A couple of years ago I received this rifle in a trade. The search for a nice MK1 (absence of anti-bear trap device: only one clean cutout on stock for the loading port and a 'notchless' compression cylinder, short stroke of 82mm, muzzle brake) spanned over a decade and I was glad to have found exactly what I was looking for!
The rifle was stripped down and inspected. Nothing stood out, but the OEM piston seal had hardened over time and use, and the breech seal O-rings were flattened. V-Mach internals were installed and I remembered thinking how it was more sensitive to varying depth of JSB 8.4 pellet seating over the chronograph compared to other similarly powered rifles (around 11fpe). But to be fair, the tuning kit & seal were fresh; the rifle felt a little lungy which I knew from experience to be attributed to the high friction V-Mach seal which hasn't yet bedded.
Fast forward to the present and she's a different animal: steel rear guide machined into the trigger housing block, custom Titanium lightweight piston with head machined to accept an HW seal, delrin linear bearings on piston fore & aft, PFTE piston liner, compression tube with widended transfer port and jeweled finish, shortened Titan spring with polished ends and delrin top-hat, Custom Air Seal HW 25mm parachute grooved seal. Work done by Paul Short.
Shoots very nice, and so far H&N FTT's (4.52 mm) have left me smiling the most. Tighter fit than what I consider usually ideal but the rules changed with the new tune specs. 11.5 fpe on the money.
Here's a couple pics I snapped of this beauty while on the mountain:
The period Tasco 4-14X40 gloss (Japan made) is the perfect crown to this ensemble, I think!
A parting thought: To irreversibly modify a classic and discontinued spring gun such as a TX200 MK1 and transform it into a "race gun" is blasphemous. A spare MK1 compression tube and trigger housing block were used for this project, so the rifle can be returned to its original state when desired.
Thanks for letting me share,
Jonathan
The rifle was stripped down and inspected. Nothing stood out, but the OEM piston seal had hardened over time and use, and the breech seal O-rings were flattened. V-Mach internals were installed and I remembered thinking how it was more sensitive to varying depth of JSB 8.4 pellet seating over the chronograph compared to other similarly powered rifles (around 11fpe). But to be fair, the tuning kit & seal were fresh; the rifle felt a little lungy which I knew from experience to be attributed to the high friction V-Mach seal which hasn't yet bedded.
Fast forward to the present and she's a different animal: steel rear guide machined into the trigger housing block, custom Titanium lightweight piston with head machined to accept an HW seal, delrin linear bearings on piston fore & aft, PFTE piston liner, compression tube with widended transfer port and jeweled finish, shortened Titan spring with polished ends and delrin top-hat, Custom Air Seal HW 25mm parachute grooved seal. Work done by Paul Short.
Shoots very nice, and so far H&N FTT's (4.52 mm) have left me smiling the most. Tighter fit than what I consider usually ideal but the rules changed with the new tune specs. 11.5 fpe on the money.
Here's a couple pics I snapped of this beauty while on the mountain:
The period Tasco 4-14X40 gloss (Japan made) is the perfect crown to this ensemble, I think!
A parting thought: To irreversibly modify a classic and discontinued spring gun such as a TX200 MK1 and transform it into a "race gun" is blasphemous. A spare MK1 compression tube and trigger housing block were used for this project, so the rifle can be returned to its original state when desired.
Thanks for letting me share,
Jonathan
