XISICO XS46U GAS RAM BY MIKE MELICK

[evandj]

Xisico XS46U Gas Ram by Mike Melick

I learned to shoot using air rifles, then conventional rifles then pistols when I was young and when my son showed interest, I jumped at the opportunity but we have gone through a couple of air rifles over the past few months and all were disappointing beyond words so they went back to the store.

How hard is it to find a reliable and accurate gas ram for a person with limited funds?
A lot harder than I ever thought it would be…. My searching the forums and reviews brought-up a name Mike Melick and the XS46U Gas Ram conversion he does but I didn't find reviews…. Just statements about Mike doing good things on a Chinese gun that I generally would not even consider.

I emailed him and after a bunch of exchanges, I bought a gas rammed, tuned XS46U in .177 caliber and it arrived double boxed in 3 days!!! 
My first impressions were that it seemed to be well-put-together, the finish was nice but the wood grain??? Might be some of that engineered wood but what does one expect for less than $300.00… burled walnut… but of course!!! 
The rifle is heavy, 10 lbs with a CenterPoint 4-16X40 AO Adventure Class Rifle Scope according to my bathroom scale and a bear to cock. I have to lay the butt on the floor and give it one smooth cocking motion using my weight on the underlever to play it safe… I am only 165 lbs 

We started shooting at 10 yards with the open sights and surprise, surprise…. It shoots great !!! I would say that it has medium loudness (shooting indoors), accuracy is very good with open sights right out-of-the box, and the trigger is slightly heavy but smooth and short. I think it is a single stage but it is very nicely setup. This experience made me bolder and it was time to scope it to extract it’s potential.

Mounting the scope was an exercise in frustration due to the quality of the mounts and my inexperience but after a couple of days of trying a variety of things it was finally accomplished. The scope was not zeroed since I only have 10 yards to play with. The rifle was shooting high (1-2 inches) but keeping pretty much near center so we will save the scope calibration in the range since I don’t want to mess with too many things in a short period of time.

The pellets that were tried today at 10 yards were:
1.   JSB Match Diabolo Exact 8.44 grains which gave me an average of 938fps and a 2.5cm group on a 10 shot string.
2.   H&N Barracuda 4.50 head, 10.65 grains which gave me an average of 898fps and a 2.7cm group on a 10 shot string.
3.   H&N Barracuda Match 4.51 head, 10.65 grains which gave me an average of 879fps and a 2cm group on a 10 shot string.
4.   H&N Barracuda 4.53 head, 10.65 grains which gave me an average of 909fps and a 1.7cm group on a 10 shot string. This pellet gave a standard deviation of 3.9, energy range of 19.57fpe and an extreme spread of only 12fps.
5.   JSB Match Diabolo Exact Heavy 10.34 grains which gave me an average of 882fps and worse of 4.3cm group on a 10 shot string and a best of 1.3cm on a 10 shot string.

Now what on earth was I doing with the JSB Heavies?
I was using my Chrony not only to get the muzzle velocities but also the velocity of the pellet at 10 yards to gather data for ChairgunPro so all the pellets were shot at least 20 times (10 shots muzzle; 10 shots at target). The JSB Heavies were so bad as compared to the other pellets that I decided to just go shoot since I have a 500 pellet tin to try to finish-off because they were so bad.  Now the interesting thing is I shot 10 to get muzzle velocity, another 10 on the first target which was pretty sad, another 10 on the next target which was also pretty bad then I draw a circle in between the 2 targets and get a 1.3cm 10 shot string!!!! 
Is this a case of the barrel getting seasoned? I’ve always thought that this was a figment of someone’s imagination and it cannot be that the shooter is getting broken-in since I shot at least 110 pellets before this happened 

I will try to shoot the assortment of pellets a minimum of 40X and see if I can replicate this, otherwise it will be blamed on chance. BTW, the measurement of the groups were done with my high tech, handy-dandy tape measure.

We are very happy with the rifle that Mike supplied and I cannot recommend it enough if you are looking for a great performing gun at reasonable cost knowing that it is heavy and hard to cock (might get better with use).

[Paltik38]

Mike Milecks 46u's are well put together. I have a gas ram one and a carbined detuned 46u by MM. Really accurate and fun!!

[Random Plinker]

Welcome to the GTA evandj!  Nice write-up on the XS46U.  Burled walnut its not, but I can see the reflection of your pellet tins in its smooth finish!

It looks like you're ready for the 10 meter GTA fun match - just need to line up on a mil-dot for zero!  Mike does a great QB78 or 79 for punching targets if you get tired of cocking...

[Ahab]

I'm surprised you didn't find my review. I'm extremely happy with the XS46U gas ram from Mike and want to get one in .22.

[gamo2hammerli]

Excellent report.  From what I've read so far....Mike Melick takes care of his airguns before sending them off to his clients.

[evandj]

Paltik38, I saw your posts and glad you are liking the carbine version.

Random Plinker, Thanks for the welcome. The finish is very nice & smooth, it might have been polished, waxed & buffed. We'll see if I get hooked enough to do 10 meter shoots     I assume the QB78 & 79 are pneumatics.... I am not ready for them yet because of the associated costs involved in procuring the associated equipment but when the time comes, Mike will get my business.

Ahab, I found a few of your posts praising the rifle but never saw a review.... must have missed it. Only .177's were available when I got mine but the .22's would be great based on the performance of my gun.

gamo2hammerli, Thanks for the compliment. I am sure that he preps the guns very well since I asked about what needed to be done before shooting and the reply was pretty much.... just go shooting and the rifle was indeed all setup.

I am really happy with this rifle and the refinement to make it into a swan; cannot believe the grief I had to go through before finding it, too bad that not enough people know about it, otherwise Mike will be selling them by the boatload 

[Paul68]

That thing is producing 19.5 FPE, which is stellar for a 177. Looks like I might have decided on my next 'want" rifle.

[evandj]

That thing is producing 19.5 FPE, which is stellar for a 177. Looks like I might have decided on my next 'want" rifle.

Yes on the 4.53 head H&N's, they grouped the best until the mystery of the JSB Heavies happened. As a fellow chronic sufferer of "wantitis" I see based upon your braglist that you are faaaaaaaaaaaaaar from cured  Long live the men who enjoy their toys!!!

[nervoustrigger]

Yeah, almost 20fpe in .177 is fierce.  I expect you got a gas ram hitting the top end of the spec range.  My .22 version produces 22fpe with the most favorable pellet and I thought it was a hammer but you're almost there in .177.

That will do wonders for your abs and deltoids!

It's a good rifle and I'm glad to hear you are enjoying it.

[evandj]

nervoustrigger: It can hurl them pellets and give you a workout too; sweat was beading on my forehead yesterday due to the amount of shooting that was done. I CANNOT safely cock it with one arm when cradled so it goes on the floor to have a secure base. A good way to save on gym fees

The range is closed this weekend so sighting the scope has to wait till next week

[evandj]

Yesterday was perfect for testing pellets on the rifle since I had the club range to myself
The rifle is scoped with a CenterPoint 4-16X40mm AO Adventure Class with 1 piece mounts and bench rested (forestock). Pellets were shot at least 5X and up to 10X if there was a flyer or if I knew I made a mistake to give it the best possible chance; it might not be scientific but I have not shot anything in 30+ years and am just starting to relearn the discipline needed to make a good shot so please pardon me for any shortcomings.

25 yard results with JSB test pack, H&N Field Target Pellets & Hunting pellet test packs, and plus some that I have:
1. JSB Straton 8.26 grain pellet did not do well at this distance. No matter how hard I tried, I could never get any grouping.
2. JSB Exact Heavy 10.34 grain pellet was the top performer in the JSB group giving a 2.4cm group.
3. JSB Exact RS 7.33 grain pellet got a 2.6cm group. What a surprise, I was thinking that a light pellet wouldn't with this gun but it had a pretty good showing.
4. JSB Exact 8.44 grain pellet got a 3.7cm group.
5. H&N Barracuda Match 4.51mm head 10.65 grain did a 0.8cm group leading all the tested pellets.
5. H&N Field Target Trophy 4.51mm head 8.64 grain did a 1.8cm group.
6. H&N Field Target Trophy 4.50mm head 8.64 grain pellet did a 1.9cm group.
7. H&N Hunting Crow Magnum 8.80 grain pellet did a 2.2 cm group.
8. H&N Baracuda Match 4.53mm head 10.65 grain pellet did a 2.4cm group.
9. H&N Barracuda Match 4.52mm head 10.65 grain pellet did a 2.5cm group.
10. H&N Hunting Barracuda Hunter Extreme 9.26 grain pellet did a 2.5cm group.
11. H&N Barracuda Match 4.50mm head 10.65 grain pellet did a 2.9cm group.

A 40 yard test is already brewing in my mind 

*note on the H&N Field Target Sampler Set. The weight described on the package is probably switched between the FTT & Barracuda Match Pellets, the correct weight is listed above. This was verified by weighting a few representative pellets among each of the containers.

The rifle remains fun to shoot and gives you a workout because of the cocking. The muzzle velocity for the JSB Heavies remains stable from a prior 882fps to 881fps which is outstanding.

Questions for everybody:
1. Are the Field Target Trophy pellets in the H&N Hunting Sample set the same as the H&N Field Target Trophy 4.50mm head?
2. I noticed the forestock screws needing re-tightening after about 100 shots and neither Loctite blue or Permatex Thread locker red is holding them (surfaces are cleaned with denatured alcohol prior to loctite application). Any suggestions?
3. I have avoided Crossman pellets due to deposits accumulating in the barrel according to some users. Is this true, any accuracy issues and how do you avoid it or clean it up?

[Paul68]

Can't say for sure about the H/N's from tin to sampler pack, but I would imagine they are the same. There are some diam variations available though.

Regarding the loctite. Are you allowing 24 hours for the thread locker to set? Usually a good idea to apply it and allow it to set at least overnight. If still having problems, you can try star washers along with the loctite.

I've found the Crosman Premier pellets do indeed increase the rate of buildup in my rifle bores. Usually just pull a few patches through after around 1k pellets or when I notice a change in accuracy. I rarely use em now as JSB and H/N pellets have shown to be the best all around pellets in most of my rifles.

Sounds like Mike set you up with a very good rifle. That thing should probably provide a long service before needing anything once you get the stock screws locked down.

[evandj]

Can't say for sure about the H/N's from tin to sampler pack, but I would imagine they are the same. There are some diam variations available though.

I measured the one from the sampler pack and most had a 4.59mm head; nothing larger.

Regarding the loctite. Are you allowing 24 hours for the thread locker to set? Usually a good idea to apply it and allow it to set at least overnight. If still having problems, you can try star washers along with the loctite.

Yes, I am and they do have retaining washers on them

I've found the Crosman Premier pellets do indeed increase the rate of buildup in my rifle bores. Usually just pull a few patches through after around 1k pellets or when I notice a change in accuracy. I rarely use em now as JSB and H/N pellets have shown to be the best all around pellets in most of my rifles.

I might give them a shot soon if I don't make enough progress.

Sounds like Mike set you up with a very good rifle. That thing should probably provide a long service before needing anything once you get the stock screws locked down.

Thanks for sharing your insights on these questions.
Anybody have any insight on the "rope type bore cleaners" like Stoeger or Hoppe?

[Jr_Explorer]

I'm looking at getting one of these.  How is it holding up?

[BadKarma]

I simply LOVE my 46U. Had mine for 6 months and found it likes H&N FTT's. Gas Ram, tuned and trigger by MM. CP 3-9x44 AO and just this morning zero'd a new tin of FTTs and shot a 5 shot group @ 50yds----.75".  I was planning some modifications, but I'm leaving well enough alone.