Tune?'s

[750k2]

Are there any loose rules as to performance from a tune?
I've read fps can go up or down but is it the same for all classes of rifles?
I have an R7 and really don't want to give any speed up but would like it
smoother and a little quieter.
Do magnum and light powered rifles react the same?

[Rob Hawkins]

Lower powered airguns are affected more than higher powered guns by alterations. But it doesn't mean you will lose much if any velocity if they are tuned properly.
Velocity is the very last thing that is important on a chronograph. In fact, it's almost meaningless.
Do the math here... How long is your pellet in flight at let's say 50 yards? Probably 1/4 second maybe. Now figure the difference in flight time of a pellet traveling at 550 fps and one traveling at 650 fps. The difference is milliseconds at the same distance!
The numbers that actually mean something in a chronograph are Extreme Spread and Standard Deviation. These numbers show how consistent your rifle is shooting. They are the important numbers and you never see them posted on the side of an airgun carton or ad.
When I first started tuning my TX200 rifles, after the tune they sounded like pop guns, the shot cycle was super smooth and I was making great groups at 75 yards. Everything was pure bliss... until I pulled out the chronograph.
OH CRAP!!! I lost 75 fps. THIS IS TERRIBLE!!!
So I went back in, loosened everything up and got the velocity back up to where it was. And I also got the noise back, I got the rough shot cycle back and the accuracy fell off dramatically.
A target doesn't care if it gets hit at 600 fps or 900 fps. You want the pellet to shoot the same velocity each time so it follows the same flight path. A squirrel doesn't care if you hit him at 600 fps or 900 fps. He just wants to be hit in the vital organ you're aiming at so he dies with the first shot.
Muzzle velocity is a bunch of hogwash that sells airguns to the misinformed. Just ask some of the guys on this forum why they hunt with an R7 or HW50S instead of a 350 Magnum.
Consistency and accuracy is the name of the game in tuning an airgun.
HTH
Rob

[Parallax]

Amen, I'll take a super tame, smooth, short, quick shot cycle and lock time with an extreme spread of 8-11 fps and a standard deviation of 1-2 all day long over high power, high velocity. Dime groups at 50 yrds with much more ease is where it's at.

[Bullshooter]

Ok, I tried to reply to this post around 8:30 central time this morning but the site would not update my post so I copied & pasted the text into a word document to save for later. Well, it's later and here is what I wrote:

I bought an R7 Standard (same as Double Gold, minus the scope) and shot about 500 pellets through it. The gun was smooth, the trigger was a typical Rekord factory set, the usual small amount of internal noise and typical R7 accuracy. I sent it to Rob Hawkins for a full tune and you can go to his website to learn more about the work he does - http://www.springguntunes.com/default.htm. Rob gave me specific instructions to follow before taking my first post-tune shot. "Keep your finger off the trigger until you are on target". He wasn't kidding. I could not believe how much better the trigger was compared to stock. I thought to myslef that no trigger could be this good and promptly reloaded for another shot. After the second shot a big smile appeared on my face and I knew right there I was going to really like this gun. I shot the R7 quite a bit more that day and started to pay more attention to the noise, or lack of it. Instead of the twang & buzz that is common with spring guns, it made a solid "thunk" with seemingly less recoil. Needless to say, I'm totally impressed with Rob's work and the way my "new" R7 shoots. Cocking the gun is so much more smooth now, too and makes it more enjoyable to use.

The whole idea behind a tune is to make the gun more consistent. For example, if you gun is shooting a particular pellet at 575 fps average but the high is 592 and the low is 570, then there is not much consistency between shots and the pellets may have a different poi from shot to shot. However if tuning the gun tightens up the numbers, let's say down to 573-577fps for the same pellet, then the gun will shoot more accurately due to lower extremes between high & low spread in fps. Now I ask you, if you lost 10fps but gained more accuracy, which would you prefer? Think of it this way - a hit & kill at 800fps is way better than a miss at 1200fps, isn't it???

I only have experience with tunes from Rob Hawkins but there are some other great tuners out there. David Slade & Paul Watts come to mind. Do some searching around the forums and you'll find posts regarding tuners and the work they do. Another factor to consider it turn-around time. Rob is about a week to 10 days. Again, I can't comment about other tuners so do your due dilligence first.

HTH,

Bullshooter

[Dave@vabch]

Rob, you really said that with great eloquence. Well done.

dave@vabch