurable amount. B.B. (Tom Gaylord) did the most extensive test I'm aware of on leaving a variety of springs in a R1 cocked for a month. His findings were published in his book, The Beeman R1. As I remember the spring that lost the most velocity only lost around 7% AFTER BEING COCKED A MONTH.
Here's an article B.B. wrote than answers your questions better than I can:
/blog/2006/5/how-long-does-a-mainspring-last-part-2/
kevin