I have owned multiple Marauders, and still have a couple.
I also own a Texan, a TalonP, and a CondorSS with the original SS barrel plus two extra 24” .22 and .25 barrels for it. I mainly just use the 24” .25 barrel on it.
Marauders have changing point-of-impact issues unless you buy a barrel band like Tim Hill of Hillairguns makes. If you are going to use a marauder and want dependable first shot repeatability accuracy I highly recommend that upgrade. The “free floating” barrel on the Marauder is NOT very sturdy. There was a time when there was a huge availability of aftermarket stuff for the Marauders, but time has marched on and there isn’t a lot of stuff being made for them now from lots of people.
The new .25 barrels made by Crosman are NOT as accurate as the barrels for the Gen1 .25 marauders were. They just aren’t. And you can’t find those barrels for sale anywhere now.
The Airforce guns are extremely durable and are very capable of very good accuracy. I am not a fan of how they look, I think they are about the ugliest airguns out there. But they always perform. No POI changes from that platform. To increase the shot count and lower the power it’s very simple and easy to just put an o ring behind the top hat to make the valve cycle shorter. They don’t look pretty but they are dead simple and reliable. Power to handle anything the caliber is appropriate for and I gotta say you get what you pay for. They are superior to the Marauders for being a “around the farm pest gun” that will see a lifetime of being jostled around on a 4 wheeler or bumping around behind the seat of a truck.
If you throw your factory Marauder behind the seat of the truck and try to use it a week later, you’ll find it isnt zeroed anymore.
Owning both airguns that you are asking about I can tell you that it’s been a pretty good while since I’ve had a marauder out to play with it.
I have air guns costing much more AND ALSO much less than the Marauders that get used much much more often than the Marauders.
I would spend the extra dollars and buy an AF CondorSS and later on buy the 24” barrel upgrade. I shortened my 24” barrels about a half inch or so, so that they fit entirely inside the SS frame and inside the Donnyfl threaded endcap. Looks like an SS but has a full length barrel for good power on a very low power setting, gives more shots per fill. I get a nice string of (if I remember correctly) 28 shots with 33gr JSBs. It also shoots Varmint Knocker 32.8gr slugs very very nicely.
Airforce airguns are made for hunters and are made to be accurate and rugged. The Marauder is a great beginner PCP gun with a fantastic trigger. Both airguns are capable of good accuracy.
