Home Blog  
Accessories Tanfoglio Gold Custom Eric Grauffel CO2 blowback airsoft kit: Part 4

Tanfoglio Gold Custom Eric Grauffel CO2 blowback airsoft kit: Part 4

by Tom Gaylord, a.k.a. B.B. Pelletier

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

Tanfoglio Gold Custom Eric Grauffel airsoft pistol
The Tanfoglio Gold Custom Eric Grauffel pistol is a competition airsoft gun in a box!

Today is the day we adjust the BAXS in the Tanfoglio Gold Custom CO2 blowback airsoft kit gun to see how it affects the gun’s ablity to group. Remember, the BAXS is another form of hop-up, which is the generic name for a rubber bumper that puts a backspin on the airsoft BB as it exits the bore. That causes the BB to fly straighter and farther than it would if it were not spinning, or if it were allowed to spin randomly.

So, the first thing to do is to get to the BAXS adjustment wheel, which is located deep inside the gun’s slide. The gun must be partially disassembled, and therein lies a problem. The manual is poorly written and illustrated with confusing small photos that don’t depict what you actually must do.

To remove the slide of this pistol, the slide stop, or what the manual called the slide stopper, must first be removed. There are 2 different things that must be done precisely to get the slide stop out, and the manual doesn’t cover them. First, the slide has to be pushed back only about a quarter inch to release the slide stop. If you see the rear of the barrel dive down as you push the slide back, it’s moved too far. Second, there’s a very small clearance hole for the large end of the slide stop on the left side of the frame. Once again, pushing the slide too far back will cause the stop to pass this clearance hole, and the slide stop cannot be removed from the gun.

Of course, you don’t find out any of this until the slide is off the gun, which is too late. And the instructions are one sentence long. If you don’t know how to remove the slide, the instructions will not help you!

Tanfoglio Gold Custom Eric Grauffel airsoft pistol slide off
The slide must be removed to adjust the BAXS wheel.

Once the slide is off, the BAXS adjustment wheel is located on the underside of the slide and barrel assembly. It’s a small plastic wheel that’s turned by a small thin blade, such as a tiny screwdriver. A pin in the wheel limits its travel to less than half a turn, so the amount of adjustment is small. But if the gun was designed right and manufactured carefully, it should be enough to make a difference.

Tanfoglio Gold Custom Eric Grauffel airsoft pistol BAXS wheel
The BAXS wheel is turned to adjust the amount of backspin put on the BB. The adjustment is limited to less than half a rotation of the wheel.

I noted where the adjustment wheel was when the gun was disassembled. It was close to one end, so I moved it to the other extreme end. If there was going to be a difference, I wanted it to be immediate and visible. And it was — as I will now show you.

I decided to begin with the Air Venturi Pro CQBBs that weigh 0.25 grams because they were the most accurate in the previous test. When you adjust something as finicky as hop-up, stick to one BB whose performance you know. To do otherwise would just waste your time because you would never know if it was the particular BB or the gun’s adjustment that was right or wrong.

I shot a lot of targets in this test, but I’m not going to show you all of them. For the first couple, I was just getting the BBs back on target at 10 meters. The BAXS adjustment moved the point of impact several inches higher than it was the last time. But as I adjusted the dot sight and brought them back down onto the paper, I noticed something. They all tended to be strung out vertically, but were very tight horizontally. And each target, of 5 that I shot, had 4 BBs tight together and one that was apart from the group — a flier. Only there was no reason for the flier that I could see.

So, there were 4 BBs grouped together and the fifth BB would be more than one inch away from the main group. I adjusted the BAXS a couple times to correct this, but it persisted with this BB.

Tanfoglio Gold Custom Eric Grauffel airsoft pistol Air Venturi CQBB target 1
This 5-shot group measures 3.197 inches, but the lone shot at the bottom opens it up by more than one inch. Notice how narrow the group is.

Tanfoglio Gold Custom Eric Grauffel airsoft pistol Air Venturi CQBB target 2
Another 5-shot group of 0.20-gram Air Venturi CQBBs is also tall and even narrower. This time, 4 BBs went into 1.08 inches, and the fifth shot opened the group to 2.26 inches.

There were 3 more groups just like these, and then I decided to switch BBs. The next BB I tried was the 0.20-gram Marui Black that Pyramyd AIR does not stock. Being lighter, these BBs went faster than the others. The first group was really tight.

Tanfoglio Gold Custom Eric Grauffel airsoft pistol Marui black BB target 1
Here are 5 shots in 0.847 inches at 10 meters. The Tanfoglio seems to like the 0.20-gram Marui Black BBs. This is what a good airsoft pistol can do at 10 meters.

Alas, I was unable to repeat that group. The next group was 10 Marui BBs instead of 5, and this one spread out to 2.041 inches.

Tanfoglio Gold Custom Eric Grauffel airsoft pistol Marui black BB target 1
Ten Marui Black BBs spread out to a much larger group that measured 2.041 inches between centers.

I tried several more times to shoot good 5-shot groups with the Maruis, but no luck. They all turned out like the 10-shot group shown above.

Let sanity prevail
This gun was never intended to be a 10-meter pistol. It’s supposed to be a rapid-fire action pistol that can compete in action target matches. Those targets are much larger than the ones seen here, and the BBs only have to hit a large center area to score their highest. I think they can do that without a problem.

What I’ve just shown you is how an adjustable hop-up, or BAXS in this instance, affects the grouping ability of an airsoft gun. If you compare these groups to those fired in the previous test, you’ll see how much improvement was achieved.

Bottom line
The Tanfoglio Gold Custom Eric Grauffel CO2 blowback airsoft pistol is a high-end, factory-made competition gun. It has a wonderful trigger, great blowback action and is very capable of competing, as long as a quality dot sight is mounted. For coming right out of the box at this level of performance, I doubt you can find anything better.

Just remember, the factory owner’s manual is spotty and somewhat misleading. This pistol takes some getting used to before it can perform at its best, and that comes with time and use.

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.

30 thoughts on “Tanfoglio Gold Custom Eric Grauffel CO2 blowback airsoft kit: Part 4”

  1. I was going to give a run down about the airsoft rifle I just got over the weekend but I figured I wait till when airsoft is the subject.

    First thing I will say is I like it. I got the TSD Tactical SD702 sniper rifle which comes with the upgraded spring and roller bearings which is supposed to help the cocking effort of the bolt which houses the power spring. It is a higher fps gun but I didn’t chrony it.

    The gun is balanced nice with the gun towards the muzzle heavy side. And I had some weaver scope rings already in 1 inch so I threw those on. The only scope I had laying around was a Bushnell fixed Parallax 3-9 power with the 50 mm lens. Its a fixed parallax at 100 yards but with the fast adjust eye piece. So I dialed the scope down to 4 power and used the eye piece to get the sharpest cross hairs and focus of the target at 25 yards. And well actually I ended up shooting the rifle out to 30 yards.

    The hop-up on the rifle is on the left side of the barrel. It is a little lever with detente clicks when you adjust it. It is exposed and you don’t have to take anything apart to adjust it. I played around with it for a bit and got it adjusted to shoot a similar trajectory of a pellet gun. The airsoft BB kind of curves down and to the left the way I have it adjusted. It does that at right before POI. I would say it happens about 8 inches before POI.

    I was using the King Arms .25 gram Green Bio BB’s. And it was actually pretty easy to sight the gun in. I ended up zeroing the scope at 30 yards.

    You ain’t going to believe this but I could shoot a beer can 7 out of 10 times at 25 yards. The farther I moved out the bigger the target needed to be to maintain the same average amount of hits. 30 yards was about as far as I could push it and get results that kept me interested in shooting the gun. And at 30 yards I needed a 1 gallon plastic milk jug to still hit a average of 7 out of 10 times.

    But I like it. Inside in the garage I was shooting the regular airsoft .25 gram BB’s that came with the deal when I ordered the gun. They are the TSD Tactical .25 gram airsoft BB’s. I was shooting at probably a little over 10 yards. and I’m getting great groups with the gun. I have to hold under a bit when I shoot. But the gun will touch the BB’s when it groups. And I still get about 3 out of 10 shots to be flyer’s that hit about 3/4 of inch away from the main group.

    But we used your idea BB of draping a blanket across one wall in the garage and we set 3 beer cans up and whopped the heck out of the cans. I can actually shoot this gun in the standing position easier than I can my other guns. And it weighs about the same amount as some of my other guns. So I’m not sure why that is yet.

    I like what I see so far but I don’t know if I will get another rifle. I do want some kind of fast fire pistol though and I still think the Tanfoglio Gold will be it.

    And BB I think just for the heck of it you should try a heavier BB if you want it to be more accurate. That’s showing to be the rule of thumb on the sniper rifles from what I checked into. That’s what I’m going to try next.

    Oh and it was like dead calm on the day I shot the gun outside getting the good hits. I tryed it on a day that had about a 10 mph right to left wind and the Airsoft BB didn’t like that at all. It was useless for me to try to shoot.

    But fun stuff and cheaper than pellet guns. But I just have to say again. Pellet guns will always be first choice for me.

    And BB I ain’t trying to take away from your report. But I thought maybe some people would be intrested in the results I got.

    • I for one am interested in the results others have with this or that. It helps in my decision making with anything, not just air soft. Personally, this ain’t for me. I don’t care for CO2 BB or pellet guns either, but I am interested in hearing what others have to say about their experiences with such.

    • GF1,

      I’m glad you posted your results here. It gives others some comparisons. Are you surprised by how far your sniper guns is accurate? I remember shooting at a human silhouette target at 50 yards and hitting it almost every time. That sounds like exactly the level of accuracy you are getting with your gun.

      Great job!

      B.B.

    • Thanks for that report, Gunfun1. I’m also interested in more such info.

      This appears to be a Rem 700-pattern action, in terms of the bolt design and safety. Does it “feel like” a 700? You said “…help the cocking effort…”; would you say that running the bolt on this Airsoft rifle is comparable to what you’d feel on the firearm (in terms of bolt lift, length of travel, etc.)? Does it seem like it would stand up to heavy use? (I am trained to run bolts…vigorously.)

      I’ve got many more questions, but I think a lot of those might be addressed in B.B.’s forthcoming Airsoft Primer installment covering modifications, so I’ll step out of character and wait for that. 🙂

    • This statement caught my eye:

      The airsoft BB kind of curves down and to the left the way I have it adjusted. It does that at right before POI. I would say it happens about 8 inches before POI.

      I wonder how “high-speed” a camera would need to be, to capture that? I bet you could learn a lot about your Airsoft gun by actually watching it in flight. Certainly if you can determine an exact (read: repeatable) point at which it loses stability, that would go a long way to helping you get the most out of that exact piece–adjusting hop-up, setting a maximum target distance, scaling targets appropriately, etc..

      And–thinking again of what I might want to do with a spring Airsoft boltgun–I would think that 25 yards may be enough distance to simulate centerfire shots out to 300 (by adjusting target size, etc.). For anyone out there who has experience with “precision Airsoft”: is that a reasonable assumption?

    • I’ve been looking at them for a while and was reading a blog BB did on one a few years ago and I’m still on the fence about buying one but you’re making me lean towards the buying side.

      It must be pretty quiet since it’s spring powered, would you say it’s about the same as a RedRyder?

      J-F

  2. I’m personally not an airsoft skirmisher or speedshooting hopeful but I read this series with great interest.I find it really informative,and especially appreciate it coming from an “airgun” guy’s perspective.Thanks for covering this one BB! (it does still bother the heck out of me that they misuse the term “BB” though) 🙂

  3. Yep thanks BB and RR. I was really surprised the gun did as well as it did.

    And I like the fact that its a spring gun. All you have to do is put the 30 round magazine in the bottom of the stock, then pull the bolt back to cock and back forward and your ready to shoot. No Co2, pumping or filling just shoot. And the gun actually shoots pretty smooth. No vibrating or kicking when it fires. And the trigger feels nice. It releases nice and sharp and there isn’t alot of pressure either on the trigger.

    And the gun is quiet. My 1720T is the quietest gun I have and it compares to it. With more of a hollow kind of sound when it shoots. I can’t explain but you know what I mean its not a sharp sound.

    For me it works out good for the type of shooting I’m going to use it for. (plinking cans and such) So that brings me to the Tanfoglio Gold pistol. I will probably use it in the garage shooting at cans and maybe up close outside. But the reason I want the pistol is so I can maybe get better with my pistol shooting.

    And BB have you thought about trying a laser sight on the pistol along with dot sight you have on it.
    That was one of the ways I taught my daughters to shoot. That way I could see the movement they were making when they made a shot so I knew what they were doing so I could correct them. Oh we were using a rifle though when I was teaching them. But maybe the laser would work out good on the Tanfoglio G pistol.

    And Frank I know what you mean. I think they should be called airsoft round balls. But who am I.

  4. Of course, you don’t find out any of this until the slide is off the gun, which is too late. And the instructions are one sentence long. If you don’t know how to remove the slide, the instructions will not help you!

    It sounds like the field-strip level disassembly may actually be just like the firearm, then. And there are other pistol designs that also require that muscle-powered, precise alignment of the slide stop relief cut, as well. (The “super-quick” disassembly of the 1911, for example, involves maintaining pressure on the stop pin while pinching back the slide until the pin pops through…whereupon you pull the pin all the way out while retaining the pinch, and then ease the slide/barrel off with the recoil spring and guide rod captive in your pinch. The only remaining trick is elegantly releasing pressure on the spring and rod, which is of course the basis of a lot of stories…)

    Anyway, it may be that you can find an online manual at European American Armory (which imports the Tanfoglio firearm) which may well have better pictures and verbiage.

  5. This gun was never intended to be a 10-meter pistol. It’s supposed to be a rapid-fire action pistol that can compete in action target matches. Those targets are much larger than the ones seen here, and the BBs only have to hit a large center area to score their highest. I think they can do that without a problem.

    Absolutely. And I’m guessing that a simple strategy for adjusting target size to handle the closer distance will be a straightforward task. At least in my case (and I suspect in many others’ too), I’m not so much looking for “perfect” as “enough”, in terms of mechanical accuracy. And this seems to be more than “enough”. With “acceptable combat pistol accuracy” in the 3-to-4-inches-at-25-yards range for firearms, I’d certainly think that 3-to-4-inches-at-10-meters for Airsoft is workable for simple perspective shortening. (Now, to get my hands on a green-gas 1911 and see if I can get in the same range…)

    And I have to repeat: thanks, B.B. For someone who is looking for considered, structured information about all this, your method, attention to detail, and vibrant commentariat is pure gold.

  6. So, am I right that backspin is the identical motion of a fastball as it rolls off your fingers? If so the improved performance would make sense. I wonder if there is a simple explanation for why backspin would be better than another kind of spin–at least forward spin. If your ball is rotating around a lateral axis relative to the still air and is spherically symmetric. The results should be the same forwards and backwards.

    Anyway, on that note, I’m off to Hawaii for a the holidays. At stake here is my first-ever visit with my Dad to an indoor gun range where he can shoot pistols at variable distances and not just 25 yards. I’m looking for a breakthrough. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all.

    Matt61

    • Read up on Bernoulli effect. The back-spin makes the ball rise due to air-flow over it (the underside piles the air up on the lower front, while the topside pulls it over and behind — so less air pressure on the top).

      Too much backspin can make the ball from the gun actually rise before falling; the desired setting maximizes the “flat” trajectory range before gravity takes over…

  7. Kevin W. I dont own a Remington 700 so I cant compare if its the same. But the action of the bolt is smooth with some pressure needed when you move it. I got the 702 which has a heaver spring in the bolt for more fps. Its suppose to make around 500fps. The 700 model has the lighter stock spring and it shoots slower.

    I want to use the rifle like you were talking about. To simulate long distance shooting. I think the big thing about the airsoft guns in the way we are talking about useing them is to know what the usable distance is for the gun your shooting and to match it to the size of the target.
    And Matt61 I was surpised like I said at how well the gun shot. I think if I keep the gun under 30 yards Iwill have fun with the gun.
    And I should add that the gun is all metal except for the trigger and gaurd abd also the stock. And before I atached the sctock to the barrel I did notice the butt of the stock was heavy at the bottom. It kind of helps ballance the gun when you shoulder it.

    So far Im happy.

  8. Since airsoft is used in these airsoft wars has anybody tested one of these yet to see how much the plastic bb hurts by shooting himself in the foot? It seems to me this would be important information considering how airsoft guns are used.

  9. As nice as this gun is I think I’ll stay with steel BB’s for now. They do make some incredibly good looking airsoft guns but I don’t think I’m financially ready to start another collection, plus there’s still so many airguns that I want to buy…

    Maybe I’ll get a spring powered sniper rifle to plink in the backyard.

    J-F

    • J F
      The gun is a blast. I shot it for hours over the weekend.

      And like I said I want to get the pistol and that will be it for me.

      But you know what I think it would be cool to get a full auto replica of a Tommy gun. Or maybe I would even like a……

      Well you know how that goes.

      • Oh I forgot you asked about how quiet it was. You asked if it was as quiet as a Red Ryder. But I havnt shot one in years so I dont remember.

        The best I can say is its comparable to a Gamo Whisper I have in .177 cal. shooting a 10 grn. pellet. Pretty quiet. Remember its a sniper rifle. It has to be quiet to be used effectivly if you are playing airsoft wars.

        • I could just see a row of beer cans set up out side right now and blasting away.

          I have the Steel Storm BB gun and it has the burst mode. But I bet it don’t compare to the feeling of holding the Tommy airsoft gun and spraying full auto.

          • I have the Steel Force. Some say only accurate guns are interesting but there’s something to be said about fun guns too. These may not be the most accurate but man they’re fun to shoot.

            • Totally agree. I was looking through the airsoft guns last night on the PA site and this pistol caught my eye. Not because of power or accuracy but how the gun operates.

              The H&K P30 Electric Airsoft Pistol. Its got a weaver rail under the barrel, holds 16 shots and has blow-back operation. And it can shoot full auto and semi-auto.

              And this is what I like. It runs on 4 AAA batteries. So that means you can leave it loaded with the airsoft bb’s and it can be ready to shoot when you want without worrying about Co2 or cocking a spring. That could be fun shooting in the garage at some cans.

  10. I need to say this about the P30. I did order it and I got it today.

    Mine does take 4 AAA batteries. Some people are saying 4 AA batteries. But what I really want to say is the weaver rail under the barrel in front of the trigger is not true to scale. I had to file the gun to get the laser to mount on the rail. After that the gun shot great. Took only about 5 shots to get the gun sighted in.

    I’m getting ready to set up a little rapid fire course in my basement. I’m going to suspend note book paper with string from the ceiling rafters at different heights and distances. I hope that works out. The pistol was shooting through the note book paper in the garage at 10 yards hanging from the cieling also. Will see.

Leave a Reply to Gunfun1 Cancel reply

Buy With Confidence

  • Free Shipping

    Get FREE shipping on qualifying orders! Any order $150+ with a shipping address in the contiguous US will receive the option for free ground shipping on items sold & shipped by Pyramyd AIR during checkout. Certain restrictions apply.

    Free shipping may not be combined with a coupon unless stated otherwise.

    View Shipping Info

  • Shipping Time Frame

    We work hard to get all orders placed by 12 pm EST out the door within 24 hours on weekdays because we know how excited you are to receive your order. Weekends and holiday shipping times will vary.

    During busy holidays, we step our efforts to ship all orders as fast as possible, but you may experience an additional 1-2 day delay before your order ships. This may also happen if you change your order during processing.

    View Shipping Times

  • Shipping Restrictions

    It's important to know that due to state and local laws, there are certain restrictions for various products. It's up to you to research and comply with the laws in your state, county, and city. If you live in a state or city where air guns are treated as firearms you may be able to take advantage of our FFL special program.

    U.S. federal law requires that all airsoft guns are sold with a 1/4-inch blaze orange muzzle or an orange flash hider to avoid the guns being mistaken for firearms.

    View Shipping Restrictions

  • Expert Service and Repair

    Get the most out of your equipment when you work with the expert technicians at Pyramyd AIR. With over 25 years of combined experience, we offer a range of comprehensive in-house services tailored to kickstart your next adventure.

    If you're picking up a new air gun, our team can test and tune the equipment before it leaves the warehouse. We can even set up an optic or other equipment so you can get out shooting without the hassle. For bowhunters, our certified master bow technicians provide services such as assembly, optics zeroing, and full equipment setup, which can maximize the potential of your purchase.

    By leveraging our expertise and precision, we ensure that your equipment is finely tuned to meet your specific needs and get you ready for your outdoor pursuits. So look out for our services when shopping for something new, and let our experts help you get the most from your outdoor adventures.

    View Service Info

  • Warranty Info

    Shop and purchase with confidence knowing that all of our air guns (except airsoft) are protected by a minimum 1-year manufacturer's warranty from the date of purchase unless otherwise noted on the product page.

    A warranty is provided by each manufacturer to ensure that your product is free of defect in both materials and workmanship.

    View Warranty Details

  • Exchanges / Refunds

    Didn't get what you wanted or have a problem? We understand that sometimes things aren't right and our team is serious about resolving these issues quickly. We can often help you fix small to medium issues over the phone or email.

    If you need to return an item please read our return policy.

    Learn About Returns

Get FREE shipping on qualifying orders! Any order $150+ with a shipping address in the contiguous US will receive the option for free ground shipping on items sold & shipped by Pyramyd AIR during checkout. Certain restrictions apply.

Free shipping may not be combined with a coupon unless stated otherwise.

View Shipping Info

Text JOIN to 91256 and get $10 OFF Your Next $50+ Order!

* By providing your number above, you agree to receive recurring autodialed marketing text msgs (e.g. cart reminders) to the mobile number used at opt-in from Pyramyd AIR on 91256. Reply with birthday MM/DD/YYYY to verify legal age of 18+ in order to receive texts. Consent is not a condition of purchase. Msg frequency may vary. Msg & data rates may apply. Reply HELP for help and STOP to cancel. See Terms and Conditions & Privacy Policy.