|
................................................................................
After reading a bunch of articles
about the TXmyself. But what to -200 I thought I might want to get into
the act write about?
The history has been covered, as was all the models from the factory and
otherwise. So, I quickly looked through some of the old magazines that
are in my archives for what I could cover in an article. I did notice
the .22 caliber was not covered in any length. So, since I do some work
for Top Gun Airguns I requested to cover the TX-200 in .22 and the
TX-200HC (hunting carbine) also in .22. At first I thought I was going
to compare them to my TX-200 in .177 with a bazmek tune from T.G.A.G.
but that is comparing apples and oranges. The two rifles on loan are
right out of the box, no tuning or alterations. The HC did have a barrel
insert already installed to make it more pleasant to shoot in an indoor
range. Velocities are an average of 10 shots using a Chrony chronograph
set two feet from the muzzle. Here is an important note, The energy
rating was two foot pounds less than the brochure that comes from Air
Arms. But experienced shooters will tell you the velocity and energy
will increase a little when the rifle has a number of shots through it.
The rifles were taken out of the box. Both rifles were shot for accuracy
at 25 yards simply because that is the most convenient distance I have
available. Pellet selection is also the most convenient on hand
but
the JSB. pellets were donated by T.G.A.G. I included some pointed
pellets to the assortment since this caliber is used for hunting. Hollow
point type pellets were omitted since I do not have any at my disposal.
However, flat point or match were included since it is my opinion they
are more accurate with the same function as the hollow point pellets.
All testing was done from the bench with the rifle resting on my left
hand between the stock and the sandbags. Scope is a Simmons 6-18x40 and
it was used on both rifles to keep some continuity between the rifle
accuracy. The scope was set at the highest magnification for all the
shots.
Usually I shoot 10 round groups
to show consistency and I believe it also shows the accuracy of the
rifle better than the 5 round groups. But to ease the group measurement
I shot two five shot groups with each brand of pellet. The best group
for each rifle is is shown.
|
................................... |
Crossman Premier.--14.3gr.
JSB EXACT----------16.0gr.
Crossman Pointed---14.3gr.
Meisterkugeln -------13.9gr
JSB Jumbo ------------16.0gr.
H&N Match-----------13.7gr.
Wasp RWS------------14.5gr.
Superpoint-------------14.5gr.
|
(TX-200 HC)
.726
.516
.636
.589
.387
.746
.536
.671 |
(TX-200)
.626
.428
.532
...466
.371
.854
.582
.568 |
,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, |
The biggest surprise came from the Crossman
Premier pellets. They were the tightest in the bore. In fact they were a
downright pain to force into the barrel. I am not sure what to make of
it. The lot is from die #1 made in October of 1998.
Also surprising were the H&N Match that did not group at all when the
other two match type grouped very well. But then again, I have had
problems with other rifles and pistols with that pellet. Wasp was again
very consistent if not the best group.
Superpoint seemed to give the most strung out groups. They for some
reason shoot one on top of the other to make almost vertical strings. A
pellet my brother termed "worthless." I on the other hand find some use
in them. The targets I prefer are half inch circles with a simple cross
in them spaced one half inch apart from the outside circle. The reason I
mentioned this is, the rifles were sighted in using Premier Crossman.
The scope was not re-zeroed for every pellet; just left alone. Some
groups were more than an inch from the circle I was shooting at and
high. For example JSB Exact, a round nose weighing in at 16 grains, shot
low of center but only about a pellet width from the C.P. with which it
was sighted in with. The JSB Jumbo, a flat head match also with the same
weight, shot a full inch to the right and quarter inch high. So keep in
mind if you change pellets, re-sight in the rifle, even if the pellet
may look the same. That tendency was even more pronounced for the
hunting carbine than the full TX but not by much. Could be the barrels'
length of 7 inch for the hunting carbine vs. 14 inches for the standard
TX has something to do with it. But just as with any airgun it is only a
guess, or an observation. Expect all figures to vary with your rifle.
Even the pellet it favors.
Now for some subjective observations. The hunting carbine ,while it
seems to be lighter it is not. It is the same weight as the standard
rifle but it could be handier in the hunting field. Energy also varied
some from the brochure but they will come up when some more shots go
through them. Now for the best kept sercret, T.G.A.G. not only handles
the warranty work, it has parts and will do tunes for accuracy. The
tunes are relatively cheap and make a huge difference in vibration and
shootability of the rifle. Either rifle is worth a tune and it will make
it more accurate because it does take out the vibration making it much
less sensitive to your hold. For those that prefer the .22 it is hard to
go wrong with either the TX-200HC or the TX-200.
 |