Benjamin Prowle

[54bore]

Was over at Walmart today and seen a Benjamin Prowler .22 Cal for 99 bucks, it looked nearly identical to my Crossman Nitro Venom Dusk .177, (Crossman owns Benjamin Sheridan) i asked the gal behind the counter if i could open the box and take a closer look? Sure enough it is a carbon copy to my Crossman Nitro Venom Dusk, since i wished i had bought the Crossman in .22 Cal i went ahead and bought it. When i got home i stripped it apart to see if the trigger system was any different? Nope, not a bit, it's identical. I did the same trigger Mod to it as i did my Crossman, i started a thread not long ago about the Crossman trigger job with RC Car Bearing. I took it out and sighted it in, the scope that comes with it is junk as to be expected, but will work for now. I bought a tin of 500 Crossman Premier Hollow points while i was at Wally for 6 bucks and change. The gun shoots GREAT and hits HARD! Anyone looking to buy a decent pellet rifle and dont wanna spend a fortune i highy advise this gun. It will be fun to get both my .177 and .22 out for some testing, i am curious how much harder hitting the .22 is, and accuracy difference if any? I am shooting Crossman Premier Ultra Mag 10.5 grain pellets in the .177, and these Crossman Premier Hollow Point .22s are 14.3 Grain. The claim on the box is up to 950 FPS, I'd imagine thats a super light pellet? Will be interesting to Chronograph the 2, accuracy test, etc.

[54bore]

Benjamin Prowler, Not Prowle

[jh45gun]

Sounds like a good deal.I just bought a 22 cal Hatsan Edge Vortex. I like it. Same price range 100 bucks.

[54bore]

Sounds like a good deal.I just bought a 22 cal Hatsan Edge Vortex. I like it. Same price range 100 bucks.

How is the factory trigger in the Hatsan Edge Vortex? The factory triggers in both my Crossman Nitro Venom Dusk, and this new Benjamin Prowler were absolutely HORRIBLE! They are suppose to be a 2 stage but I couldn't feel the second stage? Just a loooong unpredictable pull. The RC Car bearing trigger job worked like a dream in both of my rifles! The 2 Stage is gone, now i have a nice crisp 2-3 pound pull. A good trigger makes or breaks a rifle to me

[35 shooter]

54bore,

How's the prowler shooting? I was considering one with the 2 bbl. deal or a hatsan edge.

My brother in Co. just ordered the edge in 22 cal., so i'm waiting to see how he likes it. Also considering the edge in .25 cal. @650 fps.
I've been researching all this airgun stuff lately and have been amazed with what's available now.
This airgunning thing has come a long way from the old Red Rider days lol.

[GhostHawk]

Well I have had my Hatsan 135 Vortex a month now, doubt I have half a tin of pellets through it yet.

I am now shooting at Pins. 1/4 inch ball head push pins, placed into a wood block in the front of my pellet catch box.

So for for 3 shots, 1 miss low, one graze left, and one pin vaporized.

I have been considering another but have been unable to make up my mind what exactly it is I want it for. Another .22? Don't much see the point. If I am going with .25 I suspect I would be best off with either a Mod 95 or 135 vortex.

I am very fond of the Hatsan turkish walnut stocks. Awesome look and feel.

But I am not sure that I want to spend another 300$ for another 135 in bigger bore.

Meantime I will keep stumping about and shooting.

I did order one of the cheap single pump Beeman marksman P17 pistols from Amazon.
Gives me a new toy to play with and does not break the bank.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000W30UAA
/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1


(https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000W30UAA/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1)

[35 shooter]

The Edge in 25 cal. would make a nice light weight small game hunting rifle, but for $89.00 more, the 95 will give you up to 100 fps. more. 750 fps. in a 25 cal. is some pretty serious power in a pellet gun.

I'm kind of torn between the 22 and 25 cal. right now. The 22 can come pretty close to the energy level of a 25 using the heaviest 22 pellets.

The Benjamin prowler in the 17 and 22 switch bbl. combo is a neat deal too...decisions decisions lol.

[54bore]

The Benjamin prowler in the 17 and 22 switch bbl. combo is a neat deal too...decisions decisions lol.

I didn't know they did this? I haven't been able to get out anymore with this new gun, the weather has been horrible at best around here, we stil have 2 ft of snow or more, i cant get off the rd much if any without getting stuck (i have a Toyo Taco 4X4 but would stil be buried to my doors!) and it's snowing hard right now as i type this.
I noticed that Crossman makes the Premier Ultra Mag Pellets in .22 Cal, those are BY FAR the best pellets i have ever used in my .177, they are heavy and dome shaped, 10.5 grains for the .177, and 14.3 I believe for the .22 Cal? The dome pellets are the only way to go in my opinion! I shoot my .177 all the way out to 100 Yards with them, i can hit a small Gatorade bottle at 100 yards and stil have enough energy to get all the way through the thick plastic bottle! All the other pellets I've tried peter out WAY before the Crossman Premier Ultra Mags, i bought a tin of Crossman Premier Hollow points to play around with since my Wally World dont stock the Dome Ultra Mags, i will be ordering some soon, then let the testing begin. This is me shooting 100 Yards with my .177 and the Crossman Ultra Mags at the Gatorade Bottle, this is a ranged 100 yards to that far sand bank.

190110

[GhostHawk]

I agree about the domes. I don't shoot enough .177 to care a whole lot. But I have a big stock of Crossman Premier Hollowpoints that I seriously love.

I am not one of those airgun fanatics that has 150$ worth of every brand, weight of pellet known
to man.

I have to keep it on the down low. Benjamin trashcan 14.3's for my Sheridan Blue Streak.
5k of Crossman Premiers on hand for the pair of 1322's, the Hatsan. And even the 40$ Chinese B3 doesn't shoot them bad, it just prefers the crossman pointed for some reason.

I did order a tin of Crossman Premeir HP's in .177 for the pistol, we'll see how that goes.

As to the switch barrels they just don't interest me. Must go way way back to the late 60's and early 70's when all the guys had bb guns and a few had .177 pellet guns. They were more accurate than the BB's, but that is about all. But I never saw one that could kill a sparrow half as clean, or half as far as my old Bluestreak.

Yes I paid more for the Sheridan, but it was a solid working tool, not a toy. And it still managed to teach me good lesson's down the years.

I agree that the light weight of the edge is interesting.
But I do not see myself doing that much walking with it.

The Mod 95 puts out almost as much energy as the 135 but with significant savings.

Tempting, but not for this month. And in May Henry starts shipping the new Single Shot Rifles which is another distraction. LOL

Life is interesting. Nice thing about airguns is I can walk down one short flight of stairs and shoot to my hearts content.

Cleaned 3 barrels today, had the tools out for the Hatsan and figured why not.

[35 shooter]

54bore,

I saw the switch bbls. on the Pyramid Air site. They show the Benjamin Prowler switch bbl. @ $119.95
The Beeman gas ram dual cal. for $139.99 rated at 830 fps. in 22 cal.
and 1000 fps. in 17 cal.

The Beeman gas ram is a gas piston of course and i think the Beeman prowler may have been a springer as it was 1250 fps, in 17 cal. i think.
Both models come with a 17 and 22 cal switch bbl. set up. The bbls. are held in place with a set screw and easily changed out.

[54bore]

When i got in to this i wanted to see how far i could stretch the envelope distance wise and stil be affective? This is with my Crossman Nitro Venom Dusk .177 Cal, I bought several brands of pellets (most in the 7-8 grain range) i even bought some of the 'hyper velocity' pellets, i was able to get most of them to shoot an inch or so group at 25 yards EXCEPT the 'hyper velocity' critters, they shot like garbage in my rifle. Then i started to stretch the distance and that's where the 'schooling' happened, 50 yards was the absolute Max distance i could get any of them to group any better than a coffee can lid, some a little better than others, but none were what I considered great. I just about parked the little rifle in the corner and gave up on it, i was over at Walmart one day and noticed they had tins of what was called Crossman Premier Ultra Magnum pellets, they weigh 10.5 grains and are Dome nosed, i went ahead and bought a tin to try, to say i was AMAZED is an understatement! These pellets are the ONLY reason i stuck with my air rifle! I chronographed them at 800 something? My groups at 50 yards were like my best 25 yard groups with all the other lighter pellets, and from the various objects i shot at you could OBVIOUSLY tell the difference in how much harder these were hitting! I took a target out to 100 yards and to my amazement i could actually hit and group decent at that distance, i learned my hold over and then started shooting at the little Gatorade bottle, i could hit it no problem as long as i did my part! (A HUGE factor in this goes to my trigger!! Without the RC car bearing trigger Mod this would have been nearly impossible) The pellet stil had enough energy to get all the way through the thick Gatorade plastic bottle. I was sold on the Crossman Premier Ultra Mag pellets! I bought 2 tins of them for a total of 1000 pellets, i have not seen them in stock at Walmart since? I can find them online no problem so I'm not worried, plus their are a few other manufacturers of Dome head pellets that weigh 10.5 grains, one being diablo, they get a tip top rating and are pricier. I will definitely be getting Domes for this new .22 Cal Benjamin Prowler!

[35 shooter]

Shooting out to 100 yds. just for fun is one of the reasons i was considering a 25 cal.
I figured the heavier pellets would carry up better at longer ranges, but sounds like your doing fine with your 17 and 22s.

I may wind up just splitting the difference between the cals. and just get a 22 and call it good.

[54bore]

Shooting out to 100 yds. just for fun is one of the reasons i was considering a 25 cal.
I figured the heavier pellets would carry up better at longer ranges, but sounds like your doing fine with your 17 and 22s.

I may wind up just splitting the difference between the cals. and just get a 22 and call it good.

I would think a Springer or Nitro in .25 Cal would give up to much velocity? Be a whole different ball game if it were pcp, In my opinion the .22 Cal is the way to go, and DEFINITELY give the Dome pellets a try no matter what caliber you go with!

[GhostHawk]

54bore they do give up speed. But as the .25 is so much bigger than a .22, double in fact and more I suspect with some pellets. It can have half the speed and still punch harder than the .22.

So the question becomes do you shoot a .22 for longer ranges lets say past 50 yards? Or do you shoot a .25?

You need to figure in cost of pellets here, at least I do. Amazon has Crossman Premier HP's in 500 tins for 6 something. Thats 1.2 something cents ea. Most anyone can shoot a lot of those every day without breaking the bank.

With the .25 the H&N Barracuda Domed are 8$ for 200 or about 4 cents each, but the price goes up sharply from there. H&N Grizzly's are $9.50 for a 150. In very short order you are back to roughly the same cost as shooting .22lr.

So which do you buy? Take the .22 and the low cost of pellets and accept that beyond 50 yards is pushing it for effective kills?
Or buy the .25 and be able to shoot farther, but not as often, and if you happen to get a gun that only likes the really expensive pellets you have to live with it?

FYI Pyramyd Air shows the Hatsan 135 .25 as making 750 fps. Now I know hatsan does not test with light alloy pellets. In the case of my .22 they were right on the nose at 1000 fps. Almost 1100 with 11.9 hobby pellets but right on the money with 14.3's.

Pyramyd also shows the Hatsan 95 at 219$ for the .25, but it does give up 100 fps, down to 650.
But it is probably easier to cock and almost 2 lbs lighter.

http://www.pyramydair.com/s/m/Hatsan_95_Air_Rifle_Combo_Vortex_Gas_Spring/3411/7706




But the .25 is tempting. I know in a good gun it will reach farther, hit harder.

[54bore]

GhostHawk, i fully agree on the cost of the .25 Cal pellets, BUT not so sure on the .25 Nitro/Springer? I have been an Avid Archer for a solid 30 years, i have shot about every compound bow, and arrow combination known to man, from light to heavy, Aluminum to Carbon, Heavy poundage, light poundage (my heaviest draw poundage being 105-110 pounds, was a custom built Clearwater and had to be weighed on a big buck scale) To make a long story short i found over the years that a lighter 375 grain arrow traveling at 300 plus fps will EASILY out penetrate the BIG HEAVY arrows (performed this test many times to prove it!!) i am talking from the SAME bow, so the velocity is obviously lower with the big heavy arrow (Same as the heavier .25 will be noticeably slower than the lighter .22, Both coming from the same powerplant Nitro/Springer) i shoot my Easton Bloodlines out of my Mathews Z7 at 305 FPS, then take an arrow that weighs 500 Grains, that drops my velocity WAY down to low to mid 200s, now Punch my 375 Grain bloodline traveling at 305 FPS in ANY target you like, then take the BIG HEAVY arrow FROM MY BOW and punch it in beside my Bloodline, The bloodline will out penetrate it EVERY SINGLE TIME in ANY media you would like to test it in.
There is a Point where I believe in the big heavy weights, Revolver velocities of 1000FPS Above comes to mind, and of course the BIG magnum rifle calibers traveling 3000 FPS. But in this 600fps range i am not sold? I would have to Test the .25 Cal myself at 100 yards to believe that it is doing anything more than the .22, i am talking Springer/Nitro Piston vs Springer/Nitro Piston both at 100 Yards.
There is DEFINITELY a break in velocity where Weight takes over/speed takes over, As to where that's at? I dont know exactly? I would love to test it and find out!

[54bore]

I found a local stock pile of Crossman Premier Domed Ultra Magnum pellets for this new .22 Cal, i grabbed 2 tins, 1000 total pellets. Excited to try them out! Maybe tomorrow unless it's pouring down rain.

[35 shooter]

My brother got his new Hatsan Edge .22 cal. today. He's already shot quite a few nice groups with it today and of course, it's no where near broken in yet.
Almost shoots all the way through a 1" phone book @ 11 yds. with the pellets he's using. Not sure which pellet he's shooting.

[54bore]

If these Crossman Domes do as good out of this new .22 as they do from my .177 i will be a happy camper!

[35 shooter]

If these Crossman Domes do as good out of this new .22 as they do from my .177 i will be a happy camper!

Tried them yet?:smile:

[54bore]

I did, and im not so sure yet? I shot them close, about 20 yards to zero my scope, they shot ok but not the one hole group i was hoping for, i would say about an inch group. After zeroing my scope I tried a 3 shot group with the Crossman Premier Hollow Points and they shot about the same, maybe a tiny bit better. This was on a pillow over top of my wifes car (not the most comfortable set up, but felt pretty darn good) i will be doing a bunch more testing soon as the weather gets better, i will shoot them both from my bench and rest then. My .177 goes nuts over the Crossman Premier Ultra Mag Domes 10.5 grain pellets. Maybe this new .22 isn't up to par with the .177? Time will soon tell! How many pellets do you guys consider 'break in'?

[35 shooter]

I think each rifle has it's own preferance as to what it likes, regardless of how it shoots in another rifle.

I've heard of some guns taking as many as 1000 shots to really settle down and do it's best?

[54bore]

I decided to take this new Benjamin Prowler out this evening and get 100 pellets down range, clean the gun, and then group shoot again. To my NOT so much surprise these cheap mounts that came with the rifle all but fell apart! This rifle has the integrated 3/8 dovetail, the rear ring has an adjustable allen head post you can screw down into the hole in the reciever, the rings have a 'no slip' type tape in both halves, after shooting i noticed something wasnt right? The front ring had slid back some, and the tape inside the ring halves had come loose in the rear ring. I had everything cinched down tight as i could possibly get it, but still failed! I need to get a good quality base/ring setup! Any suggestions on a good setup?

[GhostHawk]

Yes sir, a one piece mount.

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/41VYDbpFY%2BL._SX355_.jpg

That is designed to go onto a magnum air rifle, lock onto the dovetail. And hold forever without moving. The one piece design is more rigid, a single ring can not slip and start a chain of things moving.

If that does not put the scope where you need it, they also make an offset base. Where the rings are offset from the dovetail mount. Turn one way to put scope farther forward, the other for farther back.

https://images-na.ssl-images-amazon.com/images/I/41jQsvKnOEL._SX300_.jpg

FYI those are under 20$ at amazon with shipping. The other company that has a good reputation with airgunners is Leapers/UTG. They make similar items. Also if you are more used to weaver rails, have scopes, rings etc you can get an adapter for 11mm dovetail to weaver rail for about 11$. I know because I just bought a couple of those plus a couple of the offset one piece mounts.

https://www.amazon.com/Piece-Scope-AM4L-Magnum-Airguns/dp/B0052ZGVOC/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1489580652&sr=8-4&keywords=Hammers+one+piece+scope+mount&refinements=p_89%3AHammers


(https://www.amazon.com/Piece-Scope-AM4L-Magnum-Airguns/dp/B0052ZGVOC/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1489580652&sr=8-4&keywords=Hammers+one+piece+scope+mount&refinements=p_89%3AHammers)

[54bore]

GhostHawk, Thank you much! Who makes that top one? I really like the looks of it!

[kbstenberg]

Thank you all that have participated in this thread. I have learned a lot! Kevin

[54bore]

GhostHawk, Thank you much! Who makes that top one? I really like the looks of it!

GhostHawk, I feel like an IDGET! You provided a link and all! LOL! I ordered that mount in the top picture from Amazon. Sure looks like a good one, its made by Hammers? These Magnum air rifles HAMMER the heck out of mounts, and scopes. Forward/Reverse recoil will destroy many of scope not designed for it. Looking forward to getting this and setting the gun back up, i have about 125 pellets through the rifle now, should be settled in and ready to shoot groups.

[Multigunner]

I prevent a scope from sliding in the rings I insert a strip of fine wire mesh in the ring before tightening it up.
I had a sheet of extremely fine stainless steel wire mesh that I used for the purpose but gave it to a friend who was building thousand yard match rifles. Adding layers to the lower rear ring can cure problems with a scope not having enough elevation adjustment for longer ranges. Best to use a ring reamer first though.
You might find a very fine brass wire mesh suitable for the purpose at a plumbing supply store.