Posts Tagged ‘pcp’

Fun on a Sunday afternoon

Monday, January 3, 2011

On a warm Sunday afternoon back in October, 2010, back when there weren’t large white bears roaming my yard (well, maybe that’s a teeny bit of an exaggeration, but it was 8.8 degrees F. just the other morning), I got to do something that is becoming increasing rare for me: I got to shoot my own guns.

Now, I realize that this might be kind of a cheesy thing to say, but I spend so much time reviewing various airguns for this blog that it has become really uncommon for me to drag out a bunch of my own guns and shoot them just for the sheer joy of sending a few shots down range.

But it happened that a warm, fairly calm afternoon popped up one Sunday afternoon in late October, so I began pulling a few of my favorites out of their gun cabinets to see how they are behaving.

The Quigley Sheridan

The first gun I decided to try is my “Quigley” Sheridan. This is a modern Sheridan that Larry Durham very kindly fitted with a globe front sight and a tang vernier rear sight. Shooting .20 caliber JSB Exact pellets off a casual rest, I managed to put three shots in a group that measured only 5/8 inch edge to edge at 35 yards, but the next two shots expanded the group to nearly 2.5 inches. The problem with shooting an air rifle with non-glass, non-magnifying sights is an optical one. It’s simply hard to see the target. Perhaps I’ll start experimenting with shooting with my left eye in the future.

The second air rifle to come out of the closet was a modern “Steroid” Sheridan with a 10X scope. At 35 yards, 5 JSB Exact pellets landed in a group that measured 1-1/8 inch from edge to edge. Four of the shots measured only ¾ inch edge to edge, certainly good enough for defending the garden or the bird feeder.

I then decided to give my scoped Beeman R7 a try. At 35 yards, shooting Crosman Premier Light .177 pellets, I could only squeeze out a 1.5 inch edge to edge 5 shot group. Clearly I was not having my best luck with a spring-piston air rifle that day.

My scoped FWB150

Then the guys who inhabit the back room of my brain handed me an idea: why not try a recoilless springer? Once again, I dove into the basement and emerged, this time, with my trusty FWB150. This time I put all 5 JSB Exact pellets into a group that measured just ¾ inch edge to edge. This was clearly more like it!

A target like this always puts a smile on my face!

My final candidate for the day was the always reliable Benjamin Marauder. Shooting again from the same casual rest, I began launching Crosman Premier Heavy pellets at the target 35 yards away. After 5 shots, I strolled down to the pellet trap to admire my work. The group (seen above) measured just 3/8 inch edge to edge. That works out to about 2/10 inch center to center.

So what did I learn from all this? First, that it’s always fun to put a few shots downrange on a nice afternoon. Second, there’s a reason why people use scopes on rifles (so they can see better!), and third, for wicked consistent accuracy, it’s hard to beat a precharged pneumatic shooting the right pellet.

May you soon find a nice afternoon to enjoy a little casual shooting. In the meantime, there’s this big white bear in my yard . . .

Til next time, aim true and shoot straight.

–          Jock Elliott

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The Unusual Brocock Enigma

Monday, December 27, 2010

The Brocock Enigma, left view. There's not much the shooter can fiddle with on this side.

You don’t have to be Einstein to figure out that the Brocock Enigma in an unusual airgun. The moment I clapped eyes on it in its long slim box from Airguns of Arizona, I knew that whoever had designed this air rifle had started with a clean sheet of paper and not a lot of preconceived ideas.

The Enigma measures just a hair under three feet from muzzle to the tip of the butt pad and weighs just 6 lbs. 13.5 oz. without a scope mounted. At the extreme aft end of the hardwood stock is a thick ventilated rubber butt bad. On either side of the butt stock is a cheek piece, making it suitable for both left and right handed shooters. Underneath the butt stock is a stud for mounting a sling.

The right side of the Enigma. The knob for detaching the butt stock is clearly visible at the rear of the receiver. Above the trigger is the safety, the bolt, and (just forward of the bolt) the magazine.

The pistol grip is nearly vertical and is checkered on either side. At the forward end of the butt stock is a large knob with finger indentations. Turn it counterclockwise, and you can detach the butt stock from the rest of the Enigma, breaking it down so that the longest piece is a little less than two feet long. Forward of the knob, on the right side of the receiver, is a lever type safety. Push it up (so that the red dot is exposed) to fire the gun. Push it down (so that the green down shows) to safe the action. Below the safety, at the bottom of the receiver, are the metal trigger guard and gold-colored metal trigger. Also on the right side of the receiver is the bolt and a slot for inserting the magazine.

There are no shooter-activated parts on the left side of the receiver except for the large stock-connecting knob. On top of the receiver is a dovetail for attaching a scope. At the forward end of the receiver is the .22 caliber barrel, which is roughly 18 inches long and has a screw-off end piece for attaching a silencer where that is legal. Beneath the barrel is the air reservoir, which also has a cap that can be removed to access a male foster fitting for filling the reservoir with a high pressure pump or SCUBA tank to 190 Bar.

Underneath the air reservoir and the forward end of the receiver is the hardwood forestock, which has a stud for attaching a sling or bipod (furnished with the Enigma) and an air gauge.

To ready the Enigma for shooting, pull the bolt all the way back and pull the 9-shot magazine out of its slot in the receiver. To load the magazine, line up the opening in the magazine with the hole in the clear cover and drop a pellet, nose-first, into the opening in the clear cover. I found it necessary to poke the pellets with a ballpoint pen to get them to seat full in the green rotary pellet holder below the clear cover.

When all nine pellets have been loaded, insert the magazine into the slot in the receiver so that (a) the flat side of the magazine is vertical and (b) the clear cover is facing toward the buttstock. There is really only one way that the magazine can be inserted into the rifle, but if you are accustomed to magazines where the flat side must face downwards and try to insert the magazine in that orientation, you’ll spend a minute or two wondering what’s gone wrong.

Next, push the bolt forward. This pushes the first pellet out of the magazine and into the barrel. Flick off the safety and squeeze the trigger. The first stage of the trigger is very short and comes out at 1 lb. At 5 lbs. 14 oz, the second stage trips, and the shot goes down range with a resounding boom! Filled to 2800 psi, the Enigma launches .22 JSB Express pellets with alacrity: 30 shots at 895.5 fps or 25.6 footpounds of energy.

The Enigma delivered this 5-shot group at 32 yards.

Despite a report that is louder than I like and a trigger that is heavier than I prefer, the Enigma acquits itself very well on the range. At 32 yards, it put 5 JSB Exact Express pellets into a group that measured just .5 inch edge to edge. That works out to just .28 inch center to center.

Til next time, aim true and shoot straight.

–          Jock Elliott

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The Outstanding Gladiator Tactical – Part II

Monday, October 25, 2010
Click to read The Outstanding Gladiator – Part I

The Gladiator Tactical shoots as good as it looks.

To get the FX Gladiator Tactical ready for shooting, charge both reservoirs up to 200 bar. You can do this by inserting the charging adapter into the port on the front reservoir. Be sure to fill slowly and that it will take a lot longer than usual because there is a lot more volume to fill than on most PCP airguns. If you try to fill too quickly, you may get an indication from the gauge on the GT that the reservoir is full, but then the charge in the front reservoir will slowly bleed to the rear reservoir until the pressures in the two reservoirs equalize.

Put the safety in the non-fire position (full back). Pull the cocking lever full back, now pull the magazine release lever back. When the magazine release lever is fully back, the magazine will slide out the breech. Load it with the nose of the pellets facing toward the flat side of the magazine. Slide the magazine back in place and push the cocking lever forward. This slides the first pellet into the barrel. Now return the magazine release lever back to its original position, and the magazine locked firmly in place.

Now you’re ready to shoot. Take aim, flick the safety off, ease the first stage out of the trigger (13.2 oz) and squeeze gently on the second stage (1 lb 10 oz), and the shot goes down range. In stock trim, the high, medium, and lower power settings are for 32 footpounds, 24 fp, and 14 fp in the .22 cal version.

Pull the cocking lever back. You can push it forward again or you can simply let go of it and it will return to its original position on its own. Now you’re ready for the next shot.

Five shots went through those three holes. I love it when air rifles shoot like this!

Shooting JSB Exact Jumbo Express .22 pellets at high power, I put five shots into a group at 35 yards that I could cover with a dime. Then I decided to flip the power switch all the way down to low power. I put 5 pellets into a group that measures barely .5 inch edge to edge. That works out to just a bit over a quarter inch center to center.

Even better, the report was extremely muted, making a kind of “ching!” sound every time a shot goes off. The GT isn’t dead quiet, but it doesn’t sound like anything shooting either.

In the end, I liked the GT a whole lot. It gets a ton of shots per fill, has an excellent trigger, is a bona fide tack driver, and has a neighbor-friendly report. It puts all the good stuff together in one package, and I give it my hearty recommendation.

Til next time, aim true and shoot straight.

– Jock Elliott

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The Outstanding Gladiator Tactical – Part I

Monday, October 18, 2010

Anyone who has read this blog for a while, or any of my other airgun writings, has probably figured out that I love – absolutely love – the way pre-charged pneumatic (PCP) rifles shoot, but I’m not so keen on the ancillary gear needed to charged them up.

I guess it’s a holdover from my summers in Vermont at my grandparents place. A buddy and I spent endless days roaming the woods and fields of the “Northeast Kingdom.” All we needed when we went out the door in the morning was our trusty BB guns and a tube or two BBs. It was freedom and glorious adventure.

So that’s why, even though my PCPs will shoot teensy groups at impressive range, you’ll most often find me packing for a day of airgunning with a self-contained air rifle and a tin of pellets.

But a rifle I tested the other day might change all that. The gun in question is an FX Gladiator Tactical (GT). It is an FX Gladiator fitted with the barrel, including permanently affixed sound moderator, from an FX Royale.

There are a bunch of things that I like about the Gladiator Tactical, but there are two things that really set it apart from all other air rifles that I have tested so far. The first is that the GT has two – count ‘em – air reservoirs that provide some 648 CC (500 cc rear, 148 cc front) of air storage.

That means that the number of shots you get between fills is absolutely staggering. For example, one of the guys at Airguns of Arizona (who supplied this gun for review), has a .22 cal GT set up for 28 foot-pounds of energy at the muzzle (on high power), and he gets – are you ready for this? – 180 shots from a fill, with a 40 fps spread between high and low.

The power adjustment lever is just below "FX 25059."

The second thing that sets the GT apart is a little lever on the side of the receiver just forward of the breech. That lever allows the shooter to choose among high, medium and low power settings simply by sliding the lever to one of three settings. There are no springs to adjust, no internal fiddling to be done, just throw the lever to the power setting you want. Well, you don’t have to be Einstein to figure out that if you get 180 shoots on high power, if you slide the lever to medium power, you’re going to get a lot more shots, and if you drop the power to the lowest setting, you’re going to get even more shots before you have to refill.
I don’t actually know how many shots per fill you get from a .22 on low power, but 200-300 seems perfectly plausible to me. And that, dear reader, would send me out the door with the Gladiator Tactical in one hand and a tin of pellets in the other!

The aft end of the GT is the rear air reservoir that is wrapped in an matte black engineering plastic cover that provides a cheek piece and an attachment for the adjustable butt pad. Loosen an allen screw, and you can move the cheek piece/cover back and forth and angle it from side to side to suit your preference.

Moving forward, the main receiver of the GT is also wrapped matte black engineering plastic. The pistol grip is nearly vertical and has finger indentations. The plastic wraps around to form a trigger guard that surrounds an adjustable trigger. Forward of the trigger guard is an air guage. Moving forward again, you’ll find the forward air reservoir.

The left side of the receiver, showing the magazine, cocking lever, and safety lever.

Above that is the barrel with moderator. Moving back along the barrel, you’ll find the receiver, which is handsomely finished in gloss black and has scope dovetails along its full length except for the breech opening. At the mid point of the receiver is the breech, where a removable 8-shot magazine slides into place (it only goes in one way, so you can’t get it in backwards). On the right side of the receiver is the cocking arm. Pull it straight back, and it cocks the GT and rotates the magazine so that the next pellet is in position.  Also on the right side of the receiver near the back end is the lever for activating the safety.

At the back of the receiver is a lever that must be pulled back to remove the magazine from the breech. On the left side of the receiver is the previously mentioned power adjustment lever.

Next time, we’ll take a lot at how the Gladiator Tactical performs.

Til then, aim true and shoot straight.

–         Jock Elliott

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.25 Caliber Marauder

Monday, August 9, 2010

Back in 2004, I had an assignment from SHOT Business magazine to do a profile on Crosman Corporation. As part of putting that together, I had the opportunity to speak at length with Ken D’Arcy, CEO of Crosman.

When D’Arcy arrived at Crosman, the company had been coasting for eight years. Management had not brought a serious new product to market in years, and it was not looking for ways to reduce costs to remain competitive.

“The company was dead,” D’Arcy said. “It just didn’t know it yet. Like many companies that have been around for a long time, it had forgotten what drives the business. Consumer products companies are about just that–consumer products.”

“Clearly the answer is to bring new offerings to market that consumers will want to buy,” D’Arcy said. We’re a consumer products company. Our responsibility is to introduce new products. You become stale if you are only changing the cosmetic appearance of existing products.”

In some four decades of writing for a living, I’ve found that CEOs love saying stuff like “We’re taking the company in a bold new direction,” but it’s not so common for them to actually get it done.

But D’Arcy certainly appears to be making good on his promise. During his tenure at the top, Crosman has introduced dozens of new products including the Discovery rifle, which shattered the price floor for PCP rifles, and, last year, the Marauder PCP rifle which had all the goodies on most airgunners’ Christmas list: quiet, wickedly accurate, excellent trigger, repeater all for about $500.

Among the new products being introduced this year by Crosman is the .25 caliber Marauder. Outwardly the .25 cal Marauder is nearly identical to the .177 and .22 versions. It stretches 43 inches end to end and weighs 7.5 lbs. What’s really interesting is that this is, apparently, Crosman’s first venture into .25 caliber.

The new Marauder is equipped with a .25 barrel manufactured by Green Mountain. The slot in the breech for the magazine is deeper to accommodate the new 8-shot .25 cal rotary magazine, which in turn is deeper to make room for larger .25 pellets. Those are the major differences from the .177 and .22 Marauders. To accompany the new Marauder (and a new .25 cal gas ram rifle to be introduced later this year), Crosman is also introducing Benjamin .25 cal domed and pointed pellets.

I had the opportunity to shoot one of the very first production .25 caliber Marauders. It was my first experience shooting .25 caliber, and I didn’t know what to expect, but I was very quickly delighted. At 35 yards, shooting Benjamin .25 domed pellets, I was easily able to put five shots into a tiny group that you could cover with a dime. Even better, the report was remarkably quiet, and the trigger was well behaved (1 lb 10 oz first stage, 3 lb second stage).

Cliff Tharpe, producer of Airgun Hunting the California Ground Squirrel, has shot similarly tiny groups at 50 and 65 yards with his .25 Marauder, and he routinely hunts prairie dogs at 50-100 yards with it. He finds he can get 16 shots (two magazines) before he has to recharge the air reservoir. Shooting Kodiak pellets, his Marauder generates about 46 foot-pounds of energy at the muzzle. He says of his Marauder: “I’ve got a lot of expensive shiny rifles, and when it comes to accuracy, this one shines with the best of them.”

In the end, the Marauder has a whole lot going for it for hunting and pest control: outstanding accuracy, enough power to deal with anything you might reasonably want to hunt with an air rifle, and a very neighbor-friendly report.

Til next time, aim true and shoot straight.

– Jock Elliott

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Posted in Airguns | 33 Comments »

BSA R10

Monday, August 2, 2010

A couple of years ago, I had a BSA SuperTEN with a bull barrel. It was a really neat air rifle and accurate as the dickens, but there were a couple of things about it that really drove me to distraction: you had to remove the “bottle” (the air reservoir) to recharge the gun, and there was no way to tell how much air pressure was left in the reservoir.

The new BSA R10, available in .177 and .22, is an evolutionary step forward in the SuperTEN concept. The R10 is a so-called “bottle” gun because it has a removable 200cc air bottle at the end of the forestock. It is a multi-shot repeater with a fully shrouded barrel and an excellent trigger.

The R10 is 43 inches long and weighs 7.3 lbs before a scope is mounted. Length of pull from the trigger to the end of the butt pad about 13.75 inches. At the extreme aft end of the R10 is a soft rubber butt pad that is adjustable vertically. Just loosen a screw and slide it up or down as needed. On either side of the stock, near the butt pad, the stock is laser engraved with the BSA logo. On the underside of the butt stock, about two inches from the butt pad, the stock has a fitting for attaching a sling. Forward of that the walnut stock is distinctly right-handed with a pronounced cheek piece and comb on the left hand side of the stock.

The pistol grip has sharply cut checkering on both sides and a nice dark wood cap with a lighter colored spacer. Just above the pistol grip is an indentation is an indentation that the shooter can use as a thumb rest. Forward of the pistol grip is a black metal trigger guard which houses the two-stage adjustable match trigger. The forestock has checkering on both sides and underneath.

Ahead of the trigger guard is a screw that secures the action in the stock. Forward of that is a white-on-black pressure gauge, next to which is a quick-fill port. Beyond that you’ll find another attachment for a sling, followed by dark wood at the end of the forestock with a lighter colored spacer. Beyond that is the air reservoir.

Above the air reservoir is the fully shrouded bull barrel with a ported thread protector at the end. Moving back along the barrel, you’ll find a magazine retaining catch on the left side at the front end of the receiver. The full length of the top of the receiver has a 10.8 mm dovetailed scope rail. About halfway back along the length of the receiver on the left side there is a slot for inserting the 10-shot magazine.

At the rear of the receiver on the left side is a lever-type safety. Push it forward to ready the gun for firing, and pull it back to “safe” the action. At the extreme aft end of the receiver is a large chrome bolt. In all, I find the R10 a handsome air rifle, but I think the finish on the receiver is not quite as nice as I remember on the SuperTEN.

To ready the R10 for shooting, you first have to charge the reservoir, which can be done in two ways. (1) Remove the bottle, and using an optional filling adaptor, charge it to 232 bar with a SCUBA tank or high pressure pump. (2) Insert the filling adaptor supplied with every R10 into the quick-fill port and charge it using a SCUBA tank or high pressure pump. The quick-fill port has a restrictor screw that should be screwed down tightly if you are using a SCUBA tank. BY ALL MEANS, READ THE MANUAL!

There are detailed instructions in the manual for loading the magazine, and it is a pretty straightforward process. Once you have accomplished this, slide the magazine into place and push the bolt forward to slide the first pellet into the barrel.  Take aim at a target, flip the safety off, and squeeze the trigger. At 10.3 oz, the first stage comes out of the trigger. At 1 lb, 14.2 oz, the shot goes off. The trigger is extremely crisp and clean with no creep, very much like the trigger you would find on a 10-meter match rifle.

The .22 caliber R10 sample launched 18.2 grain JSB Exact Heavy pellets at 832 fps (27.98 foot-pounds), and when the shot goes off, you quickly discover where BSA has dropped the ball in the design of the R10: the fully shrouded bull barrel offers no acoustical advantage. There are no baffles in the bull barrel, and, as a result, this gun is loud.

On the other hand, the accuracy was outstanding. At 35 yards shooting from a casual rest, I was able to put 5 shots into a ragged one-hole group that you could easily cover with a dime.

In the end, I can happily recommend the BSA R10 on all fronts – it operates smoothly and efficiently, is commendably accurate, and has a superb trigger. The only exception to that is if your shooting requirements demand a neighbor-friendly report.

Til next time, aim true and shoot straight.

– Jock Elliott

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The Brocock Concept

Monday, July 12, 2010

The Brocock Concept has a whole lot going for it.

Not long ago, on the “Yellow” airgun forum, someone posted a question: “What was the PCP equivalent of the beloved Beeman R7?” The R7 is highly praised by many airgunners because it is relatively light, simple, accurate, and just plain fun.

I think I have found the answer, for me anyway: the Brocock Concept. We’ll get to the particulars in just a moment, but first some background.

Now, if you recall from previous blogs on Brocock, the company was nearly driven out of business by changes in British law. But the folks at Brocock didn’t quit, and they took what could have been a deathblow as an opportunity to get stronger and better. One of the truly smart things they did was to hire the designer from Falcon Pneumatics (now defunct), who promptly designed a new line of precharged pneumatic air rifles and pistols for Brocock. These airguns are all based on a common action and trigger, to which reservoirs, barrels, and so forth are added to produce the desired airgun.

The Brocock Concept is one of those airguns. I tested the .22 version with a walnut stock, and it’s a beauty. It stretches just a yard overall and weighs only 6 pounds without a scope. Starting at the rear of the Concept is a soft rubber butt pad that is adjustable vertically; just loosen a screw and slide it up or down.

The butt pad can be adjusted vertically.

Moving forward, the buttstock is fully ambidextrous, with a raised cheek piece on either side. The pistol grip is checkered with a slight palm swell on either side. At the top of the pistol grip is a depression for resting your thumb while shooting. Forward of the pistol grip is a black metal trigger guard, inside of which is a black metal trigger that can be adjusted for first stage travel and weight. The length of pull from trigger to butt pad is about 14.25 inches.

Just ahead of the trigger guard is a bolt that secures the action in the stock. The forestock is slender and tapered with checkering on either side. At the far end of the forestock is the air reservoir, which has a screw-off cap that protects a male Foster fitting for filling the air rifle. Above that is the barrel, which also has a screw-off fitting that can be removed for fitting a sound moderator where legal.

Just back of the muzzle is a barrel band that secures the barrel to the air reservoir. Moving all the way back along the barrel, you’ll find the receiver, which has dovetails for fitting a scope both fore and aft of the breech. On the right rear side of the receiver is a small lever, and at the very tail end of the receiver you’ll find a small contoured knob that serves as the end of the bolt.

A small lever at the rear of the receiver on the right side releases the bolt.

That’s it: the Concept is about a simple as a PCP rifle can be.

To ready the Concept for shooting, unscrew the end cap on the air reservoir, attach a SCUBA tank or high pressure pump, and charge it to 2900 psi. Depress the small lever on the right side of the receiver, and the bolt springs backward, opening the breech. At this point, you can load a pellet into the breech and push the knob at the end of the bolt to close the breech, but the rifle will not be cocked. (From a practical standpoint for hunters, this means that you can load the Concept without cocking it and walk around all day without worrying that an errant twig might discharge a shot. Then, when you’re ready to shoot, just press the breech lever, pull the bolt all the way back and close the breech, and you’re good to go.)

To cock the action for shooting, from the breech-open position, you have to grab the knob at the end of the bolt and pull it backwards until it clicks. Load a pellet, close the breech by pushing the bolt knob fully forward, and you are ready to launch a pellet. Note well: this rifle has no safety of any kind. When it is loaded, keep your finger out of the trigger guard until you are ready to shoot.

Now, take aim, ease the first stage out of the trigger (this takes only 7 ounces of pressure) and at 1 lb. 3.4 oz, the shot goes down range. The Concept launches JSB .22 Jumbo Express pellets at about 667 fps average, and will deliver about 40 shots per fill (see the chart below). Since this rifle has no gauge for letting you know how much pressure is left in the reservoir, I suggest counting out 40 pellets, putting them in a small container like a pill bottle, and when the container is empty, you know it is time to refill the reservoir.

Fooling around from a very casual rest in my yard, I found that, at 13 yards, I could put shot after shot through the same hole. Not just “sorta” the same hole, I mean the exact same hole. I would be astonished if this rifle can’t shoot dime sized groups at 35 yards and well under an inch groups at 50 yards.

In all, I found the Concept is light, simple, handy, and delightfully accurate. I think a  lot of airgunners will enjoy owning and shooting this air rifle.

Til next time, aim true and shoot straight.

– Jock Elliott

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Posted in Airguns | 4 Comments »

Independence Day

Thursday, June 3, 2010

Okay, so it’s not the Fourth of July, but it is Independence Day at El Rancho Elliott. That’s because, thanks to Brown Santa and the good graces of the folks at Airguns of Arizona, I’m one of the first airgunners in the United States to actually get his hands on the new FX Independence air rifle.

Here it is: the long-awaited FX Independent

FX Airguns, based in Sweden, already enjoys a well-deserved reputation as a maker of excellent, accurate pre-charged pneumatic (PCP) air rifles and pistols. What sets the Independence apart — what gives it almost “Holy Grail” status among airgunners – is that you can recharge it with an on-board pump while you are out shooting it in the field. As with any PCP, you have the multi-shooting capacity provided by an on-board reservoir, yet you are free from having to carry an additional pump or SCUBA tank. You have independence of any external charging device, hence the name.

The Independence is a big gun. It stretches 43.75 inches from the tip of the barrel shroud to the end of the butt plate. With a Hawke Air Max 4-12.scope mounted, it weighs 10 lbs 5 ounces. Available only in .22 caliber, it has a right-handed black synthetic stock.

At the extreme back end of the Independence, you’ll find a soft rubber butt pad that can be adjusted vertically; just loosen a screw and slide it up or down. Ahead of that is the buttstock which has vertical grooves on the pistol grip. The stock is molded to form a trigger guard, inside of which you’ll find a black metal trigger.

The pressure gauge is large and easy to read.

Forward of the trigger guard is a male foster fitting which can be used to charge the Independence up to 200 bar. About an inch forward of that is an Allen bolt which secures the action in the stock. Moving forward another 3 or 4 inches, you’ll discover a very large – a bit over 1.5 inches in diameter – pressure gauge that makes it really easy to know what the status of the charge is in the Independence. Forward of that is the rest of the forestock, which has vertical grooves for gripping on either side.

The barrel shroud does a very nice job of producing a neighbor-friendly report.

Beyond the end of the forestock is the air reservoir/onboard pump assembly, and above that is the match barrel which is encased in a full shroud that is about an inch in diameter. The entire shroud/barrel assembly is free floated from the reservoir/pump assembly below it, so you don’t have to worry about various levels of charge flexing the barrel and messing with accuracy.

The charging handle is just a bit over 19 inches long.

On the right side of the reservoir is a roughly 19.25 inch handle which is used to charge the Independence through the onboard pump. At the rear of the barrel is the receiver, which has scope dovetails fore and aft of the breech. The breech is deep enough to load pellets one at a time (with some difficulty) but it is designed to hold a 12-shot rotary magazine. The Independence is cocked and loaded using a lever on the right side of the receiver, and on the right side, near the back end of the receiver, you’ll find a lever action safety.

Overall, I liked the fit and finish of the Independence, although I found the stock to be a little bigger and blockier than other synthetic-stocked FX rifles I have shot in the past. Still, considering that this rifle has an onboard sidelever pump, I want the stock to be plenty rigid.

To get the Independence ready for shooting, you can charge it from a SCUBA tank, or you can pump it up using the onboard pump. This will take about 65 strokes. To use the onboard pump, grab the forestock between the trigger guard and the gauge with your left hand. Grasp the end of the pump handle with your right hand. Pull the pump handle away from the receiver and toward the muzzle as far as it will go (at this point, the total distance between your hands will be about 34 inches). Now, return the pump handle back to its original position. I don’t have any good way of measuring the pumping effort, but it feels roughly the same as putting the fourth or fifth stroke into a Sheridan or Benjamin multi-stroke pneumatic rifle. What’s interesting about the Independence’s onboard pump is that every stroke seems to require the same effort, and that there is no pressure “hump” in the middle of the stroke. In short, I found the Independence easy to pump.

The breech lever is back, and the magazine is inserted into the breech.

Next, load the 12-shot magazine. To do that, first, rotate the clear plastic face plate counter-clockwise as far as possible. Now, while holding the face plate in position, flip the magazine over so you’re looking at the back side. You’ll see that a port has opened in the back of the magazine. Load a pellet backwards (tail first) into the port. This will lock the spring and keep the inner wheel from turning. Now, flip the magazine over and load the rest of the pellets by dropping them nose-first into the magazine while rotating the transparent cover so that the hole in it opens each of the pellet “bays.” Once you have filled the magazine, rotate the transparent cover back to its original position. Pull the  breech lever to the rear of the receiver to move the bolt back. Now slide the magazine into the breech.

Push the breech lever forward to move the first pellet out the magazine and into the barrel. Take aim, slide the safety off, and squeeze the trigger. On the sample I tested, it required only 9.3 ounces to take up the first stage, and at l lb .5 ounces, the shot goes down range. Sweet!

Over the course of 9 shots, the Independence launched the 18.2 grain JSB Jumbo Heavy pellets at an average of 849 fps (high 867, low 833), generating about 29.1 (average) footpounds of energy at the muzzle. Thanks to the shroud, the report is very neighbor-friendly, roughly as loud as someone tapping their fingernail on a plastic countertop.

The accuracy is what I have come to expect from FX. Shooting JSB Jumbo Express pellets, at 35 yards from a rest, I put five shots into a group you could easily hide under a dime. I bet that shooters will soon be reporting similar groups at 50 yards.

I found that if, between shots, you give the Independence about 3 strokes with the onboard pump, that puts the pressure gauge approximately back where it was before you took the shot. So, as a rough guide, you’ll need about three pump strokes to recharge the Independence for each shot you take, but they are easy strokes.

At the end of the day, I find the Independence embodies everything I prize most in an air rifle: accuracy, quiet, fully self-contained, and powerful enough to dispatch any small game or pests you might want to take with a pneumatic rifle. It should have a lot of airgunners grinning for a long time.

Til next time, aim true and shoot straight.

– Jock Elliott

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Posted in Airguns | 31 Comments »

Feinwerkbau’s Awesome P44 Pistol

Monday, May 31, 2010

Back when Beeman Precision Airguns was still a going concern, Beeman sold Feinwerkbau (FWB) precision air rifles and air pistols for 10-meter international competition. At that time, Airguns of Arizona was Beeman’s number one dealer when it came to selling FWB match rifles and pistols.

So it should come as no surprise that FWB management has selected Airguns of Arizona to become a factory-direct distributor of FWB’s excellent gear in the United States. This means that if you need an FWB air pistol or air rifle for 10-meter competition, or you simply want a superb example of the airgun maker’s art, you can get it from Airguns of Arizona.

Recently, the good folks at AoA sent me a sample of the FWB P44 match pistol for examination, and I’ve got to tell you that it saddens me greatly that I have to send it back.

The P44 doesn’t just show up in a box, it shows up in a fitted plastic case. Inside the case is the pistol, a spare air cylinder (extra cost), a filling fitting, and some tools for making adjustments.

Also in the case is a manual, and an integral part of the cover of the manual is a target. This target shows the results of five shots fired at 10 meters with the pistol that’s in the case. The “group,” if you can call it that, is a barely egg-shaped hole. In other words, each FWB P44 pistol comes with proof that it is a one-hole gun at 10 meters.

It also means that when you purchase one of these pistols, you have entered the Land of No Excuses. In short, if you miss, shoot a crummy score, or otherwise embarrass yourself with this pistol, it’s your fault. It’s no good saying, “Well, ya know, if I had a better pistol, I coulda . . .” Nah, that won’t wash. Man up, brother (or sister), step to the line, shoot your best, and accept the results.

The P44 stretches 16.33 inches long weighs just 2.09 lbs. It’s a .177 caliber, single-shot, precharged pneumatic match pistol. The hand rest, rotation of the grip, and grip angle can all be adjusted. The sample I shot had a beautifully sculpted right hand grip that fit as if it had been molded for my hand. Left hand grips are also available.

The trigger shoe can be adjusted from side to side; the trigger can be moved fore and aft; and the trigger stop can be adjusted. The trigger is set at the factor precisely to 500 grams (the minimum standard for international and Olympic competition), but the weight of the trigger can also be adjusted if desired. There is an “absorber” built into the P44 that helps absorb the recoil of the pellet being launched down the barrel, and you can dry fire with the P44 if you don’t feel like launching pellets.

The manual states that the velocity of pellets has been adjusted to 492 feet per second, and you should be able to get 160 shots from a 200 bar (2900 psi) fill. The rear sight is, of course, micro adjustable for windage and elevation, but you can also adjust the width of the rear notch, and you can even swap the front sights with optional front sights of other widths if you feel you need to.

Shooting the P44 is simplicity itself. Flip up the lever on the left hand side that opens the breech by pulling back the bolt. Slip a pellet into the breech and return the lever to its original position. Now, take aim, squeeze the trigger, and the shot goes down range. If it gets better than this, I don’t know how.

Til next time, aim true and shoot straight.

– Jock Elliott

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Posted in Airguns | 25 Comments »

Crosman’s Nifty New Silhouette PCP Target Pistol

Monday, April 19, 2010


Recently, Crosman Corporation sent me a sample of its new Silhouette PCP Target Pistol (Model 1700P) for evaluation, and, to spare you any further suspense, I think it’s pretty neat.

The 1700P is a single-shot, .177 caliber precharged pneumatic air pistol that weighs 2.5 lbs and stretches 14.75 inches from end to end. The 1700P meets requirements for silhouette air pistol competition with both the International Handgun Metallic Silhouette Association and the National Rifle Association.

At the extreme back end of the receiver is the bolt, which comes from the factory hanging to the left so that right-handed shooters can cock and reload without taking their shooting hand off the grip, the bolt but can be switched to right hanging if the shooter prefers. Below that is a fitting at the rear of the receiver with a port through which adjustments can be made to the hammer spring and hammer stroke for velocity string tuning.

Below that is the ambidextrous pistol grip assembly with plastic grips on either side. These grips can be removed to a trigger weight adjustment (more about that later). Forward of the pistol grip is the cast metal trigger guard, inside of which is a die cast trigger that is adjustable for weight and over-travel and can accept an aftermarket trigger shoe. A push-button safety can be found between the trigger guard and the pistol grip.

Forward of the trigger guard, on the underside of the air reservoir, is a 3000 psi air gauge. At the end of the air reservoir is a snap-off plastic cap that protects a male foster fitting used to charge the 1700P. Above the snap-off cap is a black metal muzzle brake that also serves as a mount for a post-type front sight. (Originally, Crosman planned to mount a ported muzzle brake on this pistol, but the design engineers discovered this would violate IHMSA rules, so the plan was scrapped.)

Aft of that is the German-made Lothar Walter barrel which attaches to an anodized aircraft aluminum receiver that is fitted with 3/8 inch dovetails fore and aft of the breech. The breech has a .177 loading tray to make sliding pellets into the breech easier.

An important note: because silhouette shooters have so many varying preferences for sighting systems, the 1700P does not come with a rear sight or scope. Available extra-cost options include a William or LPA notch rear sight (favored by IHMSA Creedmoor style shooters) or a Williams peep sight (often used by standing silhouette shooters). In addition, this pistol may be easily fitted with a rifle scope, pistol scope, or red dot. Mine is shown below with the Williams notch rear sight.


To get the 1700P ready for shooting, charge it to 2900 psi with a high pressure tank or SCUBA tank. As it comes from the factory, the 1700P is set up to deliver 50+ shots from a fill, launching 7.9 gr. Crosman Premier pellets at 450 fps. I shot the pistol through my chronograph and found it was launching the 7.9 gr. pellets at 460 fps average. It takes about 35 pump strokes to refill the reservoir from 1700 psi to 3000 psi using a Benjamin HPP3k pump. If desired, the pistol can be tuned to shoot as fast as 550 fps, but with fewer shots per fill.

When I first tested the trigger on the 1700P, the first stage came out at1 lb 14 oz, and the second stage went off at 5 lb 13 oz, which is not so hot. So I removed the plastic pistol grips, ran the trigger weight adjustment up as high as it would go, and then dropped it back down to the lowest weight. With the next measurement, the second stage tripped and the shot went down range at a much more manageable 4 lbs.

Note: if you want to lighten the trigger by cutting coils off the trigger spring or polishing the trigger parts, you run the risk of voiding the warranty. Why? Because every air rifle and air pistol Crosman makes must pass the ASTM drop test. But if you modify the trigger in any way, it might not pass the test, and therefore Crosman accepts no responsibility.

I saved the best part for last: the accuracy of the 1700P is excellent. My pal, IHMSA champion Steve Ware is a steely-eyed pistol silhouette competitor. He clamped his 1700P into a vice and fired 5 shot groups at 18 yards. His best group, shot with H&N Finale Match pellets, measured just .071 inches ctc. No wonder Crosman claims this pistol will shoot quarter-inch groups at 30 meters.

In all, I find the Crosman 1700P to be an entirely worthy competition air pistol that delivers a whole lot of performance and accuracy at a price that is just a fraction of its high priced competitors.

Til next time, aim true and shoot straight.

– Jock Elliott

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Posted in Airguns | 16 Comments »

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