mikemorton
17-09-2008, 03:11 PM
It was my rifle's birthday, so I decided to treat it to a bit of "bling" I'd been agonising over for ages - an air stripper.
They certainly look nice, but do they really work? Are they any better than a moderator, or even a bare muzzle?
I was using both my .177 Ultra and .177 MK3 for hunting, which I felt was a bit of a waste. I'd even tried selling it here on the BBS - to no avail.
In the end, I decided to keep it and turn the MK3 into a pure target rifle.
So it was time to bring on the bling.
Phil Hassel http://www.pmcb.co.uk/Contact_Us.htm knows a lot about air rifles - especially MK3s. He had me take some simple measurements and a few days later my stripper was ready.
Fitting is easy - you just need to remove the standard Daystate pre-silencer and then fit the three-piece stripper.
Here's the finished rifle:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/13335322@N05/2865643150/
Although the figure-of-eight barrel band is still on the rifle, the stripper is fractionally slimmer making this more of a free-floating barrel with impact protection should you need it.
Here's a close-up:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/13335322@N05/2864814961/in/photostream/
If you look closely you can see a seam between the front and rear sections of the stripper. This would normally be hidden underneath the figure-of-eight, but my barrel turned out to be shorter than normal.
Apparently there were "long" and "short" barrels. Mine appears to be "extra short." :D
So how did the rifle shoot?
I decided to conduct a pellet test, using washed, sized and lubed pellets.
I shot two five-shot groups of each type at 25 yards off a bipod.
I didn't "run in" each new pellet before testing - as that would have taken up to 50 shots.
Nor did I use a butt bag, clamp or Accushot monopod.
So human error does come into play a little. This wasn't really a proper scientific test, just a bit of fun to see which pellets would work best.
In nearly every case, the first group of five shots was better than the second. I put this down to human error again - me concentrating properly on the first group and relaxing too much for the second. :o
Four pellets delivered really good groups. In reverse order:
:: Baracuda Match
http://www.flickr.com/photos/13335322@N05/2865636654/
:: Webley Mosquito
http://www.flickr.com/photos/13335322@N05/2865640860/
:: Super Field
http://www.flickr.com/photos/13335322@N05/2864813059/
:: And the winner - Field Target Trophy
http://www.flickr.com/photos/13335322@N05/2864813935/ :)
Like I said, not a true test, but good enough for now. A trip to a longer indoor range would really sort out the men from the boys.
The MK3 always shot well, but never any better than my John Bowketted Ultra.
With the stripper, the Daystate takes the lead.
In fact I'm so pleased with the accuracy of my rig I reckon even Stevie Wonder could shoot it - if you know what I mean. ;)
Thanks for looking.
Mike
They certainly look nice, but do they really work? Are they any better than a moderator, or even a bare muzzle?
I was using both my .177 Ultra and .177 MK3 for hunting, which I felt was a bit of a waste. I'd even tried selling it here on the BBS - to no avail.
In the end, I decided to keep it and turn the MK3 into a pure target rifle.
So it was time to bring on the bling.
Phil Hassel http://www.pmcb.co.uk/Contact_Us.htm knows a lot about air rifles - especially MK3s. He had me take some simple measurements and a few days later my stripper was ready.
Fitting is easy - you just need to remove the standard Daystate pre-silencer and then fit the three-piece stripper.
Here's the finished rifle:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/13335322@N05/2865643150/
Although the figure-of-eight barrel band is still on the rifle, the stripper is fractionally slimmer making this more of a free-floating barrel with impact protection should you need it.
Here's a close-up:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/13335322@N05/2864814961/in/photostream/
If you look closely you can see a seam between the front and rear sections of the stripper. This would normally be hidden underneath the figure-of-eight, but my barrel turned out to be shorter than normal.
Apparently there were "long" and "short" barrels. Mine appears to be "extra short." :D
So how did the rifle shoot?
I decided to conduct a pellet test, using washed, sized and lubed pellets.
I shot two five-shot groups of each type at 25 yards off a bipod.
I didn't "run in" each new pellet before testing - as that would have taken up to 50 shots.
Nor did I use a butt bag, clamp or Accushot monopod.
So human error does come into play a little. This wasn't really a proper scientific test, just a bit of fun to see which pellets would work best.
In nearly every case, the first group of five shots was better than the second. I put this down to human error again - me concentrating properly on the first group and relaxing too much for the second. :o
Four pellets delivered really good groups. In reverse order:
:: Baracuda Match
http://www.flickr.com/photos/13335322@N05/2865636654/
:: Webley Mosquito
http://www.flickr.com/photos/13335322@N05/2865640860/
:: Super Field
http://www.flickr.com/photos/13335322@N05/2864813059/
:: And the winner - Field Target Trophy
http://www.flickr.com/photos/13335322@N05/2864813935/ :)
Like I said, not a true test, but good enough for now. A trip to a longer indoor range would really sort out the men from the boys.
The MK3 always shot well, but never any better than my John Bowketted Ultra.
With the stripper, the Daystate takes the lead.
In fact I'm so pleased with the accuracy of my rig I reckon even Stevie Wonder could shoot it - if you know what I mean. ;)
Thanks for looking.
Mike