Yessir it was still factory centered, I check all my scopes out of the box a couple turret revolutions to make sure they arent maxed out. Rings are always torqued to spec using my Wheeler Fatwrench according to both ring and scope manufacturer. I also use feeler gauges to make sure I am torqueing the caps evenly. I was able to zero the new scope within 4-5 pellets, tracking perfect according to turret specs. Shot one group of 5 for accuracy, was really excited my new Gamo was looking great. Second group for accuracy wondered several inches with each shot. The recoil actually broke the windage erector assembly, and was returned for store credit. Right now I have an SWFA fixed 10x on it and have shot almost a whole tin through it with no loss of zero. That is after a handful of other scopes fell apart on top of this thing. And the reality is I am not special, springers have been dismantling scopes for longer than I have been alive. My theory is the magnum spring/piston guns will break pretty much any scope with enough use cycles.
The most common failure is the wire style reticles in a break barrel pellet rifle. A lot of them are glued in place up against a reinforcement that is designed to push the reticle against the stop under recoil. The glue is just to keep it in one position while the physical stop takes all the force. Now introduce recoil in the opposite direction and the glue is the thing taking all the force of inertia under recoil. Etched reticles are a much better option, but the rest of the delicate internals are all subject to the same issue. Recoil in the direction opposite of a powder burner. There is a reason virtually all scope manufactures that used to be springer rated are no longer. Leupold being the classic example. They used to market their scopes as springer rated and lifetime warranty, now mounting on a spring/piston pellet rifle will technically void your warranty. And if you read the fine print to most manufactures scopes that are "Airgun Rated" they explicitly state not for use in spring/piston guns.
If vibration is tough on scopes no AR would be able to keep one together. There is a pogo-stick in the buffer tube lol. If you have the time you should check out some slow-mo video of powder burners flexing/vibrating during discharge. They are far more violent and extreme than your average airgun, but all the inertia from recoil is effectively in a single direction.
AoA.
