Shoot the Gaundlet

[HollowPoint]

You should be happy with it since you have researched it as you have . They are a little on the heavy side but well balanced . What I have found on it as well as my Sentry is when you use the mags you have to pull the bolt back farther than sear engagement to get the probe to clear the mag so it will rotate freely . And since the mags are narrow so is the loading port which makes single tray loading a little more difficult than a non mag gun . Not really big issues but things that need to be confronted . Keep us posted .Marvin

Hi Marvin:

Thanks for that heads up. One of the many reasons I wanted to get a PCP was to be able to try my home made swaged pellets at higher velocities than I can get from my break barrel air guns. These home made pellets are real close to the same length as nearly all of the conventional pellets up to 18.3 grains so now I'm hoping that length won't be an issue. No matter; I'm thinking I can come up with a work-around. I'll just have to wait and see. I don't even have the gun in my hands yet and I'm already envisioning this-that-and-the-other. I can't help it. I'm a chronic tinkerer. This entry level PCP appears to be a tinkerers dream gun.

HollowPoint

[35 shooter]

Good deal HollowPoint,

Looking forward to your results with the pellets you make.

[HollowPoint]

Good deal HollowPoint,

Looking forward to your results with the pellets you make.

You guys may remember these from I post I made a couple of years ago. Just recently I came across a similar post from another gentleman here who came up with a similar design for his own .25 caliber pellets. Since that time I've come across a few others across the internet who have/had also started making their own pellet. And they all are nearly identical in shape to the pellets I came up with. Some of these folks have taken to selling their pellets on the internet.

I don't really know who came up with the design first. I'm just glad I can make my own and I'm hoping that they'll fly fast and accurate out of my incoming PCP air rifle. I love the idea of never having to buy anymore pellets. That was the idea behind getting into cast bullets in the first place; although these aren't all cast. Initially I'll cast some weight sorted cylindrical lead slugs and it's those little lead slugs that get swaged into the final shape.

HollowPoint

[HollowPoint]

My new Gauntlet finally showed up. Everything appears to be in order but it seems that the gauge and the fill nipple are mis-aligned by about a quarter of a turn. The users manual does mention something about this and it instructs one to rotate the cylinder a quarter of a turn back so that the gauge and the nipple align with the windows in the sides of the fore stock.

That's simple enough to do but it leaves an awful lot of slop in the fit of the bottle to air input block. I think it's way to much slop but, I'll have to call their service center to make sure this is safe before attempting to fill the bottle.

Actually the look of the regulator on this particular PCP has the look of a used bottle. The finish on the pressure gauge is really mucked up as if a blind Chinese worker put it on with a pair of plyers. It may be typical since they are shaped like nut so as to be able to tighten it with a wrench of some sort. I noticed to that the barrel has alot of flex at the end but that's an easy fix. My main concern is all that slop in the fit of the bottle/regulator to the air input block. Once I get that ironed out it should be good to go. I hope this retailer didn't send me a Gauntlet that someone sent back to them. I got it at a discounted price so you never know.


Since there is at least one other Gauntlet owner here that I know of I though I'd ask if any of you had a similar problem?

HollowPoint

[melloairman]

My new Gauntlet finally showed up. Everything appears to be in order but it seems that the gauge and the fill nipple are mis-aligned by about a quarter of a turn. The users manual does mention something about this and it instructs one to rotate the cylinder a quarter of a turn back so that the gauge and the nipple align with the windows in the sides of the fore stock.

That's simple enough to do but it leaves an awful lot of slop in the fit of the bottle to air input block. I think it's way to much slop but, I'll have to call their service center to make sure this is safe before attempting to fill the bottle.

Actually the look of the regulator on this particular PCP has the look of a used bottle. The finish on the pressure gauge is really mucked up as if a blind Chinese worker put it on with a pair of plyers. It may be typical since they are shaped like nut so as to be able to tighten it with a wrench of some sort. I noticed to that the barrel has alot of flex at the end but that's an easy fix. My main concern is all that slop in the fit of the bottle/regulator to the air input block. Once I get that ironed out it should be good to go. I hope this retailer didn't send me a Gauntlet that someone sent back to them. I got it at a discounted price so you never know.


Since there is at least one other Gauntlet owner here that I know of I though I'd ask if any of you had a similar problem?

HollowPoint

I have not had the alignment problem but I know some have I would use the ninja clips and not leave the tank lose if I did . https://www.amazon.com/Ninja-Paintba.../dp/B003FVUO9S .And the gauge glass might have a plastic film on it that you can pull off . It was placed there so the face could not get scratched . GL Marvin
https://www.bing.com/search?q=How+to...de646a034a1456

[HollowPoint]

Thanks for those links. Oddly enough I attempted using some rubber O-rings to accomplish the same thing that those clips do. The rubber is to soft but if they are only made from plastic I might be able to make a clip of the correct thickness myself. If not I'll just buy some.

My main concern was that because there is so much slop in the threads now, even with the tank pressurized, that loose fit would allow air to escape. I guess it's that pressure that would seal the threads. I'll just have to wait and see. I'm still waiting for a couple of other items I've ordered to show up before I do anything more with it.

HollowPoint

[HollowPoint]

I found a short length of black delrin rod stock in my junk box this morning. It took about a half hour to whittle it down on the lathe to near the correct thickness to mimic one of those "Ninja Adjustment Clips." From the lathe I was able to then sand it down a little at a time till I got it to just the right thickness. The air tank is now indexing perfectly with the cutouts in the fore-stock and my air bottle is firmly attached to the air input block on the front of the receiver of the Gauntlet. Thanks again for the links you posted. I had no idea that there were any such spacers available that I could copy.

Now I'm just waiting for some air tank components to arrive so I can check and/or adjust the output PSI on the regulator. I took it apart and it seems to be missing some internal components but, it could be that this is the configuration needed for this particular or specific regulator unit to put out the stated 1250psi output pressure. I'd like to tweak that up to about 1300 or possibly 1400psi if I can do it safely. We shall see.

HollowPoint

[melloairman]

I found a short length of black delrin rod stock in my junk box this morning. It took about a half hour to whittle it down on the lathe to near the correct thickness to mimic one of those "Ninja Adjustment Clips." From the lathe I was able to then sand it down a little at a time till I got it to just the right thickness. The air tank is now indexing perfectly with the cutouts in the fore-stock and my air bottle is firmly attached to the air input block on the front of the receiver of the Gauntlet. Thanks again for the links you posted. I had no idea that there were any such spacers available that I could copy.

Now I'm just waiting for some air tank components to arrive so I can check and/or adjust the output PSI on the regulator. I took it apart and it seems to be missing some internal components but, it could be that this is the configuration needed for this particular or specific regulator unit to put out the stated 1250psi output pressure. I'd like to tweak that up to about 1300 or possibly 1400psi if I can do it safely. We shall see.

HollowPoint

I am glad the post helped. Unless they have changed things the psi was set at 1150 and we were told not to go over 1250 . Marvin

[HollowPoint]

I finally got a chance fill the tank on my new Gauntlet today. I did it with a hand pump. In a multi-tasking manner I'd pump for a few minutes then move on to do other things that needed doing around the shop and around the yard. If I stayed at it I think it would have taken me about 20 (maybe more) minutes or so using my cheap little thirty-five dollar Ebay special HPA hand pump.

I also got a chance to check my velocities before attempting any regulator mods. I really didn't expect to get the velocities that I got out of these first few shots. I've bought a few air guns over the course of my life and each buy was based on the touted velocities and accuracy that their ad campaigns put out. All but two of those air guns failed to deliver anywhere near the stated velocities on the box or in their marketing ads. The Umarex Octane Elite delivered the stated velocities and then some but, they were also supposed to be back-yard-friendly and accurate. I had to tinker that air rifle into delivering on those promises.

This Gauntlet is the second air gun I've ever bought that has delivered the velocities I was lead to believe it would shooting the 14 grain Crossman Premier domes and hollow points. That surprised me cause I had taken the regulator apart to see if it looked anything like the insides of the regulators I'd researched. In fact, I may have mentioned before that my regulator appeared to be missing some components. It had no shims to speak of in place. It only had 10 Belville washers as apposed to the 11 or 12 Belvilles that nearly all the "mod-experts" showed in their tutorials. I was getting an average of 860fps with the regulator as it was.

I recall hearing and reading that each regulator is hand tuned by some Ninja-tech to get them to the stated output pressures but I had also heard of several Gauntlet owners who's regulators fell well short of that claim. I know now that it's safe to up the output psi of the regulator just enough to get those 14.3 grainers to around 900fps. I'll be a happy camper with that level of change. Also; this gun too is not exactly back-yard-friendly. I must have been spoiled by the break barrel Umarex Octanes I've been shooting cause this Gauntlet is very loud in comparison. I'm pretty sure I can fix that without to much problem.

I was only able to shoot out to 25 yards in my back yard but this gun lives up to its accuracy claims in spades. Once I got my scope zeroed and if I held steady enough I was stacking pellets one on top of another. It shows alot of promise. I'll have to wait and see how it does after I've had a chance to shoot farther out.

HollowPoint

[35 shooter]

I finally got a chance fill the tank on my new Gauntlet today. I did it with a hand pump. In a multi-tasking manner I'd pump for a few minutes then move on to do other things that needed doing around the shop and around the yard. If I stayed at it I think it would have taken me about 20 (maybe more) minutes or so using my cheap little thirty-five dollar Ebay special HPA hand pump.

I also got a chance to check my velocities before attempting any regulator mods. I really didn't expect to get the velocities that I got out of these first few shots. I've bought a few air guns over the course of my life and each buy was based on the touted velocities and accuracy that their ad campaigns put out. All but two of those air guns failed to deliver anywhere near the stated velocities on the box or in their marketing ads. The Umarex Octane Elite delivered the stated velocities and then some but, they were also supposed to be back-yard-friendly and accurate. I had to tinker that air rifle into delivering on those promises.

This Gauntlet is the second air gun I've ever bought that has delivered the velocities I was lead to believe it would shooting the 14 grain Crossman Premier domes and hollow points. That surprised me cause I had taken the regulator apart to see if it looked anything like the insides of the regulators I'd researched. In fact, I may have mentioned before that my regulator appeared to be missing some components. It had no shims to speak of in place. It only had 10 Belville washers as apposed to the 11 or 12 Belvilles that nearly all the "mod-experts" showed in their tutorials. I was getting an average of 860fps with the regulator as it was.

I recall hearing and reading that each regulator is hand tuned by some Ninja-tech to get them to the stated output pressures but I had also heard of several Gauntlet owners who's regulators fell well short of that claim. I know now that it's safe to up the output psi of the regulator just enough to get those 14.3 grainers to around 900fps. I'll be a happy camper with that level of change. Also; this gun too is not exactly back-yard-friendly. I must have been spoiled by the break barrel Umarex Octanes I've been shooting cause this Gauntlet is very loud in comparison. I'm pretty sure I can fix that without to much problem.

I was only able to shoot out to 25 yards in my back yard but this gun lives up to its accuracy claims in spades. Once I got my scope zeroed and if I held steady enough I was stacking pellets one on top of another. It shows alot of promise. I'll have to wait and see how it does after I've had a chance to shoot farther out.

HollowPoint

Glad you got it up and going. Sounds like the accuracy is certainly there. I'll be watching for your further reports on distance.

I've got one more airgun i'd like to try before going pcp, but i'm getting closer lol.

[HollowPoint]

I don't know what's come over me lately. I think it was the purchase of this Gauntlet but, after checking out some of the latest PCP offerings on the market I've noticed that these smaller bore air guns have reached the velocity and energy levels of the 22 mini-mag rim fire cartridges.

Just yesterday one of the guys on YouTube informed me of a PCP bull pup called the Huben K1 MkII. It's a hammerless semi auto that fires bullet weights equal to the 22 rim fire from a 19 round magazine and is better than MOA accurate. I had never heard of this air gun before. I know there are now alot of them out there but they seem to be slowly evolving into powder burner equivalents. The thing with the bullets that are designed specifically for this PCP bull pup is that a few years back, I posted a pic of a CAD concept drawing of a long range airgun projectile design that I came up with. I mention this because the bullets that this air gun manufacture came up with look nearly the same as my CAD drawing.

At the time, some of the well meaning comments I got when I posted my concept drawing were to tell me why they thought my design wouldn't work. You really can't argue with these types of comments because for the most part they are being made from a perspective coming from inside the proverbial box. There are many well established air gunning mantras inside that box; both from a physics stand point and a generally accepted theory stand point. At the time I considered my design as coming from outside the box. Now, it would appear that as air rifles have evolved to produce more velocity, the projectiles they require to optimize their performance are having to play catchup. Perhaps I was ahead of my time.

My concern is that as air guns creep up to powder burner levels, we come closer and closer to having to deal with the same burdensome rules and regulations that now overshadow fire arms in general.

HollowPoint

[35 shooter]

Very interesting pellet design. Sure looks like it should shoot well.

[HollowPoint]

Very interesting pellet design. Sure looks like it should shoot well.

That's what I thought at the time I drew up that CAD model but, at that time all I had were break barrel air guns and a .22 caliber PCP powerful enough to launch and stabilize one of these pills was only within the reach of the financially well off as far as I was concerned. I never took it any further than that initial dream-stage. Now that entry-level PCPs with the velocity potential of stabilizing one of these dream projectiles are within the reach of dreamers like me, maybe it will give me an incentive to make up a reamer and the mold to cast a few and try them out. If it works that will be awesome. If not, so what? We never know unless we try.

First I'll have to wait and see how high I can safely get my velocities to in this new Gauntlet PCP.

HollowPoint

[35 shooter]

Are you thinking 900 fps.....more?

[HollowPoint]

Honestly, I don't really know right now. I've watched more than a few online videos dealing with adjusting the output pressures of the types of regulators that come installed on a Umarex Gauntlet. They are said to be set at 1250 psi. Several of the tutorial video makers have safely brought their output pressure up to 1400psi. Any farther than that and you stand a very real chance of blowing the 1800psi Burst-Disk. That's like the blow-out-valve safety feature that keeps over zealous paint ballers and air gunners from injuring themselves or destroying their guns. I understand that when such an event happens it's enough to make a guy poop his pants.

With the regulator's output pressure set at 1400psi, chronograph tests showed the 18 grain jumbo heavy pellets moving out at a little over 900fps. I'll be glad to get that with the 14 grainers. I don't want to push the envelope on this budget PCP to far. I'd like to live to shot it a while. The regulator may be up to the task but that doesn't necessarily mean that the rifle is.

HollowPoint

[35 shooter]

I was surfing the web for info on a steroid 392 the other night and came across an interesting post by a steroid owner.

He claimed to shoot 30 gr. cast pellets from his 392 steroid at i "think" around 600fps. Also saw a claim from a stock 392 with 28 gr. eun jins @ 510 fps. and supposedly good accuracy.

It will be very interesting to see what you come up with as you progress with it.

[HollowPoint]

I went ahead and checked the regulator's output PSI. If I was reading he little gauge correctly, or if the gauge was working correctly it looked like the output psi was hovering around 1300psi. The hash marks and the needle on this tiny gauge are so thick that it there could be a good plus or minus on that 1300psi reading; and this is with just 10 Belville washers in place and no shims. That's really surprising to me. I really thought the output pressure would be below the stated 1250psi for this model.

Yesterday when I shot some 14.3 grain Crosman Premier pellets over the chronograph I was getting an average of 860fps. I had low velocities in the high 850s and highs about 861 and 862fps. I went ahead and installed a stainless steel .005" shim in the regulator to see if it would have any effect on the output psi of the regulator. It was really hard to tell if I had any increase by reading that same little air gauge but it did seem to creep up to a just barely noticeable amount.

I put it all back together again and fired a few more pellets over the chronograph. The first shot over the chrono read 859fps. I thought to myself, "Well Hell, all that work for this?" The next four shots read 864fps. The fifth shot was 865fps. The sixth shot was back to 864fps. I fired an eight shot string and all but two of them came in at 864fps. As I already mentioned, the first shot was 859 and then I had the one that came in at 865fps. I was shooting out of the ten shot magazine the gun came with and I only had those eight pellets left in the mag.

I was really hoping for somewhere around 900fps but I'm happy with the lack of velocity spread I was getting. My break barrel Umarex Octane gets an average of 860fps. My Octane Elite gets an average of 865fps. It has shot as high as 870fps. It would be nice if this PCP could shoot a little faster than that. I'll keep looking around for more information on those regulators. Maybe I can pick one up that will safely give me just a bit more performance. With my existing regulator, I don't want to push the envelope. It doesn't look like it's all that robust.

The videos I've watched regarding adjusting the output psi on these regulators distinctly showed the inscriptions on the sides on the regulator bonnets. They read 1250 psi. Mine reads 1150 psi. To me this means that there must be regulators out there that I can safely adjust a bit higher. I'll have to keep looking. For the time being I'll leave it as it is and concentrate on quieting this gun down. It's really loud compared to the suppressed break barrels I've been shooting. I've already ordered the materials I'll need to add some volume to the shroud.

These will be non-permanent mods. I plan on replacing the existing shroud cap with a secondary air-stripper that will act as the back end of a six inch additional extension to trap more of that exiting high pressure air. I know it may be hard to picture in ones' mind what I'm talking about but I'll post some pics once I get it done. I hope it works. I really don't like shooting this loud of an air gun in my back yard. I'm near the inner city and I don't need the cops being called on me for backyard plinking.

HollowPoint

[HollowPoint]

I suspected that the tiny manometer gauge I was using to check the output pressure of the regulator on my Gauntlet's air tank may have been faulty. That wasn't exactly correct. It was a case of the fat needle on that little gauge in conjunction with the thick hash lines in between the 1000, 2000, 3000 and 4000 psi readings that left one to wonder what exactly the output pressure really was. I re-checked that output pressure this time using the gauge that was on my hand pump. The fat little needle on the tiny gauge actually read correctly if I was aiming exactly for 1000, 2000 or 3000psi. Then it matched exactly with what the gauge on the air tank read and the gauge from my hand pump.

I unscrewed it from the hand pump temporarily connected it to my output pressure tester. I knew that the hand pump's gauge was accurate because it read exactly as what the gauge on my air tank read whenever I pumped up my gun's air tank. Due to those fat little in between hash lines there was a discrepancy of nearly 300psi between the tiny manometer gauge I used initially and the gauge off of my hand pump. It was kind of a relief cause, I thought perhaps I had done something wrong or perhaps there was a problem with my air gun.

It took me a couple of attempts but I finally got my Umarex Gauntlet's regulator adjusted to 1350psi output. Shooting the 14.3 grain Crosman Premier pellets I'm now getting an average of 918fps and a 40 shot string at those velocities up until my tank drains to just a bit under 2000psi. I suspect I can get another magazine and a half out of it but I'm re-filling with a hand pump so I try not to let my tank's level to go to much below the 2000psi mark.

I also made a small rubber support to secure the flimsy barrel as well as modifying the shroud to quiet the PCP to where it actually is now back yard friendly. It worked out better than I'd hoped. I can honestly say that it's now "Hollywood-Quiet."

HollowPoint

[HollowPoint]

Everything was going so well. My velocities were now up where I'd dreamed they would be; the accuracy was beyond my expectations and then, for some reason I couldn't hit the side of a barn at any of my known longer ranges any more.

I thought maybe one of the mods I had introduced into the Umarex Gauntlet mix had gone south on me. I tested and re-tested to see if this was the case but none of the mods I'd done showed any indication that they were the cause of all the misses I was now experiencing. It turns out that my scope had started giving up the ghost; or more realistically, it had already given up the ghost from the time I mounted it on one of my Umarex Octane break barrel air rifles.

I had stashed this particular scope in the same box I keep all my extra scopes. I had forgotten that this is one of the scopes that had gone bad. "Scopes Going Bad" was a common occurrence with me and my break barrel air rifles. I should have known this was the case this time around too. Because of this, I've decided to make up yet another set of dedicated peep sights for my Umarex Gauntlet.

Just recently I finished up some Shroud-Mods that have quieted down this PCP to levels quieter than my own farts. (the silent but deadly ones) I've made this type of peep sights before for some of my other rifles but this time around I designed them with an eye toward 3D-Printing them instead of machining them. I don't even own a 3D Printer but I hope to buy my first by the end of the year. Right now All I have drawn up is the Globe-Front-Sight but I hope to have the Rear-Peep-Sight drawn up soon.

I've just about run out of my allotted photo space on this the Cast Boolits forum but I'll try to upload a pic of my computer rendering of this Eventually-To-Be-Made Globe-Front-Sight so you can see what I have in mind. I've been shooting my air guns with peep sights for so long now that when I do use a scope on an air rifle it's like having to get used to it all over again. They seem to amplify any movement I make when I'm looking down the glass at my target. I really have no explanation for it but the Peep-Sights on the other hand, just give me the sense of more stability when I hold my cross hairs on my target.

HollowPoint

[clodhopper]

That is a nice idea, how do you secure the vertical wire?