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Other How much investing in accessories and parts to "upgrade" your pcp do you do?

Years ago when the shop I worked for was transitioning to total CNC equipment I bought a manual mill and lathe (my thinking was I wanted to be able to do stuff at home someday when I retire) brought them home and set up ready to go .. i bet i haven't turned them on 5 times in the last 20 years..
when you've made you living as a toolmaker/machinist for the last 31 years the last thing I want to do when I get home is machine something (thats called burnt out in the trade and getting old). but I have them for when that magical day of retirement comes
When I analyse the option of buying the lathe I got to the conclusion that I will never get to the expertise needed for the pieces I eventually need. So I think is more intelligent to go to the specialist when eventually needed.
 
When I analyse the option of buying the lathe I got to the conclusion that I will never get to the expertise needed for the pieces I eventually need. So I think is more intelligent to go to the specialist when eventually needed.
Until such time as you try & fail .. you won't learn very much in life. Dive in, just don't drown :rolleyes: the rewards are boundless.
 
Just give me a nice full lgt moderator to make them ant fart quite and I'm done.

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Until such time as you try & fail .. you won't learn very much in life. Dive in, just don't drown :rolleyes: the rewards are boundless.
Very well said!!
Also you don't need to invest in a Large, heavy and many$$$ lathe to start out!!
When I start to do part for my Rapids and Titanium Rapid, I was using a Taig micro lathe!!
Great to learn on, and it made Fantastic Parts!!
I was introduce to the Taig in College on my way to Engineering...
taig1.jpg


Titanium Main Valve:
make-ti-valve.jpg


K-Baffles
k-baffle.jpg


Even an Enhanced Elevation ScopeKnob!
skopknob1.jpg

scopeknoptape.jpg
 
When I analyse the option of buying the lathe I got to the conclusion that I will never get to the expertise needed for the pieces I eventually need. So I think is more intelligent to go to the specialist when eventually needed.
A Small hobby lathe is fairly inexpensive.. tooling isn't bad.. like stated above.. dive in! Nothing more satisfying than making something yourself that's just for you.
 
It seems that there are certain manufacturers who gun's demand a higher priority of aftermarket parts for the folks wanting to customize it to make it more accurate. And there are others' who only need to find that correct tune or the projectile of choice. I'm heading in the direction of only wanting to tinker with a quality product and projectile now. By the time that a plethora of aftermarket parts are bought in the quest for accuracy from one manufacturer, a good accurate gun can be purchased from another company with nothing to do but shoot it.

As noted by folks, a good little engine lathe is priceless to the tinkerers out there, and a wealth of knowledge to be had. I have not used my lathe to make any airgun parts, but I do use it for many other things around here.
 
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Hey Airgun,
Even the highest quality airgun (Thomas aside) can be tweaked to be more efficient or more consistent, just depends on your level of perfection.
My RAW airguns are very high quality .... simple design, but there a little tweaks that can be done to valves, regulator, hammer or making a SSG that greatly improve satisfaction;).

Shooters will find the minor flaws and come up with mods to improve most guns - no matter the price.
 
I tend to buy the caliber and power I need so other that a good tune, maybe a trigger adjustment and a bit of spit and polish I pretty much shoot the airguns in factory stock configuration.

I don't consider a scope to be an accessory and don't care for bipods. What's left?
I'll add a sling to my walk-about and hunting rifles, guess you could call that an accessory. That's about it.

I'm a serious but casual shooter, not a competitor so I don't feel any need to go looking for performance enhancing accessories. I just like to shoot and am happy to see how well that particular airgun and I can do.

That being said, I'm very fussy about how well the rifle "fits" and won't hesitate to modify the stock or even make a new one if needed to get it right.

I can see serious competitors tricking out their rifles with every possible accessory to gain some advantage. For the casual shooter... well, do whatever you like (just don't complain about the costs 😉 )

Cheers!
 
It seems that there are certain manufacturers who gun's demand a higher priority of aftermarket parts for the folks wanting to customize it to make it more accurate. And there are others' who only need to find that correct tune or the projectile of choice. I'm heading in the direction of only wanting to tinker with a quality product and projectile now. By the time that a plethora of aftermarket parts are bought in the quest for accuracy from one manufacturer, a good accurate gun can be purchased from another company with nothing to do but shoot it.
I'm with you. Used to tinker, upgrade and all that good stuff. Ended up getting burnt out on it and now buy a gun that will do all I want out the box, put a scope on it, an ARCA adapter, tune it and I'm done. With all the money I wasted on guns and upgrades I could have had a few Evols and Taipans and been ahead.