AirMaks Arms Katran Compact in Depth

[WI_Hedgehog]

As a news update, Airmaks Arms plans on publishing the Katran manual on their website.



The Katran arrived but I'm only at the shooting range 1-2 times per month, so until I can get some lead through it (which I'm anxious to do) I'll provide the back story and initial impressions for those who want it, and an index for those who want to skip to the meaty part of testing when that's available.



INDEX

Background

• So I Wanted An Airgun
• Love At First Sight
• It's... So... Small

The Katran

• Going To School

So I Wanted An Airgun



Actually, I wanted three airguns:

• a really powerful, reliable long-range big-bore
• a really powerful, reliable mid-range mid-caliber
• and a really powerful, reliable, fun, short-range mid-caliber

(it's almost like there's a theme going on)



And everything had to be accurate.



I had the first two managed and was looking for a solution to the third. Here's the short-list:

• Reliable. You can't play with a toy if it's broken.
• Accurate. The weak link in hitting the target should be the shooter.
• Fun. If it's not fun, it's going to sit in the closet, alone, in the dark.
• Powerful. Because nobody likes their portable fun-gun being one-upped.
• Compact. Easy to carry, easy to aim, easy to shoot.
• Sexy. C'mon, who doesn't want this?

I didn't want to spend my free time endlessly tuning a gun, replacing o-rings, trying to find a leak (oh, I hate that), wondering if I or the gun missed the shot, snagging a long barrel on stuff, or shooting a wild critter in the head only to have it chase me down and pay back the favor.



Needless to say there was pretty extensive list of guns that got close to those goals but fell a little short in some areas, and when I'd finally settled on a gun that was the best fit I later wound up crossing it off the list for something better, at least until one gun managed to stay on the list for about six weeks, at which point I started making plans to buy it and kit it out.



Then I won a gun I'd never heard of, yet on paper seemed to be everything I wanted. Thus started the story of the Katran.

 

[Michael]

I enjoy reading your posts. Looking forward to your opinion of the Katran CB!

-Michael

 

[TMH]

My first Katran was purchased used last May. It didn't come with a manual, but I attributed that to being a used gun purchase.

I emailed AirMaks Arms at the email listed in the 'Contact' tab on their web site: [email protected]

Even with the time differences, they responded maybe within 1-2 hours, providing me a link to an on-line downloadable manual. Every time I have emailed a question to AirMaks Arms, they have responded quickly and thoroughly. This is so very much appreciated from a vendor or manufacturer!

The manual they linked me to was dated Dec 2020, so it has likely been updated by now (with the new folding stocks and all). I can't figure out how to link to it here since it is a PDF attachment to an email.

But my bottom line is if you have questions about any AirMaks gun - features, tuning, servicing, documentation - email AirMaks Arms and you will likely get a quick and highly usable response from them.

 

[WI_Hedgehog]

Love At First Sight



I'd almost not entered the AirGun Nation contest but something prompted me to take a look, and...wow, what a great looking gun. I actually saved the page for reference for buiding up my next gun--it looked that good.



I was responding to Private Messages the day of the drawing and checked the For Sale threads when I saw the Katran Winner thread pop into the list, at that point only the random number was announced so I read the rest of the interesting For Sale listings. While responding to another PM an Administrative Notice slid into my inbox and I'd wondered what forum rule I could have possibly violated.



Then I read it.



Then I read it again.



It's pretty hard to describe the utter amazement of a guy who somehow can't seem to win a dollar on a lottery ticket and then finds himself in this situation.



I don't know what you'd do in this circumstance, but I want back to the contest to re-read every word, which I did, several times. Eventually I remembered I need to answer the administrative e-mail and actually claim the prize.

(index)

 

[WI_Hedgehog]

It's... So... Small



After spending the holidays in sub-freezing temperatures and snow, waiting for the deer and squirrels to clear off the shooting range and allow me to sling some lead (to which cause several hundred pellets lost their lives), the guys at AirGun Nation sent a message they had boxed up the Katran and arranged for shipping. Somehow, yet to my amazement, it arrived...like...immediately.

The first thing I noticed was, "The cardboard box is really quite small. They must have shipped it with the stock folded." That's one of the great features of this gun, the stock folds and is held by a magnetic catch.

Of course it was boxed in typical Utah Airguns fashion, meaning double-boxed around the box, which in this case is a hard case.

At which point I noticed, "The case is really small. And quite stylish. That gun folds well..."

The case is light, like most cases that ship with a gun from the manufacturer, though well-made and fairly sturdy, definitely enough to get the job done well. Four slide latches hold the case closed and are pretty easy to open and re-latch without any cheap feel or roughness. All-in-all it's very nice and certainly above average.

So I open the case and wow, the Katran is far better looking in person. (and small)

Mind you, I wanted something small, so small is good. Though...I wasn't quite prepared for "that small."

Then I picked it up--you've got to experience this to appreciate it, this gun is solid. Small just became sexy.

(index)

 

[MikeVV]

If it's like their two Caiman's, yes, solid, is a good word. So is well designed, accurate.



Mike

 

[Guest]

Well, I was looking for a truck gun to build. I just got rid of my long katran bottle gun. Now I may have to buy one of these.

 

[WI_Hedgehog]

Going To School



"Boring" is what made many of us dread History Class. "Exciting" is what made the History Channel hundreds of millions of dollars by essentially presenting the same material. If you want boring, don't get the Katran.



Let's start with the elephant in the room: the looks. Some people justifiably love classic wooden stocks with no finger hole, and there's not much convincing them to try something new--for good reason: they know the prone position has many, many advantages and a wood stock works perfectly for that, and any other shooting position. They detest standing up like a gopher to aim at a target, and when your target shoots back that's sound reasoning.



In the other camp are those who like "black guns," a military-style platform that allows stuff to be stuck to it easily, and removed just as easily. The complexity and cost are justified by form and function, making it a fast, adaptable gun.



With that understanding the criteria I'm going to use for evaluating the Katran is:

• Reliable, accurate guns are hard enough to make when they're simple, therefore anything additional should add to the functionality with as little negative impact as possible.

Fortunately AirMaks did an excellent job in this department, because it's a lot more fun to read about a gun that does things well than discuss what needs improvement.



If you like black guns this one should wow you, it looks even better in person; if you judge them pretty harshly this one may still fit the bill as it brings a lot to the table.



The next section will have an overview of the Katran, and following sections will go into detail so you can skip to what's important to you.

Release the lock and it folds, as if it wasn't small enough already:

You know how airgun videos are starting to have "models" hold the gun to make it look sexy?
No "model" needed:

(index)

 

[Guest]

Waiting for chrono numbers and shot groups.... 

 

[WI_Hedgehog]

Hi everyone, a quick update:

I had several compressor issues and needed to get that sorted to keep testing out the Katran. As such, writing about the Kat and authoring of the Yong Hang Shop Manual was put on hold. I bought two more 60-minute tanks and the overhauled air system filled four tanks to 4,000 PSI mainly without issue, more parts are on the way.

What I can say so far is it's a tack-driver at 30 yards, shredding the X and 10 rings on a 20-yard target placed at 30 yards--so good I'm working with a few pellet manufacturers to see what works best and do an in-depth pellet review. That necessitated getting new inspection equipment and setting it up for a level of high-confidence which took a bit of time, but it really, really is awesome compared to the old setup.

During this time I also developed spreadsheets for logging compressor runs and inspecting pellets. The compressor sheet is stable and probably ready for release, if anyone is interested in beta testing it send me a Private Message. The pellet inspection spreadsheet is pretty well fleshed out but needs more development.

Back to the Katran, there have been a few unexpected results that were 100% worked through thanks to the great engineering team at AirMaks. I have radar logs, though with the compressor issues haven't had time to review them in depth. So far muzzle velocity looks like 788 FPS with a +/-5 FPS variance when using light pellets,

I've also had a chance to explore how to make the Katran backyard friendly. From the factory it has two highly effective baffles that significantly cut the sharpness of the report. Without the baffles my opinion is it's unpleasant to be the shooter without hearing protection, and far worse as the spotter--like "painful." With the baffles being the shooter is fine though it is loud; I don't want to be a spotter without earpro though. The great news is the Kat can be made to be super backyard friendly--more on that to come.

If you're on the fence as to buy one or not and need a quick answer: buy one. I can't wait to share with you how much fun I've had with this gun.

 

[electricsig]

Hi everyone, a quick update:

I had several compressor issues and needed to get that sorted to keep testing out the Katran. As such, writing about the Kat and authoring of the Yong Hang Shop Manual was put on hold. I bought two more 60-minute tanks and the overhauled air system filled four tanks to 4,000 PSI mainly without issue, more parts are on the way.

What I can say so far is it's a tack-driver at 30 yards, shredding the X and 10 rings on a 20-yard target placed at 30 yards--so good I'm working with a few pellet manufacturers to see what works best and do an in-depth pellet review. That necessitated getting new inspection equipment and setting it up for a level of high-confidence which took a bit of time, but it really, really is awesome compared to the old setup.

During this time I also developed spreadsheets for logging compressor runs and inspecting pellets. The compressor sheet is stable and probably ready for release, if anyone is interested in beta testing it send me a Private Message. The pellet inspection spreadsheet is pretty well fleshed out but needs more development.

Back to the Katran, there have been a few unexpected results that were 100% worked through thanks to the great engineering team at AirMaks. I have radar logs, though with the compressor issues haven't had time to review them in depth. So far muzzle velocity looks like 788 FPS with a +/-5 FPS variance when using light pellets,

I've also had a chance to explore how to make the Katran backyard friendly. From the factory it has two highly effective baffles that significantly cut the sharpness of the report. Without the baffles my opinion is it's unpleasant to be the shooter without hearing protection, and far worse as the spotter--like "painful." With the baffles being the shooter is fine though it is loud; I don't want to be a spotter without earpro though. The great news is the Kat can be made to be super backyard friendly--more on that to come.

If you're on the fence as to buy one or not and need a quick answer: buy one. I can't wait to share with you how much fun I've had with this gun.

Hi everyone, a quick update:

I had several compressor issues and needed to get that sorted to keep testing out the Katran. As such, writing about the Kat and authoring of the Yong Hang Shop Manual was put on hold. I bought two more 60-minute tanks and the overhauled air system filled four tanks to 4,000 PSI mainly without issue, more parts are on the way.

What I can say so far is it's a tack-driver at 30 yards, shredding the X and 10 rings on a 20-yard target placed at 30 yards--so good I'm working with a few pellet manufacturers to see what works best and do an in-depth pellet review. That necessitated getting new inspection equipment and setting it up for a level of high-confidence which took a bit of time, but it really, really is awesome compared to the old setup.

During this time I also developed spreadsheets for logging compressor runs and inspecting pellets. The compressor sheet is stable and probably ready for release, if anyone is interested in beta testing it send me a Private Message. The pellet inspection spreadsheet is pretty well fleshed out but needs more development.

Back to the Katran, there have been a few unexpected results that were 100% worked through thanks to the great engineering team at AirMaks. I have radar logs, though with the compressor issues haven't had time to review them in depth. So far muzzle velocity looks like 788 FPS with a +/-5 FPS variance when using light pellets,

I've also had a chance to explore how to make the Katran backyard friendly. From the factory it has two highly effective baffles that significantly cut the sharpness of the report. Without the baffles my opinion is it's unpleasant to be the shooter without hearing protection, and far worse as the spotter--like "painful." With the baffles being the shooter is fine though it is loud; I don't want to be a spotter without earpro though. The great news is the Kat can be made to be super backyard friendly--more on that to come.

If you're on the fence as to buy one or not and need a quick answer: buy one. I can't wait to share with you how much fun I've had with this gun.

Did you ever find a way to make the Katran quiet?