Setting up my BR rig from the scope down, starting with a March 48 x 52mm fixed power scope. Now I need the rifle.
Looking at dedicated BR rifles from Thomas ($3500), MAC 1 ($2700), and RAW ($2200).
Would appreciate any advice from experienced BR shooters who have either shot some or all of these rifles and can weigh in, or perhaps suggest another rig. Cost not an object.
Also not decided on caliber...I realize .177 is a go-to, but larger calibers might make a real difference when the wind kicks up, although it would limit the events I could participate in.
do you know which class you wish to shoot in ? light varmint at 12fpe , heavy varmint at 20fpe, open at 35fpe or unlimited at anything as long as it is .177, .20 or 22 cal ?
i have all 3 of the guns you are considering and the Thomas shoots the most accurate then the regulated USFT shoots the next most accurate and the RAW which i love and wish i could get to shoot better is 3ed all 3 have polygon barrels in heavy varmint
Posted by: MarineO6
Setting up my BR rig from the scope down, starting with a March 48 x 52mm fixed power scope. Now I need the rifle.
Looking at dedicated BR rifles from Thomas ($3500), MAC 1 ($2700), and RAW ($2200).
Would appreciate any advice from experienced BR shooters who have either shot some or all of these rifles and can weigh in, or perhaps suggest another rig. Cost not an object.
Also not decided on caliber...I realize .177 is a go-to, but larger calibers might make a real difference when the wind kicks up, although it would limit the events I could participate in.
Probably heavy varmiint or open, was considering bumping up the caliber to .20 or .22, but it appears most of the recent winners in those classes are using .177 so I figured that would work the best based on results.
Thanks...according to Mike that’s an older model, IIRC the newer ones have more updated trigger. Plus the price of a new one was about the same so I ordered one from Mike today. 3 month wait. Meh.
At the 25M and 50 yd sanctioned match at Salticon's last weekend, RAWs took first, second, and third places in both classes, over two Thomases. But the guy pulling the trigger makes a big difference too.
I use a TM, thumbhole stock for BR. It has a poly barrel and does quite well for me. My highest score was a 748-53X. I'm having trouble understanding the need for BR stocks. I attached a Sinclair adapter plate to the front accessory rail and the rear of the stock fits nicely on the sandbag. It has a Sightron S3 10-50X60 FCH scope. I must give honor to my most accurate rifle, though. It's my RAW HM1000 .177 cal bottle gun. It was built by Martin to shoot LV at 12 FPE.
I've had two different USFT rifles that I used in benchrest, for both LV and HV when I used to shoot with the NFSA in Yulee, FL. They are fantastic guns, and very adjustable, and I usually did quite well. Then the RAWs started showing up, and those are impressive! If I hadn't of moved back west, without a nearby club, I would be shooting one of those now.
I've had two different USFT rifles that I used in benchrest, for both LV and HV when I used to shoot with the NFSA in Yulee, FL. They are fantastic guns, and very adjustable, and I usually did quite well. Then the RAWs started showing up, and those are impressive! If I hadn't of moved back west, without a nearby club, I would be shooting one of those now.
I'd go with a BM500 in .22. I have one and it shoots dime size groups at 65 yds and that's only with a 20x scope on it. Shooting 16 grain jsbs at 835 fps for 75 shots off a fill from 500cc bottle
My HM1000 in 25 will shoot sub MOA at 50 yards and right at MOA at 100 yards in calm conditions. I have yet to test it indoors at 100, but I'd bet it would consistently shoot sub MOA groups at 100 yards indoors. Mine was tuned by Martin to shoot right at 40 FPE for maximum accuracy which is great in calm conditions, but I think it would shoot a little better in the wind with a bit higher velocity and the resulting flatter trajectory. In any case it's the most accurate airgun I've owned by far.
What makes one of these rifles more accurate than another except for the barrel, velocity consistency, and the trigger?
David Enoch
Why, the nut behind the butt plate of course! I don't know if you have any 10m match guns David but they all come with a test target, shot from a machine rest so no human. I've never seen one that didn't look like a single .177 size hole that 10 pellets went through. When I got my Indy, I shot some groups with the hallowed JSBs and was pretty disappointed with the results. Long story short but many changes (mostly my shooting technique) and I'm very happy with the gun. You already know all this, you're a very experienced shooter. I get such a kick of of the "buy this one, I have it and it's the best" responses, once the variables you listed are nailed down, it's how the shooter interacts with the gun and it's different for every shooter and every gun. Shooting is not a static operation, it's dynamic and tiny things like trigger overtravel can make a significant difference to different shooters just because of their technique. I think finding the right match for the shooter is half the fun but I'm a geek and a tinkerer so analyzing what's happening is fun for me but as I've learned from most of my posts, (like trying to explain why setting regulator pressure at the natural velocity peak of the valve/striker setup results in the smallest shot to shot variation) it's a small fraction of the community that shares my interest. Differnt strokes I guess, hope you're doing well!