Tag Archives: hunting

AirForce Texan: Part 4

Posted on by B.B. Pelletier ↓ 157 Comments

by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

Texan
AirForce Texan big bore.

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3

This report covers:

  • Mr. Hollowpoint
  • The test
  • Two important things
  • Bullet seating
  • Shot count
  • 255-grain bullet target 2
  • 300-grain bullet group 1
  • 300-grain group 2
  • 350-grain bullet
  • 365-grain bullet 
  • Discussion
  • Summary

Today I finally report on my AirForce Texan .458 that we looked at last in September. Some reader asked me to try different commercial bullets in my rifle, and while I was talking to Ton Jones at AirForce he said they really like the bullets Mr. Hollowpoint, Robert Vogel, makes. So I contacted him and ordered a selection of bullets to test.

Mr. Hollowpoint

Robert was on a hog hunt when I contacted him, but when he returned we communicated and he generously sent me a sampling of some of his .45 caliber bullets. I asked for them to be sized .459, because my Texan’s bore is .458. He said he understood and would try his best to satisfy my needs. read more

What do YOU want?: Part 2

Posted on by B.B. Pelletier ↓ 152 Comments

by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

Part 1

This report covers:

  • In a handgun
  • A target BB pistol
  • What it’s for
  • A hunting handgun
  • Any holes?
  • Get real!
  • Over to you
  • Summary

This is a continuation of your opportunity to affect the world of airguns. I told you last time that airgun manufacturers all over the world read this blog daily. Of course there are exceptions to that from time to time. Sometimes a personnel change at a company diverts the attention of its people to other things and we loose them for awhile, but then someone in the company has a question about something airgun-related and they go online to research it. That usually brings them to this blog and they bring the others in their company back with them.

In a handgun

What do you want to see in an air handgun? It can be anything from a simple BB gun to a big bore airgun capable of taking big game. I’ll get you started and then turn the discussion over to you. read more

AirForce Texan: Part 2

Posted on by B.B. Pelletier ↓ 42 Comments

by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier


AirForce Texan big bore.

Part 1

This report covers:

  • Why more air?
  • Why a big bore?
  • Texan operation
  • The big bores that fill to 4,500 psi
  • Big bore bullet philosophy
  • Cocking and Uncocking
  • Can it be uncocked?
  • Summary

In Part One I hopefully familiarized you with the AirForce Texan. Specifically I am talking about the .45 caliber Texan. AirForce and Pyramyd Air both call it a .457-caliber rifle, but it’s really a .458. Only bullets sized .458 and larger will be accurate.

These days you can get either this rifle or the new .50-caliber rifle with the standard 490cc tank that fills to 3000 psi and gets 3-6 shots, depending on the bullet fired and the power setting, or you can get the carbon fiber tank with the TX2 valve. That one fills to 3,.600 psi. The TX2 valve opens more to pass more air and it closes faster to conserve air better. It does use more air with each shot, but it also has more air. Expect 6 or more good shots from a fill to 3,500 psi. read more

Ataman AP16 Standard air pistol: Part 3

Posted on by B.B. Pelletier ↓ 26 Comments

by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

Ataman AP16 Standard
Ataman AP16 PCP repeater.

Part 1
Part 2

This report covers:

Adjustable sights
It doesn’t matter
The test
Sight in
Mount a dot sight
JSB Exact Jumbo Heavy
Air Arms 16-grain dome
Air Arms Falcon pellets
JSB Hades
Loud!
Conclusions
Summary

Today is accuracy day for the Ataman AP16 Standard precharged air pistol. We learned in Part 2 that the AP16 Standard gets up to 46 good shots from one fill. I didn’t shoot that many in the tests today so I only filled the pistol once.

Adjustable sights

We know that the rear sight slides left and right in a dovetail and is held fast by a setscrew.  That’s easy to figure out. It’s the front sight that you need help with. There are no instructions in the manual and the front sight controls elevation by raising and lowering the blade. I told you in Part 2 I would tell you how to adjust it so let’s see. read more

Ataman AP16 Standard air pistol: Part 2

Posted on by B.B. Pelletier ↓ 41 Comments

by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

Ataman AP16 Standard
Ataman AP16 Standard PCP air pistol.

Part 1

This report covers:

JSB Jumbo Heavy
Firing behavior
Fill
Trigger pull
More velocity tests
Air Arms Falcons
H&N Baracudas
Discussion
Summary

Today we look at the power/velocity of the Ataman AP16 precharged pneumatic air pistol. In Part 1 I linked to Tyler Patner’s test of the Compact model. The one I’m testing is the standard model. It has a longer barrel so it gets higher velocity and the reservoir is larger so it also get more shots. As I recall, Tyler got 23 good shots from the Compact model.

JSB Jumbo Heavy

I’ll start with the 18.13-grain JSB Exact Jumbo Heavy that Tyler recommended for best accuracy. And I will show the entire shot string so you can see the shot-to-shot consistency. read more

Umarex Air Javelin airbow: Part 5

Posted on by B.B. Pelletier ↓ 30 Comments

by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

Umarex Air Javelin
The Air Javelin from Umarex.

Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4

This report covers:

  • Quick review
  • More arrows
  • Setup
  • Sight in
  • At 10 meters
  • At 20 meters
  • Raise the sight
  • Summary

Today I shoot the Umarex Air Javelin at 20 meters with a dot sight that has been sighted in. You finally get to see the sort of accuracy that I saw at the SHOT Show in January. The range there was set up for about 25 yards and it seemed like the arrows all went to nearly the same place! You will see that today.

Quick review

Part 4 was a test with a dot sight too, but I also tested the Umarex CO2 adaptor that allows you to use two 12-gram CO2 cartridges. Unfortunately the Tasco Pro Point dot sight I used for that test could not achieve the elevation that was needed to hit the target at 20 meters. I also shot wide of the target bag when I shot an arrow that had been damaged in the rear from a Robin Hood. I didn’t know it was damaged until I pulled it from the fence and examined its base. read more

Diana Mauser K98 PCP rifle: Part 2

Posted on by B.B. Pelletier ↓ 41 Comments

by Tom Gaylord
Writing as B.B. Pelletier

Diana Mauser
Diana Mauser K98 PCP.

Part 1

This report covers:

  • Fill
  • JSB Exact Jumbo Heavy
  • Fill to 200 bar
  • Discharge sound
  • Discussion 1
  • Beeman Kodiak
  • Pellet feed with the single-shot tray
  • H&N Hollow Point
  • Discussion 2
  • Trigger pull
  • Summary

Today we test the velocity and power of the Diana K98 PCP rifle. According to the description on the Pyramyd Air web page, this is a 26-foot-pound air rifle in the .22 caliber I am testing. This information helps me select the right pellets to test. A pneumatic in this power range is probably best with medium-weight to heavyweight pellets, though I will also test lightweights, just so we know.

Fill

I tried to fill the rifle to 200 bar/2900 psi — the recommended fill pressure, but I waited an instant too long to shut the tank valve and the fill went to 3,000. It’s only 100 psi more. read more