Fustrated with Crosman Nitro Venom

[mtsheron70]

I like the old addage, you get what you pay for!  That being said, a $200 Crosman one cannot expect to be like a $700+ Beeman or Weihrauch or Theoben??  Yes, I too had a Benji Trail NP and loved the concept; the gun was nice as far as bluing, looks, and overall quality.  Yes it needed the GRTIII trigger to get it to perform like it should from the box but that was only a $32 investment.  After all that I even did the washer mod and polished all the internals almost.  Once together, the gun was even smoother and a better cycling gun.  End result, still a non-consistent POI. 

Bottom line, I hope we can discuss our issues on any brand here even if we disagree with one another.  I want honest feedback from actual owners here. 

I hope this place does not become censored.  If so I guess I will have to go elsewhere.  I have already been banned from The Yellow Forum because I had an opinion that was very civil and done in a professional manner.  Steve did not like it I guess and would erase my post then next thing I know I was kicked off.  I hope his forum defunks because the way he runs things there.  He wants no opinions if they differ from his. 

Hands down this forum has been great and a tru 180 from the YF for sure and that is what makes it great.

Fact is, there will be haters of all brands by someone.  Let them air out their complaints.  I think all can read through the garbage and decipher truth.

Keep up the good work GTA!

[neilstuckey]

I agree for 200$ or more we shouldn't have to de-bur, replace seals, recrown barrels,  replace barrel washers and fix barrel drooping.  All have been common problems on this forum.  Crosman has made probably hands down the best guns in air gunning.  I love crosman will always buy crosman products.  I have a GP and with some practice and about 60$ in washers, trigger and barrel recrown its a 25 yard tack driver.  And i also agree don't compare 400$ euro guns to crosman 200$ guns, thats not a good comparison.   

[gene_sc]

These are the facts of life guys. Facts of Chineses springers... Fact is I have always had to tune a new Chinese/Chinese, Chinese, Spanish, Brizillian, Turkish springer in order for them to shoot with consistence, and accuracy. Fact is I have Crosman and Gamo springers that shoot as well as some of my $400.0 to $800.00 Euro springers.
I do appologize for referencing to you as a new air gunner. But normally that is the case with new air gunners and a  shot gun patern or constilation of stars representing pellet holes...
Another fact is pricing is only going to go up. In 10 years of air gunning I have seen huge increases. Gamo for one is the main culpret, led by it's huge marketing department.
Gene

[mtbdrew]

Despite all the issues I had, they didn't stop me from buying the Discovery mainly because of the reviews it got here. I hope this forum is and will remain a place to get good honest feedback/advice on any gun regardless of who makes it.
There are enough sites out there where manufacture troll and post bogus information and this doesn't need to be another one.
With as much experience and knowledge that is here, it would be great if Crosman took notice of the comments and made some corrections in their lines. Besides the silly plastic washers which they all seems to use, I saw nothing major with the guns that couldn't be corrected with a few minor adjustments to the manufacturing line.
I really liked the looks and feel of the Trail and tried my hardest to get it to work. Drove my wife crazy getting her to take them back and exchange them. Tried one from every Academy in the area hoping it was just a "batch" issue and would get one that would work with a little TLC. All of them suffered from the barrel droop to different degrees, a couple so bad you couldn't get the scopes to bore sight even with shims. I too replaced the trigger, added brass washers, tighten screws etc etc all to no avail. never could get the POI consistent. Moved to the Walmart GP as I couldn't see spending all that time and extra expense on a gun that cost $250 but was willing to on one that was only $148. However saw pretty much the same issues with them. Never did get one to shoot right and it still drives me crazy because it should be that difficult! Not 100% convince it is just the guns either, would have liked to have some fixed sights to rule out the scopes. Heck on my Gamo Hunter I've been through at least twenty scopes try to find an "airgun" rated scope that could stand up to this springer. If it wasn't for the fixed sights, I'd long ago been convince the gun just couldn't shoot straight. However, after each scope I tried started giving me wondering POI, I'd pull it off and use the fixed sights see three holes inside 1/4" at twenty yards and know another scope bit the dust.
Even after all this I still plan on getting one of the refurbed Crosman gas piston guns from Airgun depot (kick myself daily for not getting the St Patty's days $79 special) and finally figuring out what is really going on. Only reason I didn't continue with the Walmart guns at the time was I needed a gun that I could count on to reliable kill Starlings every time. I can't stand these birds but still want them taken out humanely so a gun that will not hit where its aimed is no good for hunting.

Long story short, lets keep this site real.

[VAFarmer]

If you want your accuracy problems to go away, dump the spring guns and go get a Benjamin or Crosman or Daisy pumper!!!

Just kidding, they need work too.   Good thing is, most of the time its JUST trigger work.

Really, IMO, you cannot get into a decent shooting spring gun with ANY horsepower for under 400....you just cant.
RWS 34 might be an exception, now, with less picky 8 land bbls and a new trigger assembly....but I dont know.  They most always need a lube tune....
HW 50 starts to get you some decent hunting range power and shootability.

IF you buy any gun new under 200 bucks, better be ready to work on its some.   
YOu can really come out ahead if you are willing to learn the in's and outs of tweaking them.
But 200 bucks, 20 for shipping.  One month later...and alot more grey hair....you decide to ship it to a tuner...nother 20 bucks,  maybe 100 bucks for a tune,heck, I dont know, and another 20 bucks back.
360 dollars later, you have a gun that will SHOOT with a gun like HW makes......but will not look or feel like an HW.
For 40-80 dollars less.
Dont get me wrong, Ive had HW guns, but  I PREFER the Bam's and the Gamo's...why, because  I took it upon myself to learn to tune my own guns.  But the one thing the home tuner often doesnt account for is the time invested (some kind of reference to time is money, here) the frustration level, and the chance that it wont turn out right.
Still, anyway you look at it, you gotta pay to play.   
If you think you'll get away in spring guns for less than 400 starting out, better think again.

God bless,

Farmer

[eat2muchrice]

Gene, I didn’t mean to open a can of worms here. I’m not sure if you have followed through all the treads in regards to my experiences, I have posted links connecting them on the first post here. I’ll give you a short breakdown. I also want to say that having made new friends here I would hope this forum remains a place for us to express ourselves without fear of censorship. This is a wonderful place to meet fellow shooters, share addictions, tell stories and have friendly debates, let’s keep it that way.

Nitro Venom #1 .177. Center Point scope broke at 100 rounds, seems to be a common issue.
Nitro Venom #2 .22. Poor packaging by amazon. Cracked scope due package being dropped on corner where scope was packaged. Also have very poor welding on scope mount rail, pictures where posted.
Nitro Venom #3 .22. Suspected broken seal at around 300-400 rounds, during break-in period.

As for my shooting, I’ve gone from ½ groups at 25 yards to hitting the table legs that my pellet trap stands on. If I shoot that bad then please take all my firearms away from me and cut off my trigger finger.

I’m sure most knows how I feel about quality control. I’ll try and keep it short, as an American company that been around since our child hood they do not have an excuse for providing us with a product that does not perform out of the box. Although my first “Springer” I’ve own many air guns all of which are under $200 and have performed flawlessly and still do, over time I’ll slowly upgrade them and watch their performance grow, they soon turn out to be $1000 guns with countless hours of work. Like with everything in life you must start with a solid foundation. I don’t expect something that “cheap” to have all the bells and whistles but it must perform the basics of what it was designed for, all other upgrades and fine tuning should be the user’s option and not a requirement. Another note is how Crosman encourages these rifles for hunting, I’m sure we all can agree that hunting with something this inaccurate is irresponsible and a safety hazard. It’s just silly to think that a brand new product that needs to be stripped apart and have a complete tune while voiding its warranty that same day.

I also want to make it clear that I’m not trolling Crosman nor have it out for them. I’ve stated their customer service to be fair and am still willing to give another one of their products a try.

[SAADE]

This post is goin Toxic, time to get a Positive Spin going here.

[mtsheron70]

This post is goin Toxic, time to get a Positive Spin going here.

Kum Bah Yah My Lord; Kum Bah Yah!  I agree.  That being said I just won the 152 million dollar lottery and will start my own airgun business!  Just kidding!  ABout both that is.

[SAADE]

So anyway...how about them Yankees?

[bnowlin]

Go ahead a spend a couple of bucks and get the Marauder 22.  I just got through zeroing mine after a good O ring on the baffles.  After 30 shots or 3 clips (the clips are what I like) by golly I was 3 on top of each other less than dime size in the Bulleye at 2000 psi.  I agree I'm hard of hearing however I barely heard the shots.  AT 35 yds and I was laying on the porch on my belly with a bipod.  Gene_SC, I still like Crosman   BTW no tuning yet got a chrony coming Friday.  JSB Jumbo 18.13 so far.

[Fishbone]

So anyway...how about them Yankees?

They sure put a hurtin on my beloved Red Sox!

[mtsheron70]

I am in denial since the NFL season is over!  But the draft is coming!

[eat2muchrice]

LOL, you people are great! Day three of my decision to quit smoking and to save up for a Marauder, so far I haven’t gone cold turkey yet but have cut down to 3-4 cigs a day to avoid huge withdraws. Please note that 3-4 is A LOT for me as I’ve already been having cold sweats at night with chest pains in the mornings. I’m on my “last” pack that hopefully is my last that I’ll ever buy. The longest I’ve ever gone without nicotine in my body is probably about 10 hours in the last 15-20 or so years. So this could be huge for me and all the support to keep me motivated is greatly appreciated.

[bnowlin]

Smoke more and you won't need the gun.

[Petey]

Give him a stick of chewing gum and a balloon, and send him on his way.

[eat2muchrice]

Haha, Well so much for finding a smoking support group in an air gun forum. I’ll still be taking that balloon, in blue please.

[Fishbone]

Eats, just take a look at that pretty little baby in your profile picture, that should be enough to quit anything...just to be healthy and to see him/her grow up!

[eat2muchrice]

True and I constantly tell myself that. Also living with the fear that I possibly already have developed cancer in my upper gums is sickening to the point where I have not told my wife or seen a doctor about it. Must keep my teeth and have new gun! End of day 3 and I’ve smoke 4.5, tomorrow I’ll do better.

[SAADE]

True and I constantly tell myself that. Also living with the fear that I possibly already have developed cancer in my upper gums is sickening to the point where I have not told my wife or seen a doctor about it. Must keep my teeth and have new gun! End of day 3 and I’ve smoke 4.5, tomorrow I’ll do better.

So anyway...how about them Yankees?

[mtsheron70]

True and I constantly tell myself that. Also living with the fear that I possibly already have developed cancer in my upper gums is sickening to the point where I have not told my wife or seen a doctor about it. Must keep my teeth and have new gun! End of day 3 and I’ve smoke 4.5, tomorrow I’ll do better.

You can do it!  I gave up porn!  Just kidding.  I mean, no porn in my life!  Ahhh heck this post has gone way south now to recuperate!  Cheering for you!