Modifications JTS Airacuda Max .22 Build thread

[CTAirgunner]

Since I shifted hobbies a bit from a year ago I am not in the same financial position to be unloading 10000 dollars on airgun setups lmao hence why I have been looking at budget setups. Well a friend of mine who's moving to a far less restrictive part of the country (so he can go back to PB'ers) did some old school bartering with me and I traded some mechanic work for his JTS Airacuda Max .22 scoped (west hunter 4-16 , not a bad scope actually), air supply setup, case, and ammunition. Win win for me , love using my automotive tools and have been on the fence of which way to go with airguns.

I am going to set this rifle up for 50 yard bench rest in Salem NY that a few other shooters I know frequent as its a dog friendly event and in a beautiful area. Also will be my plinker but also with its cost being so cheap, I want to have some fun and build it.

I plan to open up the ports, smooth the transitions, work on the hammer spring, and valve spring, and go from there. Target goal is a consistent 30-40 shot fill with 22.07 grain JTS pellets at 880 ish FPS with less than moa accuracy at 50 yards.

Modifications A little arca rail install on a friends JTS Airacuda Max .22

Aug 30, 2023

I am a big fan of mounting pic and arca rails "properly" imo. So I will show you how I did it on my buddies rifle on Sunday evening.

Also these rifles aren't bad for the money, that's a 35 yard 10 shot group.

• CTAirgunner
• Replies: 10
• Forum: Airgun Modding And Theory

• 

I did some work on this rifle some time ago so it is already setup with a stout henderson precision arca rail, I do plan on modding the stock, and polishing the barrel as well.


There are a few items I'd like to have made though, id like an external plenum made/machined to take the place of the regulator gauge, 16cc-22cc will work perfect I think, also a few other small items if anyone has any good recommendations on who I could go to, I am all ears. EDIT: ALREADY FOUND A GUY AND WE ARE ALREADY WORKING ON MAKING A PLENUM FOR THIS.

The regulator on these rifles are actually super consistent so that will stay, the string shown is from the .25 I used to have, it was always insanely consistent, this .22 is no different (just can't find the strings we had anywhere) .




Heres a picture of it with my old .25

 

[PA_AirHead]

Super F’ing stoked to see CTairgunner returning to the the Airgun world. Budget or not!!! Salem is going to be even more fun with you and Per-Bear there.

 

[Pumacarl]

I am stoked to see you back at it too! I can't wait to see what you accomplish on the cheap. It's fun to do more with less, although I find it usually ends up costing the same, it's your creativity not somebody elses. Have more fun this time!

 

[Dogowski]

Since I shifted hobbies a bit from a year ago I am not in the same financial position to be unloading 10000 dollars on airgun setups lmao hence why I have been looking at budget setups. Well a friend of mine who's moving to a far less restrictive part of the country (so he can go back to PB'ers) did some old school bartering with me and I traded some mechanic work for his JTS Airacuda Max .22 scoped (west hunter 4-16 , not a bad scope actually), air supply setup, case, and ammunition. Win win for me , love using my automotive tools and have been on the fence of which way to go with airguns.

I am going to set this rifle up for 50 yard bench rest in Salem NY that a few other shooters I know frequent as its a dog friendly event and in a beautiful area. Also will be my plinker but also with its cost being so cheap, I want to have some fun and build it.

I plan to open up the ports, smooth the transitions, work on the hammer spring, and valve spring, and go from there. Target goal is a consistent 30-40 shot fill with 22.07 grain JTS pellets at 880 ish FPS with less than moa accuracy at 50 yards.

Modifications A little arca rail install on a friends JTS Airacuda Max .22

Aug 30, 2023

I am a big fan of mounting pic and arca rails "properly" imo. So I will show you how I did it on my buddies rifle on Sunday evening.

Also these rifles aren't bad for the money, that's a 35 yard 10 shot group.

• CTAirgunner
• Replies: 10
• Forum: Airgun Modding And Theory

• 

I did some work on this rifle some time ago so it is already setup with a stout henderson precision arca rail, I do plan on modding the stock, and polishing the barrel as well.


There are a few items I'd like to have made though, id like an external plenum made/machined to take the place of the regulator gauge, 16cc-22cc will work perfect I think, also a few other small items if anyone has any good recommendations on who I could go to, I am all ears. EDIT: ALREADY FOUND A GUY AND WE ARE ALREADY WORKING ON MAKING A PLENUM FOR THIS.

The regulator on these rifles are actually super consistent so that will stay, the string shown is from the .25 I used to have, it was always insanely consistent, this .22 is no different (just can't find the strings we had anywhere) .
View attachment 12269



Heres a picture of it with my old .25



View attachment 12270

These are great guns. Accurate and 44 ft pounds in 22 is nothing to sneeze at!

 

[CTAirgunner]

Thanks guys, I am excited too!!! last night I received the package.

I gave it a good wipe down last night , not as bad as I initially thought. The finish on these stocks is weak as hell and quite ugly, I hope to remedy that as part of this build, I will likely start sanding tonight while I wait for orings, plenum, etc....

The setup so far consists of the Airacuda, blackhound rings (might change these to bring the scope lower), Westhunter 4-16x44 ffp with illuminated reticle, 1 scba tank and fill station.

Pics are from as I received her, to after a wipe down and stock removal.

Right now she is shooting 15.89 hades at 910 fps for 40 shots. I believe with the port work and plenum alone, I can get her to sling those 22.07 at factory reg setting and some HST adjustments right around that 880 mark.

Hes already done a great job on the trigger as hes quite the trigger snob, his 63' Husqvarna .270 has one of the most insane triggers ive ever pulled, so I am not surprised at what hes done with this one.





Even though not by me, this rifle is seasoned, this is the woodchuck he took with it with a very precise shot at 40 yards. Matt had 2 gardens that saw many critters, and thats what this rigs sole purpose was.

 

[Dogowski]

Thanks guys, I am excited too!!! last night I received the package, my buddy who bartered with me is a savage. He kept this thing on a shelf in his wood room (climate controlled) for his wood stove so he had quick access to it when he spotted pests in his two big gardens.

I gave it a good wipe down last night , not as bad as I initially thought. The finish on these stocks is weak as hell and quite ugly, I hope to remedy that as part of this build, I will likely start sanding tonight while I wait for orings, plenum, etc....

The setup so far consists of the Airacuda, blackhound rings (might change these to bring the scope lower), Westhunter 4-16x44 ffp with illuminated reticle, 1 scba tank and fill station.

Pics are from as I received her, to after a wipe down and stock removal.

Right now she is shooting 15.89 hades at 910 fps for 40 shots. I believe with the port work and plenum alone, I can get her to sling those 22.07 at factory reg setting and some HST adjustments right around that 880 mark.

Hes already done a great job on the trigger as hes quite the trigger snob, his 63' Husqvarna .270 has one of the most insane triggers ive ever pulled, so I am not surprised at what hes done with this one.

View attachment 12285
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Even though not by me, this rifle is seasoned, this is the woodchuck he took with it with a very precise shot at 40 yards. Matt had 2 , 50x10 yard gardens that saw many critters, and thats what this rigs sole purpose was.

View attachment 12290

Nice shot on that woodchuck!

 

[CTAirgunner]

Decided to get to work tonight after putting a bit sharper edge in that beast in the background ....

So I'm going to be porting the TP to 7mm , also the portion of the breech to 7mm as well so it's 7mm all the way through, right now it's 5mm. Obviously this will be done in a drill press with Orings removed. I think this alone will allow me to actually drop factory reg pressure and attain my goal. This setup is currently very restrictive.

The barrel on this thing is a lot more rugged setup than I thought. Pretty rad if you ask me.

I also took measurements and checked thread pitch so I could have the external plenum made up for this rifle.

Oh.and of course shop supervisor told me when to call it quits so we could get out early and hike tomorrow.

 

[Dogowski]

Decided to get to work tonight after putting a bit sharper edge in that beast in the background ....

So I'm going to be porting the TP to 7mm , also the portion of the breech to 7mm as well so it's 7mm all the way through, right now it's 5mm. Obviously this will be done in a drill press with Orings removed. I think this alone will allow me to actually drop factory reg pressure and attain my goal. This setup is currently very restrictive.

The barrel on this thing is a lot more rugged setup than I thought. Pretty rad if you ask me.

I also took measurements and checked thread pitch so I could have the external plenum made up for this rifle.

Oh.and of course shop supervisor told me when to call it quits so we could get out early and hike tomorrow.

View attachment 12303View attachment 12304View attachment 12305View attachment 12306View attachment 12307View attachment 12308View attachment 12309View attachment 12310View attachment 12311

Ought to get a lot more power after thats drilled out! I look forward to your results.

 

[CTAirgunner]

Decided to keep the bridge in the TP after talking with a buddy of mine @Northeastbeast , using my dremel i opened up the TP, brought the body down to my landlords father's shop to use the drill press and opened up the port in the body to what you see in the photos.

Big increase from the 5.08mm, that's a 23.63% increase in flow.

I then put the breech and barrel back in the action to check function of magazine and to ensure that pellets are being pushed in evenly.

Full magazine, no issues.


Yesterday I also made the hst accessible without removing the action from the stock




It is easily accessible with a stubby flathead with no interference

 

[Danman]

Decided to keep the bridge in the TP after talking with a buddy of mine @Northeastbeast , using my dremel i opened up the TP, brought the body down to my landlords father's shop to use the drill press and opened up the port in the body to what you see in the photos.

Big increase from the 5.08mm, that's a 23.63% increase in flow.

I then put the breech and barrel back in the action to check function of magazine and to ensure that pellets are being pushed in evenly.

Full magazine, no issues.
View attachment 12332View attachment 12333View attachment 12334View attachment 12335View attachment 12336View attachment 12337

Yesterday I also made the hst accessible without removing the action from the stock

View attachment 12338


It is easily accessible with a stubby flathead with no interference

I don't own this airgun or even plan to but...I'm loving this build! Let us know if you gain some fps with that. I would not have removed the bridge either....I've heard of pellets/slugs falling inside on other guns if people get a bit crazy with metal removal

 

[CTAirgunner]

I don't own this airgun or even plan to but...I'm loving this build! Let us know if you gain some fps with that. I would not have removed the bridge either....I've heard of pellets/slugs falling inside on other guns if people get a bit crazy with metal removal

Thanks man!

I'm having fun with it.

Finished sanding the stock and quickly wetted it to get an idea of what it will look like ... I'll likely spend a week to 10 days coating , sanding with 0000 steel wool, coating , so on and so fourth but it'll look much nicer than the trash factory finish.

 

[Pumacarl]

Very nice! I am glad you did keep that bridge in the port too, because that's there for a reason. I can't wait to hear your numbers. I think what you're doing with it is way cooler than just throwing a wad of cash at somebody and fiddling with knobs. Looking at the size of that port, I find it hard to believe, the numbers, people are getting out of the tiny 4mm port on the 250z. Sky's the limit for yours!

 

[CTAirgunner]

Very nice! I am glad you did keep that bridge in the port too, because that's there for a reason. I can't wait to hear your numbers. I think what you're doing with it is way cooler than just throwing a wad of cash at somebody and fiddling with knobs. Looking at the size of that port, I find it hard to believe, the numbers, people are getting out of the tiny 4mm port on the 250z. Sky's the limit for yours!

The Barra is on my want list still, in .25. To do similar to this. Make it mine. Although that would be part of a hunt for power.

The cool thing, and I hope my theory about this rifle is right, is that I'm hoping with the port work, the barrel polish, and the external plenum will allow me to drop the reg pressure and still achieve the target speed for the ammo I want to shoot. So the rifle is more docile, quieter, less stress on the reg for hopefully insane consistency with more shot count.

We will see tho, it's all theory

 

[CTAirgunner]

Hopefully the order I made from CHYNAAAAAAAAAAAA (said in Trumps voice) , will get here timely.

The factory JTS Airacuda Shroud is 21mm ID with a 23mm OD , the barrel on these rifles is just around 18.5 inches. The shroud and baffle system is not something I like, it actually has caused numerous customers to have clipping issues when attaching moderators and is widely discussed, this rifle in particular experienced this , my .25 I had did not.

Donny FL has an adapter that solves this but because of discrepancies in shroud length they don't always work to correct the clipping issue and the threads actually protrude out of the factory shrouds (whether they correct the issue or not), leaving an unfinished look.

I decided to order up some carbon fiber tubing, I was able to find 21mm ID like I need to thread the shroud ends into it, and much to my surprise I was able to find 25mm OD which should not only be less flimsy, it should dull the report of the rifle quite a bit. I actually made a custom CF shroud for a dreamline I built a while back and it turned the resonation into more of a dull "THUD". I can also cut it to the appropriate length to leave no threads from the donny adapter exposed.

The barrels on these rifles are actually quite heavy and stout and the design that secures them to the action is pretty good too, it's not a poor design at all. With that said I will not be reinstalling the "barrel band" , tbh it doesn't do anything on the rifle. Where it "bands" the tube to the shroud , the barrel isn't even at that point, just the factory baffle system that does not even interlock itself with the barrel. I will be making a spacer to fill the gap between the fill port cap and the end of the tube. With the thicker CF tube, it should be a lot more rigid shroud especially being 1mm thicker wall than its aluminum counterpart its replacing.

Unfortunately I wasn't able to find the 25mm OD in glossy twill, only matte but it should contrast the finish I am going for on the stock quite nicely and at $75 shipped, not too bad. Waiting to hear back from a member on AGN about his used Donny adapter as well, if not available I will go new.




Here is the disclaimer from donny website






Here are a couple photos of my old dreamline that @PA_AirHead now owns , with the CF shroud I made for it.

 

[CTAirgunner]

Well, started on the stock , I did not sand this perfectly, im no wood worker, and this is my first time refinishing a stock.

The wood seems like it's just kind of shit to be honest lol, anyways

I did 3 coats diluted with mineral spirits to help the wood take the tru oil better, each time I added more tru oil , now I'm at probably 80% tru oil, 20% mineral spirits. I will now let this coat dry till tomorrow and then add more tru oil and do another, probably 4 or 5 more coats over next 4 or 5 days. Hitting it with 0000 steel wool in between. It won't win any beauty contests but it's a hell of a lot better already.




Also I decided to thread the barrel of this rifle directly , no adapter needed for suppressor. Then run a 25.4mm STO moderator to take up length to put the end of the muzzle past the air tube.

As you can see the shroud is far longer than the barrel is. No need for that

 

[Pumacarl]

Hopefully the order I made from CHYNAAAAAAAAAAAA (said in Trumps voice) , will get here timely.

The factory JTS Airacuda Shroud is 21mm ID with a 23mm OD , the barrel on these rifles is just around 18.5 inches. The shroud and baffle system is not something I like, it actually has caused numerous customers to have clipping issues when attaching moderators and is widely discussed, this rifle in particular experienced this , my .25 I had did not.

Donny FL has an adapter that solves this but because of discrepancies in shroud length they don't always work to correct the clipping issue and the threads actually protrude out of the factory shrouds (whether they correct the issue or not), leaving an unfinished look.

I decided to order up some carbon fiber tubing, I was able to find 21mm ID like I need to thread the shroud ends into it, and much to my surprise I was able to find 25mm OD which should not only be less flimsy, it should dull the report of the rifle quite a bit. I actually made a custom CF shroud for a dreamline I built a while back and it turned the resonation into more of a dull "THUD". I can also cut it to the appropriate length to leave no threads from the donny adapter exposed.

The barrels on these rifles are actually quite heavy and stout and the design that secures them to the action is pretty good too, it's not a poor design at all. With that said I will not be reinstalling the "barrel band" , tbh it doesn't do anything on the rifle. Where it "bands" the tube to the shroud , the barrel isn't even at that point, just the factory baffle system that does not even interlock itself with the barrel. I will be making a spacer to fill the gap between the fill port cap and the end of the tube. With the thicker CF tube, it should be a lot more rigid shroud especially being 1mm thicker wall than its aluminum counterpart its replacing.

Unfortunately I wasn't able to find the 25mm OD in glossy twill, only matte but it should contrast the finish I am going for on the stock quite nicely and at $75 shipped, not too bad. Waiting to hear back from a member on AGN about his used Donny adapter as well, if not available I will go new.

View attachment 12414


Here is the disclaimer from donny website



View attachment 12415


Here are a couple photos of my old dreamline that @PA_AirHead now owns , with the CF shroud I made for it.

View attachment 12416View attachment 12417

Really interesting shroud work. Your really giving that gun the business, I love these threads!

 

[CTAirgunner]

My OCD is killing me, this is my first time refinishing a stock, and like I said I am not a woodworker lol.

Every coat seems to have a couple spots of excess build up and I think its the wood not taking in certain spots, not seen in pictures but to my OCD eyes that have previously laid eyes on a beautiful Steve Corcoran stock that was on my paradigm lol . Anyways , I am going to do 1 more tomorrow night, 0000 steel wool it and then hit it with their sheen and conditioner product and call it, it already looks wayyyyyyy better than the factory finish as it is,

 

[Danman]

My OCD is killing me, this is my first time refinishing a stock, and like I said I am not a woodworker lol.

Every coat seems to have a couple spots of excess build up and I think its the wood not taking in certain spots, not seen in pictures but to my OCD eyes that have previously layed eyes on a beautiful Steve Corcoran stock that was on my paradigm lol . Anyways , I am going to do 1 more tomorrow night, 0000 steel wool it and then hit it with their sheen and conditioner product and call it, it already looks wayyyyyyy better than the factory finish as it is,

View attachment 12438

My 1yr old TX200 Walnut stock did the same thing. The walnut version comes not finished at all so I steel wooled it and hit it with the same Tru oil. Was a week long process, turned out 98% better. Good enough for me! I did not thin it out I don't think...Maybe just the first coat if I recall.

 

[CTAirgunner]

My 1yr old TX200 Walnut stock did the same thing. The walnut version comes not finished at all so I steel wooled it and hit it with the same Tru oil. Was a week long process, turned out 98% better. Good enough for me! I did not thin it all I don't think...Maybe just the first coat if I recall.

I think that I am going to have to say good enough for me too! which is ok, this whole process has been enjoyable and I only started less than 1 week ago lol.

 

[Dogowski]

My OCD is killing me, this is my first time refinishing a stock, and like I said I am not a woodworker lol.

Every coat seems to have a couple spots of excess build up and I think its the wood not taking in certain spots, not seen in pictures but to my OCD eyes that have previously laid eyes on a beautiful Steve Corcoran stock that was on my paradigm lol . Anyways , I am going to do 1 more tomorrow night, 0000 steel wool it and then hit it with their sheen and conditioner product and call it, it already looks wayyyyyyy better than the factory finish as it is,

View attachment 12438

Wow! Looks like it's coming along well. The finish looks a lot brighter and clean to me. Looking good man!