Cometa Lynx Review (Updated Regularly)!

[airgunnertony]

To date, this thread is the leading english thread in regards to the Cometa Lynx V10 PCP air rifle by AirgunnerTony. I am so appreciative of the support and feedback. With so much great information it can be a little difficult to navigate the thread. To make things a little easier I am going to dedicate this small section as the thread's index. Thank's - Tony

Page 1 - General overview and initial impressions.
Page 2 - Baffle system and trigger overview.
Page 3 - Modded Marauder Mags and Power.
Page 4 - More impressions and Hunting w/ the Lynx.
Page 5 - Notification of the "Lynx Power Mod".
Page 6 - Customer service and updates on the "Lynx Power Mod".
Page 6 (yes 6) - Cometa Lynx Ultimate Trigger Tune - AKA Modded Marauder Trigger!





Alright. I would first like to introduce myself. My name is Tony and i've been into airguns for quite some time now. I've shot them all my life and I just love to tinker with them. Some of you may know me from TAG where I posted about my custom bullpup Marauder build (http://www.talonairgun.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=19273). Anyway, when I heard about the Cometa Lynx I knew it was something I would be interested in. Regulated, bottle fed, super accurate, repeater for only ~$700; what more can you ask!? Well I ended up ordering one when I first got word that they were starting to become available.

I received my rifle today at around 5:00 pm. I had been awaiting this moment for years now. I quickly opened up the nice brown box and noticed the lack of an actual "Cometa Lynx" box. I guess I was expecting it to be packaged in a proprietary box like the marauder or talon or something. Anyway, inside was the Lynx, a female foster fitting, a male to male adapter for the foster fitting, and two hex keys.

Trigger:
I immediately filled her up with air because I wanted to test two things: the trigger and how quiet it was. I read on other spanish forums that the trigger was bad. However, it's really not as bad as one may think. It's a single stage and does not halt right before the let off. It is however very light and breaks in the same spot every time. I would equate it to a Crosman Trail trigger if it were very light (I know that Crosman Trail triggers are VERY heavy). It's definitely not Marauder status by any means, but overall it's mediocre - comparable to the benjamin discovery (without the two screw mod).

**UPDATE** REALLY smoothed out. I think I didn't have it adjusted properly before and that was causing the strange pull.

Noise:
The second thing I was most interested in was the sound of the discharge. I want to preface this with saying that I've only been using a Marauder with a LDC for the past few months. It's about the quietest thing you can own, so when I heard the lynx for the first time I thought it was really loud. However, this was during a dry-fire - without a pellet. I put a pellet in to see how much quieter it would make it and it actually makes it ALOT quieter. Once again, not quite Marauder standard but still very quiet for a PCP rifle. The shroud diameter is HUGE, giving it a good volume to trap the air but it does not have any baffles to displace the air. ** I was trying to remove the shroud for quite some time. I removed the barrel but can't seem to get the shroud to come off the barrel. Anyone know how I can remove the shroud?**

Side leaver + loading:
Loading was something I had to get used to. I found out that you could actually change the side of the little single shot cylinder to the left side. This was good for me because I always load single shot with my left hand. I'm curious how the magazines for this rifle will be...

Accuracy:
I have a limited range to test on and it was raining. I was shooting from out of a window and was 23.3 yards from my target. I was easily getting one hole groups with CPH's and JSB 15.9 grains. However occasionally I would have a flier. Right now I'm not going to give a definitive report on accuracy simply because I have not tested it enough. I will give further report after I test it at greater distance.

Handling:
The rifle is a bit on the heavy side. After handling a Bullpup Marauder for so long I was struggling when I had to go back to the standard rifle format. I don't like rifle's balance point in general and because of the huge tank it pushes the balance point way forward. Like I said, it's a bit heavy - almost comparable to a stock Marauder, definitely heavier than a talon.

Regulation:
Once again I need to test this a lot more to give you guys a definitive answer. I got the rifle and it was chronying in at about 670 fps (if I remember correctly) with JSB 15.9's. with two simple adjustments of screws I was able to turn up the regulator. I was able to get a max power of about 910 fps with JSB 15.9 grains before it would not cock. I turned it back down to about 850 fps which is my ideal speed. I fired off a few dozen rounds and was pleasantly surprised at how it regulated. The regulator seems to work well, just about as well as the adrious regulator in my Marauder and better than the etac reg on my talon.

First day impressions:
Overall i'm pleased with this rifle. I think it's a really good bank for the buck and will compete well with the marauder. My greatest joy about this rifle is that it comes regulated. I believe that every PCP rifle should be regulated. It greatly increases the number of shots and makes the deviation very low. Then again, I still consider the price of $700 to be quite an investment for any new airgunner. In my honest opinion, taking in all factors, this rifle competes well with the Marauder and Talon line and having owned all of them I would rank them in this order: Benjamin Marauder, Cometa Lynx, Airforce Talon SS.


Anyway, that's just my opinion on the rifle that I received today give me some input. I'll try to post some pictures when I have time.

[airgunnertony]

And just to let you guys know I'm already working on the first ever Lynx bullpup. Only in the planning stages as of right now but shouldn't be too difficult. I'll keep you updated on it's progress.

EDIT: No more Lynx bullpup for now. Maybe in the future.

[Tpatner412]

I have one question....why no pictures? 

Anyways, thanks for the review it was very informative an gave me some insight as to what to expect when I get mine

[airgunnertony]

I'll post pics soon. Was too dark to take any tonight.

[Tpatner412]

Second question for ya. How hard is it to change the velocity?  I know you said that all you had to do was turn some screws and it was done but do you have to take the stock off?  Some more details on that would be great. Also, did you happen to get a chance to see how many shots that big 400cc bottle was giving you?

Thanks again

[AirScopes]

Tony,

Glad you got yours! I'm still waiting. Meanwhile, I've had extra time to review the manual. Here's what it says about the trigger:

TRIGGER
ADJUSTMENTS

• The trigger of this airgun is adjustable for both pressure and travel by use of adjusting screws.
• The gun is shipped with optimum fit parameters according to Cometa.

Improper adjustments can influence the operation of your rifle. Ask for advice
from your dealer / distributor.

NOTE: Screws 1 and 2 adjust the length of the trigger’s first and second
stages. Screw 3 adjusts the trigger pressure.

So the instructions clearly suggest it is a 2-stage trigger, but perhaps not adjusted to your preferences?

By the way, where'd you get that interesting rifle?

Richard

[AirScopes]

I wasn't going to post this, but here is a link to the manual I have... It answers some questions.

http://airscopes.com/Zen/download/Manuals/Lynx/Lynx_Manual.pdf

[AirScopes]

The power you are getting there is way off. 15.9 grain at 670 is only 15+ foot pounds. I was told the guns would be adjusted before sending. However, if you get 910 by regulating, that is right about the 30 ft. lb. mark that was advertised.

[airgunnertony]

I've gone through al the adjustments of the trigger and there is no way to get the creep out of the "second stage". In my opinion the trigger mechanics are lacking. Screw #2 is being blocked by a screw just behind the trigger guard which they (red?) locktighted in place. But screw number 2 itsself did not have any locktight on it so there was no resistance when turning it. It's really easy for that screw to come undone which is unsafe considering that it holds the sear.

Power is easily adjustable. all you need is two allen wrenches: simply loosen the locking screw located on top of the breech (where the Marauder's bolt detent screw is) then adjust the regulator from the cutout in the stock (CCW less power, CW more)  you do not have to remove the stock to adjust power. The power does seem to match up well with what is advertised. Like I said the max I could seem to get with JSB 15.9's was ~910 until it would not cock.

I'm still trying to figure out how to remove this shroud. There are no baffles in the shroud and would like to be able to put some in - it would really quiet this rifle down.

[Tpatner412]

You can maybe give the Manou bros a call and see if they can give you any insight to getting the shroud off

[kro77]

Due to US regulations the inability to remove the shroud could be by design, or it simply could be red lock-tigh'ed

[Tpatner412]

Kro, the shrouds of many guns can be removed. As long as the shroud can't fit on anything else and effectively moderate it's sound I believe it is okay

[airgunnertony]

Yea, and there is a seam in the shroud where it tapers (near the breech end). When the rifle is fired some sort of oil spurts out of this seam. I'm guessing that there is excessive oil inside the shroud tube which needs to be cleaned. I've email James Manou and hopefully he'll have directions for shroud removal.

[AirScopes]

Tony,

I really wish I was hearing more good at this point. I know it is more of human nature to finger the negative than the positive, but from what you are saying you seem pretty disappointed...even though you say you are not. Oil spurting out, low power, a bad cocking mechanism, unadjustable trigger, too heavy... you say you are pleased over-all, but boy am I not hearing much of the good stuff!

Richard

[Tpatner412]

Richard you forget the part where he said one hole groups at 25 yards LOL

[kro77]

Tony, take a peak here gives photos of how the barrel and shroud is configured.

http://airecomprimido.net/portal/modules.php?name=Forums&file=viewtopic&t=25294

[airgunnertony]

Alright. Well today I played with my Lynx a bit more and she's really starting to grow on me. You guys are yearning for pics so here are a few that I was able to take.



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Shroud:
First off I decided to venture into the shroud. It's locktighted on really tight so it's necessary to heat it up inorder to remove it. The shroud is threaded in two sections. The tapered end (which is nearest the breech) is threaded and connects to the "body" or long section of the shroud which is also threaded. Let me tell you, Cometa really seems to like to locktight stuff down - and the stuff they use is some "dang" strong stuff. Here is a picture to show you where it unscrews.



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After unscrewing the shroud it revealed that there was an airstripper threaded onto the end of the barrel!


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This air stripper, along with the barrel is threaded in the traditional 1/2x20 UNF. I think that is really great because it allows us to attach any "accessories" we see fit. The crown on the barrel seemed pretty good to the naked eye so i'm not going to bother with it, especially since I wont be able to get another barrel for a while if I screw up. One problem that I had, along with another person from this forum, was that the o-ring around the air stripper was cut/broken. It almost looks like it was intentionally cut from the factory due to it being a very clean, strait cut.

Barrel:
I've always loved the idea of interchangeable barrels. I have a hot swappable .177/.22 assembly for my Marauder and all three calibers for my Talon. The Lynx's barrel is very easy to remove. Just loosen the two screws holding it in from the top of the breech and out it will slide. Caliber changes in my opinion are a great plus - it allows you to go from field target one day to hunting raccoons the next, and is something that I look for in all my rifles.

Regulation:
I would like to touch back on the Lynx's regulator. Today I tinkered with it a bit and was able to get it up to a max velocity of 1050 fps with 15.9 grain JSB's. That's some real power coming out of a .22 regulated rifle. What I think is the best characteristic about how Cometa set up the Lynx's regulator is that it's fully adjustable externally. The Adrious regulator that I have in my marauder can only be adjusted if it is taken out of the airtube, and the EtacREG that I have on my Talon is a set output and cannot be adjusted. As expected, the regulator actually works really well too! Throughout shooting I would only get deviations of 1 or 2 fps between each shot. So I really have to give props to Cometa for their regulator system.

Accuracy:
All I can say is WOW. Even though I was only able to stretch it out to 30 yards today I can say that i'm really impressed. My standard for accuracy is very high, but I can honestly say that this Cometa is shaping up to be my most accurate rifle. At 30 yards, with 15.9g JSB's, one hole groups are the norm. My accomplishment for today was that I was able to hit 8 match heads consecutively at 30 yards, without missing, before the wind picked up and started to throw off my shot. I could have easily kept on going had there ben no wind. I'm pleased that the barrel was accurate right out of the box. In comparison, it took me days of cutting, lapping, reordering and recrowning to finally get my .22 Marauder barrel to shoot to my standard; and my talon's Lothar Walther seems to shift POI a lot. **I have to ask, are the barrels choked?**

Cometa got a lot of things right with this rifle and i predict that it will do very well in the market. I've been searching for a rifle that I could finally settle down with and have only that one. In all my searching I have not yet found one but the Lynx is REALLY close. If they Cometa were able to fix the trigger, fix the sideleaver, and maybe introduce a bigbore barrel for it then the Lynx really could become my one and only rifle.

[Tpatner412]

Great stuff Tony. I am liking what I am hearing. Any info on shots per fill?

[airgunnertony]

Geez! Totally forgot about testing that today. Well actually I didn't - I just didn't want to have to use up what few hundred pellets I had left (I really need to restock).

 I can say that it's a lot. But then again, it all depends on the power level you have your gun set to and the velocity spread you're willing to accept (but you already know that). I'd predict @30 FPE around 40-45 shots and @20 FPE around 70-80. Take that with a huge grain of salt because like I said, I didn't really test.

[AirScopes]

Tony,

Thanks for the followup! Great to hear you are settling in with the rifle. Things sound a LOT better with this addition. 15.9gr pellets at 1050 is about 39 foot pounds! THAT is exciting. Glad to hear about the accuracy, and I really hope the following is spot on:

Cometa got a lot of things right with this rifle and i predict that it will do very well in the market.

I can't believe I have to wait till Monday, and I'm the one selling them!!

Richard