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All Springer/NP/PCP Air Gun Discussion General => PCP/CO2/HPA Air Gun Gates "The Darkside" => Topic started by: smythsg on September 05, 2022, 08:05:45 PM
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The Pellet Shop had to go and offer free shipping for Labor Day and that sealed the deal for me, Challenger .30 cal 24" barrel on the way. I convinced myself that a .30 cal is necessary because in Georgia, you can hunt chippers to Bear with a .30 cal... ;D I have been reading a lot of posts about the rifle, trying to learn what it likes and don't like. Anyone have any experience with the NSA 49.5 slugs in this rifle?
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Now days that's a heck of a deal with the shipping prices of everything these days. especially at the low price they're still asking for them. Our law is 35 cal or larger. If yours ships with the same spring that came in my 30 cal you're going to have plenty of power for hunting deer !!! The trigger pull on my 30 cal is soooo much nicer than it is on my .357.
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I have a hammer spring and adjuster that a Member here "Shorty" has developed for testing, if you decide you want adjustable power, let me know. Mine can go from 50 fpe to 110 fpe using the slugs you have mentioned.
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Wayne, it's funny how the different states have different rules. In GA, there is no ft lb rule, just caliber. In theory I could take one of the break barrel .30 or .35 cal rifles and go after Black Bear if I was inclined to do so, but my .25 cal Airforce rifle making 100+ ft lbs is not allowed. :o
I am expecting my inbound Challenger to have at least the same power that yours and others have posted about. Nice to hear that the trigger might be reasonable out of the box as well. What's your thoughts on Challenger Ping... does it need a bottle brush or some other de-pinger?
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Hi James, one of the reasons I embraced the Airforce guns was adjustability via the power wheel. Making the Challenger more adjustable would interest me greatly and I would love to learn more. And thanks for acknowledging the NSA 49.5 slugs, I will order a sample pack of them later tonight.
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Congrats on your new .30 cal. I’ve been waiting for them to be back in stock in the 24” bbl.
Lol, trouble is I’m still torn between the 30 and .35 cal.
I think your going to really like that .30 cal. ;)
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Hi Buddy, I think the .30 cal ,with adjustable power. will be a great all around caliber in the field. Just my humble opinion, but the next step up to .35 cal limits the rifle use to big game realistically. I owned a Seneca Recluse in .357 in the past, and while a fantastic weapon, the noise level and cost of ammo limited my use of the rifle. My plan for the Challenger is to use the rifle just like my .25 Airforce Escape, dialed down for small/medium game use, and dialed back up for the big guys. Pigs, deer, turkey and yotes are the big guys I will be after and the size of the North GA pigs and deer are not as large as the 300-500 pound monster hogs in South GA. I would not have considered a .30 cal if the state allowed me to hunt deer and turkey with the Escape, but alas, that is not the case.
If your intended game is larger or state regulations require .35 or larger for big game, of course that is the way to go. Unfortunately for me, the reality of my retirement now dictates I have one or two multi-use rifles instead of the room full of airguns I use to own. The .30 cal seems like a pretty reasonable choice for North GA.
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Steve this was probably a month after I bought mine(I waited that long before I even cast pellets for it), what I'm going to do is cast the next heaviest pellets and see how they do in it with a 250 bar fill. All my AEA's really seem to like the heavier ammo, even my 25 cal semi auto carbine.
(https://i.imgur.com/rT6ELyv.jpg)
I did turned down the power wheel to the 10 o'clock position because it was shooting way too fast on full power.
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Wayne, those numbers look really nice for a hunting rig. I may tune for slightly less power for normal day to day use, and of course turn it up if a target of opportunity appears. I ordered some Hatsan 48.5 gn pellets just for initial shooting and breaking in, but plan to test NSA 49.5 gn slugs for general use.
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Wayne, those numbers look really nice for a hunting rig. I may tune for slightly less power for normal day to day use, and of course turn it up if a target of opportunity appears. I ordered some Hatsan 48.5 gn pellets just for initial shooting and breaking in, but plan to test NSA 49.5 gn slugs for general use.
Hey Steve, if the hatsan/vortex .30 pellets workout good for you....i have 5-6 tins i can make you a deal on.
you got an awesome gun...i have the original challenger SL .357 and its very accurate for hunting deer and hogs.
enjoy ..... ;D
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Hi Buddy, I think the .30 cal ,with adjustable power. will be a great all around caliber in the field. Just my humble opinion, but the next step up to .35 cal limits the rifle use to big game realistically. I owned a Seneca Recluse in .357 in the past, and while a fantastic weapon, the noise level and cost of ammo limited my use of the rifle. My plan for the Challenger is to use the rifle just like my .25 Airforce Escape, dialed down for small/medium game use, and dialed back up for the big guys. Pigs, deer, turkey and yotes are the big guys I will be after and the size of the North GA pigs and deer are not as large as the 300-500 pound monster hogs in South GA. I would not have considered a .30 cal if the state allowed me to hunt deer and turkey with the Escape, but alas, that is not the case.
If your intended game is larger or state regulations require .35 or larger for big game, of course that is the way to go. Unfortunately for me, the reality of my retirement now dictates I have one or two multi-use rifles instead of the room full of airguns I use to own. The .30 cal seems like a pretty reasonable choice for North GA.
I would have to agree with your reasoning! that big boy lead is expensive & would limit my shooting. I would have to cast to offset the cost and of course thats just another expense. Looking forward to hearing how the new rig shoots for ya! keep us informed.
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Hey John, thanks so much for reaching out. I ordered a couple tins of the Hatsan pellets for my .25 cal M16 a while back, just to try them out. Virtually every pellet in the tin had lead shavings which had to be cleaned out, but after cleaning and culling any particularly bad pellets, the remainder had reasonably consistent weight and shot reasonably well at shorter ranges. Pretty labor intensive, but could save me a few coins. Once I receive the .30 pellets from Field Supply I will look them over and get back to you about your most generous offer. They should be here by the end of the week.
I know I am going to enjoy getting to know the ins and outs of the new Challenger and appreciate input from all you folks that have gone before me.
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I like my 30 cal challenger so much that I've had it for a good while and haven't done a thing to it except clean it. Mine does ok with those vortex pellets but really shines with hades. I'm in the process of reshaping the stock. Not that it was really bad to start with. That's just how I am lol. Good luck and I hope you get one that shoots great.
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Hi Chris, always nice to hear that someone really likes the rifle you just laid down some coin for. Thanks for the well wishes, the rifle is supposed to get here tomorrow!!!
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The Challenger is in the house!!! The Brown Truck delivered both the rifle and the pellets I ordered from Field Supply at the same time this afternoon. Rifle arrived double boxed with two mags, fill probe, a T shirt, and a package of Oreo cookies (Kudos to the great folks at the Pellet Shop). The stock and the action both appear flawless per my initial visual inspection. I applied some Ballistol to all the metal parts, as well as the stock and assembled the rifle. In the hand the Challenger looks and feels very much like the big brother to my SPA M16 .25 cal. I will clean the barrel tonight as the rain is supposed to set in for two or three days and I wanted to get a rew shots off before it starts. The air tube was filled to about half when I received the rifle and I fired three or four pellets into my backstop just to get a feel for how the rifle sounds and how the action feels. Pellets cycled fine, but there is quite the Ping when the shot is fired. (May have to add a bottle brush or some other de-pinger to quiet that Ping) Overall impressions so far... I'm really going to like this one :D ;D :D
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Congrats on the new 30. I just got my first 30, a Terminator. I'm shooting NSA 47.2's right now and they shoot good. I sampled the 49.5's but haven't done much testing. From what I have seen from these AEA 30 cal barrels they shoot everything in slugs good.
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I think the ultimate would be to get the hs adjuster that shorty made and throw a huma reg in and see how it does for power and efficiency. I bet it could do 80fpe for 3 mags.
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Just a couple of observations while setting up the Challenger .30 cal. Out of the box it did not weigh 6.9 lbs, mine weighed 8.1 lbs, weighed on two scales to be sure. Maybe the .30 cal weighs more than the .25 and .22? When I tried to adjust the power adjuster it was frozen, even after I took the locking ring on the other side of the gun totally out. I sent a quick text to the Pellet Shop and got an immediate reply on what to do. It worked, but the adjuster is very tight. I may have to remove it and apply some silicon grease to it. Again, Kudos to the Pellet Shop for the quick reply and great customer service!!!
Before I hit the field with this rifle it is going to need a sling, so sling studs will be installed as soon as I confirm it is a keeper.
Like others have already mentioned, the fill probe is rather loose in the fill port, but I held it in place while filling with my Yong Heng compressor and had no problem filling the rifle to 3000 psi. I will check in the morning to make sure the gun is holding pressure. If all is good, I hope to be able to do some chrony work tomorrow if the rain holds off.
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Chris, I have Shorty"s HS adjuster on the way for testing, and I bet a Huma regulator would get rid of the Ping as well.
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Thanks so much James, I plan to test some of Nick's 49.5 gn slugs as soon as I get everything set up.
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One thing I forgot to mention is that the trigger on my .30 cal is a single stage. It may be able to be adjusted for two stage, but out of the box it is single stage. It surprised me the first time I fired it, but I think I will like it as I do more shooting and get use to it.
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If you are dealing with Bin then your in great hands. His customer service is off the charts. Has anyone tried the .303 sized slugs? I have been busy collecting ammo in another caliber but...the challenger has potential to be a great hunting rifle. And if the huma reg has enough plenum to push the heavier stuff all the better. I have been dragging my feet to get some sanding blocks to finish working on my stock.
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James, the hammer spring adjuster arrived today, many thanks for sending it my way. Right now I am working with the Pellet Store to resolve a problem I have with the Challenger. The Power Adjuster was frozen solid when I received the rifle. It was suggested to remove the adjuster and apply some silicone oil or grease to allow it to move more freely. I had to tap it out with a punch and hammer to get to it, and them tap it back in with a hammer to get it back into position. It is still so tight that I can barely move it with pliers. Not sure yet what the end result of this is going to be, hope I don't have to return the rifle...
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i really hope all works out for you Steve !! ;)
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And I can't wait to hear if the hammer spring adjuster works for you.
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Thanks so much John, I shot a few pellets with the Challenger yesterday and it shoots well, just an inconvenience that the Power Adjuster is whacked. I may ask Bin to send me another adjuster wheel and I will try to file it down a bit to make it looser and try that. I really don't want to send the rifle back.
Tim, I hope to be able to get to the hammer spring adjuster soon, just have to work through the new gun issues first.
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The Challenger .30 sitting next to my SPA M16 .25 cal. It's hard to tell in the picture, but the Challenger is a much beefier rifle than the M16. Outfitted with my 2 MOA Sig red dot sight at 5 ozs, the Challenger still out weighs the M16, outfilled with a 22 oz Vector Optics scope, by more than half a pound. Of course the M16 is shooting at 51 ft lbs and the Challenger at double that so maybe girth is in order... ;D The venerable M16 has been a fabulous hunter for the last few years but will probably go on the marketplace soon to help cover cost of the Challenger.
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Nice looking spa. Hope you get the power adjuster issue figured out. That makes me want to try mine out and see if it works lol.
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Chris, hopefully your adjuster is not as tight as mine. :o
I have really enjoyed the M16, it has been a great hunter. My Airforce Escape UL has become my primary hunting rifle and the M16 hasn't had that much action lately. As luck would have it, I had it out in the field just a week or so ago and took a pig with it. Haven't done that with the Escape yet... :-\
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Nice! Good to hear a 51 fpe 25 cal will take a hog down.
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I've got three Challengers, .22, .30 and 35 cals. They're all very powerful rifles and the one that gets used most of the time is the .22. My .22 gets as much as 70fpe which is way more than I ever expected a 22 cal airgun to ever get. I've also got an Airmax Dominator (SPA M16) which is a really nice airgun that shoots my cast BBT's really great. I did modify my Airmax Dominator by opening up the ports in it however from what I understand the 25 cal is about maxed out from the factory the way it comes. All the AEA's are very powerful airguns and for the performance that they deliver you can't find a more inexpensive pcp that will even come close to comparing with them.
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Chris, inside 30 yards, with proper shot placement to the fusebox, 51 ft lbs will drop the piggy in its tracks. You do have to wait on the shot to get a proper angle though. Manny schooled us all on taking hogs when he was still active on the forum.
Wayne, you and I both purchased our M16 rifles at about the same time. I went .25 cal and you went .22 cal. I watched several of your successful hunting videos with the M16 and I posted a few success stories of my own. While not as powerful as the Challenger rifles, they proved to be grand hunting guns for their time. I added a Huma regulator to mine and shimmed the hammer spring to get it to 51 ft lbs. Other than having to replace an O-ring or two I never had any issues with that rifle. I look forward to the same kind of success with the Challenger.
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Did some chrony work with the Challenger .30 this afternoon, finding the sweet spot to be about 3300 psi down to about 2000 psi with the power wheel set a little below the 10:00 position. That gave me 11 shots in the low to mid 900's with the 48.6 gn Hatsan Strike pellets. The low was about 910 fps and the high was about 955 psi. Strelock Pro says that gives me between 91 and 99 ft lbs, more than enough to handle the most ferocious of the Godzilla squirrels on a full days hunt. Woe be the piggy that gives me a shot with this rifle.
Its amazing how fast one can go through a tin of 100 pellets doing chrony work and sighting in... ::) Fortunately more pellets and some NSA 49.5 slugs on the way.
A few of obversations about the Challenger: 1. The shroud does a pretty good job, even at almost 100 ft lbs. Not back yard friendly for most folks, but fine for me as all the lots in the small subdivision I live in are at least 1 to 1 1/2 acre so we are not so close together. 2. The trigger is not too bad at all. Single stage, short and predictable, (just guessing about 2+ lbs...) a fine hunting trigger. 3. The rifle just feels like it wants to be shot more... ;D and I plan to oblige. It takes my Yong Heng compressor about 20 seconds to go from 2000 psi to 3300 psi... now about those pellet prices! ???
Tomorrow I will take the Challenger on it's first woods walk and try to get some shots at longer range to fine tune the zero. So far, for the coin tossed down, I think this rifle is a great value and will be a keeper!!
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NOE just released their 55 gr. .30 slug mold, add a cheap melting pot and a pressure pour dipper, and 10 lbs. of lead and you are going to save $ in a few shooting sessions :)
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Today was a most magnificant day in the North Georgia Mountains, temp at 53 degees at 7:00 am with a high of 76 late this afternoon, low humidity, and not a cloud in the sky. As such, this 70 year old bag of bones dragged his new Challenger .30 cal to the WMA for it's first woods walk. 6 and 1/2 miles later,and untold elevation changes, per the handheld gps, me and the Challenger made it back to the truck totally wore out but smiling none the less. ;D ;D ;D
The morning started out walking a stream following pig sign for about 2 miles. I saw and heard several deer, but they were unusually wary, maybe because Archery deer season opened over the weekend. Heard several squirrels barking but the canopy is still almost completely obscured by lower trees and I did not see any of them. Walked almost another mile along the logging trails to a spot where I usually see pigs, but it was just too bright today and the piggys stayed in the beds. I actually caught sight of a couple of squirrels along the way, but if you blinked, they were gone, lost in the dense greenery. Didn't get a shot at them either. By now, it was a little over three miles in, and time to head back toward the truck.
North GA hunting rules states that if you have no opportuntiy to take game, one must find an old beer can along the trail and take a few shots to make sure your weapon is functioning properly. I always follow the rules and promptly found such old empty beer can, set it up in the appropriate place, made sure the rangefinder agreed that I was 50 yards away, and took three shots. After three shots the can was still standing and I was perplexed what was wrong. I strolled those 50 yards, only to find three nice large holes in the can, that I could not see from my 50 yard vantage point because it was too shaded. I still don't know why the can never fell over, but those three holes put a little giddy up in my step on the way back to the truck.
Now, what did I think of the Challenger during this magnificant outing you ask? Ok Spoiler Alert, it's a keeper!! Let's start with the only negative...it was heavier than I expected. 6.9 lbs... I don't think so. By the time I made it back to the truck I was thinking Hatsan BT65 weight. Slightly front end heavy but not too bad, still shouldered nicely and felt really substantial. Would I walk 61/2 miles with it again, not a chance. I will still walk with it, just slower and not so far. ;D Now the good stuff: I really like the trigger, very nice hunting trigger. As I mentioned before, the shroud does a nice job and I don't think the gun is any louder at 99 ft lbs than my .25 cal Escape UL with a Tanto at 65 ft lbs. The stock on my gun is not "pretty" just functional, and I like that in a hunting gun. (and this is a hunting gun). The fit, finish, and overall quality of the rifle seems quite good, and after nailing the beer can three out of three, I have great confidence that if I do my part the Challenger will do it's part at the proper time.
So, the hunt ended, and my legs hurt, but would I do it again...haha you bet! But first I am going to puill the camper over to the lake for a couple days rest. 8)
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Sounds like a good day of scouting, and good riddance to the hoppy beverage container, I have seen them multiply like rabbits ;D
squirrel opens this weekend here, I might have to sneak some hunting in at work :-X
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Opening day is always a celebration at my house! ;)
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Steve, I agree with you whole heartedly about the stock. That's why I'm in the process of reshaping my stock. I'm dragging my feet buying a nice set of shaped sanding blocks. I am about half way through it but now I have to start paying close attention to what I'm taking off the stock. I have been nothing but impressed with my st 30.
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Chris, I like your idea about reshaping the stock. It seems a bit bulky, Looking forward to your work. i'm pretty impressed wit my .30 also. Going to order a barrel band later this morning for it.
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I bought a bison bb shortly after I got mine. I have a gen 1 marauder that ended up having a really nice reshaped stock that spurred the project.