Gauntlet .25 string and thoughts

[PlacidBlueDog]

The action is very rough out of the box, but the finish is nice. Imo the bottle shroud is the only thing that seems cheap. I will probably end up vinyl wrapping the stock because it seems to show even fingernail marks. It is louder than I'd like, but it wont bother my neighbors. The magazine is not bad and it cycles polymags, kings, and king heavys just fine. The gun is ugly, but I think I like the balance more than my diana 34p. Umarex reccomends using bottles with no more than 2100psi output.

Anyways you've all seen the Gauntlet before so let's get to the numbers. Umarex claims 27 consistent shots per fill for their new .25 Gauntlet. Well I got the chrony out to test that. I filled to 3000psi indoors at 68°F and shot outside at 18°F. Before this string I had only shot 2 mags through the gun, so it may not be broken in but here we go:

I'm shooting JSB Exact Kings 25.39gr sorted for .250.
After 30 shots I see 25 shots with a high of 875.5, a low of 820.4 (outlier?), and an average of 856.47.

I bet everything will get smoother with use and given the conditions I'm happy with those numbers after some reported only 18 shots. For $233 shipped and the option of a bigger bottle for $40 more I know I'm way under the budget of getting a Marauder to do this. Hopefully the accuracy turns out to be fine once I get the shim I'm missing. I don't even want to try groups without it even though that's how the other gauntlets came.

[Jonnie]

The action is very rough out of the box, but the finish is nice. Imo the bottle shroud is the only thing that seems cheap. I will probably end up vinyl wrapping the stock because it seems to show even fingernail marks. It is louder than I'd like, but it wont bother my neighbors. The magazine is not bad and it cycles polymags, kings, and king heavys just fine. The gun is ugly, but I think I like the balance more than my diana 34p. Umarex reccomends using bottles with no more than 2100psi output.

Anyways you've all seen the Gauntlet before so let's get to the numbers. Umarex claims 27 consistent shots per fill for their new .25 Gauntlet. Well I got the chrony out to test that. I filled to 3000psi indoors at 68°F and shot outside at 18°F. Before this string I had only shot 2 mags through the gun, so it may not be broken in but here we go:

I'm shooting JSB Exact Kings 25.39gr sorted for .250.
After 30 shots I see 25 shots with a high of 875.5, a low of 820.4 (outlier?), and an average of 856.47.

I bet everything will get smoother with use and given the conditions I'm happy with those numbers after some reported only 18 shots. For $233 shipped and the option of a bigger bottle for $40 more I know I'm way under the budget of getting a Marauder to do this. Hopefully the accuracy turns out to be fine once I get the shim I'm missing. I don't even want to try groups without it even though that's how the other gauntlets came.

Please tell, where did you get it for this price? Good info on the shot string.

[PlacidBlueDog]

I got it from pyramid air during their 20% off sale. I'm sure other promotions like that will be coming in the future.

[Springrrrr]

Gauntlets of any caliber are a tinker's dream and a non-tinker's nightmare.

The trigger is easy to work on and it needs polishing on all surfaces, especially the sear and the sear arm.  Some come through full of grease while others are pretty dry.  Either way, it needs work.

You can change some trigger springs to make the pull much lighter but still safe and you can buy a two stage kit for it also.  I set mine for a single stage, crisp and light break with good results.

The bolt is another area of complaint.  It, as well as the hole in the receiver it sits in can be polished and that does a wonderful job of cleaning up the rough.  An allen screw holds the bolt in place and there are plenty of videos based on the Gauntlet that cover most bases.

Even with the shim, try to avoid picking the gun up by the barrel and don't let the barrel hit or be hit by anything once you get it zeroed in, the point of aim will change.

I worked a swab brush saturated with JB bore paste in my barrel, from the breech end, after removing it.  I stopped before the muzzle as not to damage or alter the crown.  This cleaned up some of the high and rough spots in the barrel that were left behind after manufacture.  Putting the barrel back in place requires some skill, patience and luck to prevent from cutting the "O" rings on the sharp edges in the receiver.

[PlacidBlueDog]

Thanks for the useful info! I'm going to get into the trigger soon and might just have to do some polishing. Umarex got back to me and they have no spare barrel band inserts so I made my own for now. They told me to check back next week and they will send it no charge. Part of me wanted to exchange it but I shot a 5 shot group and this thing is very accurate! 50 yard groups coming. Seems to love the King Heavies.

[triggertreat]

Interesting, and thanks for sharing.  I have been wanting to see the stock performance numbers.  Looks like it dropped off the reg at shot #19, and with some tinkering could be stretched out more.