air ranger v rapid

[Artfull-Bodger]

Have to be an Air Ranger, Theoben went bust so no warranty backup or manufacturer support!

A serious consideration when your paying as much as you do for a used Rapid!

[Rapidnick]

Have to be an Air Ranger, Theoben went bust so no warranty backup or manufacturer support!

A serious consideration when your paying as much as you do for a used Rapid!

This is a total red herring! There are loads of members on here and on the Rapid7Owners Club forum who can advise on all aspects of Rapid servicing. OK Daystate are still in business and Theoben are not but servicing any of their rifles out of warranty isn't cheap.
As for 'price you pay for a used Rapid'- that is one area where the Rapid scores better. I will admit that spare parts for the Rapid are in some cases ridiculously expensive but at least they are available whereas to obtain items for the AR you have to go to Daystate themselves.
I'm not actually negative on the AR-it is a fine air rifle and if I couldn't shoot a Rapid I'd happily shoot an AR. I'm not fond of the bolt placement at the back of the block rather than the side but it isn't a major issue. The magazine system isn't as good but I'm sure I'd get used to that too. And the stock is truly excellent and I'm very disappointed that Theoben didn't offer a quality 'ambi thumbhole with double thumb up' in decent wood ages before they went bust. After all the design was based on the George Scott stock used on the RWS500 which morphed into the original Air Ranger. I had one of those inlet for the Rapid which I sold to Nutshot a long time ago. It was possibly the most comfortable stock for the Rapid I have ever owned although these days the CS700 and 800 do me very well indeed.

[Rapidnick]

I have had both and still have an air ranger FAC in .22.


The rapids can be worked on which is good but it is a very old design and the triggers were truly crap for most of its production run.

Sorry for my selective quote from your comprehensive post. The issue of Rapid triggers occupies a certain amount of space on all forums and I'd like to take issue with you on this subject.
Firstly let us take the Gamo trigger as fitted to the original-and some say 'best' Rapids. This unit looks terrible no doubt about that. It looks cheap and similar to those fitted to entry level rifles. However if I were to blindfold you and get you to actually shoot a Rapid with a properly adjusted Gamo trigger you probably would find it OK. Assuming you didn't and the addition of a trigger shoe didn't help, then the Charlie Da Tuna modification totally transforms it into a really good unit. Moving on to the the Rapid 2 surely no shooter can say anything bad about the Anschutz trigger fitted to the first few batches of the R2? It is a truly superb unit, recognised as such by any shooter I know who has tried it and is to my mind as good as ANY trigger fitted to a quality air rifle. The proof of this remains the fact that Rapid 2's with this unit are highly sought after and normally sell pretty quickly.
Moving on to the Theoben designed so-called 'sporter' trigger I agree it doesn't look great as the blade is far too large with that horrible 'blob like' safety but again it is fine when properly adjusted. The 'series 3' unit was fitted to the MFR and again I haven't heard any serious criticism of this unit. The current series 4 is excellent and in my view is as good as anything out there including the Anschutz unit mentioned above.
I partly agree with you that the existence of so many Gamo triggered Rapids has coloured the view but to say 'truly crap for most of its production run' is to me an exaggeration.

[maximus]

I have 2 x old MK1 Gamo rapids with added quick fill and Charlie Da tuna triggers in which I find have a certain something which makes them enjoyable to own and shoot. I got an MFR which for what ever reason did not quite do it for me and got sold on. I have never owned an Air Ranger but when I shouldered one I found the comb height way too low for a good cheek weld when looking through the scope so it was a none starter for me as this is something I value when choosing a gun. What I would say is have a look at a BSA R10. They are pretty much what a Rapid should of become at a great price. Its true that they had teething troubles but my .177 VC has been fine. The triggers are pretty good and I find the ergonomics work for me too. I have a feeling that I will need to get my tin hat having said all that so as a parting shot, just have a try of one before you commit.

Regards

Max

[Steyr]

Sorry for my selective quote from your comprehensive post. The issue of Rapid triggers occupies a certain amount of space on all forums and I'd like to take issue with you on this subject.
Firstly let us take the Gamo trigger as fitted to the original-and some say 'best' Rapids. This unit looks terrible no doubt about that. It looks cheap and similar to those fitted to entry level rifles. However if I were to blindfold you and get you to actually shoot a Rapid with a properly adjusted Gamo trigger you probably would find it OK. Assuming you didn't and the addition of a trigger shoe didn't help, then the Charlie Da Tuna modification totally transforms it into a really good unit. Moving on to the the Rapid 2 surely no shooter can say anything bad about the Anschutz trigger fitted to the first few batches of the R2? It is a truly superb unit, recognised as such by any shooter I know who has tried it and is to my mind as good as ANY trigger fitted to a quality air rifle. The proof of this remains the fact that Rapid 2's with this unit are highly sought after and normally sell pretty quickly.
Moving on to the Theoben designed so-called 'sporter' trigger I agree it doesn't look great as the blade is far too large with that horrible 'blob like' safety but again it is fine when properly adjusted. The 'series 3' unit was fitted to the MFR and again I haven't heard any serious criticism of this unit. The current series 4 is excellent and in my view is as good as anything out there including the Anschutz unit mentioned above.
I partly agree with you that the existence of so many Gamo triggered Rapids has coloured the view but to say 'truly crap for most of its production run' is to me an exaggeration.

I had a tuned gammo on a R17 with a Paul Wilsom tiger stripe FT stock. It was mediocre at best. The Anschutz trigger was sort3d...no 1uestion but it wasnt std and it was a big plus on cost. My mates MFR was ok but compared to match triggers like Steyrs it was still pretty crude.
It wasnt until the Mk4.........MARK 4 mind that a reasonable trigger appeared
All in all not a fantastic record

[Artfull-Bodger]

This is a total red herring! There are loads of members on here and on the Rapid7Owners Club forum who can advise on all aspects of Rapid servicing. OK Daystate are still in business and Theoben are not but servicing any of their rifles out of warranty isn't cheap.
As for 'price you pay for a used Rapid'- that is one area where the Rapid scores better. I will admit that spare parts for the Rapid are in some cases ridiculously expensive but at least they are available whereas to obtain items for the AR you have to go to Daystate themselves.
I'm not actually negative on the AR-it is a fine air rifle and if I couldn't shoot a Rapid I'd happily shoot an AR. I'm not fond of the bolt placement at the back of the block rather than the side but it isn't a major issue. The magazine system isn't as good but I'm sure I'd get used to that too. And the stock is truly excellent and I'm very disappointed that Theoben didn't offer a quality 'ambi thumbhole with double thumb up' in decent wood ages before they went bust. After all the design was based on the George Scott stock used on the RWS500 which morphed into the original Air Ranger. I had one of those inlet for the Rapid which I sold to Nutshot a long time ago. It was possibly the most comfortable stock for the Rapid I have ever owned although these days the CS700 and 800 do me very well indeed.

Your missing the obvious that spares supply will dwindle and rifles will have to be cannibalised, Theoben has gone, there are no new parts !

[Rapidnick]

Your missing the obvious that spares supply will dwindle and rifles will have to be cannibalised, Theoben has gone, there are no new parts !

You could be right but I think you will find that critical parts will be made up as necessary. For example the exhaust valve where PhilD's offering is very good. It won't be a problem as the network of Rapid owners is pretty large. Regulators are freely available from others as are fast flow valves. All other parts are not too difficult to make so all in all I'm not worried that my own Rapids will become 'beyond economical repair' in my lifetime.

[Rapidnick]

I had a tuned gammo on a R17 with a Paul Wilsom tiger stripe FT stock. It was mediocre at best. The Anschutz trigger was sort3d...no 1uestion but it wasnt std and it was a big plus on cost. My mates MFR was ok but compared to match triggers like Steyrs it was still pretty crude.
It wasnt until the Mk4.........MARK 4 mind that a reasonable trigger appeared
All in all not a fantastic record

The Anschutz trigger was 'standard' for a while and didn't cost extra-it was part of the gun when Theoben brought out the Rapid 2. Nevertheless I agree that the series 4 trigger is the one to have and I personally would always look for a Rapid with it. I certainly wouldn't ever look to change a trigger on the Rapid with the exception being the Charlie Da Tuna unit.

[angrybear]

Your missing the obvious that spares supply will dwindle and rifles will have to be cannibalised, Theoben has gone, there are no new parts !

Yes there are, both from Impact & RAW.

As for the Rapid triggers, I've got a mk3 & a mk4 there's nothing wrong with either unit, they're as good as anything else I've ever used.

[the67al]

Yes there, both from Impact & RAW.

As for the Rapid triggers, I've got a mk3 & a mk4 there's nothing wrong with either unit, they're as good as anything else I've ever used.

Yep spares not a problem and all available from impact, I have an mfr and a mk2 which are true keepers for me but I would be seriously looking at an impact gsx200 if you are interested in a rapid. I handled an air ranger and found it big, long and heavy and a terrible fit for me.

[Spewy]

I can only say the raw hm1000 is a great gun I love it and fits like a glove

[madcarlos]

Myself which ever you have you wont be disappointed, There is not much between both of these guns very similar in appearance, weight and both easy to work on, I have both and could not give the one up before the other, Well to be honest i have these four pcp guns http://i1167.photobucket.com/albums/...psha15mwku.jpg and really only need one but still cant pick a favorite one, They all good in their own ways and all also have negatives over each over .

[emin-j]

I hated the Gammo trigger on my Mk1 Rapid but after about five years of ownership I finally found a positive :^()
My other rifle is a Logun Mk 2 pro carbine which has a lovely trigger with a smooth transfer from first to second stage and final let off, however , even with the trigger adjusted to quite a light setting the second stage is obvious.
This is what I didn't like about the Gammo trigger there was no obvious point as to when the gun would fire but it only recently occurred to me this smooth continuous pull has no obvious resistance and theoretically this resistance could very marginally pull your aim off slightly whereas the Rapid is a smooth pull right through.
The Rapid I think is a great gun, sturdy , accurate , easy to maintain and I believe one of the first rifles to use the "buddy bottle" and as a rifle other gun manufacturers used as a template.
I can't see parts ever being an issue with the Rapid what with the massive following the Rapid has plus the enthusiasts who can manufacture anything you may need for a Rapid.
I only ever owned one Daystate which was a X2 sport and a very nice Rifle it was too but nothing like the character of the Mk 1 Rapid.

[Steyr]

The Anschutz trigger was 'standard' for a while and didn't cost extra-it was part of the gun when Theoben brought out the Rapid 2. Nevertheless I agree that the series 4 trigger is the one to have and I personally would always look for a Rapid with it. I certainly wouldn't ever look to change a trigger on the Rapid with the exception being the Charlie Da Tuna unit.

That is contrary to what I was told plus they had supply issues. However I will bow to your superior knowledge on that point.
out of the Rapids production I wonder what percentages are like for the gammo....anschutz......mk2 3 and mk4 triggers are.
I am guessing the majority were not sorted 😢
That said....I loved my R17...mostly due to the tiger stripe maple FT stock.
The 17 shots and decent shot count were very good and my first rabbit fell to that FT rifle at 50 yards.......have not looked back.
But I dont miss the triggers though

[MrGreengrass]

Michael Tawn airguns can supply most parts you could need for Rapids, top man to deal with.
Plus for what it is worth, i really like my R17 and have had it since 2008.
It is always pleasure to use,kills rabbits easily and cuts thistle heads off their stalks at long range in good conditions..
Sometimes hard to choose which one to use for the day R17 or Cz 200T..My two favourite .177 hunting guns.