Trail NP XL .725 Tacticool mistake turned cure-all

[jonhunt82]

Manual barrel cutting...  It took almost 2 blades to make each cut.  I used 2 9/16 (barrel diameter) washers and shaft collars to square the cut.  Place a pellet in the bore to stop the bulk of oil and metal filings from getting into the barrel.. Oil well.

[john]

A few comments. First, thanks for the message reply. Have not answered because nothing to add. Second, thanks for posting the pic...good way for us home machinists to cut straight. And the washer/collar could be left on during the polishing of the muzzle face, yes?

Third, i've rolled two different oem barrels for my NP on my granite machinists flat and both were curved out of the package from Crosman. So obviously the barrels are not precision parts...wouldn't expect that at these prices. And because the outer surface is curved, there is no guarantee the bore is straight. But the curved barrel "could" have a straight bore. And after straightening the barrel so that it rolls flat, one could unknowingly wind up with a crooked bore. It's a crapshoot. HOWEVER, there is a famous picture out there of a airgun barrel with a loop (at least one loop, maybe more than one loop, i can't remember)...but the last few inches of that barrel is straight...and the claim is the gun is accurate. This would indicate that worrying about barrel straightness, bore straightness, or about whether the bore is coaxial with its barrel...is pointless. If the last few inches is straight, you're good.

Fourth, chrony velocities will be weird if the lighting is not proper and consistent...that's for sure.

Have fun.

[jonhunt82]

i have seen that old school twisted barrel photo. what a trip.   The first barrel i crowned I left the collars on. They were harder steel than the barrel so i thought it would be a great guide.  This trick with the washers/collars made the face pretty flat and i didn't have to remove much material at all.  I used a bastahd file for a few strokes to eliminate the saw scratches, then i switched to course diamond, fine diamond, then ark stone.
 

[jonhunt82]

Mod still in progress.  Waiting to sit down with my machinist ...meanwhile...

[jonhunt82]

I flipped the folding stock so it opens to the right rather than the left. I also gave it a coat of paint, then liquid rubber, then i textured it, then sealed it with more flat paint.  I also relocated the sling stud to the pistol grip.

[john]

I flipped the folding stock so it opens to the right rather than the left. I also gave it a coat of paint, then liquid rubber, then i textured it, then sealed it with more flat paint.  I also relocated the sling stud to the pistol grip.

Thanks for the ongoing pic's but we gotta pass the hat and get you a blue screen and back light. How about a pic (bird's eye view?) of the gun with the folding stock...unfolded - because i know nothing about tactical type stuff and so no idea what you mean...did you flip some hinges?...and why does the stock fold anyway? And i forgot...what are you planning to use this gun for? Is that liquid rubber like the stuff you dip metal tool handles in to make them more grippable?

[jonhunt82]

john,
I am just doing an interest piece here.  I plan in the future to make a step by step guide on how to make the mod.  So far the topic hasn't been very popular so to avoid reposting everything in a more organized format i have been a little quiet on the "hows and whats".  But i am happy to answer any questions.

The pics are crappy because i have a data limit and i can't take them with my phone, so i have been doing it with a tablet.  As for why am i doing this to the gun.  I take it with me backpacking/hiking, i plink and hunt.  People of Massachusetts are terrified of guns and a friend of mine lost his real gun permit by looking at a pellet gun for sale in a public parking lot. People see a gun, assume it is a firearm, assume that you are up to no good, call the cops.  I have had the police at my house 3 times for backyard plinking. So my Mod shrinks the overall size of the gun to make it more concealable so it doesn't look like a real rifle.  OAL right now folded is 27 1/2" and if i cock the barrel 20" a big improvement from the original OAL of 48 1/4".   The Liquid rubber is something like "flex seal" it is a rubberized coating without asphalt.  It is called "leak seal" by rustoleum.  I have called rustoleum  and I couldn't get any useful information out of them, and they won't answer any off label questions at all.   So i am kinda testing it myself.  The stuff is self solving, and can be thinned with acetone, it is best painted on with a foam brush and as it dries you can texture it with the same foam brush by blotting it.  It takes forever to cure, so thin coats are best.  I personally like to put it in my oven at 175deg for an hour to speed the set time.  Once fully cured (a couple days id say) spray paint adheres well to the leak seal, use very thin coats, and allow a full cure on the first coat.  Spray paint will solve the leak seal, spray on too heavy and it will "melt" away your texture.  I like to use a heatgun to warm the stock before spraying on the first coat of paint, this helps the dry time.

Ill post a few more pictures.
thanks for the interest 

[jonhunt82]

the floor tiles are 9"x 9".  The barrel work isn't finished yet

[BobbyHumphrey]

  Good job . I like what you're doing . If you want to put it in a backpack without cocking it maybe you could put something over the barrel . Someone here may have an idea or two if your not sure. Like the end of a baseball bat so it looks like a bat. Even a cheap plastic one.

[jonhunt82]

LOL bobby, That would be great.. put some eyes and a reel on it.. I do have a trick up my sleeve that might be Horrible to post here..  (admin please delete this post if i cross a line)

i have considered painting the tip of my muzzle orange, that might throw some people off my trail and maybe ease the police response. 

My legal hunting area is shared by hikers and bikers.  Some of them are vegan tree hugging animal rights activists others are not.  During hunting season which is almost all year round it is legal to hunt sunrise to sun set  for the majority of animals (some can be hunted at night, coyote, raccoon....).  I have heard quite a few stories of hikers walking towards a drawn bow.  It isn't the hunters fault that the hiker didn't respect hunting season, and i bet you the hiker would have given the Arch'er (no idea why thats a swear) an ear full if he wasn't full camo in a tree stand.  I have to move out of MA.

[slolane]

Diggin it, very cool modding!

[jonhunt82]

This topic started as a barrel mod, and i have been trying to come up with some ideas for the mod. So in a nutshell it is a cocking handle for a shortened barrel that chokes the barrel, allows for a non-threaded airstripper to be attached, a reduction in noise by design, and the ability to straighten a curved/drooped barrel.

I have everything going smoothly except for the "straitening of the curved/drooped barrel".  My original design allowed this adjustment to be made with shims and it worked great.  This method might be the only/easy way to go.  I was thinking of ways of using adjustment screws to reach this goal but i can't figure out a way to adjust all 360deg of the barrel.  This screw idea would allow windage adjustment L/R but no elevation U/D unless this device is welded to the barrel.

 You might ask. "Why bother besides fixing barrel droop and staying within the scopes adjustments?"  Well if a barrel can be shimmed or adjusted, a 2nd barrel can be adjusted with the same method.  This would mean an easy barrel swap with only a vertical poi adjustment. 

also I had another thought about barrel choking. My shaft collar method only chokes the required 1" at the end of the muzzle.  While I was working on the gun yesterday I had the crazy idea that if you completely covered the barrel in shaft collars you could make a tapered choke by using a torque wrench.  More torque at the muzzle and decreasing towards the breach. It would be a little pricy at $10 per inch.

[jonhunt82]

I just put an aftermarket trigger in the gun, what a huge improvement over factory.  You might be looking to do the same with your own trail, and i do suggest it as a custom improvement but i still stand by my opinion that the trigger itself shouldn't be a huge accuracy improvement if you know how to shoot a springer.  Also i have used 2 different aftermarket triggers in the trail, both triggers could be adjusted enough to suit my needs.  Both triggers were gold.. The one I personally installed was purchased with a credit card and shipped from Arizona.  The main reason i went with the unmentionable trigger that isn't advertized much here is because i could use a credit card to buy it.  Someone asks for a money order, i only do business with them as a last resort.

[jonhunt82]

more progress.  The cocking handle has an adjustable airstripper built in. It can be tuned with an hex wrench much like the hatsan design.

[jonhunt82]

I am still not done with the project. After making it all pretty and getting some very nice groups @20 yards i have noticed a considerable barrel droop.  I am maxed out with scope adjustments and i am still shooting 5 inches low at 20yds.  I tried to work with the breach seal and washers to raise my poi. I could shim it like I did with the last design but i have put too much work into this for something that simple.  I am going to add a threaded rod to the mod that will turn into a adjustable droop compensator.  Once i get that done Ill post pictures of the internals of my cocking handle. 

[HYspd]

bull pup springer...look up qb57

[jonhunt82]

Qb57, I don't even consider that an airrifle because I can blow a pellet out of a straw faster than that gun can shoot. It has low pistol velocities, neat concept though

[HYspd]

Hey it'll stick with or beat most of the sub $50 pumpers