BSA Lightning XL SE Out of the bag review

[markkeogh]

Just bought a Lighting XL SE .177 from my local dealer and this is it to date.
This rifle needed to satisfy a range of people, myself a large and stocky six footer who wants it for hunting ultimately, my twelve year old daughter who is keen to get into shooting and hunting and my wife who wants occasional plink when we go camping but is left eye biased to shoots left handed it turns out!
Firstly out of the box it is a lovely looking rifle, the stock is very well shaped and comfortable to hold and the overall finish is very well done.
First issue though is that the barrel has a small amount of play in it.
Primarily this was because of a lack of lubricant but also due to a little slack in the action of the break barrel so a light lube and a subsequent squeeze to remove the last two thou (just because it was there) and it feels better than a decent one out of the box from BSA.
I know this because my dealer got a good one out of the recent delivery of stock units to satisfy our curiosity and mine felt much better, also note that he was willing to replace the rifle if I was in any way unhappy, which is probably why he is such a good supplier.
Anyway moving on the test firing was impressive at high 11.9 ft/lb but with a kick like a mule to be honest.
Big enough to have the rear flip cover falling of the back of the sight after ten shots and the silencer shroud, end cover and barrel adapter coming loose in that order.
So these matters resolved during our test firing at home it was off to the range to test it on a wet & windy Saturday morning with my little girl in tow with her HW40 pistol in the bag as well.
Wedgenock Range in Warwick is a handy distance at 16 miles and £8 for four hours as a non-member seemed reasonable so rules double-checked with the daughter and we started to load up.
Firstly we set up with her RWS Geco pistol pellets to save money and within a few shots the Hawke 4-12x50 was nicely on target within 15mm at 25 meters so in went the H&N Field Target Trophy. Immediately the zero dropped about 80+mm so a re-zero of about a full turn or so bought it back into line.
Then the fun began (not without issue) with very accurate placement on virtually every target to the point my daughter finished the session with a cocky shot on a teaspoon head hitting it square on at 25m leaving it spinning on the rod to her squeals of delight.
She'd also delighted in knocking down six in a row of the little men on the knock down target let alone all the other targets available including a pheasant which not only folded over but you could shoot the head over and reset it with a shot in the heart and we never missed bar once which is very encouraging considering this being her first ever rifle shooting experience
However moving on to the issues.
Firstly we kept a close eye on the power which steadily dropped from the 11.9 to a worrying 10.1 at one point causing a re-zero a couple of times but as pointed out in reply to on one of my other questions on another dedicated forum it came back to a steady 11.1ft/lbs.
More problematic was the constant loosening of the shroud components, which kept throwing out the shot after twenty or so shots.
Firstly the barrel adapter came loose, which coincidentally also is the cause for the barrel to feel far more wobbly than it actually is due to the play at this point when loose and the fit between the barrel end adapter and bore of the shroud.
So, tightened it up and the gun was accurate once more, but not for long as the shroud now came loose so a little PTFE tape was applied to the thread on the barrel adapter and all was well again. Next it was the addition of the silencer that threw it out but once zero corrected was absolutely fine until the adapter in the front end came loose so again out with the PTFE.
Now don't get me wrong this is not going to turn into a Lighting bashing exercise.
Once these niggles had been sorted out, and the grub screw on the barrel/shroud adapter had been tightened for a fourth time, this gun was great fun and perfectly accurate for hunting which pleased me as did the teaspoon test my daughter made I mentioned earlier in this review because it means she will soon be able to ensure clean kills each time she comes with me and not risk making an animal suffer unduly.
Every shot placed nicely where you wanted it on most every occasion and I suspect on the one’s it didn’t it was more us than the gun that missed them.
It’s light and easy for my daughter to handle even if she cannot yet cock it, which is not a bad safety feature, yet feels good in my hands to. We both had equally accurate enjoyment of taking out nearly all the targets around us as the range of ten bays was our own to use and we had great fun setting up the HW40 on the pistol section.
Only time will tell for this great looking rifle built down to a cost point but with a little technical understanding and patience this is a cracking little bit of kit.
I hope all the niggles are now behind us and my daughter had so much fun she’s made me promise to take her back to the range at least once a month.
I’d recommend having one of these for any beginner to intermediate air gunner who does not want to rely on pressurised gas or even a competent one on a budget such as myself.
It may not be exactly right out of the box every time but perform a few pre-use checks such as bolt tightness and lubrication on the visible moving parts and this light rifle should be great fun and a good workhorse for anyone.
Also remember the dealer is there to make sure you are happy most of the time so any questions or issues should be bought up early on and, if needs be, take it in for a check after firing a hundred shots or so.
We’ve emptied half a tin of H&N FTT’s at the range in four hours and we had great fun especially as my daughter got even keener. She even asked what rifle were even more accurate and explained to me that £600 plus for a PCP setup wasn’t that much!

If I have one complaint it would be that with better quality control and a small amount of forethought to the final assembly design this would always be a great gun straight out of the box but sadly this is the way of world when it comes to mass production manufacturing.

I'll add more next month if there are any more issues but hopefully this will be all that I write.
Regards
Mark

[Boaz]

Thanks for the write up Mark. It's a shame the rifle wasn't as good as it should be, or for that matter even acceptable out of the box. We wouldn't put up with this sort of thing if it was a washing machine or a car for example. Imagine writing "...the steering wheel kept working loose every 50 miles or so". Good that you have the skills and patience needed to sort it out though, and as you say the dealers are always there to help, or at least they should be if you have issues.

[markkeogh]

Thanks for the write up Mark. It's a shame the rifle wasn't as good as it should be, or for that matter even acceptable out of the box. We wouldn't put up with this sort of thing if it was a washing machine or a car for example. Imagine writing "...the steering wheel kept working loose every 50 miles or so". Good that you have the skills and patience needed to sort it out though, and as you say the dealers are always there to help, or at least they should be if you have issues.

I think that too many put up with issues because they don't understand manufacturing or indeed know what to do for the best and so the product just gets a bad name so I thought I'd show what can be done and how to go about it.

[The Squire]

Nice review Mark, my son's .177 Tactical has now settled down quite nicely after it's initial liveliness and a quick re-lube. Next step will be I think either a tuning or drop in kit.

[Ninapuppy]

Shame BSA can't sort their quality control, they have a really nice rifle there just let down by not spending a few extra quid when assembling them.
personally i really like the Lightening might get a GRT but lots of reviews with loose barrels etc are a bit off putting

[markkeogh]

Shame BSA can't sort their quality control, they have a really nice rifle there just let down by not spending a few extra quid when assembling them.
personally i really like the Lightening might get a GRT but lots of reviews with loose barrels etc are a bit off putting

Loose barrel is a doddle to sort and then you have a good little rifle to be honest.
Cheers
Mark

[markkeogh]

Sadly a word of warning.
Having sorted out a few problems and doggedly wanted a British gun supplier the Spanish side of the supply chain won out and I've had it replaced because the stock now started to come loose and I couldn't carry on with a new issue each time I went out with the gun.
Great looking gun, but unfortunately they need to sort out a shoulder for the silencer shroud mount to sit against which will stop it coming loose and a better fitting stock so it doesn't come loose as well.
Really wanted to love this gun!
In fairness to Shooting Supplies in Bromsgrove they took no trouble in replacement with a different brand and I would wholeheartedly endorse them any day of the week for the service they have just given me..

[fatttmannn]

Good review, I had a early one in .22 that was very good apart from the triguer for a few years. It was used more by my mates kids in the garden so it now belongs to my mate and the kids and it dose all they need. Its a pity modern BSA/Gammo dont put has much " care" in to there products. I still use my first BSA, a Meteor Mark 5 standard in .22 bought for xmass when I was 11, I am 50 next week and the gun is still going strong and is in better physical shape than myself Allso my 1965 series 2 Airsporter that is still a delight to use. Come on BSA/ Gammo can do better

[Firefly71]

Sadly a word of warning.
Having sorted out a few problems and doggedly wanted a British gun supplier the Spanish side of the supply chain won out and I've had it replaced because the stock now started to come loose and I couldn't carry on with a new issue each time I went out with the gun.
Great looking gun, but unfortunately they need to sort out a shoulder for the silencer shroud mount to sit against which will stop it coming loose and a better fitting stock so it doesn't come loose as well.
Really wanted to love this gun!
In fairness to Shooting Supplies in Bromsgrove they took no trouble in replacement with a different brand and I would wholeheartedly endorse them any day of the week for the service they have just given me..

I recently purchased a Hatsan AT44 from shooting supplies and must say that they were excellent, they provide a top service.