As you guys are noticing I am pretty new to air rifles, spent my whole life so far with traditional fire arms. 2 years ago I bought the Armada and kind of fell in love with these things. After reading through here the past few days I realize many of you are using rifles of a much higher build quality. So my question is, how does the Armada stack up to higher priced platforms? I haven't pushed this this past 45ish yards so far but I was personally impressed with its repeatability at that distance. Seeing some of you doing 100yrd shots got me thinking, is the Armada capable of being competitive at that distance or is there a very large gap in performance between this and better platforms? Sorry guys I'll have a lot of newbie questions in the future but I appreciate how accepting you guys are! Thanks for all your guidance so far.
Benjamin Armada .25 realistic expectations?
- Thread starter DLAfab
- Start date
Hi pal, no need to apologize for asking questions. We were ALL in the dark at some point. I never had an Armada per se but did have a Marauder as my 1st, magazine fed PCP. Same platform, different chassis. At that time (7 years ago) it was THE go-to entry level PCP. Personally, I was never impressed by the shooting aspects of the gun. I loved how quiet it was and having a magazine but its performance was mediocre at best, despite all I tried. I learned a lot of important things about how to become a better shooter, technique & how to work on a PCP airgun but long distance performance was lacking. When I moved to higher tier airguns the difference was astounding. The fit, feel, performance, accuracy & repeatability of a better quality gun was the "death knell" for my relationship with the Marauder. It had its purpose but the better quality guns left it in the dust! Other's mileage may vary.
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Thanks for sharing your experience, I still love the Armada and dont regret buying it but i realise there is a lot of potential in other platforms. I almost jumped into an Aea terminator the other day but now I'm realizing I need to ask questions and do more research before just buying lol
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You should try your gun at longer distances, you may surprise yourself. It will be a fun venture if nothing else. I have seen Crosman guns do quite well and even win some big field target matches.
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Great advice.
You will save yourself money and grief by doing your research and asking questions here on AGN. There are a lot of very helpful people here.
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Im definitely going to test its limits and see just how much I can get out of it. So far I'm very happy with it but as you all know this is an addiction and I'll be adding a few more in the near future. My goal is to have 1 fairly precise one for up to 50 yards which the Armada has done well so far, 1 semiautomatic to stay sharp on rapid target transitions, and 1 for testing my long range skills and that may very well also be the Armada once I get chance to take it out to 100yds.
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On the note of this, I'm seeing a lot of mixed reviews on AEA. Some people seem to love them and some have had rough experiences. My appeal to them for me is the semiauto for quick target transitions without breaking the bank. Anyone here have any first hand experience or advice on them?
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I think AEA's low price & big bore calibers appeal to people but there have been A LOT of posts here regarding problems & build quality. A "bargain" is not always a bargain. There are quite a few guns nowadays that are very near maintenance & trouble free while being dependable, consistently ACCURATE shooters. It's a good time to be an airgunner.
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That's exactly the appeal, I have to say they have a good marketing strategy if nothing else.
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DLA,
Going with Gerry on this one, never owned a Hatsan or AEA rifle but I've chosen to steer clear based upon member comments and concerns. Hang around on the forum long enough and you get a feel for things, saves having to learn everything the hard way. WM
Going with Gerry on this one, never owned a Hatsan or AEA rifle but I've chosen to steer clear based upon member comments and concerns. Hang around on the forum long enough and you get a feel for things, saves having to learn everything the hard way. WM
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I started out with the Benjamin brand first a .22 Prod of which I still have two, then onto a .25 Mrod, and finally a .25 Armada.
Not being a paper punching guy all were more than accurate for my humble needs. Which is bringing to room temperature those cute, but destructive fuzzy communities ASAP. The Mrod and Armada are basically the same platform, but a heavier ten pound Armada needs a wheel barrel for extended field carry or use. Bottom line Armada is best used as a stationary platform or one that involves very short flat terrain carry periods.
As for the AEA brand it's really a mixed bag some being very good and some others being junk.
Side note I do have a low mileage working AEA .25 backpacker/assassin safe queen just taking up safe space PM if interested.
Not being a paper punching guy all were more than accurate for my humble needs. Which is bringing to room temperature those cute, but destructive fuzzy communities ASAP. The Mrod and Armada are basically the same platform, but a heavier ten pound Armada needs a wheel barrel for extended field carry or use. Bottom line Armada is best used as a stationary platform or one that involves very short flat terrain carry periods.
As for the AEA brand it's really a mixed bag some being very good and some others being junk.
Side note I do have a low mileage working AEA .25 backpacker/assassin safe queen just taking up safe space PM if interested.
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My starter rifle was a .25 Marauder, it replaced a cheap Walmart springer and I went from inhumanly whittling down pest chipmunks to humane kills at 50 yards.
As I used the Marauder I began to wonder just how accurate PCP rifles could be.
I started looking at YouTube videos and quickly realized that there were some unbelievably accurate rifles out there.
After doing a bunch of research I was ready for a high end rifle.
I contacted Allen Zasadney (airgun guru)
and asked him what he thought.
He sent me pictures of a few different rifles he had for sale and I chose a beautiful Theoben rapid in .20 caliber.
I couldn’t believe I was spending $1600 on a used rifle, but my research showed that it would likely be a gem of a rifle.
It certainly was.
I went from half inch groups at 30 yards to one ragged hole.
And at 50 yards I was getting tight groups of 1/2 inch and better.
I realized that I needed a quality scope for long range shooting so I sprung for one of the best, and bought a Valdada Terminator.
Suddenly I had about $5000 in one rifle!
But it is so incredibly excellent to play with at all ranges that I have no regrets about spending the money.
That saying “ buy once and cry once “ is actually great advice.
If you love shooting and know you are always going to be plinking and pesting you might as well get the best equipment you can afford.
This would be the last rifle I would ever sell lol!
I shot two of the best groups in my life with it at 130 yards!
Only my .177 RedWolf HP with slugs has come close to the Rapid .20 caliber.
The Marauder and Armada are fine rifles and quite accurate, but there’s most definitely rifles that will outperform them in a big way!
Nothing beats an outstandingly accurate rifle for a pleasurable shooting session!
My advice is ask lots of questions and watch videos and reviews and then cough up as much as you can afford and get started down the rabbit hole!
As I used the Marauder I began to wonder just how accurate PCP rifles could be.
I started looking at YouTube videos and quickly realized that there were some unbelievably accurate rifles out there.
After doing a bunch of research I was ready for a high end rifle.
I contacted Allen Zasadney (airgun guru)
and asked him what he thought.
He sent me pictures of a few different rifles he had for sale and I chose a beautiful Theoben rapid in .20 caliber.
I couldn’t believe I was spending $1600 on a used rifle, but my research showed that it would likely be a gem of a rifle.
It certainly was.
I went from half inch groups at 30 yards to one ragged hole.
And at 50 yards I was getting tight groups of 1/2 inch and better.
I realized that I needed a quality scope for long range shooting so I sprung for one of the best, and bought a Valdada Terminator.
Suddenly I had about $5000 in one rifle!
But it is so incredibly excellent to play with at all ranges that I have no regrets about spending the money.
That saying “ buy once and cry once “ is actually great advice.
If you love shooting and know you are always going to be plinking and pesting you might as well get the best equipment you can afford.
This would be the last rifle I would ever sell lol!
I shot two of the best groups in my life with it at 130 yards!
Only my .177 RedWolf HP with slugs has come close to the Rapid .20 caliber.
The Marauder and Armada are fine rifles and quite accurate, but there’s most definitely rifles that will outperform them in a big way!
Nothing beats an outstandingly accurate rifle for a pleasurable shooting session!
My advice is ask lots of questions and watch videos and reviews and then cough up as much as you can afford and get started down the rabbit hole!
Upvote 0