Chinese Air Rifles

Jedi Knife

Jedi Knife

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May 6, 1999
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Does anyone here have experience with currently available Chinese manufactured air rifles? I have been interested in the "Hercules XS-B3" AK-type rifle, but it seems these models are getting a little less prevelant here lately. I've been thinking of getting something with a custom spring from www.compasseco.com, but I've never really gotten around to it. For the sake of discussion I would like to avoid blanket statements like "The quality of {insert pricey European model here} is far and away much better than any of the Chinese models I've seen." It's not that I would doubt it, but statements like that are way to vague if not validated with specific facts. BTW, trigger pull is not an issue with me, provided it is less than 9 lbs. or so. Any suggestions/opinions?

JK
 
Jedi,
I love airguns and I certainly won't be badmouthing the quality of the Chinese manufacture airguns simply because I haven't owned one (I might have other reasons for avoiding Chinese products, but that's another topic altogether;)). And you're absolutely correct in stating that top quality European airguns can get awfully expensive awfully fast. But don't be too quick to overlook a reputable company like RWS. A rifle like their Mod 34 is well made as you might expect, accurate, powerful, reliable, easily serviced in this country if you ever should run into a problem, and, best of all, can be had for less than $200 out the door. Even Beeman, whose best known for their upper end field and target grade models, now offer several less expensive, yet high quality rifles.

There's a million places that sell RWS, but here's just one for you:

http://www.airgunsofarizona.com/rws.html
 
What Bronco said plus...

I had two Chinese air rifles from Compasseco. The first one shot really well, but shot itself apart. The second one held together, but never grouped like I wanted (1"+ at 10meters). I returned the first for a refund and sold the second one to a less demanding friend for slightly less than I paid.

Go to www.precision-sales.com and look at the BSA Supersport deal. It's not terribly expensive and you'll end up with a tackdriving air rifle that has some resale value and customization ability. It sports magnum power and an adjustable trigger. It's only downfall is the odd sized BSA scopemount. You'll need to get mounts from BSquare if you want a scope or reddot. I've put about 600 rounds through this gun, taking it camping several times and generally enjoyed it. It'll easily shoot .75" groups at 50yds in my hands. It may do better in others. It's powerful enough for small game. You can get an airspring replacement for the coil spring if you want (more power, smoother action). Seriously, I can't recommend it enough for an entry level rifle.

Chris
 
I had a couple of them for a long while, they are allright for the money that you pay for them.

I haven't gotten to handle any of the europian ones, but I do know that RWS makes a 9mm one.


But I'm still trying to locate a Farco Air Shotgun.
 
RWS, Beeman, BSA... stick with european air rifles if you are serious about precision and quality. There are a lot of expensive models, but you can find some lower cost ones as well.
I can easily group below 1-inch at 25 yards with open sights with all my air rifles, and this is what I would call a "basic" benchmark of accuracy. You can do better with a scope and selected pellets, but you should not do worse than that.
 
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