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Education / Training Evanix Renegade double-action rifle Part 2

Evanix Renegade double-action rifle Part 2

by B.B. Pelletier

Pyramyd AIR is having a garage sale Saturday & Sunday, Sept. 20 & 21. If you can’t make it, have a look at their used products. However, the garage sale will have much more than just used products, so it’s worth attending even if you’ve got a ways to travel.

On to today’s blog.

Part 1

Lots of curiosity about the new Renegade repeater from Evanix. I told several who asked, and I’ll now tell everyone else, that the Renegade isn’t just a single airgun. This double-action trigger has been incorporated into four different airguns. The line includes the rifle I’m testing, a carbine version, a Takedown Rifle (TDR) that isn’t available right now and a pistol. I’ll test all of them for you.

When we last left the Renegade, I’d discussed the history of the AR6 from which the Renegade descended. The AR6 will continue to be made because it’s a more powerful repeater. We’ll see that today when we look at the Renegade’s velocity.

I also told you that this rifle gets a lot more powerful shots per fill than any other PCP I know of. However, since I haven’t yet revealed how powerful those shots are, it’s impossible to speculate just what that means. Let me show you a sample set of test strings so you can see what I’m talking about.

Test No 1: Alternating single- and double-action strings
This test uses only 14.3-grain Crosman Premiers. If you’ve been following this blog for a few months, you know that the Premier is a middleweight pellet that won’t give the greatest power in a precharged pneumatic. However, because they’re so widely used and also because they’re one of the most accurate pellets generally available, they make a good starting point.

3000 psi fill
6 shots single-action (the hammer is cocked manually before the shot is fired)
Shots 1-6
1042
1037
1032
1032
1038
1033

6 shots double-action (the trigger, alone, fires the gun)
Shots 7-12
931
937
921
923
926
931

6 shots single-action
Shots 13-18
1028
1018
1019
1016
1007
1003

6 shots double-action
Shots 19-24
964
970
964
958
960
942

6 shots single-action
Shots 25-30
976
976
976
970
963
950

6 shots double-action
Shots 31-36
944
941
938
942
932
924

Test No. 1 demonstrated a lot
I ended this test with the shot 36. Here’s what I learned. First, that there are about 18 shots per fill when firing single-action, which is the most powerful way to shoot this rifle. The velocity spread will likely be 50 f.p.s. across those 18 shots, but I’ll need to test to know that for sure. Second, the rifle’s valve is slightly locked at 3,000 psi if you want to shoot double-action. We know that because the first string of double-action shots (shots 7 to 12) is slower than the second string (shots 19 to 24). The velocity is climbing as we continue to shoot the rifle.

Test No. 2: All double-action
That tells me I want to test a straight set of shots on double-action, only to see what the power curve looks like when starting from a 3,000 psi fill. That’s next:

6 shots double-action
Shots 1-6
906
885
904
896
908
894

6 shots double-action
Shots 7-12
910
906
916
903
910
915

6 shots double-action
Shots 13-18
938
920
917
916
925
931

6 shots double-action
Shots 19-24
949
952
935
941
947
945

6 shots double-action
Shots 25-30
956
955
957
960
965
957

6 shots double-action
Shots 31-36
969
968
964
967
966
967

6 shots double-action
Shots 37-42
975
972
961
963
961
958

6 shots double-action
Shots 43-48
971
956
955
951
947
948

6 shots double-action
Shots 49-54
924
937
923
928
925
918

6 shots double-action
Shots 55-60
913
910
907
905
900
891

Learn how your rifle uses air
This test was very illuminating. It demonstrates why you should never slavishly attach meaning to a fill number like 3,000 psi. Because your gun may not work best at that pressure. I hope you understand the difference between this test and the first one. In the first test, the first 6 shots were fired single-action, which dropped the pressure in the reservoir to bring the second string of double-action shots up on the power curve. Can you appreciate that the gun uses much more air when fired single-action than it does double-action?

A peaked velocity curve
Also, instead of a relatively flat top to the velocity curve, the Renegade has a peaked curve with gentle slopes on both sides when fired double-action. How much of that curve you choose to use is up to you, and you should base your decision on what you want to do with the rifle. If you want to take woodchucks at 50+ yards, I would fill to 3,000 psi and shoot the rifle single-action. That will net you about 18 shots (3 cylinders).

How much of the power curve you want to use double-action is your choice, but I would start with shot No. 13 and finish with shot No. 54. That gives me 42 shots, which is 7 full 6-shot cylinders. My velocity spread would be from a low of 916 f.p.s. to a high of 975. While 59 f.p.s. is a large spread, please remember we are talking about Crosman Premiers, and I’m probably not going to be shooting them. They were just used for testing. I’ll probably go with a heavier pellet like the Beeman Kodiak. The velocity will be slower and should have a tighter spread over 42 shots.

Determining the correct fill pressure
If you agree that shot 13 is the place to begin your string, then you must determine what reservoir pressure it takes to deliver the first shot at that velocity. Goodness knows what those poor unfortunates will do who cannot reconcile starting air pressures other than 3,000 psi, but there isn’t much we can do for them. For you, however, the procedure is to fill one more time to 3000, then shoot the gun 12 times through a chronograph. The next shot is shot 13, which is the start of the third cylinder of pellets. If the velocity is where you want it to be, stop shooting and try to fill the gun right there. You’ll be able to determine from this the pressure at which the valve starts admitting air into the reservoir, and that number becomes your new maximum fill pressure. If shot No. 13 is NOT the right speed for you, keep shooting until you see the right speed and then determine the pressure in the reservoir. This is a simple procedure, yet it’s fundamental to the correct operation of all PCPs!

What if you DONT WANT to shoot only single-action?
Well, that was the reason for the first test. Look at it and determine what sort of performance you would like from your rifle. If your problem is squirrels in the bird feeder 25 yards from the house, double-action all the time sounds like a good idea. If you also have a pesky woodchuck over by the hill 75 yards from your back door, maybe you want to be able to shoot both single and double-action. Remember, nobody is tying your hands from topping off the reservoir at any time. You can shoot just 5 shots and decide to add more air at that time.

Trigger action
It’s time to let you know about the Renegade’s two-stage trigger. In single-action, the one I’m testing breaks exactly at 2 lbs. It’s as crisp as you could hope for, short of an Olympic target rifle. In double-action, I estimate the pull at nine lbs.–far lighter than, say, a Colt Officer’s Model .38 Special and about equal to a well broken-in 1077. So, don’t worry about whether you can fire it fast, because you can! Evanix says the trigger breaks in, so maybe a brand-new rifle will be somewhat stiffer, but you cannot fault the trigger on the rifle I’m testing.

Homework!
Okay, digest this information and next time we’ll test velocities some more. Here’s some homework for you. Calculate the approximate average muzzle energy of the rifle in both the single-action and double-action modes using Crosman Premier pellets. Then calculate the probable power increase when we switch to a Beeman Kodiak pellet. I’ve made all my calculations based on the information presented in this report. I’ll show my expectations and then the test results next time. I’ll also tell you how I arrived at the numbers.

author avatar
Tom Gaylord (B.B. Pelletier)
Tom Gaylord, also known as B.B. Pelletier, provides expert insights to airgunners all over the world on behalf of Pyramyd AIR. He has earned the title The Godfather of Airguns™ for his contributions to the industry, spending many years with AirForce Airguns and starting magazines dedicated to the sport such as Airgun Illustrated.

44 thoughts on “Evanix Renegade double-action rifle Part 2”

  1. Anonymous Genius,
    How about Googling Air Arms Airguns? How about then clicking on the FIRST citation? How about not bohtering bb with this, as he requested last week when he was on the rag.

  2. Hey BB,

    Kudos to you and Leapers. I finally mounted a Leapers scope (4x16x50) onto the Leapers Picatinny rail (Dover, NJ – NOT NY is where Picatinny Aresenal is located) and used Wesver medium mounts. The rifle is an RWS350. The only adjustment the scope needed was windage and that adjustment, at least on the turret, brought it back to zero on the turret marking and enabled me to put two pellets into the same hole on the bullseye – of course that was at 23 feet!. I’ll have to zero it for 25 yards but wanted you and Leapers to know you folks did a super job on this rail.

  3. FRED,

    I think other readers have also told me Picatinney is located in New Jersey.

    I’m glad to hear the new Leapers base is working for you. And the RWS Diana 350 Magnum is a rifle that at least one other reader had reported as not sloping (drooping) very much, so I’m glad your does.

    B.B.

  4. Critter Controller,

    I am indeed familiar with the Airrow pellet rifle AND the crossbow. I tested both of them when I published The Airgun Letter.

    Never have I seen a mechanism as poorly made as the Airrow pellet rifle. The tolerances of the moving parts were all held to LESS than a thousandth of an inch, with the result that the gun was too stiff to work. You had to advance the pellet cylinder BY HAND!!

    The trigger was operated pneumatically, so it could not be squeezed slowly. It had to be pulled rapidly, or it would just leak all the air out of the reservoir! And the trigger pull was greater than 25 pounds – so guess what kind of groups it shot?

    The .25 caliber pellet rifle I shot wasn’t as powerful as an AirForce Condor, yet it used air so fast that the rifle had to be tethered to a scuba tank. Shooting with just the portable removable reservoir gave less than 5 shots!

    The crossbow was better, but still far from good. I was able to group three arrows inside 5 inches at 25 yards. It ran on CO2 and the trigger was only about 18 pounds.

    On top of a totally failed system, Swivel Machine Corp. acted like they were selling a big powerful airgun and they required an FFL transfer for every gun. What a crock!

    I see them at the airguns shows commanding a lot less than the $2,300 they were asking back when they were new.

    B.B.

  5. B.B.

    I received the FWB 124 Deluxe yesterday.

    Good news:
    Thankfully it was close to the LNIB condition described. I would give the wood 95% and the metal 98+%. It is clear this rifle never saw a full tin of pellets. Has all the Beeman accoutrements of the time: Blue Ribbon 2-7 scope, pro scope stop, rear sight cover w Beeman name on it (different style than the ones I bought in the early 90’s) and a Diana muzzle brake – which I’m not sure if Beeman carried. It is not as nice as the Beeman brand units. Maybe this was a forerunner?

    The rifle was covered with an even film of gunk, so I loving turned her screws for the first time separating stock from action and cleaned her up.

    The Bad news:
    The inevitable was next. I shot a few pellets at 10 meters and they all touched, as I would expect – and then turned to the Chrony. An 8.1 gr pellet went 668fps. So I broke out the Beeman spring lube and chamber oil. Gave her a little. Worked it in. And she gave up the ghost. It cocks with the same effort, shoots, recoils, but the pellet stays in the barrel. So I am guessing the piston seal needs replaced at the least.

    My questions, would this be a rifle that you would recommend an owner work on? Do you think PA could do this?
    While I greatly admire Paul’s work, I’d like to just keep this one close to stock. It would over kill to send it to him to change a piston seal.
    Lastly, the only thing missing is a sling – any recommendations? The holders seem smaller than normal.

    Volvo

    P.S. Wayne – did you get the HW 55T yet? Lets me know what you think. I will give you and BB an update on mine later.

  6. It’s springer, it’s not very long at 38 inches, it as taken a LOT of abuse over the years I got it when I was around 13 or 14 (almost 20 years ago) my uncle probably got it in the 70’s.
    I shot matches with it and dry fired it a more than few times but I could still cut a playing card in two at around 30 feet and it’s still pretty accurate today.
    The only markings on it are the made in Hungary with 83089 under it and a circle with a triangle in it on the barrel.
    It used to have an adjustable trigger by the way of a small screw inside of a bigger screw that was holding the mechanism inside the stock and the trigger guard.
    It has scope rails that I always use since the front blade was missing.
    I refinished the stock a few years after I got it and took all of the bluing off (because I tought shiny things where prettier) and it still hasn’t rusted.
    I could tell by the small holes and the marking on the stock that it used to have a small medal in the left side of the stock.

    That’s pretty much it, I’ll take some pictures and check the exact accuracy today or tomorrow.

    Thanks for the great help,

    J-F

  7. Volvo,

    While the 124 isn’t the easiest rifle to disassemble and assemble, I would say that if you have a mainspring compressor, the job is definitely within your grasp. I did show how a 124 comes apart in this report:

    /blog/2006/07/spring-gun-tuning-part-7-disassembly-of-other-spring-guns/

    Jim Maccari sells a spring tune for the 124 that I would advise getting. Your piston seal is what failed, no doubt, but an original 124 mainspring will be canted by now. Also get the black tar to spread non the spring for vibration reduction.

    I would try to do this job yourself, if you are at all handy. There are plans for building a mainspring compressor in the spring gun tune report I directed you to.

    Mrs, Beeman designed the ribbed muzzle brake that Diana then copied. Beeman’s is shiny black and Diana’s is matte gray.

    B.B.

  8. Two Talon,
    Thanks for the info on the adjustable trigger, but what exactly does it adjust (Quest 1000). I turned the screw but I didn’t notice too much of a difference. About how many rounds have you put through yours? I had a phantom G1 (same mecanism) when it first came out. It didn’t behave nearly as well as this rifle (chinese quality control I guess), but I was able to get about 5000 shots before I sold it.
    Shadow express dude.

  9. My interest was piqued but the Airrow reference. Saw them in the Blue Book but didn’t get the appeal. I dud some searching and looked through the Swivel Machine website. Quite some claims. They recommend changing aim point for a second shot when because the gun is so accurate you run the risk of hitting the first arrow. Fantastic!

    A bit more internet poking lead to this:
    http://www.airowgun.com/pellet.php

    That is weird, I mean cool. No make that weird.

  10. Back to the Renegade. I poked around the PA site and found the pistol is neat and I am very interested in the rifle but I do not understand offering a carbine as well. Actually I do not quite understand the advantage of a carbine air rifle.

    The British mags are full of them and guns like the BSA Ultra seem to have a great following. Is compactness a great advantage in a great number of situations?

    Please pardon my naiveté.

  11. Thank for your help.
    It seems to be a Jelly/Telly also sold in England as a Relum. I haven’t found the model yet, I’m gonna keep looking.

    Now does someone know of a good tuner up here in Canada preferably in the province of Quebec that could work on this rifle?

    Thanks,

    J-F

  12. hey bb,
    while lookin up about the Airrow pellet rifle before you told me about it i found a device called Airow Gun. It attaches to a compound bow and fires a .22 caliber pellet. you can find this on http://www.airowgun.com/pellet.php

    i think it is quite interesting and i thought you might like to check it out.

    crittercontroller

  13. B.B.

    In 2005 you mentioned mounting a Williams peep sight on a Sheridan Blue Streak. I have some questions:

    If you have to remove the factory-installed rear sight, how do you do it without damaging either the sight or the rifle?

    Does the peep sight mount in the same place as the current rear sight, or on the receiver, using the drilled and tapped holes back by the bolt handle?

    Thanks for your response. I enjoy your blog; you have saved me a lot of money by providing information I need to make decisions and avoid mistakes.

  14. BB,

    How do we sort pellets? What are the procedures and tools involved? How effective is sorting to our desire for accuracy?

    How much weight difference in grain will sufficiently affect POI at a particular range, say 50yards?

    Thanks again.

    David

  15. Volvo,

    I got the HW-55 Tyrolean last Friday, it fits like a glove.

    I have never done any 10 meter offhand… or used any thing like the sights… my old eyes need a 6x24x50 to be accurate…. so I was very surprised that i got 3/4" groups at 60' sitting in my chair, just by lining up the circles.. I had no idea how I did until I went to look.. After setting up a spotting scope I got a little better. I haven't tried it yet offhand at 10 meters.. I have to study up on the techniques..

    My only concern is that the cocking is a little rough on the closing, with almost a rachecting type sound… how does yours sound?
    It just had a rebuild, so maybe it's still tight or something..

    I got the Air Arms S410 .22 carbine in this afternoon.. I put the 6x24x50 leapers on it, set it in the benchrest to sight it in, indoors at 60', first shot only 2" left and a little low…2 shots later, I was on the edge of the 1/4" dot… then a 5 shot one hole group of just over 5/16"….

    Next, I tried the magazine on quick fire.. there was a little stickyness on the indexing like the .177 beech stock, (that blew out the breech seal, & I sent back for another one).. Not as bad, but not even close to as smooth as my first walnut stock .177 S410. It is worst with some magazines than others. When I talked to Paul at PA, he said that some of the magazines have been having that problem.. I noticed the first extra 8 magizines I bought were in a different little round box.

    Over the weekend we put another 500 shots through my Air Arms walnut S410 .177 and it was perfect, accurate, smooth indexing, and the 70 shots on 3/4 power without loss of POI is still there.. So I'm still hopeful I'll get more like that. I don't expect the carbine to give that number of shots, but it seems like it is just as beautiful and accurate right out of the box.

    I love the light weight, it's 2 lbs lighter.. 5 1/2 lbs or something.. I know it's supposed to be easier to use a heavy gun for offhand.. but I stood up and tried 5 shots offhand, thinking I should start practicing since I got the HW-55… and not bad 1 -1/4" group, with 2 on the 3/8" center dot…. just lucky I was shooting when the cross hairs got close, I couldn't begin to hold it still.. but the trigger is so nice, you can fire just when you want to, so if you time it, it works..sometimes..

    But you wanted to know about how quite it is.. about the same as the .177 non carbine, longer barrel.
    VERY QUITE.

    I have not tested pellets, number of shots or anything yet.. As soon as it got here and had the scope tuned in, it got passed around so much, I only have shot 3 mags through it. so more later..

    Wayne,
    AARR&R
    Ashland Air Rifle Range & Rentals

  16. Volvo

    I spoke to soon..

    Now that I’m alone in the pool room and shooting them side by side… the Air Arms S410 Carbine is 25% louder than the S410 .177 longer barrel.

    I would say the carbine is half as loud as the Condor on power setting 7, which is 15% less loud than the Discovery, which is 3/4s as loud as the AR6, which is like a .22 long rifle..

    Wayne

  17. David,

    Pellets are sorted by weight. It takes a sensitive powder (gunpowder) scale for this. You sort them into groups that all weigh the same to the tenth of a grain.

    Here is a report on it:

    /blog/2005/3/b-b-s-treasure-chest-sorting-pellets-for-accuracy/

    B.B.

  18. Dear B.B.

    Your homework assignments are always very interesting……!!!!

    average MV for 36 shots in single action is just under 35 fpe when using the 21grain Beeman Kodiak’s..

    In short BK (36 shot/s.a.)MV = 34.9
    and then BK (36 shot/d.a.)MV = 30.8
    and also BK (60 shot/d.a.)MV = 30.9

    I get the velocity decrease from the 14.3gr to the 21gr to be ± 15%
    See if that makes sense…..!!!

    malan

  19. B.B.,

    Always happy to contribute on those rare occasions that I have something to add. My suggestions are those of a novice but this short video sure brought back some memories of rimfire shooting taught to me by my grandfather. He was an unbelievable marksman and an avid outdoorsman. I thank my lucky stars every day for the respect and appreciation of the outdoors that he instilled in me.

    kevin

  20. Wayne,

    Thanks for the comparison. I had guessed the carbine may be louder, especially in .22 caliber.

    That puts me back to comparing the S410 and the FX Monsoon again. Noise is my number one concern, then size in choosing a PCP. They all seem to make plenty of power for my needs.

    I have an HW50S; the HW55T is on hold for now. So I cannot comment on the sound you are hearing. I do know if the tune is very fresh, they can take a little while to break in, just like a new gun.

    Volvo

  21. Kevin,

    Thanks, that is the video I was telling matt61 about a while ago, and could not find it again.. I've been practicing the sitting position and getting OK.. but only a few shots standing at 20 meters so far.. haven't got the 10 meter set up yet.. I bookmarked it now and I love to watch it over and over, thanks…

    Yes, the HW-55 Tyrolean, is very sexy to hold, it cuddles you.. I'm in love… the transformation from a 6x24x50 scope to the sight is real… but going well… it's hard to believe the groups will be there, just by centering the circles, but somehow they show up grouped very well, now to do it standing up offhand..

    Wayne

    Ashland Air Rifle Range & Rentals

  22. Wayne,

    Let me know if you need any help training the tyrolean. I promise I’ll return it. someday.

    Glad I could help you find the video again. Maybe this is a start to a “loop” of video’s that would play on your monitor in the reception area of your shooting range once it’s completely set up?

    Squeeze and keep ’em tight.

    kevin

  23. kevin.

    I’ll think about it…

    but, don’t loose more than a few nights sleep, it will effect your shooting… and your love life..

    unless, join the new LLC membership, (when we figure it out) and you could use it for a week or two…

    Wayne

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