by Tom Gaylord, a.k.a. B.B. Pelletier
AirForce Escape: Part 1
AirForce Escape: Part 2
AirForce Escape: Part 3
AirForce EscapeUL: Part 1
AirForce EscapeUL: Part 2
AirForce EscapeUL: Part 3
This report covers:
• Summary of the AirForce Escape report up to this point.
• There are three different air rifles.
• EscapeSS is quieter.
• EscapeSS description.
• How does the EscapeSS differ from the TalonP pistol?
• What comes next?
It’s been a while since we last looked at the AirForce Escape air rifles. To date, we’ve seen the power, accuracy and general characteristics of the AirForce Escape and the EscapeUL, which is the ultra-light version. Today, we’ll start looking at the EscapeSS, which is the version of the rifle with some sound muting.
We’ve seen that the Escape rifles can generate tremendous power — up to 97.88 foot-pounds of muzzle energy from the Escape rifle when the heaviest .25-caliber pellets are used. We’ve also learned that the Escape rifles are at their most accurate when the fill pressure is lowered and the power is dialed back. That held true for both the Escape and the EscapeUL, so it seems to be a trend; and I’ll use that experience when testing the EscapeSS.
There are three rifles!
Before moving on, I want to emphasize there are three different air rifles. The Escape, EscapeUL and EscapeSS all have different specifications and deliver different performance. I’m telling you this because customers are starting to run the model names together and getting confused over which rifle does what.
The three Escape rifles are the Escape (top), the EscapeSS (center) and the EscapeUL (bottom).
Each of these air rifles is unique and different from the others. The Escape is the most powerful of the bunch. The EscapeUL is the smallest and lightest, and the EscapeSS that we’re looking at today is the quietest of the three.
If you forget how the first two rifles performed, I urge you to go back to the reports linked above and catch up. I intend reporting on just one rifle in this report — the EscapeSS.
The EscapeSS is a smaller rifle with a 12-inch barrel inside a frame that acts as a shroud.
Quieter rifle
The SS is the quiet version of the Escape — just like the Talon SS is the quiet Talon and the CondorSS is the quiet Condor.
To achieve this quieter report, the EscapeSS has three baffles ahead of its muzzle. They’re held tight in the frame by a Belleville washer ahead of the last baffle and behind the end cap.
Inside the EscapeSS shroud/frame are three Delrin baffles and a Belleville washer to keep them from rattling.
I’ve already been to the range and can report that the EscapeSS really is quieter than either the Escape or the EscapeUL. It has the same recoil of the other two, which is greater than the recoil of a medium-weight .22 rimfire rifle, but the sound is greatly reduced.
However — just because the muzzle report is greatly reduced from the Escape does not mean the EscapeSS is a quiet rifle. While it’s much quieter outdoors than a .22 rimfire, it’s also louder than a Benjamin 392 pumped 8 times. The EscapeSS is not for suburban backyards! It’s more of a quieter hunting air rifle for public lands. I doubt it would be noticed beyond a half-mile away.
The EscapeSS description
The EscapeSS is a precharged pneumatic air rifle that comes in both .22 and .25 calibers. It has a 12-inch Lothar Walther barrel; but like all AirForce sporting rifles, it can accept barrels of any length. It can also accept other calibers, but I don’t believe I’d try one in .177 caliber because this powerplant is so overwhelmingly powerful that it would be hamstrung by such a small bore size.
The rifle weighs 4.3 lbs., and its length varies from 27.75-inches to 32.25-inches — depending on how the shoulder stock is adjusted.
The rifle is made on an aircraft aluminum frame that houses all the parts, including the barrel. The 213cc air reservoir can be filled to 3,000 psi, nominally giving about 10 powerful shots. Like all AirForce sporting air rifles, the EscapeSS has adjustable power via an adjustment wheel located on the left side of the frame.
How does the EscapeSS differ from the TalonP pistol?
I have to address this issue before the questions start flooding in. Sharp observation will notice that both the EscapeSS and the TalonP have the same 12-inch barrel (that comes in both .22 and .25 calibers), and they share the identical powerplants. So, what makes them different?
First, the TalonP frame is shorter. This makes the gun smaller, but it also means there’s no room for the baffles. The TalonP is louder than the EscapeSS at the same power.
Next, the TalonP comes without the extendable shoulder stock. You can purchase one as an accessory if you like, but the basic pistol comes without it. The EscapeSS is a rifle that comes standard with the shoulder stock.
The EscapeSS and TalonP should both develop comparable power when they’re set up the same way. But the TalonP is more compact, and the EscapeSS is more of a carbine-length rifle. You have to decide which is best for you. You can always add the shoulder stock to a TalonP, but you cannot make it as quiet as an EscapeSS.
As I said, I’ve already been to the range with the EscapeSS. I used the experience obtained when testing both the Escape and EscapeUL rifles instead of testing every pellet in the rifle. And I knew beforehand that the fill pressure and power settings needed to be lowered, so I started low and worked around until I found the best combination.
EscapeSS power
We know that the EscapeSS has a 12-inch barrel. Knowing how barrel length affects velocity, we know that the velocities for this rifle are going to be lower than for either of the other 2 rifles. But when I tested the rifle, I discovered something I didn’t expect.
All these tests used the 43.3-grain Eun Jin pointed pellet. On high power with a 3,000 psi fill, the first 5 shots gave the following results.
Shot Vel.
1 785
2 776
3 763
4 749
5 739
This gives an average of 763 f.p.s for the first 5 shots. At the end of the shooting, the tank pressure still read 2,500 psi. At the top velocity (shot 1), this pellet produces 59.26 foot-pounds of muzzle energy. At the average velocity, this pellet produces 55.99 foot-pounds.
I then dialed the power setting to 8 and refilled the tank to 3,000 psi. That gave the following results.
Shot Vel.
1 784
2 763
3 759
4 748
5 736
That gives us an average velocity of 756 f.p.s. Not very different, is it? The tank pressure after these 5 shots read 2,400 psi. At the top velocity, the muzzle energy was 59.11 foot-pounds. At the average velocity, the energy was 54.97 foot-pounds.
Then, I dialed down the power to 4 and got a huge surprise. That gave the following results.
Shot Vel.
1 801
2 779
3 767
4 758
5 741
The average velocity for this string was 769 f.p.s. — the highest in the test! At the top velocity, this pellet produced 61.70 foot-pounds of muzzle energy. At the average velocity, it made 56.87 foot-pounds! So, the rifle was more powerful on power setting 4 than it was with the power wheel dialed up as high as it will go. The rifle’s ending tank pressure read 2,500 psi.
The 12-inch barrel is showing up in these results. Clearly the rifle is wasting air with this pellet when the power is set above a certain low number. I think the number is around 4, but it would take more testing to know for sure.
That’s as much velocity testing as I’m going to do now because it isn’t helpful. I’ll come back and do a more thorough velocity test when I know which pellets this gun likes. With this gun, it isn’t just about power. Accuracy is also very important. The best combination of both is what we’re looking for.
In my next report, I’ll show you the results of the first accuracy test, which are very encouraging.
The next step in testing the Escape rifles
After we complete testing the EscapeSS rifle for accuracy, we’ll start the next phase of testing for all 3 rifles. That will be testing their velocity at the most accurate setting with the most accurate pellet or pellets. read more
