by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

Shot Show Day 1
Shot Show Day 2
Shot Show Day 3

This report covers:

• Media Day
• Only Crosman
• Pioneer
• Regulated
• Was I impressed?
• Shotguns

Media Day

Every year the SHOT Show holds Media Day at the Range, an all-day event at a huge range sounth of Las Vegas. Over a hundred businesses and more than a thousand media professionals are involved. It’s the place that allows the gun writers to say, “I shot that at the SHOT Show” — something no one else can say, because no functional guns or any kind are permitted at the show. Only security guards have functional guns.

The ranges stretch to the top of the hill on the left and as far again beyond. Media Day is big!

Only Crosman

Out of all that, how many airgun companies showed up? One. Just Crosman, who brought their new Pioneer airbow that everyone was talking about. They were my first stop.

Pioneer

The Pioneer is built on the Benjamin Bulldog chassis, but the valving is completely different. There is no way a Bulldog could be turned into a Pioneer without a lot of engineering. But you crossbow shooters should take note, because this bow weighs several pounds less than most bows, and this one is more powerful than any of them. And it cocks with a single finger!

The 375-grain shafts are hollow and slip over a tube that protrudes from the front of the airbow. When I loaded an arrow it tried to pop back out on me because I was compressing air inside the tube.

Crosman’s Chip Hunnicutt explains how the Pioneer works.

Regulated

They filled it for me, and the filler is a probe that fits in the side of the reservoir instead of a Foster fitting that attaches at the front. I think that’s a safety issue, so you don’t get in front of a very lethal crossbow. I “watched” many arrows go downrange and only caught a glimpse of one of them. They move out at 450 f.p.s. and are still going 400 f.p.s.

The gun is regulated and Hunnicutt told me they are getting 8 good shots per fill. For a hunter that’s more than enough.

Once the Pioneer was filled they let me take over. I got to load it, cock it and of course shoot it several times.

The airbow is loaded by sliding a hollow arrow over the tube in the gun. You feel for the seal of the shaft at the end of loading.

The bow is cocked by lifting a lever on top of the stock. It can be manually uncocked, too!

And then I shot. I noticed the arrow seemed to go high on the target, so I took a second shot. That’s when I learned how accurate the Pioneer is! My second arrow nearly touched the first one at 30 yards.

The only way to get closer is to put one inside the other.

Which someone else did! Arrow inside arrow.

Was I impressed?

I didn’t know what to think before testing the Pioneer. Now I wonder how they’re going to make enough of them. Crosman has another winner on their hands, I think.

The rest of Media Day was just me shooting firearms. In know, it’s a lousy job, but somebody has to do it — right? One more anecdote for the day, though.

Shotguns

People who know me well know that I am not a shotgunner. I’ve only been able to hit birds with one shotgun and my buddy, Otho won’t sell that one to me. Well, I may have found another at Media Day. At the Benelli booth I was handed a 28-gauge semiauto that’s chambered for 3-inch shells. Yes, it’s the only one in the world, becvause the 28-gauge 3-inch shell is brand new.

For some reason I was able to hit with this gun about half the clay pigeons thrown. It weighs about 5 pounds and if I had the money I’d buy one!

I did pretty good (great for me) with a new Benelli semiauto shotgun.

There was more Media Day, but no more airguns. I had to leave early to get back and write this blog.

Today I am at the first day of the SHOT Show itself, so there will be more new guns coming tomorrow.

by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

Shot Show Media Day
Shot Show Day 2
Shot Show Day 3

This report covers:

• Best SHOT ever!
• Crosman
• Maximus
• AirForce
• Hatsan
• Hercules
• Hatsan regulator

Before we begin, I have a sad announcement. Ron Sauls, whom many readers knew and dealt with at Bryan and Associates, passed away yesterday. Ron will be remembered fondly by the airgun community for all he did to further our hobby.

Best SHOT ever!

Holy cow! I’ve covered SHOT Shows for the past 20 years, but this one tops them all. My day was so fantastic that I will only be able to give you an overview of it. I will return several times and give you more of what’s happening. Today, just the major things I saw on day one, and not all of those!

Crosman

I stopped by Crosman’s booth just to see what they had. It wasn’t on my list of booths to visit today. I stayed close to an hour!

Maximus

Yes, they have the $100 PCP, only it isn’t $100. It’s just under $200, which reads $199.95 in my book. It’s built on the Discovery frame but with fewer frills.

The Maximus looks similar to the Benjamin Discovery and will retail for under $200. A complete package with a pump and pellets will retail for about $350.

AirForce

I stopped by the AirForce booth after the show opened and people were packed inside. Two new big bores this year are their .30 caliber and a .357. I have it on good authority the .30 delivers 300 foot-pounds and the .357 breaks 400 foot-pounds. In today’s world those are serious power levels! I might have to take one coyote hunting.

AirForce had two new Texans in their booth. A .30 caliber on top and a .357 in the center. Rick Ward, an old Texan, is in the background in the hat.

Hatsan

I thought Hatsan’s big new product was going to be the new breakbarrel .30-caliber big bore. It’s called a Carnivore .30 and it’s built on the 135 frame, so the cocking will be stout. Hatsan’s president, Blaine Manifold, told me it gets 550 f.p.s with a 40-something grain pellet. That’s not bad! I will definitely try it out.

Blaine Manifold holds Hatsan’s new .30-caliber big bore springer.

Hercules

Like I said, I thought that breakbarrel big bore was the news, until Manifold showed me the Hercules! Ever hear of a repeating PCP that accepts 6 different calibers? It can be .177, .22, .25, .30, .35 and .45 — you decide. It has a 1000 cc air supply! Think how many shots you’ll get from almost double the air of the next-largest PCP! They are still working on the .45 caliber, so this rifle may take a little longer to hit the streets.

Blaine Manifold holds Hatsan’s Hercules. This big PCP can be one of 6 different calibers — your choice.

The Hercules has a 500cc bottle up front and another one tucked in the butt!

Hatsan regulator

So now I think I’m done with Hatsan and they show me one final thing. They are building their own in-house regulator for some of their PCPs! And get this — they will fit existing airguns like the BT65! And they are user tweakable (adjustable). Will wonders never cease? I think that is the biggest news of all from the Hatsan camp.

This cutaway shows the new Hatsan reservoir installed in a BT65 reservoir.

Regulator out of the reservoir.

Yes the reg comes apart for OWNER adjustment!

Well, that’s enough sweet things for today. Any more and I’ll ruin your appetites. Plus I’m a diabetic, and this report is giving me a sugar rush.

Tomorrow I’ll tell you about some cool new things from Leapers. Otho Henderson — listen up, ’cause you are in this! I’ll also cover those new Rooskie airguns from Pyramyd Air, and there’s just a lot more stuff from day one to cover!

by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

Hatsan 85 Mossy Oak Break Up rifle.

Part 1

This report covers:

• Hatsan has potential
• Hatsan is conservative
• RWS Superdomes
• H&N Baracuda Match
• Crosman SSP pellets
• Trigger pull
• Cocking effort
• Scope base
• Summary

Man, did I ever bump the beehive with this report! Part 1 certainly got a rise out of a lot of you. And you said what was on your mind. I bet you are the kind of guys who would tell me that my dog is ugly, too.

Okay, I’m rooting for the Hatsan 85 Mossy Oak Break Up rifle that I’m testing. Why? Because according to the advertised specs, it puts out a little more power than an RWS 34 (remember — we aren’t calling them Dianas any longer), yet sells in this combo package for 50 dollars less than just an RWS 34P, by itself. If this rifle is accurate, we have a potential world-beater on our hands.

Hatsan has potential

I know that Hatsan is conservative with their advertised velocities. And, from shooting their precharged rifles, I also know they can be quite accurate. What has never come together for me is power and accuracy in the same Hatsan spring rifle. PCPs, yes, but never springers. At least not for me — yet.

The other thing I haven’t seen until this test is a Quattro trigger in a springer that was smooth, crisp and light. I reported to you in Part 1 that this one is very nice, and today we will find out just what that means.

Today is velocity day, and I want to get to it. I also want to show you the scope dovetails and scope stop that’s built into this rifle, because someone asked about it. I won’t get to the scope until a later report, because this rifle does have open sights that I plan on testing in the first accuracy test., but I can at least show you the base.

Hatsan is conservative

Hatsan advertises this model at 1,000 f.p.s. in the .177 caliber I am testing. If this were any other maker I would expect to see that with the lightest pellets, only, but Hatsan USA CEO, Blaine Manifold (I still think that is the perfect name for somebody in the airgun business!) told me they test their guns with real-world pellets. So we can expect to see more than 1,000 f.p.s. with some of the super-lightweights. I will test a full span of pellet weights.

RWS Superdomes

I chose RWS Superdome pellets to represent the middle weight range. The first shot out of the rifle went 1091 f.p.s., but it was an obvious detonation. After that 10 more Superdomes averaged 984 f.p.s. The low was 967 and the high was 1002 f.p.s.. The spread was 35 f.p.s. And by the way, the Superdome is a medium-wight pellet, so Hatsan is being conservative about the power once again.

At the average velocity this 8.3-grain pellet generates 17.85 foot-pounds of energy at the muzzle. That’s right where we want this airgun to be, because it’s not too overpowered to hurt accuracy.

H&N Baracuda Match

Next up was the H&N Baracuda Match pellet with the 4.50mm head. These averaged 865 f.p.s. for an energy of 17.70 foot-pounds. The low was 855 f.p.s, and the high was 870 f.p.s,. The spread was 15 f.p.s. This just might be a good pellet for this rifle.

Crosman SSP pellets

Last to be tested were some Crosman SSP hollowpoint pellets. At just 4 grains I knew they were going supersonic, but I didn’t plan on the crack they would make. I had to wear hearing protection in the office to test these pellets.

They averaged 1297 f.p.s. with a spread from 1281 f.p.s to 1319 f.p.s. The spread was 38 f.p.s. At that speed they generate 14.94 foot-pounds of energy at the muzzle. Normally lighter pellets generate more energy than heavier pellets in a spring-piston gun, but this Hatsan is just backwards of that. That tells me the piston is probably on the heavy side, and heavier pellets are going to be better.

Trigger pull

I measured the trigger pull next. No matter where it is I plan to leave it as I found it because it is adjusted just the way I like it. I discovered a quirk in this trigger. The effort varies greatly, depending on how it is pulled. If you pull straight back it measures 5.lbs. 14 oz. But if you pull up as you pull back it drops to a very consistent 3 lbs. 13 oz. Obviously that was what I was feeling before.

Cocking effort

What does it take to cock the 85? Well, I was doing it with one arm, so I knew it had to be something under 40 lbs. Turned out to be 32 lbs., and I can feel that a couple of those pounds will go away as the rifle breaks in. Once again my decision to test this rifle is justified.

One thing I will mention is during cocking that little bend in the cocking link (look at the SAS picture in Part 1) sometimes peeks out of the cocking slot and disrupts my efforts to move the barrel. It happens as I am closing the barrel more than when I am cocking it.

Scope base

The last thing I will do today is show you the 11mm dovetails that are machined directly into the spring tube.

The scope base is a parallel set of dovetails cut into the spring tube. The scope stop is a block that can be repositioned for best effect.

Summary

I like what I see so far. The Hatsan 85 is powerful, but not raw as so many super-powered springs are these days. The power is good for hunting and the trigger is light and crisp. Let’s just hope the accuracy is there, too.

by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

Part 1

This report covers:

• It was a great show!
• Some of the guns I saw at the show
• Seriously though
• Not for sale
• Demonstrations
• Air Bolt
• Robin Hood
• An interesting find
• Will there be another show?

It was a great show!

I sold more airguns at this show than at any other I have attended. Besides that I met a lot of readers who came up and shook my hand. That is so nice, because it tells me who I’m reaching.

I had my latest book for sale on the table and it looks like I sold about 20 of them. I wanted to have coffee cups, hats and tee-shirts, but I’m updating my Godfather logo so it will be right when I sell them. Next year for sure.

The bottom line was — I had a great show! So did every dealer I talked to. Larry Hannusch told me he sold more guns than he normally does and Sun Optics actually sold out of several items. I know AirForce Airguns was doing a brisk business on the tables behind me, and Dennis Quackenbush, who usually only brings guns for people who have ordered them actually had guns for sale this time! He told me after the show he sold several of them.

The two Quackenbush pistols on top are .58 caliber big bores. They generate 170 foot-pounds at the muzzle! On the bottom is a .25 caliber pistol. Some of these might have left the show with Dennis!

The thing is — there was a lot of money at this show. People weren’t as tight-fisted as they usually are. I had two guys who didn’t do a deal with me at the show, but were still in touch for days afterward. One of them I steered to Pyramyd Air, because what he really wants is a new pellet rifle. We both thought the Walther Terrus in .22 caliber would be ideal for him. And I am still talking to the other gentleman who hopes to meet with me this weekend to seal the deal on one of my rifles. I still have two potential purchase deals going. So, the show’s not over yet.

Some of the guns I saw at the show

I told you about some of the airguns I saw in Part 1. Today I’d like to look at some others. Dennis Quackenbush brought around a Gangsta pistol for everyone to gawk at. It has sights on the right side of the slide because that’s how the hoods hold them in the movies.

Dennis Quackenbush shared this gangsta gun with us.

Seriously, though

Okay, that gun was a joke. But the next ones were anything but. My brother-in-law, Bob, told me about an Anschütz rifle he had seen in another row. It was across the room and with the crowd it took me a while to get over there, but from his description I guessed it was a field target gun and it was.

Right next to it was a sharp-looking Walther LGR single stroke target rifle. I didn’t ask if it was sealed because I didn’t want to hear that it was. I was trying to hold out for that mega deal you hear about. I already told you I was in turmoil over two guns on Larry Hannusch’s table and I was hoping beyond hope that a Sheridan Supergrade would walk in the door. There was one at the show, but apparently is was not for sale.

Sitting next to the LGR was an FWB 150 Tyrolean. Now, the 300 Tyroleans are scarce, but this was the first 150 Tyro I have seen. Next to it was a Park HR93 recoilless pellet rifle. Besides being collectible, the neat thing about a Park is the fact that it is cocked by a chain and not by a conventional cocking link.

That’s an FWB 150 Tyrolean in the center. Both rifles are rare. The rifle on the left looks like a Daisy 753. Don’t know what the one on the left is. Is it the Park?

Not for sale

There were some guns on display that couldn’t be bought. One gentleman had a rack of ancient BB guns with their original prices posted. I saw several people stop and look at it — probably because I was standing there for a long time, myself!

They are beautiful, but not for sale. This educational exhibit drew a lot of attention.

Demonstrations

One feature this show offered were public demonstrations of various airgun events and even the guns, themselves. John McCaslin of AirForce spent the entire show on the range demonstrating the Texan and Condor rifles, and letting anyone shoot. I heard some club members who hadn’t known about big bore airguns before this day (thought they were talking about punkin’ chunkin’) quoting the specs of the Texan’s bullet weight and velocity. Many sets of eyes were opened this day!

The club also put on demonstrations of field target, benchrest and airgun silhouette for the public. That was one prime reason they wanted to hold the show — to introduce these airgun sports to as many shooters as possible. Well, that goal was achieved! Once they started the demos they never left the range all day, as hundreds of interested shooters cycled through.

Air Bolt

I demonstrated the Air Venturi Air Bolt system to the public. As mentioned in yesterday’s blog, I mistakenly placed the arrow stop at 35 yards instead of 25 yards, so my shots went low. Once I figured that out, though, all my arrows went straight to the kill zone. No less than 6 other shooters and I put 7 arrows into 3 inches in the kill zone from an offhand rested position with that new hunting revolution.

Robin Hood

Then Rossi Morreale and I filmed a segment for American Airgunner, in which he shot the Air Bolt. He told me that he had previously shot the arrow through a lightweight backstop and then through both sides of a commercial van! When I get back to my review of the Air Bolt I will stress the need for the strongest possible arrow stop you can buy. Mine is rated to 400 f.p.,s. and works with field points, but even it cannot stop the arrows when broadheads are attached!

After I left the ranges, I left the Air Bolts and my air tank with Rossi, who wanted to sight in his Dragon Claw for a pig hunt Jim Chapman was taking him on the next day. I have heard that he did get his pig, so that part was a success.

When he returned the arrows to me. one had been destroyed by a Robin Hood, in which one arrow hits the tail of another. So, that question has now been officially laid to rest!

A Robin Hood. Arrow on top hit the tail of the arrow on the bottom and scraped off its tailpiece and o-ring. Notice the o-ring has slid along the entire arrow and come to rest in the fletching! It doesn’t get center-er than that!

An interesting find!

Before the show, Rick Ward emailed me with an interesting find. He bought an airgun collection that included a Parris BB gun in a Lucky McDaniel box. I blogged Lucky McDaniel and showed you the special Daisy set he had made for his training. This air rifle, though, was something different — something even earlier.

Before Lucky went to Daisy to make his trainer — the one the U.S. Army adopted for their Quick Kill training and Daisy later brought out as Quick Skill — he used Parris BB guns. I have heard of them and I have seen a Parris gun that sported a Lucky McDaniel sticker, but this was the first Lucky gun in a Parris box I had ever seen. Collector Larry Hannusch agreed that the box was the collectible, rather than the gun.

This gun has sights, which Lucky had removed from his Daisy trainer, but the box has a label showing Lucky holding the same Parris BB gun and it has sights! I learned something from this rare box!

An early Parris Lucky McDaniel instinct shooting trainer was found by Rick Ward.

The gun is a common Parris gun, but the box establishes it as a Lucky trainer! That’s cool. Sometimes you learn important things at an airgun show, but you’ll never know unless you attend.

Will there be another show?

At the end of the day I asked the Arlington Sportsman Club show management how they felt things went. To say they were impressed would be conservative. They now know how great an attraction a show like this can be, and they realize it’s only going to grow from here.

If they hold another show next year they will need a large tent to house some of the dealers. I know some dealers did not rent tables because they wanted to wait and see if this show would be a success. Well, they missed a crowd with money who came to buy airguns! Those with tables know how good it was. Next year I expect the show to double in size — both in dealers and also in public attendance. Maybe we cvan remove the table imitation (two per dealer — max) and they will have even more room to spread out.

Justin Biddle of Umarex USA was out on the range all day, and he told me he plans to get a Texas sales tax permit to sell airguns at the show next time. Anyone who saw the business AirForce Airguns did probably wants to do the same. Making several thousand dollars in sales is no big deal when you sell to the box stores, but it doies pay your expenses. And seeing the enthusiasm of the crowd just makes you want to satisfy them.

If there is a show in 2017, I strongly recommend you try to attend. Besides simply buying airguns, this show is a detailed education in the hobby. The people you get to talk to and the things you get to see will stay with you for the rest of your life.

by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

Air Venturi Air Bolts turn a .50 caliber big bore into an air bow.

Part 1

This report covers:

• Power!
• Broadheads
• Velocity
• Accuracy
• Penetration
• More to come

Today we take our second look at the Air Bolt from Air Venturi. I may not have written much about it, but I have been demonstrating it to the public and shooting it much more, since the last report. Today’s look will be comprehensive, because I’m writing a feature article for Firearm News. This will be the material gathered from that testing.

Go back and read Part 1 to learn more about the Air Bolt. It’s an air bow system that you can own without buying a separate arrow launcher. If you already own certain .50 caliber big bores like the Sam Yang Dragon Claw 500cc rifle and the Wing Shot air shotgun, all you need are the arrows, or bolts as they are properly called. Instead of spending $900, you spend $120 for 6 bolts and you’re in business. And that’s not all!

Power!

The Air Bolt is powerful! Where a Benjamin Pioneer air bow launches a 375-grain arrow at up to 450 f.p.s., the Air Bolt pushes a 430-grain bolt at 500 f.p.s. Not that you need that much power, because the Pioneer is already much more powerful than any crossbow commonly available. The best crossbows are topping out at around 425 f.p.s. with lighter bolts, so either of these air bows trump them right now. But the Air Bolt is fastest and is even more powerful than the Pioneer, which means flatter shooting over longer distance.

I’m not going to just quote numbers from a website. I have actual data to show. First, let’s look at the weight of the bolt with a standard target tip.

An Air Bolt with a target tip weighs 429.9 grains. That’s pretty close to 430!

Broadheads

But wait, say the archers. These are target tips that aren’t meant for game. Won’t a hunting broadhead add a lot more weight to the bolt?

Actually, no. I bought 4 broadheads to test on the bolts and they weigh 100 grains, nominally. They have mechanical blades that are pointed forward and open as the arrow penetrates the target. That allows them to partially fit in the muzzle of the rifle. They cut a swath 1.5 inches wide as they penetrate, creating huge blood loss. Best of all, they weigh just a couple grains more than the target points.

An Air Bolt with a broadhead weighs just 3 grains more than a target tip!

I bought Matthews Grim Reaper broadheads, and a pack of 4 was just $30. These are vicious tips that fly with their blades folded forward and open like switchblades when they contact the target. They cut in 3 directions with razor-sharp blades that you had best respect when loading! Remember — the Air Bolt is loaded from the muzzle! I will discuss loading the broadheads later.

These broadhead points have 3 razor-sharp blades pointed forward that fold out and back when the arrow penetrates a target. They cut a swath 1.5 inches wide for maximum blood loss.

Ouch! Three razor-sharp blades deploy as the broadhead penetrates the target.

Velocity

Let’s get serious. You know how much the arrows weigh, now let’s look at velocity when fired on high power, which is the Dragon Claw bolt pulled all the way back. This first string is fired with all target tips, from a fill to 3000 psi.

Shot…………………………..Velocity (f.p.s.)
1……………………………………492
2……………………………………465
3……………………………………474
4……………………………………482
5……………………………………467
6……………………………………479
7……………………………………454

I stopped after the seventh shot — not because the velocity was too low but because I wanted to test other things. However, in the field I would limit my shots to 5 per fill, just to be safe. This is still a big bore air rifle and even though it does get a lot of shots per fill there is no reason top abuse that. It affects accuracy, as I will now show.

I refilled the rifle to shoot again and noted that 7 shots had dropped the reservoir pressure from 3,000 psi to about 2,300 psi. That is a rough estimate because the day was so bright that reading the gauge was difficult.

Accuracy

I shot at 35 yards using the red dot sight that is sighted-in. I sighted-in at 25 yards, so I know the arrow will drop about 6 inches in the additional 10 yards. It becomes a simple task to aim over the desired point of impact. Let me show you.

First shot from 35 yards using the top of the dartboard (at the number 20) as the aim point.

As you see, the first shot hit close to the center of the target. But what is just as important is where shot number 2 hits. Let’s see.

Shot number 2 from 35 yards using the same aim point landed less than an inch from shot one.

Now we see that the first two shots hit pretty close to each other. So I continued shooting.

Shot number 3 was close to the first 2, then the group started opening. Shot number 5 is the one that’s up and to the right. The first 4 would have all struck the heart/lung area of a deer. The first three would have gone almost exactly where they were aimed.

Penetration

Here is something I have heard from a lot of air bow users. The arrows penetrate the targets so deep that they get ruined upon extraction. And when I used an excelsior bale to stop a Stealth arrow launcher, that was true. I have seen those flimsy 12-inch thick arrow bags that are built for sub-300 f.p.s. bows that don’t work, either.

But I bought the baddest arrow stop my local archery store had. It’s a 19-inch cube that’s rated to stop arrows going 400 f.p.s. It was only $71, and because I am going to be testing other air bows in the future, it was a business expense.

My arrow stop stops the Air Bolts with target points in about 13 inches of penetration. Let’s look.

I grabbed the arrow where it stuck out of the bag and pulled it straight out. What’s in front of my hand is how much arrow was in the bag.

More to come

I’m going to stop her, but there is a lot more to come. I’ll show you the performance of the broadhead in the bag, plus give you its velocity. I’ll talk about some practical issues of owning and using air bows. I’ll also tell you about the benefits and drawbacks of owning a crossbow. And I will try to address any questions you may have in the interim.

by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

Part 1

This report covers:

• Gifts for $25 and under
• Gifts for $100 and under
• Gifts for $250 and under
• Gifts with no price limit

This guide is to help those who must find Christmas gifts for airgunners. Of course you should check with your airgunner to make sure each gift you select is one they want or can use.

This is the second part of the 2016 gift guide. Be sure to click on the link to Part 1 to see additional gift suggestions.

Gifts for $25 and under

These are the stocking stuffer gifts. Some are considerably less than $25, so check them all.

1. The first recommendation is a jar of JB Non-Embedding Bore Cleaning Compound. This is for cleaning airgun barrels, and your airgunner will need bore brushes to go with it. These are items he probably already has, but check with him before you buy this item. The bore brushes might give you a couple gifts that are related, and I will list them for you next.

2. Bore brushes. These are purchased by caliber, so I am giving you the links to each of the 4 smallbore calibers. Choose what your airgunner needs.

177 bore brushes

Pyramyd Air does not stock 20-caliber bore brushes. Buy them here.

22 bore brushes.

25 bore brushes.

I’ve recommended brass or bronze bristle brushes. If your airgunner tells you they will damage his bore, tell him that’s true only for barrels made of brass or bronze, and those never need to be cleaned. Steel barrels will not be damaged by these brushes, and they are perfect for use with JB Bore Paste.

If you are shocked that I sent you to Brownells for the .20 caliber brushes that Pyramyd Air does not stock, remember the movie, Miracle on 34th Street, and pretend I am Santa Claus.

3. Crosman Pellgunoil. This is another necessary product that your airgunner probably won’t buy for himself. It is used mainly for sealing CO2 airguns, but it’s also useful for lubricating/sealing multi-pumps and single-strokes.

4. An item I recommend every year is the Air Venturi Fly Shooter. So much fun for so little money! If Pyramyd Air carried the Bug-A-Salt, I would recommend that, too.

Gifts for $100 and under

1. I have to recommend a Daisy Red Ryder to keep my U.S. citizenship in order. But this year I’m recommending a special one — the Lasso Scoped BB Rifle. No, it’s not a rifle. I know it’s a BB gun. That’s just the name. You get a Red Ryder and a Lasso scope base with a Daisy 4X15 scope. That’s a lot of value for the price, plus you can remove the scope and have a standard Red Ryder anytime you want.

2. The MTM Predator shooting table is another great gift. Because it isn’t an airgun, your shooter probably won’t have one, though he needs one! End his days of balancing on your ironing board or that rickety card table and give him a shooting table that really works. BB uses one!

3. Okay, the Crosman 2100B air rifle IS an airgun, and if your shooter doesn’t have one already, it’s one he needs. This one shoots both BBs and pellets, and it was the base gun I used when I developed the $100 PCP with Dennis Quackenbush a few years back. Those who own them know this rifle is a great value!

4. I hadn’t planned to recommend the Umarex M712 Full-Auto BB Pistol in this category, but Pyramyd Air has a sale and it’s just under $100 right now. This one is fun! This is the kind of airgun you bring to a family outing and everybody is blown away by what it can do. If your shooter likes full auto guns, give him one of these.

Gifts for $250 and under

1. I mentioned the $100 PCP, so how about the Benjamin Maximus — the airgun Crosman made after they read that report? This is the least expensive precharged air rifle on the market, yet is has a lot of the accuracy and the quality shooters have come to expect. If you get one, you might consider getting a hand pump to go with it.

2. I recommend the Air Venturi G6 Hand Pump to go with the Maximus. Yes, it costs about the same as the rifle, but this is a tool that can be used with any and all PCP airguns. I’m recommending this one both because it is rugged and goes up to 4,500 psi, and also because it is rebuildable by the user.

Speaking of rebuilds, if you would like to save some money, there are a few refurbished G6 Hand Pumps available as this guide is written, Since the pump is rebuildable, they should be good as new.

3. If your shooter owns a .50 caliber big bore air rifle with a barrel that’s 21.5 inches long, or if he owns an Air Venturi Wing Shot air shotgun, I strongly recommend getting him the package of Air Venturi Air Bolts.

4. My last recommendation in this category is the Benjamin 392 air rifle. This is a multi-pump pneumatic that is descended from American airgun royalty. It’s still made of brass and wood the same way they were over a century ago. Who knows how much longer that will be true? If your shooter doesn’t want the .22 caliber model for some reason there is always the .177 caliber Benjamin 397. Same rifle; different caliber.

Gifts with no price limit

Now we come to the big toys. Here I suspend all the limits. These are the gifts shooters want when they win the lottery. If he has been a special good boy this year, these are his rewards.

1. I will start with an air rifle that is fast becoming a favorite of mine, Diana’s K98 air rifle. This one is large and in charge. It’s a lookalike, and an accurate spring rifle and it could also be considered a military trainer, though no military uses it that way. But a collector might like to have one, all the same.

2. It is a little pricy, but the Benjamin Woods Walker air pistol is a lot of value in an air pistol. You get the Marauder trigger and quiet performance in a powerful air pistol that can clip dandelion heads at 20 yards. If your shooter likes air pistols, this is probably on his short list.

3. Does your airgunner shoot precharged guns? If so he needs a 98 cubic foot carbon fiber air tank. Yes, this tank is 10 cubic feet larger than most carbon fiber tanks, so of course it holds more air. Make sure your airgunner can use this tank before you purchase one.

4. My final recommendation is an Air Arms Galahad Carbine FAC with walnut stock. I haven’t tested this one yet, but it’s on my to-do-soon list. Since this is made by Air Arms I have no qualms about recommending it. Yes, it’s very costly, but your airgunner will probably never stop thanking you for it! And the Galahad does come in rifle lengths, if he wants something slightly different.

by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

• What’s coming
• Let’s get started
• MP 40
• Remington 1875
• Benjamin Wildfire
• Umarex ARX ammo
• Umarex Hammer
• Umarex Gauntlet
• A shrouded Texan?
• Other new things

Well, it’s that time again. Here I am at the 2017 SHOT Show in Las Vegas. This year will be the biggest one yet for new airguns. And when I say new, I mean really new designs. I’m not interested in a re-skinned gun that’s had other names in the past. There is so much stuff that is really new this year that everything else will get shoved to the rear.

What’s coming

Yesterday I was on the range with Sig and today I am out at Industry Day at the Range. That’s an event that allows gun writers to try out various new products at a gun range. Actually, it’s more than 50 ranges, all lined up, one after another, in a line that’s about a third of a mile long! A few years ago they started putting ranges on the other side of the walkway, for guns that don’t shoot as far — like shotguns and airguns.

Crosman used the only airgun company that was consistently at Industry Day, with AirForce Airguns coming out a time or two. This year, though Crosman is not there. Gamo is there with BSA, and maybe they also brought Daisy with them, now that they own them. Umarex USA will also be there, which will give me the opportunity to try a couple novel new things I plan to tell you about both today and again tomorrow — hopefully after I have shot them.

Let’s get started

Let’s jump in with some new things that are so hot they just won’t wait for me to see them at the show. I’ll begin with a couple new replicas.

MP 40

MP stands for Maschinenpistole, which is German for submachine gun. As a firearm, the MP 40 is a 9mm Parabellum (Luger) subgun that’s a modernized version of the MP 38. It’s an effective close-combat weapon that was cheaper to produce than the earlier MP 38, because stamped parts were used in place of machined parts. In that respect the MP 40 is like our American M3 “grease gun,” except the M3 comes in a larger caliber and has a much slower rate of fire. The MP 40, firing the smaller, lighter ammo, is easier to control and was a mainstay of many armies from WW II right up through Vietnam and even later.

This is an MP 40 firearm. The BB gun looks similar.

This year Umarex USA is bringing out a CO2-powered 60-shot BB-firing version of the gun. If it’s anything like the M712 Mauser machine pistol they gave us two years ago, we’re in for a treat. I’ll try to give you more info as it comes my way.

Remington 1875

Everyone is familiar with the profile of the Colt Single Action Army revolver, but a similar handgun was made by Remington. There were two main variations — models 1875 and 1890. This year, we will see the 1875 in BB gun form. Obviously powered by CO2, this gun may look something like a Colt, but the lockwork is entirely different. Crosman will be bringing it out later this year, and I hope to have photos for you this week. The gun is smoothbore, but will also shoot pellets, just like the Colt BB guns.

Fellows, prepare your wives! This will be a year of fine new replicas!

Benjamin Wildfire

I don’t think Crosman took the name Wildfire from the male ostrich in the movie Tremors II, but you never know! The Benjamin Wildfire is a pneumatic version of the famous 12-shot 1077 repeating pellet rifle. Crosman calls it semiautomatic, but the mechanism is a double-action-only revolver. That’s why the trigger pull is so long and heavy — it has to both cock the striker and advance the 12-shot revolving clip to the next pellet. With use it becomes smoother.

Benjamin’s Wildfire is essentially a Crosman 1077 running on compressed air. It dawned on me that this could be the $100 PCP!

Umarex ARX ammo

Umarex is bringing out a new hunting bullet called the ARX. These are a polymer/copper matrix in a plastic bore-sized sleeve or sabot, and are also suitable for muzzleloading rifles. I don’t know the calibers they offer yet, but I presume they are for the new .50 caliber Hammer rifle and others. They are designed for maximum expansion in game at lower velocities. Of course I will test them for you when I get some. These will be expensive, but they promise to deliver maximum performance for hunters.

Umarex ARX bullets promise revolutionary performance in game.

Umarex Hammer

I got a call from Umarex representative, Steve Lamboy, last week, He told me about the new Umarex Hammer. The Hammer is a .50 caliber big bore that Umarex claims will deliver 700 foot-pounds at the muzzle. Not only that — it’s a 3-shot repeater. Not only that — it will retail for $650! And, with sabotted ammo, you will be able to shoot several calibers from the same gun. I’m thinking the ARX, though that was not specifically mentioned. I am hopefully shooting this one as you read this, today at the Media Day range! If everything I was told bears out, and of course if it is accurate, the Hammer will raise the bar for big bore airguns.

Umarex Gauntlet

This could be the big deal of the day. No, make that the year. The Gauntlet is a 10-shot repeating PCP from Umarex that comes with a shrouded barrel and a regulator. None of those features is new, but they have never been offered in a $300 package before!

Umarex Gauntlet is a budget-priced repeating PCP with great features.

The Gauntlet comes in .177 and .22 calibers. They are saying it gets up to 70 shots in .177 and 60 in .22. If it is accurate, it will have a major impact on the airgun market this year. This rifle, coupled with several new air compressors, will be the big news for the year.

A shrouded Texan?

Anyone who has visited the Lone Star state knows how hard it is to keep Texans quiet. But this year, AirForce Airguns does just that with their new TexanSS. This novel big bore already leads the market; what will a quiet one do? It’s interesting they have done this just as the United States is moving toward legalizing silencers for all firearms in a modification of the National Firearms Act of 1934 (NFA). Pictures to follow.

Other new things

There are several new air compressors for airgunners this year. Air Venturi has a stout one that fills to 4,500 psi quickly, and AirForce Airguns will have a model of their own later in the year. I have the one from Air Venturi right now and you can anticipate a full report will start soon.

Air Venturi’s new compressor goes to 4,500 psi quickly and shuts off automatically.

My head is bursting with all the other new things I know about. This SHOT will be the biggest one yet for airguns.

by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

Part 1

• What I saw at Sig
• What I didn’t see
• Bucket list
• Industry Day at the Range
• Gauntlet
• Havox
• Gamo Swarm Maxim
• Coyote Urban
• There is more

Inn this report I will cover airguns I saw at Sig Range Day on Sunday, Jan. 15 and at Media Day at the Range on Monday, Jan. 16.

What I saw at Sig

Sig has been breaking into airguns over the past several years. This year they brought out the Max Michel 1911 that I tested for you back in November and December, plus they have now added the Sig P320 ASP pellet pistol. The 320 is unique in 2 ways. First, it has a 30-shot belt-fed magazine, so there are lots of shots on board. We haven’t seen a pistol with a belt-fed mag since Anics walked off the scene, years ago. This one is very slim, too.

The other nice feature is the trigger pull. Though it is a long pull, it is 2-stage and incredibly light. Yours truly was able to nail targets with this gun at respectable distances.

The 320 ASP is a 30-shot pellet pistol that’s new from Sig.

They also showed the new 1911 Spartan BB pistol. It has a rugged look that 1911 fans will like, if they don’t want all the embellishments found on the Max Michel race gun.

Sig’s new M1911 Spartan BB pistol.

What I didn’t see

Sig has a spring rifle in development, but it wasn’t ready for this show. It’s a clean-sheet-of-paper creation that should have some surprises, but not at this SHOT. In its place I saw something else that is remarkable. How about an American-made 9mm Sig P210 pistol? The P210 is one of the all-time classics, but carries a hefty retail price tag, its the stuff of dreams. Until now. Sig is now making the P210 in the U.S., and it will retail for just $1,650. I say “just” because you could spend close to a grand more for the German-made gun.

This Sig P210 9mm pistol is made in America!

Bucket list

I got to shoot it against steel reactive targets and I’m darned if I didn’t hit most of them. That was the Sig, not me. This Americanized gun has both an American mag release and safety. Scratch that one off the bucket list!

Industry Day at the Range

There were two disappointments at Industry Day. First, Crosman wasn’t there and I didn’t get to try the new Wildfire. Oh, well! I’m guessing it shoots just like a 1077, but with a little more oomph.

The other one was THE UMAREX HAMMER WASN’T THERE! I so looked forward to trying this 700 foot-pound big bore out, but that will have to wait, as well. Now let’s take a look at what was there.

Gauntlet

You read about the Gauntlet yesterday. I shot it today. There’s a lot of value packed into this $300 precharged repeater. From what I see it’s accurate, quiet (though I was shooting in a war zone, and the discharge sound of a silenced pellet gun is difficult to gauge), has a 10-shot rotary magazine and a decent trigger. Are there things to complain about? I’m sure there are — so the Gauntlet will have something for everyone!

One thing surprised me, though. The Gauntlet has an adjustable cheekpiece that operates via a thumbwheel in the stock. It is as if the leprechauns at Umarex sat down and asked what features airgunners wanted, then decided to give them everything at a stunningly low price.

I shot the Gauntlet. You’re going to like it.

Havox

But I had instructions to look at some pellets — the Havox. These all-copper pellets are fashioned on a medical screw machine — precision equipment used to make medical stents. The cuts are made with micro fine saws. Two things result from that. First, you get a pellet that penetrates then expends all its energy inside the game. I have seen the pictures and a video — it’s devastating. Second — they are expensive. I was told $12.99 to 14.99 for 25 pellets, depending on the caliber. Yes that is a lot of money, but this pellet delivers performance that airgun hunters need. Big game hunters in Africa often pay twice that much for a single round! So, if you really want that woodchuck out of the garden, wreak some Havox on him!

They come in .177, .22 and .25. The .177 weighs 7 grains. The .22 goes 13.9 grains and the .25 gets to 20 grains. So, normal pellet weights on the light side, which means faster velocity.

Havox pellets with a .22 after impact. Think broadheads for pellet rifles.

Those weren’t the only projectiles I saw, either. The ARX bullets were there, as well. And the mystery is solved — they are all .50 caliber for the Hammer — an airgun Umarex promises me they have, but were not able to produce at the Media Day range. These bullets are a copper/polymer blend and come in synthetic sabots.

The ARX bullets are all .50 caliber and sabotted. From the left — .357, .40, .45 and .50.

Gamo Swarm Maxim

At the Gamo booth Rick Eutsler showed me the Swarm Maxim breakbarrel rifle — a gas spring that I swear cocks with less than 25 lbs. of effort — despite producing over 16 foot-pounds in .22 caliber. And that isn’t its claim to fame. The Swarm is a 10-shot repeater. Now, Gamo has made pellet repeaters before. The Expomatic was one, if memory serves. Butt the Swarm has an all-new mechanism that seats each pellet into the barrel positively. It’s a complex mechanism, bit I saw it work and I think it is the first repeating breakbarrel I would trust.

Gamo’s Swarm Maxim comes in .177 and .22. It’s a 10-shot repeating breakbarrel.

I found the Gamo Swarm Maxim to be a light repeater that’s accurate and fun.

Even if it wasn’t a repeater I’d like this one because it’s so light and easy to cock. Can’t wait to test one.

Coyote Urban

The other rifle Rick showed me was the new Gamo Coyote Urban — a PCP with a synthetic stock that has lost 2 pounds in the process from the wood-stocked version! I guesstimated its weight at 7 lbs. or a trifle more with a scope. This rifle is a 10-shot repeater with a circular magazine, a nice trigger and a shrouded barrel. It comes in .22 caliber, only, and it putting 23 foot-pounds out the spout.

Gamo Coyote Urban

All that goes out the door for just $400. Thanks to rifles like this and the Gauntlet, the days of the PCP have arrived.

There is more

Of course there is more — this is the SHOT Show! But I want all of you to0 bear in mind that SHOT is a trade show — not a public unveiling. Some of the products you have seen and will be seeing are still in development and may not be avail;able until late in the year, if then. This is industry talking to its retailers — giving them a heads-up and also gauging their reactions. An olde English saying goes, “There’s many a slip twixt the cup and the lip.” And that goes for trade shows, as well.

by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

Part 1
Part 2

• Air Venturi
• Lil Duke
• New Air Bolts
• Hatsan
• Semiautomatics
• Big Bore Carnivore
• Sun Optics compressor
• The year of the airgun

Air Venturi

This was the first actual day of the SHOT Show, and the crowd was excited! I stopped at the Air Venturi booth first, so let’s see what’s there.

Lil Duke

First up was the Lil’ Duke BB gun. As you can see, it’s styled after the model 92 Winchester John Wayne carried in a number of his most famous movies, including True Grit. This is the one he fills his hand with.

The Lil Duke is bound to become a favorite.

The John Wayne airguns have been quite successful for Air Venturi. They had a second booth upstairs this year where they showed a number of their other John Wayne handguns, including a 1911 that Wayne probably carried in the Sands of Iwo Jima!

John Wayne 1911 looks liken he just took it out of its holster.

New Air Bolts

Air Venturi is launching their successful Air Bolts in .25 and .357 calibers. Tyler Patner told me he shot three .357 Air Bolts into about an inch at 30 yards from a Benjamin Bulldog. And they develop almost 200 foot-pounds, which is more than the bullets develop!

Paul Milkovich at Air Venturi was proud to show me their new line of Kral PCPs. While the Kral springers aren’t much to talk about, the new pneumatics are apparently quite the bargain. Paul told me Tyler has spent considerable time testing them and for the price he is very impressed. At the $500 and slightly higher range, I know they will give the Russian bullpups that cost double a run for the money! I hope to test one for you soon.

Kral bullpups come in synthetic and wood.

Paul Milkovich holds the new Kral PCP rifle. It looks like an expensive European rifle, but sells for half or less.

Hatsan

Next, I trundled over to the Hatsan USA booth and Daniel Settle talked me through their new products. The first news is they are now shipping the .45 caliber Hercules PCPs I showed you last year. And, there is an exciting new .45-caliber bullet (they call it a pellet) soon to come out for it. It’s what is known to Cowboy Action Shooters as a collar button style, and they are finalizing the details on it now.

Hatsan’s new .45 caliber bullet for the Hercules should be available soon.

Semiautomatics

The big news at Hatsan is the new semiautomatic rifles they are bringing out this year. The Barrage is the rifle length and the Bullmaster is the bullpup. Both come in .177 and .22 calibers and both have the same barrels lengths, so expect the same power, which in .22 runs around 30 foot-pounds at the muzzle. They hold 14 shots in .177 and 12 in .22 and the mag is spring-loaded to jump to the next pellet. They come with 3 magazines, two of which are carried in the stock. They aren’t regulated, but do get 50-60 shots per charge, which on a semiautomatic will mean you need lots of pellets.

Hatsan Barrage (top) and Bullmaster are semiautomatics! They are 100 percent mechanical, so no worries about batteries and motors.

Big Bore Carnivore

Hatsan is still the only maker of big bore spring piston airguns in the world, and this year they added a model 130 with synthetic stock and lighter weight to compliment their 135 that came out in 2016. I still have not tested any .30 caliber breakbarrel, but it’s on my to-do list!

Hatsan Big Bore Carnivore 135 (top) is joined this year by the lighter model 130.

I went to more places than I’m going to show you today, but don’t fret. There are still several more reports to come. Right now I want to show you one of the most innovative things I saw at this show, and it isn’t an airgun.

I told you in the beginning of this series of reports that 2017 is a big year for PCPs. If I didn’t tell you I meant to The reason for that is twofold — the new guns and the new compressors. We’ve seen many of the new guns that will influence the market like the gauntlet and the Wildfire, but so far we have only seen one of the new compressors — the one Air Venturi is bringing out. And by the way, the retail number on that one is $1299.

Now let’s look at a second compressor. This one is being sold by Sun Optics, but they tell me they haven’t decided whether they will sell it direct or not. I suppose that depends on whether or not they book a lot of customers who want to sell lots of them under their house name. Don’t fret, you will be able to buy this one soon.

Sun Optics compressor

This compressor runs on both 12 volt DC (auto) and 110 volt AC electricity. It has a 24-volt DC motor and two power converters to handle the incoming current. It’s about the size of a box of shoes, but longer, as you will see. And it has user-settable power shutoff for zero to (they say) 4.500 psi. Extensive testing to 3,600 psi has already been done.

Sun Optics compressor is small and runs on both household current and a car battery.

I told Sun Optics owner, Duane Sorenson, I wanted to hear it run, and a minute later he said to me, “See how quiet it is?” I was astounded, because I didn’t think it was running! Yes, the SHOT Show is a loud trade show, but we were having a conversation in normal speaking voices. I had to lay my hand on the box to feel the slight vibration as it did its job.

I then asked if it dried the air and Sorenson removed the huge canister of desiccant. He told me that in the five years he has been developing this compressor he’s learned that moisture is the number one enemy of long life, with heat buildup being a close second. So I laid my hand on the outside of the motor and it was room temperature. Sorenson says it never heats beyond that.

The water filter cartridge is the size of a can of soda. The compressor is running when this shot was taken.

I plan to test one of these compressors for you. I want to know how good they are myself. Sorenson has tested his mule for hundreds of hours and it appears to be very robust. This is the sort of thing that can make the pneumatic airgun take center stage.

The year of the airgun

I have seen a lot more than you are reading about today, but that’s for another report. Suffice to say, 2017 is the year of the airgun!

by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5

• Umarex USA
• The Hammer
• .50 caliber
• Repeater
• 4500 psi
• Absolute zero
• Second Zero
• MP 40 BB gun
• Umarex Forge
• Trevox and Strike Point
• Optical Dynamics flashlights
• Still not finished

Before we begin I want to tell you about a blog series I will start this week. I have the new Air Venturi air compressor on hand and I used it for the first time yesterday. It works so well that I’m jumping the line to get the report started. You can expect to start reading about it this week.

The 2017 SHOT Show was the biggest show I have ever experienced for airguns. Some manufacturers like Crosman and Umarex brought out many new gun models and related products that are really different. Others brought out only one of two items, like the Gamo Swarm Maxim, but they are so significantly different that they deserve to be recognized. My work is cut out for me this year!

Now let’s get into today’s report. I’ll begin with Umarex USA.

Umarex USA

I already showed you the Umarex Gauntlet that I shot on Media Day. At $300 for a regulated 10-shot repeating PCP, this rifle will be a killer in the market. Based on the Chinese QB CO2 rifle that is in turn a copy of Crosman’s iconic 160, the Gauntlet is going to open up the market for precharged guns. But we have seen that — what else is new from Umarex USA?

The Hammer

What, indeed! The new Umarex Hammer .50 caliber big bore is reported to get 700 foot-pounds of energy at the muzzle that will make it the most powerful big bore when it does get into production. I got the full details on the Hammer from Umarex USA marketing manager, Justin Biddle, and, with thanks to him I’m now going to share them with you.

Umarex Hammer.

.50 caliber

I was told that the Hammer barrel is based on the .50 caliber Browning Machine Gun (BMG) barrel and that it is a true .50 caliber. That will present no problem, because a .50 BMG bullet is actually 0.511-inches in diameter. That’s close to a standard size for cast rifle bullets. Fifty caliber cast rifle bullets run either 0.495-inches for round balls or 0.510 to 0.512-inches for lead conicals.

The reason I mention this is because I was told that the 700 foot-pound figure came from shooting a 500-grain cast lead bullet. If shooters want to get that kind of power they will have to use the same bullet Umarex used, or one of similar weight. I feel that Umarex will have to offer a bullet of that weight when the rifle comes out.

Biddle also told me they are looking at trimming a few inches off the barrel length, as the Hammer they displayed at SHOT is very long. When you cut down a PCP barrel you loose velocity, so they will have to be careful if they still want to make the power claim.

Repeater

The Hammer is a three-shot repeater that uses a true harmonica clip. Harmonica clips pass through the receiver from one side to the other or from the top to the bottom. When they get to the end of their travel, they either stop or they fall out. At the SHOT Show, the clip was falling out at the end of its travel, so I’m sure they will refine that to keep it on the receiver.

The Hammer has a 3-round harmonica clip that slides from left to right through the receiver.

The Hammer action is operated by a sliding forearm, and I am pleased to report that the effort needed to cycle the action and advance the clip is very small. This air rifle is quite slick already!

4500 psi

The Hammer operates on a fill to 4500 psi. That means that you get one fill to that level from an air tank. After the first fill, the pressure to which you can fill starts to decline. I’m told the rifle gets three powerful shots on a fill, and it has a regulator, so I’m told those three are all the same! I’ll have to test one, but this will be the biggest news in big bore airguns in a long time — even bigger than the power!.

Based on what I saw and was told I believe the Hammer won’t come out until later this year. There is still some development to be done before it is ready for the market, and Umarex USA won’t release it until it is. But when it does come out the world will have a powerful new big bore!

Absolute zero

This is a device that clamps to your barrel and allows you to sight in at 25 yards in just two shots. When you are finished you are sighted-in at 100 yards. It’s obviously for firearms, but there is no reason an airgunner shouldn’t be able to use it, as well. I will keep tabs on it for you.

At 25 yards put the two laser dots on two targets provided with the device, then fire a shot. Afterward, leaving the two dots on the targets, adjust the scope’s reticle to the bullet hole and you’re done! This picture was taken from a video in the booth.

I imagine that using the Absolute Zero on an airgun will give you a zero at a different distance than 100 yards. Once that distance is determined, the tool will be just as useful to airguns as it is for firearms.

Second Zero

How many times have you been hunting when you see a target at a range that’s different than your zero distance? If the difference is small, you can hold over or under to compensate, but what it’s large? Second Zero can fix that. It is a flip-up lens that optically adjusts your zero to a second specified distance. The one at the show was a 300-yard zero for a scope that was zeroed to 100 yards.

Second zero optically changes your zero distance.

The device attaches to either the scope’s objective bell or to the scope base on the rifle.It flips up (or down) for use and is stored out of the way at all other times. Custom zero distances can be provided by the manufacturer, but each lens has one specific correction at which it works.

MP 40 BB gun

I mentioned the Umarex MP 40 BB gun in Part 1, but I had to use a photo of a firearm to show you. Today I have the actual airgun.

The Umarex MP 40 BB gun.

It’s all-metal and seems very realistic. There is a selector switch for safe, semiautomatic and full-auto. And the stick mag holds 60 BB in line, just waiting for the trigger to be pulled. This will be a fun one to test.

Umarex Forge

You aren’t going to believe this one! The Umarex Forge is a breakbarrel rifle in a checkered wood stock that gets 1250 f.p.s. in .177b, using alloy pellets. Comes with open sights, 4X32 scope, gas piston, adjustable trigger, SilencAir sound suppression and retails for just $159!!! I plan on testing this one as soon as possible.

I was thrilled to see the Umarex Forge. If it’s accurate, they have a winner!

Octane Elite

The Octane spring rifle has done well in the past few years so Umarex wanted to keep it going. This year they introduced the new Octane Elite that now has their StopShox vibration damper. The news this year is they are holding the line on the price — at $249 with the StopShox.

Justin Biddle holds the new Umarex Octane Elite.

Trevox and Strike Point

Umarex brings out two new air pistols this year — one springer and one multi-pump. The Trevox is the springer that’s touted to get up to 800 f.p.s. with alloy pellets. The Strike Point is a multi-pump that looks like a 1377 (fightin’words, I know) and gets up to 650 f.p.s. in .177 with alloys. The Trevox comes in .177 and the Strike Point in both .177 and .22

Umarex Trevox promises rifle power in an air pistol.

Umarex Strike Point brings all the flexibility of a multi-pump

Optical Dynamics flashlights

And then there were the Optical Dynamics hunting flashlights. These are LED lights that will positively identify game at up to 200 yards for the OD 40 and 400 yards. for the OD 50. Designed to fit on your gun for nighttime target identification, they are bright beyond belief.

Justin Biddle holds the Optical Dynamics OD 50.

Still not finished

We have now seen a lot, but there is still more SHOT Show to come. Like I said in the beginning, 2017 is the year of the airgun. There will be at least oner more report.

by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

This report covers:

• You made me do it
• Air shotguns
• You don’t understand!
• BUT — it’s been done
• All-metal 760
• Summary

You made me do it

I should give credit for today’s short blog to you readers, because if it weren’t for your investigations into a more efficient insect killer this past weekend, I never would have written this report.

Air shotguns

You talked about an air-powered shotgun all weekend. Veteran readers are aware I have written about air shotguns many times in the past.

/blog/2015/06/air-shotguns/

and

/blog/2005/12/air-shotguns-part-5-the-yewha/

and

/blog/2005/11/two-more-air-shotguns-paul-and-vincent/

and

/blog/2005/10/air-shotguns-part-3-the-crosman-trapmaster-1100/

and

/blog/2005/10/air-shotguns-part-2-the-fire-201/

and

/blog/2005/10/air-shotguns-part-1-the-farco/

and we can’t forget my 3-part test of the Gamo Viper Express

/blog/2006/11/gamos-new-viper-express-air-shotgun-part-3/

or the 2-parter on the Air Venturi Wing Shot

/blog/2015/10/shooting-the-air-venturi-wing-shot-air-shotgun-part-2/

You don’t understand!

No, BB — we mean an air-powered shotgun that WE invented!
And that gun was the Crosman 760, using either coarse salt or birdshot. You were trying to do the Bug-A-Salt one better.

/blog/2015/07/the-bug-a-salt-2-0/

BUT — it’s been done

This is where a good library comes in handy. All the while you were writing your various experiments and results, I was thinking of Airgun Digest, first edition, in which the Crosman 760 is shown to also be an effective air shotgun. In 1976 Robert Beeman wrote about Jim Dougherty shooting his 760 loaded with multiple BBs.

He started with plastic cups at 10 feet, then stretched the distance out to 20 yards. He shot at cups until he knew what he was doing, then graduated to mice on the run. After that a rock pigeon was taken in flight and finally several jackrabbits!

He discovered that 6 steel BBs was the best pattern and 20 pumps (!!!) were best for taking birds and other game out to 20 yards. While I can’t recommend that many pumps, I also don’t know how worn out his gun was.

All-metal 760

Because it was written in 1976 and because the work he did happened even earlier, the 760 airgun Dougherty used was all metal with a wood stock. But hey — the car he drive probably needed a tuneup every 10,000 miles, too! Times change, but the things people find as fun last longer.

Summary

This is why I read. And why I stress the importance of a library.

It’s true Dougherty never shot salt or birdshot, but our readers have yet to take a bird in flight. So wake up guys — there is still plenty of old road to travel!

Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

Hatsan Sortie.

Part Two: The Hatsan Sortie PCP pistol

Part Three: The Hatsan Sortie PCP pistol

Part Four: The Hatsan Sortie PCP pistol

This report covers:

• What is it?
• Power
• Presentation is important
• Semiautomatic!
• Description
• Sights
• The action
• Silencer?
• Evaluation so far

Today I will do the impossible. It’s not perpetual motion and it’s not levitation. Today I will scoop myself! Today I will start a report on something I was hoping to surprise you with in Part 3 of the Texas Airgun Show next week.

I haven’t reported on all the dealers who were at the show yet, and Hatsan is one I planned to cover next time. Well, I figured you needed to see an airgun after all these other reports, so I opened a large box Hatsan sent me recently and, lo and behold, inside there is an airgun I hadn’t heard of before seeing one at the airgun show — the Hatsan Sortie.

What is it?

The Sortie is a precharged pneumatic repeating air pistol, and besides that you can learn as much as I know right now  from looking at the picture. Pyramyd Air has them in both .177 and .22 calibers. It’s a repeater that gets 14 shots in .177 and 12 in .22. Is there a .25? Not that I know of, but if the Sortie is received well I would think they would have it in the works.

The air reservoir is 62cc, which is on the small side. Rather than being bad, that’s actually a good thing because this pistol will be easier to fill from a hand pump. I will test that for you. The gun operates on a 200 bar fill (2,900 psi).

Power

The Sortie is not a super-powerful air pistol. It’s a nice shooter that they say develops about 12 foot-pounds in .177. If that’s true I expect it to be over 13 foot pounds in .22, but that’s why we test these guns. The velocity claim is 750 f.p.s. in .177 caliber, but Hatsan has always tested their guns with real-world lead pellets. That’s one of their trademark operational concepts. I say that because an 8-grain pellet needs to exit the muzzle at about 822 f.p.s. to produce 12 foot pounds. So, they must have tested it with a heavier pellet.that weighs around 9.5 grains

As American airgunners become more familiar with all the technology and limitations of pellet guns, 12 foot-pounds is becoming a very useful hunting power level. The Brits have known that for decades, because that is the limit of their airguns before the Firearm Certificate is required.

Presentation is important

I have to show you this, because it is most impressive. I took the Sortie cardboard box out of the bigger box it came in and open it to find a hard case inside. Hatsan does that with a lot of their airguns, and I like it. It gives you somewhere convenient to store the gun when you aren’t using it. That’s a big deal in my world!

The Sortie comes in a convenient hard case.

Semiautomatic!

Perhaps the biggest thing the Sortie offers is semiautomatic operation. Every time you squeeze the trigger it fires a pellet, until they are exhausted. I am most interested in this. Is it a true semiauto that cocks itself after each shot, or are they calling a double action revolver a semiauto, thinking most people won’t know the difference? Knowing Hatsan’s dedication to honesty in their claims, I’m thinking this one is the real deal. Of course I will report on that in Part 2.

Description

In the picture the Sortie looks big and that’s no illusion. The pistol is 16.5 inches long and weighs 4-3/4 pounds, so you know you’re holding something. Look at the first photo and you will see a second place for a hand to grip, forward of the trigger. I think they made this one for hunters and I can already hear the rumbling in the bushes — does it have a shoulder stock? I have to say not yet, because I know in my heart airgunners will not leave this detail alone.

The pistol is all black with a synthetic stock/pistol grip. The grip is sculpted for a right-handed shooter and I have to say a lefty will not be at all comfortable with this grip. I don’t see a left grip option at this time, but if the Sortie takes off I’m sure Hatsan will offer one down the road. The grip fits my medium-sized hand quite well.

Sights

The Sortie comes with open sights that are adjustable in both directions. They are fiberoptics, which makes sense on a hunting gun. I plan to test it with open sights first.

The Sortie rear sight is adjustable.

There is a scope rail on top of the receiver and it’s Hatsan’s rail that accepts both 11mm and Weaver type scope ring bases. When I scope the pistol I’ll have more to say about it.

The website mentions mounting a dot sight. I normally would mount a scope, but at the Texas airgun show the Sortie they had was sporting a holographic dot sight. I am going to have to get one of those because more and more airgunners want to put dot sights on their air pistols and the shorter holographic sight seems to be the best way to go. All my dot sights have long tube that do better on rifles. So, while I did say I was going to “scope” this pistol, I may very well mount a dot sight instead.

The action

I want to save my discussion of the action for part 2, but know that the pistol has a bolt that gets pulled back to remove and install the magazine. There was no owners manual with the pistol I received (this is a brand new release), but I think the action is close enough to the Barrage semiautomatic rifle action, that the operation will be the same. There is a manual on the Pyramyd website for that one, and I verified that is is the same.

The Sortie magazine will seem similar to many PCP owners.

The Sortie action has a bolt that is pulled back and locked to permit installing and removing the magazine.

Silencer?

Like many PCPs today, the Sortie has a coiled steel mainspring inside its barrel shroud. The coils break up the exhaust gasses and make them diffuse before they exit the muzzle. The hole at the muzzle is quite large, so it remains to be heard how loud this pistol is.

A coiled steel mainspring inside the shroud at the muzzle breaks up the exhaust gasses.

Evaluation so far

So far it looks like there is a lot to evaluate on the Sortie. I think this will be an interesting report. I just hope you can live with the power. If it’s accurate, I sure can!

by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

Part 1

This report covers:

• Talon SS?
• Triggers
• Accuracy expectations
• Scopes
• Get parallax adjustment
• Match the scope to the task
• More to come

This is Part 2. In the first part I was brutally honest about the precharged pneumatics (PCP) I think are good for beginners. Now that I am doing my experiment about learning to sharpen straight razors I appreciate the level of information most new guys are seeking and are able to accept. There will always be some folks who don’t get it the first time around, but I won’t talk down to the rest of you to cover that. I will answer their questions and explain in greater detail as they require.

Talon SS?

Reader Cal raised an issue in Part 1 and answered it at the same time. Why didn’t I put AirForce rifles like the Talon SS into the entry-level category? Can’t someone who is new to precharged airguns shoot one of those? Of course they can! The Talon SS is no more difficult to learn to operate than any other PCP. The reason I held off is the style of the rifle.

When you shoulder a Talon SS for the first time, it feels different than most rifles that have conventional stocks. The straight line of the air reservoir that also serves as the stock bothers some people. They feel they can’t get their face low enough to see through the scope. I can show a person how to hold the rifle properly in a minute, and have done so many times, but even then some folks just will not like doing it my way. Because this series is for new shooters, I thought I had better not recommend a rifle they might not feel comfortable with, once they get it in their hands. However, if you can accept the difference, the Talon SS makes a wonderful first PCP that will out-shoot anything near its price range!

Triggers

Let’s talk about triggers and what your expectations are. Some people buy a PCP thinking that the trigger will be like one they have read about on a thousand-dollar rifle. It won’t. For the most part the trigger is the one place in which entry-level PCPs are lacking. Other than the Benjamin Marauder, most entry-level PCPs have triggers that are just okay. The Marauder is the only one that’s highly adjustable and lives up to the PCP trigger expectations. The Talon SS trigger is very good, but it’s not adjustable.

Is it possible to modify an entry-lever PCP trigger to make it better? Sure. You can do any number of things that range from a basic slick-up and tightening of the bearings to (sometimes) installing a Marauder trigger like Lloyd Sikes did on my Disco Double. Expect to pay for what you get.

This point is very important for new buyers. Don’t expect a world-class trigger on a $200 air rifle.

Accuracy expectations

What do you expect from your new PCP? If you expect 10-shot groups that are sometimes smaller than 3/4-inches at 50 yards, either buy a Marauder, a Talon SS or wait for me to test those entry-level rifles I haven’t tested yet. First of all, I am talking about TEN-shot groups — not five-shot groups. There is a world of difference in the group size when you shoot 10 shots.

Next, don’t think that any rifle can always shoot groups that small. None of them can. There will always be groups that are larger than your expectations for a variety of different reasons. But a really good PCP can shoot groups this small quite often, under the right conditions.

The Marauder and Talon SS can both do it, with the SS getting 10-shot groups of around 0.60-inches in the right shooter’s hands. But surprisingly, several of the lower-priced rifles in the budget entry-level category can do almost as well. With the Benjamin Discovery you may need to play with the positioning of the forward barrel band, but when you hit the sweet spot the Disco will surprise you.

And remember this — one of a PCP’s biggest advantages is the fact that they have no vibration or movement to throw your shots off. With a spring gun you are fighting recoil and vibration on every shot.

Scopes

Here is where things start to get hairy for the first-time PCP user. Nearly everyone will scope their new rifle, but you have to adjust your thinking when you select a scope for an accurate rifle. I am all for you choosing an inexpensive PCP, because you don’t know if you’re going to stick with this hobby. But a cheap scope can undo all the positives that the manufacturers build into their airguns.

However, just because a scope isn’t cheap doesn’t mean that it can’t be economical. For not too much more than you spend to buy an off-brand scope you can get a reasonably good one that has decent optics. It will probably offer lower power (3-9 is common), but the image will be reasonable clear.

Get parallax adjustment

I recommend that you any scope you buy comes with parallax adjustment. Do you notice that I am not suggesting any specific scope models? That’s because there are hundreds to choose from. Get one whose features you like and whose name you respect. Hawke and Leapers/UTG are two that come to mind, but there are others. Just stay away from those Red Star scopes that you find at gun shows for $30. [That remark is going to wake up somebody who swears by Red Star scopes, I just know it!]

If you push me to recommend a scope it’s going to be the UTG Bubble Leveler. Sorry if it costs more than the PCP you have chosen, but remember — you can use this scope on any airgun or firearm.

Match the scope to the task

If you want to shoot groups at 50 yards, get a scope with higher magnification. Sixteen power would be the minimum I would recommend.

If you want to hunt, get a scope that’s lighter weight and smaller — so it’s less cumbersome to carry in the field. Also consider one of the shorter scopes like the Bug Buster 3-9X32. They are not only lighter but also a lot smaller, so they don’t get caught in brush when you walk through the woods. Just bear in mind that a short scope like a Bug Buster has limited mounting options. The short scope tubes that are available to go into the rings don’t give much back-and-forth movement. I see shooters trying to mount these scopes on rifles that have a scope mount base located too far forward on the rifle. Then they can’t slide the compact scope back far enough to get the best eye relief.

More to come

There is at least one more report in this series. I want to talk about filling options for your entry-level PCP.

usby Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

Part 1

This report covers:

• Been awhile
• New airgunners
• A better way
• Doing what works
• The point
• Sharpening straight razors

Been awhile

Part 1 of this report was written way back in the beginning of February. I think the reason it’s taken me so long to get back to it is I titled it wrong. I will discuss that as we go, but first let me define who “they” are. In the words of comedian, Red Green, “They” are everybody who is not us. Now that that’s clear we can continue.

Part 1 was a treatise on twist rates and how they affect accuracy. As many of you are aware, I use this blog to school both new airgunners and also airgun manufacturers — who are often as ignorant of the facts as new airgunners, but cannot or will not admit it. No engineer who has just been hired by an airgun company is going to admit there is something he doesn’t know about guns! Heaven forbid! And neither is any CEO or owner of a company, because in their minds they are in a position of authority and should therefore know!

So I write these blogs and they read them and they learn, just as you do. And, let me set the record straight — I don’t know everything, either. When it comes to collectibles I turn to guys like Mike Driskill and Larry Hannusch. When I need to know about manufacturing I turn to John McCaslin and others. Yes I know a lot about airguns. When you are interested in something and exposed to it for a long time, things soak in. But there is also a lot that I don’t know.

But I do know about rifling twist rates and how they relate to bullets and pellets. That was what made Part 1 so good. I suggest you read it so I don’t have to cover the same ground today. I ground that axe down all the way in Part 1, so today we will look at something else — what every new airgunner needs to know. Hey — that’s not a bad title!

New airgunners

I noticed that both Tuesday’s and Wednesday’s reports this week were aimed at newer airgunners, so I thought I would just continue in the same vein today. We always ask new airgunners what they intend doing with their airguns when we are trying to help them decide on what gun to get. I think that’s wrong. If there is anyone who doesn’t know much about airguns and what can be done with them it’s the new guy, so how can they predict what they will do with one? It’s like asking 5-year-olds what they want to be when they grow up. And it forces many people into thinking they have to decide how they plan to use the airgun before they get it. That leads to a lot of couch time and time on the web, where they try to envision something they can only barely describe. And they then think they need to make their choice based upon this incomplete notion they’ve dreamed up.

A better way

Wouldn’t it be better to just put a nice airgun in their hands and let them experience it for themselves? Here is the new person who is all hyped up from reading about velocity and shooting tiny groups at impossible distances, and you hand him a CZ 631 breakbarrel to plink at plastic bottlecaps on the far bank of a stream 30 feet away while he tells you about the benefits of going hypersonic with a .177. After a hundred shots he turns to you and asks about the rifle he’s shooting because it seems like so much fun.

Maybe he will get that mega-magnum one day, but after experiencing the sweet little breakbarrel (or a Benjamin Discovery or a Diana Stormrider) he learns that there is more to shooting a pellet gun than just numbers. Maybe a better title for this report would have been, There is a better way.

Doing what works

I remember a .458 Winchester Magnum rifle I once owned. That’s an elephant rifle caliber, but the fellow who sold it to me also sold me the dies to reload it, about 100 cartridge cases and the bullet mold for a 558-grain round nosed lead bullet. Most importantly he gave me his loading information and told me if I followed it exactly the rifle would put bullet after bullet through the same hole at 100 yards. That just happens to be what I am interested in doing, so I did as he said and, sure enough, the rifle worked as advertised.

Even though it was an elephant rifle caliber the soft load made the recoil very light because the bullet moved so slowly. I didn’t own a chronograph back then but my guess would be the bullet left the muzzle at no more than 1,200 f.p.s., and probably not even that. If I had ever known the velocity I probably would have been dissatisfied, but all I saw was bullet after bullet going into an incredibly small group at 100 yards. I was very happy!

I was happy because of the results — the small groups in the targets — not because of numbers on paper. I was happy because I knew whatever I shot at, if it was 100 yards or closer, I was going to connect! Maybe the title should have been, Doing what works.

The point

Why am I telling you this? Well, if you are new to airguns, or if you want to get into precharged pneumatics but have been afraid to take the plunge because you have read about all the possible expenses, then the last two day’s reports were for you. You don’t need the mostest-powerfulest airgun on the planet to start having fun, and shooting 1,600 f.p.s. with pellets is a myth. It’s a science experiment with a tank of helium tethered to a hopped-up air rifle, but it’s not for the average shooter — any more than an AA fuel dragster is for trips to the grocery store.

What it boils down to is this — why are you interested in airguns? What has caught your fancy? I don’t care what you think you want to shoot — why are you interested? Would you like to shoot at things and hit them? Does being able to drop a pest humanely with one shot sound attractive? Or, is there a shooting sport like field target, silhouette or 10-meter (bullseye) that intrigues you?

For some of these things the airgun is nothing more than a tool — a means to an end. The pest shooter doesn’t need to love his airgun. It just has to work for him. The bullseye shooter is the same. He or she doesn’t have to fall in love with their target gun. They just want to use it to poke holes in paper as close to the center of the bull as humanly possible.

On the other hand, the field target shooter has to learn a lot about his or her equipment. They will be shooting at different unknown distances, over different terrain that forces them to use different holds. Even the elevation (both positive and negative) of the targets drives equipment needs (inclinometers). Their scopes will be greatly affected by changes in temperature, and nothing in their sport will be static. Even the way they fill their airgun with air (assuming it’s a PCP) will drive a need for other ancillary equipment. For a sport that seems so organized and simple (hit targets at unknown distances between 10 and 50 meters), field target is actually a complex endeavor with ever-evolving equipment.

You, the new airgunner, have all of this and a thousand times more ahead of you. Don’t think you have to choose exactly what you need for every possible situation. Just make a choice to get into the hobby quickly so you can discover what’s there for you.

Sharpening straight razors

As you know, I have been writing a blog series titled, How to sharpen a straight razor. Initially I thought it would be fairly straightforward to learn to do that and I would be exposed to what it feels like to be the new guy. Well, I definitely found that out! It’s been three months since I started and I now have several new hobbies — sharpening straight razors, shaving with straight razors, using advanced waterstones to sharpen things, collecting straight razors, collecting safety razors, collecting the equipment to sharpen double-edged safety razor blades….

I wish there had been someplace for me to go to learn some of this stuff without actually doing all of it, and not so many blind alleys to walk down (or invest in!). I’m still a newbie with straight razors but now I’m a dangerous newbie who knows just enough to get himself in trouble. I am trying in this blog to spare you from a similar experience with airguns.

by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

Hatsan BullMaster semiautomatic bullpup PCP.

This report covers:

• Like the Sortie
• Comparisons?
• Companies change over time
• Description
• Fill
• Pressure gauge
• Magazines
• Sights
• Trigger
• So much more to tell
• Next

Today I start my review of the Hatsan BullMaster precharged pneumatic air rifle. This is a repeating semiautomatic air rifle in bullpup configuration. It is available in both .177 and .22 calibers and the published energies, 21/31 foot-pounds, respectively, are right where they should be for a handy hunting air rifle. I am testing the .22, but since it was sent directly from Hatsan, I won’t publish the serial number. Your chances of getting this particular airgun are slim.

Like the Sortie

I tested the Sortie semiautomatic air pistol for you in a 5-part review back in September and October, and I did it intentionally. I had this BullMaster at that time, and since the actions of the two airguns are so similar, I wanted to start with the smaller one first. Testing the Sortie got me ready for the BullMaster.

The Sortie I tested was a 14 foot-pound airgun. That’s suitable for hunting, but I think the greater power of the BullMaster makes it an even better choice. We discovered in testing that the Sortie is quite accurate, when the right pellets are used. The Sortie likes H&N Baracudas with a 5.50mm head, so I will be sure to include them in the testing of this rifle.

Comparisons?

A lot of readers want me to compare the airguns I test with other airguns they know. I don’t do that for a good reason. All airguns are not alike and there can be variations within a certain model and caliber of gun. Who knows whether the rifle you buy will be the same as the rifle I test? Some manufacturers hand-select airguns for tests that they know will be published. I have no control over that. So, when I test an airgun, it’s just that one gun I’m reporting on — not the entire line and not every example of that model.

Over time you will see that certain manufacturers tend to produce guns at the same level. A test of one can be extrapolated to others of the same type. But other manufactures do not have a good track record for consistency. A test of one of theirs only tells you what that specific airgun will do.

However — you readers can think for yourselves. So, when I tell you a certain airgun produces 31 foot-pounds at the muzzle, you can compare it to tests of other airguns that produce similar power. The same holds true for shot count, accuracy, the quality of the trigger and any other objective specification you can name. It’s more work for you, but I try to give you as much information as I can to make that evaluation.

Companies change over time

I will not name names, but I have seen airgun companies change the quality of their products over time. It works both ways — some getting better and some worse — and is a reflection of who is in change in the company at the time. Having said that I will now say that Hatsan precharged airguns have a very solid reputation for quality, accuracy and honesty in advertising. If they say the BullMaster produces 31 foot pounds in .22 caliber, that’s what I expect to see when I test it.

Description

The BullMaster is a 10.3-pound repeater. Yes that is heavy and yes, when you mount a scope it will be even heavier. But that’s why Hatsan installed sling swivels at the factory and also why they provide a Picatinney mount on the bottom front of the forearm for a bipod. I plan to use it!

The overall length of the rifle is a compact 30.9 inches. That makes it very compact and emphasizes the weight. Still, the bullpup design allows for a 19.7-inch barrel inside the full shroud.

The sculpted rubber comb adjusts up via a spring-loaded button on the left side of the butt. It’s already high at its lowest position, but after I mount a scope I may need some adjustment for good eye alignment. The description says the stock is ergonomic and after some examination and handling I have to agree, though I will need some time behind the trigger to know better.

The magazine is the same one we saw with the Sortie. In .177 the magazine holds 14 pellets, and in .22 it holds 12. The stock contains the action, which is typical of the bullpup design. A bullpup is a rifle whose action is set back at the rear of the gun, so the overall length of the rifle can be as short as possible. The shrouded barrel should keep the report quiet, and I will be reporting on that as the test advances.

Fill

The BullMaster accepts a fill to 250 bar, which is 3,626 psi, so it’s not a gun to fill from a hand pump. You will want a large large carbon fiber tank to fill this one. Hatsan has their proprietary fill probe that they package with the rifle, but I have made a universal adapter by attaching an Air Venturi adaptor that has a male Foster connection on the other end.

Not only is the reservoir filled to 250 bar, it also holds 500cc. That combination should give a good number of shots. The description on the Pyramid Air website says 60 for .177 and 50 for .22. I will test that for you, as well.

Pressure gauge

You can look all over the rifle and never see the onboard pressure gauge. It’s hidden deep inside the hollow pistol grip on the forearm. It’s small and a little hard to see, but I imagine after you get familiar with the rifle it won’t be a problem to know how many shots remain.

Magazines

The BullMaster comes with three magazines. Two are stored in the rubberized synthetic stock (you can see one in the picture) when the third one is in use. The shot count will be important because there may be enough shots on one fill that a hunter needs to carry nothing besides three loaded magazines. I’m hoping that is the case.

Sights

There are no open sights on the rifle so an optical sight of some kind will be required. As you can see in the picture, the BullMaster receiver top is a Picatinney rail, so either mounts for that or Weaver rings will attach. But Hatsan has also made an 11mm dovetail on the same platform, so the choice of scope rings is a big one. The bullpup style means the scope will have to be mounted high. And after examining the rifle I can see that a shorter scope is going to be best. I am thinking something in the 4-12 compact category, but we’ll see.

The clever scope rail accepts both 11mm and Weaver/Picatinney rings.

Trigger

Bullpup triggers need long linkages because of the design. The trigger has to function at the action, which is under your face, but your trigger finger wants to be a comfortable distance from your shoulder. That long linkage usually means some degradation in the feel of the trigger, so I will be focusing on that in my report.

The BullMaster is semiautomatic, so after the magazine is loaded and the first pellet is chambered all you have to do is pull the trigger until the magazine is empty. I liked that feature on the Sortie and I think I am going to love it on the BullMaster — with the difference being that this rifle is steadied against my shoulder, where the Sortie is held in two hands with no shoulder contact.

So much more to tell

Examining the BullMaster, I can see that I am only scratching the surface of this very different air rifle. You can see in the first picture that the stock is entirely different than a conventional rifle stock, so of course the hold will be, as well. I can see and feel that right now, but it’s kind of like sitting in a new car in the dealer’s showroom. It seems one way as you just sit there, but until you get it out on a test drive you really don’t know a lot. I need to get some trigger time before I can comment on many of these things.

Right now the rifle feels large yet also compact. It feels heavy, but maybe in a good way. The stock fits different than a conventional rifle, but I can’t tell whether or not it’s a good different. I have to get some time on the trigger.

Next

My next step will be to shoot the velocity test. That doesn’t really meet the need for trigger time, but it does familiarize me with the rifle’s operation. The time I spent with the Sortie has also helped. All in all, I am going to enjoy this test.

by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

This report covers:

• Two eventful hunts
• The moral

Two eventful hunts

A friend of mine received the following call several weeks ago.

“Hey, man. Wanna go hunt some pigs?”

“You’re out of your mind. You don’t have pigs in Maryland.”

“No. The pigs are in Texas. A friend of mine just got special permission to hunt on a big ranch that’s infested with them. The landowner got fed up with the helicopters buzzing his cows, so he grounded them and now the place is overrun!”

“Texas, you say? We’d have to fly because I can’t take off work that long.”

“No problem. He’ll meet us at the airport Friday night and he has guns for both of us. You don’t need a license to hunt pigs in Texas, so all we gotta do is show up. We’ll be back Saturday night.”

“Then I’m in. I’ve got this Friday off already. Can we do it that fast?”

“Sure. I’ll book the tickets and you can pay me. But get here a day early, ‘cause I have another surprise for you.”

So my friend drove from his West Virginia home on Thursday morning, arriving at his buddy’s house in Maryland just after lunch. His friend told him to hop in his car and they drove a short way to Aberdeen Proving Ground where he worked. When they got there they drove through the main gate to the post headquarters. On the way my friend noticed the large number of marmots that were standing along the side of the road. He told me there must have been hundreds! Oh, and I should tell you — marmot is the proper name for the varmint we all know as the woodchuck! On the grounds of the post headquarters he counted 13 ‘chucks standing calmly next to their holes.

“I can’t believe it! This places is overrun with woodchucks!”

“Yeah. Since it’s an Army post, they don’t allow hunting, so the chucks know they are safe. It’s like Rapid City, South Dakota that’s swarming with whitetail deer, ‘cause nobody can shoot them in town. Anyway, I have permission to hunt on a farm near here that has almost as many chucks as you see here. They are destroying the farmer’s irrigation dikes with their holes. We have to use air rifles, but I have a .22 caliber TX200 for you.

After checking in with the owner of the farm they went back to the buddy’s house and he pulled out the TX200. It looked okay, but my friend asked to shoot it, to see where it was zeroed. When he did the best he could do with the pellets his pal said were the best was 5 shots in about 4-inches at 40 yards. When the rifle’s owner couldn’t even do that well he said, “I don’t get it. This rifle has always been spot-on with these Crosman Premier Hollowpoints.”

“When was the last time you shot it?”

“About 6 months ago, I guess. Ever since I got my .25 Marauder that’s all I shoot.”

“When was the last time you cleaned the barrel?”

“I never clean it. You can’t clean a TX200 barrel. The patches fall off inside the baffles.”

“Get your cleaning kit. This barrel needs to be cleaned.”

When the guy brought out his cleaning kit, my friend saw why he never cleaned the barrel of his TX. All he had was a piece of monofiliment line that had a loop at one end for patches. He also had a black nylon brush that went on the end of an aluminum 3-piece cleaning rod, but he said it wouldn’t work, because to clean the TX200 barrel you have to take the gun apart.

“Who told you that?”

“I read it on the forum. But I know it’s right because this brush is too long to go in from the muzzle end. It’ll get stuck in the breech when you try to pull it back out because it’s too long to clear the breech with the gun cocked.”

“Get your keys. We’re going to the store.”

Long story short they went to the local discount supercenter and bought a pistol cleaning kit. When he screwed the pistol brush to the three-piece cleaning rod his friend protested, telling him that a brass brush would scratch the barrel. They had a long conversation about whether steel is harder than brass, but the owner finally consented to let him clean the barrel from the muzzle. Obviously the shorter pistol brush was just what was needed. It cleared the breech so it could be pulled back out again. Half an hour later they were both shooting half-inch groups at 40 yards. But the groups were about 6 inches too low. [NOTE: The link given is to a nylon pistol brush, but what you need for this is a brass or bronze brush. You are removing lead.]

“Yeah. Now I remember. I dialed the scope as high as it will go and the groups were still too low. I forgot that.”

“Got a 2-liter soda bottle?”

“I think there are a couple in the trash. Why?”

“We are going to shim the scope.”

I won’t repeat the next argument but the owner thought that shimming ruins scopes. It was something he learned on another forum. His partner promised to buy him a new scope if they wrecked this one, so they shimmed the scope with two pieces of plastic and got the rifle hitting the target at 40 yards.

The next day they bagged 7 woodchucks (three for the TX) before they had to quit to go catch their flight to Texas. When they landed it was late in the evening. The Texas friend picked them up at the Houston airport and drove them to his house for the night.

The next morning they awoke at 3 a.m. and were at the ranch by 4:30. The guy from Maryland wanted to shoot the Ruger Mini 30 they were offered, so my friend got the well-worn Garand and a box of softpoint ammo.

“Looks like this old girl has seen a lot of rounds. I doubt if she can put five into 6 inches at 100 yards,” said the reluctant West Virginian.

“I’ve never shot her that far, but I bet you’re right,” said the Texan. “No problem, though, because you won’t be shooting past 30 feet. We are hunting in some real thick brush!”

Sure enough, when they got out of the truck the place they headed into was so thick they could hardly see 25 feet. But that was where the pigs were! Within ten minutes of walking less than 50 feet from the truck, a herd of 10-12 animals came crashing past them, snorting and rooting and making all sorts of racket. My friend dropped one old boar with the Garand and was about to drop a fat sow, but nothing happened. He looked at the rifle’s action and the empty cartridge case was sticking out of the ejection port!

“Not again!” he whispered hoarsely. Then he examined the rifle’s action with a small flashlight. The parts were as dry as a desert! He walked back to the truck. When he popped the vehicle’s hood, both other hunters joined him.

“What’s up?” asked the truck’s owner.

“This Garand is bone dry. I’m going to lubricate it,” he whispered as he pulled the engine’s dipstick.

“Garands don’t need lubrication. They can swallow a beach full of sand and keep on running.”

“Then how do you explain this?” he asked as he showed the cartridge stuck in the ejection port.

“It’s been doing that for years. I figure it’s worn parts. All you have to do is pull the bolt back and you’ll clear it.”

“When I get done lubing, you won’t have to do that again,” he answered as he applied the oily stick to the bolt channels.

“Listen!” said the hunter from Maryland. “Here comes another group! We need to get back into position!”

The second herd was twice as large as the first one and my friend shot three more pigs. The Garand functioned flawlessly. Those were the last pigs they saw on the hunt. In all they bagged 11 animals. The landowner was delighted and gave the Texas friend his choice of animals to take home. And the Texas host also got an important lesson in battlefield maintenance.

The moral

Sometimes what you read on the forums is either incorrect or an exaggeration. Also, it pays to know something about the technology before you venture into the field. If you are new to airgunning or to shooting as a whole, keep an open mind and you will learn new things all the time.

by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

Hatsan Bullmaster semiautomatic bullpup PCP.

Part 1

This report covers:

• Comments
• New Bug Buster
• Power
• H&N Baracuda 5.50mm head
• H&N Sniper Light 5.50mm head
• H&N Field Target Trophy with 5.53mm head
• Shot count
• Trigger
• Sound
• Summary
• Next

Comments

I’ll start today’s report by listing some of the comments you readers made to Part 1. Several of you don’t care for the Hatsan BullMaster’s looks. That’s why I show a picture of the gun at the top of each report. You have to be satisfied with the appearance if you’re going to buy an airgun this expensive.

Next, several of you commented on the weight. At more than 10 pounds before the scope is mounted, this is not a lightweight airgun. Bullpups are small, but not necessarily light.

Then there is the size, itself. For a bullpup, the Bullmaster is on the large side. The overall length of just under 31 inches is very short compared to a conventional air rifle, but for a bullpup it’s on the long side. That length does give you a fully shrouded barrel that’s just under 20 inches, and you need the barrel length for power, but the point of a bullpup is its compact size.

And there was a comment about the trigger — as in they hoped it was as good as a Marauder  trigger. Guys — that just isn’t going to happen. The BullMaster is one of the very few true semiautomatic pellet rifles available and you already read about this trigger in my test of the Hatsan Sortie pistol a while back. This rifle has the same trigger, and it’s going to perform about the same. I told you then that I tested the pistol first to get used to the action, because the BullMaster was the same. Well, it is. So, sit back and let’s all start learning how this air rifle performs.

New Bug Buster

One reader, I think it was RidgeRunner, suggested I mount the new UTG 3-12X32 AO Bug Buster scope on the rifle. I knew that scope was coming, but I didn’t know it was already out. I asked Leapers for a sample to test and they graciously sent one, plus some of their new UTG Accu-Sync lightweight scope rings that even Pyramyd Air doesn’t have in stock yet. Bug Buster scopes can be tricky to mount because of their short scope tubes, but I have looked closely at these rings and I think it’s going to work.

The new scope is everything we have come to expect from Leapers. It’s clear, lightweight, bright and it focuses down to 9 feet! It’s perfect for a rifle whose weight we don’t want to increase.

So — this test just got a lot better. We have a powerful and accurate semiautomatic air rifle to test, a new Bug Buster scope with the highest power ever and some new mounts to evaluate. We are going to have some fun!

Power

Today I will look at the rifle’s power, plus check the function of the 12-shot .22-caliber magazine. My large carbon fiber tank was down to just 3200 psi, so I put it on the Air Venturi compressor and had it back to 4500 psi in 15 short minutes! You guys asked me to keep on reporting how this compressor works, and that’s what I’m doing.

The specs tell us to expect 31 foot pounds from the .22 caliber BullMaster. I told you in Part 1 that Hatsan is always conservative with these numbers, so let’s see where this one is.

H&N Baracuda 5.50mm head

First to be tested were the H&N Baracudas with a 5.50mm head. Hatsan sent these with the guns and if you remember, the Sortie really liked this one. Ten rounds through the BullMaster averaged 842 f.p.s., which works out to a muzzle energy of 33.29 foot pounds. So Hatsan is being conservative, once again. The first shot went out at 812 f.p.s., but I included it in the string for the average. After all, hunters always shoot that same first shot. Velocity ranged from 812 to 857 f.p.s., which is a spread of 45 f.p.s., but if we throw out that first shot the next slowest was 840 f.p.s. So the spread was reasonably tight.

H&N Sniper Light 5.50mm head

The next pellet I tested was the H&N Sniper Light with a 5.50mm head. I have no experience with this 14-grain dome, but Hatsan sent them with the Sortie and BullMaster, and they didn’t do well in the Sortie, so I’m thinking they are for the Bullmaster. They averaged 965 f.p.s. for 10 shots with a low of 950 and a high of 974 f.p.s. That’s a spread of 24 f.p.s. At the average velocity the Sniper Light produced 28.96 foot pounds of muzzle energy.

H&N Field Target Trophy with 5.53mm head

The final pellet I tested was the H&N Field Target Trophy with a 5.53mm head. I usually don’t test pellets from just one manufacturer, but Hatsan sent these, too, so I have to believe they are the best for this rifle. They averaged 949 f.p.s. for 10 shots. The spread went from 943 to 955 f.p.s. That’s just 12 f.p.s. At the average this pellet produced 29.3 foot pounds of energy.

Thus far we see a rifle with a reasonable velocity spread. When I looked at the gauge it showed there was still 2/3 of a fill remaining, so I pressed on to get the shot count.

Shot count

The rifle is supposed to give 50 shots per fill. That’s in .22 caliber. In .177 it’s supposed to give 60. The shot count is where I usually part ways with the manufacturer, because they are willing to accept everything that makes a pop. I want to stay in the same power band. There were already 30 shots on this fill.

I chose the Field Target Trophy pellets for this next test, simply because I had just finished using them. This time I loaded the magazine with all 12 pellets. On the next string, which were shots 31 to 43, the BullMaster averaged 953 f.p.s. That’s a little faster than when I tested them before! The next 12 pellets — shots 44-56 — averaged 940 f.p.s. That’s a little slower, but still in the same ballpark! I was impressed. So I reloaded 12 more pellets. I’d like to show you what they did. These are still Field Target Trophys.

Shot………Vel.
57…………944
58…………939
59…………941
60…………935
61…………936
62…………930
63…………935
64…………933
65…………936
66…………926
67…………936
68…………937

In case you are curious, that string averaged 936 f.p.s. You readers know that I don’t cut these airguns any slack. I report what happens and leave most of the discussion to you. But I have to comment today. WOW! I might have complained about the 250 bar fill pressure in Part 1, but Hatsan clearly did a lot with all that air. Remember — they are working the action with it, too! Good on you, Hatsan!

Trigger

The trigger pull is two stage. Stage 1 is light and short. Stage 2 has movement you can feel, but it’s not too heavy or unpleasant. It breaks between 5 lbs. 15 oz. and 6 lbs. 6 oz. That sounds heavy if you are expecting a safe-cracker trigger pull, but it’s about where an arms room 1911 will be. It’s really not bad and will be no hinderance to accuracy.

Sound

Shooting the BullMaster in my office, it was loud, but not that loud. Louder than a powerful spring rifle, but still acceptable. You can’t shoot it in a small suburban back yard without notice, but it won’t deafen you, either.

Summary

The BullMaster is a rifle you can load on Sunday and shoot all week. At least it is when it comes to air. If this rifle is accurate, and we have every reason to suspect that it is, it will be one that hunters should consider.

by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

Hatsan Bullmaster semiautomatic bullpup PCP.

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

This report covers:

• The test
• H&N Baracuda
• Trigger
• Field Target Trophy
• H&N Sniper Light
• JSB Exact Jumbo Heavy
• Bug Buster performance
• Summary

Happy Thanksgiving to my U.S. readers! I hope all of you have lots to be thankful for!

Today we complete the first accuracy test of the Hatsan Bullmaster. Let’s get right to it.

The test

I told you how I sighted in in Part 3. Today I set up at 25 yards and started shooting with the H&N Baracuda pellets that were used to sight in. The first round landed on paper, and 3 rounds later I was sighted in. I normally don’t like to hit the center of the bull because it destroys the aim point, but the reticle in the UTG 3-12X32 AO Bug Buster scope is so clear and sharp that I could guesstimate exactly where the center of the bull was.

I shot off a sandbag rest. And you need to know one other thing. We learned  in Part 2 that the BullMaster has a lot of shots on a fill, so I shot this whole test on one fill. Couple that with the semiautomatic action and you have a fast-firing and accurate rifle, as you will soon learn.

H&N Baracuda

Hatsan sent the BullMaster and the Sortie pistol with three different H&N pellets. I figured they might be the best in the gun, so I tried all three. The Baracudas were best in the Sortie, so it was no surprise to see them do well in the rifle. Ten grouped in 0.702-inches at 25 yards, but as the picture shows, 9 of them are in 0.42-inches between centers. That qualifies as a screamer. The dime will give you the proportions very accurately.

Ten H&N Baracudas are in 0.702-inches, with 9 in 0.42-inches. Yes, that includes the hole to the right of the main group.

Trigger

What a start! I figured it was all smooth sailing fpr the rest of this test. I will comment that the trigger feels too heavy, now that I’m concentrating on the target. But not one time in this test did the trigger pull me off target. I would just like it to break at half the weight.

Field Target Trophy

Next up were 10 H&N Field Target Trophys with a 5.53mm head. These have never done well in any of my tests, but the BullMaster seems to like them. Ten went into 0.758-inches at 25 yards. They will get tested at 50 yards, too.

Ten Field Target Trophy pellets went into 0.758-inches at 25 yards.

H&N Sniper Light

The only pellet sent by Hatsan that made no sense to me was the H&N Sniper Light with a 5.50mm head. They didn’t group well in the Sortie and they didn’t group well in the BullMaster. Maybe Hatsan has a relationship with H&N that compels them to use their pellets, but this is not one I would chose for this rifle. Ten went into a scattered 0.997-inch group at 25 yards.

Ten Sniper Light pellets went into an open 0.997-inch group at 25 yards.

JSB Exact Jumbo Heavy

The beauty of being independent is I can test an airgun with anything I want. Looking at the BullMaster’s power my first choice for a pellet is the JSB Exact Jumbo Heavy. At 18.13 grains it seems ideal for the power the BullMaster offers, plus it has a reputation for being one of the most accurate of all .22 caliber pellets. Ten of them went into a group that measures 0.536-inches between centers. Not only is this the tightest group of the test, it is also the roundest, telling us of the consistency of this pellet in the BullMaster.

Ten JSB Exact Jumbo Heavy pellets went into a very round group at 25 yards that measures 0.536-inches between centers.

Bug Buster performance

I have to say that the Bug Buster 3-12 scope did its job in this test. The image is not as clear as I would like, but at 25 yards I can see the concentric circles of the bullseye good enough. And the reticle that I said was about medium I will now say is thicker than I told you. It made aiming easy. It’s a great scope for this bullpup and for hunters — saving lots of weight and size, while delivering good performance. But it’s probably not the scope for shooting small groups at long distances.

Summary

I now have three pellets to test at 50 yards. And I will continue to test the Bug Buster scope, as well. This is turning into a very pleasant and fun test!

by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

HW 55SF.

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5

A history of airguns

This report covers:

• Rob velocity?
• H&N Finale Match Light
• Sig Match Ballistic Alloy
• Qiang Yuan Olympic
• RWS R10 Match Pistol
• Discussion
• So, what?
• Cocking effort
• Firing cycle
• Summary

Today we look at the velocity of the HW 55SF target rifle I tuned back in November. If you read Part 4 you’ll see that I just applied Tune in a Tube grease (TIAT) to the mainspring and got great results. Some readers ask me to use TIAT over and over again on different airguns, apparently not convinced that it works as well as it does. But when they break down and try it, they see for themselves. This stuff really works!

Rob velocity?

But what does it do to the velocity? This is a low-powered spring rifle and we know that thick grease can rob velocity. We have the baseline velocity data I gathered in Part 2 to compare to, so today I will re-test the rifle with the same pellets. Let’s get right to it.

H&N Finale Match Light

First up were H&N Finale Match Light pellets. Before the tune they averaged 613 f.p.s. and had a 31 f.p.s. spread from 594 to 625 f.p.s. This time 10 pellets average 608 f.p.s. and the spread was 17 f.p.s. — from 601 to 618 f.p.s. That’s not much of a decrease, but the spread was almost cut in half — a good start!

Sig Match Ballistic Alloy

Next up were Sig Match Ballistic Alloy pellets. These lightweight lead-free pellets are the speed demons in the 55SF. Before the tune they averaged 811 f.p.s. with a 16 f.p.s. spread that went from 801 to 817 f.p.s. After the tune they average 730 f.p.s. with a 31 f.p.s. spread than goes from 715 to 746 f.p.s. That is a significant change from before — a decrease of 81 f.p.s. and double the velocity spread. I will save the discussion for the end.

Qiang Yuan Olympic

I tested the Qiang Yuan Olympic pellet next. When I tested them before the tuneup they averaged 626 f.p.s. with a 17 f.p.s. spread from 621 to 638 f.p.s. After the lube they averaged 581 f.p.s. with an 8 f.p.s. spread from 576 to 584 f.p.s. The average was 45 f.p.s. slower and the spread was less than half as much as before. Hmmmm?

RWS R10 Match Pistol

The final pellet I tested was the RWS R10 Match Pistol pellet. This was the fastest of the lead pellets in the test before the tune, averaging 624 f.p.s. The spread at that time was 22 f.p.s., from 612 to 634 f.p.s. After the tune this pellet averaged 641 f.p.s. with a 20 f.p.s. spread that went from 629 to 649 f.p.s.

Discussion

Let’s talk. The first pellet went almost the same speed after the lube as before. The difference was only 5 f.p.s., which is trivial. The velocity spread tightened up considerably though.

Both the Sig Match Ballistic Ally pellet and the Qiang Yuan Olympic pellet shot considerable slower after the lube tune — 81 and 45 f.p.s., respectively. And here is something curious — the Sigs doubled their velocity spread after the tune, while the Chinese pellets’ spread was cut in half! I can’t wait to hear what something thinks is going on there, because I have no idea!

Finally, the RWS R10 Match Pistol pellets were the only pellets that got faster after the tune. They increased by an average of 17 f.p.s. which is small but significant. The velocity spread remained about the same — 20 f.p.s. compared to 22 f.p.s. before the tuneup.

So, what?

I have a saying I have used several times in this blog. It goes, “Define the universe. Now, give three examples.” It’s a scholastic joke I heard in college. If you think about it, it can’t be done. It’s like an Escher print put into words. I’m saying this because I don’t think this data means as much as some people might try to explain. The rifle is now slower with some pellets and the same or faster with others. So what? As long as it is shooting fast enough to be a reasonable 10-meter target rifle, who cares whether it’s above or below 600 f.p.s.? You can pay $3,000 and get a target rifle that shoots nearly the same as this one.

If we were talking about a hunting rifle the discussion would be different. Then the focus would be in accuracy first, followed closely by power. But a target rifle only has to be accurate and pleasant to shoot, which this one now is. The TIAT has smoothed the shot cycle to near-perfection.

Cocking effort

There is one more thing to look at. In Part two I measured the cocking effort and told you it was 18 lbs. for most of the cocking stroke with a spike to 22 lbs. near the end of the stroke. In Part four I showed you what I thought was the problem (the broken flat spring that puts tension on the cocking linkage). This time I measured the effort as 19 lbs. though the stroke, and there was still a spike to 22 lbs. right at the end of the stroke. I’m now quite sure that it is the piston rod cocking the trigger. It came right at the point where the leverage is the greatest, and I doubt any adult will even notice it. I didn’t notice it in Part 4 after I test-fired the rifle several times to see if I’d put it back together correctly. In short, there is no difference in cocking from last time.

Firing cycle

On the other hand, this rifle is now a dream to shoot! It is almost dead-calm now, where is had an annoying buzz before. That is always felt the most during the accuracy test, which went well in Part 5.

Summary

This tune is great, and the rifle is still in the zone for 10 meter target rifles. I got off lucky this time because new parts were not required. Tune in a Tube, plus a little cleaning were all that was required.

by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

TexanSS big bore air rifle from AirForce.

This report covers:

• Background
• Texan
• TexanSS
• Adjustability
• The valve
• Aftermarket striker springs
• Infinite adjustments
• Trigger
• Reservoir
• Documentation
• Summary

Today’s report should get a rise out of you! We are starting our look at the TexanSS from AirForce Airguns. It’s a .45 caliber big bore air rifle with sound suppression (that’s what the SS stands for).

Background

At the SHOT Show I get to listen to hundreds of airgunners and airgun dealers from all around the U.S., and when it comes to big bores here is what they all want — a shorter rifle that’s suppressed, lightweight, runs on 3,000 psi and is extremely powerful. I listen but seldom mention that some of their requests contradict one another.That should come out in this report.

Texan

Never has there been a big bore air rifle as successful as the AirForce Texan. When it came out two years ago I tested it and shooters were stunned by accuracy of 1.5 inches at 100 yards, plus the possibility of 500+ foot pounds — all in a 7.5-pound airgun. It was lighter, more powerful and more accurate than anything on the market. It has the ability to be adjusted to the bullet being fired, and I tested it with everything from round balls that weigh 143 grains to 405-grain lead footballs from a .45/70! I got as many as 6 shots from one 3,000 psi fill.

The two things the Texan wasn’t and still isn’t is short and quiet. It takes a long barrel to get the most velocity from compressed air, and no amount of technology can change that. And, when that much air comes out of a muzzle, it wants to make a lot of noise.

TexanSS

The TexanSS changes that. AirForce lopped 8.25 inches off the regular Lothar Walther Texan barrel (from 33-inches to 24.75-inches) and stuffed it into a fat frame extender that’s filled with technology. Yes, folks, I mean baffles! At 8.45 lbs. the rifle weighs just under one pound more than the Texan, and you can thank the suppressor for that. The caliber is .45 and, according to the specs., it develops up to 400 foot pounds of energy.

Is it silent? Of course not! Not even a silenced firearm is completely silent. I will report in detail how loud it sounds after I start shooting it, but I’m told this is a very quiet big bore.

I’m so familiar with rifles from AirForce that I sometimes forget there are those who have never seen one. Here is a quick set of the differences from conventional air rifles. For starters, AirForce guns are primarily made from aluminum. That keeps the weight down. Everything is black, which is their most popular color, though some of their rifles are anodized in blue and red. And they feature Lothar Walther barrels as standard.

Adjustability

Adjustability is a hallmark of AirForce rifles and the TexanSS is no exception. The owner can quickly adjust the impact of the striker to tune the valve to suit the bullet being fired. When bullet weights can range by a difference of over 300 grains, this is an important feature. It keeps you from wasting air, which in a big bore is very key. The result is more shots per fill. Other big bores get as many shots, but at less than half the power. At the output of the the TexanSS, most other big bores get only 2 or at the most 3 shots. The TexanSS gets up to twice that number.

The TexanSS is filled to just 3,000 psi. Other big bores that reach this level of power need a tank-robbing 4,500 psi fill that drains the biggest carbon fiber tanks quickly. But with the correct valving that much pressure is unnecessary. Let’s talk about that valve.

The valve

The TexanSS valve is a miracle of engineering. Every other big bore is installing heavy strikers and powerful striker springs to knock open their valves long enough to generate the airflow required for power. The Texan/TexanSS valve doesn’t work that way. The striker spring installed in this rifle is designed to be match the shape and size of the valve opening to allow maximum airflow with very little impact. As a result, the TexanSS cocks easier than almost every other PCP in the world. I’m not just talking about big bores, but smallbores, as well.

I had told reader GunFun1 how easy the Texan cocks, so I tried this one and was surprised to feel some resistance when closing the bolt. That’s where you feel all the cocking effort. I opened the bolt again and looked at the power adjuster. It was set for maximum power with the heaviest bullets. My .45 caliber Texan I tested 2 years ago arrived with its adjuster set at medium power so I wondered what had changed.

As it comes from the factory the power adjustment is set on maximum. Rotate the cocking lever forward to expose this adjustment. Push the holes up to decrease power; down to increase.

The power has been decreased to just over half. As you can see there are multiple holes in the adjustment wheel.

I talked with AirForce owner, John McCaslin about it, and he told me customers were chronographing their new guns, looking for the maximum power (heaviest bullet at the fastest velocity) it could develop. McCaslin said he now sends his Texans and TexanSS rifles out with this adjuster set on max power to reassure buyers the rifle will do what the company claims. He also told me something very disturbing.

Aftermarket striker springs

He said people are buying aftermarket striker springs and installing them for even more power. They are also over-pressurizing the air reservoir, in an attempt to do the same thing. These non-standard springs are hammering the strikers too hard, sometimes causing irreversible damage to the guns.

I remember in 2004 when the Condor first hit the market, I was the AirForce repair technician and some people did the same thing. One man, who called himself “Mr. Condor” online, was telling people to install a heavier striker in the gun for more power. I had to rebuild Mr. Condor’s brand-new air rifle (it was only a couple months old) when he brought it to the AirForce plant in a paper bag!!!

The gun’s frame was damaged, but we managed to get it back together and working again with new parts. And I saved the valve he destroyed with his “slide hammer” heavy striker — so I could show folks one day in the future, when people didn’t believe things like that happened.

Mr. Condor was advising people to install a much heavier striker in their new rifles. This is his valve that we replaced after a couple hundred shots were fired. His overweight striker destroyed this valve and hammered the gun’s frame loose!

The striker spring found in the TexanSS was designed by AirForce. It can’t be purchased commercially. They designed the gun so that the spring is under almost no preload tension at rest. You really need to experience it to appreciate it.

Open the sidelever and the bolt goes forward with zero resistance. As the bolt lever is pulled back, the sear catches the striker, compressing the 25 lb. striker spring while closing the breech.

Infinite adjustments

Now we come to the part that’s difficult to write and even harder to understand. The TexanSS is infinitely adjustable within its performance range. You can shoot a 143-grain lead ball or you can shoot a 350-grain lead slug. There is no end to the number of different bullets that can be fired, and the rifle can be adjusted for each of them. You can adjust the gun to shoot fast or slow for any projectile that you load. And I can hear you now, “Why would I want anything but fast?”

You would want to adjust the velocity to get the best accuracy from each projectile. That won’t always be the maximum velocity. Airguns like the TexanSS are thinking man’s airguns, because they require some thought and reflection to get the best performance. If you take the time to read the report I did on the Texan, linked above, you’ll find that I got the best accuracy with a 215-grain semi-wadcutter with the power adjusted to somewhere in the middle range. At 50 yards I put 5 bullets into a group that measured 0.762-inches between centers. At 100 yards I put 6 of the same bullets into 1.506-inches! I’m hoping to see the same level of accuracy in the TexanSS.

Trigger

The trigger is 2-stage and not adjustable. It breaks at a light weight that I will measure for you in a later report. It’s advertised to break at 2.06 lbs. I read a customer review that mentioned this is not a target trigger. No kidding! And a Corvette is a poor choice for spreading manure! Come on, guys — this is a hunting rifle, pure and simple!

The safety comes on automatically when the rifle is cocked and loaded, and you can push it off with your trigger finger. Just push forward and it goes off quietly and crisply.

Reservoir

The compressed air is contained inside the reservoir that also serves as the butt of the rifle. That gives the rifle a different feel when it is shouldered, and some shooters find it distracting. I will show you how to hold it in a future report.

The reservoir has a pressure gauge, so you know at a glance where you stand, and there is a Foster connector on the other side for rapid refills. Allow about a minute to fill from 2000 to 300 psi to keep heat from building up.

The reservoir is installed and left on the gun. A spanner that’s included lets you attach the reservoir to the action, and after that you fill with the tank/stock on the rifle.

One more feature on the reservoir — the buttplate is on a sliding collar that provides about 1.5 inches of pull adjustment.

Loosen the two Allen screws with the wrench provided and slide the buttplate forward or back to suit your taste.

Documentation

Like all AirForce Airguns, the TexanSS comes with a paper manual and a DVD that addresses their entire range of airguns. The manual is well-written and well-illustrated.

Summary

That’s all I’m going to say today, but there is much more to describe about this very different air rifle. This review may take more than the usual three reports!