This report covers:
- The future of Crosman
- Benchrest
- Wind
- Wind flags
- Pellets and calibers
- Equipment race
- The affordable guys
- Is it worth it?
- Summary
Today we begin looking at the competitions that were held at the 2024 Pyramyd AIR Cup. I will start with the biggie — benchrest. But first, a word about Crosman.
The future of Crosman
I talked with several Crosman employees who manned the Crosman booth on Vendor’s Row. Yes the company is downsizing. They will have about 30 people by the end of the year. They will remain in or near East Bloomfield, New York, and that may depend on the building they are in.
The Crosman building is for sale and depending on who buys it and what they want to do with it, Crosman may or may not remain as a tenant. They do plan on making and selling the new Benjamin Single Die pellets that I call Bullseyes, and all of the other products they currently make.
So much of their future is yet to be decided that they couldn’t tell me more. Even what they did tell me is subject to change. As I learn more I will tell you. Now back to the Cup.
Benchrest
In this match the shooters shoot 25 shots at targets 100 yards away. Each shot goes to a single bullseye, so there are 25 scoring bulls on the target card. There are sighting bulls beneath each column of target bulls and I will explain their use in a bit. Now let’s look at what each shooter sees.
Rick Rehm stands in front of his third target card from the benchrest competition.
In the picture above notice there are several shots in the bottom bulls. And there are 25 scoring bulls above, in columns of five. The object is to shoot one pellet per target bull, with the center scoring 10 points. So 250 is a perfect score.
Wind
The problem is the wind. It can move a diabolo pellet many inches at 100 yards. Therefore the bottom bulls are sighters to tell the shooter how far the wind is pushing the pellet. They can shoot unlimited sighters but the match lasts for just 30 minutes. The sighters tell them how far to aim off or how many clicks of the scope they need to adjust to hit the center of each bull — as long as the wind remains constant. And THAT is the challenge!
Wind flags
Shooters may place wind flags (also called range flags) between them and the target. That tells them which way the wind is blowing and how fast. Since there is usually wind some shooters wait for a consistent pattern and shoot many shots then.
This shooter has a wind flag at about 15 yards, 50 yards and one at around 90 yards.
Of course the wind doesn’t blow the same at all places. That’s what makes 100-yard benchrest hard! And I didn’t mention the competitors don’t shoot one 25-shot card; they shoot three at different times. So the chances are, the wind will get them sometime.
Pellets and calibers
Why don’t the shooters just use slugs, since they buck the wind better than diabolos? One reason — the rules. Only diabolo pellets (wasp-waists and hollow tails) may be used. The shooters are constantly checked by judges to make sure they are not shooting slugs.
Any caliber up to .357 may be used, but if you hope to win .30 caliber is the way to go. There were some .25 caliber rifles on the line, including at least two Umarex Zelos, but the bulk of the rifles on the line were .30 caliber. There were no .357s that I saw.
There were several new pellets used in this match, but I won’t discuss them today. Competitors also shot JTS and Benjamin pellets.
Equipment race
Benchrest in all its forms turned into an equipment race almost from the start. The major contenders are FX, Skout, Thomas, Karma Red Panda and RAW. I base that on the number of those rifles that were on the firing line. There were others as well, but these were the big guys
Margaret Ding, daughter of Leapers owners David and Tina Ding, shoots a Red Panda in the benchrest competition. Naturally she used an Integrix scope.
This gentleman shoots a Skout Epoch.
This FX rifle is modified with accessories from Krayford and LYPT.
Reader Jeff Cloud (Cloud9) inspects his RAW.
The top-dog airguns start at around $2,000 and go up over $3000 quickly. Add in the scope, mounts, bipods stabilizers etc. and more four-figure numbers are factored in. As I said it is an equipment race. Do the more accurate rifles get better scores? Not necessarily. At this level all the top-dog airguns are capable of winning. It’s the good SHOOTERS who get the best scores, and airgun companies vie to sponsor them, so a large part of their expense is paid.
The affordable guys
At this match I saw two affordable airguns on the line — the Zelos I already mentioned and a couple Umarex Gauntlet .30s. So it is possible to shoot in this match without mortgaging your house.
This fellow is doing it the affordable way with an Umarex Zelos.
Is it worth it?
The top ten shooters get cash prizes for winning the benchrest competition. Tenth prize is $100 and first place goes home with $7,500. So yes, if you are a good shot and have reasonable luck this is a competition to enter.
This year Bill Squillace took first place. He shot an FX Panthera!
Summary
Benchrest was one of three competitions at this year’s Cup. The other two are Gunslynger and Field Target and each will have its day.
B.B.
How about a test/review of the Skout Epoch?
It is supposed to be the “bee’s knees”!
-Yogi
Yogi,
I am thinking about it.
BB
Very interesting! I love learning about some of the details of the competitions. It appears that most of the photos show the use of some type of rear support. Some of them appear to be mechanically adjustable. One shooter appears to have a squeeze bag. And one appears to just be using his hand. I have read that in some competitions the mechanically adjustable rear supports are not allowed. Apparently they are allowed it that Pyramyd Cup event. Are my observations at least mostly correct?
Oh, did you happen to get the winning score (Bill Squillace’s)?
Elmer,
238 with 7 Xs
BB
Wow, thanks!
Tom,
Too bad about the downsizing at Crosman. With only 30 people I’m very much in doubt Tiffany will still be working there at the end of the year.
1 hundred yards with diabolo pellets only as a handicap for benchrest is going to be a challenge. A little over a minute per target. So after shooting the sighter the competitor must rapidly decide holdover and windage correction before the wind changes direction and speed again.
Siraniko
That is definitely a shooting challenge on display there; respect and congratulations to the winner. Sad to see the possibility if not the probability Crosman may be going away; maybe this is a good time for FM to pick up a 3622.
FM,
Very likely. I had hoped they would come out with the 3617, but I had better not hold my breath on that one.
Maybe I can make one?
You could if you wanted to; believe you have the skills. Then if you decide to let it move to Casa FM… 😉
RidgeRunner, you’re going to have to make one or have Airgun Revisions do it. There was a post a while back on HAM forum that they weren’t going to do the 3617. But I should probably pick up at least another 3622!
Basil and OP,
I asked the Crosman employees at the Pyramyd AIR Cup specifically about the 3677 (not 3617). They said it is still on the patch for production. We shall see.
BB
Thanks for that, Tom. Still believe having a 3622 move in might not be a bad idea, more so while the price is still right.
FM,
Not bad thinking.
BB,
I myself would druther have a 3677 than a 3622. I would like to have a “low” powered PCP in .177.
OP,
Only if I have to. It would be easy, but I would rather not. I would rather they worked out all of the possible kinks.
BB,
Thank you for this coverage, it is amazing to see Mr. Rhems’ target, shot from 100 yards in an open field, with wind, using diabolos. Wow. My indoor 25 yard targets look like his, when I’m using my best springer! I’m just a plinker and love it, but it is an eye-opener to see what these elite shooters can do. Hoping that reader Cloud9 shot and scored well.
Regards,
Will
Will,
Unfortunately, he did not place in the top ten. He had some very stiff competition both money and skill wise. As BB has pointed out, if you want to be a serious contender in airgun benchrest, or powder burner for that matter, you had better bring a very thick wallet and practice bunches and bunches and bunches.
BB,
My, how the mighty have fallen. With Crosman downsizing so severely, it is sounding as though they will mostly be rebranding Snowpeaks, Nova Vistas and maybe other Wang Po Industries airguns like so many other airgun “manufacturers”.
I guess something like this was inevitable. Many Crosman parts are made in Uncle Xi’s backyard. Why not just put them all together over there and ship the assembled air rifles here? There might be one person running the pellet machine, but it is sounding like most of the people will be shuffling “paperwork” and/or handling receiving/shipping. I strongly suspect that Ed and the other engineers will either be retiring or finding jobs elsewhere.
I for one am glad I have what Crosman/Benjamin/Sheridan airguns I have now.
I did have another thought. With Crosman doing such a dramatic downsizing, very likely all of those Crosman/Benjamin/Sheridan airguns out there will end up skyrocketing in price. That is what happened to the UK Webleys.
Good chance. My personal SWAG is they’ll keep making/assembling the 13XX and 2240 based stuff because Diasy/Gamo doesn’t have anything that directly competes. 362 and 3622 included.
OP,
I do hope you are right. They may have to do something similar to keep on going, which they sound like they want to.
BB said they are still planning on coming out with the 3677. I would like to have one here.
Pure speculation on my part, but they may be getting out of the big box store business. With the dramatic drop in prices that we have seen out of Uncle Xi and his cohorts recently, the big box stores may have turned to buying directly from the suppliers. “Beeman” and others have been playing around with sproingers for some time. There is still a market for cheapo sproingers and pumpers out there. I bet these are what you will be seeing more of in Wally World.
Yeah, between Uncle Xi and Uncle Ergodan, you could probably find some companies that could give a big enough price break for the boxes to go for it.
Just think, in 30 years people will be complaining about the good old days when Guide Gear and Wal-Mart imported “good” air guns! (Of course, if I knew then….. I would have whined to get one of the Marksman air rifles at K-Mart that cost more than a lot of the .22s they sold!)
OP,
That is one of the reasons I have concentrated on the “old gals” and will be returning to them. I do remember the “good old days” with a lot more longing than some may express now. That is OK. I am an old, fat, bald-headed geezer. I have earned that right. 😉
RR,
Wow! I thought all the mirrors in my house were broken, because all I see in them is a fat, bald-headed old geezer. Apparently I am seeing your reflection in my mirrors. Is there a You Tube video on how to fix that? 😉
BB
BB,
No, I am afraid not. You are just going to have to put up with me looking back at you from those mirrors.
BB
Is that a chrony attached to the Skout Epoch scope?
Happy for you to get some time with your sons.
Deck
Deck,
Yes, that is a chronograph. Most Benchrest shooters have one on their bench. All the winners do.
BB
Wow, sorry to hear about Crosman’s issues. Had great luck with their guns. Majority of my pellet guns came form them. At one time I thought Daisy was going away, but they are still hanging on.
B.B.,
Interesting report and an enjoyable read.
I think the reporting of what the winds (Maximum/Mean/Minimum/Direction) were during the stages should be included. A system exists that could do it automatically for the CUP Director: Kestrel:https://kestrelinstruments.com/fire-weather-kit?gad_source=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIt9zIncvPiAMVeFhHAR35DSp9EAQYBiABEgK2X_D_BwE
or similar.
I look forward to your further coverage of: There were several new pellets used in this match, but I won’t discuss them today. Even though i shoot mostly bullets (Slugs) out beyond 50 pellets shot to 100 should be of interest to us all. This will hopefully result in manufacturing process improvements for precision while retaining the range limiting safety benefit of the high drag shape.
shootski
Just went on Crosman’s site. Custom shop NLA. Lot of guns listed as out of stock.
I will be very sad if Crosman goes away.
I have had alot of good times with thier products.
Looks like a fun event. Maybe just maybe Gunfun1 can make it there at least once in his lifetime.
And BB Glad you got to meet up with your son’s and hope you’re doing good. Oh and I’m going to get your novel. Sounds like a good read.
BB,
That’s sad about the Crosman downsizing.
But on a happier note, look what just showed up in my mailbox.
I’m looking forward to reading this; thank you. 🙂
Blessings to you,
dave
dave,
I hope you enjoy it.
BB
BB, I already am!
I was in the middle of a book on Irish history, but I set it aside to read your book first.
I’ll post a review on Amazon when I’m done, and also send you a copy. 😉
Blessings to you,
dave