Taipan Taipan Veteran 2 Tactical 550mm .22

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Dairyboy said:
So BC testing was a little disappointing. Based on my tests I come up with a .033 BC for the JTS 18gr and a .038 for the JSB 20.83gr. My Vet1 was shooting at 900fps average which makes sense being much colder now than when I set it up in the summer last year. My Vet2 at 920fps. Was hoping to be in the mid .04s but is what it is. It is a 15% increase in BC which for the 15% increase in weight makes sense. I guess if I really want the higher BC I need to go to the 25.4gr. Not sure i really want to though. Guess it wouldnt hurt to try.
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I measured a bit better BC with the .22/20.83 than you're seeing but that was from a 1:30 polygonal rifled barrel. The slower twist poly barrels can pretty well be trusted to like higher speeds than a 12 land and groove like your Vet. And a poly profile usually gives a bit better BC than a 12 land and groove too. I remember that youre Washington/Oregon? area, and if at low elevation you'll be losing some BC due to elevation too, compared to my mile high conditions.

But as stated by Bobby, the .20/15.89s simply cannot be beat for BC when the criteria is pellets and less than about 40fpe. I I used the .20/15.89s from the Ghost to place in the money at EBR American Field target a few years ago, against guys shooting .22s at almost double the fpe. I've got some YouTube videos of using a bog standard .20 Condor and whacking prairie dogs out to 125+ yards with the JSB .20/15.89.

Your most recent post shows the Vet 2 really liking the .22/20.83s, and as I stated in my little BC and initial impressions post a while back, and as you found, those .22/20.83s are an improvement in BC over the .22/18s. I've never considered the .22/18s to be any sort of valid long range option if there's much wind at all. They're a great midrange option, and were bout the best we had for a long time for this power level, but for perspective, the BC of the .22/18.13 is about what I get out of .177/10.34s at 19fpe from my USFT for field target.
 
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Dairyboy said:
Yeah I wish more manufacturers would make a .20 instead of them needing to be a custom barrel. I'd love a solid .20 PCP. The .20 caliber would fill my needs better than .22. 13.73gr for 50-60yds at 23fpe~, 15.89gr out to 100yds at 30fpe+ and the slugs at 35fpe+ for whatever would need be.
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Me too.

Many/most of the AG Manufacturers don’t make .20 cal PCPs, so when a good used .20 cal comes up in the Classifieds, they get snapped up fast.

It’s really unfortunate because the .20 cal 15.89 pellet with the great BC is a great choice for both short/mid range distances and long distance accuracy as well.

I feel like it’s a “pellet looking for some new .20 cal rifles to be built.”
 
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Your groups are small enough you should be fine at 70 or even 100 yards . Let your groups tell you what the best choice is and don't worry about the numbers. Take it out to 70y and see what happens. I seldom see multiple slug groups posted at longer distances that look great . Like 4-5 , five shot groups in a row that show consistently.
 
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Franklink said:
I measured a bit better BC with the .22/20.83 than you're seeing but that was from a 1:30 polygonal rifled barrel. The slower twist poly barrels can pretty well be trusted to like higher speeds than a 12 land and groove like your Vet. And a poly profile usually gives a bit better BC than a 12 land and groove too. I remember that youre Washington/Oregon? area, and if at low elevation you'll be losing some BC due to elevation too, compared to my mile high conditions.

But as stated by Bobby, the .20/15.89s simply cannot be beat for BC when the criteria is pellets and less than about 40fpe. I I used the .20/15.89s from the Ghost to place in the money at EBR American Field target a few years ago, against guys shooting .22s at almost double the fpe. I've got some YouTube videos of using a bog standard .20 Condor and whacking prairie dogs out to 125+ yards with the JSB .20/15.89.

Your most recent post shows the Vet 2 really liking the .22/20.83s, and as I stated in my little BC and initial impressions post a while back, and as you found, those .22/20.83s are an improvement in BC over the .22/18s. I've never considered the .22/18s to be any sort of valid long range option if there's much wind at all. They're a great midrange option, and were bout the best we had for a long time for this power level, but for perspective, the BC of the .22/18.13 is about what I get out of .177/10.34s at 19fpe from my USFT for field target.
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Yeah I looked back and saw yours were with a polygon slow twist which I know makes a difference. Then saw your elevation and yeah I'm at 800ft.

I've seen your success and Bobby's praise for these pellets and have wanted a gun to really take advantage of them, but no luck unless I want a rifle which I'm not a fan of. I watched your videos on the Condor and is very impressive. I've been tempted by the .20 Mrod and have actually had one in the past and was a fun gun to shoot but before Carm had mags and wasn't into the single shot. Also with most my shots out of my truck it's just too long. And then price wise I'm in the range of a nice used Veteran or something along those lines so just doesn't pencil out to me as much as I'd love a .20. Need a better gun to come in .20 then I'd likely buy one.

Yeah I know the 18gr are no long range shooters in wind which is why my search has continued. The 20.8gr is a definite upgrade but not as good as I'd like. But they shoot very good so that's what I'm picking for now. However with how good my Vet1 shoots the VKs I might not mess with them that much either. Not a fan of the price but wouldn't shoot a ton of them anyways. More testing to be had though.
 
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tommyb said:
Me too.

Many/most of the AG Manufacturers don’t make .20 cal PCPs, so when a good used .20 cal comes up in the Classifieds, they get snapped up fast.

It’s really unfortunate because the .20 cal 15.89 pellet with the great BC is a great choice for both short/mid range distances and long distance accuracy as well.

I feel like it’s a “pellet looking for some new .20 cal rifles to be built.”
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100% I was really hoping when they came out with them that someone would step up and build a gun or add .20 to the barrel choices but nothing
 
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Headshots said:
Your groups are small enough you should be fine at 70 or even 100 yards . Let your groups tell you what the best choice is and don't worry about the numbers. Take it out to 70y and see what happens. I seldom see multiple slug groups posted at longer distances that look great . Like 4-5 , five shot groups in a row that show consistently.
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Yeah I'm not worried about the accuracy I'm seeing. My max is generally about 80yds. I've tested the VKs before out to 100yds with my Vet1 and did really well. Just didn't want to switch back and forth with pellets but seeing my Vet2 shooting as tight with the 18gr I'll switch the Vet1 to slugs and my Vet2 to the pellets.
 
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zerochance said:
This post has really made me think about getting a Taipan... I'm not 100% sold on the looks but that's just the looks. The performance is great from multiple reviews. So I have a few questions.

What's the overall weight of the Taipan Vet 2 tactical?
At the end of the barrel, is that just a shroud?
Taipan Vet 2 tactical or Taipan Slash Tactical? LOL :ROFLMAO:
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As said looks are looks but you're hard pressed to find a better guns for the price. Weight wise I posted earlier in the thread but I think 8lbs 6oz~. It is a shroud but also tensions the barrel. Honestly I'm not a semi auto guy buy even I'm having interest in the Slash.
 
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Dairyboy said:
As said looks are looks but you're hard pressed to find a better guns for the price. Weight wise I posted earlier in the thread but I think 8lbs 6oz~. It is a shroud but also tensions the barrel. Honestly I'm not a semi auto guy buy even I'm having interest in the Slash.
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100%

High end performance without the price.

And when it comes to shot cycle (and in some cases the trigger), a Veteran runs circles around guns that cost twice as much.
 
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Dairyboy said:
100% I was really hoping when they came out with them that someone would step up and build a gun or add .20 to the barrel choices but nothing
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My ‘speculation’ about why Manufacturers don’t build new .20 cal rifles is that they see the .20 cal as a niche market, and perhaps they think they cannot sell enough to make money.

I.e., Daystate, RAW, Weihrauch, FX, Brocock, Taipan, AEA, et al. Nobody wants to build them. A real shame because I think the .20’s would sell, but if the demand isn’t there then I get it.

So, we’re stuck with endless scouring the Classifieds for the one or two that come up from time to time.

Anyway, like your idea of one Vet for slugs and the other one for pellets. As long as they both give you the accuracy you want for your target distances, you have the best of both worlds.
 
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So I think I found THE slug for this gun. At least one I want to shoot. The 20.83gr KOs. Weather is not the best being variable winds in different directions however these slugs seemed to have performed very well with no fine tuning done. Top left is 5 shots and the other 2 are 10 shot groups I can't complain about this one bit. Shooting at 895fps avg.
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KO slug (left) vs VK slug (right)
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Dairyboy said:
So I think I found THE slug for this gun. At least one I want to shoot. The 20.83gr KOs. Weather is not the best being variable winds in different directions however these slugs seemed to have performed very well with no fine tuning done. Top left is 5 shots and the other 2 are 10 shot groups I can't complain about this one bit. Shooting at 895fps avg.View attachment 544570KO slug (left) vs VK slug (right)View attachment 544571View attachment 544572View attachment 544573
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Nice groups. Looks like it's ready to go to work and should do a great job on the pests .
 
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Dairyboy said:
Lol if you've known my buying/selling habits it's about on par with how it used to be.
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I saw this topic when it started but didn’t look at it. While waiting on a PM I decided to glance over it. Because I’ve lived it many times, I think you’re looking for something with a gun. Figured how could I go wrong with a Taipan now that they have some slug hype around them. It could do almost what you want it to do by cranking it up, install a truck spring but then you might be stuck with a dumbed down pellet tune. It would be very nice to have a 21gr pellet and a 21gr slug shoot perfectly out of a gun without messing with it. But that’s rare. So my advice is if it’s not worth having a bottle hanging compared to your other favorite gun, sell it. Doesn’t mean it’s a bad gun. Just not worth keeping because it didn’t check all the boxes you wanted to check.

When I briefly wanted my Taipan to be a slug shooter, I had to go all in. It was good but I felt I was beating it up. It’s what you have to do if you don’t buy the long version of a rifle.
 
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