Brocock Bantam Sniper HR Magnum .25 or .22

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Mikelo123

Member
Mar 24, 2017
1,381
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WA, United States
Hey Guys and Gals,

Ordering a Brocock Bantam Sniper HR Magnum and am on the fence on caliber.

Any owners out there that can chime in and help me out?

It will be a hunter so want to be able to reach out to 100 yards ethically and am leaning towards the .25 for the power but if the .22 shoots the redesigns well that might sway my opinion.

What pellets seem to be the most accurate etc.?

I am not a big slug guy outside of the Hybrids here and there so that is not really a big deal but if yours happens to shoot any well would be interested.

Appreciate it!!
 
Howdy Mike, I have mixed feelings about my Sniper HR Magnum .22. I do think that I'm in the minority here, but here is my take on the gun.

  • Quality, fit & finish: A- 
    Not much to complain about. It is a very well manufactured product.
  • Trigger: B+
    I have been able to adjust it to my liking quite easily (no disassembly required)
  • Reliability: D
    My gun had a firing valve leak and had to be sent back to AoA for repair. They were great to work with and also did a full reseal on the gun and replaced the barrel. I also experienced some pellet clipping issues with the original barrel. 
  • Regulator: A-
    The gun's velocities are VERY consistent. I'm only dinging it because it's a bit of an air hog for a .22
  • Accuracy: B
    The gun is designed for JSB Monsters and can shoot them VERY accurately (mine prefers Monster Redesigned) . I'm taking off some points here for two reasons; my original barrel was VERY fussy about being clean and while the replacement barrel seem to retain accuracy longer (400 pellets or so between cleanings), I am seeing some extreme POI changes when taking off and putting the barrel shroud back on again. I'm talking about not even hitting paper at 50 yards from a well-zero'd gun after doing this.
  • Handling: B
    This is probably the most comfortable gun I have ever shot off-hand but I'm knocking it down from an "A" due to the barrel length and the need to have a moderator on it now. The gun's original configuration with a barrel with a set back centering collar had a bit of a bark but in my yard was OK to shoot as-is. However, the new barrel with the centering collar at the end of the barrel is MUCH louder so a LDC is mandatory. This, plus a long barrel makes the gun unnecessarily long and really does take away from the appeal of platform.
  • Power: A-
    A 46 to 47 fpe out of a .22 air rifle is pretty respectable. It can easily push the JSB Monsters 900+ fps.
  • Ease of tuning: B
    While it has an externally adjustable regulator, you do need to remove the stock to get to the hammer spring adjuster AND the HS adjuster needs to be set with something like vibratite or it will change as you shoot the gun. (I would pick an external HS adjuster that locks over an externally adjustable regulator any day of the week). The external power adjuster (presumably a valve that constricts air flow) does have an impressive range. 

Do I think my experience is typical of the platform? Probably not... Most folks have had fewer "issues" than I have. I still think this gun has great potential. Maybe it's a matter of me finding the cleaning routine the barrel likes and maybe swapping LDCs to something more compact than the one I have now.
 
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It is not going to be as accurate as a Redwolf HP at 100 yards. It is an excellent up to 80 yard hunting gun. The one that won EBR wasn't a straight of the box gun.

A Daystate Safari 22 or 25, Redwolf HP 22 or Pulsar HP 22 or Renegade HP 22 or FX Impact 600mm or 700mm 22 or 25 no power plenum needed or Seneca Sumatra 500cc 22 or 25 long gun would be better suited.
 
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Thanks all for the comments and advise!!

It will only be a hunter and rarely are any shots over say 75 yards so sounds like it is more than capable...

mcoulter appreciate the detailed write up regarding your experience! Very good info on the noise level etc. as that was one of my questions so sounds like a good Huggett etc. is a requirement.

Now just gotta decide in .22 or .25.....

Anyone have any info on how the .25 shoots the 33.95?

Sounds like the .22 is designed for the Redesigns which doesn't surprise me as my DayState .22 guns all prefer that pellet almost exclusively.

Much appreciated!!


 
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The trigger can be modified no problem as I PMd you many months ago with the magnet mod. Plus the good ol Doctor here already got a taste of the upper end Daystate Redwolf HP that's why I chimed in on the Brocock. I recently bought 3 more Brocock's if that helps? Maybe I know just a little bit more Since I own all of the other guns I mentioned too???

Edited after taking a couple of deep breaths.


 
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Doctor, if you're only going to HUNT with it out to only 75 yards then even a regular 22 Sniper HR or a 22 Compatto would do just fine like the guns LLeon owns who posted very good 40 yard groups over the past 3 days of his shooting as posted in another thread above.

The Compatto is extremely light weight and well balanced and comfortable to carry and shoulder in comparison to the Sniper HR. I have 2 of them The Sniper I think I have 4 or 5 of them is way way way heavier if you are going walking far to hunt with in comparison. It feels like the stock had some lead built inside IMHO.
 
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The trigger can be modified no problem as I PMd you many months ago with the magnet mod. Plus the good ol Doctor here already got a taste of the upper end Daystate Redwolf HP that's why I chimed in on the Brocock. I recently bought 3 more Brocock's if that helps? Maybe I know just a little bit more Since I own all of the other guns I mentioned too???

Edited after taking a couple of deep breaths.

Click to expand...

YO, it’s all good, I wasn’t refuting you... just commenting. I understand you own a few... so no worries here.
 
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...My thought was then could turn the power down and shoot the 18 grain when we are not in need of 50 foot pounds...
Click to expand...

My experience is that the .22 sniper HP shoots the Monsters VERY accurately but other pellets are a mixed bag (actually they suck). I'm just about out of the Redesigned Monsters so I'm doing some more methodical testing at lower reg settings (vs. just turning down the power wheel) to see if I CAN get the JSB 18s to shoot well.

So far I think this gun is designed to be a on-trick-pony with the monsters.
 
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Would not surprise me.....

I know my RedWolf HP is 25.39 or nothing (if it is in the mood it does decent with others on lower power levels, haven't tried with the heliboard as yet.)...

My other DayState guns are .25 and for the most part the Kings are the most accurate followed by the 33.95.... Hoping with the HR Magnum the 33.95 would shoot great.....If it just does the Kings it seems like a waste of so much power.

Thanks!!!


 
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Would not surprise me.....

I know my RedWolf HP is 25.39 or nothing (if it is in the mood it does decent with others on lower power levels, haven't tried with the heliboard as yet.)...
Click to expand...



It seems kind of ironic that the pellet that comes in second to the Monster Redesigned 25.4 pellets (on high) are good old Crosman Hollow Points with the power adjuster on LOW. I think this combination was shooting at about 17 fpe (14.3 grains at 730 fps). This of course was on a still day!

:)
 
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If you have been shooting RW's you may be disappointed with the HR (bolt action)? Have you considered the XR (side lever)? I recently got a XR standard length and love it. I'm primarily a pigeon hunter and find the rifle to be plenty accurate out to 75 yards but I have yet to drop any beyond that. My FX's would reach out to 105 (longest kill) and I shoot Hades exclusively out of both brand rifles primarily to prevent the rare miss poking holes in barn roofs.

I was not thrilled with the Brocock out of the box trigger coming from FX's so I modified my trigger and posted a thread here somewhere in the PCP forum, documenting the procedure. Here is the link - https://www.airgunnation.com/topic/brocock-sniper-xr-trigger-job/

Others have mentioned the off hand balance and I concur that this is where the Sniper's really shine. When I purchased my first rifle I had picked up a Compatto bottle gun and loved the balance of that rifle but I just had to have a side lever so I went the FX route instead but I always remembered the "feel" of that gun and how it won me over. Then when Brocock released the XR platform I quickly jumped on board and have ZERO regrets for waiting. I know AOA are offering some really good deals on the bolt guns but they hinted that once they were gone the side lever would likely replace the bolt guns.
 
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