Benjamin Trail NP - Barrel Needs Frequent Cleanings to Stay Accurate

jSan22 · June 11, 2013, 03:02:46 AM

Quote from: geo111 on June 11, 2013, 02:47:44 AM
Unfortunately the weather here in South Central Pennsylvania wasn't conducive for shooting. Hopefully tomorrow will be better.

My thanks to everyone who stayed on topic and offered constructive insights and questions.

One question for the unfortunate owners of this pistol; when I shoot it, should I use an artillery style grip?

if its even possible, you could try giving it a light grip. that way, you focus your muscles on keeping it in your hand instead of squeezing the life out of it. maybe asking for a replacement barrel?
nothing wrong with going off topic and having a good laugh. crosman should be smothered with complaints about This pistol by now!

geo111 · June 12, 2013, 02:43:28 AM

Sorry, no pictures yet. My friend could not get free in time to do any shooting tonight. We will shoot for tomorrow.

I, on the other hand, had a great time testing different head sizes of H&N FTT with my 1701P. I'm happy to say that my 1701P does not have accuracy problems with these pellets.

breakfastchef · June 12, 2013, 02:46:36 AM

Quote from: geo111 on June 12, 2013, 02:43:28 AM
I, on the other hand, had a great time testing different head sizes of H&N FTT with my 1701P. I'm happy to say that my 1701P does not have accuracy problems with these pellets.

I should hope not! Curious why you are using domed pellets in a target pistol? Nothing wrong with that, just that wadcutters are perfect for paper punching duty.

geo111 · June 12, 2013, 03:16:18 AM

I haven't found a wadcutter that shoots as well as these H&N FTT domes. The groups I get with the FTT are pretty good. I'll start another thread and post some pictures.

-George.

jSan22 · June 12, 2013, 06:38:33 AM

those economy pellets they offer seem like pretty good pellets...

Fronzdan · June 12, 2013, 07:14:19 AM

The 1701 is not at all pellet picky. You should do fine with Meisterkugeln wadcutters. I often use JSB exacts with great success. Also got great groups with the h&n FTTs as you do. I might try RWS Hobby wadcutters if I ever come across some. I have a tin of .22s but they don't shoot we'll in any .22 I have. They are very clean and uniform though.

geo111 · June 13, 2013, 03:00:44 AM

I shot the Trail NP tonight, at 50 feet, using the boxed Crosman Premiers. The best groups that I could get were about 2.5", center to center.

I did not have enough time to see if the group size degraded as the gun was shot.

The local weather is supposed to be bad tomorrow, we'll pick back up when it clears.

breakfastchef · June 13, 2013, 03:31:15 AM

Perhaps the gun may only shoot reasonably well at a shorter distance. Keep playing and posting.

Quote from: geo111 on June 13, 2013, 03:00:44 AM
I shot the Trail NP tonight, at 50 feet, using the boxed Crosman Premiers. The best groups that I could get were about 2.5", center to center.

I did not have enough time to see if the group size degraded as the gun was shot.

The local weather is supposed to be bad tomorrow, we'll pick back up when it clears.

ajhuff · June 13, 2013, 07:46:32 PM

Perhaps it is a 5m gun?

I bought mine in May and really have not had any problems with it. I've only had air guns for a year so I'm not sure my expectations are the same as others. I own a stock 2240 and 2300. It's not as good as those and I never thought it would be. It's not as good as my own built .177 that I finished this week. It's not as good as my Hatsan Supercharger.

I have not seen any issues with the sights. My rear sight is not loose. My first shots are tighter but I wobble a lot more as I get to my 15th shot and I attribute my extra scatter to that. It's a long heavy gun and I'm shaky to start with.

I'll put more rounds through it and see if it gets worse but I really can't complain. I bought it because I thought there was something special about "nitro piston" 9I'm a marketing sucker) and I just wanted to try another brand. I don't know if Benjamin is supposed to be a lateral brand to Crosman or a step up or down. I guess if I was used to Fords and thought I bought a Lincoln I'd be upset but I was thinking I bought a Mercury.

How good should this gun be? And by that I mean, doesn't a break barrel, piston type gun that is long and heavy naturally not shoot as tightly as say a 2300?

I will say that the trigger on mine absolutely sucks. Best I can describe it is mushy. I do think that plays a lot into some of my errant shots. Perhaps the OP isn't seeing an effect from cleaning but a combination of hand/arm fatigue and bad trigger? Putting the gun down to clean it kind of resets the clock? What happens to the scatter if you just alternate shooters instead of cleaning?

Just some thoughts from a very inexperienced shooter.

-AJ