Sorry ZAN, but I'm not feeling it

[rangur1]

This operation has been marketing themselves quite well over the last year, comendable. However, over last year and a half, I bought several different size ZAN slugs and on examination , found them a bit rough, not near as clean as , say , NSA or AVS slugs. Honestly, it appears ZAN follows the H&N formula for lead / antimony mix. You can see the generally darker grey that H&N products exibit. While NSA and AVS slugs appear much brighter and cleaner. Now grant you, AVS is currently pricier, but NSA is not. So, are folks going for the exotic?, slick marketing? Basically, how is ZAN different from NSA outside of formula mix?

 

[weevil]

I’ve been using a lot of the Zan 177 cal slugs lately. I’ll find a few in every box that are substantially undersized, as in 1/2 to 2/3 of normal size. The ones that aren’t obviously defective are very consistent in weight and size, so I guess it’s some rare machining error. Anyway, I had all but given up getting 177 slugs to work, having tried many types in my 177 Wildcat, Leshiy Classic and Airmaks Caiman. That’s three different types of barrels - STX, Lothar Walther and CZ. Then I tried the 10 and 13 grain Zans and found them to be more accurate than each gun’s best pellets. So from my perspective, they may look dull but they have shining accuracy.

 

[bigHUN]

I don't care how the ZAN/NSA/HN looks but what the POI shows. Anything can be improved is sizing to barrel/liner and this what Im gonna invest next.

 

[Deleted 45061]

I've actually never shot Zans. That said, I get a LOT of reports from friends about the consistency of them. He is a really nice gentleman as well. I should go buy a pack.

Cheers,
Atlas

 

[Triggers and 4X4s]

I use ZAN 25.5Gr 218 slugs with my .22 FX Impact M3 STX 1:24 barrel. After shooting about 4000+, I cannot fault them at all.

They shoot the best out of all the brands I have tried;

1. Javelin - Worst of the lot, shoots all over the place with no grouping. They seem to be 217s and 218s mixed together in the tin.

2. H&N - I will not buy them ever again after I wasted my money on a bad batch that were visibly deformed and another batch covered in a white residue (Most probably lead oxidation).

3. JSB - If they had 218s I would buy them. The 217/216s perform poor with my gun barrel.

 

[weevil]

I use ZAN 25.5Gr 218 slugs with my .22 FX Impact M3 STX 1:24 barrel. After shooting about 4000+, I cannot fault them at all.

They shoot the best out of all the brands I have tried;

1. Javelin - Worst of the lot, shoots all over the place with no grouping. They seem to be 217s and 218s mixed together in the tin.

2. H&N - I will not buy them ever again after I wasted my money on a bad batch that were visibly deformed and another batch covered in a white residue (Most probably lead oxidation).

3. JSB - If they had 218s I would buy them. The 217/216s perform poor with my gun barrel.

In my M3 .22, the Javelin Gen 1 23grain 218s are the winners at high power (990fps). Yet the gen 2 are terrible for me! The Zans are scattershot at high speed but oddly, they shoot really well at lower speed (800-860)! Clearly, there’s no rhyme or reason to any of this and it seems to vary from barrel to barrel, although in my case, Im at 5000ft elevation, which significantly reduces the amount of twist needed to stabilize a slug.

 

[bdzjlz]

In my FX Panthera 700 mm, the Zan 30.5 Gr have consistently provided the best group results as compared to the Patriot and NSA slugs. I am getting sub MOA now, though it has taken considerable tuning work to get to this point. I think over time I can tighten the groups up even more, but that is another topic for another time.

All of my comparison and testing groups were two 10 shot groups straight out of the packaging.

 

[Chukar60]

I have been shooting the Zan .218 23 gr out of my M3 for the last couple months. I have zero complaints on accuracy and consistency of them.
Out of my gun any speed over 970 and groups start to suffer.

 

[SupremaRatio]

Idgaf about looking, so if a Zan's product shoots well in my guns, I will but it. That's all.

 

[DanT55]

They have a coating on them but I do not consider them rough. They are very consistent. I have had nothing but good luck with them myself...in .25 33gr

 

[Centercut]

Both the ZAN 37 (990 fps) and 41 grain (960 fps) shoot very good in .25 FX 700mm Superior Slug barrels. Equivalent out to about 100 yards, but the 41s shoot better past 150 yards. They are equivalent in accuracy to the NSA 38.9 and 43.5 slugs in the older Slug A barrels.

 

[Seeker]

I got a couple of different boxes from Zan in different calibers. Some of them were packed as the old ones. Some of them were sealed and dark. Some of them were sealed, shiny and covered with some lube. Some of them were sealed and they had some additional paper inside. Some of them were packed as before but they had some transparent foil inside. This is absolutely crazy. Zan, what the heck are you doing, man?

 

[Jasonmc]

177 13gr slugs or JSB 13gr knockouts are the only two types of slugs that shoot best for me with my current set up..

 

[FelixS]

Zan .177 13 and 16 gr slugs shoot best, just slightly better than the JSB Knock-outs, which shoot a little better than the NSAs, for me.

 

[Ezana4CE]

I have a box of Zan slugs that look ashen as if someone forgot to put graphite or some sort of protective coating on them. I only shot a mag or two of them. They were not labeled to the specs of their actual diameter. I don’t recall how they were advertised and I didn’t know exactly what I was getting, but I thought I did when I purchased them. Turns out that they fit loosely in the magazine of a 2020 Huben K1 and don’t group well. I’ll probably just melt and recast them. I didn’t order any more after that.

Edited to add photos.

 

[Seeker]

It seems there is a zero waste approach in Zan factory. Everything needs to be sold.

 

[drpietrzak]

I shoot 10gr .177 out of a TX 200 and they do pretty well in my gun.

 

[ZAN]

Maybe a few words about slugs.

We did some changes in packing which was the biggest "issue" over time and also some changes on the finish of the slugs. From first to last they were all made from same material, but finish and packing very much interfere with how they look after some time in storage.

Now with sticker sealed plastic trays slugs should be smooth and shiny.How they look does not affect the accuracy.

We learn and improve things like all do.

Our lead is not even close to NSA or H&N one, we use way more softer, more to AVS but it is hard to compare hand or machine processing.
It is super easy to get perfect looking slug out of hand press but pain in the as from the machine.

In process of learning how to walk you need to "fall", this is how all world is working. Some admit it and others say they dont even if they have bloody knee when saying that.

Wish you a great weekend guys
Žan

 

[Seeker]

Our lead is not even close to NSA or H&N one, we use way more softer

Not true when it comes to H&N Tslot slugs with 'Massive expansion' label.

It is super easy to get perfect looking slug out of hand press but pain in the as from the machine.

So make them manually. Quality above quantity.

 

[drpietrzak]

Unless there is a chemical component analysis there is not a "true / not true" to be had here. Hardness check sure but not make-up.

Before someone says it while heat treat of lead in the traditional sense has little impact it does have some. Other things do as well.

heat treating of lead and lead alloys | Total Materia

Explore the methods of strengthening lead and lead alloys for various applications, including battery components. Learn about the challenges and successes in solid-solution hardening, solution treating and aging, and dispersion hardening of lead alloys.

www.totalmateria.com