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Everything old is new again

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by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

A history of airguns

This report covers:

  • Old man
  • Screech!
  • I can’t believe…
  • Las Vegas
  • For all who want to write
  • Second point
  • What goes around — karma
  • Summary

If I could put a subtitle on this report it would be, “BB, how do you know so much about guns?”

Old man

The answer is simple — I’m old. Oh, not all old people are smart like me. Some of them don’t read, and as a result everything seems new to them, just as it does to younger people. But the ones who do read are always very smart — just like me!

Here is the first example. While researching an article for this blog on the .22 rimfire cartridge I happened onto a forum where the discussion was about why convertible revolvers in .22 Long Rifle and .22 WRM are not accurate with both rounds. One guy wrote that the SAMMI (Sporting Arms and Ammunition Manufacturers’ Institute) spec for the bore of a .22 Long Rifle barrel was 0.223-inches and for the .22 WMR it was 0.224 inches. That was followed by a long discussion that went like this.

“That’s a difference of only one-thousandth of an inch. The human hair averages two-thousandths thick, so we are talking about a difference of half a human hair! I find it hard to imagine a difference that small matters so much when it comes to accuracy.”

Screech!

Logic like that is like fingernails scratching a chalkboard to me — which I guess is another old-guy remark. Bullet and bore size DO matter! If you have read this blog for several years you may have noticed how critical I am when some Korean big bore manufacturer calls their rifle a 9mm. That’s because 9mm is 0.355-0.356 inches in diameter and 0.358 bullets (which is a common size for .357 Magnum and .38 Special revolver bullets) are too big. That is just one human hair larger, and yet it doesn’t work! But — and this is a huge but — only someone who reloads ammunition with lead bullets or who shoots black powder muzzleloaders is going to know that. I do both. I’m not smart; I just know some things because I have done them.

I’m not finished. Not only are 9mm bullets too small to call .357, they also are not made of lead very often. Ninety-five percent of 9mm bullets are jacketed and cannot be shot in an airgun, because they generate too much friction.

What often happens is some company puts out a 9mm big bore, then they discover most of what I have just said after the rifle goes to market. They have already invested $3,000 in the artwork for the box plus another $7,000 buying a year’s worth of boxes, so it’s not going to change. So, they try to alert everybody they can through the internet and social media that their gun will also shoot .357 bullets, which they still insist are pellets. The difficulty with this is people who read social media aren’t the ones buying their guns. It’s like setting your house on fire and then calling the pizza delivery guy to put it out!

I can’t believe…

If there is one statement that stands my hair (what little there is) up, it starts out that way. “I can’t believe a company would make an airgun, sell it with a scope and the scope would not be right for the gun. Surely they tested the combination before they put it up for sale?” No, they didn’t test the combination before they put it up for sale, and don’t call me Shirley!

What they did was look for the cheapest scope they could find, so they could bundle it with the gun in a package that looks good on the internet. Or, they have a warehouse full of cheap scopes they can’t sell at any price, and this is one way to reduce the inventory.

Guys, in sales there are people who firmly believe that making the sale is the only objective. Sometimes entire companies believe that for a short time. They either go out of business or they change management and get responsible people in positions of authority to turn things around.

Las Vegas

One evening while I was at the SHOT Show this year I went to dinner at Gordon Ramsey’s Steak House in the Paris casino. Gordon Ramsay is known the world over as a top chef, and I have eaten several times in his Pub at Caesar’s Palace, where the food was wonderful. So it’s Gordon Ramsay’s Steak House in Las Vegas. What should I order? Steak, of course. And prepare to be blown away. Well — I was!

The $65 “steak” I ordered medium rare came out well done and so full of  gristle and connective tissue that I would not even feed it to dogs! I ate three bites that took me 10 minutes to cut.

I used to buy meat for a catering business and I know why steak has a lot of connective tissue. The animal was injured! You can see that before cooking the steak. These were not Gordon Ramsay’s steaks. Someone in the kitchen, probably the chef, was high-grading the steaks. He was selling them to another steak house and substituting inferior meat. There is a lot of money to be made that way.

Some of you are mounting your high-horse and about to tell me I should have sent the steak back. Well, here is what’s wrong with that. The other four gentlemen at my table all had the same poor meat. This wasn’t an accident — it was an operation. I don’t want to make you sick, but there are a hundred ways of dealing with a customer who complains in a restaurant, and none of them are very nice! So, you smile, keep your cool and resolve never to go back there again. Oh, and as a writer, I get to use my bully pulpit against Gordon Ramsay restaurants for the rest of my natural life. No — he had no idea this was happening. He owns dozens of restaurants around the world and he’s just one person. And, he is still a world-class chef. I wouldn’t hesitate to eat a meal he prepared. Pick your battles.

For all who want to write

Here is some sage advice to those who think they would like to write about airguns. First — just because you know words in the English language, you may not be able to write. I once read a book manuscript written by a person who said she was the authority on her subject, and her credentials backed it up. So, I agreed to proof her manuscript. Big mistake. She capitalized every word that she felt was important. She put quotation marks around words and phrases for emphasis, not knowing quotes are used to connote things that run contrary to what the words, themselves, say. For gosh sakes, guys, there are now prime-time TV commercials that use air quotes as a pun!

As a writer, this woman made an excellent airplane pilot. She had no business writing anything more complex than graffiti on an overpass.

Second point

No, I’m not done. You want to write about airguns because you want to tell it like it is. You’re tired of vanilla writers like BB Pelletier who don’t compare guns to one another. So you set up a web page, install some blogger software and start asking to borrow guns and writing. Within 6 months you discover that the retailers and airgun companies aren’t returning your calls and emails. Whatever could be wrong?

Then, someone takes you aside and calmly points out that all these places are in business to make a profit, and when you trashed their products in comparison to the ones you think are the best, they wrote you off. The doors you need to be open are now shut.

Your readers are also upset. They bought the guns you think are the best and they’re not having the same experiences as you. Oh, not everyone complains, but the ones who are satisfied keep quiet. Only the disenfranchised tell you what they think — sort of like me and Gordon Ramay’s Steak House.

After several more months of struggling you decide airguns aren’t your thing and you take up collecting My Little Pony. Welcome to Equestria!

Yep, that’s what life is like! And airgun collecting/shooting falls right in with the rest of it.

What goes around — karma

Last point. You wanted tell it like it is. So you did. What you overlooked is the fact that people in the airgun trade are just like people in all other markets. They have feelings. You can make a big deal about pointing out all the flaws in their triggers and searching the internet until you discover the source of the guns they sell and, guess what? The few doors that were still open will close. You are now officially a joke in the industry — a Judas goat. Maybe old BB Pelletier wasn’t that critical, or was he? Maybe what he did was test the airgun and report the results, without telling his readers how to interpret them. Maybe BB knew that some folks would see the results and stay away, while others would see the same results and, because the price was right, they would buy the airgun anyway. Maybe BB wasn’t such a dope after all.

Summary

I have “developed” (the quotes here mean that I didn’t really develop anything — I simply suggested it to those who could develop it) dozens of different airgun items, accessories and two new airguns over the quarter-century I’ve been doing this. My ideas come from everywhere — from my readers, from conversations I overhear and from combing the pages of gun publications and catalogs that are 50+ years old.

I pay attention and I remember things about guns and shooting because this is my passion. I don’t have to be smart. As far as guns go, I have a good rememberer.

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.
See Full Bio

226 thoughts on “Everything old is new again”

  1. Good Morning BB, someone needs to give you at least a verbal hug.
    Above my desk at home I have had for many years a framed saying by an anonymous Savant…: “Those of you who think you know everything are annoying to those of us who do.” I get folks telling me that I’m rude for displaying that all the time. I don’t even try to explain anymore… instead I keep learning how little I “know” almost every time I read about shooting on PB, airgun, water pistol and cap gun forum. I rarely post anymore since many just do not really read the threads.

    Keep up the good work of continuing to learn as much as you can; the world really can not expect more.
    shootski

  2. B.B.

    When the news becomes your history you have gained knowledge.

    Sorry, BB you should have told the maître d’ about your meal. The only way that he/or she can know what is happening in the back of the restaurant is to have somebody tell them. GR’s empire is so vast that unless somebody says something, nothing will get done.

    I once took a party of 4 to a famous chain steakhouse. It’s name should like a married couples first names.
    Everybody’s meal was great except that could not get my NY Strip medium rare(132-140 interior temp). After 3 tries, I just ate it anyway. The made the entire meal complimentary!. I also have never been back there, but at least they treated me right.

    -Y

    • Yogi,

      I did tell the head waiter, who asked if I wanted another steak. I even showed him the connective tissue in the meat. But since this one had taken an hour to prepare and since I saw the whole situation right away, I declined.

      B.B.,

      • B.B. and Yogi,

        Even if you somehow got in touch with Gordon Ramsey himself, he might not care, although the character he plays on TV always does. Often the big companies just don’t care at all about product quality or customer service. I have seen that with some of the biggest airgun companies. Come to think of it, I think it’s true of the biggest airgun companies more than the giants of other industries.

        Michael

  3. Great to see you Tom with Steve Scialli on his AEA channel at the Shotshow enjoyed the natural flow of knowledge.
    If you wish to start writing about airguns a good place to start is by doing reviews on your local airgun forum.
    Tom makes some very valid points that need to be taken into account .

  4. I thought of this the other day when the Dust Devil bb’s got a .666″ group when BB was shooting.

    So does a person lie about results when a person writes about stuff for people to read or do you tell the truth?

    My first thought is BB could of changed one number on the end of that Dust Devil group the other day for whatever purpose. But then I thought. But why? That is what group size that was shot.

    I myself would of reported that group size. It is what it is.

    And yes beating up a supplier is definitely not the way to go. Got to be diplomatic I think is the word I’m looking for in the way the product should be talked about. There is ways to tell about a problem without criticizing it. Maybe a simple suggestion of a change and why it would be beneficial.

    And I don’t even know why I’m commenting. I’m just rambling. I for one know I have a hard time getting a message relayed. And I am at the point of old. Wore out but not thrown out to the dogs yet is the way I see it. 🙂

    And BB. I remember too. 🙂
    Sometimes I am amazed that I even remember. But at least when we get old and we don’t want to bring up a old subject. People believe when I say I don’t remember. Cause I’m old. Before they wouldn’t let me get away that excuse. 😉

    • Gunfun1,

      I took a look at the CCI Stingers. Yes, the hollowed configuration is that of a star with five points. There are five interior wall, forming a pentagon. I don’t remember ever looking that closely before.

      Tomorrow, if we aren’t rained out, the First Saturday group will gather. It should be fun.

      ~ken

      • Ken
        So your having a shooting get together planned. Is it going to be plinking or do you have spinners or something setup. Something like a feild target match?

        And they do have a star shape. But no metal star? For some reason the ones I remember had a bluish black colored metal star inserted in the hollow point. Oh well that was 45 years ago when I had them. But I still can picture them in my mind with the star I described.

        • Gunfun1,

          I am not sure about the metal star. I will try to remember to take a closer look.

          The Saturday get together will be like a field target match. We don’t have a place to set up a real hunter field target course, but otherwise will follow the rules. No PCP’s allowed for the contest, but there will be some there.

          ~ken

  5. BB,

    I enjoyed your spiel very much! Being an old man myself, I hate chalkboards. I also do not know how to fly an airplane. That is why I refrain from writing about airguns.

  6. Good Mornin BB, Sometimes a person just needs to get a few scars and a little tired to really learn to listen with their ears instead of their mouth.Personal expereince.I’m a new old person (54)I just rebuilt my Air Hawk,vortec tune kit,just bought one for my K98,WHY?I really dig ballistics,testing, my new Rail Loc spring compressor!I had to endure two more back surgeries last Dec.three cages&screws.That makes four now.Patience and follow thru,I’ve got a handle on that!Thank God for air guns,shooting sports,second amendment rights!

    • Toto@f52,

      Yikes, I had two discs replaced in my neck. I still have problems on my left side, down the left arm. My only pain is radiculopathy and parasthesia but I don’t tolerate it well. Lyrica helps a lot, so I am not in a hurry to go back under the knife. You are a tough cookie, amigo.

      Best to you,
      ~ken

  7. B.B.,

    An interesting article. Good points and food for thought, which is always a good thing. As for writing, I have no illusions of grandeur. I do use/abuse/misuse the “xyz” quotation marks quite frequently. I could use (xyz) or ‘xyz’ or {xyz} or {xyz} or something else, I don’t know. To “uneducated” me, the “xyz” seems to work for emphasis. But, as you pointed out, they are used to express something contrary, or,.. tongue in cheek if you will. Sarcasm perhaps? For use in direct quotation of what somebody else has said too,… I think? 😉 Either way, there is always room to learn something new. I am too old to go back and start college, so I am just happy to be open to learning along the way.

    I am reminded of a saying that I have heard over the years,… “Hire a young person while they still know it all”.

    As for writing and knowing how far you can take a review,… I do see your point. You have not made 25 years in the business by ticking everyone off. It is obvious from your writing and comments. Somewhere in there, a bit of “reservation” is always present. ( I say reservation a bit tongue and cheek,.. because at times I also get the sense that you would like to say a whole more ). Sometimes you do say a whole lot more, which is often a surprise. I do appreciate the honesty and reporting it like it is, aspect of the blog, while at the same time being mindful of your position as a writer/reviewer,.. which,.. we as commenters are not obligated to adhere to. Which, is a compliment too,.. in that you permit us “kiddies” to go on and on with our “debates”, as long as we do it in a civil, mindful and respectful manner. We commenters learn a lot from each other.

    Sometimes I think in my Mind’s Eye, that you, on occasion, are sitting back, shaking your head and rolling your eyes in amazement as you watch and listen and see us “kiddies” bouncing around the classroom like a bunch of over sugared, hyped up little heathens. 😉

    As a reader and a regular commenter on the blog, I for one do enjoy and welcome all the different opinions. Many comments have prompted me to question something, research something or given me reason to pause and reevaluate my position. We all have our own areas of “expertise” in which we feel that we are somewhat of an “authority” on. I welcome that. Fact based or somewhat “fact” based,.. I still enjoy it.

    Enough of my “2 cents”. At any rate, an interesting article. In the end, I get the sense that you just needed to vent a little steam on some things that were bugging you and hopefully enlighten us all at the same time.

    Chris

  8. B.B.
    Your reviews are great because you lay it out in a good format. How much easier can it be that’s why I have bought guns you review it takes guessing out other wise I’d still be buying all my pellets from Walmart. I still like to try different ones but I have more of a realistic approach.
    With you and the folks here it’s a great community to learn keep up the good work.
    Bill

  10. B.B.
    For me age and experience are a double edged sword, do I have more knowledge than I had thirty years ago, for sure. The other side of the coin is that the more I know the more I realize how little I know. After over thirty years of welding I never brag about my welding skills even though most people feel I’m very accomplished at it. Over the years I’ve been privileged enough to know some welders who make my attempts at joining metal look down right amateurish. One reason I feel this way is I try to surround myself with smart and accomplished people, people worthy of emulateing and that’s one of the biggest reasons I follow this blog!
    Carl

  11. “The difficulty with this is people who read social media aren’t the ones buying their guns.
    It’s like setting your house on fire and then calling the pizza delivery guy to put it out!”

    Hahahahahaha! Thanks, B.B.! I needed a good laugh today! =D

  12. B.B.,

    Excellent Airplane! allusion. :^)

    Even if I did not know if 1/1000 of an inch size difference were a big or small size from one bore to another, I would be inclined to apply deductive reasoning. If the bore size is the only difference we can find, then it is more likely the cause of the difference in accuracy than if it were one of many differences. People do not apply Occam’s Razor enough, either.

    The worst to me are those who are so stupid they don’t even know that they are stupid.

    A student of mine, probably 18 years old, this week declared that Cary Grant could not have been a big movie star because he had never heard of him. I asked him if he was familiar with “Peek-a-Boo.” He was. I asked, so a baby thinks the world disappears when he covers his eyes because he cannot see it. You think the same way, apparently. If someone died before you were born, and therefore you have never heard of them, that person can’t be famous.

    I asked him which school had the most national football championships. He didn’t know, so I answered, “Yale, with 16 of them, and Princeton is a close second with 15. The last year either of them won was 1922. Did they not win those championships because all 31 of them were before you were born, and you never heard they won them?”

    Michael

    • Michael
      I have something just like you said put up in my workshop. It is a picture from the movie ‘The sixth sense’ and the line with it is (I see dumb people, they’re everywhere. They just don’t know they’re dumb.)
      For B.B.’s sake, I hope I got the quote marks right.
      Gerald

  13. B.B. ,
    Thanks for helping to separate the good steak from the sizzle, and there is allot of sizzle to sort through!
    And for showing up here, and writing what you know about. I cant afford the time or expense to shoot at 1000yd targets, I dont know where one does that here in N. Cali. Airguns have allowed me to enjoy that style of shooting
    in my back yard,except its only 45yds folks, and definately helps my groups when I do go to the range. But then I just end up shooting really well at dirt clods.

  14. Mr. Gaylord:
    Consumer Reports routinely does do direct model to model and brand to brand comparisons. CR accepts no advertising, pays for all the products it tests, and is a nonprofit organization which has no shareholders. CR also has annual testing budget of approximately $25 million dollars.

    If I wanted a side by side comparison of Air Rifle X to Air Rifle Z, then CR might be where I’d look. Even though I can’t recall EVER seeing any air rifle reviewed in CR. And I doubt you’ve got a $25 million dollar budget to buy all the air guns you test.

    Your blog today made me think of an old old quote I like from Chapel v Clark, 117 Mich 638, 640 (1898) which I’ve occasionally used.
    “The law requires only the exercise of ordinary skill and care, in the light of present knowledge….the responsibility of (a professional) does not differ from that of a lawyer or physician. When either possesses the requisite skill and knowledge, and in the exercise thereof has used his best judgment, he has done all that the law requires.”

    Being “a good rememberer” might be the source of your experience. But the enduring value of your blog is the humor, knowledge, wisdom and professionalism you bring to it everyday.
    Respectfully submitted,
    William Schooley
    Rifle Coach
    Crew 357
    Chelsea, MI

    • Mr. Schooley,

      This is the first post of your’s I have seen (although you may well have posted before; I can’t keep up with all I would like to).

      Your post piqued my curiosity. It took me about three minutes to find the piece you wrote for the Spring 2015 issue of “The Mentor”, “On Transitioning Out & Back”.

      All I can say is, “Well done, sir”.

      ~ken

    • Mr Schooley,
      I have been meaning to ask a favor if you would be so kind as to consider it. Is it possible, time permitting for you to share your knowledge in position shooting as a guest blogger ? With spring around the corner and shooting season near this is something I would be very interested in.
      Thank you sir for your consideration and service!
      Carl

      • Carl:
        What I do as a rifle and pistol coach is not rocket science. And I’m not sure I could come up with 2,000 original words of wisdom on coaching position shooting. Even my advise to start with mastering standing position first before seated or prone isn’t original. See Coaching Young Rifle Shooters by Gary Anderson pg. 60

        As an NRA instructor, I use NRA instructor resources for example NRA BASICS OF RIFLE SHOOTING ($13.00)
        http://materials.nrahq.org/training-materials/basic-rifle-shooting-handbook-only.html

        While I’ve had NRA and USSA coaching training, the most influential coaching instructor I’ve ever had is Mr. Gary Anderson now Director Emeritus of the Civilian Marksmanship Program. The coaching techniques I use are his. The coaching resources I use are his. I’m concerned that anything I might write about position shooting could legitimately be construed as plagiarism from him. So rather than writing as a guest blogger, let me share with you and those who read Mr. Gaylord’s blog some of the coaching resources that I’ve found to be vey useful.

        There are several resources I’d suggest to anyone who want’s to improve their position shooting. Most of these resources are free and available on the web. And all come from the CMP.

        Teaching Rifle Positions to New Shooters
        This is a freely available 10-page PDF guide to the prone, standing and kneeling positions.
        http://thecmp.org/wp-content/uploads/TeachingRiflePositions.pdf

        CMP Guide To Rimfire Sporter Shooting CMP Guide To Rimfire
        https://thecmp.org/wp-content/uploads/Rimfire.pdf

        There are also several short CMP marksmanship training videos free and available on the web which cover the basics of the kneeling, standing, and prone positions.
        Building the Positions: Kneeling
        http://vimeo.com/30903705
        Building the Positions: Standing
        http://vimeo.com/30857781
        Building the Positions: Prone
        http://vimeo.com/30815959

        An excellent quarterly publication is ON THE MARK. Subscription information and back issues are available at
        https://thecmp.org/communications/on-the-mark/

        For someone who wants to develop as a shooting coach, I’d suggest two CMP power point presentations, Ten Lessons I Wish I Had Learned As A Young Shooter lesson six and Mr. Anderson’s book Coaching Young Rifle Shooters.

        Principles of Marksmanship, by Gary Anderson,
        http://thecmp.org/wp-content/uploads/Principles_of_Marksmanship_Instruction.ppt

        Mental Training, the Triangle of Success, by Mark Taylor.
        http://thecmp.org/wp-content/uploads/Mental_Training.ppt

        Coaching Young Rifle Shooters by Gary Anderson, ($20.95).
        https://estore.thecmp.org/Catalog/Item/758

        Ten Lessons I Wish I Had Learned As A Young Shooter LESSON 8 – YOUR DOG WON’T BITE YOU WHEN YOU COME HOME AFTER SHOOTING A BAD SCORE; HOPEFULLY YOUR COACH, PARENTS AND FRIENDS WON’T BITE YOU EITHER
        https://thecmp.org/wp-content/uploads/Gary_OTM_Summer2013.pdf
        Respectfully submitted,
        William Schooley
        Rifle Coach
        Crew 357
        Chelsea, MI

        • Mr. Schooley,
          To quote Vince Lombardi “only perfect practice makes perfect” and the link to the cmp teaching shooting positions to new shooters was exactly what I was looking for! It is definitely going to help get me started off on the right foot, thank you again sir.
          Carl

    • Mr. Schooley,

      I have looked back over the posts and I find you have been an active member of this community for a while. I regret that I am unable to read every word posted.

      ~ken

    • Wm.Schooley,

      I am a big fan of CR myself, but I have to advise you to take even their ratings with a grain of salt. I worked for GE in their Major Appliance division for 42 years and know that the exact same washing machine, clothes drier, microwave oven, dish washer, etc was made on the same line by the same employees and carried as many as 4 different brand names. GE, Hotpoint, Sears, J.C.Penny and various others throughout the years were made in our factories ( we had 6 huge manufacturing and assembly plants in 1 single compound, simultaneously producing washers and dryers,ranges and microwaves, dishwashers, refrigerators and freezers, air conditioners and hot water heaters and employed 22,000 people in 1973) Consumer Reports would test them all, along with other brands that we didn’t make, of course, and our brands would end up spread all over the ratings even though they were identical in all meaningful ways. I think they do honest reporting and I don’t know what they would have to gain from skewing results so I’ve come to believe that reviews are only worth so much. Manufactured things such as appliances ,car batteries, string trimmers, and even air guns are more like snowflakes than we might realize, even with our best manufacturing practices, and single examples of the tested items are not really representative of the collective. And that’s even when you can exclude the manufacturers’ ability to misrepresent by supplying a cherry-picked example for the test. ( which CR avoids by only testing that which has been purchased by them from a retail outlet as you or I would) What would really be great is to have many outfits like CR testing under the same conditions, which is sort of what we would have if all buyers had the opportunity to, and would actually, post their rating on a product.

      I too would welcome a Guest Blog on position shooting as Coduece suggests and I enjoyed the Chapel v Clark quote.

      Half

      • Half,

        Not to start any conspiracy theories but the original battery in our 2007 4runner is still going. I should replace in but want to now how long it will last.

        Don

      • Halfstep,
        Hey buddy I have worked many shut downs at GE mostly on the monorail and floor conveyors at the Bloomington plant which is now history. I miss that place, it was hard dirty work but Rapid industry brought up several people from Louisville and I have a lot of friends down your way including you.
        Carl

        • Coduece,

          I worked in Maintenance at Appliance Park here in Louisville all my adult life. We saw lots of Rapid and Ziniz millwrights in there during Shutdown over the years. We had many, many miles of monorail and roller conveyors, as you can probably imagine in an operation the size of GEAP. I repaired and maintained the 140 odd punch presses that we had in my building alone for my first 22 years. Worked side by side with outside millwrights all the time removing and resetting the drive assemblies and gear sets on our larger presses. Heck, I even learned how to give one handed signals to mobile crane operators.

            • Coduece,

              I’m not a hardcore fan of either team. As you may know, that makes me stand out around these parts. I like them both, but I always root for the Cards when they play UK. Goes back to enjoying Denny Crum’s style of play more than Joe. B. Hall’s back in the day. And I always rooted for WHOEVER was playing Indiana when Bobby was still coaching. ( and that didn’t make me a standout at all around here! ) 🙂

      • Half:
        Ah Yes! The joys and sorrows of plant production engineering.
        As a long long ago line worker at Fords, I came appreciate how that .001 inch discrepancy between parts from different suppliers had us regularly reaching for the ford universal fix-it tool a/k/a big heavy hammer.
        WS

    • Wm.schooley,

      I am a big fan of Consumer Reports. More often than not, they have steered me in the right direction.

      If B.B. were to (buy) everything he test, then I suppose he could say anything he wanted and be very opinionated. However, that is not the case.

      Consumer Reports is very well worth the money, especially if a person is a spender. (I am not) I want comparison and I want factual information. Everything is a roll of the dice, but with CR, at least you are putting the odds in your favor of coming up a winner.

      Chris

  16. Well running out of time for the day. Got to get out and unbox the Gauntlet. I almost enjoy that as much as shooting them. Definitely like to see how a manufacturer packages their air guns.

    And if anyone is interested. I will give a report on it this weekend. And yes it will be right here on the blog and no I don’t have a website reviewing guns. Sounds like good retirement work to me though. But maybe one day I will. Heck might as well dream big right. 🙂

    But seriously no that would be the last thing I want to do. Air gunning is my hobby. Soon as deadlines start getting attached to the situation along with other things it tends to take the fun out of things. I seriously have thought about opening a few businesses throughout time. First it was a speed shop building engines and such and race cars when I was young. Then it was a hobby shop at a time when I was big into rc airplanes. Now it’s air guns. And I have to honestly say this time I don’t want to have any kind of business with shooting involved. Heck if I had a lathe and Bridgeport I could be making custom air gun parts and selling them. But as it goes that takes the fun out of things when your start getting booked up with work.

    I’ll stay with my machinist job and call that work. But I won’t call my hobby work this time around. I am getting to old to worry about adding more things to my plate. All I want to do is enjoy what little free time I have.

    I think if I did what BB does everyday that I wouldn’t even want to look at a air gun again. But as it’s been said before. When a person has a passion for something you never know what can happen. Passion is power.

    • Gunfun1,

      I’ve been looking for .177 reviews too. I’m thinking the large shot count would make this a good plinker and .177 would make for cheaper shooting. Hope yours is as good as the .22s that I’ve seen reviewed, accuracy-wise.

      • Halfstep
        I do hope my .177 Gauntlet shoots as well as the.22 caliber version. Was definitely impressed with them. Went ahead and made the choice to get one in .177 from what I seen of the .22’s. I know that is not the right way. But that’s all I had to go off of.

      • Halfstep,
        Cool I worked for ziniz too but worked for rapid mostly Brian Curl mostly, all good people I remember them talking about an old timer back in the day they called rope fall joe. That place was like a small city back in the 70s and eighties. I’ve been doing heavy rigging and some fab work the last twenty years. But it not as much fun as climbing around in the steel.
        Carl

        • Coduece,

          I tell people to search for Appliance Park Loop, Louisville, KY on Google Earth to see just how much ground it covers. The building ( Building 6 ) at the bottom of the image (south) burned to the ground nearly 2 years ago and the business to the east of our parking lot is now a Fed Ex distribution center. It used to be the rest of our parking lot back in the boom times. You still couldn’t find a parking place a lot of the time. It was designed to be converted into a military landing strip in war time but after we dwindled from 22,000 to barely 3000 they decided to sell the land to Fed Ex.

  17. Oh and BB.

    I’m surprised you haven’t reviewed a Gauntlet yet. Especially as popular of a gun as it is. Really how come you never got one? Who makes that decision? And just out of respect I won’t say anything about the one I got untill you review one. Since this is your blog anyway. Seriously.

    • B.B.,

      Like Gunfun1 I am very curious about the Gauntlet and am hoping you will report on one. Another of the budget PCPs I am curious about but hear little about is the Beeman Chief. For one thing, if it does have the old Crosman 160 version 2 trigger, it might be adjustable to something very nice. If you could report on that at some point . . . :^)

      Michael

      • Michael
        And you know what bugs me. Is when I searched for reviews or video’s the only thing I find is .22 caliber Gauntlet’s no .177 stuff that I can find anyway. There is talk about a .25 caliber version but haven’t seen anything on it.

        My Gauntlet is .177 caliber. So it might be one of the only reports about it right now.

  18. And now I know why my steak or my chicken breast is tough! Who ever expected so much wisdom being imparted from a “humble” airgun blog! You hit another one out of the park, BB, or should I say you shot a perfect 100 in the 25 yard timed Bullseye round? High-grading steaks? Another bit of education!

    When I wrote for a regional motorcycle magazine and did a review on a new machine, like you I presented the good with the bad – tight ergonomics but what a great handling bike (something like that). It was up to the readers to realize the bike was a very tight fit and therefore very uncomfortable for anything but track use or a Sunday morning ride.

    Fred formerly of the DPRoNJ now in GA

    • Fred,

      Even cheap cuts will benefit from not being cooked into a hockey puck. I prefer medium rare, but too often they are cooked to medium or even medium well-done. Therefore, I have begun simply ordering my steaks “rare, but not totally bloody.” That usually gets me a steak that is genuinely medium rare.

      Michael

      • I must be the easiest sort of customer to please when ordering a steak in a restaurant as I only like it if it’s well done. My best friend has completely opposite tastes: in her case I think that briefly showing the steak a picture of a candle flame makes it over cooked! I’m actually not a big steak eater (my wife gets steak much more often than I do) but every now and then I get the craving and absolutely nothing will do but a really nice filet Mignon. Expensive, but worth it.

        I’ve finally had some time to do some shooting with my now cataract free right eye. Wow, did I ever get rusty in my time off but it felt so good to send some pellets through the rifles for the first time in months!

        • Nowhere,

          Please, I beg you, do not do that to a nice Filet Mignon. :^) If you like Filet Mignon, then I just know there is a steak lover in you.

          The next time you order one, order it medium. Medium, period. Be sure to put nothing on it except maybe a tiny bit of salt and pepper. Make each bite a small piece, chew slowly, and really concentrate on how it tastes and feels in your mouth. Inhale through your nose as the fork is almost in your mouth, and breathe through your nose at least a couple times during each bite. After each bite, wait a little while before putting anything else in your mouth. Eat the entire steak this way.

          I think you will be surprised by the experience. If it goes how I think it will, then the next time order the filet Medium-rare, and eat it the above way again.

          Michael

        • Nowhere,

          Glad you are free of cataracts. I’m dreading the day when I get them, since my eyes seem to be the only things workin’ worth a darn these days. Does your best friend cry uncontrollably when she has to watch you eat a filet cooked well done? 😉

  19. Michael,

    Do you ever eat at Buckhead Grill? It’s a chain in my area of KY and I don’t know its range, but I eat at several of them all the time and have never gotten a steak ( I eat sirloin ) that was not perfectly Medium Rare. They really nail it.

    • Halfstep,

      I love a good sirloin or ribeye! Ribeye is a great lunch steak. A ribeye for lunch and a sirloin for supper! Oh, man. Now I’m hungry.

      I’ve breezed though Louisville and Lexington many times (but all of those times years ago). Unfortunately, I never had the time to get off the ugly interstate (Chicago — Indianapolis — Louisville — Lexington — Knoxville — Asheville — Spartanberg — Columbia) and see the beautiful countryside or try some of the cuisine.

      Michael

  20. B.B.,

    I hope you let off enough steam, the pressure must of got pretty high. I remember waking up in the middle of the night and writing some letters to folks that kept asking me the same questions at meetings for months on end. I don’t know if they were all stupid and thought the answer would change or if they did not care and thought I would change the answer to the one they wanted. I kept telling them they could change the laws of man but not the laws of nature. When I finally lost my temper I knew it was time for me to retire. I hope your passion for air guns keeps you enjoying your job. You have a gift for not getting caught up in the pushing and shoving around you and still hit the target every time.

    I caught a bug early in the week and it knocked me down all week. I was planning on more reports on the Crosman 101 but did not feel like doing any more work on it. I have been reading the blog though. Now I have to catch up on the work around here mostly the garden.

    I did get in some pellet testing just before I got the bug though with the Crosman 101. I tried another barrel band/pump pivot bracket that fit the Maximus barrel much tighter than the one on the gun when I got it. I shot at 20 yards before but with the bigger bright orange stick on bullseye I felt I could do the more normal 25 yards. These are 5 shot groups. I think the Crosman Premier 14.3 gr. in the top left bull could be better. It takes me a while to warm up. The bottom right target was with the H&N Field Target Trophy 14.65 gr. 5.55 mm pellets. My next plan is to do some 10 shot groups with the H&N FTT pellets. If the group does not get too much larger for a 10 shot group I don’t see what else I can do with the gun to make it better. Maybe it will deserve a refinishing.

    I do want to set up a spreadsheet model for the 101 that compares pump strokes to valve pressure and pump handle force and pellet velocity. This exercise has really made me think and cleared out a few cob webs.

    Don

    • Benji-Don,

      Looks like you have a winner with those FTTs. I have found through using a PelletGage that the 5.55s mostly measure 5.57mm, just for your information and for what it’s worth. It’s a big pellet. The Jumbo Heavies show promise as well. Where are you finding 70 degree calm conditions in early Feb ? No fair !

      • Halfstep,

        I am in the Sacramento area. We have been breaking temperature records almost every day for a couple of weeks. No rain in sight it may be another low water year. Still have a couple months left I hope for rain and snow. The weeds in the winter garden have been out of control.

        Don

    • Don
      Looks like them FTT’s are hitting nice.

      And yep everybody at work is still got the bug going on. One of the leads on 3rd shift had to go to the hospital. Had it for a few days then started having problems breathing. I had something a couple weekends ago and it was a pain in the butt.

  21. BB,

    I’m anxious to hear your impressions of the Gauntlet and QB Chief, as well, along with all the new entry level guns you showcased at SHOT. If lack of funds is a factor,maybe a Patreon or PayPal account for contributions toward the cause is in order. Or maybe we just need to be patient. Naw, that don’t sound right ! 😉

  22. BB
    Sorry but got to do it. Too good of news to hold back.

    First off. Very nice packaging of the gun. Surrounded by the white molded foam and enclosed in a big plastic bag. Everything was in place in the box and not rattled around from shipping.

    Next the gun reminds me alot of my synthetic .177 Marauder I had. But looking closer it resembles my QB79 in the way the main tube and how the bottle attaches. And the bottle cover is very easy to get off. I did not try to degass or remove the bottle after I filled it. And the trigger is pretty much the same as my QB79. It was a little gritty feeling at first. So oiled t up and the bolt and probe and o-rings (yes o-rings, it has two o-rings on the probe). It has definitely smoothed out after about 50 shots now. And the bolt is smooth to cock and feels pretty much like the same pressure as my modded .25 Marauder I had with a 12 pound spring it had in it. I just put my thumb behind the breech and my fingers on the bolt and squeeze and pull back at the same time. Oh and the comb adjusted nice for my cheek weld.

    And to scoping it. I couldn’t use the picatinny rings I had when the scope was mounted on my Savage. I was using the little UTG picatinny to dovetail adapters like these.
    /product/utg-11mm-3-8-dovetail-to-weaver-adapter-2pcs?a=4148
    And it wasn’t the adapter’s causing a problem. My scope rings bottomed out before they would clamp the UTG adapters down on the dovetail of the gun. The adapters still had more travel to clamp. Luckily I had some dovetail rings that came with one of my UTG scopes I got. So then finally onto sighting the gun.

    I’ll show a target at the bottom. But I just did some random shots before I shot at the target. And it was shooting high and right from the Savage sighting. So you will see on the paper I wrote down what was what.

    And last haven’t chronyed it yet but it definitely hits my steel spinners with more athourity than my QB79 and hits just a bit less than what my .22 Maximus hits the spinners. And I should say is definitely quieter than the QB79. I would say comparable to a.177 Marauder.

    And last thing the dip in the stock in front of the trigger gaurd is where I rested the gun on my shooting bag. Which is pretty much the same location I shoot my QB79 at and the Marauder’s also when shooting from a bag. And standing holding the gun unsupported does not feel like it is as heavy as it is. The weight of the gun is mostly back by the trigger and back. So they do have the gun balanced nice.

    Oh and it does say made in China on it. But hay 3 China products air gun related I have now. Well maybe more that I don’t realize either. But I do like what I see so far.

    Here’s the target.

        • Halfstep
          Yep is a shooter. That’s why I had to post the results. I still have more things I want to do with it. Like get some velocity and spread and shot count per fill. Just didn’t have enough time today. Just getting to work right now. Got to be back tomorrow morning at 6:00 after working tonight.

          But yep I realized I didn’t put the pellet type I used. Was going to eventually. And I figure by now everyone knows my favorite pellets are JSB 10.34’s in .177, JSB 14.89’s in .22 and JSB 34.95’s in .25 caliber. Those are the pellets I use in all my guns with the exception of the Daisy wadcutters for my WildFire.

      • Don
        Yep so far so good. Now to see how long it holds up. That’s one thing that can be done when you own a gun. Most reviews you see or read only do some brief tests on guns then they go back and are never seen again. Well unless I guess they like it and decide to buy it.

        But yep if it works out I may end up with a .25 caliber Gauntlet when I find them for sale. And speaking of that. They pushed the available date back on the Fortitude again. Now it’s 6/12/2018.

      • Mike
        Believe it or not I prefer .177 over .22. I shot .177 pesting for a long time. I know how well it works. I have seen .22 caliber bounce of the head of racoons where the .177 just peirce’s right through. The .22 is big and it mushrooms bigger so it makes it hard for it to make it through the skull. The .177 will just bore right through the skull. Trust me when that .177 makes it through and rattles around in there it will get the job done. Same with chest shots. It’s almost like it’s hard for the .22 to make it through the fur. Where a.177 will poke through like a needle.

        My second choice is a .25 caliber actually. Then the .22 caliber last. I know I got the .22 Maximus but I would take a .25 caliber over .22 also. My Maximus has some punch to it but mostly I have it cause it’s accurate.

        And yep we’ll pleased with the Gauntlet so far.

        • Gunfun1,

          That makes sense, but the .22 or .25 should hold more power and buck the wind better at greater distance.

          I look forward to your adventures with the Gauntlet.

          Mike

          • Mike
            It’s probably got to do more with velocity at a given distance than anything.

            But if you increase velocity in a .177 and of course still have a accurate gun. The .177 will probably peirce better than a .22 that is also increased in velocity at a equal distance.

            And actually you get the right grain and velocity in .177 and it will perform in wind out to say 60 yards pretty much the same as .22 caliber.

            .25 caliber is the one that usually out performs in penatration and wind bucking than the other calibers out to longer distances. As long as the velocity is there.

              • Mike
                Right that is usually the issue with a .25 caliber gun. Can it make enough velocity to propel a decent weight pellet. And I’m not talking just pcp. Multi-pump and springers have the same issue with .25 caliber.

                But I do think there is more chance of a .25 Gauntlet making enough power in .25 caliber verses a springer or multi-pump.

                I do hope we hear more about a .25 Gauntlet. Fingers crossed.

                • Gunfun1
                  Do you have enough info on the .25 caliber to compute what the minimum FPS generated would be required for efficacy?
                  The reason I ask is that I am only interested in springers and I’ve seen a few on the market in .25 cal that have been a temptation. Of course these would be on the magnum platform, so consideration of cocking force required and accuracy potential would be my highest considerations. If I knew a springer’s FPS with a standard weight for class to generate, say 12 fpe, I think that would give me a working short list. Can you help? Thanks.
                  Larry from Algona

                  • LarryMo
                    I detuned a few magnum springers in .25 caliber. Both Hatsan’s.

                    Basically both guns had 3 inches of preload on the spring. I cut the spring to zero preload. The guns definitely got better to shoot. Smoother and more accurate. They thumped and jerked and vibrated from the factory. Was really hard to shoot accurately. Cocking was rediculous too.

                    Afterwards they were much more pleasant to shoot. And this may be what your after. The velocity went from 700 fps with 34 grain pellets down to 450 fps with the same pellet. Was really nice guns out to 25 yards.

                    But that was at about 15 fpe so I bet you could come up with a lighter spring and get your 12 fpe that you want.

                    • GF1,

                      That is a bit different from the TX200 where you cut the spring and suffered no fps loss,… if I am remembering right. If not, please correct me.

                    • Gunfun1
                      Thanks for your reply.
                      12 fpe was really an arbitrary number. I have springers in the 13-14 fpe range that are still easy to cock and are quite pleasant to shoot. I DO remember your exercise in cutting off spring coils, and I guess I’m prepared enough to do that to the current crop of magnum rifles.
                      Since I have a spring compressor and a chrono, I guess the only information I’m needing is what do you consider the optimum pellet weight for the .25 – considering there’s the 8gr for .177 and the 14gr for the .22? This would be for animals at short range like a ‘possum or raccoon. Sounds like you may have settled on the 34gr?
                      LMo

                  • Larry,

                    From my experience, you need that fps to get pellet stability at distance. That is a hard sell in a springer without getting a nasty shooting springer. For me, for .25 cal., get a PCP. GF1 knows more, but that is my take away from what I have learned.

                    • Chris USA
                      Thanks for replying. I’m not really going for distance, just a tolerable shooter that is capable of taking raccoon size game at about 25-30 yards. I think with getting a monster and cutting down spring coils like GF did, then I could come up with pretty much what I’m looking for.
                      Not ever having a .25, I was most curious as to what the pellet weight range would be to give me a good choice of hunting pellets.
                      LMo

                  • LarryMo
                    When your talking .25 caliber things seem to change more when you start talking power and weight. Especially with a springer. Not so much with a PCP.

                    The JSB 34.95 pellets are a little heavy for a springer like we are talking about. Not because it won’t shoot them accurately or power wise. It’s because it has such a arched trajectory. So you got to do some heavy hold overs when the distance of your shot changes just a little bit.

                    So probably a light pellet in the 25 grain weight might help that a bit. So saying that you almost got to put some targets out every 10 yards from 10-50 yards and make you a cheat sheet so to speak with your holds written down.

                    A .25 caliber low velocity gun is a bit of a challenge to shoot in the sense we are talking about. But it will improve those skills for sure. 🙂

                  • LarryMo
                    I just read your comments back and forth to Chris.

                    The tune on a .25 springer I’m talking about will take a bird. Not a raccoon.

                    If your going for a coon with that .25 caliber velocity and grain pellet we just talked about you better be at 15 yards at the most. And it will need to be a body shot. Definitely not a head shot.

                • Gunfun1,

                  You’ve reminded me of something. A while back somewhere in the wilderness of the internet I read a blog where a fellow described an experience he had growing up on a farm that raised hogs.

                  He and his dad put pigs down by coming up behind them with a single-shot 22LR youth rifle and shooting them behind the ear. Worked almost instantly and perfectly time after time. One night his dad realized he forgot to buy more .22LR ammo. So they took his dad’s .32 S&W revolver instead. I might be worng, but I believe .32 S&W producesonly slightly more foot-pounds of energy than a standard .22LR, perhaps almost the same energy from a 4 inch barrel as opposed to the .22LR exiting an 18 inch barrel.

                  So while the energy was roughly the same, the lower velocity and wider .32 S&W shot from one inch behind the hog’s skull, ricocheted. The hog, squealing like crazy, started running all over the place, and wouldn’t let anyone near it for a very long time. He described it as an incredible fiasco.

                  Michael

                  • Michael
                    Yes that’s exactly what I’m talking about with the .177 verses a .22 caliber pellet or even the bigger .25 caliber pellet.

                    The only reason the .25 will take a raccoon out if hit in the skull is because the gun I’m talking about was making alot of velocity. Basically the for was there to penetrate.

                    And there is more things to think about like the angle the pellet hits at. More of a angle the more chance of not penetrating.

                    And this will probably blow people away. I have seen a .177 caliber pellet that is making less energy than a .22 and .25 caliber pellet penetrated deeper when shot into the mud in a creek bed. Me and my brother done it out at his place. And for sure the hole diameter in the mud was a smaller diameter than the .22 and .25 pellet hole in the mud.

                    So yes energy is distributed different for the mass of the pellet.

  23. All around interesting. The business about convertible .22 revolvers strikes close to home. I would think that the bore size would have to be determined by the larger cartridge which would be the .22 WMR. So, it would follow that the larger cartridge would be more accurate than the smaller one because of better fit. Yet, for my Ruger Single Six, the .22 LR is quite accurate and the .22 WMR is mediocre at best. Moreover, the LR cylinder seems to have a quasi-target chambering and will not fit some brands. In any case, we cannot single out the Koreans for being casual about bore size since many others have done the same. I was astounded to learn that .303 bullets come in a variety of difference sizes. .311 is the standard except for my British WWII surplus which turns out to be .30 and has caused some major hassle in my reloading.

    The Gordon Ramsay experience is really appalling. Wasn’t he the star of the Hell’s Kitchen show where he made a name for himself by berating and abusing contestants? I’ve since come to have a grudging respect for his sense of standards (especially when he confronted one pair of fraudulent restaurant owners in a tv show). But if you’re going to be so harsh, there is NO room for error on your part, and shortcomings by his restaurant are no excuse. You’re responsible for everything in your name as far as I’m concerned. I’ve seen enough people complaining about their food that I cannot believe that restaurants retaliate universally. There are probably many obnoxious customers who richly deserve this kind of treatment who don’t get it. But the risk is undeniable. Much better to fade away from the precincts and to write a blistering letter as a professional writer can do and send it as high up the chain as you can.

    Incidentally, the worst steak I’ve ever had was in New Zealand. A nice young woman took my order at a steakhouse, and what I got was literally inedible. It was all bone and gristle. There was another pub where a young man offered to throw in a complimentary “salad” with my meal, and it was a few stringy vegetables, although that incident made me laugh. New Zealand was also my first introduction to airguns where I paid money for a circus-type shooting range and missed every single target. The owner was so provoked that he got up and hit everything. Maybe he thought I was making his equipment look bad. Nevertheless, New Zealand was an overall a fun place to visit.

    Quotation marks and their use are interesting. While they are often abused, there is a method to the madness. I made many of the mistakes myself while learning to read and write. It was not until graduate school, while learning much useless information, that I got a deeper understanding of quotation marks. They are technically supposed to identify the words of another person besides the speaker/writer. However, as one scholar has explored in astounding detail, gaining an outside perspective on the words of another opens a conceptual distance that is the basis of irony. One hears of an “ironic distance.” So, it becomes possible to use quotation marks not just for the words of another individual but to represent a common usage whose meaning you may want to reverse for your own purposes. A reversal of meaning is one common type of irony but not the only one. Once you gain distance on the words of one speaker, this process continues until you gain distance on yourself in the form of increased self-awareness. Correspondingly your own use of words becomes self-conscious and this can lead to an infinite number of inflections and nuances. For example, one of the memorable blog headings, “The bluebird of happiness slaps me in the face,” has what my scholar calls “implied quotation marks” around the phrase, “bluebird of happiness,” which is used in an unexpected (and hilarious) way. Most of this is the province of creative writing, but it bleeds out into conversation as well. So, it is possible that B.B.’s writer with her careless use of quotation marks had some rationale for what she was doing. But that’s not to say she was right either. She was at the bottom of a slippery slope that she foundered on long ago. As with gun design, it is a good bet to be reliable and robust in your use of language.

    Also, I agree that the key is to remember what you read without which all the information in the world will do you no good. The great geniuses of all time like Isaac Newton, the mathematician Leonhard Euler, and John von Neumann (the inventor of software among other things) had one thing in common despite their different interests which was vast working memories. These are not the same thing as photographic memories although in some cases they had that as well. A photographic memory has the exactness and vividness of a picture. A working memory is the ability to hold information in your mind over long periods of time and see relationships within it. Newton, apparently, made some of his great discoveries by just reflecting on them constantly over years until “they gave up their secret.” I have wondered if what we think of as genius level insight is really just the power to hold many things in our head so that what appears to be obscure reasoning and hidden connections to the rest of us is just common sense and natural to the geniuses; in other words, an effect of memory more than intelligence. Anyway, regardless of one’s abilities, it is key to remember information and digest its significance over time.

    Matt61

    • Matt61,

      Your “She was at the bottom of a slippery slope” had implied quotation marks. ;^)

      I use the word elliptical for absent-but-implied constructions and punctuation. For example, the imperative sentence, “Stop!” has an elliptical subject: [You].

      I am unfamiliar with Euler, but Newton and other great minds used “memory houses” as an elaborate visual mnemonic exercise. My old Chaucer professor, Mary Carruthers, produced landmark scholarship on the subject, which is fascinating. It did take her away from literature and Medieval studies for a time, but I can see how. If it interests you, you might check out some of her books on memory in the Middle Ages in particular.

      (Hey, did you catch the implied clause above?)

      Michael

      • Hi Michael. Those implied quotation marks are everywhere when you start looking for them, and I probably did not catch all of yours. I’ve heard of an “elliptical sentence” which is the one kind of sentence that doesn’t need both a subject and a predicate because they are implied by the context.

        Euler was one of the historically great geniuses of mathematics whose most visible contribution is defining the number e = 2.71828… which appears everywhere and has some kind of deep connection with the universe. He also had total recall of everything he had ever read. I wasn’t aware that Newton or other scientists used the memory house method, although I have heard of it. Hannibal Lecter uses it to organize his vast knowledge with great effect. In one book when he is getting tortured by people who are even worse than he is, he imagines a famous statue of a beautiful woman and imagines pressing his face against it, and finds relief. While the memory house was very powerful, I’m not sure that it was exactly the same as the working memories of the great geniuses. As I understand it, the memory house was a device for rote memorization in a time when most people were illiterate while a working memory is more analytical and depends on an understanding of the concepts. But there is no strict dividing line between memory and understanding.

        I have heard of Mary Carruthers. My own Chaucer professor was a guy named John Victor Fleming who also mentioned the prodigious feats of memory of medieval people. This is further support to my thesis of the superiority of pre-modern peoples. Fleming claimed that a common devotion for Lent was to memorize the entire New Testament! So, the semi-civilized people of the Middle Ages had memories on a level with our greatest modern geniuses!? But that is assuming that their types of memory were the same.

        The business about self-consciousness which I heard a lot of in graduate study seemed pointless and self-indulgent at the time. But I have since found it in unlikely places. The goal of Zen koans like, “What is the sound of one hand clapping?” have no rational answer; they are supposed to project you into a higher state of self-awareness. As another example, Arnold, as a reprogrammed good Terminator in the movie series, tells the story of the rise of the machines. He describes how computing power increases “geometrically” until the machines achieve “self-consciousness” and become autonomous and truly dangerous. So, there is something to this self-consciousness.

        Matt61

        • Matt61,

          My recollection of memory houses (pun probably intended) was that some great and famous “thinkers” of the Middles Ages through the Renaissance used the method to commit to memory large pieces such as the New Testament. The effect, as I recall reading, was to visualize the text to be able to recall it, a sort of photographic memory at will.

          Professor Carruthers was not just obviously brilliant, she was a rarity among top scholars (and I’ve studied under more than a few), a superb teacher. She clearly enjoyed being in the classroom. I hope she has found a way to keep some teaching in her life.

          Very cool stuff, memory houses.

          Michael

  24. Crosman Custom Shop info. for anyone interested:

    – Custom Shop is only for on-line orders. Parts are call in.
    – An adult must be home to sign for a (air gun) purchase upon delivery. I have used Pakmail as a ship to site in the past so that I could pick it up at my convenience.
    – (on parts) They do not back order items. Either you can get it when you call, or you can not ever get it. They only bill for what they sell you at that time.
    – No discount codes apply to the Custom Shop

    BIG NOTE: Order on Fridays and get free shipping.

    Since Hiveseeker has generated interest in the Custom Shop line up, I thought that I would pass along this info. for anyone considering a Custom Shop item. I called and spoke with a person there today. My own personal plan is to get a 2400, fit it with a Maximus barrel and add some other goodies. Oh yea, go with the non-LW barrels and get the standard ones (long) to get the best valve, per Hiveseeker.

    • Chris,

      I think you will be happy. I would expect that the custom shop will be using the new Maximus barrel technology in the future as an option. I would not wait though you should be good to go with the Maximus barrel.

      I have two more .177 Maximus barrels one is machined for the Crosman 101 breech. I have not tried them yet.

      Don

      • Don,

        On regular gun orders only I do believe. Not parts. Either way, I will only be ordering on Friday’s regardless, phone or on-line, guns or parts. Hiveseeker did say that you may get different answers depending on who picks up the phone though.

        • Chris U
          Nowhere to respond above.

          Yes I did say that about the Tx. But also you need to remember the rest of what I said.

          I said I had different results when I cut the springs on different guns.

          Some lost fps and some didn’t change at all. There is more involved with the equation. Remember we are talking different bore diameters and strokes as well as the piston seal.

          • GF1,

            Yes,.. I just wanted to be sure that I was remembering correctly. Most springers are over-sprung for what is really needed, is my take-away on the subject. If they took the time, they could go with a lighter spring and still get the same results. And, make a smoother shooting springer. Spring length, wire diameter and wind rate.

        • Chris
          Hiveseeker did mention that and I was going to comment about it on that blog he did.

          I thought about that. Back then and now that you reminded me. Don’t you think that’s a bit of hokey business?

          So now it’s a crap shoot when I I call Crosman to get something. Total bull. If they are selling something why would it be different one time than another.

          I do hope Crosman is reading this time. And if they do let this happen shame on them.

          • GF1,

            Yea, I am not sure. I am sure that they have a set policy on parts, guns, discount codes and free shipping. It could be that they did not make it clear and easy to the employees and that there is some confusion among the ranks, or different interpretations of the policies.

            I dislike the use of codes for ANY reason. That is not right to charge me 2$ when you get charged 1$ the same day for the same thing just based on a code.

            Hiveseeker’s comment had to do with limits on parts, like barrels. Something like you had to have 2 Crosman items to get 2 Crosman barrels. So if you wanted 3, you could only get 2. What if I got mine at Wally world? What if I got it from P.A.? How do they know how many of their products I have? That whole thing sounded just plain ridiculous and obviously someone at Crosman is confused to say the least.

            The next time I call, I will have a list of questions ready, see what answers I get and relate them back here on the blog. Benji-Don could do the same as he has been ordering quite a bit of stuff from them as of late.

            Like I said, I will only order on Friday’s, which is all I can do anyways working 4 tens. I like their model of having all that stuff available to the public for home tuning and modding. That is just plain awesome in my book!!!

            • Chris U
              Well let me know what those answers are from Crosman. Maybe they will surprise both of us. 🙂

              And how come you don’t think Pyramyd AIR don’t know what orders you make?

              I can go to my account and check previous orders all the way back from when I first started buying from Pyramyd AIR.

                • Chris U
                  Crosman wouldn’t know what you bought from Pyramyd AIR.

                  It sounds to me like you and Hiveseeker say that when you order from Crosman that they will only sell you enough (parts?) For what guns you bought from the custom be shop.

                  How does Pyramyd AIR fit in with that? Crosman has record of what you bought from them. And according to what you and Hiveseeker said will only sale parts or barrels or whatever for those Crosman guns.

                  So Crosman doesn’t care if you have more guns. They only care about the records they have of your purchases is what I’m getting out of this conversation.

  25. From the piece: “I don’t want to make you sick, but there are a hundred ways of dealing with a customer who complains, and none of them are very nice!”

    Lel. You definitely know the score, BB. That’s exactly what I do as well. I would never complain in a restaurant and ask for a replacement as there’s a good chance the staff/chef will spit on your meal (or something even more manky).

    • Chris E,

      I have to tell this story. One time my Dad a friend and I was going deer hunting. We stopped at a all night dinner at about 3:00 am. My Dad ordered biscuits and gravy. He did not get his meal until we had already ate most of ours. He set to take a chunk out of his biscuit with his fork and a funny look came on his face. He then picket up the butter knife and had at the biscuit with no results. By then my friend and I had grins from ear to ear. That set him off and he hit the biscuit with the knife hard. I think I saw sparks coming of the biscuit. Now he is trying the get the waitresses attention, no deal. When he started to get up she decided she better come over. I think we were the only ones in the restaurant. When she came over we were laughing so hard tears were rolling down our cheeks. She listened to him explain what was wrong with the biscuit but when he started attacking it with the butter knife to show her how hard the biscuit was she just walked away. By then we were rolling on the ground. I don’t remember what happened after that but Dad never did get anything to eat at that restaurant. He was into the snack box when we got back in the truck. We gave Dad a hard time about that for years.

      Don

    • CofE,

      I read a lot of British Crime novels and watch a fair amount of BBC productions on TV, but I don’t think I’ve run across the word “manky” before. (I don’t know if I used the quotes correctly) I recently encountered the word “Kuksa” for coffee cup. You guys talk funny. 😉

    • Chris,

      I thought the same on the word “manky”,…. I was going to comment, but did not. I love odd words/slang,. or at least ones that I do not know yet. Another reason that I am glad that you are here on the blog,.. a different perspective.

      A while back, I watched a video of 2 English blokes and they referred to the Police as the “Po-Po”. I forget what they were doing at the time, but suffice to say that they were doing something on the edge of legality.

  26. Todays report and comments got me curious about what is out there on air guns. I did a search on “reviews for the top 10 air guns”. Probably not the correct use of quotes but I know computer code much better than I know English.

    I looked at the first 10 sites that looked halfway legitimate, hope I did not get a virus. Almost all of them had 5-7 of the same guns with the same basic review statements. I don’t think there were many reviews where the person actually shot the gun at a target or at all. It looks like you don’t even need the gun in your hands to do a review. Accuracy, if mentioned was not supported by any data. Anyway I did not see a single site that I thought was worth reading. Much of the information was not even correct. I did get a laugh on one site that said the gun was 44 feet long, and it was not a punkin chunker.

    I am sure there are some good review sites out there but they will be hard to find.

    Thanks B.B for maintaining the best air gun blog I have seen. I do enjoy some of the other blogs also, but I read this one every day.

    Don

    • Don,

      “Hard Air Magazine” HAM, as it is sometimes called, seems to be well respected for the care it takes with its reviews. If you haven’t read it you can get a free email subscription at their website. And AEAC channel on You Tube is another that I would recommend.

      Half

      • Halfstep,

        Nigel has some nice video reviews of some of the high end stuff, at the Shot Show, over at HAM. Drool at your own risk! I love that guy! I like the dry sense of humor, but he brings it all together in a good sort of way. The Brit. accent does not hurt either. Heck,.. in the U.S.,… if you want to sell something,.. then it seems that you need a “pitchman” with a Brit. accent. Aussi. too for that matter. Or so it seems,.. at any rate.

      • Half,

        Thanks I have bookmarked Hard Air Magazine. I know there are some good reviews out there and many of the folks take care to be factual and unbiased.

        The point I was trying to make is that I just did a quick search and picked the first 10 sites that showed safe on my browser for air gun reviews. Most of them looked like they were on the same guns and had regurgitated information from the manufactures and the other sites. I just skimmed through the reviews but much of it did not strike me as the reviewer had even shot the gun. If they did, they did not provide any new data or facts about the gun. There was more sites than I expected but most of the reviews did not provide the kind of information I am used to from the more respected sites. How can you review a gun without shooting it. If you shoot it why not show the target or at least state the group data. Some of the sites talked about the virtues and heroic feats of the author as though that gave credence to their selection of the top air guns. I was just surprised that people had put all this information together with little to back it up. The one bit of data though out the articles was the muzzle velocity. I am sure I went to some of these sites before when looking for information but must have just closed them without much thought on my part.

        I normally don’t jump into an air gun purchase without a careful study of the information from folks I respect. I read the reviews on the guns at different sites. I try to read between the lines on the reviews to glean the information I want. If it is a gun B.B. has reviewed that usually provides much of my decision making information.

        Although when the Wildfire came out on sale at $99 I did pull the trigger without much thinking. No regrets there even though I have not fixed the leak yet. Forgot to put the parts on my last Crosman parts order.

        Don

        • Don
          The WildFire was a no brainier to change it from Co2 to pcp.

          The problem is they did not think it through. They changed components and not others for some crazy reason and thought the gun would work.

        • Don,

          I have watched countless video reviews on YouTube that are solely comprised of some guy reading exactly what is written on the outside of the box. That’s it. Nothing else. Well, they may add a ” It feels like it’s make well”, but little beyond that. I don’t know what they think that does to expand the knowledge base, but they label it as a “review”

        • Don
          And I should of been more specific for other readers that might not be up on what we are talking about.

          The WildFire is a great gun. I love mine. And of course here is what we are talking about. I modified mine to work at a lower fill pressure so I don’t have to deal with that leak down issue.

          For the other readers. That is what problem some WildFire’s are having.

  27. BB

    I’m not sure if the driving force for today came from blog comments but I for one take it as a reminder to use discretion and consideration of your position as host.

    It certainly brought out more than the usual pithy comments in response from the readers. Speaking of readers, in general I find the regulars here to be a cut above the usual internet crowd in terms of manners.

    I believe it is near impossible for a man with average or better perception as he experiences more of life, not to have a growing perception of the darker side of human nature. It is an inexorable, inescapable reality. And I believe it is a good thing at times to give some expression to it. You’ve done it with decorum.

  28. BB
    I have a saying, “A smart man can communicates well with his peers. An educated man can communicate precisely, with his peers, but a wise man can communicate well with everyone.”
    I believe you are a wise man.
    I enjoyed English Grammar, especially diagraming a sentence ( My analytical attraction? ) but spelling has eluded me. Hated the rules and could not stand the fact that words were not spelled as they sound. Once you are unsure of some words you begin to question the spelling of most words and if you don’t write much in your life it fades away over the years.

    I like playing with words and grammar so they better fit the way I wish to speak. Kind of like quoting something that is grammatically incorrect when spoken only doing it all the time and without the quotation marks. Expressing myself more than documenting something.
    I don’t think the world cares much about spelling anymore with all the shortcuts used in media and the way spell check decides what to say but I think a writer should at least know all the rules and use them appropriately.

    We all realize by now that just because a company puts it’s name on something it doesn’t mean they actually made it so unless you know the facts criticizing a product is some what unjust but it certainly should reflect on the companies reputation for the products they choose to sell. I think a little constructive criticism may go along way.

    I recently e mailed a company and explained that shooting this particular pistol actually hurt your hand after a short time and customers may just stop using it. The sharp edge on the bottom of the squared off trigger guard cut into my middle finger under it and the plastic seam inside the guard chafed my trigger finger when the incorrectly designed trigger pinched it between them when released.
    I then suggested a solution I used. It turned shooting it to a totally enjoyable experience. They thanked me and said they would pass it on.

    Now as far as cooked meat goes I have often said to people, ” Why don’t you just put a match under the cows belly and take a bight out of his rump! ” Obviously I prefer well done.
    Bob M

    • Bob M,

      We must be sick. I enjoyed Grammer in grade school too. Diagramming sentences didn’t even seem like schoolwork, but more like a game that you’d find in one of those Puzzle Books you find now on news stands. Can’t say that I remember how to do it to this day, exactly, but I think that I speak and write better in general because of the training. My grandson just started high school and he didn’t even know what I was talking about when I mentioned it to him one day. Apparently it has gone the way of cursive writing.

      Another subject that was more fun even than Grammer was Geometry. That really seemed like just a bunch of really fun logic puzzles to me. It was like playtime to me and I hated when class was over. I don’t really see how it can be taught, though. It seems like one of those things that your brain either works the right way or it doesn’t and I remember that the kids that didn’t get it easily from day one still had no clue at the end of the year. I was once tasked with teaching a peer training course in troubleshooting hydraulics and found that even with the course materials that I was provided I couldn’t make students think logically or deduce properly. The course provided good exercises and practice for the guys that thought that way to begin with but offered very little to the ones that had no grasp of the difference between cause and effect.

      As for all the tools to help with spelling, I’m grateful for them. This blog tells me when I spelled something wrong but doesn’t correct it, so that’s where my phone comes in. On day my wife asked, ” Who are you talkin’ to in here” I had asked, ” Hey, Siri. How do you spell….?” so many times she thought I was talking to a guest.

      • Halfstep
        Right with you on Geometry. My school called it 10th grade mathematics? and I had a hard time convincing Miramar College it was really Geometry.

        I am convinced the ability to easily analyze something is genetic. They say Albert Einstein had a hell of a lot more connective paths in his brain than an average person, kinda like BB, but I must admit it seems to detract from my emotional behavior or lack there of. They say you prefer one side of your brain or the other. You either connect the dots or not by holding a chain of thoughts.

        Funny, aviation hydraulics was my specialty in the Navy. Bumped heads with a civilian instructor one day later on trying to convince him that an accumulator could also be used as a store of fluid under pressure for emergency use, as in an engines thrust reverser, and not just a snubbing device.

        Not sure how wide spread this info is but if you right click on the misspelled word with your pointer suggested words will pop up to pick from. Just click on the correct one and it’s replaced. I’m talking lap top now. I can’t use a small phone to blog and I don’t use social media except to reach my daughters ASAP with a text msg.
        Bob M

        • Bob M
          I have worked with hydraulics most of my life. And yes agree with you on accumulators the way you mentioned.

          I brought that up years ago here on the blog about another source to power a spring gun instead of a nitro piston.

          • GF1
            I wonder if bleed air could be recycled someway instead of dumping it out of the barrel? Why not return some of it to the reservoir or low stage of a pressure pump if it’s not used to cycling a bolt? Probably more suited to a pumper or it’s just overkill like a water cooled motorcycle. Nice but not really needed.

            • Bob M
              The only way for that low pressure (catch) resivoir to transfer air to the main resivoir is it would have to be lower than the pressure in the main higher pressure resivoir.

              I guess the lower pressure catch resivoir could have a check valve in line that would dump pressure if it built higher pressure than the main resivoir.

            • Bob
              I need to rephrase this.
              “The only way for that low pressure (catch) resivoir to transfer air to the main resivoir is it would have to be lower than the pressure in the main higher pressure resivoir.”

              Should say this.The only way for that low pressure (catch) resivoir to transfer air to the main resivoir is (the main resivoir) would have to be lower than the pressure in the (catch) resivoir.

              Then the rest ot the comment should be correct.
              “I guess the lower pressure catch resivoir could have a check valve in line that would dump pressure if it built higher pressure than the main resivoir.”

              • GF1
                You got it ! Doesn’t sound too practical for the benefit. But I believe a small sliding piston with a larger working area could increase the output pressure in the smaller side, worth it?

                • Bob M
                  Worth it? You just never know.

                  Systems always intrigue me.

                  Maybe one day somebody smarter than me will implement it.

                  Until then we can have fun talking to about it. 🙂

        • Bob M,

          Thanks for the tip. It worked perfectly. Now Siri will get a rest. ( She’s British on my phone and I’m gonna miss that sexy voice.) And I am right there with you on blogging on a phone. Fingers are too big and voice is too country, I guess.

          On nearly all the equipment that I maintained the accumulators were used as ” fluid batteries “. It was rare to find them used for damping pressure spikes in the systems. What subject was the civilian instructing on anyway?

          • Halfstep
            Glad to help with spell check.
            The instructor was talking about the DC-9 thrust reverser system. He thought they were just snubbers. Hydraulic accumulators fill up with system pressure and being exposed to it can act as a system snuber. Not really intended for it but the pneumatic side of it will absorb shocks to the system. There are main system ones and sub system ones. The main system more than the subs which are upstream of the selector valves. When all the pumps fail the main take over and the isolated sub systems usually have a few operations left, ( fluid batteries if you will ) brakes, spoilers and thrust reversers for example. Not positive but I think the accumulator in the tail hook system is also a shock absorber holding it down to the deck. Been 30 years! Pressurized reservoirs probably help too.

            Another computer trick I found. When you type a web address in your mail, www:// ……, and it does not change color showing it is now a link add a blank space after it.
            Bob M

            • Bob M
              And here I go again. I talked years ago about the shocks at work. Some pneumatic and hydraulic.

              We had roller track systems that skids of parts were loaded on and got transfered to different areas. They weighed up to 1000 lbs. The shock system had to stop the skid gently.

              Isn’t it amazing what can be accomplished with hydraulics and pneumatics.

            • Bob M,

              Most of our equipment was designed to dump all the oil from the accumulators back to tank if the pumps stop for any reason. That way if you work on the machine, that stored energy will not be there to actuate any moving parts. The pump’s output actually holds a valve located in a line going directly to tank in a non-passing condition. The pump stops and that valve is now passing to tank. It helps protect unwary maintenance men.

              • Halfstep
                Aircraft hold on to hydraulic pressure after shutdown but there are many ways to bleed off the pressure before maintenance. The systems with accumulators for emergency fluid use usually have manual relief valves that require installation of a safety pin with a red flag or you can just operate the system till it stops working. The nitrogen pre-charge pressure is checked almost daily when it’s empty.
                Tell you one thing …. Never trust anybody that says he bleed off the system pressure when you start to loosen bolts on a 3,000 psi hydraulic system part. Brake systems hold a lot of fluid under pressure and will drench you in a second.
                Bob M

          • Halfstep
            This is my second reply. I think the first was clear as mud. There are obviously different levels of sophistication in hydraulic systems and I was not intending to get too deep in my first statement.

            In the main hydraulic system(s) that distributes pressurized fluid, the accumulators supplement the pumps in sudden high demand situations and absorb system pressure spikes when fluid demand suddenly stops. I was using the word snubbing for simplification. They do not snub the movement of mechanical components.
            Sub systems accumulators do act as emergency storage containers for fluid under pressure in the event of a main system failure. However, if the sub system accumulator is actually in use in an emergency situation it would also act as fluid spike ‘snubber’ as the main system did when in use. The air bladder would absorb fluid shock.. Hope I cleared up my original statement.

            • Bob M,

              I’m the one who hasn’t been clear. I have understood everything you’ve posted. My original post was my way of asking what sort of dumb*ss was your instructor if he didn’t know that accumulators “accumulate” oil under pressure. All subsequent posts have been just pointing out how the industrial applications that I dealt with differed from what you saw in aviation applications. One of the reasons that hydraulics has replace purely mechanical systems in so many areas is because of the design flexibility that it offers. Your instructor should have been aware of ALL the roles that an accumulator can play in a circuit. I received special training in hydraulics at Vickers Hydraulics School so that I could teach my coworkers in a peer training program that GE set up for its maintenance staff. The automatic bleed off of accumulated pressure was to protect the average man that may or may not have had the training and experience to know that the systems were charged even if the pumps were not running. If our pumps failed no one was gonna nosedive into the ground. Folks would just have to wait a little longer for that new Washing Machine that they ordered from Home Depot. 🙂

              • Halfstep
                Glad to see we cleared it up!
                I spent 10 of my 20 years in the Navy as an active duty reservist training Weekend Warriors as a collateral duty and was a trained instructor.
                In theory, once trained in the art of instructing you should be able to teach anything, given the necessary information and training aids and even create a training course, within standard guidelines, including test questions and answers. Experience with the topic definitely helps, especially in replying to questions and saved time looking up answers.
                That instructor may have been an electrician for all I know, but he was covering the entire aircraft in the course.
                I found an F14 instructor telling everyone that a very small actuator was the nose gear actuator, for over two years. It was actually the nose gear ‘down lock’ actuator that kept the nose gear from folding up on the ground before a locking pin was installed.
                Turns out he had no hands on experience either.

                What ticked me off was that despite being number one in a four month Navy Aviation Hydraulics Technician school and having over four years experience on a DC-9 that includes an Airforce two week familiarization class this civilian instructor refused to believe me and considered my verbal answer wrong. That was a tie breaker for being number one in the class.
                He evidently was ‘locked in’ on a very small part of the function of a hydraulic accumulator or …. was good friends of my competitor. Such is life !

                And a variable output piston 3000 PSI Vickers pump is a work of art !
                ( Thank you for bearing with us BB )
                Bob M

  29. An FYI regarding steak. The primary determinant of good or not is of course the source animal.

    You can’t make a tough old cow taste good by cooking it right. That said they are fine for stew.

    I have found that Costco sells consistently excellent steaks. While its nice to have a prepared meal at a restaurant, since sourcing our steak from Costco, I have yet to find any at a restaurant better than ones prepared at home.

  30. BB
    Now here is an example of a problem I have encountered in my old age. ( Aside from my hair being down to a thickness of only one-thousandth ) In the last paragraph above I said “take a ‘bight’ out of his rump”.
    Now I could say it’s politically correct for take a ‘bite’ out of its ass or that being from Brooklyn its the way we actually say the word bite. It could also be that it was 5:30AM and past bed time. No it’s just that my brain has developed a way of substituting like sounding words before I realize it. Perhaps I think too fast for my brain to engage my fingers or my ” rememberer ” is showing its age …. Got a kick out of that one 🙂

    Most times a sentence will sound stupid simply because I switched the words I used without compensating for it in the rest of the words, like can communicate’s’ above.
    Auto spell check is not always your friend. I need to slow down and proof read.

    Enjoy your thought provoking blogs on the weekends. They take on a life of their own and keep going.

    Godfather has become a word that demands respect …. you wear it well Tom.
    Bob M

    • Bob M
      My phone changes it back even after I proof read and correct. It’s very agrivating.

      I even turn my spell check off but my phone insists that it knows what I should say.

      Whoever rites the programs for these phones aperintly has not done any long term testing on them.

      I’ll say it again. Long term testing.

  31. More to report on the Gauntlet.

    Decided to use the magazine that comes with it instead of the single shot tray. Basically because the loading port is forward in the breech. Pretty much like my HPA QB79. It makes it a little harder to load a pellet than when the port is more rearward like the Maximus. You have to reach around farther and then try to look around the other side of the gun for where to place the pellet. Oh and I had 2 more .177 Marauder magazines from other Marauder’s I had. And been using them today and they fit and function just fine in the Gauntlet.

    And that brings me to this. I think I can say that the QB79 and Gauntlet are related. Definitely cousins. To me the Gauntlet is the updated version of a QB79. Just like the Fortitude is to the Maximus. I do believe that’s a good way to look at the Gauntlet.

    And I’m not going to post all the chrony readings. But I will say the 3 ten shot mags work nice for keeping track of shot count. First off the gun got 60 usable shots per fill and that was from 3000psi down to 1200 psi. That is where it fell off the regulator and I saw velocity start dropping off. I did get about 10 more shots down to about 900 psi. But the last 5 shots was dropping on POI (Point Of Impact) more than I liked. So I believe I can safely say that the Gauntlet gets 60 consistent shots per fill.

    So saying that. Yes the Gauntlet was consistent from shot to shot on the chrony. And I guess this is my chrony again as people say reads fast compared to the same gun and pellet with their chronys. But here it goes. Jsb 10.34’s averaged 980 fps. And the spread was good I think anyway. It was 15 fps. So you can imagine that it should help the Gauntlet shoot good groups. Guess it can’t hurt anyway.

    But shooting the gun more today I can say it is a comfortable gun to shoot. And I’ll say again the gun is very well balanced. It just does not feel heavy when shouldered and I’ll bet with the scope my Gauntlet is probably coming in at 11+ pounds.

    And finally did about 3 mags of plinking at my spinners. I’ll have to say that it equals my Maximus in accuracy and my Maximus is extremely accurate. And it is hitting the spinners just a snudge less than my .22 Maximus and the Gauntlet is .177 caliber.

    And yes as others have said about the Gauntlet. The trigger is nice and smooth now after more shooting.

    So far definitely happy with the gun. I don’t think I have anything else to say. But for the money it is worth it. And I’ll say it again. If they get on the ball and release the .25 Gauntlet I will be getting one of those also.

    • Thanks GF, that was a nice report on your first impressions with the Gauntlet. Very encouraging too. My main obstacle is that I don’t see myself using my Benjamin hand pump with such a large reservoir so I may have to start looking at compressors. BTW, any problems or comments regarding filling up the tank?
      Henry

      • Henry
        Thanks and no problem at all filling the bottle. Even the first time as it was shipped empty. I just made sure I cocked the bolt on that first fill just to make sure the striker/hammer wasn’t resting on the valve stem. Didnt cock the bolt anymore after that first fill because the valve has pressure behind it to help it stay closed. And absalutly no leak down either.

        And I have one of those China compressor’s right now and fill the gun directly. So no problem pressurizing the gun for me.

        But remember this. What’s nice about a regulated gun is you don’t have to fill the air resivoir all the way up to get a proper shot string. You could fill the gun to 2000 psi instead of 3000 psi. The only thing would happen would be you would get less shots. And they would all still be the same velocity as with a 3000 psi fill because of the regulator. So maybe instead of 60 shots you might only get 30 shots at 2000 psi.

        So keep that in mind if you get whatever brand pcp with a regulator. You don’t have to fill it all the way up for the gun to work.

  32. GF
    Likely this is old hat for you but It seems to have come from one with experience so i thought I’d put it up.

    “Advise, Take it out of the box, Silicone lube the pellet probe. Buy two 500 count tins of Crosman Ultra Mag Domes for $9 bucks a tin at Walmart. Mount a decent scope on top and Shoot 250 rounds through the rifle before you do anything else. That will lead the barrel, work in the bolt, settle the regulator and loosen up the trigger a bit. Once you have your 250 rounds in, remove the shroud and check the air stripper to ensure it is not cracked. Clean the barrel and check all fasteners that they are tight. Silicone lube the air stripper o-ring reinstall the shroud, spring, and baffle. Resilicone the pellet probe o-rings and go again! Enjoy the rifle as it is one hell of a fun rifle to own and shoot! Oh yeah post a photo of your Gaunty outside playing! 😉 “

        • Idaho
          Are you not asking for a picture of the Gauntlet?

          “Oh yeah post a photo of your Gaunty outside playing!”

          If so I haven’t took any yet. If not what do you mean?

          • GunFun1,

            I think the quotation marks are to blame again! Idaho was posting a quote from someone else who had experience with the Gauntlet. THEY were advising all those break in and cleaning tips and then they ended their post by saying you should take a picture of your gun playing outside and post it, as a kind of joke. You know like you would tape a picture of your new born baby to the lid of your tool box at work, except the gun is your new baby. If you missed the quotation marks it would have been confusing. At least I think that’s what’s going on.

              • GF

                Halfstep has it right. My fault, I should have clarified. It was just a conversation I stumbled across and thought of you with your new Gauntlet. I didn’t pay attention to the part about taking a picture. Too late at night I guess.

                  • Idaho
                    Really nice. Very cool. I like it alot.

                    The garage and breezeway is my room.

                    I got a full finished basement I could make me a little corner of it.

                    Problem is I just spend to much time shooting. By the way which I’m quite alright with. 🙂

                    • GF
                      After hearing of your shooting I’m considering changing my 401k to invest in lead and pellet manufacturing 🙂

                    • Chris

                      Thanks. I put some effort in. The upper shelf has one threaded rod for support from a metal bar inserted between joists. The second shelf has a rod to the upper so they are kinda floating. Pex tube covers the rods for a finished look.

                  • Idaho,

                    I did a similar concept years ago. I made a set of garage shelves. Four, 1’x8′ long. 8′ – 2×2’s screwed to wall. Shelves attached to the 2×2’s. The front of the shelves were supported by common wire every 2 feet of length. All the support was from the top via a drywall screw into a stud. Wind the wire to that and then to a drywall screw into the front of each shelf. 1 shelf over the other, so 4 high. Wire suspended I guess you say. They worked great and loaded well. Rather minimalist.

  33. Ok I’m going to share an experience I had this week. I might be wrong but it seems like TIAT is no longer putting out their product and haven’t for a while. So looking to expand a little I found plastic syringes of an appropriate size online and reasonably priced. Then I contacted lubrication engineers and asked about buying their almaguard 3752 by the pail and selling it in 8 ounce syringes the said that this would definitely not be possible. Initially I wanted to come up with my own name but then asked about just using their product name still no go, they seemed kinda put off by it, like I was rude or stupid for even asking. I guess I don’t have a clue about these types of things can anyone straighten me out on this.
    Carl

    • Carl,

      That is interesting. It could be that the previous proprietor of TIAT ran into some of the same road blocks? It would be interesting to see if you could find anything out directly. I would think that other products use a proprietary product, (add something to it),… and create a new product. Maybe that is a way to side step issues? Just an idea.

      I admire your drive to put out new stuff and maybe make it a success. The best-est of wishes, as always.

      How many spinner units have you sold so far? If not many,… then I figure that it is only because you have yet to launch your “full out assault” on the air gun world thus far,…. 🙂

    • Carl,

      It is on sale at Pyramyd AIR /product/air-venturi-tune-in-a-tube-airgun-lubricant?a=7927
      under the Air Venturi name.

      Also if just bought a pail online and filled your syringes how would they ever know. Of course there could be some legal problems on down the road. 😉

      Mike

  34. GF1

    How are you fixed for starlings ? I have not been seeing many of the huge flocks this winter . Mostly small flocks, and some singles. Four singles today.
    Been too slow for when the snow covers the ground.

    tt

  35. Mike
    I don’t want to step on anyone’s toes, which I might have inadvertently done on another forum that starts with a Y. I hope to make amends shortly. I still have so much to learn.
    But thank you for your comments.
    Carl

    • Coduece
      I have seen some aditude on the yellow at times. I hardly even check it out anymore. And I’m sure that’s what will happen in time as people figure it out. Just like anything. Not only there.

        • Coduece
          This blog as others has mentioned is a exception to other blogs and forums out there.

          I ain’t saying that the other ones are always bad. But stuff does happen. Here on the blog it’s pretty mellow always. And here it seems everyone is interested in learning or contributing in one way or another.

          And I wasn’t going to comment on the tiat stuff you was trying to but or whatever happened. But yep they probably figured you was going to package sell and make money off their product. And there already is probably agreements made on it. And another thing maybe more people than just have approached them also. So now they just shut off the conversation right away.

          Things was like that with the aftermarket performance car parts and such. I seen some good arguments happen with that also back in the day. It can get complicated.

  38. Open question:
    Does anyone know where I could get a trigger shoe that would fit a FWB124? I had the two FWBs out today shooting and noticed that I slightly preferred the feel of the FWB127 with the trigger shoe. Also, I guess this is for nostalgia’s sake – all of my original guns I got from ARH 40 years ago had trigger shoes supplied, even the Webley Premier MK II. I don’t know if any of you remember doing business with Robert Law, but he was VERY big on trigger shoes.
    Larry from Algona

    • LarryMo
      I have a catalog from the early 70’s still. I always wanted to get a gun out of the catalog but I was a young’n at that time. I was around 12 years old. Didn’t have much money at that time so never did order a gun. And is the trigger shoes in the catalog? I really never paid any attention.

      And I do have a FWB 300 now that I just love. And that was a gun that was featured in the catalog I have.

      • Gunfun1
        Yeah, hehehe. Where’s Mr. Peabody when you need him?
        I suppose I really lucked out with my airgun experiences. Since I was living in the single Staff barracks, ate in the Mess Hall, and was issued all my clothes, I had bit of money I could spend freely. I bought my Webley Premier Mk II from ARH and discovered that conversing with Robert Law and Co. was somewhat similar to conversing with you guys here on the blog. Not so with the Beeman organization so my loyalties were fixed. I patronized ARH by ordering their most expensive item which was their FWB124 with a custom stock, and a little later, a FWB127. The rifles and the pistol were all fitted with trigger shoes and are still on the Webley and the FWB127. Over the years the custom stock on the 124 split during cocking due to the receiver lug screw breaking off. My brother arranged for some stock maker to replace the lug and repair the stock. He did quite a commendable job. At any rate my brother was allowed to retain the gun for this and it was sever years later that I got it back. Somewhere along the way the trigger shoe was misplaced so I’d like to get another one to fit. As I said before it makes the feel a little better like I have on the 127.
        Thanks for replying.
        LMo

        • LarryMo
          As a kid on the farm I had access to firearms. And I had a old 760 pumper back then along with a Benji 392. So I was happy. But I sure liked those guns in that catalog.

          And I have to say I been making up for it ever since. Definitely have had my share of air guns over the years. And I don’t see myself stopping soon. 🙂

          And I’ll have to check out my catalog again. It’s been a while since I looked at it. I misplaced it once when I moved but found a little while back. Needless to say I know right where that catalog is now. 🙂

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