AfterMarket kits for my gun at least, a TX20

[gbmarcht]

The question that needs to be asked before going any further:

Have you shot and/or owned a properly setup spring piston gun with a tune kit?

No, can't say that I have. All my guns are high quality German or UK manufacture and shoot quite well if you don't mind the spring sound. Actuality, my TX200 out of the box doesn't make much spring twang. Shoots w a solid thud, people watching me shoot actually commented on it. Maybe I just got lucky on this one.

 

[gbmarcht]

If you want the absolute best scenario then shoot your new rifle as much and long as you can. Blend all the moving parts together. The contact points take time to mesh with one another. An instant tune kit and polish of piston/spring is a huge difference out-of-the-box. However; the same tuning after a few thousand rounds through the gun and the tune is superior. With an “instant tune” the metal has not blended yet and will scar still when it does. In other words the tune gets a little less good in time. A tune after the blend keeps getting better with time. I have polished a trigger and sear to a mirror finish before they have set to each other and after a shooting session checked it to find both sides scared and the trigger to be heavier than before the session. Not so after the two have meshed. The mirror finish held.

Lots of great feedback but I must say, your reply seems the most reasonable to me. Some posts were beginning to sound like; if you buy a brand new Porsche, the 1st thing you need to do is re-build the engine. If you want to race it, sure, modifications required. I shoot for the pure enjoyment I get from placing pellets downrange in a tight group, no plans for competition shooting.

 

[thumper]

No, can't say that I have. All my guns are high quality German or UK manufacture and shoot quite well if you don't mind the spring sound. Actuality, my TX200 out of the box doesn't make much spring twang. Shoots w a solid thud, people watching me shoot actually commented on it. Maybe I just got lucky on this one.

Okay. I suspected as such.

9 out of 10 times someone makes a post recommending to just shoot the gun or mention that tune kits are a waste of money, etc etc we come to find out that they haven't shot many well setup guns. Not that a box-stock gun can't shoot well, it's just that a properly setup and tuned one shoots as good or better with the benefit of having better lubes at the very least. Not to mention a more linear shot cycle without spring twist, and the lack of noise.

Basically what I mean to point out, is that most anyone who has tuned or shoots guns that have been tuned, don't go back to shooting them straight from the box.

Again, not that there is anything wrong with shooting a gun straight out of the box at all. That's what they are meant to do, after all.

 

[tjmac]

The only telling I read into the the responses are relating what we did to our guns and why.
I don’t see anyone telling the OP what he should do. That’s up to him and his gun.

Re-read the OP, especially the first sentence.

I said clearly that I like when people tell us about their experience, which is what most responders have done. That is always helpful. Maybe it is just me, but it kind of irks me when someone suggests that what many people choose to do with their own guns is somehow wrong or bewildering.

 

[gbmarcht]

Okay. I suspected as such.

9 out of 10 times someone makes a post recommending to just shoot the gun or mention that tune kits are a waste of money, etc etc we come to find out that they haven't shot many well setup guns. Not that a box-stock gun can't shoot well, it's just that a properly setup and tuned one shoots as good or better with the benefit of having better lubes at the very least. Not to mention a more linear shot cycle without spring twist, and the lack of noise.

Basically what I mean to point out, is that most anyone who has tuned or shoots guns that have been tuned, don't go back to shooting them straight from the box.

Again, not that there is anything wrong with shooting a gun straight out of the box at all. That's what they are meant to do, after all.

Fully appreciate what you're saying here. I am not at against Vortek etc after market tune-kits. I'm just saying while I probable will tune at some point, but want to get to know my gun better before and then feel confident in choosing a kit. Thanks for the feedback

 

[thumper]

Fully appreciate what you're saying here. I am not at against Vortek etc after market tune-kits. I'm just saying while I probable will tune at some point, but want to get to know my gun better before and then feel confident in choosing a kit. Thanks for the feedback

Certainly nothing wrong with that.

If you didn't shoot it a bit in stock form, you wouldn't know if you got your money's and effort's worth out of a tune. I suspect you will, but everyone is different.

Shoot on and have fun.

 

[SpiralGroove]

If you want the absolute best scenario then shoot your new rifle as much and long as you can. Blend all the moving parts together. The contact points take time to mesh with one another. An instant tune kit and polish of piston/spring is a huge difference out-of-the-box. However; the same tuning after a few thousand rounds through the gun and the tune is superior. With an “instant tune” the metal has not blended yet and will scar still when it does. In other words the tune gets a little less good in time. A tune after the blend keeps getting better with time. I have polished a trigger and sear to a mirror finish before they have set to each other and after a shooting session checked it to find both sides scared and the trigger to be heavier than before the session. Not so after the two have meshed. The mirror finish held.

B-of-G,
I hate to disagree with you on this one, but after tuning close to 30+ Springers, I have to say the instant tune will only get better with time ... just like an out-of-the-box tune improves with shot cycles. I have never bought a tune kit - using ARH/Vortek springs (only) and making top hats, spacers, piston buttoning, plastic piston sleeves and full trigger tunes. After a tune things continue to get better as parts complete their meshing process.

Most novices should simply shoot the gun - unless they're like me and have the "German Tinkering Gene", and simply must take everything apart out of curiousity - trying to improve performance.

As you have mentioned, the trigger tune is a must for that almost perfect trigger - maybe adding a set-back blade too.

 

[Bear-of-Grayling]

B-of-G,
I hate to disagree with you on this one, but after tuning close to 30+ Springers, I have to say the instant tune will only get better with time ... just like an out-of-the-box tune improves with shot cycles. I have never bought a tune kit - using ARH/Vortek springs (only) and making top hats, spacers, piston buttoning, plastic piston sleeves and full trigger tunes. After a tune things continue to get better as parts complete their meshing process.

Most novices should simply shoot the gun - unless they're like me and have the "German Tinkering Gene", and simply must take everything apart out of curiousity - trying to improve performance.

As you have mentioned, the trigger tune is a must for that almost perfect trigger - maybe adding a set-back blade too.

Gentlemen. We are splitting hairs here. Just to be clear I am not suggesting a tune out of the box isn’t a good thing. It’s awesome. I don’t like twang at all. Just saying this. Take a trigger for example. Polish both trigger and sear to a mirror finish, when brand new, before the two surfaces have set to each other. After 100 shots examine the surfaces and it’s amazing how the surfaces marred each other up. (no shards of steel on the ground. Lol) Perform the same test after the two surfaces were set to each other and the surfaces stayed as mirrors. Mechanical items have a break in time where metal to metal surfaces set to each other. Tolerances slightly change. If the tune is performed after this process it is just common sense that it will be slightly better. Significantly better, no.
The initial question was fair and wondering why a brand new high end springer needed to be gutted and tuned when they were quite happy with it as is. I was just encouraging them to continue down this path because the gun will also get better the more it’s shot. Tune or not.

 

[SpiralGroove]

Hey Bear,
I'm not sure I'm a gentlemen, but yes ... were splitting hairs on this one.
Most folks should just shoot the gun to understand how it functions .... like we all did as kids.

The problem is:
Once you tune one and then buy another (new), you're shocked how rough the shot cycle is

 

[1BadDart]

I've bought three new springers over the last 5 years, a Diana 48 in .22, Diana 34 in .177 and a TX200 in .177. All three were relatively new (less than 1000 shots) when I installed spring kits in them. The shot cycle and shootability improved on all three. The only rifle I've installed a spring kit in that I didn't like was one of my FWB300S's, I installed a single spring that replaced the two spring system, I didn't like the shot cycle and removed the single spring.

This and $1.75 will buy you a cup of coffee in some places.

 

[Michigander]

One thing that I didn't see mentioned is that many guns come out of the factory overlubricated requiring 500-1000 rounds to settle down and start giving consistent velocity. Even then, if you don't use it for awhile the gun will smoke for the first few rounds due to lubricant making its way past the seal somehow. Not the end of the world, but annoying and certainly can't help accuracy. That and the fact that you can find and remove rough spots and sharp edges that can cause damage and affect performance are reasons to do at least a lube tune sooner rather than later.

Really the only reason to delay in my opinion is to not void the factory warranty. That and the fact that you want to shoot that new gun rather than have it apart in the basement waiting for parts. My usual routine is to use a new gun as received for that first season, hoping any warranty issues will show up in that time, then open it up for whatever level of tune I think it might need over the winter.

I think the more experience you have with servicing and tuning springers, the more inclined you are to not delay doing what you know you will want to do sooner or later anyway.

 

[SpiralGroove]

Yeah Michigander,
I've seen Springers come from the factory with excess and too little lube, you never know ....
Since I've tuned a few Springers and PCP's, I see myself as the Warranty and wouldn't want to mess with the lag of sending it in.

When I get a new gun, I shoot it to make sure nothing major is wrong and then tune it - withing a week or two.

I tuned my AA Pro-Sport after a week and found the delrin buttons on the piston were gone. I contacted Pyramyd Air, and they sent me a new piston free (paid shipping too) even though I had technically voided the warranty. Fixing the problem would have cost them more in shipping alone vs. me doing it.

Again, most folks should just shoot their new gun to break in - if there's a problem ... return it to the vendor for another or a refund.