by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier
This report covers:
• Test results
• Best bargain?
• The rest of the pellets
• Gamo Silent Cat pellets
• What’s next?
Today, we’ll look at the test I presented last Friday and see if we can make some sense of the results. As you remember, this test was to see how premium pellets performed compared to bargain pellets when all were shot from an air rifle of known accuracy. I used my tuned Beeman R8, and there was some discussion about that, as well.
Kevin told us that the R8 I have was based on an older Weihrauch model that’s no longer made and it differs from the current HW 50S that can be bought today. From that discussion, we learned that several of you have either received HW 50S rifles recently, or placed an order and are awaiting their arrival. There was some discussion about which was better — old or new — but I should point out that my rifle has been tuned and any new rifle would have to be tuned to match it.
Test results
Enough talk. Let’s see how we did. The first point is the most obvious. I predicted that a premium pellet would be the best (shoot the tightest 10-shot groups) in this test and, indeed, that happened as predicted. I shot only one pellet on the premium side — the Air Arms Falcon domed pellet with a 4.52mm head — and it posted a 10-shot group of 0.463 inches between centers at 25 yards. I told you that was not the best group that rifle had ever fired at that distance — in fact, it’s about average, which works out well for this test.
I was very surprised when the final shot missed the main group and landed low and to the right. There usually are no stray shots when I shoot Falcon pellets in this rifle at 25 yards. I don’t want to get into a lot of suppositions, but I will say that the 9 other shots landed in a very round 0.353-inch group. That was what I expected this rifle to do for 10 shots, although the last shot was definitely not pulled in any way.
Ten Falcons went into 0.463 inches, but 9 are in 0.353 inches.
After establishing how good the rifle and pellet combination was, I proceeded to shoot all 9 of the bargain pellets. You might think that I tired at the end of this test; and while I won’t deny that it’s possible, I have to tell you that shooting this R8 off a bag rest is not difficult. The rifle cocks with very little effort, and the bag steadies it for each shot. It’s not hard to keep shooting this way for a long time! That’s why the R8 has moved up to my go-to air rifle.
I’m saying the stray shots from the rest of the groups were also attributable to the pellets and not to me. Let’s look at the very first bargain pellet, which is a 10.5-grain Crosman Premier Ultra Magnum. This pellet is dimensionally identical to the 10.5-grain Premier Heavy that comes in the cardboard box, so the question is: Does the box make any difference? That’s a topic for a blog series of its own, and I will not try to convince any of you one way or the other today. Just know that when Premiers were first made back in the 1990s, the boxed ones were the best. In fact, you could only buy them that way — they didn’t come in tins. I competed in field target matches with Premiers in a number of different spring guns and PCPs and considered them to be the best pellets available back in 1998.
The Premier Ultra Magnum put 10 into 0.645 inches, which I thought was pretty good! Just like the Falcons, one of those 10 pellets is not in the main group — though this time it was not the last shot. I don’t really remember which one it was, but not the last. The 9-shot main group measures 0.508 inches. Let’s talk about that.
Ten Premier Ultra Magnum pellets went into 0.645 inches at 25 yards, but 9 of them are in 0.508 inches.
This 9-shot main group is the third-best group in this test (considering only the nine shots in the main group), yet it’s still measurably larger than the 10-shot Falcon group. That shows the difference between premium pellets and bargain pellets. Some of you may feel I’m splitting hairs to make such a statement, and I can’t say that I blame you for saying that; but what I see is the premium pellet beating the bargain pellet, even when it’s having an off-day.
Still, there’s no denying that the Premier Ultra Mag did very well. It would certainly be worth buying and shooting for everything other than making the absolute best groups. For $10, you get the same number of pellets that cost $13 when you buy Falcons.
Best bargain?
The best bargain pellet in this test was the Winchester hollowpoint that’s made in China and distributed by Daisy in the 300-pack Dial-A-Pellet container. Ten of them went into a single hole that measures 0.598 inches between centers. It’s marginally better than the Premier Ultra Magnum group (overall) but still measurably larger than the Falcon group.
Ten Winchester hollowpoints went into 0.598 inches. This is the only bargain pellet — in fact the only pellet in this test — that put all its shots into one hole at 25 yards!
These pellets only costs $4.45, but you only get 300, where the Falcon gives you 500. So, they’re roughly half as much as the premium brand. Yet, they shoot extremely well in this accurate rifle. They might be the bargain of the day — except for one thing. There are only 100 of these accurate pellets in the container, and the other 2 pellets are mediocre, at best. So, is this a real bargain? You will have to decide, but as far as I am concerned, there is more good shooting in the Falcon tin.
If you want to buy just the Winchester hollowpoints, you can get a tin of 500 for just $5.45.
The rest of the pellets
The rest of the bargain pellets did about as I expected them to do. Some of them did shoot into tantalizing holes, but there were always strays that landed apart from the main group. This is where you have to make a choice.
I think some optimistic shooters will see the clusters these cheaper pellets made and believe that this is something they should pursue. If they shoot enough of them, they will eventually get a couple groups that are stunning — and perhaps even challenge the Falcon group shown here. But I won’t do that.
For me, life is too short to shoot pellets that almost shoot well. I’ve shot enough of them in my lifetime to have reached my limit. I look for pellets that, like the Falcon in this rifle, out-perform all others even on their off-days.
Gamo Silent Cat pellets
You will recall from the test that the Gamo Silent Cat pellets were so inaccurate that I stopped the test after only 3 had been shot. Let’s discuss that.
Gamo’s claim that this pellet is quieter than others is hard to believe. However, Gamo does specify in the small print on the back of the package, how it’s supposed to work.
This is what the package says.
Gamo also packages the Silent Cat pellets as Whisper pellets, and Pyramyd AIR stocks them under that name.
I think my Beeman R8 is unsuited for this pellet. The combination of a 10.5-grain weight, plus a non-lead outer coating on the pellet was just too much for the R8’s lower-powered powerplant. The weight, and I presume additional friction in the bore, simply made this a non-starter. But I’m not ruling out the pellet.
The RWS Diana 34P that I’ll test next is much more powerful and should have no problem with the Silent Cat. I think it will give a much better result than the one we got in this test.
What’s next?
Next, I plan to test the same bargain pellets with the Diana 34P at 25 yards. I think the premium pellet for that test will be the Crosman Premier lite, because historically it has performed best. But it has been a long time since I’ve shot the Diana, so I may shoot a couple premium pellets to verify I have the best one.
I do plan on taking the R8 to the 50-yard range and shooting at least a couple of the bargain pellets against the Falcons in a future test. I wonder what we’ll see? Stay tuned — there’s much more to come!
Fascinating results especially between the 10.5-grain Crosman Premier Ultra Magnum and the 10.5-grain Premier Heavy. So quality does come out even if the shape is the same. Tighter quality controls lead to premium pellets that you can trust right out of the box. Waiting to see the results at longer range.
I see the budget pellets as good enough for breaking in an air rifle and close range plinking.
B.B.,
In your section titled “Best bargain?”, under the photograph of the target shot with 10 Winchester hollow points you typed, “There are only 100 of these accurate pellets in the container, and the other 2 pellets are mediocre, at best. So, is this a real bargain?” Think you meant to type 200 rather than 2.
I’m not trying to be a nit. This, to me, is the heart and soul of this test of bargain pellets vs. premium/more expensive pellets. My goal with most of my guns us to explore and find ultimate accuracy.
I’ve been down the bargain pellet, local pellets available, road. Crosman premier hollowpoints can occasionally be great pellets in some airguns but they’re inconsistent from tin to tin. Maybe this is one reason they’re a bargain? Don’t know.
I understand the need and desire to buy bargain pellets/ammo if all you’re doing that day is plinking and/or breaking in a new airgun.
When I want to find ultimate accuracy it’s typical that I begin with the most accurate pellet and then weigh,sort from those tins. Taking bargain pellets and culling 1 out of 3 pellets to conform to similar accuracy may satisfy my penny pinching tendencies but it will never reveal the ultimate accuracy that any given airgun is capable of. There’s my 2 cents no one asked for.
kevin
I agree with your two cents. It make sense to use bargain pellets to break in a new gun before looking for the best pellet for accuracy.
The season is speeding up the days and hours. Night falls faster than before and shooting at night using a bulb does not seem to help me in terms of accuracy.
Kevin,
What I meant was the other 2 types of pellets — the pointed and domed. Since there are 100 of each type, that would make 200 pellets, total.
I have a reason for bargain pellets. When you host a shooting party and people will be shooting your pellets, then bargain pellets that do well are the way to go. And somebody mentioned using them for break-in. That’s a perfect idea, because you’ll still have accuracy as the gun is breaking-in.
B.B.
I also use cheaper pellets when first sighting in a scope just to get me on the bully’s-eye, then switch to better pellets for the final sighting-in process.
Oops. Ok. I get it.
Need to find my pointed hat and go sit in the corner.
Kevin
My two cents on quality pellets. Yesterday I shot one of the FWB300s I have been working on. I set up my target at 25 yards and using Air Arms Falcons, immediately produced a ten shot group that although I pulled one shot, still measured 1/2″ outside to outside.
Everytime a “new” air rifle comes into my hands, I will try it out with every pellet I have in that particular caliber in search of “the pellet”. I have quite an assortment of top shelfers and bargain pricers. My experience has always been that if you spend a little more, you get a little more.
You guys do whatever you want, but I will continue to feed my airguns filet mignon.
Off topic….
Question:
I often reed: “when I opened the action of the Diana(rws) \ Weihrauch, it turned out it was dry”.
I cannot understand/belive why top notch german manufacturers wouldnt (seemingly) be able tot apply the right (amount of) different greases.
Can someone explain this to me?
Dutchjozef,
I can’t explain it — especially not when the right lubricant does so much to improve the airgun’s function. All it does is open the door for owners to make these improvements on their own.
B.B.
I thought it might have something to do with international shipping regulations, since grease/lubricants are considered volatile substances, but that still doesn’t explain why the Chinese guns come in full of rancid wok oil.
Jim
Jim
I like that description of that “stuff” that the Chinese use for lube.
twotalon
Tom,
I have been reading and rereading these reports with interest, although I buy virtually all of my pellets online, so I am looking for accurate pellets that are cheaper than others online in this series. Therefore, to me the revelation is the Winchester pellets, which I’ll purchase not at a big box store. The choices are very few in stores where I live. Daisy, Crosman, Benjamin, SOMETIMES Gamo. That’s it.
If I wait until I have an order over $150 (for free shipping) plus wait until there is a coupon that may be used with the free shipping, plus buy 3 get one free, that makes premium pellets much cheaper than anything I can buy in a store once I pay the sales tax. If I purchase a few accessories, perhaps a BB pistol, and four tins of Winchesters this way, they come down to 0.73 cents apiece. (Tell THAT to a powderburner to get him to get into airgunning!)
Michael
I was noticing that a lot of the Winchester pellets have rave reviews individually, I think they may have a decent QC process in place and use the “rejects” for the Dial-A-Pellet. I know I see the Winchester/Daisy Dial-A-Pellet for sale out of display boxes at all the major big box stores if they sell anything airgun related.
It makes sense to me, because Daisy has some great pellet reviews with the Avanti line, as well.
It makes me want to do some more shopping for that awesome Cyber Monday sale! 😀
In case you didn’t know it, Pyramyd AIR has a huge Cyber Monday sale happening right now!
There are hundreds of discounts all over their website, plus they’re offering $10 in Bullseye Bucks, which you can use like cash on their site. (You must use them by 12/2/14.)
You’ll also earn 3x Bullseye Bucks for every purchase you make on PyramydAir.com. So, while you’re buying guns, gear & ammo, you’ll be earning rewards. It’s like being paid to shop!
Edith
Edith
And I like that sale. I just ordered me a bunch of premium pellets today.
🙂
Gunfun
I will second that and getting ready to go shoot some as it is almost dead calm here and 68 degrees.
So, hope you are shooting before you go to work today and I will not be at my PC for awhile so if you respond it will be this afternoon before I get back to you
BD
I hope everyone had an enjoyable Thanksgiving. I see the blog was going strong while I was out indulging myself. So, for today’s post, quality comes through as always. I had always supposed that the fit of a particular pellet to a gun was more important than anything else,and it would be interesting to compare the importance of that factor with pellet quality. I don’t know if the great pellet test has addressed this. I would anticipate a convergence of the two with quality pellets providing the best fit most of the time.
The patterning of the pellets here was reminiscent of practicing archery with my brother over the break. Neither of us does this very often but the tens of thousands of airgun shots made their presence felt! My groups had fewer strays than his, so you could say that I was like a premium pellet.
As an aside, I took to looking up the best 9mm handguns, and I was surprised to see that in this extremely competitive market that one consistently appeared at the top of the list. The CZ 75 SP-01. Anyone familiar with this gun?
Matt61
It’s a very height quality pistol. It’s also very expensive. You don’t see them very often. I have only seen one CZ 75, ever. I would say the best, most available 9mm pistol is the Glock 17. They are about the most reliable semi-auto handgun out there. The new 4th generation models are excellent.
Mike
Mike
I prefer my Ruger P89 to a Glock as I have never like plastic guns and my Ruger has only failed to eject two times in the 15 years I have owned it and it is not ammo sensitive.
BD
I have a question for your blog? I have a magnum springer I love to shoot and 99percent of the time jsb heavys 10.3gr are the ammo that give me one hole groups. Next week there all over the place. Out come HN barracuda one hole groups but never both the same day. My hold shooting position I try keep very consistent I’ve checked lose stock screws dirty barrrel. Any suggestions would be appreciated
Jerry Crowe,
Really want to try and help you. In order to do so I have a few questions:
1-which airgun are you shooting?
2-how many pellets have you shot through the gun?
3-what method have you used to clean the barrel?
4-are you shooting with a scope or open sights?
5-when you say the h & n barracudas shoot one hole groups but never both the same day what do you mean? Sorry I don’t understand.
6-what distance are you shooting and what size are your 10 shot groups?
kevin
You really have to admire the marketing people at Gamo. They sell many of their air guns on the high velocities they achieve using their special super light alloy pellets and then they come out with a pellet heavy enough to slow that velocity down to eliminate the supersonic crack of the shot and market the pellet as a “silent” pellet. Pure genius!
The gun on the Falcon Tin is, rather predictably, a Falcon FN19, when NP Holdings bought Sussex Armoury and changed the brand to Air Arms, it also bought Falcon and moved to it’s premises it continued selling the Falcon PCP’s until last year and has now put them on a temporary hiatus., think Rolls Royce and Bentley (though with less cross over components)
The pellets aren’t Air Arms Falcons, as Air Arms don’t make pellets, but are in actual fact JSB’s made on a slightly modified “Exact” die, as are Air Arms Field…..and is quite possibly the same pellet
Ditto Daystate Harriers…..JSB Exact, though in “heavy” format as I recall
JSB design with choked Lothar Walther barrels very much in mind
Falcon rifles used to be known as Titan, and was run by John Bowkett, not sure if you would know who that is over the pond, or indeed even got the Falcon rifles (hence not recognising the brand or rifle on the tin)
Very fine guns
Dom,
Thank you for identifying the rifle on the air arms falcon tin as the Falcon FN19. Pyramyd AIR used to sell those.
/product/fn-19-rtw?m=640
John Bowkett is quite well known and greatly respected even on this side of the pond. I owned a JB Titan Mohawk and still own a JB Hornet.
kevin
Without wanting to be a snob…… but there is no place for cheap pellets in my house. The difference is huge. A quality pellet will shoot a 10 pointer at 10m. Cheap pellets will give me a vertical string at 6 O-clock with a 3 or 4 pointer. And then an occasional 7 pointer at 2 O-clock. They are all over the place. There is no such thing as a “training-pellet”.
Take the Meisterkugeln for instance… they didnt make the cut as a R10match pellet in the pellet making process. So instaed of re-melting those pellets, they are branded as Meisterkugeln. But there is nothing MEISTER (german for Master) about them. The Meisterkugeln didnt cut it as R10match. You can tell inspecting the pellet, and surely can see the difference when shooting them. The Meisterkugeln are 2 euro cheaper than the match pellets, but you will drop 25 to 60 points over a total of 40 shots.
I expect when BB shoots at 50 yards, the more expensive pellets will do better.
BB, Ill make you a deal. Just send me that wonderfull r8 you have, -as a keeper-, and I will test all the pellets you want for this blog. 🙂
Dutchjozef,
What a kind offer! Let me think about that. 😉
B.B.
dutchjozef,
Oddly enough though. I keep Meisterkugelns on hand strictly to shoot in my Walther Lever Rifle because I have shot nearly every pellet available in this rifle and the Meisterkugens are the only pellet which shoots accurately in this gun. I typically get 10 shot groups in the 1″ range size at 25 yds. that are very round. No other gun I have shoots this pellet accurately. Go figure.
G&G,
I wasnt referring to the Meisterkugeln as cheap pellets. The Meisterkugeln arent cheap and will group fairly well in a tight fit or chocked barrel. Meisterkugeln are second grade r10 pellets, so they should do well. But they are not suited for serious target shooting. What bothers me, they are called MEISTER, suggesting that these are premium pellets……witch they are most certainly not. You can expect even better groups in your lever action rifle if you feed them the R10 match pellet.
In Holland en Germany every gunsmith sells certain cheap pellets. They are advertised as:
“made by a famous german pellet manufacturer”.
That leaves 2 manufacturers: h&n and rws. These pellets are 1/3th of the price of their premium quality pellets. So you cannot expect these pellets to group thightly…..and they dont!
At 10m you will hit the 4 pointer (the far end of the olympic black circle), but at 30 meters you will probably miss the pellet trap.
Or send it to me, I’m tripping over early 70,s and 80’s German rifles here, and not a Tyrolean stock amongst them
I do have a Stutzen BSA stock though, waiting for a nice 177 action to come up, to lengthen the stroke on 🙂
Well, after I’ve shortened the stroke on this 52, sleeved it and fitted the LGV piston (really!)
Dom,
I live on the exact border of Germany. Im sure B.B’s Tyrolean would rather be close to his country of birth! He’d also be accompanied by some nice German Ladies in the gunrack and give the pcp’s at the club a run for their money! 🙂
You said, “For me, life is too short to shoot pellets that almost shoot well. I’ve shot enough of them in my lifetime to have reached my limit.” yet you’l spend hours and hours trying every hold known to man to try to get a good group out of countless springers.
Jr,
Springers CAN be very accurate…… when using the right hold.
Bad pellets cannot be accurate….no matter what hold you use.
-Thats the difference.
Jr_Explorer,
Busted! The way I see it, I owe it to those who have purchased the springer to try to make it play. On the other hand, bad pellets can ruin everyone’s day!
B.B.
Tom, I’m sorry if I’ve missed this somewhere but have you ever addressed the issue of non lead pellets? Specifically, I’ve heard of some decent non lead pellets that are still fairly heavy and should work well in a magnum spring gun. Some of us would like to hunt in areas with lead restrictions, and I’m not sure where to turn for pellets.
Tim,
I have looked at lead-free pellets once or twice. I probably do need to get back and do some more with them, now that there are more of them on the market.
B.B.
Mr. Gaylord,
I am new to airguns and have a few questions for you. If this is the wrong forum for this, please direct me to the proper one.
What got me started into this hobby was a gift from a friend several years ago of a Chinese .177 side lever air rifle which you did a report on a few years ago and nicknamed the rifle “pointy”. Mine is identical to that one and it shoots quite well, that was until this past spring when it lost it’s power. I replaced the leather piston seal and lubed it with a full synthetic 0-20 weight motor oil, probably a poor choice, but it now works. I would like to rebuild it sometime in the future, remove the rear sight which was spot welded on crooked and mount a scope rail on it.
Since that one, I have purchased six more rifles, four side levers and two under levers. I prefer fixed barrel rifles even though they are much more difficult to clean the barrel properly.
My questions for you are as follows: Where can I get a quality replacement piston spring for the TS 45? What causes the seals to fail on CO2 guns? Can or do PCP guns diesel? Do you know if anyone has ever used nitrogen in lieu of air a PCP?
Bug,
Welcome to the blog!
I will try to answer your questions, but our readers might want to chime in, as well.
That article about Pointy the pellet rifle was written as a guest blog by Vince, one of our readers.
Better springs can be purchased from Pyramyd AIR, or from many other sources on the internet. Jim Maccari, wh=o runs Air Rifle Headquaters, has been called the springman because he has been making springs for the past 3 decades. You have to measure your spring, then get with him to see how close you can get.
I am going to recommend my 13-part report on tuning the Beeman R1 rifle.
/blog/2006/08/spring-gun-tune-part-13-range-testing-the-r1-we-tuned/
I will also recommend this report that deals with measuring mainsprings:
/blog/2008/10/hw-55-tyrolean-part-5-how-to-measure-a-spring/
Now, what causes seals to fail can be many things. They can just dry out, or they can get dirt in them that compromises the seal, or if the wrong lube is used it can dissolve the seal.
People use nitrogen in PCPs all the time. AirForce even advertises it for their guns!
B.B.
B.B.
Thank you very much for your prompt reply. I had submitted a couple of questions to another site near two weeks ago and still have not received an answer. This is a new experience for me, but now I know where to go for advice. Is there any way to receive updates (responses) without checking back to the specific blog on which the post had been originally made?
I am always open to input from anyone more knowledgeable than I and would appreciate the information, the more the merrier! If I do not know something, I am not too proud to ask, nor state that I don’t know. I have a machinist background, mechanically inclined, familiar with O-rings and can measure pretty well. If I can be of help to anyone, please ask, I will be glad to offer my opinion, no B.S..
One question not addressed was about a PCP dieseling. Can it happen with HPA? I assume that it cannot when nitrogen is used since it is an inert gas and doesn’t support combustion.
Currently, all my rifles are springers in .177 caliber with the exception of two. I have a beautiful RWS 460 in .22 caliber and a Xisico XS46U in .177 with a gas ram. I am contemplating buying a PCP in the near future.
Bug,
The best way to stay updated is to ask all your questions on the current day’s blog. This is located here:
/blog//
Can dieseling happen with high pressure air? Yes, it can!
First of all, most spring guns diesel 0n every shot. That is normal and not a problem. But when too much petroleum explodes, it becomes a detonation, and that is bad.
In a precharged gun, if there is petroleum oil or grease inside and if the air is introduced too fast, the oil can ignite and blow up the gun. That has happened to two people I know. And you are correct that nitrogen cannot combust.
Please join us on the current blog. You will meet people who have the same guns as you, plus guys who are where you are in your entry into airguns.
B.B.
B.B.
Thank you once again for all the information you have given me, I will read it and i am sure we will conversing again in the near future.
You should shoot the pellets in to a bucket of water and recover them to see how they engage the rifling… I bet different gun and head size combos will show different markings after you recover them.
A personal favorite in my light springers is the 4.51mm Field Target Trophy. In fact H&N produces a sampler pack so you can test which head size works best in your gun. Amazingly 4.50 and 4.52 are enough of a difference as to cause larger groups.
i have a browning 800 can’t shoot rifles. the seal keep going bad on me. am i supposed to oil them or what owner’s manuel doen’t say. also sometime hard to close barrel. i’ve tried adding a drop of crossman oil to the latch and that helps can i use white lithum greese? i shoot beside my house 30′ or 17′ depending on how i’m feeling best groups are with rws hobby and h&n hollow point 12.9 1/2″ edge to edge groups at 17′ open site 30′ with red/green dot scope. i’m haveing a gunsmith drill and tap the mount to match the rear site holes to mount it. it keeps falling off even with red loctite. with the clamp type mount. it just slides back stripping alum. as it slides. please let me know what to do about the seal.
Bob,
Welcome to the blog.
Your mention of oil used on the Browning 800 is causing me to think that maybe you have over-oiled it. Are you getting low velocities from the gun? In other words, how do you know the seal is bad?
The Browning is made in Turkey and is very similar to the Hatsan Supercharger. See this 3-part reports I did on that gun.
/blog/2012/12/hatsan-model-25-supercharger-breakbarrel-air-pistol-part-3/
And which seal are you referring to — the piston seal or the breech seal? Because I think the breech seal is the culprit in these guns.
I tested the Browning and found it to be several hundred f.p.s. below the advertised velocity in .22 caliber. A replacement was faster, but still below the claims.
Please answer my questions and then look at shimming the breech seal. Here is a report for that.
/blog/2008/04/shimming-a-diana-breech-seal/
B.B.
B.B.,
I’m new to the sport of serious airgunning, and your blog has provided a wealth of knowledge to “get me up to speed” in a short time. Thank you!
I have a RWS 54 Air King, with a Leapers scope (yes, I did use the droop-compensating mount!) I just shot some rounds at 10 yards from a JBS 4-pellet sampler pack, getting what I would consider to be good groups with all the pellets. The sampler included: 1, Diabolo Exact Jumbo Heavy 18.1gr., 2. Jumbo Monster 25.4 gr., 3. Jumbo Exact RS 13.4 gr., and 4. Diabolo Straton Jumbo 15.9 gr.
I got 5-shot groups (yes, I know, 10 is better!) with each of the four pellets. My rifle is zeroed in at 10m with Crosman Premier Hollow Points. I used, as best I could, the exact same hold / sight picture with each pellet. I got groups you could cover with a dime from each type, and was dead center bullseye with each pellet, except with the 25.4 gr. Monsters. I would have expected the heavier pellet to impact lower, but the center of that group is almost 1″ higher than the other pellets. Can you explain why that would be?
My reasoning is driven by my experience with another rifle I have, the Umarex Octane in .177. After changing the breech seal and adding one shim, my point of impact with everything was higher, which I attributed to increased velocity. I do not yet have a chronograph to verify this. Is my reasoning flawed?
Thank you.
Jim M.
Jim,
I think the Monsters climb at 10 yards because of recoil. Since they remain inside the barrel longer, the gun moves in recoil before they leave, and that causes them to print higher. I’m not certain of that, but that’s how it always works when I shoot a .44 Magnum revolver with .44 Special rounds. The slow stuff prints lower on the target.
As far as the Octane goes, I can’t say. Vibration patters (I call them nodes) change as velocity changes, and that has a tremendous impact on where the pellet goes. Have you read my 11-part report on pellet velocity versus vibration? It’s all in there
/blog/2011/12/pellet-velocity-versus-accuracy-test-part-11/
B.B.
B.B.,
Thanks for the reply. I understand what you’re saying about barrel climb with recoil — a friend had suggested the same thing — but I wonder if that would hold true for the 54 Air King, with it’s “recoil-less” system?
I had not read that series on velocity vs. vibration yet. I’ll work through that this evening.
Thanks again.
Jim M.
Jim M.,
A 54 probably wouldn’t climb as much, because the action recoils straight back in the stock.
B.B.
somebody explain to me how adding a layer of nickle and copper makes a heavier pellet (gamo whisper). wouldn’t it be heavier if it were solid lead because lead is denser then both those metals? i know it would be heavier then before it was plated but that’s because your adding material, but both pellets made to exactly same dimensions the solid lead would be heavier.
Dear Tom,
I’m quite new to the blog and enjoy it very much. Thank you for the great time I’m having reading your articles, even thought I’m 61 years old and I have a license for an air rifle since I became 14, I do learn a lot, and I mean a lot.
I own the RWS Diana P34 with T06 trigger
At the end of part 5 of the ‘Part 5 of the great pellets test’ you wrote that you are going to do the test with the Diana 34P. Was it published already? I wasn’t able to locate it on the site.
Thank you,
Avi
I believe I remember a scope mounting difficulty postponing that test.
Guess it’s been a while.
Avi,
Welcome to the blog.
No, I haven’t finished the pellet comparison test yet. The introduction of the Pellegage may have made that test unnecessary. I’m blogging the Pelletgage tomorrow, so you can see what I’m talking about.
B.B.
I gave up installing a scope on the rifle. I’m Nikon Tech for Nikon Israel and I have the Nikon EFR for air rifles, but I’m using the iron sight with the fibers.
So the test with this rifle was never done?
Thanks,
Avi
Avi,
It hasn’t been done yet. That doesn’t mean it won’t be. But the Pelletgage does change everything.
B.B.
Thank you!
I read your articles and post with great pleasure.
Learning a lot.
Avi