by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier
This report covers:
Sig Virtus
P365 BB pistol
Virtus airsoft
Smart Shooter
It’s over
Media day at the Range
Umarex USA
Air Javelin
Air Saber
Constant Acceleration Pneumatic Arms
Light gas
Not done yet
That’s all
I went to two range days this year. Sig Range Day was on Sunday and Industry Day at the Range was Monday. Both are for the media, so we get to see and possibly shoot the guns they are showing at SHOT. I say, “Possibly” because the guns don’t always cooperate. I have seen several that failed to function on range day. That’s either because they were rushed through production or sometimes it’s just bad luck.
Sig Range Day — Sig Virtus
The first day was all Sig. This year they had one new PCP pellet rifle that is now shipping — the semiautomatic Virtus. This rifle is based on previous designs of Sig CO2 repeaters and has a belt-fed magazine. This one is a precharged pneumatic (PCP) though, and develops up to 12 foot-pounds in .22 caliber. So it’s a fun gun!
I shot it with the Romeo5 dot sight and also with the flip up iron sights that are no-doubt called “Backup Iron Sights (BUIS)”. Well, the Romeo5 wasn’t cooperating that day, so I used the back up sights and discovered that the Virtus is a very accurate rifle out to 25 yards. I was putting pellet on pellet at 15 yards. It’s a quiet rifle too, though I will need to test it alone and away from a firing range — hint-hint, Sig!
Sig Air Virtus is a tactical-looking semiautomatic PCP.
Once I switched to open sights, the Virtus was stacking pellets!
P365 BB pistol
I was surprised to see that the Sig P365 BB pistol is back — and apparently has been for more than a month. That’s one I’m in the middle of testing and need to complete sometime soon — another hint Sig!
Virtus airsoft
Sig Air will be bringing in more airsoft replica guns this year. I have tested the M17 already, but not the new M18 that’s the sidearm of several US armed forces. Sig’s Matt Handy showed the guns to me off the range and then I was able to shoot the new airsoft Virtus on the range. I hope to test that one for you this year, as well.
Matt Handy holds the new Sig Virtus airsoft gun.
Smart Shooter
As I was leaving the range I was buttonholed by Hadas Weizman from Smart Shooter. He told me about a new weapons system where the shooter doesn’t have to be that good a shot. Smart Shooter is an electronic sighting system that controls the firing of a rifle. You hold the sight on the target and press a button until the sights draws an illuminated box around the target. Then you release the button and pull and hold back the rifle trigger. A large illuminated cross forms in the sight and you swing that over to the target. When the computer senses the shot is good the rifle fires.
Hadas Weizman holds the Smart Shooter training device that he trained me on.
I was trained in five minutes and then turned loose with a live rifle. I hit the moving target in the head twice at 100 yards from the offhand position.
I hit the 100-yard moving target twice in the head.
After I finished shooting the Sig guys looked at each other and wondered why the target’s head had snapped back but the whole target had not dropped. They then shot the target in the body and got it to drop. I was told that I had at least wounded the target and that was the goal. Ha, ha!
They told me that a battle rifle is not a precision weapon and center of mass shots are best. But I just thought, “Two in the head and you know they’re dead!”
This is a standby life-sized moving target for the Smart Shooter range.
It’s over
Sig Range Day was over for me but I do plan on stopping by their booth to talk more with their reps. I want to get a better feel for what 2020 holds for Sig Air.
Media day at the Range
This Media Day was better organized than ever before. The bus dropped us off at the top ranges where the two airgun ranges happened to be, and all we had to do after that was walk downhill. Even I can do that!
Umarex USA
Almost across the street from the entrance was the Umarex USA range. They were showing both of their arrow launchers and I got a chance to shoot both of them.
Air Javelin
The first one is the budget-priced Air Javelin that’s powered by CO2. It accepts a large 88-gram cartridge, and, though I saw about 10 shots fired, I never saw the cartridge run out of gas. It was 50 degrees, Fahrenheit, that day so I will have to test this one for you myself! Hint, hint — Umarex!
It shoots at over 300 f.p.s. which made me think it was capable of taking deer until I realized that the hollow arrow shaft makes the arrow weigh just 120 grains. It probably could take a deer up close, but that’s not what I would recommend. The guys at the range were talking groundhogs, rabbits and raccoons for this one.
Yes, the arrow is hollow and fits over a long tube in the gun. The air seals quite well, and there is very little impulse when the gun fires.
To load an arrow into the Air Javelin I had to look at the slim tube inside the firearm, because the hollow arrow shaft fits it tight.
The Air Javelin was quite accurate at 20 yards.
Air Saber
The Umarex Air Saber is their big dog this year. It launches a hollow 276-grain carbon fiber arrow at 450 f.p.s. This one runs on high pressure air, so it’s a PCP. It operates at 250 bar or 3,625 psi. I’ll have to wait to test one to give you a shot count per fill, but I never saw it run out of air while I was there.
They had a bipod on the range gun and I very nearly shot a Robin Hood at 25 yards, though I purposely tried not to. This arrow launcher is so powerful that they stuck arrows with field points so deep in a 3D jackalope target that they could not pull them back out! For those who don’t know, a jackalope is a mythical cross between an American jackrabbit and an American antelope.
You see a lot of mounted jackalope heads in southwestern bars in America.
The Air Saber is a powerful PCP airbow.
The Air Saber was surprisingly accurate at 25 yards. I almost Robin-Hooded, even though I tried not to!
Constant Acceleration Pneumatic Arms
These guys are new to the world of big bores, though I have been communicating with one of the founders, Mark Cherry, for a couple years. To be honest, I didn’t think I would ever see anything come from our talks, but Mark persevered and brought his creation to Media Day. I will first show you the info sheet at their range.
This sheet says it all except the experience of shooting the gun.
Light gas
No, light gas is not 90 minutes after you eat onions! It’s a blend of Helium and other light gasses that flow faster than air because their atoms are smaller. I have known for a long time that it’s possible to get much higher velocity from an airgun when you shoot it with Helium, but there is a big problem. Or a very small one, to be more specific! The tiny Helium atoms are so small that they aren’t easily contained by valve seals and o-rings that are designed to hold air. Besides costing a lot, Helium will make a precharged airgun leak!
Well, these guys may have found a solution or solutions for that. The Dragon I shot was tethered to a tank, so lots of gas was being used, but they were also letting the media shoot, so maybe that was just the prudent thing to do.
All I know is I smacked the target at 40 yards on the first shot, with a 350-grain bullet that developed over 700 foot-pounds at the muzzle. The gun kicked like a .357 big bore, which stunned me. Apparently that “thin gas” also absorbs a lot of the firing impulse.
The recoil was mild.
They told me their patented valve design maintains constant pressure on the bullet all the way down the bore. A larger valve passageway, longer valve dwell time and that thin gas all contribute to the amazing power that’s claimed.
Not done yet
Old BB was then finished with airguns, so he moseyed down to the other end of the range, sampling all the ranges along the way and stocking up on giveaway SWAG (hats, shorts, cupholders, pens, etc.). I thought I was done until I happened by the Rambo pavilion. There I met Kelle Adams of ShopBadAss.com. She was offering free rides on electric-powered desert bicycles! Would I like to try?
WOULD I?????
So there I am, all 235 lbs. of balding fat man, perched on a fat-tired mountain bike and racing across the Nevada Desert like Jabba the Hutt on a unicycle. No I didn’t fall. And no, I didn’t allow photography. Some things like car crashes, modern art and pictures of me riding a bicycle are best kept private.
Why am I telling you this? So you will tell your wives and they will give you some snappy comebacks to lay on me. You see, that was Edith’s job. Who is gonna pick up a 72-year-old curmudgeon when he piles up his bicycle at 30 mph?
I want one!
That’s all
That’s my report for today. The show opens tomorrow and I hope to have a lot more to show you!
B.B.,
It’s not a motorcycle per se. It’s actually a moped. Loophole?
Siraniko
Siraniko,
Now, you aren’t supposed to help me! 🙂
But that was my thought as well, however it costs like a small motorbike.
B.B.
B.B.,
Must be a powerful motor to get you to 30 mph! Wonder how far it can go? Did you ask how much weight it can carry? It sure would be a stealthy/healthy way of going around town. You won’t notice the amount of actual exercise you are doing while using the motor on assist only mode, since you will enjoy getting around more the farther you will go.
Siraniko
Siraniko,
If you don’t pedal you get to 20 mph. Only by pedaling does it go its fastest. And you’re right about the unnoticed exercise. The lady who showed it to me said that and she was right.
They carry 300 lbs.
B.B.
That’s called pedal assist. You can extend the range considerably by using a pedal assist setting. Many ebikes have several pedal assist settings, providing varying amounts of electrical power.
B.B.,
Looks like a great Shot Show unfolding in front of you!
Do I detect a new blog/Research Subject: E-Bikes?
There are three classes of them and way too many rules about riding them! The Nanny State has found them early!
shootski
BB: There are three classes of E-bikes: Class 1 will go 20 MPH but is pedal-assist. In other words, you must pedal the bike and the assist ends at 20 MPH. Class 2 also will hit 20 MPH, but it can do that on E-power without pedaling. The penalty is in range since one is not helping provide power (if one only uses one’s thumb to motate). Class 3 is the higher speed variety that will do 28 MPH. Largely a commuter class and most judicatories outlaw them on bike paths/trails. Ohio has adopted this E-bike scheme following Colorado and other states. You probably were on the Class 3 and the vendors were fudging the top speed a tad bit OR it was hotted up by someone. There is real debate about allowing E-Mountain Bikes on off road mountain bike trails. Our trail patrol has some concerns about the mix of speeds afforded by E-bikes, and concern about some folks riding above their competence ala speed. Glad you had a good time! The positive of E-bikes is that they are getting folks out and riding. So…it is a really mixed bag in the cycling world with respect to E-bikes. We’re allowing Class 1 and Class 2 on our Huron County portion of the North Coast Inland Trail, but Class 3s are to be considered trespassing! Oh, BTW, us 72 year olds are perfectly capable do doing time on the pedals as well as behind the trigger! I know because I am one!
LFranke,
They advertise the model I rode as capable of 19 m.p.h. with the motor, alone and faster if you pedal. I am sure I never got close to that fast on the desert trail I rode on. Maybe 15 m.p.h for a brief sprint. The terrain was just too bumpy and rocky to go faster — at least for me.
B.B.
BB,
Seems like the bike/moped got more interest today,…… LOL! I guess you never know what direction the blog will take,…. ehh? 🙂
Chris
Chris,
And you wonder why I write about straight razors and drones! 😉
B.B.
BB,
Well,…. you do “mix it up”,.. for sure!!!. Then again,… if you did not,… you always have ALL OF US to count on for “mixing it up” in the comment’s section. 😉 Mixed up?, screwed up?,… in the ditch?,… take your pick! 😉
Keep on doing what your doing,………. Chris
BB: You were on a Class 1. Probably the best for fitness with that little extra for hills and bursts of manly speed!
I have a bike like that, it was a Salsa El Mariachi and with a battery and motor in the bottom bracket it’s epic.
Edw,
With the name I thought you were kidding me, but I looked it up and it is real. How do you like riding it? Do you ride it offroad at all?
B.B.
BB
The bike is cool.
And I like the Sig Vertus. I got a email from PA yesterday about it. Already bookmarked it. Oh and by the way I did get me another Sig MPX. And this time I got it with the Sig red dot sight. I will have to say I love the little red dot sight. It’s a smaller outside diameter than normal sights like that. I wish Sig sold the sight by itself. I would for sure buy a few.
And off subject. Got some stuff done to the 95 Mustang GTS I got just a little while back. We dynoed and tuned it yesterday at my buddy’s shop (Turbo Connection). Hes got to do a little more tomorrow but right now its making 399 hp and 448 fpt (foot lbs. of torque) at the rear wheels. He thinks we can get about 5 more hp and fpt out of it. Says it was a tad rich in the mid range of the pull. Going up there tomorrow to see how it drives after the dyno. He said the car totally woke up. So excited about that.
B.B.,
If one tries not to shoot a Robin Hood but almost does anyway, was the shot accurate or inaccurate? :^)
I hope this does not make me a bad airgunner, but the product in your report I found myself desiring the most was the electric moped. Anyone who thinks electric vehicles are staid has never driven a modern one!
Michael
Michael,
If you put a motor in the front hub does that make it an all wheel drive bike?
Siraniko
Siraniko,
They actually sell a two-wheel drive bike, but it was out of my price range.
B.B.
It could. You would need a hub drive unit (which are available) and a controller and have a wheel builder set you up. Might need some fork mods to get it all together. You would have a weight penalty and would burn power pretty quickly, I suspect. Coordinating the power output between the rear drive (regardless of hub or crank E-assist system) and the front might be another factor to consider.
Michael,
Obviously the first and second shots did not go exactly where I aimed. Shot two was the problem. So yes, it was off by a couple inches.
B.B.
GF1,
I think the Virtus will be a fun gun to own. It was fun to shoot.
B.B.
BB
I like that its .22 caliber and comes with the regulated bottle already. I’m really liking the pcp regulated bottle guns. And I bet those .22 caliber pellets will put a nice thump’n on those feral cans. I can see one in my future.
BB,
Thank you for the fine report. That Smart Shooter is one amazing device for you to do that on the first 2 shots at 100 yards! The target was quite realistic, which had to give you a bit of an uneasy feeling.
Have fun at the show. Looking forwards to more reports.
Good Day to you and to all,………. Chris
B.B.
Looks like a fun time!
Maybe the “smart shooter” people should have been shooting at the MTB riding people?
-Y
BB,
What do you mean jackalopes are mythical?! They are almost as much a nuisance around RRHFWA as feral soda cans! I wish someone would come here and tell them they don’t exist!
When you were at the Umarex range, did you happen to see the Avenger? That is supposed to be their new price point PCP. I was wondering how close it was to release such as do they have functioning models yet?
And just so you know, that is not a Jackalope. It has deer antlers instead of antelope horns. That is the much more common Black-tailed Mule Deerbit. Many bar owners use them to befuddle unwary, uneducated tourists. The Jackalope is now considered an endangered species and comes under Federal protection. To have a Jackalope head you must also have documentation to prove it was “taken” before 1987.
The Deerbit was just recently added to the threatened species list. With such a high demand, it too will likely be endangered in the next few years.
RR,
I did not see the Avenger on the range. But I will be going by the Umarex booth at some point, so perhaps I’ll see it then?
B.B.
BB,
They are saying it a price point PCP. I am wondering what price point. It seems that Umerex is starting to pay more attention to the U.S.market.It is looking like they want a piece of Mom’s Apple Pie.
RR,
Okay, NOW I understand!
The Avenger is not from Umarex. It is from Air Venturi. I photographed it today. It’s $329, and I was planning on discussing whether or not it is a PPP.
B.B.
RR,
Thank you for explaining to them about the Deerbit. It saved me a lot of typing. ;^)
Half
Great stuff BB! Thanks for sharing!
The electric-powered desert bike looks to be just the thing to nip down to the 100 yard target butt to pin-up another target.
Hank
Hank,
Okay — you guys are just encouraging me! Thanks! 😉
B.B.
BB
Hank has a good idea there with the bike.
BB,
How about the Virtus trigger? Would you consider this a price point PCP or is it in the fun plinker category?
Brent
Brent,
I’m still trying to figure out whether it’s a price-point PCP or not. It’s certainly priced right for one!
The trigger was okay but not stunning.
B.B.
Brent
I have the Sig MPX and I think it has a very predictable trigger. And actually not to bad on the pull. I have shot other double action triggers that were way way harder to pull.
Don’t know if the trigger in the Virtus is the same as the MPX trigger but I’m betting it is. If so I think it’s not bad at all for a plinker. Oh and my MPX is pretty accurate out to 40 yards.
Hi B.B. and all,
These electric bikes are a real menace here in Holland. Just the other day I saw a gray permed old lady, who must have been at least 80, zip through the rush on an intersection at 30 MPH+ downhill with a psychotic grin on her face. Tires screeched and people got out of their cars cursing. But she was already a dot on the horizon.
Lady I know you don’t have a lot of time left but geez…
As for the Virtus, I want one, but can’t have one because lookalike airguns are not allowed here =-(
Because obviously we would all start robbing banks with them or something. Though a nice lookalike airgun would have completed the look for the old lady.
Carel
“…with a psychotic grin on her face.”
Carel, we have those here, too, although generally, they are in a huge SUV, (illegally) talking on their cell phone whilst running a red light…yet with that same psychotic grin on their face! =)~
Carel,
I can just picture it in my mind-little old lady gang’s with their electric bikes. It’s a good thing they can’t buy the Virtus.
Brent
Carel
Just imagine if the “City” requires existing bikes to be converted to electric. One million grinning old ladies!
Deck
B.B.,
If my math is correct, the percentage of increase in fpe for that “CAP Dragon” is 62.7%, 67.7%, and 66.4% for those three data points they listed. That is a pretty incredible increase in power for a smaller-molecule gas at the same pressure…I would not have guessed it…quite impressive. And the electric-powered bicycle is pretty neat, too.
Overall, this makes for a very interesting report; thank you! =>
Take care & God bless,
dave
Have any improvements been made to the Sig 365? I had one for 30 minutes and returned it. Unreliable, fired squib loads half the time.
michaelr,
I was told they fixed the several issues with the 365. I still want to finish my test of one.
B.B.
Will wait for your wringing out
BB,
Great report, just needed more “art work”, as in, at least one pic of you tearin’ up the Nevada desert on that fat tired bike!! You gonna get one? huh? huh? are ya, huh? get one, get one, get one, tee hee!
Half
Yes, I would like to see that picture also. It would be very good marketing for the company to show how a 72 year old guy can ride like the wind on one. 😉
EPMD, electric personal mobility devices are a booming sector. An easy way to get around, but I would want more storage for ammo trays, milk what have you. And health insurance, but if you are over 65, you have affordable access to it. The electronic sight is a portent of the future that is not unlike a self driving car, no human required. Scary as Granny on an electric bike with a faux assault rifle, but it would put some color in her cheeks!
I swore I would never get one but now, I have some requirements!
Rob
1stblue,
Carrying stuff? That’s what bike trailers and panniers are for!
Siraniko
Okay guys, here is Rossi Morreale at the Shot Show interviewing Clare from Air Arms. They are coming out with a brand new field target rifle, the XTI50. This is one gorgeous airgun with just about everything a field target shooter could ask. I bet B.B. will see this one too. Enjoy. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KGdcs_Ft65M&feature=em-uploademail
Thanks George,
And the clips just keep coming, what, 15 more videos since the one you posted from Rossi alone.
Looking like another great new year of new airguns.
Mike
B.B.,
The He has been a known gas in Big Bores for some years and the leakage problems are real! So is the ever increasing cost of He. If more folks used He the builders could provide storage cylinders lined to at least lower the permiability problem. I was interested in the Light Gas mixture composition? So I searched and came up with some other interesting stuff…sort of on the topic plus more about possible future Airgun velocities:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Light-gas_gun#Design_physics
I have been researching E-Bikes for mountain hunting when there is little or no snow. Mostly for quicker repositioning and carcass drag out assistance.
One more request, AirForce .50 cal…, any at Shot Show? B.B. future report? Light Gas permiability of the DOT CF Tank?
Thanks for the early 2020 Shot Show Range Days report!
This is the dawning of the Platinum Age of Airguns!!!!
shootski
shootski,
Slow down, big boy! I haven’t gotten to the AirForce booth yet.
Yes there will be a .50 there.
B.B.
B.B.,
Didn’t you buy/borrow the E-Bike to speed you around the Vendor Hall!
All in good time; not asking you to be hasty…
shootski
B.B. and Blog Readership,
So for those that are interested the Light Gas is probably composed of a mixture based on Kinetic Diameter:
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kinetic_diameter
Basically it is all about how easily/quickly the gas flows from the storage cylinder to the behind of the Bullet/Pellet.
You can use the He and if you have turbulent flow in your systemat any point you might as well use pressurized Jello®.
shootski
Notice that the data in the spec sheet also includes performance data on Air or Nitrogen. Our patent pending technology takes special care to optimize flow passages to enable maximum flow velocities under all operating conditions. Projectile velocities are fundamentally limited by the speed of sound in the propellant at the prevailing conditions (Temperature, Pressure and velocity) at the base of the projectile.
SmartPlugs,
“…prevailing conditions…at the base of the projectile.” So many folks miss out on that point when they claim an Absolute speed limit for pneumatic systems.
Best of luck with sales and the fun!
shootski
Shootski
Nice 5th dimension tie in. If I might improve it a bit try “it is the dawning of the age of helium Airguns”.
Coduece,
Lol! I like it!
But for now Platinum is still more costly then Helium!
Some of the stuff about flash heating the gas sounds interesting for getting some REAL performance in the bore!
shootski
Shootski
The link was a bit over my head especially this time of night. However any use of helium that doesn’t involve balloons is a more “noble’”use of a finite resource, pun intended.