Pyramyd Air has announced that the 2019 Pyramyd Air Cup will run from August 23 – 25th. In addition to the regular competitions like Field Target, and Gunslynger, there’s also a new 100 Yard Benchrest competition.

So the dates are earlier this year, there’s additional competitions and there’s a new venue.

The company says that moving the 2019 Pyramyd Air Cup to the Cardinal Shooting Center in Marengo, OH gives a lot more space for both competitors and competitions.

Take a look at that Benchrest Competition. There’s a total of $21,500 to be won in cash prizes! Yes, TWENTY ONE THOUSAND, FIVE HUNDRED BUCKS!!!

And what’s more, registration is open now!

Here’s some more details…

2019 Pyramyd Air Cup Prizes

Gunslynger:

1st Place: PCP & Piston – $1,000
2nd Place: PCP & Piston – $500
3rd Place: PCP & Piston – $250

Field Target:

Product prizes will be awarded to the 1st, 2nd and 3rd places in the following 6 divisions (minimum of 5 shooters in each division required for product prizes). Prizes will be announced as they become confirmed.
PCP: Open, WFTF and Hunter Divisions
Piston: Open, WFTF and Hunter Divisions

Benchrest:

Cash prizes will be awarded to top ten finishers.
First place: $7,500
Second place: $5,000
Third place: $3,000
Fourth place: $1,500
Fifth place: $1,000
Sixth place: $900
Seventh place: $800
Eighth place: $700
Ninth place: $600
Tenth place: $500

In addition, there will be door prizes given away throughout the weekend.

2019 Pyramyd Air Cup Schedule

At this early stage, this schedule is provisional and subject to change.

Thursday, August 22nd

9:00 a.m. – Registration / Shooter Check In
9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Practice Range Open

Friday, August 23rd

7:30 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. – Practice Range Open
8:45 a.m. – Safety Meeting (Benchrest)
9:00 a.m. – Benchrest Competition (Qualifying Rounds)
1:45 p.m. – Safety Meeting (Gunslynger)
2:00 p.m. – Gunslynger

Saturday, August 24th

7:30 a.m. – 2:00 p.m. – Practice Range Open
8:15 a.m. – Safety Meeting (Field Target)
9:00 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. – Field Target Competition (1st round)
3:00 p.m. – Benchrest Competition (Finals)

Sunday, August 25th

7:30 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Practice Range Open
8:15 a.m. – Safety Meeting (Field Target)
9:00 a.m. – 1:30 p.m. Field Target Competition (2nd round)

2019 Pyramyd Air Cup Location

Cardinal Shooting Center
616 OH-61
Marengo, OH 43334

https://www.thecardinalcenter.com

2019 Pyramyd Air Cup Registration Fees

There’s lots of competitions and lots of choices!

Weekend Pass / Entire Competition – $225. Includes:

Entry into each competition – Benchrest, Field Target, Gunslynger PCP and Gunslynger Springer Competitions
Friday, Saturday and Sunday Lunches
Banquet Ticket

Benchrest Competition Only – $100. Includes:

Entry into 100 yard Benchrest Competition
Friday, Saturday and Sunday Lunches
Banquet Ticket

Field Target Competition Only – $75. Includes:

Entry into Field Target Competition
Friday, Saturday and Sunday Lunches
Banquet Ticket

Gunslynger PCP Competition – $75. Includes:

Entry into Gunslynger PCP Competition (only)
Friday, Saturday and Sunday Lunches
Banquet Ticket

Gunslynger Springer Competition – $75. Includes:

Entry into Gunslynger Springer Competition (only)
Friday, Saturday and Sunday Lunches
Banquet Ticket

The 2019 Pyramyd Air Cup is obviously going to be a great event! Several members of the HAM Team will be attending – we look forward to seeing you there!

The post It’s Back And Better Than Ever! The 2019 Pyramyd Air Cup appeared first on Hard Air Magazine.

The Benjamin Fortitude Gen 2 hammer spring is adjustable. That’s one of the new features of the new model Fortitude, of course. So, HAM Publisher Stephen Archer couldn’t resist finding out if it makes sense to alter the factory setting.

Here’s what I found…

First, a reminder of the information Velocity Outdoors provides about Fortitude Gen 2 hammer preload.

The Benjamin Fortitude Gen 2 sample gun we have here at the HAM offices is in .22 caliber. To keep things “in house”, we tested it using 14.3 Grain Crosman Premier domed pellets.

This is how the Gen 2 Fortitude performed “out of the box” with the factory hammer spring adjustment.

Here we have a nicely-shaped curve of Muzzle Energy against the number of shots. There’s about 70 consistent shots before HPA pressure drops below the regulator setting. This is a pretty-well set-up regulated PCP air rifle!

Does it match the company’s claim of “up to 90 effective shots”? That’s for you to decide. What we can say is that Fortitude Gen 2 hammer spring preload at the factory setting gives about 70 CONSISTENT shots per fill of High Pressure Air for the gun tested by HAM.

Of course, most enthusiasts are going to set the Fortitude Gen 2 hammer preload to its maximum setting! More is good, right?

So that’s what I tried next. Here are some learnings…

Of course, you have the gun unloaded before starting this!

First, you’ll find that if you use a T handle Allen (hex) wrench to adjust the Fortitude gen 2 hammer preload, it’s far, far easier to take the action out of the stock first. Otherwise the stock severely limits rotation of the Allen wrench.

Second, if you decide to increase the hammer preload by more than the maximum figure given by the manufacturer, the gun will not fire! Yip, the sear will not release if you set too much hammer spring preload.

So carefully back-off the preload adjuster by about 1/4 turn counterclockwise then cock and dry fire – or try to. Keep backing-off and testing until the gun WILL dry fire. Now you have the maximum preload that can be set for your Fortitude Gen 2 hammer spring.

Here is the shot count curve for the gun tested by HAM with maximum hammer spring preload.

Hmmm, that looks pretty similar to the first curve, doesn’t it? So let’s put both sets of test data on the same chart and compare them.

Here we can compare the results from the Fortitude Gen 2 hammer spring preload setting in factory condition and at maximum preload.

Now we can see that increasing the preload gives minimal increase in Muzzle Velocity – maybe 20 FPS, on average, over the consistent shots. But it definitely gives a lower shot count with approximately 60 reasonably-consistent shots per fill.

The other limit for hammer preload is zero. So I cranked the Fortitude Gen 2 hammer spring adjuster back to the “full out” position. No hammer preload. Here’s the results…

Readers who have been taking-in HAM Technical Editor Bob Sterne’s series on PCP air rifles will not be at all surprised by this shot curve.

In his post “Using Hammer Strike To Control PCP Power“, Bob gives examples of how different hammer spring tension will alter the shot curve. Look at the bottom curve in his chart here…

As Bob said:

“Yes, tuning well below the plateau (10% or more) will give you wonderful efficiency, but will create two problems. The grey line above shows the primary one, where you will get a bump in velocity below the setpoint (like an unregulated bell-curve).

The other problem is that with the gun tuned for such a light hammer strike, it will be extremely sensitive to any inconsistency of the hammer strike, and the shot-to-shot variation tends to be high.”

That’s exactly what we have with the Benjamin Fortitude Gen 2 hammer preload set to zero. Thanks Bob!

So what is the result of this simple test? Personally, I’d leave the hammer preload exactly where it is! The factory has set the hammer spring preload very well in the gun I tested. Why mess with success?

BUY FROM PYRAMYD AIR
Benjamin Fortitude PCP Air Rifle, Regulated

BUY FROM AIRGUN DEPOT
Benjamin Fortitude Air Rifle

The post Fortitude Gen 2 Hammer Spring Adjustment appeared first on Hard Air Magazine.

This Umarex Gauntlet .25 caliber video review is the latest from AEAC’s Steve Scialli.

Steve takes this $300 regulated PCP air rifle and shoots it at ranges out to 100 yards. At that range, he achieves a 5-shot group with a CTC of 1.46 Inches using JSB Exact King pellets.

Great shooting Steve!

HAM has reviewed the Umarex Gauntlet in both .22 caliber and .25 caliber. It’s worked well for us and earned a HAM Gold Award in both calibers.

The Gauntlet Steve tests shoots at 880 FPS with the 25.39 Grain JSB pellets. That gives a strong Muzzle Energy of around 44 Ft/Lbs. It’s a very similar result to the sample tested by HAM back in December, 2018. As Steve points out, this makes the Gauntlet the price/performance leader in .25 caliber, by far!

This Gauntlet .25 caliber video review is part of a “RDW” program with Airgun Nation. This encourages discussion about the air rifle. It also provides the chance for one lucky person to win a Gauntlet, together with an Optisan riflescope and SportsMatch rings.

You’ll find instructions at the end of this Umarex Gauntlet .25 cal. video review.

BUY FROM PYRAMYD AIR

Umarex Gauntlet PCP Air Rifle, Synthetic Stock

BUY FROM AIRGUN DEPOT
Umarex Gauntlet Regulated PCP Air Rifle

The post Umarex Gauntlet .25 Caliber Video Review appeared first on Hard Air Magazine.

VALUE FOR MONEY

The American Tactical Nova Liberty PCP air rifle is available in .177 and .22 calibers, together with a choice of wood or synthetic stocks. The synthetic stock version has a price of $299.99, while the wood-stocked version is priced at $349.99.

Those are attractive prices for the value that this air rifle offers. However it gets better!

Currently, the Nova Liberty is available at a special “20% Off” to HAM readers. Just click through from the ad on the HAM Home Page…

For the combination of power and features offered – regulated, magazine-fed, sidelever-cocking, shrouded  PCP – it’s unlikely that there’s anything else in the market to match the Nova Liberty at the present time. It’s clearly great value for money.

BUY FROM AMERICAN TACTICAL

Nova Liberty PCP Air Rifle

SPEED AND ACCURACY

The maximum Muzzle Velocity attained by the Nova Liberty PCP air rifle tested by HAM was 1,058.13 FPS. This was achieved with the lightest Gamo Platinum 9.7 Grain pellets.

Maximum speed with lead pellets came – of course – from the 11.9 Grain RWS Hobby pellets at 973.69 FPS.

As expected, however, the highest Muzzle Energy and best accuracy was found with heavier lead pellets. The highest Muzzle Energy achieved by the Nova Liberty PCP air rifle tested by HAM was 26.38 Ft/Lbs. with Crosman Premier Hollow Point pellets.

As HAM Tester Doug Rogers wrote in his testing notes: “The Liberty is plenty fast enough.”

Best accuracy was achieved with H&N Baracuda Match heavy lead pellets. So we shot these at 25 Yards outdoors with the following results.

The weather was bright and clear, with a slight wind heading towards the shooter. I’m definitely happy with that for 10 shots!

The HAM Team would have liked to see a broader range of pellets offering similar accuracy – as was the case with the Nova Freedom from the same manufacturer and probably with “the same” barrel. However, as we all know, every gun is slightly different in its pellet preferences.

TRIGGER AND COCKING EFFORT

The Nova Liberty PCP air rifle has a two-stage, adjustable trigger. It seems to be the same unit as is fitted to the Nova Freedom Multi-Pump PCP. Clear instructions are provided in the Operation Manual for how to make adjustments to trigger pull weight and sear engagement.

As always, HAM tested the gun “as received ” from the factory. We found that the test sample’s trigger was heavier than expected and somewhat inconsistent. However, as the Nova Freedom has the same trigger and did not show such inconsistency, this may be more the result of assembly rather than design.

As with the Nova Freedom, the trigger was adjusted so that the first stage was almost impossible to detect. It feels like a single-stage release! This may be OK for hunting use, however, target shooters will want to feel some first stage movement.

The average pull weight for the Nova Liberty PCP air rifle tested by HAM was 3 Lbs 3 Oz. However, the variation in pull weights found in this HAM test was high. There was a difference of up to 19 Ounces in measured trigger pull weights – this was definitely enough to be felt during shooting.

To be clear, the trigger of the Nova Liberty PCP air rifle is not bad for the price. However, as owners, the HAM Team would definitely want to investigate making some improvements.

By comparison, the side lever cocking was smooth, light and predictable. It’s easy to operate and the checkered grip of the rubber collar provides a good grip in use.

The manual safety has a pellet-shaped handle. It’s easy and convenient to operate.

COMPARISON TO MAKERS CLAIMS

The manufacturer claims a maximum Muzzle Velocity of 900 FPS on high power setting in .22 caliber.

The American Tactical Nova Liberty tested by HAM easily beat that claim. All our standard suite of test pellets weighing 14.35 Grains or less easily exceeded 900 FPS.

Trigger pull weight is specified as being between 0.5 Lbs and 4 Lbs. Yes, that’s a very wide spread, but the pull weight of the test gun was certainly within that range.

CONSISTENCY

First, an admission! This bulk of this Nova Liberty PCP air rifle review was finished long ago, except for the shot count test.

This was because – every time I had a moment to run this test – I found that there was not enough pressure in my 4,500 PSI tank to fill the Liberty to its full 4,350 PSI pressure. So I needed to run the compressor to fill up. By the time I had done that, something else had cropped-up that had to be done.

By the time I got back to making this test, there was 4,000 PSI or less in the tank. So I needed to run the compressor again….

So, finally I just gave up and tested the Nova Liberty PCP with the pressure that I had available. It was 3,800 PSI. Here’s the chart.

This exercise, in itself, indicates a practical limitation of having such a high maximum fill pressure. If you want to fill the gun to maximum pressure from a separate, 4,500 PSI tank, that is.

Probably a better plan would be to match the Nova Liberty PCP air rifle with a compact compressor that’s designed to fill a PCP airgun directly.

With this 3,800 PSI fill, it’s clear that the Nova Liberty PCP tested by HAM achieved 30 very consistent shots. So, we can expect that there would be 60 or more consistent shots from a completely full HPA tube.

It’s clear from this chart that the regulator pressure is fairly high. (I’m guessing 2,500 PSI or above). Also the decline in Muzzle Velocity is fairly shallow and well-controlled for many shots after this.

However, we also see something else. There’s a strong tendency for the FPS to be higher on every tenth shot after the first one. In other words, as the gun “rested” while the 10-shot magazine was re-filled, the pressure seems to have built-up more than in regular, shot-to-shot firing.

The effect is probably not significant for everyday shooting, but it is there…

NOISE LEVEL

The American Tactical Nova Liberty is fitted with an effective sound-suppressing shroud. It’s reasonably quiet and certainly backyard-friendly. However, it is subjectively somewhat louder than the Benjamin Marauder, HAM’s gold standard for quietness.

SIGHTS AND SCOPE

Unusually for these times, the American Tactical Nova Liberty ships with open sights. There’s an elevation- and windage-adjustable rear sight that clamps to the front of the scope rail…

… plus a hooded front sight.

I’m sure there must be shooters out there who will use these open sights and be pleased with them. However, all of the HAM Team are convinced scope users, so the first thing we did was to remove the iron sights and install a scope!

In fact, we tried several scopes, two UTG models from Leapers and one Aztec scope. The American Tactical Nova Liberty balanced well with all of them: they were being tried in connection with other, scope-related articles for HAM.

SHOOTABILITY

“Easy to hold, cock and shoot”. That was HAM Tester Doug Rogers’ summary of shooting the American Tactical Nova Liberty.

This PCP air rifle is supplied with a 10-shot rotary magazine. This magazine is interchangeable with those from the Benjamin Marauder and – thus – is easy to use, cheap and reliable. There’s also a single shot tray that’s held in place by two magnets.

A power adjuster wheel is fitted to the left side of the breech. We mainly left it set to “H” for testing – as will most people. However, the low power setting could be useful for basement target practice and similar use. That will, of course, also give many more shots per fill of High Pressure Air.

As an example of difference between the two power settings, Baracuda match pellets shot with a Muzzle Velocity of 734.80 FPS. On low power setting, it was 582.87 FPS. That’s a reduction in FPS of about 20%. So the power adjuster definitely works.

But don’t set it to an intermediate position between H and L. Then, it blocks air from going to the barrel…

Weighing-in at 7 Lbs 11 Oz, the American Tactical Nova Liberty is not a lightweight. It feels “comfortably solid”.

The balance is somewhat muzzle-heavy, due to the long, heavy HPA tube. This is a not unpleasant characteristic, however we would expect the synthetic stock version to to be rather more front-heavy.

The aggressively-ribbed rubber buttpad proved useful in achieving a consistent shooting position. It is another good feature to aid practical accuracy in the field.

APPEARANCE AND FINISH

Appearance – as always – is in the eye of the beholder. However, the HAM Team feels that the American Tactical Nova Liberty is a pleasant-looking air rifle.

The machining and finish of metal parts is very good. The wood stock is pleasantly-shaped and comfortable to use.There are areas of “checkering” laser cut into the stock. These provide an element of grip for the user, together with highlighting the lines of the wood.

BUYING AND OWNING

As mentioned above, the American Tactical Nova Liberty is available at a special “20% Off” to HAM readers. Just click-through from the ad on the right of the Home Page. As an American Tactical product, it’s also quite likely to be found at your local gun shop.

Practical ownership is helped by the provision of rotating sling swivel studs on the stock. This makes it very easy to add a sling to your Freedom for convenient carrying if out hunting.

Filling with High Pressure Air is achieved using the supplied probe. This has a quick disconnect fitting machined on the other end, for convenient use with the female quick disconnect that’s undoubtedly on the end of your current HPA tank or compressor tube.

However – as always – the HAM Team does not like the position of the Liberty’s pressure gauge. Being at the end of the HPA tube, you’re almost forced to look down the barrel when checking air pressure.

This makes a mockery of all those “do not point the gun at anyone” warnings. This is a widely-used location for pressure gauges, but HAM feels that the airgun industry should move away from it for safety reasons. The Liberty is far from the only PCP air rifle with this issue, however!

The serial number of the gun and manufacturing date of the HPA tube are clearly printed on the underside of the tube. Remember that high pressure means that the American Tactical Nova Liberty requires an HPA compressor or tank to fill completely.

It would be very tough to achieve 4,350 PSI using a hand pump!

Experience also tells us that the effect of humid air would be particularly damaging to the gun at such a high pressure. So, make sure that you supply the Liberty with DRY air using an effective desiccant system.

Again, internal damage from humid air can effect any PCP air rifle. It’s the very high fill pressure that makes the Liberty likely to benefit most from the drying effect of a desiccant system.

The manufacturer’s Operation Manual is clearly written and illustrated. It’s in English only.

One area where the Nova Liberty is behind the curve is in its warranty. True, there is a 12 month warranty and it’s backed-up by American Tactical’s parts and repair capabilities. However 36-month, or even 60-month, warranties are now common for PCP air rifles – including ones at this price point.

TEST TARGETS

BUY FROM AMERICAN TACTICAL

Nova Liberty PCP Air Rifle

This entire article including scoring, test targets etc is Copyright Hard Air Magazine and may NOT in part or in whole be reproduced in any electronic or printed medium without prior permission from the publisher.

The post American Tactical Nova Liberty PCP Air Rifle Review .22 Caliber appeared first on Hard Air Magazine.

Extreme Benchrest Mexico 2019 will be the first official Extreme Benchrest competition in the country. And it’s happening from April 27 to 29!

Mexican airgun shooters will be flocking to this new Extreme Benchrest competition at the Santander Club deportivo hermosilense de tiro y casa. It’s near the city of Hermosilllo Sonora, Mexico, less than 250 Miles south of Tucson, so it’s very accessible to competitors from the south western USA also.

There will be Benchrest and Speed Silhouette competitions, with categories for both PCP and Spring air rifles. Prizes are on offer for the winners, with up to 20,000 pesos for the winner of the Extreme Benchrest PCP finals.

Here’s the competition categories…

PCP Speed Silhouette

This competition is open to .177 caliber, .20, .22 and .25 calibers. Targets will be at 40, 60, 75 and 100 meters range. (Those 100 Meter targets are going to be VERY tough to hit).

PCP Extreme Benchrest

Targets will be at 50 Meters, 75 meters and – for the final – 100 Meters. Calibers allowed range all the way from .177 to .357 and shooters will shoot at 25 targets in 30 minutes time.

Springer Extreme Benchrest

This category for spring/piston air rifles will be shot at 25 and 50 meters range. The finalists – top scorers at 50 meters – will shoot out to 65 Meters. This competition is also open to .177 caliber, .20, .22 and .25 calibers.

The first ever Extreme Benchrest Mexico is being organized by Sun City Airguns of Hermosillo Sonora. For full details, check out the complete Extreme Benchrest Mexico website. There you will find information on how to register, hotels to stay and more. For other questions, email ebrmexico@yahoo.com

There’s still time to register and weather’s going to be beautiful – of course…

HAM wishes good luck to all the participants and attendees. You’ll be sure to have fun!

The post It’s Coming Soon – Extreme Benchrest Mexico appeared first on Hard Air Magazine.

In this latest air rifle comparison video from Airgun Depot, we see the FX Crown and RAW HM1000x. Both guns are in .25 caliber. The RAW is the LRT (Long Range Target) version.

As with all the Airgun Depot videos, we see some humor combined with lots of good information!

Airgun Depot’s Travis Patton is joined for this episode of Head2Head by Joe Iturralde of Predator Pellets – the US distributor for JSB. Welcome Joe!

Travis and Joe compare these two high end air rifles across a variety of factors. These include build quality, ergonomics, trigger, noise level and accuracy. Of course, power, shot count and consistency are factored-in also.

HAM has tested the FX Crown in .177 caliber. It earned a coveted HAM Gold Award for its performance on test, with the highest scores we’ve ever awarded an air rifle! The RAW would have to be good to be competitive to this.

So what do Travis and Joe conclude in this air rifle comparison video? You’ll have to watch to the end yourself – but it’s obviously a close-run thing…

The post High End Air Rifle Comparison Video – FX v RAW appeared first on Hard Air Magazine.

BSA PCP air rifles have a long history of innovation and quality. But until recently the newest models from this famous British manufacturer were not available or supported in the USA.

This situation is changing, right now!

Precision Airgun Distribution has announced that the company is officially importing a range of new BSA regulated PCP air rifles direct from the Birmingham, UK, factory into the USA. This means they are available from Airguns of Arizona and other Precision Airgun Distribution dealers.

Among these models are the innovative BSA Defiant bullpup and the BSA Ultra XL – a compact yet powerful PCP of conventional configuration. In addition, there’s the BSA Ultra JSR which is designed specifically for younger shooters of smaller stature.

The BSA Gold Star SE is bolt action favorite that’s now available with a new, improved match trigger. It comes complete with an adjustable palm rest (or “hamster”) for Field Target shooting. This is another model that will be available through Precision Airgun Distribution.

All these air rifles will be available in “full power”, US specifications. The Muzzle Energy of the Gold Star is 31 Ft/Lbs in .22 caliber, for example.

The exception is the Ultra JSR. This is power-limited as part of its mission to appeal to enthusiastic younger shooters who are entering the exciting world of PCP air rifle shooting.

“There’s a large demand for BSA air rifles in the USA,” said Robert Buchanan, President of Precision Airgun Distribution. “This is because they combine distinctive design with high quality British manufacture. Now they will be readily available through Airguns of Arizona and Precision Airgun Distribution dealers across the country.”

Simon Moore, the Managing Director of BSA Guns Limited, endorsed this view. “We see a great future for the latest BSA PCP air rifles in the USA,” he said. “The Precision Airgun Distribution dealer network has many high quality, knowledgeable stores. They are a great resource to re-vitalize the BSA brand throughout the country and introduce our outstanding PCP air rifles to a new generation of enthusiastic airgunners.”

BSA PCP air rifles are available in .177 and .22 calibers. They all benefit from the iconic in-house cold hammer forged barrel manufacturing that’s a specialty of this British airgun manufacturer.

BUY FROM AIRGUNS OF ARIZONA

BSA Air Rifles

The post Exciting New BSA PCP Air Rifles Land In The USA appeared first on Hard Air Magazine.

HAM reader Joseph McAllister kindly sent in this story about his experience with a SIG SAUER P226 air pistol. This is it in his own words…

I haven’t fired a weapon in 42 years. Previously I was in the military and was a marksman with a Colt 45 and a M16 while I was in.

Marriage, three kids and life happened and the years passed…

Now the kids are grown and now I have a hobby!

I started by purchasing a Sig Sauer P226 pellet pistol and modifying it. I put a Ohuhu Red Green dot sight on a modified top rail. Near the bottom rail I mounted a tactical light and laser combination.

Next, I sighted the pistol in using the Green circular symbol and moving the red laser in the center. I was then capable of putting 5 shots in a line in the bulls eye target center.

This was most satisfying!

Know now that I wear bifocal glasses and at 64 am still capable of shooting accurately. I put a customer review on Sigsauer.com showing the modifications.

I have further suggested to Sig Sauer to use their M1913 rails on the MPX and MCX to add these modifications to top, both sides and bottom rails.

With a Red Green Dot sight, and 3 lasers these rifles could not be surpassed in accuracy, consistant performance and surprising competition. This 3D capability would overcome drifts, windage, and right or left movements to give owners increased confidence. And Sig Sauer wouldn’t be able to keep this product in stock!

Once the word gets out a rifle compensates so accurately in 3 different directions once sighted in properly. The buying public will want ON TARGET EVERY TIME capabilities! And 3D capabilities is an unexplored territory!

Joe, thanks for sharing your story. It’s great to hear how you discovered the SIG SAUER P226 air pistol and – through it – a wonderful new hobby!

BUY FROM PYRAMYD AIR

SIG Sauer P226 CO2 Pellet Pistol

BUY FROM AIRGUN DEPOT

SIG SAUER P226

The post Sig Sauer P226 modified and turned into OTET (On Target Every Time) appeared first on Hard Air Magazine.

The Huben K1 hammerless PCP air rifle is an innovative, semi-automatic design that’s capable of considerable power and accuracy. It also requires its shooter to be absolutely perfect in all aspects of safe gun handling, every time it’s used. We’ll explain why further down…

This is a deceptively-simple PCP air rifle designed for long-range shooting and hunting by a highly-experienced user. In general use, only the trigger and safety lever are used. There’s not even a charging handle to cock the action!

The Huben K1 fires from a built-in 19-shot rotary magazine. The magazine cannot be removed from the gun due to the very tight mechanical tolerances required for the design to function correctly.

This means that pellets – or slugs, more about that below – have to be loaded from the side of the gun, as shown below.

In fact, US importers Precision Airgun Distribution recommend the following two types of ammunition for the Huben K1 in .22 caliber. These are JSB 25.39 Grain pellets and 36 Grain slugs from Nielsen Speciality Ammo.

The Huben K1 is regulated. The regulator set point is around 1,650 PSI as it comes from the factory. However this can be adjusted by the owner using an Allen wrench inserted into the underside of the stock.

At the rear of the bullpup-style stock – and again at the rear – is a power adjustment screw.

In addition, there are two setscrews in the rear of the breech which are used to adjust the valve. So, there’s plenty of ways for an owner to tailor the power of the Huben K1, although – of course – you’ll need a chronograph to measure the FPS.

The HAM Team fitted a 3 – 18 x 50 Viper Pro scope from MTC Optics. To gain the right eye line for the scope, we used a Leapers UTG Super Slim Riser Mount. (We seem to be using these excellent riser mounts on everything, just now!).

At the rear of the Huben’s Picatinny rail, there’s a built-in bubble level.  This is a good feature that’s obviously intended to help prevent cant when shooting the gun. HAM Publisher Stephen Archer found it possible to glance down and check this bubble level when shooting, so it is actually an useful feature.

Given that the HPA tube is certified to hold a maximum pressure of 5,000 PSI, this means that the Huben K1 has the potential for a significant number of shots between fills. However, the instruction manual recommends a fill pressure of 2,900 PSI – inside the green area on the pressure gauge. At least so far as we understand…

Filling with High Pressure Air uses a dedicated fill probe, inserted into the fitting at the front of the HPA tube.

There’s no question that the Huben K1 is a very powerful PCP air rifle. It has a claimed power well north of 75 Ft/Lbs even in .22 caliber.

This makes handling the gun correctly even more important!

Yes, there is a mechanical safety at the rear of the action. But we’ve all been trained never to regard a safety as completely safe. Pulling out the magazine release lever allows the magazine to be rotated by hand and inspected for ammo. You will need to do this whenever needing to make the gun safe, safely firing it into the ground if necessary to discharge any full chambers.

THIS IS THE ONLY WAY TO ESTABLISH IF THE HUBEN K1 IS SAFE OR NOT!

To repeat ourselves. As the magazine is not removable and there’s no manual cocking lever, operator control is thus the sole way to establish that the gun is clear.

(You can’t drop the mag and rack the charging handle to show “clear” with an empty chamber, as with an AR15-type centerfire rifle, for example).

So there’s no visible way to show that the Huben K1 is safe. Therefore this air rifle requires absolute perfection from the operator in safe gun handling…

The Huben K1 below was shown by the manufacturer at the recent IWA Outdoor Classics show in Germany. We’re not sure if the camo-dipped stock was a one-off or a prototype for future production. However, it certainly looked cool!

BUY FROM AIRGUNS OF ARIZONA

Huben K1 Gen 5 Hammerless PCP Air Rifle

The post First Look At The Huben K1 Hammerless PCP Air Rifle appeared first on Hard Air Magazine.

Hard Air Magazine revealed the first news about Norma pellets last month. Now – thanks to RUAG Ammotec – we have some more detail on this new range of airgun ammunition.

Norma airgun pellets are marketed with “Dedicated Hunting” and “Dedicated Precision”descriptions to clearly indicate their intended use. In addition, a range of icons indicates additional recommended use and characteristics…

To show the hunting effect of Golden Trophy FT and Superpoint Strike pellets, the company has supplied photographs of impact in ballistic gel.

Here’s the impact in ballistic gel for the Golden Trophy FT pellets…

… and here’s the comparison for Superpoint Strike pellets.

For the wadcutter S-Target match pellets, Norma has also produced this graphic showing the results of a 10-shot group on the 10 meter bull. The group size for 10 shots is .276 inches.

The company has also kindly sent HAM graphics showing the design of these new pellets. First we have the Norma Golden Trophy FT Heavy.

Now the Norma Golden Trophy FT.

The Norma Superpoint Strike…

… and the Norma S-Target Match pellets.

This new range of Norma airgun ammo is due to become available in June 2019.

The post More Information On Norma Pellets appeared first on Hard Air Magazine.

Another new product from Velocity Outdoor that will be shipping soon is the Bushmaster MPW BB gun. HAM first brought you news of this new, full auto, BB gun in January.

Now we have more details. But first, some advice. If you buy the Bushmaster MPW BB gun, you’ll need to buy a ton of BBs and CO2, together with some spare magazines. It’s that much fun. You have been warned!!!

Mechanically, the Bushmaster MPW BB gun is very similar to the widly-successful Crosman DPMS SBR. Both have that smile-producing full auto feature and both use the same magazine, which contains two 12 Gram CO2 cartridges and 25 BBs.

Both have a strong blowback action, together with realistic size, feel, weight and overall handling.

Finally, don’t forget the shooting glasses with both models, to protect yourself from rebounding BBs. And absolutely do not brandish either the DPMS or MPW in public. It could so easily be mistaken for “the real thing”!

Here’s the all-important fun switch, set to “Rock and Roll”.

The Bushmaster MPW BB gun is supplied with a red dot sight and quad rail forearm for accessory mounting. It cries-out for accessorizing, and the Velocity Outdoor catalog encourages you to customize it. So here’s our first try!

The HAM Team added a Leapers UTG Pro bipod under the front end. Then a UTG CQB Red/Green T Dot Sight on top. To raise the red dot sight up for a more comfortable sightline, we installed a UTG Super Slim Riser Mount between it and the gun.

Looks cool, huh???

The Bushmaster MPW BB gun is full-featured and – for the most part – feels, operates and field-strips just like a centerfire AR. True, the suppressor is a fake, but a BB gun is not likely to need a functioning can, after all.

The charging handle operates correctly. It latches into place as you can see below.

While the ejection port cover is also operational. Just like the DPMS SBR!

The magazine holds 25 BBs. Given the full-auto fire rate of up to 1,400 rounds per minute, you’re going to be loading this very often. That’s why it makes sense to buy a spare or two.

The HAM Team also likes to add a drop of Crosman Pellgun Oil to the flat end of 12 Gram CO2 cartridges when they’re used in any BB gun. Not every time, but about every 500 shots or so…

Velocity Outdoor also recommends adding a drop of the company’s Silicone Chamber Oil into the BB speed loader each time it’s filled with BBs. Shake the whole assembly around a little before using the speed loader before using it and the BBs feed more readily, apparently.

HAM will be testing this Bushmaster MPW BB gun in the near future. Look for a lot of smiling faces in the Hard Air Magazine office

BUY FROM PYRAMYD AIR
Crosman Pellgun oil

BUY FROM AIRGUN DEPOT
Crosman Pellgun Oil

The post Bushmaster MPW BB Gun First Look appeared first on Hard Air Magazine.

VALUE FOR MONEY

For our first HAM airgun scope test, we’re looking at a 4 x 32 bundled airgun scope. This is about the simplest scope available and almost all of us have bought one at some time – typically with our first air rifle, because it came bundled in the box.

For this 4 x 32 bundled airgun scope review, we’re deliberately keeping the brand anonymous. That’s because all manufacturers of low priced airguns include these scopes with some of their rifles. We don’t want to strike one company unfairly at the expense of others selling essentially the same product! This scope definitely was NOT supplied by the manufacturer of the rifle we mounted it to for photography.

Typically these are break barrel guns sold primarily in big box sporting goods stores. In fact, these scopes are manufactured in huge quantities by scope manufacturers in Nantong, China. The air rifle manufacturer does not make the scopes themselves, the scopes are just branded for them.

Because a 4 x 32 bundled airgun scope is included in the price of the air rifle, it’s not clear how much you are paying for it. However, you certainly are buying it – it’s not “free” with the gun!

In fact, this 4 x 32 bundled airgun scope probably costs the buyer about $20.00. That’s including the rings and accessories.

When similar 4 x 32 scopes are “unbundled” – that is sold separately from an air rifle – they typically cost $30 – 35. That’s understandable because of the separate packaging, distribution and marketing costs associated with such a product. Typically, these unbundled versions usually have better rings, too.

Either way, you’ll find the scope, some sort of rings, lens covers, caps, a lens cleaning cloth and caps for the elevation and windage turrets.

OPTICAL SPECIFICATIONS

These specifications are provided by the manufacturer, except for the reticle position (which is obvious). They’re very typical for this type of riflescope.

MECHANICAL SPECIFICATIONS

The specifications for this 4 x 32 bundled airgun scope are supplied by the manufacturer, or measured where appropriate.

The Duplex reticle is very simple. The thick wires make it easy to see.

The big problem for airgun use is that there’s no dot or hash mark graduations. We cover this more in the “Buying And Owning” section of this review.

Both windage and elevation turrets are capped. Removing the caps allows the turrets to be adjusted using a U.S. Penny. When rotated using this tool, the clicks are precise and easy to feel.

We counted 530 clicks of total travel for both the elevation and windage turrets. At the claimed “1/4 Inch at 100 Yards” per click, this equates to a total adjustment range of 33 Inches for both elevation and windage at an airgun-friendly 25 Yards range.

Is this an “airgun rated” scope that’s suitable for use with powerful spring/piston and gas ram air rifles?  There’s no statement to that effect.

Internally, there’s no sign of lens bracing to resist the fierce forward recoil of the 1,200 FPS + airgun it’s sold with. So it’s unlikely that this scope will have a long life unless you get very lucky.

The rings are very flimsy too. They have only one clamping screw each side and there’s no stop screw on either ring to arrest recoil. It’s likely that these rings are not strong enough to hold the scope in position after it’s sighted-in.

The HAM Team feels that – even if you’re prepared to tolerate the poor optical performance of this 4 x 32 bundled airgun scope – you’ll need to replace it after a fairly short time because of these mechanical shortcomings.

OPTICAL PERFORMANCE – 1

Resolution and contrast data will be given in this section of the review using data generated by Trioptics. These data will generally cover optical performance at minimum magnification and maximum magnifications.

Trioptics data is TBD for this review.

HAM testers set up this 4 x 32 bundled airgun scope at 10 yards from a horizontal ruler, marked in inches. At the left margin we could just see the 12-Inch mark. On the right, the 52-Inch mark. That gives a Field of View of 40 Inches at 10 Yards.

OPTICAL PERFORMANCE – 2

In this section, HAM test reviews will indicate actual maximum and minimum magnifications achieved by the scope. This will come from Trioptics data.

Also we will show the actual magnification at the marked “9x” magnification given on the scope’s zoom ring.

We will also include Exit Pupil diameter and Eye Relief measurements at all three magnifications. As this 4 x 32 bundled airgun scope has no zoom capability, we can simply report that HAM testers found the Exit Pupil diameter measured 11 mm and the Eye relief was a long 3 7/8-Inches.

The large Exit Pupil diameter may make the scope easier to use, as eye position is less critical than with a small Exit Pupil. But the overall low quality of the scope makes it unlikely that the user will find it easier to use than a higher quality scope with a smaller Exit Pupil.

MECHANICAL PERFORMANCE

Regular HAM scope tests will compare the distance markings of a scope’s AO or side parallax adjustment with points of sharpest focus at fixed distances downrange.

As the 4 x 32 bundled airgun scope has no “official” parallax correction capability, this part of the test was not possible. However, the HAM Team did note that the sharpest focus was achieved at 10 yards, dropping away with distance.

At 40 Yards, Ham Tester Doug Wall noted that sharpness had become “Not very good” at 40 yards range and beyond. Doug is a master of understatement!

This section of the test will also cover the measured accuracy of reticle dots or hashes. Again, as this 4 x 32 bundled airgun scope has an un-graduated reticle, there’s nothing to measure!

Reticle accuracy will be measured by comparison to the Rex Grid, 100 Yard MOA Grid Scope Testing Target produced by Box To Bench Precision. HAM simply factors-in the difference using this 100 Yard target at our much closer test range.

STANDARD PERFORMANCE

Contrast and resolution – among other things – vary with magnification. This means that – in order to compare the optical performance between different scopes – we need to do so at a set magnification. For this, we’ve chosen 9 x magnification, as this is common to the vast majority of airgun scopes.

Of course, the 4 x 32 bundled airgun scope being tested here does not achieve 9 x magnification. So we ‘ll compare it at 4 x because that’s what it is!

Yes, this 4 x 32 bundled airgun scope is penalized by this decision – even more so as the magnification is actually 2.9 x. We’ll see how much once we have other riflescope test data to compare against.

COMPARISON TO MAKERS CLAIMS

As we can see from the table below, the 4 x 32 bundled airgun scope tested by HAM gave a wider Field of View, longer Eye Relief and larger Exit Pupil diameter than the maker’s claims.

All of these measurements indicate that the actual magnification of the 4 x 32 bundled airgun scope tested by HAM was significantly less than 4 times. A common calculation for magnification is to divide the objective lens diameter by the exit pupil diameter.

Using the HAM test measurements, that gives 31.6 / 11 = 2.9X magnification.

That’s 27.5% less magnification than the specification. Hmmmm……

So, the 4 x 32 bundled airgun scope actually was a 2.9 x 31.6 scope!

EASE OF USE

Although the 4 x 32 bundled airgun scope tested by HAM had a fixed focus, it could be focused for one specific distance if required.  Although not all fixed focus scopes have this capability, the end ring around the objective lens can be unscrewed. This reveals the objective (front) lens in its mount.

Note that some front rings are glued in place and will not unscrew. If it won’t move, don’t force it!

Now, if you rotate the objective mount carefully, you will find that you can set the scope to provide its sharpest focus at one particular distance. Simply screw the end ring back into place to hold the scope at this focus.

This means that – if you normally shoot at a specific range – you can set this 4 x 32 bundled airgun scope to give its best performance at that distance. This can be an useful benefit for this scope, although not all bundled scopes can do it.

Rather less good are the instructions for use. In this case, these are included as part of the overall instructions for the air rifle. However, as we can see below, the new user is advised to sight-in the scope at 100 Yards.

Really – with a .177 caliber break barrel????

To be fair, we have seen other bundled airgun scope instruction manuals which also tell the user to sight-in at a similar range. But this is just plain wrong!

At least these instructions also suggest a second method of sighting-in at 20 Yards or Meters range. That’s much more likely to lead to success.

Reticle focus is achieved by loosening a locking ring and then rotating the eyepiece until the reticle is sharp. It’s simple, but it works…

BUYING AND OWNING

This 4 x 32 bundled airgun scope is fitted with “hunting turrets”. Both elevation and windage turrets are equipped with dust covers that protect them from being adjusted inadvertently.

So, the scope is obviously not intended to allow for adjustments to elevation or windage in use. In principal, this is fine – that’s what most airgunners want.

Therefore, in order to compensate for changes of range or crosswind, it’s necessary to aim off. Again, no problem in theory. Unfortunately without any type of reticle dot or hash markings, aiming off becomes more a matter of luck than judgement.

No scope designed for airguns should have an un-graduated reticle!

That, in itself, is a major issue with this 4 x 32 bundled airgun scope if you actually want to hit the target at any range and in variable wind conditions. And isn’t that all of us?

“Bikini type” elasticated front and rear lens covers are included with the scope. These protect the lenses when not in use and are simple but practical.

Finally, let’s end on a positive note. The 4 x 32 bundled airgun scope is short and light. The objective lens bell is small due to the 32 mm lens. All these things make it very easy to mount on just about any air rifle. If you actually want to use it, that is…

TRIOPTICS TEST DATA

In future, we will have the real hard data on this scope’s performance! This is generated by TRIOPTICS’ comprehensive, dedicated, ImageMaster Afocal riflescope test system. It’s a combination of extremely sophisticated hardware test bench and software.

TRIOPTICS own experts used this system to generate data for this HAM riflescope test reviews. So you know it’s the best there is!

Watch out for the update to this first HAM scope review…

The post 4 x 32 Bundled Airgun Scope Review appeared first on Hard Air Magazine.

The Legends Cowboy Rifle is a long-awaited introduction from Umarex. We first saw it at the 2018 SHOT Show.

But now it’s here and it’s definitely been worth the wait!

The Legends Cowboy Rifle is a very close replica of the famous Winchester Model 1894. It’s very close to the right size, weight and appearance.

What’s more is that it loads by using individual “cartridges” – each pre-loaded with a BB -pushed into the side loading gate. Just like the firearm original. Even better, operating the lever action ejects the empty cartridge skywards from the action – just like the original!

At least it does if you offer a vigorous tug down on the lever…

This is fantastic operational realism that cannot help but bring a smile to your face!

Particularly if you’re shooting outside, it means that you’re likely to need a large supply of spare cartridges to account for those that will fly into another life, lost from sight in the grass. (I’m speaking from experience here, you’ll understand).

So, the operational realism of the Legends Cowboy Rifle is simply outstanding!

Also outstanding is the stock. Yes, the buttstock and forend are made of plastic, not wood. But this plastic is the most outstanding articicial wood representation I’ve ever seen!!!

The photograph below attempts to convey the complexity and realism of the material. It actually looks and even feels like “real tree wood”. I’m not kidding – it really is outstanding and waaaaay better than any other fake wood effect I’ve seen before.

The Legends Cowboy Rifle is powered by two 12 Gram CO2 cartridges. These are inserted into the butt “back to back” and held in place using the metal spacer seen below. The buttplate doubles as the piercing pin screw and locks back in place once the cartridges have been pierced.

It’s very clever and well executed!

Experience with CO2-powered airguns did lead me to apply a drop of oil to the flat end of either CO2 cartridge before loading. (I used Pellgun Oil). In addition, I added a couple of drops of air tool oil to the threads of the spacer piece and the green plastic O ring surrounding it.

Of course, we’ll be giving the Legends Cowboy Rifle a full, comprehensive HAM test review. But it’s clear immediately that this is another extremely-realistic Legends airgun that’s a pleasure to look at, hold and operate. Great job, Umarex!

BUY FROM PYRAMYD AIR
Umarex Legends Cowboy Lever Action CO2 BB Air Rifle

BUY FROM AIRGUN DEPOT
Umarex Legends Cowboy Rifle

The post First Look At The Umarex Legends Cowboy Rifle appeared first on Hard Air Magazine.

Over the previous articles I have mentioned PCP efficiency, without really defining it, so here we go…

When I first started looking at PCP efficiency, I discovered a term called “bar-cc per FPE”. This is a measure of how much air a PCP uses to produce each foot pound (FPE) of energy.

A “bar-cc” is the volume of air in cc, multiplied by the pressure of that air in bar.

Therefore, 100 bar-cc could be 1 cc of air at 100 bar, or 100 cc of air at 1 bar. For an ideal gas (which air approximates, up to about 200 bar or 3000 psi), they both contain the same number of molecules, or mass of air, or close enough.

Even at 4500 psi, it still applies within about 10% for air.

The more FPE you get from each bar-cc of air, the more efficient the gun is. The problem with “bar-cc per FPE” was, that smaller numbers represent higher efficiency, which to me was counter-intuitive.

A 10 FPE gun that used 100 bar-cc of air had an efficiency of 10 bar-cc/FPE, but one that was half as efficient and used 200 bar-cc of air had an efficiency of 20 bar-cc/FPE.

My logical brain revolted, so I came up with a new “unit” that to me made more sense, “FPE/CI”. Instead of using cc’s of air, I used what I call the “standard CI”, or 1 cubic inch of air at 1 bar of pressure. By moving the energy to the numerator (top) of the fraction, larger numbers meant higher efficiency. Here is a comparison of the two systems.

The bonus was that at the time (a decade ago), the average PCP efficiency ended up being about 1.0 FPE/CI. If the efficiency was less than 1.0 FPE/CI (some big bore PCPs are about 0.5 FPE/CI), you could probably do better. If it was 1.50 FPE/CI, that was very good.

Things have changed, and now we occasionally see PCP efficiency reach 2.00 FPE/CI or even a bit more. I think that is all because now we have an easy to understand metric to measure efficiency by, so people are paying more attention to how much air their PCP uses.

“Bar-cc” and “Standard CI” – Air Volume Used

Of course “bar-cc” and “standard CI” are pretty much the same thing, just different units. To get the volume of air your PCP uses for a shot string, in standard CI, you multiply the pressure drop in bar by the internal volume of the air reservoir in CI.

Alternately, you can calculate the bar-cc and convert it to standard CI. Here is an example for a Marauder (reservoir of 215 cc = 13.1 CI) where you used 1000 psi of air to shoot a shot string:

Pressure drop = 1000 psi. There are 14.5 psi per bar, so the drop in bar = 1000 / 14.5 = 69.0 bar.

Using reservoir volume in CI, the air used in standard CI = 13.1 CI x 69.0 bar = 904 std. CI.

Using reservoir volume in cc, the air used in bar-cc = 69.0 x 215 = 14,835 bar-cc.

There are 16.4 cc per CI, so the volume in standard CI = 14,835 / 16.4 = 904 std. CI.

Total Energy in the Shot String and Efficiency

Let’s assume the shot string that caused your reservoir pressure to drop 1000 psi consisted of 30 shots averaging 40 FPE. That is a total FPE of 30 x 40 = 1200 FPE of total energy. To find the efficiency, in FPE/CI, we divide the total energy by the total volume of air used, as follows:

1200 FPE / 904 CI = 1.33 FPE/CI

If you can get more FPE from a given pressure drop – or get less pressure drop for a given total FPE – you have increased the efficiency.

If you are filling with a hand pump, that directly translates into fewer pumps per shot, or more FPE for each pump stroke. If you are filling from a tank, it means more shots per fill of your gun, and ultimately more shots from each tankful of compressed air.

How PCP Efficiency Relates to Velocity and Power

In basic terms, the more power you ask your gun to produce, the lower the PCP efficiency will be. We saw earlier how the velocity was related to the hammer strike, with a velocity plateau, knee and downslope. Here is one of those curves, with the efficiency plotted as well.

As you can see, reducing the hammer strike, which means the valve is closing sooner, reduces the velocity but increases the efficiency. This applies to virtually every PCP, but of course there is a limit. If you reduce the velocity to a very low value, the efficiency eventually drops off, like this:

At some point, as you reduce the velocity, the tiny sip of air being released by the valve is overwhelmed by various losses, such as the friction of the pellet in the barrel, and the efficiency rolls over and dies.

Again, this is typical of all PCPs, it just occurs at a different point for each one. Generally, you would never tune a gun down to the point where this happens. You are using an elephant gun to shoot fleas.

Your Tune Affects the Efficiency

In practical terms, we can get huge differences in the performance and the related PCP efficiency by how we tune it.

We have a choice of a few shots at high power, or many shots at much reduced power. Sometimes with just a simple adjustment of hammer spring preload or SSG gap, we can change a gun from mild to wild.

Remember the basic concept that reducing the hammer strike reduces the dwell and the amount of air released by the valve, increasing efficiency and shot count.

This particular regulated PCP could produce 50 shots at 37 FPE from a 13 CI tank regulated at 1600 psi, at an efficiency of 1.47 FPE/CI. That is pretty good, but I could also turn the power down if I wanted more shots.

At about 11 FPE, I could get 250 shots at an efficiency of 2.12 FPE/CI, something which was unheard of a decade ago. This gun uses an SSG, and the only adjustment required was increasing the free-flight gap to reduce the power. For information on the SSG and how it can improve efficiency, check out Article 6 in this series.

One thing I need to mention…

When you see claims of extremely high efficiency, over 2.0 FPE/CI, there is almost always a reason. Either the data was gathered with heavy pellets at lower than usual velocity, or the gun is turned down to a fraction of its potential (so again, low velocity).

So far we aren’t seeing such high efficiency at velocities of 800 fps or over.

Something Different for You to Ponder

I’ll leave you with a clever device from a decade ago, marketed in Canada for use in pumpers and CO2 guns. It is a rear cocking system called the “Dual Power Hammer”, and is no longer available. It has two positions to catch the trigger sear. It allows you to shoot on the plateau or downslope, alternating between them as you choose.

Insert “Dual Power Hammer” here.

While not particularly useful for an unregulated PCP, some version of this idea could be used to advantage in regulated PCPs.
Pulling it back all the way provides a “normal” hammer strike, and therefore full power. Using the “half-cock” position reduces the hammer travel, striking the valve with much less force, and causing a drastic reduction in dwell, velocity and FPE.

For those of you who might be looking for a “hunting” and “plinking” tune without having to make major adjustments, this might be worth pursuing. As a challenge for you creative types, how about incorporating an SSG into the design?

I hope you have enjoyed this series of articles on PCPs, and found it educational. This pretty much wraps up the series on PCPs, so we are going to shift gears into Ballistics. I plan to cover Internal, External and Terminal Ballistics over the next series of articles.

See you next month!

The post PCP Efficiency – What Is It? – What Changes It? appeared first on Hard Air Magazine.

JSB Hades pellets were first seen at the 2019 SHOT Show in January. They’re positioned as an ideal, mid-weight hunting pellets that offers accuracy combined with considerable shock impact.

Now Rick Rehm – YouTube’s Shooter 1721 – has produced two videos showing how these uniquely-shaped hunting pellets perform. The manufacturer is describing them as “frangible hollow points”.

In the first video, Rick runs a muzzle velocity test using a FX Dreamline air rifle. He also shoots  a .22 caliber Hades pellet into a clay block. We can see the devastating ballistic cavity it produces when Rick cuts the block open. Wow!

In the second video, Rick again takes Hades pellets and fires them from a more powerful Career 2 air rifle. Again we see the huge cavity produced in the clay.

It’s clear that the impact potential of these new JSB pellets is very considerable. If you’re an airgun hunter, they definitely could be worth considering!

They’re available now in tins of 250 and 500 pellets.

BUY FROM PYRAMYD AIR
JSB Match Diabolo Hades .22 Cal, 15.89 Grain, Hollowpoint, 250 Count

BUY FROM AIRGUN DEPOT

JSB Hades pellets .22 cal 15.89 Grain 250 Ct

The post Rick Rehm Video Tests – JSB Hades Pellets appeared first on Hard Air Magazine.

With more and more bullpup air rifles being purchased, more and more people find that they need some way to raise the scope to the right height for a comfortable sight picture. Sometimes high rings will do, but sometimes you still need more height. Then it’s time for a riser mount.

The HAM Team ran into this issue recently when a new Ataman B7 arrived for review. It has a Picatinny scope mounting rail, but  HAM Tester Doug Rogers found he needed more height in order to position the riflescope correctly for him to shoot the gun.

That’s also the case with the Huben K1 shown in our heading photograph above.

So HAM Publisher Stephen Archer went looking for an answer. The UTG Super Slim Picatinny Riser Mount looked very suitable. Let’s look at two versions now…

UTG Super Slim Riser Mounts are available in four different heights. They vary from 0.5 Inch to 1.0 Inch in additional height. We chose the MT-RSX5L model for 0.5 Inches and the MT-RSX7L riser which provides 0.75 Inches of additional height. That’s the MT-RSX7L riser mount in our photograph above.

These UTG riser mounts locate crisply onto the rifle’s Picatinny rail. They have square-shaped recoil stops cast into the underside of the mount. Three Torx-headed screws clamp the rail firmly into position. This riser is not going anywhere…

As with all Leapers UTG products, these riser mounts are supplied with the appropriate tool – in this case a Torx wrench – and a spare screw. That’s the half-Inch riser mount below.

We tried the lower riser mount with a FX Impact air rifle and Meopta ZD 4-16 x 44 RD riflescope, again using UTG Pro P.O.I. scope rings between scope and rail. Not heard about this high quality Meopta riflescope before? You will soon in HAM…

Even here, when using the sub-$20.00 UTG riser mount with a $2,000 air rifle and $1,200 scope, the riser mount looked good. The finish matched well with both rifle and scope. The result was very stable and secure. Great job Leapers!

UTG Super Slim Picatinny Riser Mounts are 5.5 Inches long and have 13 slots. They’re manufactured from aircraft grade Aluminum with a matt black hard coat anodized finish. Weight is just about 2 ounces.

There’s also a version with a 20 MOA compensation angle built-in. This could be just what the Doctor ordered for mounting your scope for ultra-long range shooting…

BUY FROM PYRAMYD AIR:
UTG Super Slim Picatinny Riser Mount, 0.75″ High

BUY FROM AIRGUN DEPOT:
UTG Super Slim Riser Mount 0.75 Inches

The post Got A Bullpup? You Probably Need A Riser Mount Like This appeared first on Hard Air Magazine.

VALUE FOR MONEY

H&N Baracuda Match 10.65 Grain pellets are well known and respected for their good performance in many air rifles. As you can see from HAM test reviews, they frequently give strong accuracy – particularly with more powerful PCPs.

At a price of 3.5 Cents per pellet, the price is not far above the Median price for .177 caliber pellets. In fact, it’s far below the highest price for .177 caliber pellets. That makes them good value for money.

Baracuda Match 10.65 Grain pellets have an elongated, domed profile. This gives them a high Ballistic Coefficient of 0.020 in HAM testing. That’s good for flat, long range shooting.

BUY FROM PYRAMYD AIR
H&N Baracuda Match .177 Cal, 10.65 Grains, Round Nose, 400ct

BUY FROM AIRGUN DEPOT
H&N Baracuda Match 10.65 Grain .177 Cal 400 Ct

TEST DATA SUMMARY

COMPARISON TO MAKERS CLAIMS

The tin of 400 Baracuda Match 10.65 Grain pellets actually contained 405 pellets. This over-count is welcome, however it’s probably due to the fact that the average weight of the Baracuda Match 10.65 Grain pellets tested by HAM was slightly low at 10.58 Grains.

H&N claims that Baracuda Match pellets are accurate at longer ranges and that the design gives high penetration. The high Ballistic Coefficient will certainly aid practical long-range scoring, while the penetration is considerable, as we can see from the HAM impact testing below.

Although the Baracuda Match 10.65 Grain pellets tested by HAM did provide consistent head sizes, unfortunately the average – and most common – head diameter was 4.53 mm. The base of the tin was marked 4.50 mm.

CONSISTENCY

There were no damaged or malformed pellets in the tine tested by HAM.

As mentioned above, the head diameters of the Baracuda Match 10.65 Grain pellets tested by HAM were very consistent. 86% had a head diameter of 5.53 mm.

With a smallest head diameter of 4.52 mm and the largest being 4.54 mm, the variation in head diameter in the pellets tested by HAM was just 0.44%. That’s very good consistency.

Consistency of weight was slightly better than average among the Baracuda Match 10.65 Grain pellets tested by HAM. The average weight measured using HAM’s exceptionally accurate, milligram balance was 10.58 Grains – however no individual pellet had that weight.

As can be seen from the chart below, the most common measured pellet weights were 10.52 and 10.63 Grains. 16% of the tested pellets had either of these weights.

The variation in weight between the lightest and heaviest pellets was 2.68%, from a lowest of 10.43 Grains to the heaviest at 10.71 Grains.

Unfortunately, length consistency of the Baracuda Match 10.65 Grain pellets tested by HAM was rather below average. The average length was 6.76 mm, ranging from the shortest pellet at 6.60 mm up to the longest at 6.93 mm. This is a variation of 5.0% in length.

The most common length was 6.70 mm. 10% of the pellets tested were of this length.

DIRTINESS

The H&N Baracuda Match 10.65 Grain .177 caliber pellets tested by HAM were very clean.

A certain amount of lead dust and junk is an inevitable part of lead pellet manufacture. However, in the case of the tin tested by HAM, there was only 0.17 Grains per 100 pellets, which is very low.

DOWNRANGE PERFORMANCE

Chairgun shows that downrange performance of Baracuda Match 10.65 Grain pellets is good. This is due, of course, to the high Ballistic Coefficient value of 0.20.

Using the standard HAM “1,000 FPS” Beeman 1074 test rifle, these Baracudas will shoot effectively “flat” from 11 to 42 Yards when the scope is zeroed at 36 Yards.

Kinetic Energy retained in the pellet holds-up well, too. Even out at 48 yards, the pellet retains as much as 60% of its Muzzle Energy. This is a good figure for .177 pellets and makes the Baracuda Match 10.65 Grain pellets suitable for long range hunting, particularly with a powerful PCP air rifle.

HUNTING USE

In addition to the high retained energy at long range, Baracuda Match 10.65 Grain pellets also have considerable penetration ability. This is as claimed by the manufacturer and shown by the ballistic soap penetration results below.

The fired pellet – left, below – showed little expansion after being recovered from the soap block. The diameter had expanded from 4.53 mm to 4.58 mm, while length had reduced from 6.69mm before shooting to 6.41 mm.

BUYING AND OWNING

H&N recommends using Baracuda Match 10.65 Grain pellets in air rifles with a minimum Muzzle Energy of 12 Ft/Lbs. HAM test results confirm the validity of this. These pellets are definitely most suitable for use in powerful PCP air rifles.

Hunting and Field Target competition are ideal uses for these Baracuda Match pellets. And – as always – the H&N screw-top tins are ideal containers for these pellets. They’re the best in the industry.

TEST DATA

For background details on HAM’s Pellet Test Review methodology, check out this link.

Chairgun is a product of Hawke Sports Optics LLC and is used with permission. Check out http://www.hawkeoptics.com

BUY FROM PYRAMYD AIR
H&N Baracuda Match .177 Cal, 10.65 Grains, Round Nose, 400ct

BUY FROM AIRGUN DEPOT
H&N Baracuda Match 10.65 Grain .177 Cal 400 Ct

Understanding HAM Pellet Awards

HAM Pellet Awards come from the most rigorous, professional and comprehensive pellet testing by any independent publication. They are the result of much precise measurement and analysis using high precision measuring devices and highly-experienced testers.

Note that accuracy is a product of the complete “system” of airgun, scope, atmospheric conditions and shooter ability – not the pellet alone.

This means that no pellet test review can predict the accuracy of a particular pellet with YOUR individual air rifle. That’s why we do not measure accuracy in these pellet tests.

What HAM Pellet Awards do recognize is manufacturing consistency. Inconsistent pellets definitely will be inaccurate, consistent pellets are much more likely to be accurate.

HAM Awards also recognize value. There’s considerable variation in the price of airgun pellets. This means that an 8 cent pellet needs to score higher than a 2 cent pellet to achieve an award.

For full details of the HAM Pellet Award scoring methodology, please check out our Pellet Testing page.

For a full listing of HAM-tested Ballistic Coefficients, please see our Ballistic Coefficients page.

This entire article including scoring, data etc is Copyright Hard Air Magazine and may NOT in part or in whole be reproduced in any electronic or printed medium without prior permission from the publisher.

The post H&N Baracuda Match 10.65 Grain .177 Caliber Pellet Test Review appeared first on Hard Air Magazine.

HAM riflescope test reviews are starting now. And they’re the best in the industry – as you would expect!

Over the years, Hard Air Magazine has built-up an enviable reputation for the quality of our test reviews. They’re independent, honest and based on hard data. Yet they’re also easy to read.

They’re just what you need to make a buying decision for airgun products!

In order to achieve the same high standard for HAM riflescope test reviews, Hard Air Magazine is partnering with TRIOPTICS – the world expert in optical measurement and test systems. That’s the system in our photograph above.

As Trioptics is a name that’s probably unknown to most HAM readers, here’s an overview of the company and how this partnership will benefit Hard Air Magazine riflescope reviews…

TRIOPTICS GmbH is an internationally-orientated company with headquarters in Germany. It focuses on optical measurement and manufacturing systems for lenses, lens systems and camera modules.

The company develops, produces, and markets high-quality, innovative optical measuring and manufacturing technology for lenses and lens systems like riflescopes. As an essential part of this, they also develop powerful and intelligent software solutions which capture, analyze and display the results.

Below. Trioptics software provides a huge amount of information.

TRIOPTICS has a broad customer base throughout the world in the optics industry, universities and research laboratories, the medical engineering industry, the aerospace industry, military facilities, and the mechanical engineering and tool industry.

For example, TRIOPTICS plays a key role in the optical testing of lenses for mobile phones and digital cameras.

In addition, TRIOPTICS has a comprehensive, dedicated, riflescope test system. It’s called the ImageMaster Afocal and is a combination of extremely sophisticated hardware test bench and software.

And TRIOPTICS experts will use this system to generate data for HAM riflescope test reviews. WOW!!!!!!

Above. The riflescope on test is clamped in a precision fixture for testing.

Now it has to be said that the output from the ImageMaster system is designed for optical engineering specialists. So, for HAM test reviews, we will provide a summary of optical quality from the TRIOPTICS system.

In addition, we’ll also combine this data with photographs taken through the scope. That way, we will all be able to understand scope quality in a way that is interesting and useful.

The combination of these data sources, together with the HAM Team’s analysis and presentation capabilities, will make HAM riflescope test reviews the best in the shooting industry. We can’t wait to share them with you, and they’re coming very soon!

The post TRIOPTICS Partners With Hard Air Magazine For Riflescope Test Reviews appeared first on Hard Air Magazine.

Chad Kentner gives us his thoughts on the .177 caliber Umarex Gauntlet. Then you can watch his YouTube video, too…

The hobby, or should I say sport, of airguns usually starts as plinking fun or pesting nuisance vermin in the backyard. However, it can soon grow into something much more.

Then you may begin to wonder how good of a shot really are you?

One avenue you can take to test your mettle is to try your hand at the sport of Field Target. The cost of equipment may seem staggering, but it doesn’t need to be.

Thanks to my good friends at Umarex, I have been given the opportunity to try out an excellent entry level PCP rifle that may be the ticket you need to give Field Target competition a try. Not only will this rifle give you the opportunity to be competitive, but it does so at a price point that your spouse can’t complain about when the new air rifle arrives at your doorstep.

What is this rifle you might ask? Well, it is none other than the .177 caliber Umarex Gauntlet.

Not only can the Gauntlet be had at a good price, but it also comes with features often found on higher end PCP airguns. These include an adjustable stock, pressure release tool, single shot tray, 10 shot magazine, sling studs, shrouded barrel, and a regulator to boot.

All in all this package can allow you to be competitive if you do your part.

Taking the .177 caliber Umarex Gauntlet straight out of the box, the stock was what I noticed first…

Although we see adjustable stocks becoming more prevalent, it isn’t happening often with sub $300 airguns. Umarex stepped up to the plate and put an adjustable cheek riser on the Gauntlet to help you achieve correct eye alignment with your scope.

This of course helps reduce the chances of parallax error due to improper head alignment and increases the chances of consistent head placement each time you shoot. Remember you want to be consistent when shooting Field Target!

The next thing I noticed was the aluminum bottle attached at the front of the gun. Although an aluminum bottle makes the Gauntlet a little heavier, it is the bit at the front of the bottle that novice field target shooters should celebrate.

The .177 caliber Umarex Gauntlet includes a regulated tank. The regulated tank that is provided with the Gauntlet, again helps with consistency which is good when shooting a Field Target event.

In this unmodified test sample (remember you can always tune the Gauntlet if desired), I was able to achieve 70 shots from 16.47 – 17.66 Ft/Lbs of energy from one 3,000 PSI fill. This all coming from a regulated tank with just over a half dozen fills under its belt.

Regulators can take some time to break in and with additional fills, the energy spread should begin to become even more consistent.

I believe that I am like most airgun shooters. After having taken a quick look over a new rifle; it is immediately picked up, shouldered and you slowly squeeze the trigger to get a feel for what it will be like out in the field. The Gauntlet experience was no different for me.

The trigger does leave a little to be desired, with a heavy pull and an ill-defined let off. My initial feelings about the trigger may have been little misguided, having most recently shot a high-end precision air rifle at the 10M indoor competition in town.

Please don’t misquote me here, as I believe that the trigger may be the area with the greatest need for improvement on this rifle. However, I was able to get the feel for the trigger and found the let off became slightly more predictable with time. This predictability again leads to consistency, which of course you want when shooting competitions.

All of the aforementioned points help lead to a great rifle in this price point, but only if it has a respectable level of both precision and accuracy. To determine if the .177 caliber Umarex Gauntlet has the precision needed for Field Target, I decided to shoot groups at both 20 yards and 50 yards with a variety of pellets.

It was time to scope up the gauntlet with my Axeon scope and head to Baker Airguns in Mount Victory, Ohio to begin my testing. Their 20 Yard indoor range was just the ticket to see what was possible. After shooting a variety of pellets, I found the JSB Monsters (Redesigned) to barely edge out the JSB Heavies with five shot groups consistently getting .181 – .218 inches center to center.

The 50 yard test took place outside on a cold, slightly breezy (6-7 mph) and sunny day.

At 50 yards, I was able to achieve five shot groups that would easily fit within the 1.5 inch diameter Field Target paddle you would need to hit at this distance. The best group of the day was with JSB Heavy pellets coming in at 1.102 inches center to center.

Although not the best group I have ever shot with a rifle, it is quite capable of being precise enough to enjoy the sport of Field Target for anyone wanting to give it a try..

Is the .177 caliber Umarex Gauntlet also accurate?

It absolutely is, being able to hit both a 3⁄8 Inch target at 10 Yards and a 1 1⁄2 Inch target at 55 Yards from sticks.

Is it as accurate as a high end ($3,000) Field Target gun? Probably not, but then again, this is an article for those interested in getting started in Field Target competitions at a price point that is easy on the bank account with equipment that you can experience some success with.

All in all, if you are looking to get into field target without breaking the bank, the .177 caliber Umarex Gauntlet might just be one of the best sub $300 PCP airguns out there.

There are also a variety of resources to help you get the most out of your new rifle. The rifle has a dedicated book titled “Choosing and Shooting the Umarex Gauntlet” that helps you really begin to understand your rifle.

There are also DIY options (attempt at your own risk) which can potentially improve upon out of the box specs. You can easily find these through a quick search on YouTube.

So, is the .177 caliber Umarex Gauntlet a way to get started in the world of Field Target competition? In my opinion, it certainly is…

BUY FROM PYRAMYD AIR

Umarex Gauntlet PCP Air Rifle, Synthetic Stock

BUY FROM AIRGUN DEPOT
Umarex Gauntlet Regulated PCP Air Rifle

The post The .177 Caliber Umarex Gauntlet – Field Target For Under $300 appeared first on Hard Air Magazine.

Velocity Outdoor continues to roll-out fun, new products first seen at the 2019 SHOT Show. These include Crosman Black Widow BBs and Visible Impact target packs. They’re in production now and will be available near you very soon.

The Crosman Black Widow BBs have a claimed weight of 5.23 Grains. Unlike the traditional Crosman Copperhead BBs, they are black coated and available in bottles containing 1,000 BBs.

Crosman Black Widow BBs are slightly heavier than the Copperhead BBs, which have a claimed weight of 5.1 Grains. The Crosman product code is Model CBW1K.

In fact, Crosman Black Widow BBs are part of a complete makeover for the company’s BBs.

Crosman Copperhead BBs are also now becoming available in new packaging. The bottles are easier to pour, the labels different. Product Manager Phillip Guadalupe tells HAM that he’s found an improvement in BB-to-BB consistency also with the new products.

Copperhead BBs remain available in 1,500 ct, 2,500 ct, and 6,000 ct packages and the SKUs are the same as for the previous packaging.

Another new fun product at the fun end of the scale is Visible Impact target packs.

Visible Impact is one of the less-used brands in the Velocity Outdoor stable. However, it very well describes these self-adhesive, reactive airgun targets. When the black or red bull is hit, the target provides a clearly-visible white “splattter” around the impact area, making it easy to see the result from a distance away.

Each pack of Visible Impact targets contains 5 sheets of peel-off targets and repair patches.

There’s a total of 35 targets and 160 repair patches per pack. The targets themselves are in 4-inch, 3-inch and 2-inch diameters. The Crosman SKU for these targets is Model VITC5PK.

BUY FROM PYRAMYD AIR

Copperhead .177 Cal, 5.1 Grains, BBs, 6000ct

BUY FROM AIRGUN DEPOT
Copperhead BBs 5.1 Grain, 6,000 Ct

The post New Crosman Black Widow BBs and Targets Introduced appeared first on Hard Air Magazine.