by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier
Air Venturi TR5 Target Pro repeating pellet rifle. This is the one with the target sights.
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Part 6
This report covers:
- Today
- Target Pro
- Remember this
- Rear sight
- Front sight
- Beware!
- Accuracy
- Summary
It’s been many months since we last saw the Air Venturi TR5 Multi-Shot Target Air Rifle. Most of the delay is on me, not Pyramyd AIR. As I was getting ready to do Part 7 testing on the original gun they announced that the target version with a real rear peep sight and globe front sight would be out soon. So I held off to test that one for you. Well, it took time to come in and I know they rushed the one I’m testing right to me because it doesn’t have the 5-shot accuracy test target they mention in the description. No problem there because they tell you what pellet they shot to get a 3/4-inch group at 10 meters. I can test it just as good as they can, and of course I will.
Today
I’m going to describe the rifle today and then I will test it for you as if I never tested the first one. But the links to the first gun will remain up so people can see where we’ve been and what it took to get to this place. Today’s description will be abbreviated, so go back to Part 1 for more details.
Target Pro
To avoid confusion, there are two different rifles with very nearly the same name. I linked to the one without the target sights in the first paragraph, but that’s not what I’m now testing. The rifle I’m testing today is called the Air Venturi TR5 PRO .177 cal Target Air Rifle. The insertion of the word Pro in the title means they have added a target peep rear sight, a globe front sight that accepts interchangeable inserts and that the rifle comes with a 5-shot test target that they shot at 10 meters. The guarantee is five RWS Hobby pellets in 3/4-inches.
Remember this
The rest of the rifle is identical to the one I tested earlier this year. Let me remind you of some things about that first rifle. First, it shot a lot faster than the advertised velocity of 500 f.p.s. With RWS Hobbys it averaged 548 f.p.s. at the muzzle. I will test the velocity of this one, too, in the next report.
The stock adjusts to 5 positions, giving you a range of pull lengths from 12.75-inches to 14.75-inches. The butt pad also adjusts up and down about 3/4-inches, giving you a 1.5-inch range. I wondered why anyone would want to adjust the buttpad up, and no adult probably would, but for a small a kid it allows them to fit the rifle to their smaller faces so they can see through the peep sight.
The trigger on the first rifle was both light and adjustable. That surprised me, as it was better than what you typically see in a rifle at this price. And it did adjust. A lot of “adjustable” triggers just have placebo screws that do little or nothing. Once again, I plan to measure this new rifle’s trigger, adjust it and give you a complete report.
The accuracy of the first rifle was not that good, until I tried testing each of the chambers in the two clips individually. I found one chamber in one of the two clips that gave me a 0.71-inch five-shot group at 10 meters. Three-quarters of an inch was the accuracy claim, so they made it with that one chamber. Accuracy is a problem with repeaters, so that’s something I have to test with this new rifle.
Rear sight
The rear peep sight comes in an optional box that’s marked Air Arms. This sight is metal and seems well made, though to be at this low price I know it has to come from the Orient. Either that or from the replicator on the Starship Enterprise! It adjusts in both directions with crisp and positive detents. There are also clear reference indicies for both adjustments.
The hole through this sight is wee-teeny, which is a technical term target shooters use for very small things. What I’m telling you is this is a real target peep!
You also get the sporting rear sight that comes with the other TR5. I’m pretty sure I can wind down that rear open sight far enough to use the peep without dismounting the other sight, but I’ll let you know when we get to that.
The peep sight is metal and seems well made.
Front sight
The front sight is a target sight, too. It’s a globe that accepts inserts with a diameter of 0.672-inches (17.07mm).Both sides have legs that anchor the insert inside the globe.
Reader Kevin sent me a set of clear plastic front sight inserts for my Walther LGV and though they measure only 0.633-inches/15.95mm (Walther says they are 0.626-inches/16mm) in diameter they still work. There is a ledge they rest on inside the sight globe and when the screw-in globe piece holds them tight they are secure. The gun comes with just the one black insert shown in the picture.
The front globe accepts steel target inserts and the 16mm Walther clear plastic inserts.
Beware!
One thing I need to mention is the legs on the insert are not exactly opposed from each other. In other words they don’t bisect the circle in the middle. And the legs are different thicknesses. Therefore, the inserts can only go into the sight globe one way.
Accuracy
The TR5 comes with an accuracy guarantee of 5 RWS Hobbys in 3/4-inch (0.75-inches) at 10 meters. Now a 3/4-inch group sounds good, but not in 10-meter rifle competition. Three-quarters of an inch is enough to keep the outer diameter of all the pellets inside the 6-ring on a 10-meter rifle target, and since American rules are the pellet scores the highest ring it touches, a 3/4-inch group that’s centered is good enough to average at least a 70 of 100 on that target. That’s not good enough for a target match unless it is informal. It’s good enough to keep all the shots inside the black bull of the target, though, which is all that many people want. I tell you this so you know that the TR5 isn’t a rifle your kids can compete with. But it is a rifle they can have fun with.
Three-quarters of an inch looks like this on a 10-meter rifle target.
Other accurate youth target rifles are either hard to operate, like Daisy’s 753 that needs 20 pounds of effort to pump, or they are expensive like Crosman’s $800 Challenger PCP. The TR5 really is the affordable option for parents who don’t want to jump all the way in before knowing whether sis and junior really want to be marksmen, or if T-Ball and soccer are more attractive.
Summary
That’s our start on the TR5 Target Rifle Pro. Next comes velocity testing, plus cocking effort and trigger pull/adjustment. Then comes the accuracy test that I’m really waiting for!
B.B.,
There appear to be many possible choices for front inserts that may work with the PRO TR5s globe sight:
https://www.google.com/search?q=globe+sight+inserts&tbm=isch&source=univ&client=tablet-android-lenovo&fir=LRWNI4R9ni27ZM%253A%252CKRmN_g3oZ-vP5M%252C_%253BOo_WzaY-k2fYGM%253A%252CpQ1P8uPZOZIxtM%252C_%253BTVg4XIL6wn00gM%253A%252CPaEi2M9dIsDz5M%252C_%253BgrGycxbhtL-TnM%253A%252CejU1Uladk6iLUM%252C_%253BaSIxD006JUUxUM%253A%252CqVQ5ddLBuYj6aM%252C_%253B_3zYyayasIo6pM%253A%252Cjwih8RjlYpdViM%252C_%253BzqdbwAnUZ8j6eM%253A%252Cht7QRvaKSsbr1M%252C_%253BqhjQL-6LHJuJJM%253A%252CZTNLHnULPzhlHM%252C_%253BYJsKNrD2rKd3_M%253A%252C4E3IutDJ0XooRM%252C_%253BV0d5C8KwVjW7yM%253A%252Cg7GxFLsL4GVoyM%252C_&usg=AI4_-kQEAJOj9IqSKeYhfct7ltBABTmzYg&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjYqa7MmqLkAhWDmOAKHdHABd4Q4216BAgKEEM&biw=1280&bih=800&dpr=2
Just a quick search resulted in the above. Quite a few of them have the off center legs…diameter may narrow the choices.
shootski
shootski,
Yes, if you search you will find many choices. Still you get a good one with the rifle.
B.B.
B.B.
While not as flexible with all the stock dimensions, I can’t help wondering if most kids/adults would be much more accurate with an HW 30. It is a bit more money, but it could be a lifetime keeper.
Maybe if they offered a Walther barrel as an upgrade option????
-Y
Yogi,
Walther barrels cost as much or more than this rifle costs.
B.,B.
Yes, but 3/4 inch groups at 10 meters is horrible! I can spit better than that!
-Y
Yogi
I feel that way too. I have mentioned before that I have sport guns that can shoot better groups at 10 meters than some as they are called 10 m target guns.
But here’s what I’m thinking. Let’s see if the gun BB has will do what they say it will. If it does it’s at least a fair claim.
Maybe we’ll get a surprise and it will do better than they claim. We’ll see.
Ok GF1,
So if B.B. can shoot a 1/2 inch group at 10 meters, does that mean it would have been a perfect score with a more accurate gun? I always want ME to be the worst part of my groups. Good gun, good pellets, and the weak link is my trigger finger…
-Y
Yogi
Well you tell me that answer.
My point is I have very accurate guns that are not a designated 10m gun and will way out shoot a 10m gun.
And no matter what gun you shoot you will always be the worst part of your groups. No matter how accurate it is. Think about it.
Not if I am shooting the Air Venturi TR5 PRO .177 cal Target Air Rifle.!
-Y
Yogi
If we both shot the TR5 that BB is testing according to your comment above at the beginning of this conversation. It’s still up to each of us to shoot the best group we can with that gun.
Not following what you mean. Just because it’s a TR5 you can’t shoot it the best you can?
Yogi,
The HW30 is a very accurate little air rifle, but despite its easy cocking, light weight and short overall length, it is not suitable for kids. I say that because its length of pull is over 14″, which makes it an adult sized gun.
The weight and dimensions of the HW30 are very similar to your typical .22lr bolt action rifle. The HW30’s length of pull is in fact just a smidgen shorter than that of my 49″ long Turkish Scopebuster 3000 mega-magnum springer (pictured wearing the same diopter that is on the TR5 Target Pro). The beauty of the TR5 and IZH61 (also pictured) is that the length of pull can be adjusted to suit every age and size of shooter.
Oops! I couldn’t upload the photo for some strange reason.
Bob,
Pyramyd AIR has apparently changed the max file size that can be posted. Try reducing the file size down to 50K or less and I think it will post. They should inform us when a change like that is made.
Geo
Geo,
Thanks for the tip!
BB,
A max file size warning only appears if one attempts to upload a file larger than 2MB. The warning needs to be updated if the new maximum is 50KB.
This is a test.
I posted this picture the other day. Curious to see if it will.
It was a picture of my modified Maximus.
Here’s what popped up when I tryed to post the picture.
“Sorry, you have been blocked
You are unable to access pyramydair.com
Why have I been blocked?
This website is using a security service to protect itself from online attacks. The action you just performed triggered the security solution. There are several actions that could trigger this block including submitting a certain word or phrase, a SQL command or malformed data.
What can I do to resolve this?
You can email the site owner to let them know you were blocked. Please include what you were doing when this page came up and the Cloudflare Ray ID found at the bottom of this page.”
And since we are here I’ll try resizing the picture I’m talking about and post it now.
Yep whatever they are trying to do sucks. Put it back how it was. See change isn’t always better. What the ..?
Yup…that’s exactly the same thing I posted on yesterday’s blog. Then I too discovered it was all about the image file size. I reduced the image size to 35K and it posted fine as well. Yes, it is aggravating when they change the parameters and don’t tell anyone about it.
Geo
Geo
As usual another thing to figure out that was working fine.
My problem is I do all this from my phone. I already got the pictures cropped down as small as I can with out cutting into the image.
So now I got to figure out how to resize it on my phone. That is if I can.
What another pain in the butt.
Yes it is…sorry, can’t help you with any phone stuff. 😉
Geo
It is a pain in the butt.
And don’t know what I’m thinking. I need to ask my daughter how to resize it on the phone. You know how these kids are. They are computer and phone wizards naturally. 🙂
Resized the photo:
So cut the stock down and and add spacers as needed.
If the best that that gun can do is 3/4 of an inch groups at 10 meters, more kids will be turned off by it’s/their inaccuracy than will be interested in guns in the future.
-Y
Yogi,
Kids maybe won’t win ISSF AR60 10M matches with the TR5, but they won’t be put off by it either if their only prior experience of airguns is a Daisy Red Ryder at 5 meters.
To my mind the TR5 is first and foremost a fun gun. Put a cheap red dot sight on the TR5 and kids will have a great time plinking soda cans out to 25 yds.
Bob
That’s how my gen 1 TR5 is set up. But remember I modified mine.
So I can’t compare. But the dot sight does work on mine.
I’ve been trying to find. Really good youth rifle for a while. The Umarex Embark, was okay, the tr5 was ok, my R7/HW30 has been the best, but it’s still a bit long. The best compromise right now is a Xisico xs12. It’s making cloverleaf’s rested at 10m no problem. Only thing to dislike about it is the trigger. It’s repeatable,but not great.
Im sorry i am not at all impressed. Did not thge new coq2 ruger 10/22 get better groups among many other guns. \Without being more critical they can keep this one.
Mike,
Well, I still want to see how accurate this one is.
B.B.
BB
I too want to see how accurate this rifle is. If 3/4″ at 10 meters with a normal 10 shot group is the best it can do there is another rifle that PA offers in a popular price. The Beeman AR2078A goes for $200 or a little less. It has very attractive aesthetics and cocking features. Weight and effort required should be youth friendly. Having said all that, it will not compete in the accuracy department with a $250 Daisy Avanti 753 or the easy to operate but more expensive HW30s.
I like the clear front sight inserts. I do find that insert sizes are somewhat confusing.
Deck
B.B.
Under Summary paragraph,
“That’s our start on the TR5 Target Rifle.” Should be:
That’s our start on the TR5 Target Rifle Pro.
Just to be consistent.
Glad you had a great time at Pyramid Air Cup and look forward to more reports.
Is there any way to get that rear peep sight and/or the front globe separately? The front globe looks to be attached by a screw or bolt. Is it removable? A quick internet search did not turn up the sights for sale. And they are not listed on Air Arms website separately.
Looking forward to the accuracy report to see if this one will be more accurate than the non-Pro. I know it is basically the same gun, but a different one that might be more accurate. Luck of the draw/machining.
Thank you,
John Carlisle
John,
I changed the wording. Thanks.
I will look at the front sight to see if it removes. But why change it — it’s fine and it works.
B.B.
John,
The rear peep sight appears to be the good old Gamo diopter. It’s a bulky heavy thing, but it works. I use one on some of my springers from time to time, butted up against a scope stop to prevent it creeping backwards on the dovetail.
The clamping mechanism is the weak point of the Gamo diopter. It cannot be overtightened on the TR5 without risk of damaging the plastic dovetail, but if not tightened enough, will creep backwards or work itself loose under the recoil.
Gamo diopter set:
Rear sight looks like a replication of the one that comes with the Daisy 753 which is sturdy but does not have a wee-teeny peep hole.
Deck
Decksniper
Same as the rear sight Gamo had too.
Bob
I actually had one of the Gamo peeps on my FWB 300. It worked nice.
GF1,
Did your FWB 300 not come with the factory sights?
Bob
No it only had the front sight.
Which it didn’t bother me because when I first got them (yes 2 of them) I had scopes on them. One was like it came from th factory minus the rear sight. The other I modified with a different spring and put on a o-ring piston seal instead of the cast iron ring.
The modified one was shooting JSB 10.34’s at around 750 fps. It was very accurate out to 50 yards. And yep even shot it out to a hundred yards. I was killing ravioli cans with it once I would get the hold right for the wind that day.
But it wasn’t till this last year that I tryed it with peep sights. It was hard to shoot out at a hundred that way. But it was killer at 50 yards and in with the peeps. And I never been a peep sight shooter till after that. Now I love the peeps for in close free hand plinking.
GF1,
Wow! 750 fps with 10.34’s, that’s almost 13 ft-lbs. That’s smoking hot for a 300s! What velocity do you get with a light pellet, such as 7 gr RWS Hobby?
Unmodified FWB 300s has a typical 10m match rifle muzzle energy of about 6 ft-lbs. Does overclocking it to more than double that not strain the cocking arm and anti-recoil mechanism?
Peep sights are great, aren’t they? I don’t know why more air rifles (especially fixed-barrel designs) are not fitted with them as standard.
Bob
Never tried lighter pellets in it.
And it has a single Maccari spring in it is I believe how it’s spelled. But the trick that made the gun work so good is I took the factory cast iron ring piston seal off and tryed different diameter and thickness o-rings. I found one that gave the best seal fit but didn’t cause a lot of drag. And I didn’t assemble and disassemble trying them. I would try one on the piston and see how it felt in the cylinder. Once I found a couple o-rings that gave the best feel I did assemble and tryed one then took the gun apart and put the other in and tryed it.
The one that gave the highest velocity is what I used. So really no stress on the gun. With that single spring and o-ring seal it cocked just a little harder than the factory spring and cast iron ring. I could still cock the gun with two fingers very easily. Oh and my buddy owns that gun now. And check this out I done that probably around 3 years ago. Maybe longer now. But that same o-ring is in that gun today and it still shoots hard. And I won’t even mention that I shot cans out at a hundred yards with it. 😉
BB,
I CAN see this as an affordable option for parents. I can also see someone wanting this as a plinker and a curiosity. Can I see one moving into RidgeRunner’s Home For Wayward Airguns? Not likely, maybe for a short visit if one should happen by. Now a metal receiver Izzy 60 would likely be most welcome to stay. Maybe.
BB
I like the sights no doubt there. Waiting for accuracy time though. That’s what I want to see.
GF1,.
That’s what I am waiting to see, too.
B.B.
BB
Did they change any labeling of the name on the new gun to distinguish it from the old one other than the sights?
I wonder if it is just a hand select of their current lot. Sure would like to know someday if it is just the magazine affecting accuracy or if it is a lot of little things. Can’t wait for the next blog on this!
Ict
I wondered that too. But that isn’t why I asked. I was thinking about the future. Basically how to identify the two guns later on. Just incase this one is more accurate than the first ones. Or if they so happen to have different issues than the first one.
It was on my so figured I would ask.
Good point.
GF1,
Not on the gun. The name is the same. The sights are the only difference.
B.B.
BB
I think maybe the front muzzle on the newer one is different so it can accept the front globe sight. I may be wrong though since I don’t have both the old and new version in front of me.
GF1,
You’re right. The entire sight base is one piece on the non-Pro rifle. So that is a difference in the rifles.
B.B.
BB
Ok. And if I remember right with my gen1 TR5 the front sight/muzzle brake was glued on. So at least that will make it a bit more difficult to try to pass a gen 1 off as a gen 2 TR5. Not that anybody would be worried about doing it.
But at least some way to identify each one.
B.B.,
I’m happy to see the Air Venturi TR5 available with an aperture sight and look forward to your accuracy testing. If the results are what I hope they will be, mine will sport an aperture soon, too. I know that this is being marketed as a youth target air rifle, but to me it is an excellent plinker, easy to cock and shoot and a lot of fun, even if the magazine is just slightly fiddly, as they say in The UK.
Michael
B.B.,
The price is right, and the features are appealing.I like the ergo’s compared to a sporter style. I dont know if I’m up for tuning this one if it can never be as accurate as a good entry level breakbarrel. I liked the idea of swapping out barrels, Crosman makes an accurate barrel less costly than Walther, but if pellets chamber with allot of variation, that might be an issue too. It may be too complex of a system to work at a competitive/enthusiast level at this pricepoint.
Rob
I hope AV is considering another model that is upgraded a bit.
Bob
Depends on how young of kids I guess. My two daughters shoot my HW30’s with no problem. They are average size girls for thier age. Both are around 5’4″ and weigh around a 115 pounds. Now 18 and 21 year’s old.
My vote would be the HW30s. I know it’s higher priced and a different category. But to me worth the extra dollars.
GF1,
I had young kids in mind. Teenagers will have no problem shouldering the HW30. The length of pull of the TR5 and IZH61 can be shortened enough that kids as young as 8 or 9 can shoot it without difficulty.
The HW30s is one air rifle I would never part with and is durable enough to be handed down for generations, but the TR5/IZH61, while not in the same class, is a whole lot of fun in its own right.
Bob
Agree with you about the TR5 and the HW30s.
I think younger children would be pretty happy with the TR5. Also, most would not be as critical of the 3/4″ groups at 10M, I know I would not have been. As long as the pellet hits what is aimed at, the accuracy is considered good. Did any us at 9 or 10 years of age, shoot at paper targets and measure group sizes? I think not. The TR5 is fully capable of taking out sparrows at 10M and that would have been my criterion for accuracy. This rifle would be fine for teaching young ones how to shoot, and how to handle weapons responsibly and safely. I think the young ones would be more interested in shooting tin cans or silhouette targets than in shooting paper targets anyway. IMHO.
Geo
Geo
I did shoot at paper occasionally when I was a kid. And even when I didn’t and I was shooting sparrows or mice in and around the barn I knew right away if the gun was a good shooter.
Heck I got my semi-auto .22 rimfire rifle when I was 10. The air guns came when I was around 6. We had fun plinking with them but we also pested with them. What I’m saying is I learned at a early age what accurate was.
Gunfun1,
I get that, my friend! “Accurate” is when you (and I) hit what we shoot at! We often get a lot more particular here on this blog as to what that means, but let’s face it, when I am shooting at a feral aluminum pop can and hit it five or more times in a row, then, “Whoa, that’s an accurate air rifle!” Heh, heh. ;^)
Michael
Michael
Yes sir. Exactly. 🙂
Geo,
Exactly. That is what the TR5 should be all about.
I actually think it’s ill-advised to release this target pro version. The TR5 doesn’t seem to have the inherent accuracy to benefit from diopter sights, unlike the old IZH60/61. I’d rather see the TR5 bundled with a red dot sight – the easiest type of gun sight for youngsters to get the hang of.
Having said that though, let’s see how this new gun performs before judging it. Maybe B.B. just got a dud the first time round and perhaps even the 3/4″ 10M accuracy claim is conservative, in which case perhaps a diopter is warranted after all.
Bob,
Oh, I do think the TR5 is accurate enough to benefit from an aperture sight, by quite a bit. It will never be even close to an actual Olympic 10 meter air rifle, but it is capable of pretty respectable accuracy for it’s price, B.B..’s accuracy test yet to come notwithstanding. (Keep in mind that an actual world-class 10 meter air rifle will be, even vintage, much more expensive and much heavier than a TR5.)
Michael
B.B.,
Talking of peep sights, do you know what sight that is on this Diana 52? It looks bespoke, but I’ve never seen it in the Diana catalog.
Bob,
I can’t see any detail on that sight, but the profile isn’t one I’ve seen.
B.B.
B.B.,
In a post from 10 years ago you wrote that the Diana rear sight base with cross groves that we all assume is for mounting a scope is actually for mounting a peep sight. I was thus wondering if the one pictured is a sporting peep sight of Diana’s own design.
It certainly doesn’t look out of place on the 52 and I bet is a big improvement over the standard rear sight for that rifle.
Bob,
A VP from Diana told me that and I have since heard it from others. This may just be a European sight we never see.
August — are you there?
B.B.
Bob,
That looks like a military type sight to me, like something from an M1 Garand or M1 Carbine. I have now had a look at a more than a few of the Diana aperture sights from the mid-1900s (mostly photos, but I have one on my “The Gaylord” Winchester 427 / Diana 27) for a few months now, and as far as I have observed they all have grooves that mate with the grooves one finds on the Diana air rifles. The design is such that when the rear sight is screwed down, the grooves match up and mesh with each other. Once that is the case, the rear sight will not move at all in any direction. The way it is set is the way it will be set, period.
Your rear sight looks VERY cool, but I do not believe it is a Diana factory sight. But the most important thing is if it makes it accurate. Is the air rifle accurate with it? If so, then it is a good rear sight, in my opinion, anyway.
Michael
Michael,
Unfortunately it’s not my sight, but I agree it is very cool! I’d love to know what make and model it is, so I could look for one for my Diana 52.