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The Fujian Qingliu Airgun Company Ltd (QL Airgun for short) is a major Chinese airgun manufacturer that most of us have never heard of. That’s because it uses an “OEM” business model. In other words, it specializes in developing and manufacturing airguns that are sold by other companies around the world. So it’s quite possible that you own, shoot and enjoy at least one of their products without ever knowing it! I have not covered them for Hard Air Magazine before as they are not (to my knowledge) exhibitors at either the SHOT show or IWA OutdoorClassics. The company is located in Fujian Province, Southeast China, approximately half way between Shangai and Hong Kong. And it is by no means a small operation, as we will see in this HAM...

Airgunners need binoculars! So the introduction of Hawke Frontier ED X Gen 2 binoculars is an exciting new development from the UK-based sports optic company. These follow the Vantage HD34 range of riflescopes that were launched earlier this year. Highlighted as “Second Generation, First Class Optics” by Hawke, these mid-priced binoculars are available in a range of configurations: 8 x 34, 10 x 34, 8 x 42 and 10 x 42. Street Prices range from $559.00 to $619.00. However Hard Air Community members can receive a 20% discount if they redeem 1,000 HAM Airgun Points to buy them directly from the Hawke online store. These binos feature high-quality Extra-Low Dispersion (ED) glass. This is combined with premium Lanthanum ocular (eyepiece)...

Pyramyd AIR’s Comparison Shopping Tool – What Is It? I have looked at the Pyramyd website just about every day for the past 15 years – at least. But there’s a website feature that I have never even noticed, let alone used. It’s the comparison shopping tool. More than that, I have never heard any of my friends talk about it, or read comments about it by people in the HAM Community. Of course I have used comparison shopping tools on other websites. Amazon, for example. Yet somehow I still hadn’t even noticed Pyramyd’s… Yet it’s right there hiding in plain sight directly in front of my nose. And unless Emily Phillipi – Pyramyd’s Marketing Director – had told me about it, I would never have known. Thank you Emily! Because it’s very...

The Barra 1866 Tactical Lever Action CO2 air rifle is a new introduction from the company. It’s an interesting combination of nineteenth century action with twenty-first century styling. In fact, it’s a development of the Barra 1866 CO2 air rifle that HAM reviewed a little while back. We liked it a lot and it remains a great replica for Western fans! The looks and feel are there and the individual cartridge loading and ejection are perfect. In fact there’s two models. The .177 caliber gun shoots BBs or pellets through a smooth bore barrel. The .22 has a rifles barrel and is for use with pellets only. There’s no doubt that the Barra 1866 Tactical has a fantastically-realistic action that puts most other CO2-powered replicas in the...

BENJAMIN MARAUDER GEN 3 REVIEW – VALUE FOR MONEY At a selling price of $829.99, the launch-model Benjamin Marauder Gen 3 is priced at $230 more than the current selling price of the previous (and still existing), Gen 2 Marauder. But that price difference gives a large number of benefits – the “Gen 3” really is a completely new airgun. Now we have a much larger number of consistent shots available, courtesy of the built-in regulator and removable, 500cc Aluminum HPA bottle. That regulator is externally-adjustable, too, for easy power level changes. There’s also a completely new look. The new Gen 3 Benjamin Marauder was designed and engineered in Bloomfield NY. It’s completely assembled and tested here too. Many potential purchasers...

The Last Air Bender Moderator. Well, that’s an unusual name for a product! In fact, it’s the first airgun-only silencer to be designed and produced by Rogue Air Modz. It’s in volume production and you can buy it from stock today at the well-known Michigan airgun dealer High Pressure Pneumatics. Of course, most PCP air rifles sold today have threaded muzzles to accommodate a silencer for backyard-friendly shooting where legal. This has generated a steady demand for airgun-only silencers to match those 1/2-Inch x 20 UNF threads. The Last Air Bender is a very recent entrant into this market. It has been designed by Dan, a genuine airgun enthusiast – =Northeastbeast&o=relevance']he goes by the name of NortheastBeast in the Hard Air...

Today we’re taking an Air Venturi Ascent specs and technology deep dive. Why? Well, it’s because of the considerable amount of interest that there is in this new air rifle, together with its unusual configuration of being a PCP with its own built-in High Pressure Air pump. Note that, as we covered in a previous article, the Ascent is a “generation 2” version of a model originally sold as the ATI Nova Freedom. For ease of reading, I have put much of the information into tables. However some key points are called-out with additional explanation. And – before going further – I would like to recognize the input from Tyler Patner, Air Venturi’s Product Manager. Tyler was very helpful in answering my questions and providing additional...

Yes it’s here! So let’s look at the Umarex Notos G2 improvements compared to the previous model. But first – to be clear – the original Notos is a really tough act to follow. Starting in 2023, it single-handedly set the trend towards compact, light yet full-functioned PCP air rifles that people actually wanted to buy. As I commented at the time “In many ways, it’s taking airguns back to their roots: low-priced, backyard friendly, short range, yet accurate fun guns.” The Notos is a HAM Gold Award winner and – as predicted – has sold in huge numbers. Now there’s a new version – it was launched at the 2026 SHOT Show – and first signs are that it could be even better than the original! The comparison photograph above shows the...

Today’s post is an introduction to our review of the revolutionary Air Venturi Ascent PCP air rifle. Why is it revolutionary? Well this is a PCP airgun that does not require you to buy a HPA pump or any other accessories. That’s an unique value proposition which is unmatched by any other airgun in the market today. And – at a price of just $299.99 including a 4×20 riflescope – it’s amazing value. Want to know more? Let’s explore this remarkable product… Air Venturi Ascent PCP Air Rifle Background Remarkably, the Ascent is actually a radically-improved Version Two of this product concept. So it’s not new. Hard Air Magazine readers first read about it as far back as 2017! In those days, the “Gen One” model was introduced into the...

Today, Hard Air Magazine brings you this official history of JSB Match Diabolo. All serious airgunners know the brand and many of its products. But the story of how the company grew from from the idea of one man – Josef Schulz – in a small Czech town to become a global benchmark in airgun ammunition is not so well known. Every successful company has its origin story. In the case of JSB Match Diabolo, that story begins not in a corporate office or research center, but in the steelworks of Bohumín during the late 1970s. Bohumín is a small town of around 20,000 inhabitants in the Czech Republic. It’s in the East of the country, close to the border with Poland. The company is still based there today. The History of JSB Match Diabolo –...

There’s some big Cricket 2 Tactical bargains at Airguns of Arizona right now! If you go to the Pre-Owned page on the AoA website, you will find a number of “new old stock” models at around $500 off the regular price. The prices of these guns range down to as low as $1,189. That’s an outstanding price for one of these “bomb proof” models. They have a very strong reputation for quality and reliability. When Hard Air Magazine reviewed the Cricket 2 Tactical, it earned a HAM Gold Award with an extremely high 93% score. You can read the full, comprehensive test review here. These guns are supplied in their original boxes. They are like new and include all the items included when purchased new, including magazine and fill probe. (The...

The new BRK Ranger XR2 Compact is now in stock at Airguns of Arizona. Available in .177, .22 and .25 calibers, it’s selling for $1,695.99. The Ranger XR2 Compact is a part of the expanded Ranger line that the British company first showed at the 2026 British Shooting Show. The XR2 Compact’s goal is to deliver true ultra-compact performance with an improved shot count compared to the original model., It retains the signature folding stock that makes it ideal for urban pest control, tight spaces, backpacking, and as the ultimate “truck gun.” The performance is ideal for many pest control applications, combining adequate power with a strong shot count for the diminutive size. For example, in .177 caliber, the Compact delivers up to...

Yesterday afternoon, 17 June, 2026, I had my first opportunity to test Gen 3 Benjamin Marauder accuracy. Here’s the test target and the story behind it… Gen 3 Benjamin Marauder Accuracy – The Test Target This target shows the results of the first 11 shots I have ever fired with this new PCP air rifle. Why 11 shots? Well, I had intended to shoot a 10-shot group, but got carried away! This target was shot in Crosman/Benjamin plant’s indoor, 50-Yard test range in Bloomfield, NY. It was witnessed by my friend and HAM specialist PCP airgun tester Doug Rogers, plus the gun’s designer John Solpietro and Product Manager Phillip Guadalupe. So no cheating… The gun, serial number 42600003, was the third full production Gen 3 Marauder to...

So, what happened to the New York airgun ban? Well, amazingly, there’s some good news… The State’s proposed anti-airgun legislation remains held at the “Committee stage” of the process. They were not brought to a vote before the NY legislative session concluded on June 4th, 2026. This means that the proposed Bills S9215 and A10701 were NOT passed into state law. So we can continue to buy, own and shoot airguns in New York State. At least for now. Of course we do not know exactly why this happened. However it would be nice to think that reasoned argument, backed by facts, prevailed. In particular, the efforts of Ed Schultz and the Airgun Sporting Association would have been critical in providing information and education in a...

The Wolfiek PANDORA PRS is one of the first PCP precision air rifles to feature a maximum fill pressure of 500 Bar – that’s 7,250 PSI – thanks to the use of ultra-high-strength, thick 7576 T6 Aluminum alloy construction and new portable compressors. Yes, 7,250 PSI in an air rifle! Let’s let that sink-in for a moment… But don’t worry: it can also be filled to 310 Bar (4,500 PSI) if you would prefer to operate at a more conventional fill pressure. The PANDORA is one of the first platforms to offer the chance to try out 7 mm Wolfiek, an innovative caliber designed specifically for extreme long-range PCP shooting. With ammunition already in production and others currently undergoing active testing, the 7 mm ecosystem is now a reality...

This PCP Airgun Fill Connector Warnings post is the third in our three-part series. It is an up-dated version of an investigation that was originally published in Hard Air Magazine back in 2022. So why are we looking at this topic again? There’s two reasons. Firstly, as ever more PCP air rifles are sold, more enthusiastic, new airgun shooters will encounter issues related to these PCP airgun fill connector warnings. The problems have not gone away, they are being discovered every day by newcomers to our interest. This series is intended to help them – maybe you! Secondly, it’s just in the nature of Internet publishing that historic posts become less easy to find – even if they are about important issues that are still relevant. So...

This PCP Airgun Fill Connector Incompatibilities post is the second in a three-part series. It is an up-dated version of an investigation that was originally published in Hard Air Magazine back in 2022. So why are we looking at this topic again? There’s two reasons. Firstly, as ever more PCP air rifles are sold, more enthusiastic, new airgun shooters will encounter issues related to PCP airgun fill connector incompatibilities. The problems have not gone away, they are being discovered every day by newcomers to our interest. This series is intended to help them – maybe you! Secondly, it’s just in the nature of Internet publishing that historic posts become less easy to find – even if they are about important issues that are still...

This PCP Airgun Fill Connector Background is the first in a three-part series. It is an up-dated version of an investigation that was originally published in Hard Air Magazine back in 2022. So why are we looking at this topic again? There’s two reasons. Firstly, as ever more PCP air rifles are sold, more enthusiastic, new airgun shooters will encounter problems related to PCP airgun fill connectors. The problems have not gone away, they are being discovered every day by newcomers to our interest. This series is intended to help them – maybe you! Secondly, it’s just in the nature of Internet publishing that historic posts become less easy to find – even if they are about important issues that are still relevant. So, it’s time to...

The Umarex Fusion 2 is one of those airguns that has become a little left-behind and – dare I say it – forgotten. Probably in this case, it’s due to the amazing success of Umarex USA’s outstanding Komplete. However that’s not completely fair. The Fusion 2 is still a very viable, fun air rifle that’s ideal for plinking in the backyard or takling those feral soda cans that are terrorizing the neighborhood! In fact, the Fusion 2’s low power levels and quietness may make it superior to the Komplete as a pure backyard plinker for many owners. The lower power means shorter range and a more backyard-friendly report, particularly as it’s available in .177 caliber only. In our comprehensive 2020 review, we said that “The Umarex Fusion 2 is...

Air Venturi PCP fittings can be a life-saver for anyone involved with airguns. If you have a PCP, you never know when you’ll need them. But one day – sure as fate – you definitely will! Today we’re looking at a range of PCP fittings that are available at Pyramyd AIR. Some are new, some unusual, but all will be useful at some time and it’s good to know that they are there. Air Venturi PCP Fittings – Female Connectors One of the unusual, recent arrivals is the “double female”. This is the product shown in our heading photograph above. It’s a combination of two female fittings, mounted back-to-back. The correct product name is Air Venturi Female-to-Female Quick Disconnect Fitting. Maximum working pressure is 4,500 PSI. Pyramyd’s...