Skout .30 Skout EVO SubMOA

[Motorhead]

.We’ve seen this in Red Panda barrels that are downright ugly inside until properly lead lapped and polished.

I was testing AKA; Red Panda barrels ( KARMA logo laser etched on them at muzzle ) in .22 / .25 / .30 caliber.
The .30's were 6 groove and just BEAUTIFUL in fit and consistency ... accurate too having 3 samples to test in two lengths & twist rates.

The .25's were 12 groove and just sorta ok to nice and varied in quality across the 3 I had to test. The best of the 3 was actually very nice and shoots equally well. The others not so much
The .22's were also 12 groove and 100% garbage with bore that looked like the surface of a worn out file ... bore scoping them was UGLY !!! Sizing was good but surface finish was poop of the 2 tested

 

[Centercut]

I was testing AKA; Red Panda barrels ( Saber tactical logo laser etched on them at muzzle ) in .22 / .25 / .30 caliber.
The .30's were 6 groove and just BEAUTIFUL in fit and consistency ... accurate too having 3 samples to test.
The .25's were 12 groove and just sorta ok to nice and varied in quality across the 3 I had to test. The best of the 3 was actually very nice and shoots equally well. The others not so much
The .22's were also 12 groove and 100% garbage with bore that looked like the surface of a worn out file ... bore scoping them was UGLY !!! Sizing was good but surface finish was poop of the 2 tested

Interesting. I said that because of the four .30 RPs that I know shooters on my Team have, only one was acceptable. And even then, not any better than the .30 barrel on his .30 Kalibrgun Cricket TAC (he sold the RP and went back to his Cricket and is now planning on a .30 Skout Evo with SubMOA barrel). The other 3 RPs were pitted and looked ugly inside. One shooter had his lead lapped, it looked much much better, and he's having the crown cut off and the barrel re-crowned. Apparently, this is fairly standard procedure for the RP .30 barrels...
It's always sketchy when receiving items for testing... Are they REALLY off the shelf, or are they prepped prior to being sent out? I.e., if you ordered one, what would you get? Obviously, some of them are VERY good...

 

[coastal drifter]

Not sure of weight but it’s heavy. It’s kinda funny that I used the gold Skout Epoch that I won in the raffle at EBR 2023 to win this EVO in competition in 2024.

I’m kinda on a roll with winning Airguns, since I won a .22 Daystate Red Wolf for winning 100Y BR Sportsman at EBR 2019, and I won a .25 Brocock Atomic in the raffle at Utah EFT GP and EBR Summer of 2022.

you suck!...J/K lol, congratulations

 

[DrPutz]

I recently received my SubMOA barrel for my new Skout EVO and I am also very disappointed in it's performance so far. In looking at the barrel, the throat/transition to the rifling was so rough, it had deep ring gouges in it. I polished most of this out of the barrel, but you could still feel them in there, as it was difficult to get a pellet started in the rifling.

Also, I was surprised to find that the .30 cal SubMOA barrel had a tight choke in it. I thought a good rifling job didn't need a choke?? Once, I got most of the throat and first part of the bore polished, there were still scratches on the pellets I pushed through (although none on ones from just entering the throat and rifling). I think that there is something affecting the pellets in the choke or crown area. I will try polishing the choke area a bit more to see if I can eliminate the final scratches on the pellets.

One thing that I need to try is reducing the dwell setting. I tried dwells of 23 and 30ms based on some advice from another shooter. At 30ms, I was barely able to keep the pellets on paper at 90 yards. I think a lower dwell might help - maybe 16ms, like the Tech Tuesday recommendation for a starting point.

Dan

 

[coastal drifter]

I recently received my SubMOA barrel for my new Skout EVO and I am also very disappointed in it's performance so far. In looking at the barrel, the throat/transition to the rifling was so rough, it had deep ring gouges in it. I polished most of this out of the barrel, but you could still feel them in there, as it was difficult to get a pellet started in the rifling.

Also, I was surprised to find that the .30 cal SubMOA barrel had a tight choke in it. I thought a good rifling job didn't need a choke?? Once, I got most of the throat and first part of the bore polished, there were still scratches on the pellets I pushed through (although none on ones from just entering the throat and rifling). I think that there is something affecting the pellets in the choke or crown area. I will try polishing the choke area a bit more to see if I can eliminate the final scratches on the pellets.

One thing that I need to try is reducing the dwell setting. I tried dwells of 23 and 30ms based on some advice from another shooter. At 30ms, I was barely able to keep the pellets on paper at 90 yards. I think a lower dwell might help - maybe 16ms, like the Tech Tuesday recommendation for a starting point.

Dan

good info

 

[Chuck26287]

I recently received my SubMOA barrel for my new Skout EVO and I am also very disappointed in it's performance so far. In looking at the barrel, the throat/transition to the rifling was so rough, it had deep ring gouges in it. I polished most of this out of the barrel, but you could still feel them in there, as it was difficult to get a pellet started in the rifling.

Also, I was surprised to find that the .30 cal SubMOA barrel had a tight choke in it. I thought a good rifling job didn't need a choke?? Once, I got most of the throat and first part of the bore polished, there were still scratches on the pellets I pushed through (although none on ones from just entering the throat and rifling). I think that there is something affecting the pellets in the choke or crown area. I will try polishing the choke area a bit more to see if I can eliminate the final scratches on the pellets.

One thing that I need to try is reducing the dwell setting. I tried dwells of 23 and 30ms based on some advice from another shooter. At 30ms, I was barely able to keep the pellets on paper at 90 yards. I think a lower dwell might help - maybe 16ms, like the Tech Tuesday recommendation for a starting point.

Dan

I'm a little concerned to hear this as I'm looking to order the .30 Sub-MOA barrel for my EVO as well. This seems like it might be at least a second data point for this situation. I think Centercut had a similar issue. May not have been the same root cause, but he was simply put, not happy or impressed with the performance of what is supposed to be a top-of-the-line upgrade barrel with a premium price. We should not have to do internal polishing/lapping to these barrels. They are premium priced and supposed to be premium quality. I was under the understanding that the internal barrel prep was WHY the cost was premium.

 

[Sergey_Fly]

It seems to me that the presence of a choke is equal to the barrel being "cheap" or of average quality at most. I made a post with a link to an interview with one manufacturer, where there is some open information.
Please do not consider this an advertisement, because I have a negative attitude towards such people and I am not interested in the products of this company. In addition, the director of this company "boasts" that he deceived the LX company... Nevertheless, there is useful information in the video.
I am interested in quality and especially the price/quality issue. Alas, I notice that average quality is sold under the pretext of a high price.
Use Google Translate, because the video is in Russian.
I apologize for the post... I am just a newbie who is collecting information in order to buy a good rifle with a good barrel.

 

[EDventure]

I'm a little concerned to hear this as I'm looking to order the .30 Sub-MOA barrel for my EVO as well. This seems like it might be at least a second data point for this situation. I think Centercut had a similar issue. May not have been the same root cause, but he was simply put, not happy or impressed with the performance of what is supposed to be a top-of-the-line upgrade barrel with a premium price. We should not have to do internal polishing/lapping to these barrels. They are premium priced and supposed to be premium quality. I was under the understanding that the internal barrel prep was WHY the cost was premium.

I have a 30 cal Sub-MOA being delivered tomorrow.

Honestly, I'm not sure how to visually tell a good barrel from a bad barrel.

 

[CanMike]

Thanks for teh info.. The EVO with that barrel is on my shopping list and have been talking with the guys at Skout.. I'll put this purchase on hold until we determine whats up if anything. Not paying close to 3k and hoping for a good barrel. At that price a good barrel should be 100%

Mike

 

[Chuck26287]

I have a 30 cal Sub-MOA being delivered tomorrow.

Honestly, I'm not sure how to visually tell a good barrel from a bad barrel.

My quick and dirty response is was the rifling cut and the barrel shipped with or without any follow-up bore prep to reduce bore tooling marks/artifacts? To me, follow-up bore conditioning is the hallmark of a premium or upgraded barrel (this is an opinion, not a fact). It may not be a custom gunsmith's professional lapping job, but it should certainly not have prolific tool marking in the bore that requires the new owner to service.

First and foremost, does it shoot accurately? If it's a premium barrel priced 2-3 times the standard barrels available, is it shooting at a higher accuracy or consistency level than the standard barrels or is the performance the same as the standard barrels but you paid a lot more for that standard performance?

Keep in mind the improvement in performance is never going to be at the same percentage as the increase in price, but when paying 2-3 times the cost of standard barrels, in my opinion, you should see a clear and identifiable improvement in performance.

If you aren't seeing the improvement in performance for your premium price, it's time to look inside the bore. This is where you should be seeing a bore that has had the tooling marks/artifacts reduced (if not eliminated) from the bore with barrel bore prep (polishing or lapping). If a barrel doesn't perform noticeably better than a stock/standard barrel, then it isn't really an "upgrade" or "premium" barrel, is it?

Again, this is a very subjective area and this is just my opinion on the topic.

 

[Chuck26287]

Thanks for teh info.. The EVO with that barrel is on my shopping list and have been talking with the guys at Skout.. I'll put this purchase on hold until we determine whats up if anything. Not paying close to 3k and hoping for a good barrel. At that price a good barrel should be 100%

Mike

To be fair in this discussion, Centercut did mention somewhere that he knew of four (I think it was four) others who had this barrel and they were superb shooters.

However. if that's six data points, 1/3 are less than desirable. Not too good for the price of this barrel.

 

[CanMike]

To be fair in this discussion, Centercut did mention somewhere that he knew of four (I think it was four) others who had this barrel and they were superb shooters.

However. if that's six data points, 1/3 are less than desirable. Not too good for the price of this barrel.

Yes exactly.. I would say this should be like a 95-98% good barrel lottery. No matter how premium something is there is aways going to be a small issue.. Thats completely understandable.. So a 2-5% dud is okay. but 25-30% not so much at this price point.

Mike

 

[Sergey_Fly]

Yes exactly.. I would say this should be like a 95-98% good barrel lottery. No matter how premium something is there is aways going to be a small issue.. Thats completely understandable.. So a 2-5% dud is okay. but 25-30% not so much at this price point.

Mike

Then the question arises --- does the manufacturer look at/inspect the barrel before shipping/selling? It is very strange when a buyer sees an elementary defect or problem or third-rate quality, and the manufacturer did not notice it. Or is it based on the fact that most buyers have little or no understanding of weapons. One will return it, and nine will buy it.

 

[DrPutz]

I tried some additional groups tonight with a dwell of 14ms (the lowest that it would fire). I set the LP at 170-ish, the HP around 1500. I could see the pellets spiraling to the target, some even doing a "left turn" at the target. I had two groups that were decent at about 1", a really good 0.75" group at 845 fps, then a lot of random hits all over the paper, 2" to 3" off at 91 yards. To me, I think @Ballisticboy has it right, all pellets spiral in the real world, just some guns the spiral doesn't get too big due to lack of other "effects".

On the Evo, I believe that it is "blowing" too much air - that is there is a lot of air after the shot. You can tell this from the noise level. My impact, shooting similar speeds is relatively quiet and very accurate (most well tuned impacts are pretty accurate and efficient, just they break too often). Anyway, I believe that this excess air from the Evo disrupts the pellet as it is leaving the muzzle/moderator and gives the skirt a kick in the butt, exacerbating the wobble, which turns into a spiral at 90 yards. It was so bad that one pellet busted out the side of my rubber mulch bucket. So, I am not sure if the barrel is bad or if it is a function of an overly powerful gun. My RAWs also seem to blow a lot of air too and I have accuracy issues with them as well.

On the barrel, most of the central portion of the barrel/rifling was smooth on pushing a pellet through, no tight or restriction spots until I reached the tight choke. However, when skout cut the lead/throat, there was quite a bit of damage/scoring that could be felt with a probe. I really need a bore camera to properly see it, but most of that damage is gone now.

I gauge how good a barrel is by the scoring on pellets pushed through the barrel. On the SubMOA, it looked like 80-grit sandpaper hit the pellet pushed through the choke. After a bit of polishing, the main part of the barrel is smooth, with little damage to the pellet, more of polished surfaces where it ran through the barrel. My cleaning rod stopped short of the choke, so I couldn't polish it yet. However, pushing a pellet through this area out the end of the barrel, there seemed to be quite a bit of scratching. The crown looks good, so I am not sure why there is so much damage in this last section.

I need to pull the barrel and see how the leading looks, but I need to get ready for the World WFTF Championship coming up next week so things are on hold for now.

Dan

 

[Odin]

Good evening, everyone, long time lurker here. I figured this would be an appropriate first post:

I ordered a .30 Skout Evo through my sponsor and, to my surprise, it arrived with a sub-moa barrel!

Unfortunately, it arrived only a few days before EBR, so I didn't have much time to tune it. I called Skout for advice on a good starting point, and was told to run the AEA 45's between 880-895 fps.

My first shots were at 35yds, my typical zero distance. Oddly enough, I struggled with getting a good zero, as I had a difficult time getting 5 shots to touch, with some "fliers" up to .5" out. Not off to a good start...

At 100 yds, I had a couple cherry-picked groups that were around 1 MOA, with most groups close to 2 MOA, all in very slight to no wind.

Tuning the dwell tightened up my SD and ES, but didn't have any obvious affect on accuracy. I also observed that the barrel liked to be clean, but not "too clean". Meaning, I only had about a 50-100 shot window where it performed half way decent. Doing a deep clean on the barrel (pulling patches until getting a clean patch) resulted in poor accuracy for ~50 shots.

EBR was rough.. the highest score I managed at 75yds was a 217, which is lower than I've shot at 100 with my previous bench gun - and RTI Prophet 2.

When I got home, I pulled the barrel and deep cleaned it. I don't have access to a bore scope, but with my naked eye, the bore looked like hot garbage.

Out of curiosity, I pushed various pellets through the barrel - AEA 45 and 50, JSB 44.75, and Zan 48.

What I noticed with all of them, is multiple tight and loose spots, in 4-5" sections. The tight spots were really tight, almost like multiple chokes. Pellets would almost free fall in the loose spots. Weird...

The darker alloy of the lead on the Zans pellets really showed just how horribly this barrel drags lead, forming literal "fins" on the head and skirt of the pellet.

I apologize for the long-winded post. I would just hate to see someone invest so much money into a barrel, only to be let down. Hopefully these are just isolated incidents, and not the norm.

Thanks,

-Nate

 

[CanMike]

Yikes

That does not look good. Did you use this in the competition?

 

[Odin]

Yikes

That does not look good. Did you use this in the competition?

Yes sir, unfortunately. I could barely hold the 9 ring @ 75yds. This barrel is going to take a TON of work to get it to shoot, if it's even salvageable.

 

[DrPutz]

Good evening, everyone, long time lurker here. I figured this would be an appropriate first post:

I ordered a .30 Skout Evo through my sponsor and, to my surprise, it arrived with a sub-moa barrel!

Unfortunately, it arrived only a few days before EBR, so I didn't have much time to tune it. I called Skout for advice on a good starting point, and was told to run the AEA 45's between 880-895 fps.

My first shots were at 35yds, my typical zero distance. Oddly enough, I struggled with getting a good zero, as I had a difficult time getting 5 shots to touch, with some "fliers" up to .5" out. Not off to a good start...

At 100 yds, I had a couple cherry-picked groups that were around 1 MOA, with most groups close to 2 MOA, all in very slight to no wind.

Tuning the dwell tightened up my SD and ES, but didn't have any obvious affect on accuracy. I also observed that the barrel liked to be clean, but not "too clean". Meaning, I only had about a 50-100 shot window where it performed half way decent. Doing a deep clean on the barrel (pulling patches until getting a clean patch) resulted in poor accuracy for ~50 shots.

EBR was rough.. the highest score I managed at 75yds was a 217, which is lower than I've shot at 100 with my previous bench gun - and RTI Prophet 2.

When I got home, I pulled the barrel and deep cleaned it. I don't have access to a bore scope, but with my naked eye, the bore looked like hot garbage.

Out of curiosity, I pushed various pellets through the barrel - AEA 45 and 50, JSB 44.75, and Zan 48.

What I noticed with all of them, is multiple tight and loose spots, in 4-5" sections. The tight spots were really tight, almost like multiple chokes. Pellets would almost free fall in the loose spots. Weird...

The darker alloy of the lead on the Zans pellets really showed just how horribly this barrel drags lead, forming literal "fins" on the head and skirt of the pellet.

I apologize for the long-winded post. I would just hate to see someone invest so much money into a barrel, only to be let down. Hopefully these are just isolated incidents, and not the norm.

Thanks,

-Nate View attachment 511168View attachment 511169View attachment 511170View attachment 511171

Nate,

Did yours have a choke?

 

[manabeknives]

Why don't the Submoa have an indexing system like the LW?
Looking forward to seeing a comparison of the Submoa and the LW bull barrels

Good evening, everyone, long time lurker here. I figured this would be an appropriate first post:

I ordered a .30 Skout Evo through my sponsor and, to my surprise, it arrived with a sub-moa barrel!

Unfortunately, it arrived only a few days before EBR, so I didn't have much time to tune it. I called Skout for advice on a good starting point, and was told to run the AEA 45's between 880-895 fps.

My first shots were at 35yds, my typical zero distance. Oddly enough, I struggled with getting a good zero, as I had a difficult time getting 5 shots to touch, with some "fliers" up to .5" out. Not off to a good start...

At 100 yds, I had a couple cherry-picked groups that were around 1 MOA, with most groups close to 2 MOA, all in very slight to no wind.

Tuning the dwell tightened up my SD and ES, but didn't have any obvious affect on accuracy. I also observed that the barrel liked to be clean, but not "too clean". Meaning, I only had about a 50-100 shot window where it performed half way decent. Doing a deep clean on the barrel (pulling patches until getting a clean patch) resulted in poor accuracy for ~50 shots.

EBR was rough.. the highest score I managed at 75yds was a 217, which is lower than I've shot at 100 with my previous bench gun - and RTI Prophet 2.

When I got home, I pulled the barrel and deep cleaned it. I don't have access to a bore scope, but with my naked eye, the bore looked like hot garbage.

Out of curiosity, I pushed various pellets through the barrel - AEA 45 and 50, JSB 44.75, and Zan 48.

What I noticed with all of them, is multiple tight and loose spots, in 4-5" sections. The tight spots were really tight, almost like multiple chokes. Pellets would almost free fall in the loose spots. Weird...

The darker alloy of the lead on the Zans pellets really showed just how horribly this barrel drags lead, forming literal "fins" on the head and skirt of the pellet.

I apologize for the long-winded post. I would just hate to see someone invest so much money into a barrel, only to be let down. Hopefully these are just isolated incidents, and not the norm.

Thanks,

-Nate View attachment 511168View attachment 511169View attachment 511170View attachment 511171

@Odin Yikes!!..that looks like an unfinished barrel
and the gouges on the pellets have no consistency ..what a lemon!
The inside of the barrel looks like crap...wanted to find a technical term,,,but no..it's crap
Send it back and ask if they could shoot a submoa with that barrel
Mike

 

[manabeknives]

Y'all got me worried with mine arriving today. If it's crap, I'll drive it back over to Sub-MOA.

I'm getting a little tired of paying premium prices for equipment only to have to buy or do other things to make it perfect. I don't think my expectations are too high.

I hope you get a good one!
what cal did you order?
Mike