opposite of detune

[Scharfschuetze]

Great forum, lots of great info/advice here....and a good atmosphere.

I have a few questions, being new to this level air gun performance.

I read plenty about tune ups and detuning, but nothing on increasing performance , as far as velocity goes. 

We shoot for fun, learning gun safety and for pest control, not into nor ready for match level or field target comp. My old Benjamin pump in .20 cal, and a 2001 Gamo break barrel .177 ( 1000fps) would drop squirrels like a wet dish rag. Not seeing it with this Hatsan as often as I’d like. (claimed 800fps). Using 13.36g hatsan vortex hollowpoints, or crossman 14.3 hollowpoints. 

Had air rifles all my life, and now a new Hatsan 95 .22 cal. , Hawke airmax 4-12x40 (thanks cyclops videos). Still trying to get the mounting issue finalized. Waiting on some new Hawke dovetail bases, as we had a defective bullseye zr mount.(china version) Was off center by 20 MOA on windage and 16 MOA elevation. Great scope mount and idea, held zero great but with a cheap set of mounts the scope was only a few clicks off. Little over 1000shots thru it so far.

Thanks in advance

 

[ranedouglas]

- power tune. most after-market tuning kits increase power. many of the same sources for those kits offer a 12 ftlb kit for same airgun. i usually prefer to ' lube tune ' , and that is (what i call) using the same parts while calming the recoil and making the shots and accuracy more consistent. when i first began this as an adult (2009) , i did several ' slot tune ' because it's easy . sometimes i still do it with heavy lube or tar when i know the gun is fully tuned and just needs the twang or spring buzz to be tamed more . your benjamin is actually a sheridan if it's in 5mm or .20 cal ( it's confusing because benjamin bought sheridan and later crosman bought the whole shaboodle - and the markings or stampings are misleading ). consider researching " steroid sheridan " - now that's a power tune ! i'd google " slot tune " while youre at it for your hattie 95 (it's a down and dirty way to tune a break barrel, so it's also termed a ' slut tune ' ). model 95 is a scope killer. i highly recommend finding a way to remove the scope stop (metal band held by phillips screw) and use that hole for your vertical scope stop - or the allen screw pin that sinks into the top of the scope rail. even if you have to widen it out with a cordless drill and bit (just drill slowly and dont let drill bit go inside receiver once the bit punctures thru the scope rail, ok ?) sometimes those hattie's dont even have a hole in the top of scope rail - like webley vmx rifles , and i have to drill my own - but dont mess up your new rifle by trying that.....the drill really needs a starting place already pre-drilled , or it will walk and scratch your new blueing ( i've messed up a few like that ). hope that helps. - rane on . - valhalla red balla.

 

[John "spysir" Blount]

It your shot placement not the power level period. Your running about 20fpe and 6fpe drops squirrels dead. Increasing power ( in general ) will make it harder to group well, you might want to do as so many do and lower the power a bit - hopefully improving shot placement- and hit the KZ.

Just a thought.



John

 

[TiredRooster]

It your shot placement not the power level period. Your running about 20fpe and 6fpe drops squirrels dead. Increasing power ( in general ) will make it harder to group well, you might want to do as so many do and lower the power a bit - hopefully improving shot placement- and hit the KZ.

Just a thought.



John

I agree 100%. This is good advise given. I have not been vey long into air gunning. But have learned much I think in a rather short span. Much of it coming from doing and experimenting with my springers. And one of the things that I have come to understand is that accuracy is EVERYTHING with these rifles. And yes....generally speaking....consistent accuracy is lost with higher velocities. There is a "sweet spot" that has to be found between power and accuracy with springers.

 

[Scharfschuetze]

Thanks John & Rooster.

You prolly are correct, atleast on the ones I couldnt recover and verify. I dont seem to be gettiing full pass thru penetration. Ive had 4 that appeared dish ragged, only to get up and take off after 5-10 minutes laying there motionless. This is our first .22 so I just was wondering. Yet it has done wonders on possum and coons. oh well still learning and getting used to this newer stuff. Appreciate the advice..

 

[TiredRooster]

Dean,

I have two identical springers. One has the OEM spring in it and is a 16-17 FPE rifle. The other, I have replaced the spring with a Maccari tune kit...new spring, spring guide, etc. By doing this I lost a bit of velocity on the chronograph, which brought this rifle down to around a 14.5 FPE rifle shooting the same pellet. I have squirrel hunted with both rifles. Thats what I do with them....small game hunt. I had far more "hits" without recovery with the higher velocity more powerful rifle than with the slower, less powerful rifle. By far! I was very frustrated when I first started hunting with this rifle. It was my first springer, and like many, I thought faster, more powerful, equals better.....especially hunting. I had to learn that this is not the case with a springer. I realized that I was much more accurate with my second springer....the less powerful one. I could consistently shoot tighter groups with this one. I learned to shoot it very well and become very confident in it. I started taking this "less powerful rifle" hunting every time I went. My kill ratio went way up. I was walking out of the woods with more squirrels every time. It's all because I am way more accurate with this gun. I can actually place the shot right in the kill zone far more times than not. It is not about power and velocity with a springer. It's all about being able to place the shot!!! If you can place that pellet right where it needs to go, you will "dish rag" as you say, the squirrel. And do it every time with less power! I was long winded I know.......but just trying to stress a point. Hope it helps.

Good luck.....TR

 

[DualMagMike]

I have excellent results with power tunes and shoot .177 HW97 that makes ~17fpe. In the last match of the season I was closer to the scores of the PCP guys than the second place guy was to me in my Hunter Piston class. I believe this was due to higher winds than the rest of the year and I have much less to compensate for both wind and trajectory wise than the guys who shoot at 12-14fpe

51.5 yards outdoors, the squares are 1/4in