I have both Springers and PCP's. However, I've never used them in really cold weather. Have any of my fellow Air Gunners had any performance issues in cold weather? Be it condensation to the tank causing the ports to freeze etc?
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Cold Weather Performance - PCP / Springers
- Thread starter SonOfAGun
- Start date
Use my FX Dreamline mostly in the winter for starlings. I have shot when it is 20 degrees out for 3 hours with no issues. I have also shot my FWB124 when it was 20 degrees out and also had no issues.
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If you’re really worried about it, you could fasten disposable hand warmers to the bottle and mechanism.
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Up here in Canada it can get down to -20 ...-30 Celsius. A fair bit colder! I would assume a PCP would freeze up unless you climatized it ?
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Shoot all the time in the cold. Use did some target work after leaving my rifle and tank in my truck all day. Put in my truck at 0445 and went shooting at 1430. Believe the high was MAYBE around 13°. Rifle shot fine aside from losing some pressure..
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exactly what would freeze ? besides you i mean . cold or hot i usually let my gun sit for 15 minutes in the weather before i shoot .
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I haven't shot in really cold weather and it only occasionally gets below freezing here and usually not for a whole day. But if there isn't any lube in the area of the hammer (and I think that is the normal condition) then there isn't any lubricant to gum up. The valve should also be dry so I don't see why the gun would fail to function. I would expect velocity to be a little lower but I'm not sure that would even be the case if there is no lube to thicken. But my velocities do seem to go down a little at 50 degrees versus 90 degrees.
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You will want some kind of lubricant on the hammer, there are many dry lubricants you can use that work great. Or you can use a regular lubricant just use a little bit and make sure to only use a thin layer.
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I shot in the cold last year with my M3 and Maverick. Temps were in the high teens to mid 20’s. No issues at all. When I am going to shoot, the guns and the air bottles ride in the back of the truck so they are at outside temp when I start shooting. Does that help? I have no idea it just seemed a good idea to start shooting with the gun at the temp it would be operating at. I could be all wet on that but it makes sense to me.
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I have had no issues with target shooting in temperatures down into the mid 'teens for a few hours at a time. I actually like going to the range on those cold, snowy days too. The barrel, shroud and moderator tend to frost up, as does the gun where I'm breathing on it. The final air cylinder fill pressure needs to be lower than you'd normally fill it so when you take the gun back inside it doesn't over-pressurize the system when warming.
The true issues of a high pressure pneumatic would show up in extreme cold like you might get up in northern Canada. At extreme low temperatures the common installed o-rings are probably not rated that low so they may leak once moved due to lack of elasticity. The plastics would also be brittle, especially when hammered on. And if there is any grease on moving parts it may impede them to the point of throwing the shot off severely. You'd likely not see many critters to shoot and eat either. ;-)
The true issues of a high pressure pneumatic would show up in extreme cold like you might get up in northern Canada. At extreme low temperatures the common installed o-rings are probably not rated that low so they may leak once moved due to lack of elasticity. The plastics would also be brittle, especially when hammered on. And if there is any grease on moving parts it may impede them to the point of throwing the shot off severely. You'd likely not see many critters to shoot and eat either. ;-)
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I tuck warmers in a sock around my CO2 bottle when it get's "cold" in Cali. Like, 50F/10C. And my warmers are reusable, man, save the whales and all. Shoot the seals.
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The only issues I have had is with condensation build up on the barrel and moderator when shooting groups at the range in weather below 30 degrees. Bring a towel to wipe down the rifle after shooting. .30 calibers make a lot condensation.
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I set my field target rig (daystate wolverine) up in 68 degrees. Took it to a match and was shooting in 34 degrees. The gun was off until the temp hit 46ish degrees... wasn't the scope temp shift - seemed more mechanical - but i need to test this cold weather thing out, after all, metals contract in the cold and expand in the heat so things like a Harper Slingshot hammer or whatever may operate differently in the cold... dunno... wise ones please jump in. @Motorhead @Kerndtc etc... if ya know ya know... me not so much. :}
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My BRK Sniper XR safety gets very stiff in the cold.
Everything else works just like it should. I've tested that to -10ºF this past week.
Everything else works just like it should. I've tested that to -10ºF this past week.
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I only see this from mechanical and physics stand point.
As Temps drop, many lubricants thicken up with some becoming sticky = Drag & this includes lubes on the projectile.
Air density increases ... So, air getting pushed out ahead of projectile absorbs a tad bit of energy in the cold. Of course said projectile flying threw denser air will have a lower BC. Air being displaced by the hammer moving forward as well any vacuum on the backside also absorb a bit more energy.
Barrel bore in the cold will be ever so slightly smaller/tighter, as could be the bore hammer slides within.
IMO, if one tried to measure each potential effect, you likely could not, but it is still present & mentioned reasons ALL combined together you may very well find slight damped power output in the cold over warmer conditions.
Some AG's pending design, metals/materials made from, lubes used or not used could have near zero effect in the cold, while other may really show measurable deficit.
JMO ...
As Temps drop, many lubricants thicken up with some becoming sticky = Drag & this includes lubes on the projectile.
Air density increases ... So, air getting pushed out ahead of projectile absorbs a tad bit of energy in the cold. Of course said projectile flying threw denser air will have a lower BC. Air being displaced by the hammer moving forward as well any vacuum on the backside also absorb a bit more energy.
Barrel bore in the cold will be ever so slightly smaller/tighter, as could be the bore hammer slides within.
IMO, if one tried to measure each potential effect, you likely could not, but it is still present & mentioned reasons ALL combined together you may very well find slight damped power output in the cold over warmer conditions.
Some AG's pending design, metals/materials made from, lubes used or not used could have near zero effect in the cold, while other may really show measurable deficit.
JMO ...
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