It's a strange reaction we have to gas rams. If a gas ram loses it's punch we scream and rant and blame the manufacturer. We rave against the pressurized cylinder and swear the springs are better.
When an airgun breaks a spring we immediately go out and buy a kit for $100 extra and feel giddy about it. Every HW ive ever had has broken a spring within a few shots and been rebuild under warranty to have the SAME PROBLEM within a short time.
In my limited experience the gas rams have lasted exponentially longer than any spring gun I own. They shoot much faster with a much more controllable recoil. They are quieter. They don't vibrate after the shot. They don't sling excess grease around. They don't require a spring compressor to replace. The replacement rams are much less expensive than a quality spring and guide kit.
In my view the gas ram is a huge improvement over a spring. I have several spring piston rifles and I love them. But I'd put a gas ram in any of them if it were an option.
The little Cometa has 27,000+ shots since October. I have worn the bluing off the barrel and action cocking it. I'm still amazed at how smooth and accurate the gun is. My HW95 and HW97k are more precise but they are scope mounted and shoot the most accurate pellets at 2x the price of Crosmans. The Cometa with open sights and Crosman domes will shoot patterns almost as good at 25 yards.
I've spent many hundreds of dollars on the HW rifles in shipping, parts, etc. I've spent zero on the Cometa and have tens of thousands more shots through it. From a practicality standpoint there is no comparison. The Cometa is less than half the purchase price and much less in repair cost. It has been more reliable than any rifle in the rotation. It will hit any target that the HW's will (within range and reason) and make less noise doing it.
