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Accessories Beeman R1 supertune: Part 2

Beeman R1 supertune: Part 2

by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

Beeman R1
Beeman R1 Supermagnum air rifle.

Part1

This report covers:

  • Cocking effort
  • Really bronze?
  • Don’tcha wanna know how it works?
  • Crosman Premiers
  • JSB Exact Jumbo
  • RWS Hobby
  • Custom muzzle brake
  • Trigger pull
  • New safety easier to operate
  • Summary

I was pleased to see so many readers got something from the first part of this report on the tuneup of my Beeman R1 rifle. Several of you commented on how much work Bryan Enoch had put into the gun, and I think that is an important thing to take away. You have seen guest bloggers and even me tune spring guns over the years, but never to the degree that Bryan devoted to this rifle. That just illustrates that there are all levels of things that can be done to a spring piston air rifle, and you can pick and choose what you want to do and what you want to spend doing it. What you see in this report is a top tune.

Today we will look at the rifle’s performance, which means the velocity. Before we test that, though, you need to know what I asked Bryan to do. I told him I didn’t care about the power of the rifle. I have plenty other airguns that develop greater power. What I wanted was smoothness. We’ve already seen some of that in Part 1, when I talked about how smooth the gun is to cock. Today we’ll see what it does when it shoots.

Cocking effort

A brand new Beeman R1 rifle cocks with about 40 pounds of effort, or so. After a thousand shot break-in that drops to around 36 pounds and doesn’t get any lighter as long as the factory spring remains in the gun. My tuned rifle now cocks with 30 pounds of effort. And the cocking is smooth all the way through the stroke. Once the needle on the scale hits 30 pounds, it stays there until the piston is latched.

Really bronze?

I was asked whether I really meant bronze when I described both the mainspring guide and top hat. Yes, both guides were made of bronze and not brass. Bryan was very specific about that. There are also brass parts on the gun. Things like the screw cups that Bryan calls escutcheons, and the new safety button are brass. But both spring guides are bronze.

Don’tcha wanna know how it works?

Okay I can’t stand it any longer. I want to know how this new tune works. Let’s begin with the Crosman Premier pellet — a favorite in a .22 caliber R1.

Crosman Premiers

The 14.3-grain Premier pellet surprised me this time. I got velocities as high as 744 f.p.s. and as low as 701 f.p.s. The rifle did seem to be slowing down as I shot it, so I disregarded the first string and shot a second string of 10. The average was 720 f.p.s and the string ranges from 701 f.p.s. to 730 f.p.s. At the average velocity this pellet produces 16.46 foot-pounds of energy at the muzzle.

Some of that spread comes from the freshness of the tune. A spring piston rifle usually takes a few hundred shots to settle down after it’s been tuned. But I think this tune may not do well for Premiers. I say that because of what happened with the next pellet.

I will say the Premiers fit the breech tight. That may be a factor in the velocity spread.

JSB Exact Jumbo

The JSB Exact Jumbo that weighs 15.89 grains averaged 688 f.p.s., but the spread went from a low of 685 f.p.s. to a high of 692 f.p.s. That’s just 7 f.p.s. difference between low and high. At the average velocity, this pellet produces 16.71 foot-pounds of muzzle energy.

The JSB pellet fit the breech loose. They were just snug enough to not fall out. They really felt better than the Premiers when loading.

The tighter performance of the JSB is more proof that the rifle isn’t suited to the Premier with this tune. If the Premier pellet was better-suited, it should have done better than a 29 f.p.s. spread.

RWS Hobby

The last pellet I tested was the RWS Hobby. These fit the breech tighter than the JSBs, but not tight. Weighing 11.9 grains, they are one of the lightest lead pellets on the market, and like their .177 siblings, they are often surprisingly accurate at close range. Hobbys averaged 796 f.p.s. in the tuned R1. The spread went from a low of 792 f.p.s. to a high of 801 f.p.s., so 9 f.p.s., overall. At the average velocity Hobbys developed 16.75 foot pounds at the muzzle.

Like the JSB pellets, the Hobby demonstrated that the R1 can hold a consistent velocity. So, the wide spread of the Premiers has to be the pellets and not the rifle. That’s good to know for the next test, which will be accuracy.

Custom muzzle brake

Back before the R1 book was written, I was publishing parts of what would be in the book in my monthly newsletter, The Airgun Letter. Ivan Hancock, the man who was the world’s most famous spring gun customizer at the time, read the articles and sent me his Mag-80 Laza kit to try in the rifle. He also sent a custom muzzle brake for the gun after it was finished. You can see that brake on page 148 of the R1 book.

Well, as I explained in Part 1 of this report, this rifle has been a work in progress for the past 19 years. So the muzzle brake was never installed. I have kept it just for this occasion — when the tune was done and I was satisfied. I also said I would have the rifle reblued with a high polish, but I’ve changed my mind about that. I think the rifle is ready for the brake.

Beeman R1 muzzle brake
Ivan Hancock’s custom muzzle brake for my Beeman R1. It will fit very tight.

The brake will be an interference fit on the barrel. That’s another reason I never installed it. You get just one chance to do it right. so I want to take my time installing it. Maybe even consult with someone about the best way to proceed, to make sure the vents are oriented correctly.

Trigger pull

The trigger pull can be what I want it to be, within the adjustment parameters of a Rekord trigger. Byran said my trigger was set light when he received the rifle. He cleaned it and lubricated it, as well as polishing the piston rod and the trigger hook that holds it. Neither of the latter steps will affect the trigger pull but Bryan did them because he likes doing a clean job. They just look better polished.

He set the trigger to break at 1 pound 2 ounces. When I tested it my gauge said 1 pound 4 ounces. I’m going to leave it where it is, because like the rest of the tune, it will need a few more shots to settle in. The break of stage 2 is crisp and without creep. It’s a Rekord trigger, which should be all I need to say.

New safety easier to operate

When I showed you all the new parts in Part 1 of this report, the new safety was there, also. It is brass and I mentioned it, but I didn’t say a lot about it. Now that I’ve had a chance to work with the rifle a bit I appreciate the new safety a lot more.

Beeman R1 safety
The brass safety button made by Bryan Enoch is wider and sticks out farther than the factory safety. It’s also easier to operate. The safety is not on (gun is not cocked) in this photo.

The thumb button is wide and sticks out far from the end cap. That makes it easy to push off, which the original is not. But it also operates a lot smoother than the Weihrauch safety button

Summary

That’s it for today. Next time I will scope the rifle and we will start to accuracy testing. I’ve said before that a tune never changes the accuracy of an airgun. This time should prove or disprove that point.

104 thoughts on “Beeman R1 supertune: Part 2”

  1. BB
    I don’t know what other people say about the vent positioning on your muzzle brake/weight.

    But I say point the vents up. You want any air blast that comes out of the vents holding the muzzle of the gun down.

    And one of the questions I had was asking if it was oil lite bronze. Oil lite bronze lubricates if something rubs up against it. Almost like a oil bearing surface.

    And what you described from the pellet fit was pretty much the way that went with that .22 caliber Diana 46e I just got. The 15.89 JSB’s won out in my 46. Curious to see what kind of groups you get with your R1now after the tune. Tell your before and after group sizes if you can when you do the accuracy report.

    • And BB forgot to ask does the muzzle brake have vents on the opposite side too. It’s hard to tell in the picture.

      If the vents are on both sides like a air stripper then the vents need to be positioned on the side when put on the barrel.

    • GF1,

      Yes, the vents always go up. The thing is to get them straight up and not 5 degrees off to one side.

      I will report the accuracy of the rifle before and after with the same ammo. Fortunately there is a lot of test information on this rifle.

      B.B.

      • B.B.,
        What kind of material is the muzzle brake made from, aluminum or steel? Are there opposed slots, and how much of an interference fit?

        Aesthetically, and to work properly, I believe as you that a muzzle brake should be perfectly aligned vertically to the axis of the bore, especially on a firearm since the muzzle climbs upon firing.

        I personally believe that the muzzle of a spring or gas piston air rifle actually depresses during the firing cycle due to the mass of the piston being driven forward upon release of the sear. I really do not believe that it would be all that critical on a spring piston air rifle due to the much lower pressure generated except of course for looks. Unfortunately, I believe that aesthetics are important also.

        Dry ice works much better for shrink fits since it will chill the shaft/barrel to -109.3 Fahrenheit, considerably colder than a freezer or frozen water.

        Is a shrink fit really necessary? You really do not have a lot of time to work with them, especially when dealing with dissimilar metals. You could draw witness marks on the brake and barrel with a fine tipped lead pencil or ream the ID of the brake for a slip fit and attach it using a medium strength loctite. Due to the inertia of the firing cycle as long as the brake was fully seated, the rifle will try to drive it deeper onto the muzzle with each shot.

        Bugbuster

        • BB,

          The brake is steel with a brass insert at the front. The fit is close, but not overly so. The heat and cold idea will work fine.

          There are no slots on the other side. This is a muzzle brake that in a firearm would reduce the muzzle flip.

          B.B.

          • B.B.,

            So in essence, the muzzle brake is an over engineered piece of ” eye candy” for this particular application, a pretty muzzle weight and not much else functionally. I cannot understand the purpose of the brass insert.
            I totally understand the concept of the slots on the top of the muzzle brake to control/reduce muzzle flip on a high powered firearm, but not a medium (by today’s standards) powered springer, I am at a total loss.

            Bugbuster

            • Bugbuster
              I’m going to have to say that I’m with you on the eye candy.

              Maybe if that brake was going on a big bore air gun something like the air shot gun when your shooting the bullets not the shot shells. It has to be making a pretty big blast of air if it only gets 3 shots from a 3000psi fill down to 2000psi.

              Then I can see the vents being positioned up and possibly helping hold the muzzle down.

              I think the biggest effect that BB’s brake will be from the actual weight of it.

              • Gunfun 1,

                Bear in mind that these are both single shot air rifles, not a semi-automatic repeater, where is the advantage in suppressing muzzle climb? To reload, you either have to break the barrel down on one or work the stiff bolt on the other, am I missing something?

                Bugbuster

                • Bugbuster
                  What does a weight placed on the end of a air gun do? Minus all the fancy vent holes.

                  It’s supposed to help keep the airgun from moving around when it fires from the shot cycle of a spring gun. And it will also help a pcp gun stay in place. Mostly its a benifit for bench rest shooters.

                  • Gunfun1,

                    No disagreement here. Personally, I believe that it helps across the board. Some people prefer weighted muzzles, some do not, different strokes for different folks.

                    Many years ago, a close friend of mine had a Ruger mini 14 which was not very accurate. He bought a 1″ OD bar of 304 series SS and i drilled and reamed it to fit over the barrel. He said that it made a significant improvement to its accuracy.

                    Bugbuster

                    • Bugbuster
                      I can believe that stainless helped your buddy’s gun out. And we actually have that size and type of stainless bar stock at work right now that we are making parts out of.

                      And on another note. Some air gunners put the weights on the barrels that can be slid into different locations on the barrel. That’s suppose help dampen the harmonics. I believe I have heard people do that to firearms also to increase accuracy.

              • B.B.,

                Since I have yet to own a break barrel air rifle, I didn’t even consider the leverage factor. The finish on the brake in the photo is unusual and pretty, it almost looks like gold anodizing but just not as bright. Did you tweak the color on it as you sometimes do? I do not believe that steel can be anodized, only aluminum.

                Bugbuster

        • Bugbuster
          We use dry ice also. We have to press big 4″ diameter pins in to a hole about 5″ deep. We put them in a cooler with the dry ice below and above the pins for a hour or so. Works nice.

          And yep a lead pencil is the best way to mark metal if you don’t want to mess the surface up.

          And we also use the witness marks at work. If you measure the barrel and then the brake and take half of the diameter and make the witness mark on top of each. The brake needs to be marked at the end where it goes on the muzzle of the barrel. Then the barrel needs marked at the muzzle. Then take a square and lay it ontop and let it over hang the front of the barrel. Then just transfer your witness mark down the barrel with the pencil. That will give a giude the whole time the brake is being put on.

          • Gunfun 1,

            Wow, that would be one hell of a shrink fit, I wouldn’t want to be the one to have to remove the pins after assembly unless I had a huge hydraulic press at my disposal, at that point, heat would be a moot point. I hope that you put never seize on the pins before assembly.

            Yes, I agree, lead pencils work fine for witness marks in many applications and do not mar the surface of the finished parts as a hardened, metal scriber would. If you take a soft lead (graphite) pencil and scribe a line as close as possible around the scope rings of your newly mounted telescopic sight and make note of it, you will easily be able to detect “scope creep” in your rings.

            I also fully understand the purpose of “witness marks” and how to properly apply them, I do not claim to be a master machinist, but have done and witnessed at least a few things in my time in the shop.

            By the way, I have heard of a plastic material by the name of Delrin (never used any) but not Derlin, which you often refer to in your comments, surely, your “smart phone” is not acting up again, is it?

            Bugbuster

            • Bugbuster
              No it was probably me acting up. 😉

              The 4″ diameter pins are for punch press dies. We repair dies and replace the pins all the time. The pins have a 1 1/2″ hole in the center. We put dry ice in the hole and cover the top and bottom of the pin. About a hour and the pin will knock out with a hammer and a smaller 3 1/2″ pin from the bottom of the die shoe. Not hard to do at all.

              • Gunfun 1,

                That makes sense, I initially assumed that the pins were solid, with the 1.5″ hole in the center, that translates to a 1.25″ wall thickness, still pretty stout, but sounds perfectly doable to me.

                Bugbuster

  2. Very nice gun!
    I don’t know what to take from it no longer liking Premiers but they’re hard pellets and could leave more than just lead in the bore so I’ve used one tin of 500 to loosen the breech or shape a Leade in my Impact and steered clear of themsince and not iced just how solid the wall on it’s second stage actually is today.
    This is where I ask how to lower the pull weight on it?
    I know there’s a screw there fo adjustment but what does it actually do?

    Reb

    • Reb,

      Are you asking what the trigger adjustment screw on your air rifle does? I don’t know what model you have, but if it is a Chinese gun the adjustment screw usually lightens the trigger return spring tension. That’s supposed to lighten the pull.

      B.B.

      • OK I was afraid that was the case. I really don’t wanna mess with the 1st stage at all but I’d like to lighten the second stage let off. I’ll round up the paperwork for it a little later and see what it says.
        Thanks B.B!

        Reb

        • Are you talking ruger impact? I am messin with the same gun now and funny was gonna say the tuned R1 has the exact velocities I got for the Impact. The premiers are all over the place too, some tight some dropping in though. Jsbs number one but super points they are marketing for it are pretty dang good surprisingly.

          • You’re right about the Superpoints! They’re doing well in all my .22’s.
            I’ve heard of both those screw mods and will give the polishing a go.
            I found my paperwork and it says the screw adjusts the length of 1st stage travel.
            Thanks! And congratulations on your new gun!
            I had to cut the front trigger guard screw on my Daisy 120 to clear the cocking linkage yesterday but it’s trigger has no adjustments and it really needs help. The pull on it is in the double digits and very long but at least it’s staying together now.

          • I think Ruger just wanted to assure people were using pellets that are heavy enough to keep the beast from rattling itself to pieces. I still need to do some mid-range testing, so far 10m is as far as I’ve been able to shoot groups but they’re land pretty much on top of one another and equivalent to my 2400KT on HPA.

        • Take the screw out and polish round the end. Dont remove length though because a longer screw with the same end polish is the king if quick trigger mods, makes a world of difference, and you still have the range of factory adjustment but be careful depending on the extra length in screw you CAN over lighten to safelessness.

          • Which weight JSB’s are you using? Mine is sending the 25.39 Monsters through my targets, stuffed with old jeans and such and the 1/2″ plywood backstop.I’ve since stopped using them and had to restock Superpoints.
            When I get this batch finished it will make 6 tins of 500- at least 4 of which have been through the Impact.
            Very nice gun for the$150 I got mine for!
            I took it to the show, just in case B.B. wanted to try it but after finally getting through the door I realized the day wouldn’t allow for much shooting.

            • Reb
              Who makes the Superpoints in .22 caliber that you and RDNA are talking about?

              The JSB 15.89’s seem to always be the best in my .22 caliber air guns.

              I usually don’t have good luck with pointed pellets. But if you guys are having good results maybe I should try them.

              What size groups are you guys getting and at what distances?

              • Finally found a clue as to where they’re manufactured-CHINA, Under license from Sturm,Ruger & co Inc. And distributed by Umarex USA Inc.
                I’ve shot Crosman pointed in both calibers with decent results but never had any luck with Daisy in .177 and only seen their .22 for sale once but didn’t bite.
                I guess Ruger’s got somebody shaking a finger over there. When the shot breaks on mine it feels about like the Regal with no twang or rattling, I had to look it up just to make double sur it wasn’t a gas spring. I have noticed that the lack of a cheekpiece is a bit of a problem and am actually considering making an adjustable comb-riser. My biggest regret is still that huge silence-air plastic club on the end. I’ve only got 10m max here but at that range it has no problem keeping 10 shots on a1″ target, I did that twice today even with a knot about the size of a basketball in my back.
                I’ll try to text you a picture of the package…

                • Reb
                  Got your text with the picture.

                  Wish you could tell me you tryed them out at a farther distance than10m. Don’t know if they will work for me at the distances I shoot at.

                  What you need a pointed pellet at 10m for anyway?

                  • I just started buying them because it’s the best I can get locally and they’re only about $6 for 200 so I pick up about 4 or 5 tins if they’re in stock.
                    I wish I still had 50yds to shoot but unless I load everything up and get a ride across town it’s 10m or nothing.

                  • I have tried them @ 25yds but no real testing yet I’ll see if I can get outta the house today and shoot a couple groups.
                    I’m really surprised they do that well at such close range using the included scope without really messing with it.
                    I tried measuring the Picattiny mount front and rear yesterday with my micrometer and the best I can say is it is droop-compensating., looks like about1/8″ lower in the front which I guess is about 050″. That’s as close as I can get with the equipment at hand. I missed a deal at Harbor freight on a sliderule for $10 when I went to Abilene last weekend when I picked up my mallet and pin punches.

                  • I just sent you a text of a target shot with Crosman pointed pellets in .177 through the Daisy120(one with the atrocious trigger) fit was all over the place but a bunch of them went through that big hole @ 7:00.

            • Yes, the Superpoints are by far the best .22 pellets I can get locally. Every now and then I’ll see some Benjamin’s and they aren’t too bad but the CPHP’s are absolutely horrible.

            • My guess would be that Ruger bought some old dies from RWS and sent them to a pellet manufacturer in China for production so some may be slightly oversized which would account for the random yet rare flyer.

  3. BB
    To install the muzzle brake easy and without damage to either the brake or barrel my suggestion would be to heat the brake in an oven set at about 200 degrees and chill the barrel by wrapping it with ice cubes inside a baggie wrapped tight around the barrel with rubber bands so that the barrel contracts and the brake expands so they will slip together with vey minimal force required and once the two temps equalize it will be in place and secure from movement.

    That is how I used to replace cam gears on the old iron duke 4 cylinder engines that had a fiber cam gear with a steel crank gear and the fiber would wear so that you would have a loose rattling gear set with the engine running and GM said you had to remove the cams to press the gears on and off. Well I did it with cam still in the engine and engine still in the car by drilling over the key way of the collar on the cam gear to drive a chisel into the collar to expand it and remove the old gear, then heat the new gear in a antifreeze jug with the top cut off and filled with water with a diesel block heater in the jug which would boil the water so the gear was at 212 degrees then use R12 freon to freeze the end of the camshaft so you pulled the heated gear out of the boiling water with the end of the cam frozen and the gear would slip right on the cam and when the temps equalized it was in place and secure so just reassemble and job is done. GM was paying 9 hours under warranty to replace the gears and we were doing it in less than 1 1/2 hours so if I had three cam gear jobs in one day I got paid 27 hours pay for an 8 hour day and I could do some 30 minute to 2 hours jobs in the same day as well so the best I ever did was 35 hours pay in one 8 hour day and 120 hours in a 40 hour week, now that was back when a good mechanic could make a decent living if he knew the shortcut to fixing car fast and properly.

    BD

    • Buldawg
      We put bearings on spindles the same way at work. But if the spindle is small enough we put it in the freezer portion of the refrigerator. And we have a bearing heater. It’s basically a cone shaped portable heater and you just set the bearing on it for about a half hour and its ready to slip on the frozen spindle.

          • I instantly knew I had dropped at least one cylinder but it felt more like 3 for the last 5 miles to work. At least I started looking in the right place!
            I pulled the studs as soon as I saw them and stick them in the freezer after a quick redneck knurling, put the valve cover back on during lunch and ran it around a couple blocks to warm the head back up.
            Thank goodness I had just installed a new Clouds double roller timing set!
            Otherwise IdA probably had to do a timing cover gasket too(at minimum!)

    • CptKlotz
      Thanks for the link to the custom tuned Weihrauch HW97. Having taken my HW97/77’s apart a dozen times minimum, I can understand what is happening through “reading” the pictures. However, there seems to be a lot more information too be gained if one only understood German. This person obviously embarked on a major overhaul and tune on his HW97. The stock alone is an object of beauty worthy of a museum piece. I do have a German friend who is also an avid airgunner. I’m hoping he will translate this article to English for a case of beer so I might understand in detail the amount of work involved in this custom tuned HW97.
      Ciao
      Titus

  4. B.B.,

    (And anyone else interested in my obsessive pellet measuring – or who also has insomnia!)

    My pellet sorting continues. At this point I’m not sure if it’s an experiment or an obsession. 🙂
    I had another 500 count tin of H & N FTTs, 14.66gr, supposed to be 5.54mm head size. I have sorted 300 pellets out of the tin, and 280 have measured 5.57, while 20 would not fit in that hole (5.57 is the largest on the PelletGage), so I am calling them 5.58mm.

    I was actually wondering if my PelletGage was off, because of the .03mm difference between what the pellets are supposed to be, and what I am measuring. I had just received my PelletGage when they announced that early run that was mis-marked, I had contacted them and was told mine was not in that batch, but was beginning to question that, until this next batch measured closer to the stated size.

    I also sorted a 250 count tin of JSB Exact 14.35 gr, 5.52mm head size that I just received this week. I shot 10 pellets before deciding to sort that can. Here’s the spread I got:

    5.50mm – 10 pellets
    5.51mm – 41 pellets
    5.52mm – 79 pellets
    5.53mm – 110 pellets
    5.54mm – 2 pellets

    And yes, that only adds up to 248. I counted and recounted, but apparently the tin was short 2 pellets.

    So what does this mean? I don’t have enough data yet to really say anything yet, except that there are definitely inconsistencies in these two tins, and the H & Ns measure larger than stated.. I have only shot these pellets at 10m so far. I used the H & Ns to sight in a new rifle I just scoped. I got dialed in with 5 shots (Using B.B.’s 1st shot at 10′ method – Thanks B.B!), then proceeded to shoot two 5-shot groups that are each one hole, that looks like a maximum of 3 pellets went in. I did use the 5.57mm sorted pellets for that. By the way, they fit very snugly in the rifle. (Air Arms Pro Sport). The 10 shots I fired from the JSB tin, before sorting, all went into one large hole (12.9mm CtC), also at 10m.

    I need to get outside and see what difference these size variances make at 20 yds and more. I will report back when I get the chance to do that.

    Thanks for tuning in.

    Jim M.

      • What a fine report ,, B.B. ! I no longer have my R1. But it had irons and I am upset it is gone. A rifle or handgun without sights is naked.. Being 86 I grew up peering down a barrel.
        Thanks for your wonderful Blogs we all enjoy.

        Pete
        Orcutt, California

      • JerryC,

        Thanks for the link. I wonder why the .22s seem to have more variance than .177 — and have you been sorting .177s, or found similar posts comparing those sizes? If you have some data, please post.

        Also, you might see GunFun1’s post below, about the difference, in thousandths of an inch, between a 5.50 and 5.54mm pellet. Makes me wonder if that kind of variance would have any noticeable effect.

        Jim M.

    • Jim M
      Think about the head sizes in inches.

      5.50-5.54 = .04mm

      .04mm = .00157 inches (in other words just a little over one and a half thousands)

      When your talking fit of a diameter of a object in a hole you have to devide by 2.

      So from your smallest pellet to your biggest pellet there is only a hair over a half thousands difference side to side fit.

      I want to know if you shot any groups with your segragated pellets and recorded group sizes in your gun. Your gun may not care if the pellet head sizes vary that little bit.

      I say shoot and collect data and report back here in the blog what your group’s end up like.

      • GF1,

        That calculation helps put things into perspective, doesn’t it!

        No, I haven’t had time yet to test the different sizes to see what, if any, effect that has on accuracy out of a particular rifle. My thoughts are that there isn’t likely to be noticeable difference at 10m — the distance I can shoot in my basement — so am waiting to test at 20 plus yards. Not saying I necessarily believe there will be significant difference, but I think it would be more likely to show up at the longer distance. I will definitely report back when I get the chance to test that.

        Thanks!

        Jim

      • GF1,

        I’ve been doing some additional reading on this. JerryC posted a link above to a blog about pellet size sorting. That same author, in a different post where he evaluates the PelletGage, makes this statement, “The difference in head size, between the two pellets, is only .02mm, (.0008) but when shot from my FX 2000, that little difference in head size made a huge difference in group size.”

        The difference in group size he references, was 1″ at 55 yds., according to his post. Here’s the source article: http://varmintair.typepad.com/varmintairs_blog/2015/05/pelletgage-finally-a-reliable-repeatable-accurate-tool-for-determining-pellet-head-diameters.html

        Thought you might find that interesting.

        Jim M.

        • Jim M
          Look back at the one statement I made to you in my first reply.

          “Your gun might not care if the pellet head sizes vary that little bit.”

          What you have to think about also is the rifling and the fit of the pellet. Your gun might accept all those head sizes you said you got. Or on the other hand it may only like one of those head sizes way better than the others.

          What the pellet gage did was give you a way to determine what head size or sizes work best for your gun after you shoot them and collect data.

          And yes you need to get out to at the minimum 20 yards to really start seeing results that you collect your data from. I myself like 30-35 yards. That’s kind of a good inbetween distance that allows the pellets to still group good. Rather than 50 yards where some guns accuracy starts to diminish.

          But yep just wait till you start collecting data. I’m pretty sure at some point in time that a result will happen that will most definitely surprise you.

          Let me know how the shooting goes.

    • Jim M.
      Unless someone is just plinking tin cans Pelletgage is not an option, it is a must. I have gotten similar results as you measuring the pellets you mention. The point of impact changes with the head diameter and some head sizes are not accurate in a given rifle. Pelletgage has changed my pellet buying choices. There are pellets that are very close to spec but I am not naming them. Just covering my butt. Keep doing what you are doing.
      I am not a sales guy for Pelletgage, just a back yard paper shooter at 10 meters.
      Decksniper

      • Decksniper,

        Thanks for the input. I posted something on the newest blog about some RWS Superdomes I sorted last night. If you don’t care to “name names”, as it were, I would be very interested in the sorting data you have — if you would share it. If so, my email is “jemellon66 (at) gmail (dot) com.

        I am also not affiliated with PelletGage, or any other airgun or accessory manufacturer. This is something that has piqued my interest, and when I can’t get away long enough to do something else, I can spend 20 minutes sorting pellets, or shooting in my basement.

        Thanks!

        Jim M.

        • Jim M.
          Your list of rifles is impressive. Check out Mr Cliff Tharp of VarmintAir. He has done more testing than me. I only have the .177 and .22 Pelletgages. My Weihrauch HW30 is a tack driver with several Match pellets even with different head sizes. However if during a 10 shot group I switch to a measured 4.50 mm from a 4.52 mm pellet, the first will land in a different place. Subsequent shots go back to the original point of impact. This is but one example that proves to me the need to measure head size.

          Decksniper

          • Decksniper,

            Thanks. I just recently found the VarmintAir blog. His results are impressive. Your findings about switching to a different head size — and I’m assuming you stuck with the same pellet, just different head size — are interesting. I am not surprised the POI moved — I am surprised it moved back .

            After reading Cliff Tharp’s posts about sorting, and going through some of the sorting exercises I have recently, I am starting to wonder if I should sort by weight first, then take whichever weight I have the most of out of a particular tin and sort those by head size. In the RWS Superdomes I sorted this weekend, that would have resulted in me focusing on the 14.4 gr pellets only, as they were the greatest in number. Just thinking……

            Jim M.

  5. B.B.,

    I wouldn’t be surprised if that after the tune, especially a tune like this one, the groups don’t tighten up just slightly.

    Consider factors such as the velocity consistency, the smoother shot cycle, that the lock time is perhaps slightly shorter, and on the last few groups especially, how the significantly reduced cocking effort will leave you less fatigued than before. (And, of course, you might use the leftover stamina to shoot more groups, period.)

    Finally, what effect might your emotional state at finally having this one back in your hands after a magnificent tune? Your positive expectations might make the results slightly better, too.

    Michael

  6. B.B.,

    By “just slightly” I was responding to you comment that tunes often do not have an effect on accuracy. I think this one might improve accuracy regardless.

    “Just slightly” really means an accuracy improvement beyond your expectations.

    Michael

  7. I just received a email about a new prize in the PA contest and tried again to enter to no avail.
    I think it told me I was already registered at one point but I don’t trust it.

  8. Beautiful workmanship. My education in shooting has led to a growing appreciation of the wood and steel look. Once I wrote to Charlie Da Tuna about the effects of tuning on accuracy and he would not be pinned down on any correlation. But if you are making the velocity consistent that should have a positive effect.

    Buldawg and others, I have been deep in my boar sausage and have made an important discovery. The best combo yet is the $16/lb. sausage and Best Yet macaroni for 99 cents a box. Sometimes you have to combine the high with the low. Buldawg, I believe you’re right that it would not make economic sense for Cabela’s to hire people to chase boars in swamps when it could raise them on a farm. But why would the taste of wild boar be better than boar raised in a controlled environment? The model for this is Japanese Kobe beef. They massage the cattle with beer every day and play them classical music and it is supposed to create a wonderful taste. My brother put down $60 for a tiny portion of it in Japan, and when he finished, he put down another $60.

    Your swamp hunting has seized my imagination. Surely, you didn’t cook and eat the boar in the middle of the swamp. But how did you pack out the 1000 pound in such conditions?

    Matt61

    • That’s a whole lotta bacon makin’!
      Glad you’re enjoying your sausage “on the Wildside”
      Free-ranging does wonders for added flavor, without having to add it
      After eating free-range eggs it’s hard to turn back!

  9. I was getting ready to put the Daisy 120 back together after about a week’s curing time on gluing the huge crack where it tried to come out the right side of it’s stock and noticed a shiny spot on the cocking linkage accompanied by fine sawdust and another crack where the link was pressing into the bottom of the cocking slot relief in the forearm. I’m guessing these parts weren’t really meant for each other?!
    Rummaged through every toolbox I could find but no file. I do have a Dremel and some bits but I’m gonna take 5 to assess.

      • I have yet to see what it’s guts look like, it’s supposed to have a 2-piece cocking linkage which isn’t the case or it would probably clear the slot and it almost feels like a gas spring gun when it fires.
        I’m wondering if it’s actually had the leather seal replaced with synthetic because I hear the spring buzzing.The trigger is probably beyond hope although I’m sure a massage would help immensely. If I can just get it to stay in one piece for a few more groups I’ll have a better idea of what the payoff would be. At 10yds it was putting 10 int about 5/8″ while puffing like a smokepole.

  10. B.B.

    Ah, that’s some solid job. A perfect made gun is when you don’t know what sends stronger pleasure signals – your eyes or your hands. I envy you in a good sence.

    duskwight

  11. If you really want to see the advantage of an air stripper, import a UK Neil one from NJ Guns here in the UK, triple direction slotted with internal stripping cones, if a “muzzle brake” doesnt have cones directing dirty air away from the pellet path, either I don’t understand how the type you describe work, or they don’t.
    With mine fitted to the S400 it barely flickers a playing card that it otherwise blasts across the room, makes no difference to muzzle energy and shrinks my groups…especially noticeabke at range.
    I see lots of other gee gaws, going on the ends of barrels, pepper pot style, upwardly vented like it’s trying to control pistol muzzle flip etc etc….don’t get them

    • Dom
      But I don’t think that I would call the brake that BB has a air stripper.

      A air stripper usually has equal spaced venting all the way around to help evenly dispurse the air flow so it doesn’t disturb the projectiles stability before it leaves the air stripper.

      That brake that BB has will be most effective at holding the barrel down if used on something that makes a lot of pressure comming out the muzzle.

      • GF, yes, that kinda came out wrong, wrote it on my phone.
        I feel there are genuine advantages to a well designed air stripper, and of the dozens out there I’ve only ever seen two that did what they were supposed to do.
        I don’t see a single advantage to almost any of the “brakes’ other than perhaps acting to stabilise with a little extra muzzle weight.
        The problem is most buyers don’t seem to understand the differences and readily dismiss air stripping based on the lack of effectiveness of some of the other barrel doo dah’s

        • Dom
          Totally agree with you. Muzzle brakes are basically to add weight to the muzzle.

          The brake that BB has just may hinder the performance of his supertune gun. That would be a shame after its done pressed on.

  12. B.B.

    Unless you have 100 times more willpower than anyone else you were shooting your r1 before part 1. As usual you are captivating your audience with this great story. I can’t wait to hear the rest of the story. There is nothing more beautiful than the craftsmanship shown in your r1 even though most of it will be out of sight. You will see it every time you pick it up.

    I have been working on a late model benjamin 312 that I think had a bent barrel from the factory. I finally have it shooting with the rear sight just a little off center well about 1/4 inch. I am getting about 1 inch groups at 20 yards. I can’t see the back sight much and the front site is blurry. My eyes are getting worse. I think I may try a peep sight. I am afraid to try a scope. I have popped a couple barrels loose with the clamp on mounts.

    I haven’t tried a peep sight since my near vision became poor. Does the peep sight help if you are far sighted?

    I can’t wait for part 3.

    Benji

    • In all cases, a good peep sight will always be more accurate and easier on your eyes than the factory installed open sights. In the USA, you guys have easy access to those beautiful Williams peeps. Best thing to do though is aquire a used German match diopter sight with a adjustable iris opening. Its range should be from 0.9mm up to 3mm.
      Exept for thr Fwb diopter sights, all common diopter sights will fit the 11mm grooves on your rifle.

      • Dutchjozef,

        Thanks,
        I think I will try a peep sight original factory sights were never real good but worked well when I could see sights and the target at the same time. The old Benjamin 312 is not set up for a scope although there are old peep sights that fit. If I remember right they fit under the bolt latch adjustment. I may modify a new diopter sight to fit. I could fit one to the 11mm scope adjustment that clamps on the barrel but then I would need to raise the front sight.

        Gives me something to think about. Sounds like maybe a good winter job.

    • Benji-Don,

      It isn’t willpower; its a lack of time. Each report takes 3 to 8 hours of prep work before the writing begins. Sometimes I get a break, like on some of the history pieces where I don’t have to do a lot of research or gather photos. But I generally don’t have a lot of extra time on my hands.

      I did shoot the R1 about 10 times before I tested it for the report, but that was all. I was actually discovering it along with everyone else in this test.

      B.B.

      • B.B.

        Yea, My list of things to do grows faster than I can get to them. After I retired I don’t have as much time as I did when I was working and you are still working every day.

        I still haven’t had time to do a good chrony run on my marauder. I did set up a spread sheet to plot the results and calculate various parameters from the data. I checked it against some of your old data and some from I think Reb. It was a little strange. my calculation especially of the standard deviation was a little different than both of the data sets and different than what came from my beta chrony. I think it has something to do with the rounding of the displayed results on the chrony. It probably uses the raw data that has more significant figures than the display for its calculations.

        • I went back and checked one of the data sets came from Buldawg not Reb. He ran a 32 shot group on a regulator and the a few shots after the gun was off the regulator. There was a typo around shot 23 showing a 986.8 instead of 886.8 or something like that. Don’t know if it was from me or Buldawg I lost the location of the original data. Anyway the plot of the data showed the typo instantly and saved me a lot of debugging time.

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