GTA
All Springer/NP/PCP Air Gun Discussion General => PCP/CO2/HPA Air Gun Gates "The Darkside" => Korean Gate => Topic started by: DragonKiller on September 16, 2014, 01:32:38 AM
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Finally went through with it! I decided about a year ago that I wanted a PCP rifle after realizing that a box store Gamo break barrel just wasn't going to make me happy. It's fun - but just not quite enough. So after lots of window shopping and, at least in my own mind, considerations of what caliber and price/quality point would cover as many bases as possible for what I see myself doing with it, I finally put in the order for a new Rainstorm II in .357. Included fittings for filling from a high pressure bottle as well as a Hill MK3 pump for my occasional trips to family property.
Went for the Hawke Sidewinder 30, 6-24x56 scope even though I was pretty hesitant about the price of it. In the end I just decided that I wanted to be over equipped for now but be able to grow into it all and learn to use everything in time rather than feel the need to buy again later on, which will likely happen anyway, but at least that's what I tell myself for now!
Now it's just a waiting game as there are none in stock at PA just yet, but should be within a couple of weeks at most. Also in mind for who knows when, I'll probably be looking into options for sending it off to get at least some trigger work and a LDC (I guess that's the norm shorthand now for making things quiet).
Also will be looking for a local range and club who's air rifle friendly. I really like the idea of what I've read and learned about the field target events. Been looking at ways to make my own targets for home too, some extremely simple, others not so much.
Well I guess that's all for now. Just wanted to share the excitement!
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Holy cow, jumping in Hot....a .357 to start with :) :)
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Yep! Wanted to be able to take some bigger game, coyote and maybe bobcats. As I get to shoot more and hopefully find a club or some field target events, I'm sure in time I'll end up wanting a smaller and flatter round. That will probably be a couple of years at this point though.
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You did some research, the Rainstorm Rainstorm II in .357 is a real nice and powerful PCP. With the Hawke Sidewinder 30, 6-24x56 on top and a good LDC to quiet it down you have a real nice set up. Post some photos when your all set up.
Welcome to GTA and good luck with your Rainstorm II ans Sidewinder..
On a side note most FT events allow 20 FPE air guns or less because anything more damages the targets.
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Mighty big scope there, coyote kills in the 50< range on that gun
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Good to know about the 20fpe limit for some of the contests. Guess that just means I have another rifle to look for.
And absolutely to the big scope! I pretty much went all in on this set up. Partly with the desire to really learn how to use it all to it's max capabilities, but also just because I could and I wanted the good stuff.
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Nice rifle and scope combination, congrats. :D
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Congratulations don't forget the De pinger
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Well, that didn't work out like I thought. Noticed on the PA website that the RSII expected date is now Oct 18. So I called to check if any had been received and if my order could be filled. I forgot about the way back ordering works I guess. Nothing PA did wrong, they just didn't receive their order either...
So - I'm impatient. Ha! I want a new toy to play with.
I did see that he WindyCity is available for the same price(on sale), but in a .22.
Any advice? I'm interested in it for several reasons. I really like, or think I'll like, the thumb hole stock better. Also, .22 would allow me to make some longer shots right? I was pretty set though on the big bore because of wanting to be able to cleanly take some bigger game, coyote/bobcat, even though I really can't say when that opportunity would actually come up.
But back to practicality, the .22 would be just that little bit quieter which would be a big benefit for me until I can get it really quieted down.
I'll keep shopping for now I guess though I can't help but feeling a little disappointed that I can't start shooting for another month or more if I wait for the RSII. :'(
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The .25 will give you longer kill shots. If you want to hunt bigger game go with the .25, although a powerful .22 can shoot some heavy pellets(30+ grain). I am not an expert others will reply with more knowledge about .22's and bigger game. If I was in your shoes I would get a .25.. Todays .25 is like the .22's of a couple of years ago without the pellet selection.
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Well, that didn't work out like I thought. Noticed on the PA website that the RSII expected date is now Oct 18. So I called to check if any had been received and if my order could be filled. I forgot about the way back ordering works I guess. Nothing PA did wrong, they just didn't receive their order either...
So - I'm impatient. Ha! I want a new toy to play with.
I did see that he WindyCity is available for the same price(on sale), but in a .22.
Any advice? I'm interested in it for several reasons. I really like, or think I'll like, the thumb hole stock better. Also, .22 would allow me to make some longer shots right? I was pretty set though on the big bore because of wanting to be able to cleanly take some bigger game, coyote/bobcat, even though I really can't say when that opportunity would actually come up.
But back to practicality, the .22 would be just that little bit quieter which would be a big benefit for me until I can get it really quieted down.
I'll keep shopping for now I guess though I can't help but feeling a little disappointed that I can't start shooting for another month or more if I wait for the RSII. :'(
Top Gun has Evanix in stock. I never bought from Top Gun but people that have speak highly. Link: http://www.topairgun.com/product/PY-2750-5385 (http://www.topairgun.com/product/PY-2750-5385)
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Gave it some more thought and I just can't convince myself that I'd be happy with a lower power caliber. A .25 at half or less power than a .357 is something I don't want to settle for. So I sent TopAirGun a email to check their stock, but likely I will just find a way to be patient and wait for PA. Price is the same and I like the 10for10 offer. Plus my dear wifey is actually being supportive of this venture and encouraging me to just wait and get what I really want! Can't complain about that. 8)
Ultimately I will just end up with that much more time to play with the scope. Maybe I'll put it on the Gamo for a few weeks!
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Wow, ok - really having a hard time keeping my mind made up here. Could use some more thoughts/advice... I'll try to explain my home set up without taking too much space here.
Home is on 2 1/2 acres, lots of trees, but neighbors on all sides. Really have to be aware of shot placements and know what's beyond incase of a miss or pass through.
For paper, I do have a hillside that I know will catch anything I throw at it and can get 40 yds on it right now, more with some brush clearing work.
I'd really like to get out to the woods/mountains some more to hunt for bigger game, but realisticaly, 99% of my shooting will be at home. And 90% of that will be on paper vs the few pests we have around the 'farm'.
While the .357 is what I want for huting, to be able to take vital shots vs only head - the more I think this all through, it's probably going to be way too much for around the house. I do have other options for the pests too though. A .177 Gamo and a BenjaminTrail pistol, so I don't want to duplicate those with a only slightly bigger .22 PCP.
I really REALLY like the thumbhole stock and the bigger air bottle of the WindyCity, but it's only available up to a .22.
I can wait some more and eventually pick up a RSII in a .25 instead of the .357. (Have already seen some cool add ons for it too, like QVTom's barrel band with the rail on the bottom...)
I want the .357 to hunt with but it's probably too much for home use. Am I overthinking all of this? Aside from a splattered rat/squirrel/rabbit, will the .357 be any more of a problem should something go wrong compared to a .22 or .25?
I'd really prefer to have the style of the WindyCity and it's .22 is perfect for home but won't do much for a bigger hunting trip. (oh and the WC is in stock...)
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I would pass on the .357
what I would get is the Tactical Sniper in .25 :)
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Gave the TS some thought too, but just not into it. I've been wanting a nice wood stock over a synthetic or metal. Was really interested in the Hatsan Galatians when I first started looking into air rifles and learned what they're capable of now. Waited to see what came out with the QE series and it turned out to only be the synthetic stock.
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How about that Evanix AR6 in .25? There is one available at Sportsmans Depot for $777.79.
http://www.sportsmans-depot.com/products/Evanix-AR6-Shrouded-PCP-Air-Rifle%2C-0.25-cal.html (http://www.sportsmans-depot.com/products/Evanix-AR6-Shrouded-PCP-Air-Rifle%2C-0.25-cal.html)
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Thanks for that link - I hadn't seen that site yet suprisingly. I'm not sure what I think about that revolver action. More just a prefrence of function than any concerns about peformance.
Aaaaaand, of course the est. date for the RSII just got pushed back to November.
I know I'm not the only person to ever wait for something like this. I know it's not PA's fault. But MAN it's frustrating after finally having the money saved up for a bigger purchase like this and then still have to wait for back orders.
The RSII .25 still has tomorrow's date though, so I will wait and see what happens with that. Though I'd be really happy if I could find a WindyCityII in .25 or .357, then I'd really have a dilema!
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A nice .25 wood stocked BSA Scorpion goes for 760$ and it is of much better quality than Evanix guns. The pyramyd power rating for those is too low for some reason - they do 40+ fpe. I'd stay away from AR6 platform, horrible triggers they have. Even RS2/blizzard/windy city etc. platform is rather poor in trigger and QC department when compared to BSA. And of course the hammer forged barrels in BSAs are rather famous for their accuracy.
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Can't do this with a BSA scorpion ;)
http://www.gatewaytoairguns.org/GTA/index.php?topic=75542.0 (http://www.gatewaytoairguns.org/GTA/index.php?topic=75542.0)
Don't pay to much attention to rkr his info is clouded by is limited personal experiance.
The latest models of the AR6 have much better triggers than the early version rkr has ( I had both the older and newest versions )
Evanix Rainstorms are rugged, reliable, accurate powerhouses (tons of excellent reviews out there ) again rkr is clouded because he tried to turn his gun to something it wasn't designed for and blames the Factory.
Check this one out, i know it's expensive, but pretty darn cool.
http://www.network54.com/Forum/79537/thread/1411769685/Evanix+Giant+.25+Update+-+Full+Auto+ (http://www.network54.com/Forum/79537/thread/1411769685/Evanix+Giant+.25+Update+-+Full+Auto+)
http://www.network54.com/Forum/79537/thread/1411684606/My+First+Evanix+and+it+is+a+%26quot%3BGiant%26quot%3B+.25+-%29+ (http://www.network54.com/Forum/79537/thread/1411684606/My+First+Evanix+and+it+is+a+%26quot%3BGiant%26quot%3B+.25+-%29+)
Evanix are nice little guns :)
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Evanix Rainstorms are rugged, reliable, accurate powerhouses (tons of excellent reviews out there ) again rkr is clouded because he tried to turn his gun to something it wasn't designed for and blames the Factory.
Evanix are nice little guns :)
Uhh, I turned my gun in to something it wasn't designed for and in the process found many shortcomings in QC and design that I had to fix. Most of those Evanix guns can handle stock .357 power level but we've had several reports of broken valves in stock guns, both stems and seals. Holes drilled offset are another rather common occurance in these guns which is bad when they affect the air flow. They are nice looking guns but inside some of them do not match the appearance.
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I need to Shout a huge "THANKS !!!!" to rkr.
Why you ask ?
Well, before his reporting about his Evanix and the couple of others that had problems ( and seems that the ones with problems are always the ones tempered with )
I never really payed any attention to threads coming up about other brands guns with problems.
Well since than, as an educational matter I started opening and reading those threads, ....and what did I find out ?
.....tons of Daystate with problems, Truckloads of FX with problems, Crickets with problems, tons of EDguns with problems, Air Arms with problems, even a 5000 bucks Beumont Warrior that took 6 months to be delivered and blew up after 8 shots,....8 shots !
Well, all of that made me feel much better about EVANIX, take away the one from rkr and there's very, very few bad reports, in the end I see much, much more truble on High End top dollars guns than I've ever seen with EVANIX.
I personally had 8 Rainstorms, 3 AR6 and a MAX,...the only problem I ever had was the check valve on one of the AR6 pistols that leaked a couple of times, that took 5 minutes to open and clean.
I had much more problems with my 3 High End DAQs
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Ok guys we all have our opinions some vary from one to the other, calling one another out on ones feelings toward one brand or the other is really uncalled for. Please keep this thread on topic. David
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Alright, enough whining on my end about what I want and don't want and about what's available or not… I finally made a decision to go with the WCII in .22. I didn't want to wait for who knows how long until something else was available. I'll lose the ability to take any coyotes etc… but realistically that wasn't going to happen very often anyway. The .22 will let me take part in the shooting matches that are hosted here, as well as play with some home made field targets without destroying them as quickly as with the 9mm. All things that I can do much more frequently at home, and who's going to complain about getting to shoot more often? Not me!
So PA is doing the 10 for 10 tomorrow, and it's shipping on thursday.
Thanks to those who replied with some tips, and even those who just read all of my ranting and trying to figure out what I wanted.
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Nice choice. But, sooner or later, you will be itching for a coyote rifle. About 6 monthes ago, I purchased the 9mm Rainstorm to take care of my backyard suburban coyotes. Sure there was a small wait (for the rifle and the LDC), but well worth it. So far the Rainstorm (shooting the 77 grain JSB pellets around 130 fpe) has taken out 3 coyotes (all body shots). Now if only a bobcat would stop by my backyard....
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Ha! I'm already thinking about it! Not regretting the .22 decision at all. Actually happy that I finally made the decision and have something on the way. I know it's not ideal, but if I really had the need, I'd be ok with a close range head shot on a coyote around home. Anything like that is going to be 30-40yds or closer. I just won't be taking the WC out to the woods for anything but the little stuff.
It'll be quite awhile, probably a year or more, and who knows what will be available by then, but I'm thinking about the Max-ML in a .45. But in the mean time, I'll have a nice new WC to keep me occupied. :)
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Ha! I'm already thinking about it! Not regretting the .22 decision at all. Actually happy that I finally made the decision and have something on the way. I know it's not ideal, but if I really had the need, I'd be ok with a close range head shot on a coyote around home. Anything like that is going to be 30-40yds or closer. I just won't be taking the WC out to the woods for anything but the little stuff.
It'll be quite awhile, probably a year or more, and who knows what will be available by then, but I'm thinking about the Max-ML in a .45. But in the mean time, I'll have a nice new WC to keep me occupied. :)
With the way the .22 Evanix guns shoot the 28 grain Eunjin pellets I wouldn't hesitate to put one in a Coyote dome. I currently own the .357 RSII and while I must say the gun shot okay out of the box it was after I spent a few days tearing into it's guts that the full potential was released. I didn't modifiy anything for more power ( less power actually ) just made sure all the ports aligned, barrel cleaned and put it back together carefully. Now the gun shoots amazingly! I get a 2.5" 5 shot group at 100 yards when I do my part. It's shooting at 130FPE average over 7 shots inside a %3 ES. Basically this gun will forever be in my collection.
The Evanix guns are hit or miss with more hits than misses IMO. They have a few things they're known for like port alignment, too stiff of a hammer spring and some claimed bad barrels. With that said they're also really easy to tear down and correct the port alignment problem and there is tons of info out there on hammer spring swaps. Most of the time cutting a coil or two from the stock spring will yeild a velocity curve. I also believe most accuracy issues with the big bore Evanix guns comes from shooters not taking the time to learn how to shoot the gun. I personally was only able to shoot 4" groups at 50 yards with my .357 when I first got it. I came on here and asked how to improve accuracy and Nomadic Pirate told me that these rifles (big bore) demand a different technique which I doubted because I've been shooting all my life so I was sure it wasn't me but I just started throwing lead down range and experimenting and I be darn if my groups didn't improve BIG time. Single hole groups at 50 yards and around 2" at 100 yards.
I would also talk to Borris at PA. I'm betting it wouldn't take much to convert your .22 WC into a .357....
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Evanixes can be made to a rather nice guns, it wouldn't take that much to ship them out of factory that way. Some design and material changes and better QC would do the trick. It seems that the new sniper platform has been attending some of those design flaws but not all of them, and unfortunately the QC still seems to be poor based on those examples I've seen so far. There's a huge potential in those guns but for some reason our Korean friends do not exploit it fully.
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Ha! I'm already thinking about it! Not regretting the .22 decision at all. Actually happy that I finally made the decision and have something on the way. I know it's not ideal, but if I really had the need, I'd be ok with a close range head shot on a coyote around home. Anything like that is going to be 30-40yds or closer. I just won't be taking the WC out to the woods for anything but the little stuff.
It'll be quite awhile, probably a year or more, and who knows what will be available by then, but I'm thinking about the Max-ML in a .45. But in the mean time, I'll have a nice new WC to keep me occupied. :)
Did you ever consider a 22 Sumatra? That's the most versatile gun I have. On the lowest setting of the power wheel I can shoot cheap crosman pellets from Wal-Mart at close to 900 fps and there're as accurate as JSB 18.13 gr heavies. I shoot the heavies on medium and get in the mid 900 fps. I also have JSB monsters 25 gr which I shoot mid-high at around 950-980 fps. I haven't tried the 28 gr eun jin yet because I have about 22 tins of monster and they're putting out 55 fpe and not even on high.
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C.ALLS - what would be involved in converting to a .357? Just a barrel swap, or a full action change out from the stock? Just curious at this point, but I'll keep the idea in mind. I think I'd likely be happier in the end by just having multiple rifles though. I can totally see this becoming an issue with the wife even though she's ok with it for now…
Blackdiesel - I had seen the sumatras in all my shopping around, but they just didn't fit the styling I was looking for. I'm not dead set on only owning Evanix, but for now they seem to have what catches my eye.
rkr - Your thoughts/opinions aren't for nothing. I'm obviously still the new guy in all this and have a lot to learn. Drawing on everyone else's experiences is the only thing I have as there are no clubs in my area. At least none that I've found yet. I've been reading into this world of 'adult' air rifles for a year or so now. I've read pros and cons for several brands and models. I realize I may or may not get a 'keeper' on my first try, though I likely won't know the difference unless something major is wrong. And as much as I shopped around at different retailers trying to find someone with what I wanted in stock, I still ended coming back to PA because of what I read about their service reputation. If I end up with a lemon, I'm confident I can have things fixed or replaced. I'll never be an olympic shooter and will likely never even notice any of the minor imperfections that any given rifle may show up with. And whatever I do pick up on, they will either be things that I'm willing and happy to tinker with on my own to improve the rifle and learn about how it all works, or I'll just learn how to shoot through whatever the flaw may be. I'm looking forward to tons of trigger time, and also excited to open things up and see just how it all works too.
So thank you for the heads up on some of the things to look for when I do start getting into it all.
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C.ALLS - what would be involved in converting to a .357? Just a barrel swap, or a full action change out from the stock? Just curious at this point, but I'll keep the idea in mind. I think I'd likely be happier in the end by just having multiple rifles though. I can totally see this becoming an issue with the wife even though she's ok with it for now…
I'm not %100 sure but Borris at PA would know.
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C.ALLS - what would be involved in converting to a .357? Just a barrel swap, or a full action change out from the stock? Just curious at this point, but I'll keep the idea in mind. I think I'd likely be happier in the end by just having multiple rifles though. I can totally see this becoming an issue with the wife even though she's ok with it for now…
I'm not %100 sure but Borris at PA would know.
The biggest problem is the probe diameter as it needs to fit the barrel. A bigger probe will necessitate boring out the breech block. The same goes for the valve block, it seems that .22 block may not have enough room in between those o-rings to fit a big enough transfer port in there. As parts are not available your only option is to machine new parts. It would probably be easier to buy a .357 rainstorm and swap parts to make a .22 rainstorm and a .357 windy city if that's what you want.
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Lots of work required to make a 22 into a big bore.
My 22 cal. RSII converted to 30 cal. http://www.gatewaytoairguns.org/GTA/index.php?topic=63424.0 (http://www.gatewaytoairguns.org/GTA/index.php?topic=63424.0)
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Nice work QVTom! That definitely is a big job and more than I'm looking or even capable of getting into. I'd rather just have multiple rifles anyway :)
Well - She's finally here! Took delivery of my new WCII just the other day. Everything was in great shape. The stock is beautiful, has a few very small rough spots, but I'm sure those will blend in as I care for and polish it, and others will show up as I use it. The only visual I could maybe complain about is two ⅛" nicks on the scope rail in front of the breach. Scope rings still slide over that spot, but it's just a little disappointing for such a high dollar item to not come in perfect condition. Though from some of the stories I've read about other Evanix purchases, I made out just fine so far.
I've shot it just a few times already and everything works smoothly. It's a little louder than I expected but I already had plans for a better shroud anyway.
The printout of PA's 10 for 10 shows they used H&N Field Target Trophy 14.66gr. I thought they would have used the recommended JSBs. I got a couple 500 tins of those and was planning on trying to set up my scope with their numbers since I don't have a chrono yet. But here's what they got:
#1 1112.59
#2 1113.81
#3 1109.02
#4 1104.36
#5 1095.37
#6 1094.97
#7 1082.25
#8 1087.01
#9 1074.56
#10 1073.61
#11 1068.02
Not entirely sure if those are great numbers or not, but it seems good enough for me, for now. I know the 18gr JSBs will slow down a little bit and the 25gr even more.
The Hill pump was very simple to assemble. Realized that pumping the bottle back up takes a little more time and effort than I expected, but it's not bad. I had shot it down to 100bar, and it took about 10 mins not counting a couple of short breaks. I'm working on getting a large SCBA tank, but still glad I got the pump for any possible end of the world scenarios!
I did notice though that my gauges are reading different pressures. The Hill pump and the inline gauge both read 200bar/3000psi, when I stopped pumping. Then I picked the rifle back up and its gauge said almost 250 and right on the red.
Is there any way to calibrate the gauges? The air bottle does say it's fill pressure is 250 bar, but I'm guessing the valving and other internals are still only designed for the 200. Not sure which gauge to go off of now.
That last thing that I discovered is that by slowly opening the bleed screw on the pump, you can let air out of the bottle too, or completely de-gas if needed. Nice to know as before I had read to disassemble and access the valve seat in order to de-gas without shooting.
All thats left to do now is go shoot a whole bunch and get the scope zeroed in! I built a bench and picked up a rest the other day too. Have some finish work still to do, but the cooler wet weather has finally come back to the NW so my days of dry sunny shooting are limited again.
I'll get some pictures posted of my set up soon!
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Gave it some more thought and I just can't convince myself that I'd be happy with a lower power caliber. A .25 at half or less power than a .357 is something I don't want to settle for. So I sent TopAirGun a email to check their stock, but likely I will just find a way to be patient and wait for PA. Price is the same and I like the 10for10 offer. Plus my dear wifey is actually being supportive of this venture and encouraging me to just wait and get what I really want! Can't complain about that. 8)
Ultimately I will just end up with that much more time to play with the scope. Maybe I'll put it on the Gamo for a few weeks!
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check your state DNR regs most states are opening up to pnumatic air guns for hunting and it looks like for most states a .35 is legal fo almost all size game.
I know nothing about the Evanix tactical .357 but hopping to hear from owner on this sight.
Good luck and have fun Kenn
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Nothing new in the WA regs recently. Currently we are required to use firearms only of a min. caliber, or archery for any 'huntable' game species. Big or small. There is also a list of 'fur bearers' which can only be trapped.
Unclassified species (mtn beaver, coyote, euro. rabbit, gophers, E. gray/fox/ground squirrel, mice, moles, nutria, opossum, porcupine, rat, shrew, spotted/striped skunk, voles, yellow-bellied marmot) allows the use of air/pellet guns with no specifics given on cal or fpe requirements. So there are a lot of critters we can take, but still need to have a current WA hunting license, big or small game doesn't matter.
I've considered looking into if there are any proposals for changes in WA, what the level of hunter support for such would be, and just learning more about what the process for something like that would be. I'd be most interested in changes for small game (cottontail, bobcat…) vs deer or anything else. Just haven't gone beyond the thought of looking into it yet.
Perhaps its time for a new thread in the hunting and/or WA state gates to try and learn more.
At any rate, I am enjoying the WCII .22 so far. I think it really was the better choice for any shooting I can do around my 2.5 acres.
Should be receiving a Clague air stripper in the next few days, looking forward to that! Also have a friend who may be in need of some coyote control, so hoping to build my calling/singing skills over the next few months, never done anything like that before. 8)
And a big bore is still on the wish list, probably will find a way to make that happen with this years tax return. :D