Functional versus Superior Quality: Finding Value in Airgunning
- Thread starter rootdude
- Start date
My first airgun was FX Dreamline. I watched a lot of YouTube vids that I was certain I'm capable to tune it, and I wanted to be able to tinker with an airgun. But it wasn't that simple. I tinkered so much with it, it spent most of it's time in ICU.
I just bought a Snowpeak P35 and out of the box, it's shooting well. And it's a simple gun. I was able to adjust the trigger pull that it's light enough for my preference. My sin was, again, overconfidence with my skill. I dismantled it to try different tunes. It's a simple gun but I broke the valve spring because I installed it upside down, and flattened the reg discs when I adjusted it. It's the same problems with every airgun, the more we tinker, the more risk of it breaking down.
If I had to do it all over again, I'd go for an affordable gun, around 400 bucks and learn to shoot and tinker with it. The learning cost will be so much cheaper.
I just bought a Snowpeak P35 and out of the box, it's shooting well. And it's a simple gun. I was able to adjust the trigger pull that it's light enough for my preference. My sin was, again, overconfidence with my skill. I dismantled it to try different tunes. It's a simple gun but I broke the valve spring because I installed it upside down, and flattened the reg discs when I adjusted it. It's the same problems with every airgun, the more we tinker, the more risk of it breaking down.
If I had to do it all over again, I'd go for an affordable gun, around 400 bucks and learn to shoot and tinker with it. The learning cost will be so much cheaper.
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Buy once ,cry once makes sense. However if you don’t know what you are doing, do you really want to learn to drive in a sports car? Bowopt makes an great argument.
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How about "buy once and cry not at all"? I am happy with my Prod, Avenger, and 3 P35s. I also like my much more expensive Caiman. But I certainly am not crying about any of them. The Caiman arrived with the worst trigger of any of them and needed multiple fixes to it's regulator but it's shooting great now. 199 on the 30 yard challenge last week. But my P35-22 shot a 200 last year and has a 197 this year out of only a few targets with it.
It is possible to screw up any airgun. Heck it's probably possible to take a toaster apart and mess it up too. It would really help if manufacturers would put a decent amount of information in the manual but the Avenger, which cost $300, has the best manual and it is not great. Fortunately we help each other here and there are youtubes which are a big help. I also got needed help on the Caiman from Utah airguns. I've probably done the least to the avenger but I've turned the regulator all the way down and most of the way back up. I've tried multiple moderators on it and shot a bunch of pellets through it. But I've had the 25 caliber P35 completely apart including the trigger mechanism. I was literally praying I got that back together and I did. I have not taken the P35 regulator apart but I did the Caiman's Huma because it needed to be taken apart. I drilled out the transfer port, barrel port, and passage between them in my P35-25. I also put an aftermarket plenum on it. Some of these things took more attempts than others but they all got done. My point is just that while it is possible to make mistakes it is also possible to keep at it and be successful.
I appreciate the finer machining of the Caiman but that does not mean I don't also like my P35s. The cocking is a little sloppy but the trigger is not and they are light, short, and accurate. I appreciate the fact that we all get to decide how to spend our money but I think it is wrong to suggest that the result of buying a under $500 PCP is we will "cry". Or be significantly dissatisfied with the purchase. That has not been my experience at all. 3 brands, 5 purchases and they are all fine guns.
It is possible to screw up any airgun. Heck it's probably possible to take a toaster apart and mess it up too. It would really help if manufacturers would put a decent amount of information in the manual but the Avenger, which cost $300, has the best manual and it is not great. Fortunately we help each other here and there are youtubes which are a big help. I also got needed help on the Caiman from Utah airguns. I've probably done the least to the avenger but I've turned the regulator all the way down and most of the way back up. I've tried multiple moderators on it and shot a bunch of pellets through it. But I've had the 25 caliber P35 completely apart including the trigger mechanism. I was literally praying I got that back together and I did. I have not taken the P35 regulator apart but I did the Caiman's Huma because it needed to be taken apart. I drilled out the transfer port, barrel port, and passage between them in my P35-25. I also put an aftermarket plenum on it. Some of these things took more attempts than others but they all got done. My point is just that while it is possible to make mistakes it is also possible to keep at it and be successful.
I appreciate the finer machining of the Caiman but that does not mean I don't also like my P35s. The cocking is a little sloppy but the trigger is not and they are light, short, and accurate. I appreciate the fact that we all get to decide how to spend our money but I think it is wrong to suggest that the result of buying a under $500 PCP is we will "cry". Or be significantly dissatisfied with the purchase. That has not been my experience at all. 3 brands, 5 purchases and they are all fine guns.
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I don't think there's much of a resale argument to be made for high-end airguns over low-end airguns. There are a whole lot of what were once high-end PCP's out there that aren't worth even half of what they cost new. The springers tend to hold their value better, but the only airguns that have really good resale are the ones that have become collectible.
So far as which one you should buy, I think it completely depends on your circumstances. If you can afford it and you'll enjoy it more, then get the best you can. What some people enjoy is a project and for them turning that 2240 into a custom stocked PCP is a worthwhile investment, never mind the fact that they'll never get a fraction of their money back if they go to sell. I've got a buddy of mine for whom airguns are merely tools used to kill the vermin in his chicken coop. To him, spending anything over $75 is frivolous. It only needs to be able to kill a rat at 10 yards or less.
Personally, I like both, but the problem I have with buying low-end guns is that I tend to lose interest in them. I'll get one and put 1000 shots through it in the first few weeks trying to figure out what makes it tick, but after I get it sorted out, most of the time I'll lose interest in it, whereas with a high-end gun I'm much more likely to just keep shooting it week after week.
So far as which one you should buy, I think it completely depends on your circumstances. If you can afford it and you'll enjoy it more, then get the best you can. What some people enjoy is a project and for them turning that 2240 into a custom stocked PCP is a worthwhile investment, never mind the fact that they'll never get a fraction of their money back if they go to sell. I've got a buddy of mine for whom airguns are merely tools used to kill the vermin in his chicken coop. To him, spending anything over $75 is frivolous. It only needs to be able to kill a rat at 10 yards or less.
Personally, I like both, but the problem I have with buying low-end guns is that I tend to lose interest in them. I'll get one and put 1000 shots through it in the first few weeks trying to figure out what makes it tick, but after I get it sorted out, most of the time I'll lose interest in it, whereas with a high-end gun I'm much more likely to just keep shooting it week after week.
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