Is the Benjamin Marauder an Affordable, Reliable, Accurate Semi-Auto PCP???
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I love this rifle who wouldn’t Shot after shot and no bolt cocking. The only problem is covid hit the wallet hard and the GENERAL my wife would divorce me if I spent that kind of money right now
A side lever cocking would be much cheaper and I could still keep my sight image while cocking. I can't do that with the Marauder bolt action. Not to mention MUCH less to fail/go wrong in comparison with the SAM.
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It’s absolutely accurate hands down!! It’s never let me down at all. The price however is absolutely nothing short of ridiculous I mean absolutely price gouging for real.!!!
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Wow! Never thought Crosman ever tried to gouge anyone. Many of their guns top guns are difinitely priced for the working man. Marauders in particular are a winner, After saying that I did but the early version of the SAM and returned it because all the bugs were not worked out of it. Will try one again when that happens. Maybe their all set now so my interest is beginning to come back. Really wished they would put that Semi into a carbine.
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Allow me to remove some of the price tag fear you have with THIS: 25% off coupon using AGNATION at Crosman website
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That looks like a great deal. I'm very tempted. Somebody either push me off the ledge or pull me back from the brink because this looks like a good opportunity to add a second rifle as a backup to my impact MkII for less than the cost of a top springer. If I buy one, will I hate myself in the morning?
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A lot of research and development went into the new SAM. It isn't priced terribly expensive for a new platform with new parts being manufactured for it, and don't forget that a good warranty comes with it. I bought one with the discount and it shoots flawlessly.
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I ordered one. I have a scope in mind for it as well. A little impulsive but in a good way.
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Thanks for the code (Legionair!) and the encouragement (Airgun-hobbyist). You just started me on my way to collecting since I have two now. I always told my mother she'd regret not letting me have a BB gun when I was seven and you're helping me prove I was right. Making up for lost time.
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Congrats lewilbar,
Two words. Buy pellets.
I had a friends SAM on loan for a week and went through over a tin of pellets. I dialed it from mild to wild for velocity. I preferred the mild but the gun liked the higher velocity settings. It is a good idea to read-up on the care and feeding of the SAM as there are a few things to watch (and lube) every 500-1000 pellets. Sounds like a bunch of shooting but with a few kids to help out you can go through pellets really fast.
Other words: Buy magazines.
I found I could empty magazines faster than load them
I didn't have any issues with the magazines getting "nibbles" from the pellet probe. I was only shooting Crossman 14.3 HP's. No jams. The mags just ran out of pellets. (Rather like wondering how the ice cream got out of the refrigerator.)
After having one for a week I can see other manufacturers might want to up their game a bit in the semi-auto PCP market. While the SAM is not what I might call a target gun, it is a real treat to knock down targets like you were shooting an old 10-22!
Enjoy,
Nugria
Two words. Buy pellets.
I had a friends SAM on loan for a week and went through over a tin of pellets. I dialed it from mild to wild for velocity. I preferred the mild but the gun liked the higher velocity settings. It is a good idea to read-up on the care and feeding of the SAM as there are a few things to watch (and lube) every 500-1000 pellets. Sounds like a bunch of shooting but with a few kids to help out you can go through pellets really fast.
Other words: Buy magazines.
I found I could empty magazines faster than load them
I didn't have any issues with the magazines getting "nibbles" from the pellet probe. I was only shooting Crossman 14.3 HP's. No jams. The mags just ran out of pellets. (Rather like wondering how the ice cream got out of the refrigerator.)After having one for a week I can see other manufacturers might want to up their game a bit in the semi-auto PCP market. While the SAM is not what I might call a target gun, it is a real treat to knock down targets like you were shooting an old 10-22!
Enjoy,
Nugria
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Thanks, for the kind words of advice. Crosman seems to be backordered on mags. I've put my name in for notification when they come available. I'm pretty well set with pellets although they are mostly on the heavier end of what I gather the Marauder prefers. I was puzzled (and still am a bit) deciding between the SAM and the bolt action gun since traditionally I prefer accuracy (and a good trigger) above all but decided that since I already have an Impact, ultimate accuracy and high power were not as important as the SAM's semi-auto party trick and traditional layout. I decided for now that it would be better not to try and duplicate the Impact's performance but rather get something entirely different. An impulse buy of the best kind! I understand that for many $550 is a lot of discretionary money but to my mind this seemed like a cost effective way to get into this type of gun and I happen to like the way the Benjamin looks (and hopefully shoulders) as well. So here I am.
I'm still a little uncertain (second guessing myself) about bolt versus SAM given my usual priorities (accuracy) but having them be different in function and performance probably makes the most sense. I think it's unlikely a Marauder, bolt or otherwise, will shoot quite as well as the Impact is capable of, although I'm certain both are better than I am. Thinking further about it, I decided the Marauder doesn't have to outshoot the Impact for me to enjoy it. Instead I can enjoy it for what it is.....a different kind of lead slinger , perhaps an offhand gun rather than a bench queen. I hope I have that right. I'll report back after I set it up and shoot it.
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The Marauder is really a high powered earlier model they had in CO2 for Crossman. I used to have a Silhouette Pistol PCP by Crossman that is not as powerful as the Marauder or the other things that have "evolved" after the Crossman 1322 in the 70s.
People like them for accuracy and cost.
They are not expensive and you can always buy two or three to be sure one is operable for the next 5 or 10 or 20 years from now.
I never bought into this design because I ended the Pistol Hunt in Air Power with the HW44 .22.
It shoots better than my Daystate Huntsman rifle in .177. And no Crossman of any type can shoot as well as my HW44 .22 which is scoped and hits just like my HW80K .22 at 35 yards (over 700 fps at impact).
Is there an accurate PCP that beats Marauder? Yes. The HW44.
People like them for accuracy and cost.
They are not expensive and you can always buy two or three to be sure one is operable for the next 5 or 10 or 20 years from now.
I never bought into this design because I ended the Pistol Hunt in Air Power with the HW44 .22.
It shoots better than my Daystate Huntsman rifle in .177. And no Crossman of any type can shoot as well as my HW44 .22 which is scoped and hits just like my HW80K .22 at 35 yards (over 700 fps at impact).
Is there an accurate PCP that beats Marauder? Yes. The HW44.
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lewilbar Crosman has plenty of the SAM mags in stock. they are not on the site, you will need to call to order them
Here is the part number you need RC2210B100
Here is the part number you need RC2210B100
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The SAM is like a 10/22. In my experience, not as accurate as the bolt action Mrod. I'd say it is "good enough" for 50yds. My bolt action 22LRs were more accurate than the 10/22s, as well.
I recommend breaking in the SAM with the crosman 14.3 domes, then trying other pellets. That is what the gun was designed and tested with. The chamber has been slightly modified for auto-feeding.
In my experience, not as accurate as the bolt action Mrod. I'd say it is "good enough" for 50yds. My bolt action 22LRs were more accurate than the 10/22s, as well. I recommend breaking in the SAM with the crosman 14.3 domes, then trying other pellets. That is what the gun was designed and tested with. The chamber has been slightly modified for auto-feeding.
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I had some accuracy issues with my SAM, but after polishing the barrel and dressing the crown, it has tightened up considerably. Yes, I agree, I shouldn't have had to do so, but I did and it worked. I have not been able to hit the advertised 900 fps, even using the recommended 14.3 grain CPUDs. Those get close at an average 872 fps, but that's still a good ways away from what is promised. I have found that the 16 grain AA and 15.89 grain JSB pellets have had the best accuracy, shooting at an average of 820 fps.
I have had 1 magazine fail and another is well on it's way to failing. No nibbles on the spokes of the carrier, but the clear cover has cracked. I have been told this new SAM magazine will eventually replace the current .22 Mrod magazine since it is backward compatible. I have used the old style Mrod mag in my SAM with good results by just removing the clear cover and adding one mot turn to the carrier to increase the tension. So, if you need a spare magazine in a pinch and have some Mrod mags available, this is an easy mod to do till the SAM mags become more readily available. Crosman did replacement under warranty, hopefully the replacements will last longer.
I'm hanging on to it in the hopes the aftermarket catches up quickly. I'd like to see LW barrels available for it, more powerful valves with bigger porting and maybe a better regulator with a larger plenum.
I have had 1 magazine fail and another is well on it's way to failing. No nibbles on the spokes of the carrier, but the clear cover has cracked. I have been told this new SAM magazine will eventually replace the current .22 Mrod magazine since it is backward compatible. I have used the old style Mrod mag in my SAM with good results by just removing the clear cover and adding one mot turn to the carrier to increase the tension. So, if you need a spare magazine in a pinch and have some Mrod mags available, this is an easy mod to do till the SAM mags become more readily available. Crosman did replacement under warranty, hopefully the replacements will last longer.
I'm hanging on to it in the hopes the aftermarket catches up quickly. I'd like to see LW barrels available for it, more powerful valves with bigger porting and maybe a better regulator with a larger plenum.
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Paul, If the SAM unique parts are available by end of this year, I'll be doing some mods. I'd like to get the power up to 30fpe, and still cycle well. I will move all the SAM parts to a conventional tube which will have a larger plenum with huma reg. Need to purchase a valve to do some porting, though.
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