Mike Melick Tuned AR 2000 Jet AKA Tech Force Jet

[Paul68]

This is a reprint since I figured it might be worth reposting here.

It was with a lot of eagerness that I accepted delivery of an SAG AR2000 Jet from Mike Melick. Before I go into all the details about this gun and how Mikes’s golden touch has worked to improve it, it’s important that I note this gun is a demo. As such, it’s been handled a little rougher, worked over a bit, and some of the work done on it has been geared more towards finding what works with this particular model than extracting the most performance possible. In other words, it’s got dings, some things could probably use more work, and the Jets Mike turns out after this one will probably reap the benefits of the testing he’s done on this mule. Regardless of this, the Mike Melick tuned AR2000 Jet I now have in my possession is nothing less than impressive. And it’s no clone of anyone else’s proven model to boot.
 
 
 
The first thing you’ll notice about the Jet is that it is a big rifle. It measures in at exactly 48 inches long, and the hardwood thumbhole stock is a substantial piece of wood. As will be expected with a rifle this big, it is heavy as well. Weighing in at 10 lbs, it’s no all day carry rifle. With an added scope, expect the AR2000 to weigh in the neighborhood of 11lbs. This one comes in at 10 lbs 10 oz with the basic scope I mounted for testing. However, although this rifle is heavy, it is very well balanced, which has the effect of making the gun seem lighter than it really is when pulled to the shoulder and surprisingly easy to shoot with offhand. Unlike the XS28M, (the most popular of the Chinese magnums), which feels nose heavy making a steady offhand aim a challenge, the Jet feels like it settles right in and will hold wherever you point it. You won’t be able to hold it on target all day, but for the several seconds it takes to make the shot, you’ll be able to line up the crosshairs fairly easily.
 
The stock is wide with a 1 ¾” cross section at the forearm and a 2” cross section at the cheek rest.  From the bottom of the forearm rest to the top of the receiver the gun is 3 ¼” tall. As I said, this is a substantial stock. The thumbhole grip is ambidextrous and a good fit for an average sized mans’ hand. It holds comfortably when shouldered and there is no struggle to reach the trigger or safety release. Bigger guys should find it a good fit as well, but smaller folks might find themselves having to do a little shifting to get things just right. Releasing the safety is as easy as flicking your trigger finger forward, and the trigger fits right in the flat area before the crook of the finger.


The flat shelf on the forearm is well placed as the rifle seems to prefer being rested on the palm farther back nearer the trigger area. Better stability can be had by placing the palm a little farther ahead, but the most consistent shooting I achieved was with my palm farther back on the shelf, or with the gun rested nearer the rear of the shelf when benched.
 
The wood and finish on the stock is just plain attractive. Even though this particular Jet has cosmetic damage in the form of scratches from being handled a lot during tuning development, the grain, lines and finish are clearly above average. This is the best looking Chinese rifle in factory form that I’ve seen. It has a deep dark stain that still allows the grain to show well, and a pretty deep clearcoat that gives a nice shine without looking tacky. It’s not a perfect gloss, but not satiny either. The checkering is sharp and well defined, and in my opinion is some of the best on any chinese rifle. The rubber butt pad is pretty standard fare, and I would say something vented and made of softer rubber would be better suited to this rifle given its level of power and recoil.


The metal on the barrel is smooth and very well blued. It’s deep, with no obvious imperfections, banding or light spots. The receiver has a slightly rougher, more machined feeling surface, but is equally deeply blued and looks good with a coat of oil. The metal will not be mistaken for any German gun, but it won’t disappoint either. The barrel from where it meets the breech block to where it ends inside the front sight assembly is 14 1/2 “ long. From the loading port to the end is 19” long. The front sight is a fixed fiber optic and fitted with a metal guard that simply pops on and off. I found the guard interfered with the sight picture when using the scope and so simply popped it off, which cleared the problem up pretty well. The front sight is welded to a metal barrel brake that is small in size, and adds a nice aesthetic appearance with a heavy gloss black finish. The rear sight is fully micro-click adjustable and fiber optic as well. I found the sites to be unobtrusive and quite effective without any noticeable shifting or movement once dialed in.
 
The receiver is where it becomes obvious what the Jet is capable of. Once I got a good look at it, particularly when placed next to my Hatsan 125’s, it became clear where all the power is coming from. A lot of folks still think the Jet is just another version of the popular AR1000, and I can tell you unequivocally, it most certainly is not. The overall length of the Jets’ receiver from the end of the forks to the front of the rear receiver cap is 17 inches. The length from the transfer port to the end of the receiver is 15 1/4”. For comparison, the Hatsan 125, widely regarded as the most powerful springer available, has an overall receiver length of 17 ¼” and transfer port to end is 15 ½. And like the 125, the Jet has an inner receiver diameter of 29mm. The dimensions suggest 27+ FPE potential as with the 125’s, but without stroke length numbers I can’t be sure of the actual swept volume. Judging from the cocking stroke and the speed of the shot cycle, it does seem to have a short stroke. Suffice to say, it’s certainly big, and it moves some air quickly. It also, from examination of the piston and cocking assembly, seems to have some room for more indepth modification if someone were to decide to increase the stroke for example.
 
The Jet has a standard 11mm dovetail cut into the receiver, and comes with a one piece adapter/scope mount and clamp on scope stop. This set up has proven very stable, particularly so given the strong recoil of the Jet. Even though the cheap Beeman scope and rings I mounted are inadequate on a rifle like this, there has been no movement after 300+ rounds. The scope stop is a nice piece really, outfitted with a metal body and what seems to be a nylon bumper, and completely eliminates the chance of shearing off a simple stop screw.




The trigger on the jet is not the same as the “RS2” trigger commonly found on Beeman Dual Calibers, or the Tech Force 89, both of which are SAG AR1000’s. Their outward appearance is very similar what with the chromed waffle design trigger blade and front safety release lever, although the lever on the Jet is straight and the lever on the AR1000 bent. The trigger is decent, but somewhat tricky to adjust to a clean pull with a light break. Perhaps due to the very strong piston spring in the Jet or maybe the angle of the first stage adjustment screw relative to the sear, the first stage is heavy regardless of how it is adjusted. However, by setting the first stage close to breaking and shortening the second stage a great deal, it’s possible to produce a trigger with a fairly short but heavy first stage that stops positively at the second stage and breaks easily and very predictably. Mike Melick at Flying Dragon Air Rifles tuned this rifle, and while he was able to get the trigger to a very nice break, I found that the fit of the adjustment screws was such that they lost tension and came out of adjustment after about 100 rounds. Some blue locktite quickly cured this problem, and I’ve passed the information on to Mike so perhaps he can deal with the issue in his following Jet tunes. As I’ve noted, this is a test mule.
 
 
 
The cocking effort of the AR2000 jet is very stiff. I’d put it easily at 50 lbs after break in. The cocking stroke is fairly short, and breaking open the breech does not require a great deal of effort. The cocking cycle is very smooth, most likely thanks to attention from Mike, and the ball and detent lockup works quite well and provides a solid and positive close. After 300+ rounds the pivot has remained very smooth with no noticeable loosening, again probably a result of Mike’s lubing the working points with moly. The loading port has a very slight chamfer and is well centered, and a variety of pellets, including H/N Barracudas, Crow Magnums, Crosman Premier Domed and Hollow Point, Air Arms Field Heavy, and JSB Monsters loaded easily. In fact, some, like the Air Arms and JSB’s loaded too easily, and this loose fit showed itself on the chronograph as lower than expected FPS and FPE numbers and at the target as poor accuracy. The Crosman’s and H/N’s fit with a distinctly tighter fit and provided some of the best performance as well, which tells me this particular rifle prefers a pellet with a tighter fit. I’ll be trying a wider variety of pellets in the near future as I don’t feel as though I have found the ones to bring out this guns full accuracy potential just yet. The breech seal is a beefy unit and looks like it should provide a very nice seal for quite some time before needing any attention.
 
The shot cycle is amazingly fast and smooth with this Mike Melick tuned Jet. There is no spring twang, and the recoil is less than would be expected from a rifle with a 50 lbs cocking effort. This is again probably due to a short stroke which allows a fast cycle and less buildup of piston momentum. There is no discernible piston slam or bounce, and recoil while heavy is certainly manageable. Despite the size, weight, and cocking effort, shooting the Jet is really enjoyable and you end up wanting to empty a full tin before you put the gun down.

I tried a decent variety of pellets and found that the rifle bore is leaning towards the large side. Pellets with a looser fit produced a noticeably harder shot cycle, lower FPS and FPE numbers, and less than stellar accuracy. Tighter fitting pellets showed the best performance, and out of my available selection the H/N Barracuda 5.53mm 21.30 grain and 18.21 grain H/N Crow Magnums performed best. I still feel I have yet to find the best pellet for this gun, but the Barracudas provided admirable performance as it stands now. Other pellets which worked acceptably were Beeman Kodiaks and the new H/N 19 grain Barracuda Hunter Extreme’s, both of which managed groups just over the size of a dime CTC. This Jet likes a middle weight pellet from about 18 to 21 grains. Lighter pellets were clearly not giving enough resistance, and pellets beyond 21 grains in weight such as a few JSB Monster 25 grain pellets I tried, produced a slightly noticeable piston bounce.
 


All my accuracy testing was done after a 300 shot breaking in period, during which no stock bolts or scoped mounts loosened, and the gun definitely settled in a bit to a slightly lighter cocking effort and even smoother shot cycle. Shooting from the bench, testing groups with all but the loosest fitting pellets were easily within an inch or better CTC. Loose fitting pellets tended to produce a shotgun pattern. After several tests to determine the most effective hold, the gun began producing dime sized groups consistently using the 21 grain Barracuda pellets. Some 50 yard testing using 2”x2” spinners produced excellent results as well, with 9 out of ten shots using Barracudas putting the spinners in motion.
 
 
 
This gun is very accurate when the shooter does his part, but does require a consistent hold and attention to trigger details when making the shot. I would rate it as being moderately hold sensitive, again probably due to the short stroke and in no small part Mike’s tuning efforts. The gun responds well to a tighter trigger hand hold, but it is still important to allow enough looseness at the forearm for the gun to move. The heavier stock also seems to help calm down the shot cycle and make consistent accuracy easier to achieve. Resting the front of the gun on the flat of the forestock just after the end of the cocking slot produced the best results. During testing with H/N Crow Magnum pellets the Jet produced some encouraging 25 yard 5 shot groups. The following white dots are just a slight bit larger than a dime.




I then moved on to the higher energy Barracuda Match pellets and produced the following 5 shot groups at 25 yards with the rifle bench rested.


As it stands, the Jet acquitted itself well. This is particularly true considering the gun has less than 500 shots through it and was fitted with a throwaway Beeman scope. I am certain once I mount some decent glass and the gun passes the 500 shot mark it will produce even tighter groups as it is showing improved consistency the more it is shot. At this point, it is safe to say the Jet is certainly accurate enough for hunting small game. But what about power? Well, the Jet has it in spades.
 
 
 
Next, I formally ran the Jet over the chrony using the 21 grain Barracuda pellets as they showed the best accuracy and the highest energies during my initial out of the box chrony testing. The Jet showed good consistency, again quite good for a barely broken in rifle, and excellent power. Judging from the chrony numbers, this rifle is still settling in and will likely eventually smooth out to an average in the high 750 fps range with 21 gr pellets. The Jet is easily on par with some of the most powerful springers available, and is probably capable of more total energy if given more in-depth modification should someone decide to go that route. However, 27 FPE should be more than enough energy for small game up to the size of raccoon and groundhogs.
 
 
 
Chrony numbers for this Mike Melick tuned rifle are ……
 •765
 •767
 •758
 •759
 •758
 •750
 •753
 •750
 •758
 •758
 
Average- 756 FPS
 
ES- 17 FPS
 
SD- 5.60
 
FPE- 27.03
 
Overall I am quite impressed with this Chinese made air rifle, and as usual Mikes’ tuning work. The rifle is large, it is heavy, but it has the balance, fit, finish, accuracy and power to make you quickly dismiss any weight or size penalty you may normally reserve for large magnum air rifles. To be honest, given how the Jet has performed to this point, and considering it has been available for a few years now, I am quite surprised it has not gathered a much larger following. Throw in the excellent tune from Mike Melick and this becomes a formidable air rifle capable of holding its own against just about any other magnum currently available.
 
Fitted with a sling and a scope of decent quality, the AR2000 Jet will without a doubt make an excellent addition to my short list of spring powered hunting rifles, and I look forward to further pellet testing and perhaps installation of an aftermarket seal to find out just how much potential this Chinese sleeper of a magnum air rifle really has.


Once again, well done Mike.

[AirScopes]

Paul,

Outstanding review, nice depth, and great detail on a rifle that I think doesn't get its credit as being pretty much the top-of-the-hill in springer powerhouses while retaining accuracy and looks. I measured my cocking effort at 60 lbs., but tuned and used more like this one has been, I am better 50 pounds is possible.

I like the H/N Crow Magnums... Haven't tried a lot of pellets in this, but that is my go-to.

Thanks! Glad to see this review.

Richard

[Paul68]

Thanks Richard.

I agree, this one is definitely up there in overall comparison. Mike does a really nice job on them. When I first got it the cocking effort was more than likely closer to 60lbs, but it settled in quickly. My Hatsan 125's put out high 28 FPE, and that's with a full out tune, new seal, added tophat ect. This one does 27 FPE and Mike replaces nothing, just cleans everything up with a hone and lube along with some other tuning refinements to quiet them down. In fact, Mike is of the "sacrificing a few FPS for better accuracy is acceptable" school of thought, which makes the results more impressive IMO. And the rifle has been far more durable and easy to work with than my Hatsan's. Instead of constantly chasing gremlins the first few hundred shots, I simply had to lock down the trigger screws. No loosening barrel pivot or stock screws, no shifting scope, no wandering POI, and the trigger although not a super light unit, is extremely predictable. On every single shot, I pull through the first stage and it stops at the second and breaks exactly the same every time. Not once has it acted any differently. The only plastic piece is the trigger guard, and that along with the very nice fit and finish puts it well ahead of all the other "budget magnums" IMO.

I have a feeling this rifle will gain an FPE or two with an aftermarket seal, though as it stands it's got plenty of power in stock form.