Today reader Ian McKee, whose blog handle is 45Bravo, tells us more an unusual airgun that many of us know, but this version is different. It’s a Sheridan model 190B.
If you’d like to write a guest post for this blog, please email me at blogger@pyramydair.com.
Take it away, Ian
A Sheridan 190B: Part Two
by Ian McKee
Sheridan 190B.
This report covers:
- What it has going for it
- Velocities and weights
- The test
- BB responds
We last looked at the Sheridan 190 which is a .50 caliber smooth bore, multi pump air pistol. Designed as a “projector,” meaning it is a dart gun meant to deliver medications and sedatives to animals that are either:
A. Too skittish to let you get close to them, or
B. Too dangerous for YOU to get close to!
There were several comments from you readers about alternative projectiles other than the darts they were designed for. That was my whole intention for buying the airgun — trying different things to shoot out of it.
What it has going for it
If you look at it as a recreational airgun and not a tool for biologists, veterinarians and ranchers, it is the ultimate big bore airgun. I will list some of the attributes.
It is easy to fill, (somewhere between three and nine pumps.)
It has two ways to adjust the power. (Number of pumps and a transfer port adjustment.)
It is lightweight, and reasonably accurate out to 30 yards. As a projector, your target is normally pretty big, think the rump of a 1000 lb. animal.
And you are not limited to one type of projectile, if it will fit in the barrel, you can send it down range.
Velocities and weights
Today we look at the velocity of several projectiles. These are all available online, or in some retail outlets.
The test
I will start with its intended ammo. I have a couple of practice darts, the ones I have on hand are made to replicate the weight and flight characteristics of a dart filled with 5cc of liquid. They have steel points a little over an inch long, an aluminum head, a plastic body, and a soft pliable skirt to give a good seal in the barrel.
This could be very dangerous if used wrong.
The practice dart weighs 104.6 grains. With 9 pumps and the chronograph set 10 feet in front of the barrel, it gave a velocity of 247 f.p.s. over my Caldwell chronograph. I am using that instead of my FX Radar Chronograph because most of the projectiles I am shooting for today’s tests are non-metallic and do not give a good radar return.
I purchased some hard plastic balls intended for the .50 caliber less-lethal personal defense guns on the market. They weigh 22.1 grains and they performed quite well, turning 323fps over the chrono with 9 pumps.
I zeroed the scale with the rubber band on it, before adding the ball. The band is to keep it from rolling off the scale.
Next I tried Nerf Hyper rounds. They are soft solid balls made from TPE (ThermoPlastic Elastomer). They feel like soft rubber, are very squishy, and have a slightly tacky feel. They are dimpled like a golf ball for better flight characteristics. They are actually .55 caliber, and weigh 20.7 grains but do squeeze into the barrel easily, give a good seal, and shoot very well. They gave a velocity of 255 fps at 9 pumps. I attribute the lower velocity to the slightly tacky feeling of the TPE and tight bore fit.
Even though they are slightly oversized for the bore TPE balls load easily and perform very well.
I also ordered a pack of precision aluminum balls intended for the less lethal weapons. They weigh 41.7 grains, like the yellow plastic round they are slightly loose in the bore, but the ball detent in the chamber area holds the ball in place until fired.
Being slightly loose in the bore, and almost twice the weight of the hard yellow plastic balls, they only gave a velocity of 153 fps.
Almost twice the weight, but solid aluminum.
I did try patching the aluminum ball with cloth of varying thicknesses. Much like you would with a muzzleloading rifle, but patched and inserted from the breach end.
That did not work like I thought it would as the pistol lacks the pressure to push the patched round down the bore.
I think the reason the practice dart worked so well is the small contact area with the bore, and the pliable skirt that expands to seal the bore when pressure is applied behind the dart.
I also ordered some stainless steel balls, and some Umarex Glass marble slingshot ammo, but with the low velocity of the aluminum balls, I decided not to test the steel or glass projectiles as they are a lot heavier than aluminum.
Next I tried the other end of the quality spectrum. I made some “spitballs”, from wet 20 lb. copy paper. I reduced the size until they fit the bore well, and they weighed in at 20.8 grains. Try as I might, with different numbers of pumps, I could not get them to shoot the entire 10 ft to the chronograph. They would open up after leaving the barrel, and stop before getting to the chronograph.
Spitball.
The last projectile to chrono today is the one that started me down this path. The standard Nerf dart. It weighs 15.7 grains. And fits the bore slightly snug. I lightly lubed it with silicone oil, and it chambered much easier.
Nerf dart.
Four pumps gave it a velocity of 159 fps. Anything past four pumps while the dart was exiting the barrel faster, they became unstable. The faster you shot them, the more unstable they became. In fact they became so unstable that I will venture to say that nothing in the room is safe, including things behind you. It was like shooting a fireworks “bottle rocket” without the stick to guide it.
In Part Three we will look at 3D printed and other homemade projectiles. Part Four will be accuracy testing with the projectiles that perform well.
Shoot safe, and have FUN!
Ian
BB responds
I am really excited about this report because it tells of an affordable big bore airgun that’s also very flexible with ammo. THIS IS THE SORT OF AIRGUN COMPANIES COULD MAKE THAT WILL SELL! Most people don’t want to hunt whitetail deer; they want something they can shoot safely in the back yard! This could be it. Will anyone listen? I doubt it.
Ian,
That is going to be a fun pistol platform for projectile experiments.
Siraniko
Ian,
The most interesting thing (to me, so far, anyway) is that the energy of the darts was 14 fpe, while the plastic balls were only 5 fpe, and the aluminum balls were only 2 fpe (no doubt due to the loose fit).
14 fpe is good energy for a pistol of this size; it’ll make for quite the thumper of a plinker!
I look forward to your future accuracy testing. 🙂
Blessings to you,
dave
“I am really excited about this report because it tells of an affordable big bore airgun that’s also very flexible with ammo. THIS IS THE SORT OF AIRGUN COMPANIES COULD MAKE THAT WILL SELL!”
BB,
Right you are! Most of us just want a big bore airgun for the fun of it; and this thing looks like fun in spades!
I hope someone is listening to you! 😉
Blessings to you,
dave
Dave,
You see it and I see it but can the marketeers see it?
BB
Good point, LOL! 😉
BB,
Probably not. They think everybody wants magazine fed gas sproingers.
Most people will just use a .50 or .68 paintball guns instead. ? (AVAILABLE AT PYRAMYD AIR!)
I intended to get some .50 paint balls, but forgot to order some.
May have to revisit that in part 4 or 5.
Ian
Ohio,
Back in the day, I took one of my paintball guns and tried to make it a mini shot gun. I never could get it to work out. Very weak. Played with the hammer spring and all. Back then I hadn’t heard of hard plastic less than lethal balls. I did have ok luck by “freezing” my paint balls. They would he with a thump. But when they froze, they didn’t always completely freeze and sometimes they weren’t as “round” once they froze. So accuracy was just so so.
Doc
Doc Holiday,
Opportunity Knocks: https://quackenbushairguns.com/currently_available.htm
I really get a KICK out of my DAQ Camp & Garden .410 Shot Pistol. But you could also go for a DAQ .58 (.575) caliber pistol which can hit things with authority AND ACCURACY out to 90 yards and beyond. You can turn it into a carbine easily with the Crosman grip/stock.
You and many others sadly missed the chance for the Walnut stocked DAQ Outlaw .58 (.575) Short Rifle.
Once in a lifetime chance to go to the range and SCARE your Range buddies…enable…enable…enable
shootski
PS: IF you do get one or more make certain to have good ear protection on even for “blank” discharges.
Shootski,
Those look fun. But air hogs.
Doc
Doc Holiday,
YUP.
My DAQ ShortRifle shoots a 350 grain MRHollowpoint at 650 FPS out of the 20″ barrel (conservatively) at 300+ FPE kinetic energy.
Can not imagine how i could make it an air sipper.
I also don’t know how to get rid of the side effect; sore face from the huge grin induced by the KABOOM each time.
shootski
PS: Maybe get a sippy cup regulator?
shootski,
Sippy cup regulator? Possibly, but not likely. Do not get me wrong. Once upon a time, before there were such things as regulators, PCPs used to get over twenty .46 caliber man killing shots from a reservoir that only filled to somewhere between 600 to 800 PSI. The airgun world has forgotten so much over the years.
But RidgeRunner, Ton was able to hit a target at an incredible range with an airgun. So. How large was the target? After how many shots? How high did he aim over the target? Was there any crosswind? At what PSI was his air rifle operating? How large was his air reservoir? Was not his air rifle a custom build? Et cetera. I’m impressed.
RidgeRunner,
I understand your position and agree on some PCP knowledge being lost.
I still believe that 300+ FPE for at least three shots from an initial reservoir charge between 3,000 and 3,500 PSI using a .58 Caliber 20″ barrel is doing an impressive amount of Work.
Dennis built it for hunting in dense undergrowth /brush not for picking off Officers at 150 yards on the typicality flat and barren battlefields of the eighteenth century. I suspect that with a 36″ barrel length the .58 Outlaws would have vastly greater retained energy on target even there.
You also know that Quackenbush purpose builds for hunting BIG tough hided game not thin skinned humans.
His airguns cost far less (in todays equivalent money) require far less maintenance, are far more reliable, and demand lower operator skill than a Girardoni.
shootski
shootski,
I have a .457 Texan LSS CF. I would likely have a .58 Outlaw if Dennis still made them. I do kick myself in the butt for not buying two of his air rifles when the opportunity came knocking, though it probably would have led to a divorce. RRHFWA was just cranking up.
My point is even Dennis wandered away from what PCPs used to be. I do understand. The knock open valve is so much simpler and waaaaaay cheaper to make than the old timed valve. Also, when Dennis made a batch of them, most airgunners did not understand what it was. Do not even talk to Dennis about him building another Amaranth, though I would really like to have one.
Texan – .357 – fifty yards
RidgeRunner,
Face it you are an OWBBA!
(One With Big Bore Airguns)
If you ever dump that air rifle i will be your personal Charon and paddle you over the River Styx and Acheron!
shootski
shootski,
I like the little plinkers also. I even picked up a few when my grandson and I went to the airgun show, to which you were invited by the way. 😉
In fact, I unloaded, pardon the pun, a .177, a .25 and two .22s and brought home a bb gun, two .177s and a .20.
Yes, I would like another big bore or two. I would really like an Amaranth, but that ain’t likely gonna happen. I will just have to be happy with my .457, my 8mm and see if I can get my hands on a .50.
OP,
And who is going to fill them?
Ian,
I thank you once again for revisiting this classic. Like BB, I do believe this thing would sell well, although many are hung up on the paintball guns that use CO2. As for myself, I am more likely to buy one of these than a CO2 paintball gun. I would also consider a rifle version. I do believe Ed and Val at Crosman should give these some serious consideration. It would probably not be too difficult to convert the 13XX and the 362 to this. We will see I guess.
As for the pump-up pistols, I happen to have four of them right now. I have two BF 130s, one with wood grips, a BF 132 and a BF 137. I do believe most of these need rebuilding, but hey, that is half the fun. Now, where did I put that round tuit?
How about to get some fun??? This is it! 🙂
Ian,
Thanks for writing this! I have been bugging B.B. for years to test dart guns. Hopefully next you can find the kind of dart gun they use to tag whales?
My only suggestion for projectiles would be the kind that have a suction cup on the front. Turn it around and perhaps need to trim some of the outer lip of the suction cup off?
Who really wants to get within 30 feet of a lion or bear?
-Y
I will have to explore that.
The regular nerf darts shot in the conventional way with the head pointed forward tended to split the hollow dart when pumped too much.
Ian
Yogi,
There is an endless supply of idiots out there who are quite willing to get within thirty feet of a lion or a bear. Was there not an idiot and his idiot girl friend who were living amongst the Alaskan Grizzlies not too long ago? If I am not mistaken, they were both turned into bear poop.
Yes, but those are not the people who would be using a tranquilliser gun or giving medical aid.
-Y
Yogi,
This is true. The smarter ones who would likely be using a tranquilizer dart gun usually stay out of reach using helicopters. Unfortunately, that still does not stop the idiots from becoming lion and bear poop.
Maybe they can administer antacids with the tranquilizer guns.
Hopefully we have a review of the type of airgun that the copter shooters use. Or the type of gun that they use to tag whales.
-Y
Yogi, You keep talking about whale injections .
A quick google search or two of “how do they inject medicine into Whales” brings up data about euthanizing whales that have been stranded on beaches and their circulatory and respiratory systems have started to fail due to no longer having neutral buoyancy in the water.
I don’t care to delve into euthanizing animals in the blog.
I did find data online that says they use a cantilevered pole syringe for injection of antibiotics for whales and other large mammals, and it sometimes takes multiple injections to get the dosage.
That led me to googling the cantilevered pole syringe, so basically they are still “harpooning” the whale. Only with medicine and a syringe instead of the huge barbed head of a harpoon.
They say that it is preferred not to use a ballistic syringe as the chances of a miss and a “third party” ingesting the contents of the syringe.
That being said, below is a link to a company here in the USA that sells dart guns.
Their range is listed from 0 through 70 yards.
Most of the guns uses 12 gram CO2 cartridges, but many are going to guns that use a .22 caliber blank cartridge to propel the dart.
Here in the USA, those require the buyer to fill out a form 4473 as they are purchasing a firearm.
Some of the cartridge fired projectors actually have a rifled barrel.
Hopefully this points you in the right direction of what you are seeking.
Ian
https://shop.pneudart.com/projectors/
Ian,
Cool projectors! I find air powered stuff interesting. Those pumpkin cannons that shoot very far and those t-shirt projectors at sporting events, I think are way cool….
-Y
PS I understand now that the catapults on aircraft carriers are air powered.
Actually the aircraft catapults have been powered by steam for decades.
As I understand it the Navy is developing an electromagnetic aircraft launch system (EMALS) using a linear induction motor system. For the Gerald R. Ford carrier.
It is said to be easier on the air frames and require less maintenance than the steam systems.
Ian
45 Bravo,
EMALS is suffering from serious reliability problems that will need to be overcome or we will see the crew once again blessed by many more saltwater showers and the hiss of steam catapults. Huh?
Fresh water on ships is costly to produce and warfighting functionally prohibitive to store.
The steam catapult operates on fresh water supplied from a massive evaporator system that turns seawater into fresh water SLOWLY even with Nuclear Reactors supplying the thermal energy.
The Catapults compete for that limited freshwater supply with the propulsion steam turbines as well as the crew required ration for drinking, cooking, and washing with.
You can bet which use gets the lowest priority and it isn’t flushing the Heads (toilets) those are plumbed for seawater only already.
shootski
Arrrgh Mate! Underway’s the only way! Land is a navigational hazzard! Sailors were made for ships and ships were made for the sea! Arrrrgh!
You’re referring to the late Timothy Treadwell, who met an unbearable end and proved once again that Darwin Rules.
FM,
The truth is that Darwin really had no idea what he was babbling about, but that still does not prevent idiots from doing idiot things.
I wonder if the Nerf projectiles could be improved with some forward weight added to the nose. It would be easy to try. A thumb tack comes to mind first, but there is a wide gamut of tacks, nails, screws and such that could be inserted into and retained by the blue tip. Might be worth a try.
Years ago some coworkers and I were in a fun group, and we used to have small Nerf skirmishes at work. I was the first to modify the darts by separating the head from the foam tail and glue a .22 lead pellet in place, and then reassembled them. Those flew farther and truer and became the new standard for what we would use. Eventually, pretty much all the darts we used had that mod done to them. Those were the days . . . .
Very interesting report, thanks Ian and BB! The practice dart that came with the gun appears to work well. If you think about it a little, its shape (slightly) resembles a long pellet. I noticed some Seneca Balle Blondeau pellets available at Pyramyd AIR:
https://www.pyramydair.com/product/air-venturi-50-cal-210-grains-balle-blondeau-flat-head-50ct?p=1015
They weigh a lot more than the other projectiles you are testing. Therefore they might be too heavy for that gun. However the shape is interesting to me. If you do some 3D printed objects, I would be interested in seeing something shaped similar to the Balle Blondeau pellets.
I will design some of those for the next part. I have already shot most of the next part with 3d printed projectiles.
But that design looks interesting.
Ian.
You could try shooting it as a mini hand-mortar, using one of the lower-velocity projectiles; set a target on the ground and see if you could land the ball, dart or other type round on or close to it. Or you could just dismiss this as just another FM wacko idea which is probably the wisest thing to do.
FawltyManuel,
On a WINDY day?
Got your FRITZ hat ready…
shootski
Indeed.
Ian,
Great read. Pumpers are a good platform to experiment with. I used to shoot everything out of mine old Crosman 760 and sometimes would muzzle load my Daisy Red Ryder lol. Close range you could shoot wooden table matches. Q Tips should fire too, but not going far. Looking forward to reading more
Doc
I would have to dig them out, but I do have a few NERF guns.
Ian
Great report. May be interesting to try to muzzle load a .50 Cal blowgun dart.
You gave me an idea for my Crosman 760. Have lots of bamboo skewers
Kind Regards
jda001
I wanted to try some of those, but keep forgetting to order some.
in my Amazon cart now.
I need to get an actual dart board, but they are expensive.
(That’s me being a cheap air gunner)
Ian
Ian
5 below has a really cheap paper dart board for 5 dollars. I’ve been using mine for about 12 months. Its pretty much on its last leg but I have over 2,000+ .177 darts into the paper board. Inexpensive enough for testing. Would not recommend any high power shots 🙂
Kind Regards
jda001
B.B. and USA Readership,
This is a great thing for airguners as well as firearm shooters and hopefully will come to pass as soon as the current obstructionist administration gets out of Our House.
No matter for whom you voted the ATF needs to be reined in on all of its overreaching!
https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/senate-bill/4825
https://www.congress.gov/bill/118th-congress/house-bill/8306
This will be a good start. It probably won’t go anywhere until 2025 since President “gun banner” Biden would never sign it into Law.
shootski
Good deal! Now will try and see if one or more of our more sober legislators can loosen up regs regarding SBRs – but, one thing at a time.