by B.B Pelletier
I stumbled onto this pistol recently while cruising Pyramyd’s website, and I had to tell all of you about it. The Crosman 2300S is more than just a new air pistol. It is a statement the Crosman Corporation is making to the airgunning world. The statement is, “We are in this game to win. We understand our customers, and we know what they want. While we do build many inexpensive airguns, we also know where our strengths lie, and we know how to capitalize on them. And, we know airguns!”
When an airgun manufacturer packages guns like this, we know that THEY care as much about their guns as they hope their customers will.
Out of the box
That’s what the new 2300S says to me. For starters, let’s look at the box it comes in. It’s a plain brown box, but inside there is egg crate foam to hold the pistol securely. That’s a detail that, until now, few other airgun manufacturers have understood. I’m so used to carded guns in clamshell packs that this box threw me for a loop. Let’s move on.
Installing the rear sight
There is a brand-new rear sight for air pistols, and it comes with this gun! I thought Williams had adapted one of their other sights to the pistol; but, while it does resemble the sport aperture sight they make for Beeman, it is an all-new design. Bravo, Crosman! I am a target pistol shooter and love the fact that the adjustments on this sight are crisp click detents. This thing is American-made and just as good as that phrase always used to mean! It’s ALL metal, with crisp detent stops on both adjustment knobs. My only comment is that I believe there should be an index mark on the horizontal scale, like there is for elevation. This sight looks right on this pistol.
This rear sight is a brand-new design from Williams, and Crosman is to be congratulated for putting it on this pistol. Round knob below the sight adjusts the gun’s power.
Front sight
The front sight is a round post that looks square when viewed through the rear notch. It sits atop a bright aluminum muzzle weight, whose sole purpose is to elevate the front sight to the correct height. You don’t notice the bright finish when sighting, so the whole thing works as intended.
The front sight sits on top of a barrel weight that also protects the muzzle.
Barrel
Of course, that front sight sits atop a genuine Lothar Walther barrel – the same kind found on the deadly accurate AirForce precharged rifles. I’ll find out how good it is when I go to the range. For now, I’m simply impressed by the name. Also the length. This is a 10.1″ CHOKED barrel (see – Crosman listens!), so you are going to get lots of efficiency from it. The longer the barrel, the better the efficiency in a CO2 gun.
Adjustable trigger!
The pull weight is adjustable and there is an overtravel screw to stop the trigger blade when the hammer is released. These are features a target shooter demands. I measured pull weights from a low of 2 lbs., 6 oz. to a high of 5 lbs., 8 oz. One grip panel is removed to gain access to the adjustment screw. I do believe this weight range will decrease with use. The overtravel screw is in the rear of the triggerguard and works perfectly to stop the trigger wherever you want.
The trigger-pull adjustment is concealed under a grip panel.
Adjustable power!
This is something I haven’t see on a Crosman gun for a long time. A knob at the rear of the action lets you increase and decrease tension on the hammer spring. It’s a simple and effective way to control velocity.
I’m just getting started with this pistol, so there will be more to follow.
The Crosman 2300S sounds great. I can’t wait for your follow up. I’m hoping that it will be much better than the Daisy Avanti 747. Though it’s probably not as accurate as the Baikal IZH 46M it’s much less money. It fits nicely in-between these two in price.
Wow! I didn’t realize that the 2300S had an adjustable trigger. I figured it was just a 2240 with a .177 Lothar Walther barrel, steel breech, muzzle weight and Williams sight. Did they make any other improvments to the trigger (besides the overtravel)?
Do you know if the Custom CO2 pistol you can build on Crosman’s web site has the same trigger improvements?
It would be interesting to get the Exploded View (I couldn’t find it on their site) so that individual parts could be ordered.
Thanks,
.22 multi-shot
K. Rihanek,
What’s not to like about the Avanti 747? I have one and it’s very accurate. Don’t like all of the plastic? Just curious, absolutely not stirring the pot. I too am looking forward to checking out the 2300s. It looks great and my fathers old 150 was always my favorite pistol to shoot with regards to comfort and balance. Have a great weekend everyone!
Matt
.22 multi-shot,
This pistol has really stunned me with its features. I haven’t told you all of them yet (Monday).
The trigger could release better. I may try lubricating the sear with some moly to see if that slicks it up, because it has too much creep now.
B.B.
B.B.
Thanks. I’ll be back Monday to check it out!
.22 multi-shot
B.B. if you remember on august 24th i asked you about the babypowder test because i was concerned about a fairly large chunk of the seal on my gamo 1250 was missing. i tried the test and it seemed ( although i cant be certain) that excessive are was escaping. well a few minutes ago i spoke to the gamo customer service representitive and told him my grievences. after i finished he told me that a new seal wouldn’t solve anything because apparently gamo has been having this problem with many customers and their engineers say that a complete seal will not improve the velocity. when he told me this i was confused because it doesn’t seem possible for air NOT to escape when a fourth of the seal is missing. Is gamo just making this claim because they don’t want to deal with repairs? or do you think there is some truth to their statement. Anyway i thought i would get your input before making a decision on repairs.
thanks again,
scopestop
scopestop,
I don’t understand their answer, either. I didn’t know that fourth of the seal was missing. That is too much. These seals do have a small nick in them to allow the air to get behind them so they will seal, but 25 percent missing isn’t right.
B.B.
B.B.
I’m having a problem with my old Daisy Powerline 856. It seems to be leaking air. If I pump it and let it sit there for a few minutes, it will be completely out of air. Is there somewhere on it that I should check for a leak or something like that? It’s a great gun, really accurate, and I would hate to see it stop working becuase it was my first gun. Thanks for any advice,
lama
lama,
Try Pellgunoil on the pum head. In this case, a LOT of oil, so it gets blown through the gun and hits all the seals.
B.B.
Ok thanks, I’ll try that and let you know.
Another quick question. I was wondering if you ever found out if there was a “new” version of the izh-61 that wasn’t as good as the orginal. I asked you about it a while ago but completely forgot about it untill today. Thanks a bunch,
lama
Hi BB,
This is not on the topic of the current post, but I need your opinion (I hope you don’t mind). I have an RWS model 54, and I love it. However, I am having trouble with the scope mount (RWS C-mount) and the scope (RWS model 450 AO 3-9×40). I had it all installed following manufacturer’s instructions and your suggestions (ie. hanging the recoil pin over the front of the rail)…the scope did not shift backwards, but the windage screws kept loosening (I even used blue loctite), and by the time I had run 300 pellets through the rifle the windage screws were stripped and I could no longer adjust it. I took off the mount, and looking through the scope I noticed it is now blurry at the hiogher magnifications and will no longer focus. The AO ring has to be turned all the way out to 300 yards to get the scope to focus at 25 yards. Have I somehow broken the scope? What can I do to fix the situation? I love this rifle but my eyes are not really good enough to use open sights. I wis I could get a scope/mount situation that can work and stay set.Is my only option going to PCP to avoid the recoil?
Thanks,
Steve in PA
Steve,
Okay – some straight talk.
1. RWS C-mounts are notoriously bad. They loosen just like you describe. They have been made in Korea, Australia and by B-Square, and it doesn’t seem to make a difference. They don’t work. B-Square AA adjustable mounts are the best on the market, which is why I always recommend them.
2. I broke an RWS 450 in the exact same way you did. RWS contracted with a Chinese factory for that scope and, while it was a good scope on guns with light recoil, the harsh vibration of the 54 is too much for it. I broke mine on a Beeman R1. I recommend anything Leapers makes, and expecially scopes built on their new TS platform.
B.B.
lama,
No, the IZH 61 hasn’t changed. What was behind what you heard was several smaller dealers were removing the spare parts and accessories and selling them separately. The gun is the same as it has always been.
B.B.
Wow, thanks for the quick reply. So I gather that I should cancel my order for a new RWS C-mount, go with a B-square AA mount, and get a Leapers TS scope.
I have contacted RWS about the scope, hopefully they will reair/replace/refund it.
Thanks, BB!
One last question, BB, and I’ll leave you be. When I get the new B-Square AA mount, do you think it would be necessary to use Loctite on the screws, or is the mount strong enough without the Loctite?
Thanks again for your help. I was getting very frustrated with this situation.
Steve in PA
Steve,
The adjustment screws each have locking screws to hold them in place, so Locktite isn’t necessary. Still, I tend to use it anyhow, just to be safe.
B.B.
Ok thanks again. I was worried about that, looked like such a good gun. I’ll definatley buy one now. Also, the oil worked on my old daisy, no more leaks. Thanks for all the help.
lama
Hi B.B.
Another off-topic question. Which would you recommend for hunting-RWS 48/52 or RWS 350?
Keith
BB, how does the Crosman SSP250 rate? I gather its a single shot CO2 pistol with some serious intent.
The SSP250 was a great air pistol in its time. It was accurate, powerful and Crosman allowed the owner to change barrels and therefore calibers! It was missed when it left the market.
B.B.
“What’s not to like about the Daisy Avanti 747?” How unfair should I be in comparing it to guns that cost much more? For $130 it can’t be beat. The Crosman adds metal sights and a metal bolt. The IHZ has a proper wood grip that you can sand and fit to your hand. But you can’t get rid of the plastic and only charge $130