Page 14 - Umarex Gauntlet Reviews

For the money I'm not sure you could buy a better rifle . Its a game changer, other companies will have to step up to the plate to compete. Got the rifle out of the box and was quite impressed with it. Put about 2500# of nitrogen in it and checked it out for leaks , found none. The rifle has no sights on it and I was waiting for my scope but I still managed to hit a soda can at 30yds 9 out of 10 shots just sighting down the barrel. Can't wait to scope it and put it through a day of shooting. The gauge showed a very slight pressure drop after the 10 shots . So far very impressive gun.

Very accurate, especially for the price. I was hitting a 1-inch target easily (unsupported) at 27 yards. Quite and backyard friendly. It looks really nice: the gap between the barrel shroud and the facade that goes around the tank is not ugly and conspicuous like on many other PCP guns. The adjustable cheek plate comes in very handy (more on that below). Very comfortable to hold, with a nicely ergonomic pistol grip and plenty of space to hold up front, including on the facade. The trigger is just fine. It's a little spongy in the first stage but the break is clean in the trigger pull is very light

There are a number of things that bug me, but are acceptable at this price. The cheek plate has to be all the way up for me to get a proper weld, and I do not have a small head. Also, the cheek plate cannot be adjusted without taking out the sling pin. The barrel is only attached at one point, so any bumps to it could permanently bend it. The facade that covers the tank is a huge pain to get on and off. If you take it off and screw the bottle in all the way, the facade will not fit because the fill valve and the pressure gauge will not not align with the slots in the facade. The bolt is very difficult to work because there is a very strong spring pushing it forward. I can't run the bolt without losing my site picture. The front sling pin is poorly placed, and if you attach a sling to it, it hangs at a very awkward angle with the barrel sticking out. Also, it's too far back to mount a bi-pod effectively. The safety is difficult to switch to safe and likes to switch itself back to fire

This is a great gun for the price, but Umerex was a little too ambitious with it. I could do without a fully-shrouded barrel if it means I get more durability. I could do without sling pins if the ones provided are going to suck and prevent me from changing the cheek plate. I'm not sure why they made the bolt so hard to run. Still a great gun and I love it

I purchased the .177. Accuracy: At 10 yds., and yes it is winter in Michigan, I can stack 5 pellets in a hole the size of a pencil eraser. Quiet: I am able to shoot it in the basement without disturbing people up stairs. I use a pellet trap made of a box stuffed with rubber mulch. The adjustable comb allowed me to center on the scope instantly. I have shot as many as 60 pellets without a loss of accuracy at 10 yds.

Initial bolt and trigger action was rough. They are smoother after 300 rounds. Umarex advertised as 1000 fps with 7.9 gr lead pellets. Pyramyd Air test shots showed 10 shot average speed of only 915 fps with 7.9 gr pellets. They need to pay more attention to regulator setting.

I use an indoor pellet trap made of a 8x8x6" box stuffed with rubber mulch.

For the money, great rifle. I like the fit and feel, trigger is very nice right out of the box.

Haven't adjusted the trigger yet, it is a little long on the pull, but breaks nice. Needs more regulator pressure out put. 15.8 gr. jsbs are running 844fps-837fps would like to see 970fps or better for the 15.8 gr pellets. That way the 18gr or heavyer pellets would be in the low 900fps or high 800fps.

Fantastic first pcp or another great rifle for your collection. Fantastic value. Umarex has a winner here!!!!!

Pressure was regulated. Value for the money.

The gun was defective when received. I returned it before shooting it,

When I tried to move the bolt it was extremely stiff. I could not operate the bolt while the gun was on a bench rest resting at my shoulder. I returned the gun for a refund.

Accurate, consistent power,not picky on what pellets you use. Anyone who complains aboit this rife is an idiot for a 300 dollar price your getting more than you would from any other rifle at that price.

The fact that if the safety is on and you squeeze the trigger it will fire when safety is released, which is not a good thing at all its something that umarex should seriously look into

The trigger is fully adjustable. Accuracy is not bad using off-the-shelf Crosman hollow point pellets. It shoots better has more shots per fill, is much more accurate and has an all-around better feel than the Mrod air varmint that I recently purchased. I would not recommend anyone buying one of those things they are junk. So things I like are the gauntlet is better than the varmint. This gun is also pretty quiet and I have no problem shooting it in my front yard.

This would really be nitpicking but if they offered a different bolt, maybe hex head for the front bottle guard protector instead of the sling bolt. The one it comes with digs into my sand bag rest.

I had to send my first one back due to several issues with the gun. The cocking bolt was the first issue I had. I would cock the bolt back slide a pellet forward pull the trigger and nothing would happen. I would have to pull the bolt back very hard several times in order to get the gun to fire.The second issue was the grouping started to falling apart, when I first got my first Gauntlet I could not believe the accuracy I was incredibly impressed I was shooting the same hole over and over again at 35 yards. But then eventually the accuracy started to go and the grouping opened up then I started getting pellets dropping several inches and then the next few would be back up in the group. I also noticed when I first got the gun it was shooting around 830 fps but I also noticed it would periodically drop to 600 fps and sometimes even into the upper 500s. Also I was not too impressed with my second one as the accuracy was nowhere near what the first one started out as. This one is just ok.

The packaging was stout enough to resist the standard UPS puncture --- only one, so they're getting better. No complaints with fit and finish. Performance was as advertised. 10 for $10 average was 887 fps, I got 910 with the same 11.9 Hobbys. I haven't checked accuracy yet due to the 6" of snow in the back yard. Others should not make such a big deal about velocity. I tried 10 shots each of 5 pellets from 11.9 to 21.14gr. The average fps varied from 910 to 671. BUT the calculated energy varied by less than 1 lb.! (21.89 to 20.93) A crow, squirrel, pigeon, rat, etc. won't be able to tell the difference.

You do have to degas to remove the bottle. When installed it's under pressure just like a CO2 gun's end cap. Marauder mags are very similar, but mine are slightly (about .015") thinner. They will fit, but wiggle around. Order some extra, they're not that much. And the Umarex mags are too wide to fit the Marauder. The trigger was gritty, long and very creepy, but is easy to adjust. Especially the hole in the side plate to let you see the amount of engagement between the sear and trigger. I have noticed an improvement in the cocking smoothness in just the 1st 100 or so shots.

This is a review of my 177 cal. I just received. After shooting it I was very disappointed with this rifle, then reality set in. It isn't exactly as advertised, but it is pretty darn close. My first 22 cal. significantly exceeds its advertised shot count, (I didn't complain) this one and my second 22 cal. fall a little short. It only gets 60 "good" shots. DUH, what else can you buy that does that? For $300? People who are sending them back because they aren't "perfect" should reconsider. The regulators are easy to tune to change the performance. My first 3 crono strings had a standard deviation of 3.2 That is outstanding performance from old unsorted cheapest pellet on the planet crono strings. 30 shots S.D. 3.2? I own nothing else that can do that with cheap pellets. It is a very boring rifle to shoot. It just puts one pellet after another into the same hole. I wish P.A. would publish some users pictures.

better fit on the fore end, include instructions on a separate sheet wrapped around the air bottle with instructions about how to align the fill port and telling you to screw the bottle in completely until you hear the valve "POP" before attempting to fire it. This will avoid cycling 2 or three pellets into the barrel. You may think you have it tight, but it probably isn't, at least the first time. The barrel shroud and end cap were loose on all 3 of my Gauntlets, check yours and give them a twist before you shoot it.

I only get 60 good shots, 7.4 grain C.P. pellets produce 10 shot crono strings=983,982,976,977,976,969 #7 was 869. O.K. it is not 70 but it is twice as many as any of my unregulated Benjamin's. My 22 cal spoiled me with 80 good shots per fill. 7 gr. RWS hobbies hit 1000 fps but wad cutters do not feed well in the magazine, get hung up sometimes so make shooting crono strings a PITA. Round nose pellets feed great. The side stock screws are loose to facilitate removing the fore end so you can tighten the air bottle. You may have to tighten it more than once when new, leave the fore end off. If you start loosing velocity you need to tighten it a bit more. You can hear the valve "click"or "pop" when it opens. Don't bother aligning the fill port/gauge for the first hundred shots unless you can't refill the bottle. When you are confident the bottle is as tight as needed align the fill port and install the fore end, tighten the sling stud first, tighten the side screws last.

I preordered my .22 Gauntlet in July. I got it 2 weeks ago and to my surprise it does not hold air. The bottle was about 3/4 of a turn from tight which made the gauge and Foster fitting not line up with the hand guard. I tightened up the bottle just hand tight and filled the bottle. I took a few shots and was able to sight the gun in 5 shots from 35 yards. It was impressing as it was very accurate. I looked at the gauge and the tank was below 2000k. I refilled the tank and put the gun up for the night. Next morning the tank had barely a farts worth of air. I took off the tank and filled it and it held air. I drained the tank and put it back on the Gauntlet hoping it would still have air in the morning but it was not the case. Contacted PA and they gave me a shipping label to send it back to them. We will see what the next gun looks like. Merry Christmas.

Fore end that covers the tank is difficult when putting back on the gun. Thought it would be quieter.

Once the bugs get worked out I think we will see a very accurate and high shot count air rifle.

This is a followup to my previous review. I shot my .22 Gauntlet out to 50 yards indoors. It was very accurate. I zeroed the rifle at 25 yards. One hole groups at 10, 15, 20, 25, 30 and 35 yards. Up to 20 yards just a ragged hole about the size of the pellet. 25 yards was 0.245" center to center, 30 yards was 0.240" ctc, 35 yard was 0.285" ctc, 40 yards was 0.480" ctc, 45 yards was 0.475" ctc, 50 yards was 0.690" ctc with one pulled shot (otherwise it would have been a 0.465" ctc). I used JSB 18.13gr pellets and all groups were 5 shots. The accuracy and consistency for a $300 pcp rifle is remarkable. The trigger is getting better and better. I did adjust mine down to about 1lb 6oz. There are 3 adjustments: trigger pull, overtravel, and sear engagement. Other reviews that complain about the trigger are (in my opinion) way off base. This is a $300 air rifle, not a $2000 air rifle. The trigger is very nice for the price point and especially after a little adjustment.

Nothing for a $300 rifle.

This is a great performing bargain pcp air rifle. High consistent shot count, accurate, reliable. It is not short but it is fairly quiet with the shroud and somewhat heavy. For the price this is a tremendous rifle. I have not had any feed issues from the magazines. I do make sure that I firmly pull the bolt back after each shot - it does take a little effort but if you make sure to fully cycle to bolt you won't have any feed issues. The rifle feels solid and performs great. I highly recommend it.

Price........

Rifle didnt work right out of the box. Charged it up to 3k fp gun would not discharge air upon the trigger being pressed. TRIGGER, in a word lousy. Long shaggy heavy. Safety sucks to. Cant speak for accuracy.

Buy a pcp from Walmart. Pyramid has been great. The rifle sucks. Sent it back unfired.

Hard hitting (punched through my 5/8" plywood backing board. Dead on, shot to shot accuracy (10 meter 1" targets yield dime sized groups). Easy enough to fill from 1,000psi up to 3,000 psi using my hand pump. Quiet enough that the squirrels were watching from 10 feet away from my target and were not disturbed as I shot repeatedly at it. The trigger is very smooth and breaks predictably, as shipped. The included single shot tray AND 10-shot magazine is fantastic ... test your pellets using the single shot tray and then switch to the magazine once you've found the best ones to use. Nice textured gripping and excellent shaping of the synthetic stock makes it easy to pull into your shoulder for precisely accurate shots. Clever use of the strap lugs to lock in the bottle cover and also lock the adjustable cheek piece. The large 13ci air cylinder is producing 67 reproducible shots IF I go by it's air gauge when filling to 3,000 psi (it isn't accurate ... see Things I would change).

My first two shots were amazing then suddenly, the pressure dropped so much that the pellets wouldn't exit the barrel ... Joe Broncato (Youtube: The airgun scientist) explained that problem AND the easy fix ... but it should have been addressed at the factory? If you cock, load and only get a click with no shot fired, be prepared to tamp back any 'miss fired' pellets, back down the breach until you've properly seated the air cylinder and rotated the gauge and fill port. I used a nylon tipped cleaning rod to push the pellet back into the breach (with the 10-shot mag removed first, of course). They are obviously struggling to supply the guns but it would be nice to be able to order extra regulated air cylinders for it. The small air gauge on the air cylinder isn't accurate enough. My hand pump has a better gauge that matches the gauge on my Discovery so, I use the hand pump gauge, instead of the one on the Gauntlet. The Gauntlet reads 3,000 psi when the hand pump reads only 2,700 psi!

Be prepared to wait but, the wait is absolutely worth it ... ordered July 3rd arrived in November.
I've yet to test it at longer than 10m but I can see no reason for concern at longer ranges ... my 10 m test shots were with 19 grain pellets.
You may need a more powerful scope ... I'm using a 3x-9x bug buster which was fine for my Disco but this gun is so accurate that to get the most from it will likely require a more powerful scope.
The full barrel shroud and 13ci tank are nice but heavier than expected ... the gun is well balanced but top heavy (with a scope) in cheaper sleds.
Expect to raise the adjustable cheek piece to line your eye up with your scope.
Also, expect to buy more 10-shot magazines! You'll rapidly go through them.
When filled to actual 3,000 psi, I'm getting closer to 80 shots so the inaccurate gauge on the Gauntlet will cost you many shots unless you have a more accurate gauge on your pump.
I figure it's approx. 300 pumps from my Benjamin hand pump to refill my gun.

If you were to have just one PCP air rifle, this is the one to get.

Have issues with jamming with the magazine. Pellet gets stuck in barrel.

Everything. I expected a lot. Yes it is seemingly based on a highly modified QB78/79 ( longer airtube than a 79 so more modding potential) and a company I have never dealt with before pulled it off flawlessly. Some complain about the hand guard/bottle cover, on mine ( stripped two of them tho) you simply need to REVERSE removal, tab's first THEN bolt, perfect. Trigger adjusts very light,short and safe. Shoots well enough for FT out of the box and the stock would be well suited for that. 2 allen's, a screw driver and included degas tool strip it all the way down, universal seals, barrel is well anchored with NO poi shift w/without shroud. I own a highly modified 79 built by a pro and so expected a lot (" I" wanted every trick + 10 shots clip that didn't effect groups and shroud) , Umarex did EVERY trick + and got it all right the first time out. Darn. Fit,finish,function,machining, there is nothing on the market even at $600.00 that comes close.

I have seen 2 with the front trigger screw sitting above flush inside the airtube. Fixed by installing an additional washer between screw head and trigger pack.

I have the .177 and stripped a .22. If learned against a wall on the barrel overnight I have seen no poi shift.
If you try to reinstall the front sling stud 1st it WILL cause miss alignment of the hand guard, tabs 1st then tighten stud.
"I" do not feel this is a good design to remove and/or install a bottle with air in it. You get plenty of regulated shots anyway, just refill.
JSB heavies shoot very well in mine.
A cut ( forearm) QB stock will fit and would drop perhaps as much as 2lb ? The stock weighs about as much as the action, you could remove all the adjustable parts for weight savings.

I like the engineering and layout of the Gauntlet, the shot count and multi shoot magazine, regulated bottle.

Nothing at this time.

When you first get your Rifle , check all set and mounting screws for tightness. I ran a few pellets over the chrono and the results; crosman premiers 14.3g-834fps, crosman pointed 14.3g-837fps, jsb 15.89g-820fps, jsb monsters 25.39g-611fps and the best jsb 18.13- 764 fps. My first shots were the crosmans pointed , it put shots in same hole at 30 yards. I found the jsb's 18.13g to be the best, jsb 15.89g and air arms 18.g.
I am still testing and checking things out. The bolt will feel gritty at first but will get better. I will get around to more later. The Gauntly is really a great buy for the money.

I really like the features for the price! I have only fired 50 rounds so far after mounting and sighting in a scope. This is my first .22 PCP bolt action rifle. I have a Gamo Hornet, break barrel. This Umarex is quieter and way more powerful. I used my Gamo pellet trap. The Umarex smashed the back out of it. The gun printed 10 shots in a dime size hole at 30 yards.

I found that cocking the gun took quite a bit of force. I don't know if this is normal. The only experience I have is with my .25 Puncher Breaker which has a side cocking lever. Umarex might consider redesigning the gun to employ a cocking lever rather than a bolt. Also they might consider using a higher capacity air tank. Other than that, I have no issues with the rifle. I really like it!

Accuracy, shot count, magazines, consistency. Everything worked as it should right out of the box. It also shoots a number of pellets well although hollow points require more effort to load and jam in the magazine.

Smoother loading of hollow points. Less weight.

Surprisingly accurate & loads JSB 15.89 pellets well in magazines. The Gauntlet is accurate enough at 100 yards to qualify me as a member of the GTA Long Range Club (NUAH).

The accuracy of this gun is incredible, just like what you see on YouTube. 20 yard 10 shots in one hole is very common. With sub 300 dollar price is a must buy.

The plastic stock can be a little refined.

If you got one like mine, the forearm does line up correctly to show the gage and the refill niple, watch YouTube, there is a way to fix it.

(.22 Cal) This is a "Great" PCP rifle. For under $300 you can not find a better preforming PCP rifle for the money. The accuracy is off the chart, 1/2" groups and under at 40 yards (JSB 18.13) Now this does not come without some work (See Below)

lbs.The trigger out of the box is horrific for a PCP rifle, but that can be perfected to a match grade trigger with a little effort. Out of the box it is a 3 lbs. plus trigger with along first stage and a lot of really rough creep. The trigger is not a true 2 stage trigger but again with some work it is awesome

My rifle loves the 18.13 JSB jumbos, Average 748 FPS and got 58 really good shots. The accuracy is just amazing! 1/2" groups and under, at 40-45 yards. When using the single shot tray, 10 shots grouped under 1/2". The trigger is one of the easiest I have every worked on. I highly polished the sear and all the contact points on the trigger. I adjusted the sear engagement to almost zero and set the overtravel right at the release point. My trigger is incredibly smooth and breaks at 1 lbs. 3 oz. I also mounted a Picatinny rail on the forearm. Drilled through the swivel plate on the back portion and another hole just in front. I used small Allen bolts, washers and locking nuts. This made a very stable platform for my bi-pod. Also, I thoroughly cleaned the barrel. The accuracy blows my mind! With my trigger work, the finished product overall is a 10! Those who are bad mouthing this gun obviously purchased a lemon or just are not aware how to tune the rifle.