250Z 250z - Working On It!

[Pumacarl]

I love to hear that! That has basically been my same experience with this gun in .25 haha… I bought this gun specifically to shoot slugs and there’s so denying there is just something about it… my biggest issue is getting out of the habit of holding for windage… I keep forgetting that I get more spindrift than actual wind deflection …. Overall though I just know we all spend our money and our time on these things so it brings me great joy to see other people enjoying themselves. Because if it ain’t fun what’s the point right?

This gun has me rethinking my direction in airgunning, that's for sure. I'm thinking that it would be really awesome to own a 75fpe capable .22, so that I could shoot the 34gr H&N slugs. I would also like to get one that is made in the U.S.. I think that I could probably do everything that I want to do with an airgun with that, outside of plinking or in close pest control. I want a magazine, so that rules out AirForce, and the RAW can't do 75fpe easily and is to long as it is, so that leaves getting another AAA, an HPS. I had thought, before playing with this 250z, that I wanted another .25, but now I'm not so sure. Who knows? It would be great if Benjamin would get off their a$$ and do a Gen 3 Marauder but now that doesn't seem likely at all, unless they were bought by somebody else, again.

 

[Cantona256]

Hmmmm you bring up an interesting conundrum…I know you have one already but where is AGT made? What about Edgun Leshy?… beyond that it’s an interesting conundrum.. I think Skout is technically from Slovenia or Czech Republic but their head engineer is American. I listened to a whole podcast with them. I’m thinking I’d really like a 100fpe+ gun in .25 at some point. Seeing those skouts launching 60gr altaros slugs at 960fps is seriously eye opening…. I’m seriously considering a Zelos for my next one (familiarity with Snowpeak products right?!?) and modding it up but we’ll see. You really got me thinking about AGT though.

Your American made 75fpe .22 brings up a really good “problem” though. I’ll defo be doing so research haha so I can live vicariously through you…. Because 75fpe out of a .22 would be AWESOME.

 

[Pumacarl]

Skout is U.S., but electronic, no thanks. There are several .22 European airguns that can do 75+fpe, the trick is the U.S. and mechanical part, with a magazine. I might consider a Sidewinder down the road, if the company holds up and problems don't show up. They are still pretty new, and I'd rather not have the complexity of it's design.

 

[Cantona256]

Skout is U.S., but electronic, no thanks. There are several .22 European airguns that can do 75+fpe, the trick is the U.S. and mechanical part, with a magazine. I might consider a Sidewinder down the road, if the company holds up and problems don't show up. They are still pretty new, and I'd rather not have the complexity of it's design.

What about air arms?

 

[Danman]

This gun has me rethinking my direction in airgunning, that's for sure. I'm thinking that it would be really awesome to own a 75fpe capable .22, so that I could shoot the 34gr H&N slugs. I would also like to get one that is made in the U.S.. I think that I could probably do everything that I want to do with an airgun with that, outside of plinking or in close pest control. I want a magazine, so that rules out AirForce, and the RAW can't do 75fpe easily and is to long as it is, so that leaves getting another AAA, an HPS. I had thought, before playing with this 250z, that I wanted another .25, but now I'm not so sure. Who knows? It would be great if Benjamin would get off their a$$ and do a Gen 3 Marauder but now that doesn't seem likely at all, unless they were bought by somebody else, again.

Lol, how about a Brit pcp, an American made barrel, some Cdn made mags, shooting 23- 34gr slugs? My goal with my .22 Brk Ghost is get it around 55-60FPE (say 950fps with a 30gr slug) with a 28in Sub Moa barrel more than likely. An AAA sounds pretty good though too

 

[Pumacarl]

What about air arms?

AA is British.

 

[Billm]

Skout is U.S., but electronic, no thanks. There are several .22 European airguns that can do 75+fpe, the trick is the U.S. and mechanical part, with a magazine. I might consider a Sidewinder down the road, if the company holds up and problems don't show up. They are still pretty new, and I'd rather not have the complexity of it's design.

I like the idea of a full auto/sidewinder. I think I’m done for awhile.

 

[Cantona256]

AA is British.

American Air Arms says they are made in the USA on their website.

 

[Cantona256]

Lol, how about a Brit pcp, an American made barrel, some Cdn made mags, shooting 23- 34gr slugs? My goal with my .22 Brk Ghost is get it around 55-60FPE (say 950fps with a 30gr slug) with a 28in Sub Moa barrel more than likely. An AAA sounds pretty good though too

That sounds amazing.

 

[Billm]

American Air Arms says they are made in the USA on their website.

Air Arms (AA) and American Air Arms (AAA) are two different companies, one Brit and one American respectively.

 

[Cantona256]

Air Arms (AA) and American Air Arms (AAA) are two different companies, one Brit and one American respectively.

I just assumed AAA was a subsidiary haha

 

[Pumacarl]

I just assumed AAA was a subsidiary haha

No, nothing in common. AA does really good springers and "tempered elegance" PCP's, meaning they don't make powerhouses. I think AA does the best job of bluing than anyone else, if you like blued steel and walnut you will probably own one at some point.

 

[Pumacarl]

Back at it, some what. I finally painted the scope that I am going to keep on it, a 12x SWFA. I also painted the 0dB 110 to match. It will look a lot better this way and it should, it is an awesome shooter and deserves it!


Prepping, always a pain in the ...


Nice day to paint.

I'll give it a day before remounting.

 

[Cantona256]

Back at it, some what. I finally painted the scope that I am going to keep on it, a 12x SWFA. I also painted the 0dB 110 to match. It will look a lot better this way and it should, it is an awesome shooter and deserves it!

View attachment 14587
Prepping, always a pain in the ...

View attachment 14588
Nice day to paint.
View attachment 14589
I'll give it a day before remounting.

Im already green with envy. That’s gonna look so good!!

 

[Cantona256]

Last night I decided to throw the 32gr in the gun just in case I saw a coyote.. I went to rezero my longer range 31gr @75y and I was surprised I didn’t have to change it. This isn’t the first time this has happened though especially with 1gr difference. Anyways, make a long story short I chrono’d a string today 8 shots(what I had left in the clip haha) 973-987fps… First shot was slowest, second was fastest(weird) the rest all around 980fps. This gun really likes warm weather. I’m sure most of them do but I’m glad I live in the desert cuz my baby just gets more gooder() when it’s roasting outside.

I’m super excited for this plenum mod to come out. Haven’t decided if I want to go slightly heavier (33 or 34gr) and hopefully drop reg for increased shots per fill… or go 35-37gr and stay around that 20-25 a fill mark…. I could definitely go much heavier shoot them in the 880-890fps range and milk a few more fps out of the gun. But I really like the way slugs shoot 950-980fps. What can I say I’m addicted to that thwack . Either way it’s gonna make a really good gun even better.

 

[Pumacarl]

Last night I decided to throw the 32gr in the gun just in case I saw a coyote.. I went to rezero my longer range 31gr @75y and I was surprised I didn’t have to change it. This isn’t the first time this has happened though especially with 1gr difference. Anyways, make a long story short I chrono’d a string today 8 shots(what I had left in the clip haha) 973-987fps… First shot was slowest, second was fastest(weird) the rest all around 980fps. This gun really likes warm weather. I’m sure most of them do but I’m glad I live in the desert cuz my baby just gets more gooder() when it’s roasting outside.

I’m super excited for this plenum mod to come out. Haven’t decided if I want to go slightly heavier (33 or 34gr) and hopefully drop reg for increased shots per fill… or go 35-37gr and stay around that 20-25 a fill mark…. I could definitely go much heavier shoot them in the 880-890fps range and milk a few more fps out of the gun. But I really like the way slugs shoot 950-980fps. What can I say I’m addicted to that thwack . Either way it’s gonna make a really good gun even better.

I would recommend going with what is the most accurate. There is no thwack at all if you miss. Accuracy first, always.

It sounds like you might be experiencing some regulator creep. That's what happens, your first shot will be slower because of the increased pressure, and then the following shots go back to normal. The second shot could have been a little faster because the recovery air didn't balance correctly from being off at first. Keep your gun topped off when stored and every day for a week chrono your first 5 shots. You will see a pattern if its creeping.

These guns are awesome for sure though. I shot mine today for the first time since remounting the scope and it held zero. I love it when that happens. Even my TalonP held zero and I never checked it after the laser guided scope swap with the Nikon. That's really cool!

 

[Cantona256]

I would recommend going with what is the most accurate. There is no thwack at all if you miss. Accuracy first, always.

It sounds like you might be experiencing some regulator creep. That's what happens, your first shot will be slower because of the increased pressure, and then the following shots go back to normal. The second shot could have been a little faster because the recovery air didn't balance correctly from being off at first. Keep your gun topped off when stored and every day for a week chrono your first 5 shots. You will see a pattern if its creeping.

These guns are awesome for sure though. I shot mine today for the first time since remounting the scope and it held zero. I love it when that happens. Even my TalonP held zero and I never checked it after the laser guided scope swap with the Nikon. That's really cool!

I definitely definitely get hotshots when the temp goes up because the air in that tiny 15cc plenum gets warmed up. Today that first shot of 973fps I was showing “too hot” and slowing it down like too much hammer spring… the rest of the string was around 980-985fpe… accuracy with them is exactly on point with the 30s and 31s… it helps that these slugs are the same in every way except the slugs get longer with increased weight… the 32s are like .020” longer. The reg has stayed at about 2800psi very consistently for the last 2 weeks. When I’m out hunting in the daytime it’ll show reset at 2800 and creep up to about 2900 if it’s super hot. I don’t haven’t seen any change of poi though which leads me to think it’s not the reg letting in more air but the air in the plenum getting warm. My theory is that when the plenum comes it should slow that process down as a larger volume of air will need to be warmed up.

Ultimately I think it’s because this is the first time I’ve shot the 32s since I properly matched the transfer and exhaust ports. When I had mismatched ports I was inefficient and had the reg at almost 3k for similar speeds (around 965fps). Matching them let me bring the reg down a little and why I’m back to 25 a fill…as long as it’s warm out!


As far as it holding zero I’m honestly not surprised. As long as the gun has air I feel like that barrel just doesn’t move. I have only gotten major POI’s when I had to take out the barrel. They could all probably stand to be indexed but I’m good haha. Pretty much done tuning this thing other than adding the plenum which will not require anything other than degassing, taking the stock off, one gauge, add plenum and boom.

Kinda sad actually haha. Other than any future power mods to chase that 100fpe mark (if I decide to go that way), I’m done. Kinda trying to figure out my next move. I need something more nimble and seriously considering a Karma SLS… or getting a heavy slug shooter and using the plenum to turn the barra down to like 50-55fpe but with like 40-50 shots a fill.

 

[Pumacarl]

Yeah, you probably got it figured. Once the weather cools down you'll know for sure. The heat messes with everything. I took my guns out today and they instantly started sweating, man - o - man does that make me cringe. The hot sun was one of the reasons that I finally decided to paint a scope. It has to be better than leaving it black.

The plenum is certainly going to help balance out your power tune. I will be interested to hear the numbers for that. When I was playing around with different plenum sizes with my Paradigm, and actually looking at the real numbers and doing the math, the only size that I could use the extra volume effectively with was the smallest. Not what I wanted, but it was what it was. I wasn't porting that or changing springs, it was too close to perfect to do crazy stuff to.

I shot my 250z about 300psi below my reg setting today and was still hitting on target at 95y on my 2" reaction targets, I thought that was pretty good. I am just really happy with how this gun shoots. I am done with it too. I just got a case for it and I am going to put it to work next week shooting some woodchucks.

This was the first airgun that I have worked on that has changed my opinion of my other airguns, by a lot. It's performance with slugs, coupled with how well slugs work in my .177 Vectis and my Paradigm, has me starting to hate shooting pellets. I am just losing patience with them and don't like putting up with all the extra drop and drift and bleeding off of speed. Mostly with just the .177 and .22, I still like the 34gr .25, and the big .30's are just entertaining ballista. I shot my FWB124D's today for the first in a year, I think. I just don't like shooting springers any more. The banging and the noise, compared to a near silent dead shot cycle pcp, no thanks, I'm done. I find it amazing that with all they have going on they still manage to be accurate but I don't enjoy the experience like I once did. I don't like loud pipes or music any more either. The thing that bothers me the most though is that there is just enough vibration that I can't see my pellet flying most of the time. I only shoot the springers off hand, so that has a lot to do with it too. Anyways, it is a little bit sad to end a good project, but it's great to end up with an awesome shooter. I am not planning to do anything for a while now, besides finding a slug that my TalonP likes, and that 's about it. Good luck with your plenum!

 

[Cantona256]

Yeah, you probably got it figured. Once the weather cools down you'll know for sure. The heat messes with everything. I took my guns out today and they instantly started sweating, man - o - man does that make me cringe. The hot sun was one of the reasons that I finally decided to paint a scope. It has to be better than leaving it black.

The plenum is certainly going to help balance out your power tune. I will be interested to hear the numbers for that. When I was playing around with different plenum sizes with my Paradigm, and actually looking at the real numbers and doing the math, the only size that I could use the extra volume effectively with was the smallest. Not what I wanted, but it was what it was. I wasn't porting that or changing springs, it was too close to perfect to do crazy stuff to.

I shot my 250z about 300psi below my reg setting today and was still hitting on target at 95y on my 2" reaction targets, I thought that was pretty good. I am just really happy with how this gun shoots. I am done with it too. I just got a case for it and I am going to put it to work next week shooting some woodchucks.

This was the first airgun that I have worked on that has changed my opinion of my other airguns, by a lot. It's performance with slugs, coupled with how well slugs work in my .177 Vectis and my Paradigm, has me starting to hate shooting pellets. I am just losing patience with them and don't like putting up with all the extra drop and drift and bleeding off of speed. Mostly with just the .177 and .22, I still like the 34gr .25, and the big .30's are just entertaining ballista. I shot my FWB124D's today for the first in a year, I think. I just don't like shooting springers any more. The banging and the noise, compared to a near silent dead shot cycle pcp, no thanks, I'm done. I find it amazing that with all they have going on they still manage to be accurate but I don't enjoy the experience like I once did. I don't like loud pipes or music any more either. The thing that bothers me the most though is that there is just enough vibration that I can't see my pellet flying most of the time. I only shoot the springers off hand, so that has a lot to do with it too. Anyways, it is a little bit sad to end a good project, but it's great to end up with an awesome shooter. I am not planning to do anything for a while now, besides finding a slug that my TalonP likes, and that 's about it. Good luck with your plenum!

It’s kind of wild to think how the 250z and your paradigm have changed your opinion as much as they have. I agree with every thing you say though. For me it was about the hunting performance. I was mostly a plinker until I got that Umarex Komplete and once I started stretching things past 50-60y the pellets just moved too much in the wind for me. Lots of way better shooters than me can and do way better than me with pellets and that’s fine. But I got this gun to shoot slugs. It took me awhile to figure out how to tune it like I wanted but yeah it’s just a joy to shoot. The lighter ammo going really fast has a rimfire feel to it that feels very familiar and easy to shoot. That’s my favorite part haha. I probably fussed over it waaaaay more than needed but I have a long range and short range set up with 30-32gr slugs. All it requires is a profile switch on the scope and loading which of the 3 slugs I want. I think that’s pretty neat.

As for springers they are kind of just a giant for me. I grew up with the multi-pumpers. Pumping wasn’t the funnest thing but they had no recoil and most of mine were pretty accurate. I was always kind of envious of break barrels. So January of this year I bought one and that’s why I’m here now. I HATED it. The hold sensitivity was too inconvenient for me, amongst the rest of the springer quirks. I won’t say anything bad about them. My sample size is tiny and cheap. But it made me buy a Komplete which lead me to the barra. Which I’m grateful for. Airgunning has without a doubt been the highlight of my year and a hobby that checks so many boxes for me it’s wild.

The quietness is the #1 thing that keeps me away from firearms. I’ve treated my eardrums like rented mules for most of my life so I just don’t wanna deal with the noise. The lack of recoil makes it even better. The fact I can order everything straight to my house and tinker with it without having to worry about the ATF is the chef’s kiss.

Haha I wish everything wasn’t so expensive but beyond that I love it here. I wanna go door to door in camo and a name tag and preach the PCP Gospel that would trip the Mormons out (in a good way).

 

[Cantona256]

Yeah, you probably got it figured. Once the weather cools down you'll know for sure. The heat messes with everything. I took my guns out today and they instantly started sweating, man - o - man does that make me cringe. The hot sun was one of the reasons that I finally decided to paint a scope. It has to be better than leaving it black.

The plenum is certainly going to help balance out your power tune. I will be interested to hear the numbers for that. When I was playing around with different plenum sizes with my Paradigm, and actually looking at the real numbers and doing the math, the only size that I could use the extra volume effectively with was the smallest. Not what I wanted, but it was what it was. I wasn't porting that or changing springs, it was too close to perfect to do crazy stuff to.

I shot my 250z about 300psi below my reg setting today and was still hitting on target at 95y on my 2" reaction targets, I thought that was pretty good. I am just really happy with how this gun shoots. I am done with it too. I just got a case for it and I am going to put it to work next week shooting some woodchucks.

This was the first airgun that I have worked on that has changed my opinion of my other airguns, by a lot. Its performance with slugs, coupled with how well slugs work in my .177 Vectis and my Paradigm, has me starting to hate shooting pellets. I am just losing patience with them and don't like putting up with all the extra drop and drift and bleeding off of speed. Mostly with just the .177 and .22, I still like the 34gr .25, and the big .30's are just entertaining ballista. I shot my FWB124D's today for the first in a year, I think. I just don't like shooting springers any more. The banging and the noise, compared to a near silent dead shot cycle pcp, no thanks, I'm done. I find it amazing that with all they have going on they still manage to be accurate but I don't enjoy the experience like I once did. I don't like loud pipes or music any more either. The thing that bothers me the most though is that there is just enough vibration that I can't see my pellet flying most of the time. I only shoot the springers off hand, so that has a lot to do with it too. Anyways, it is a little bit sad to end a good project, but it's great to end up with an awesome shooter. I am not planning to do anything for a while now, besides finding a slug that my TalonP likes, and that 's about it. Good luck with your plenum!

I doubt I’ll ever make it to or really push for 100fpe from the barra. Somewhere between 75-85FPE feels like a really good spot to land. It’s just wide open country here and I’m finding that I really like shooting longer ranges. Shooting a squirrel at less than 75y feels too easy. Even in the wind. Which the ballistic app on my phone dialed in 100-125 is where it feels more “sporting.” It’s funny you mention woodchucks. I’m looking for the ability to whack the absolute @&$& out of a Rockchuck at 150-200y lol.