Aeroman
29-03-2005, 04:23 PM
I recently met Harvey (AKA Pieman) and bought one of his loading trays for my Daystate rifles, and I just thought I'd share what I found.
First Impressions
The trays are nicely made with a satin finish to match the silver details on the HarrierX, X2, and Mk3 rifles, the loading trough having been polished to a mirror bright finish. The tray is slightly broader than the receiver to allow for a small ridge at each edge to stabilise the assembly preventing any sideways displacement.
The tray comes in two versions; left and right handed, with a raised platform opposong the loading side to prevent the pellet from rolling across the tray and falling out of the breech area. All in all the loading tray appears to be well thought out and is aesthetically in keeping with the rifles it is designed for.
Fitting
Attaching the tray is a doddle! Pull the bolt back into the same position as you would for removing the magazine and slide the tray in from either side of the breech with the magnets positioned on the forward underside. As they align with the forward breech attachment screws the tray pulls itself into place with a positive 'snick'. (Turning the rifle upside down and giving it a vigourous shaking and slapping the butt to try to make it fall out failed to budge it). During normal usage the tray would be secured as well by the bolt probe being closed, but the rare earth magnets which Harvey has used are each strong enough to hold the weight of a tray four times the mass.
The tray in use.
The first time I used the tray to load a pellet it was obvious that much care and attention to detail had been used in the design and manufacture of it. The loading trough lines up perfectly with the breech so there is no potentially accuracy-killing step or gap for the pellet to bridge , and the polished trough contributes to my confidence that the pellet will be sat in the barrel waiting for the off in the best condition that I could hope for. To make the conversion back to multi shot takes under 10 seconds - bolt back, lift and slide the tray out, magazine in, bolt back forwards and we're good to go again.
Conclusions:
Harvey has created a quality product manufactured to close tolerances and really easy to use. From a personal viewpoint, I don't think it is really necessary to have a left and right handed version as the well of the pellet trough is deep enough without the raised platform, which would make the trays a touch quicker and easier to produce without detracting from what is a superb accessory.
Daystate will be releasing their own magnetic loading tray in the very near future - it it's half as good as this one it'll still be a winner!
David
First Impressions
The trays are nicely made with a satin finish to match the silver details on the HarrierX, X2, and Mk3 rifles, the loading trough having been polished to a mirror bright finish. The tray is slightly broader than the receiver to allow for a small ridge at each edge to stabilise the assembly preventing any sideways displacement.
The tray comes in two versions; left and right handed, with a raised platform opposong the loading side to prevent the pellet from rolling across the tray and falling out of the breech area. All in all the loading tray appears to be well thought out and is aesthetically in keeping with the rifles it is designed for.
Fitting
Attaching the tray is a doddle! Pull the bolt back into the same position as you would for removing the magazine and slide the tray in from either side of the breech with the magnets positioned on the forward underside. As they align with the forward breech attachment screws the tray pulls itself into place with a positive 'snick'. (Turning the rifle upside down and giving it a vigourous shaking and slapping the butt to try to make it fall out failed to budge it). During normal usage the tray would be secured as well by the bolt probe being closed, but the rare earth magnets which Harvey has used are each strong enough to hold the weight of a tray four times the mass.
The tray in use.
The first time I used the tray to load a pellet it was obvious that much care and attention to detail had been used in the design and manufacture of it. The loading trough lines up perfectly with the breech so there is no potentially accuracy-killing step or gap for the pellet to bridge , and the polished trough contributes to my confidence that the pellet will be sat in the barrel waiting for the off in the best condition that I could hope for. To make the conversion back to multi shot takes under 10 seconds - bolt back, lift and slide the tray out, magazine in, bolt back forwards and we're good to go again.
Conclusions:
Harvey has created a quality product manufactured to close tolerances and really easy to use. From a personal viewpoint, I don't think it is really necessary to have a left and right handed version as the well of the pellet trough is deep enough without the raised platform, which would make the trays a touch quicker and easier to produce without detracting from what is a superb accessory.
Daystate will be releasing their own magnetic loading tray in the very near future - it it's half as good as this one it'll still be a winner!
David