Is it me or the gun?

[Hunterbrad27]

I have a gamo hornet with a leapers scope and i also stuffed the hollow stock with a towel. I also replaced the trigger with a charliedatuna trigger. My rifle was shooting great but the past month i havent been able to shoot a solid group. I would say it has about 2,500 rounds through it with no service. Is it time for a tune or something? I am a rookie when it comes to airguns. I guess i am looking for someone to lead me in the right direction of what to do? Any tips or tricks are appreciated. Thank you

[Gatorproof]

Hey buddy,

If it makes you feel any better, I had a 85 pistol, a Silent Cat and a Bone Collector .177.  I could not shoot a pattern with any of them. Fine with cans. So it might not be you. I have one break barrel now, a Hatsan 125 TH NP and it shoots actual groups with me at the wheel. I have a little Caldwell 20 buck shooting stand screwed to my rear deck railing.  Shoot there when it rains or at night when I can't sleep. It shoots solid 1" groups at 30 yards and hits tree targets at 85 yards. Heck, it will go through a paint can at 100 yards . It is a .25.

Good luck,
Sorry, I don't have a clue what's wrong if it used to hit something.  Maybe Dave or one of the other experts on here can help you.

Be Well,
Gator

[avator]

Start with the easy stuff. Check all your stock screws and scope mounts. Make sure they are tight. Next clean the barrel. Use some fishing line to pull patches soaked in goo gone thru the barrel from breech to muzzle. 4 or 5 soaked patches then pull dry patches until they come out clean. Then check breech seal. Load the gun and lay a peice of tissue paper over the area where the barrel meets the breech. Fire the gun, if the tissue blows off, you need a breech seal. If all that don't get you up and running, then it may be time for an internal tune. You will need a spring compressor for that. This is where you need to be careful, bad things could happen. Check the GTA library for instructions on spring compressors and home tuning springer airguns. Ask questions.. lots of knowledge here and plenty of help. If your not comfortable with opening your gun, there's lots of good tuners here.

[farrlarr]

Given that the gun shot well previously, I would suggest that you try a different scope on it.  Normally, I would say take off the scope and shoot with open sights but, since the gun apparently does not come with iron sights, that option is pretty much out. 


What distance are you  shooting?  What size groups were you getting before?  What kind of patterns/groups are you seeing now.  Are shots all over the place or do they tend to be off point of aim in one specific direction?  Do you get a few shots that group well and then get a flyer?

Have you changed your grip/rest recently? 

Additional information would help a lot in trying to pin down possible problems.

[clgraham82]

Start with the easy stuff. Check all your stock screws and scope mounts. Make sure they are tight. Next clean the barrel. Use some fishing line to pull patches soaked in goo gone thru the barrel from breech to muzzle. 4 or 5 soaked patches then pull dry patches until they come out clean. Then check breech seal. Load the gun and lay a peice of tissue paper over the area where the barrel meets the breech. Fire the gun, if the tissue blows off, you need a breech seal. If all that don't get you up and running, then it may be time for an internal tune. You will need a spring compressor for that. This is where you need to be careful, bad things could happen. Check the GTA library for instructions on spring compressors and home tuning springer airguns. Ask questions.. lots of knowledge here and plenty of help. If your not comfortable with opening your gun, there's lots of good tuners here.

+1...from recent personal experience!  Especially the breech seal leaking air, that caused my groups not to be groups...also easy fix if that's the culprit!

[drfitz]

This happened to me the other day. Shooting a QB-58 that was previously shooting groups and all of a sudden spraying all over the place.  Checked the scope ring screws and sure enough most of them were loose, in fact one was almost falling out.  This is a mid-powered springer but has enough vibration to loosen those screws.  Hope your solution is that easy.

[dennis-baker]

When our springers start to spread their groups, we use a couple of drops of Chamber Oil. That keeps them going for quite a while.  Be careful to use only the proper oil.   Dennis

[Bullit]

Yeah.  As Avatar posts....
Do the cleaning of the barrel, always check the stock screws for good tightness, and check the breech for good sealing, before tearing into it.  A sheet of tissue (laid on the joint) will blow off, if it leaks.  These items are easy and cheap,,,but often overlooked.   
After you clean the barrel, shoot a tin to break it in again and don't be tooo particular about groups until you have a few hundred down the barrel.  (Edit:  you'll be "re-leading" the barrel, to fill small areas. This is a good thing).   You may also find that your rifle has an appetite for a different pellet now.  Not uncommon with any air rifle, after it is broken-in.

[avator]

Strange things happen to airguns when nobody is looking.... bumps, scratches and bruises that nobody wants to claim. They seem to jump off the gunrack all by themselves... I would almost beleive that but, they jump back on by themselves too. They sit in a corner for 3 days, then decide to fall over and not a soul went near it.... just sayin...