First PCP and the winner is.....(Update-Range data)

Jump to latest Follow Reply
Harv24

Harv24

Member
Jun 19, 2021
582
631
WI, United States
Thanks to all on this forum who's knowledge and experience I was able to tap into. I have been down the rabbit hole a lot in the last few weeks.... and today at lunch I ordered my first PCP,

The Benjamin Cayden in .22cal. Airguns of Arizona is running a special with free shipping. So I ordered the rifle and several tins of JSB's the variety pack and 500 of the Jumbo's.

I really went back and forth on what to get.. I looked hard at the Venturi... and the Origin. then I started thinking about spending more on an FX, then I bounced to the AirMaks Arms katran, and then the Kral Jumbo Puncher., can't tell you how many hours of review video's I've watched.... the South African guy.... the Guy with the White framed sunglasses... The Wisconsin Air gun guy...an on and on...

But when it came down to it, the Cayden hit the majority of my needs/wants.

- I wanted something for the basement for my 10 meter range in the dead of winter. So dialing back the power was a great feature.. 

- I knew I needed to hand pump at least for awhile so that was a consideration.

- I wanted a side charging lever and the Cayden seemed to have a really smooth one.

- I like a traditional rifle vs. a Bullpup and I will shoot paper more then I will hunt..

and it just had a nice overall look to it. and the way i figured, this was probably just the beginning of this sport for me, So I might as well start off with a good solid, well rounded rifle with a good stock and cut my teeth.... 

I have a Bushnell 4.5x18x40 scope and some medium rings and an Air pump I scored off Ebay. 

And a shout out to Air Guns of Arizona. They were super nice and helpful and I'm glad to give them the Business, There was a seller on Amazon (JBtools) selling them for $515. But they seemed sketchy and I wanted to buy my first PCP from someone reputable that would stand behind there product.



Now the waiting begins....
 
  • Like
Reactions: UCChris
Screenshot_20210630-180335.1625101431.jpg


Do yourself a favor and buy one of these for your hand pump. Buy some desiccant beads off Amazon and fill the inside with them with a small filter on each end. Sometimes you need to trim the filters to make room. It doesn't take much beads to work. After you pump it up a few times take the beads out and replace them with new ones. I pour my old beads in a pickle jar and save them up until I have a good amount and then put them in the oven on the lowest temp with the door cracked. This dries them out and they can be used again. It sounds like a pain but it's actually no big deal and will keep your gun bone dry and functioning properly. Welcome to the sport my friend. That gun is a great place to start. When you are ready for an improvement hopefully when your warranty expires I believe Troy hammer can tune that thing and make some serious improvements. I have heard that once he's done working on those kral guns that they are butter smooth and even more accurate than before. I believe that Benjamin uses kral guns to make the Cayden and just add thier proprietary stocks to them. That's why I think Troy can improve it. I could be wrong about that tho. At any rate welcome to the dark side my friend! 
 
  • Like
Reactions: UCChris
Upvote 0
Click to expand...

Screenshot_20210630-180335.1625101431.jpg


Do yourself a favor and buy one of these for your hand pump. Buy some desiccant beads off Amazon and fill the inside with them with a small filter on each end. Sometimes you need to trim the filters to make room. It doesn't take much beads to work. After you pump it up a few times take the beads out and replace them with new ones. I pour my old beads in a pickle jar and save them up until I have a good amount and then put them in the oven on the lowest temp with the door cracked. This dries them out and they can be used again. It sounds like a pain but it's actually no big deal and will keep your gun bone dry and functioning properly. Welcome to the sport my friend. That gun is a great place to start. When you are ready for an improvement hopefully when your warranty expires I believe Troy hammer can tune that thing and make some serious improvements. I have heard that once he's done working on those kral guns that they are butter smooth and even more accurate than before. I believe that Benjamin uses kral guns to make the Cayden and just add thier proprietary stocks to them. That's why I think Troy can improve it. I could be wrong about that tho. At any rate welcome to the dark side my friend!
Click to expand...

I bought one the same day I bought the pump. Good tip on the desiccant beads... I'll pick some up.
 
Upvote 0
Harv24

Congratulations! Sounds to me like you did it all the smart way. Watching videos, reading posts, asking questions, until you found the right fit for you, then scoring a deal with a reputable dealer. IMHO, you're the kind of member who "fits" best on our forum.

WM
Click to expand...

Thanks for the kind Words...

I'm pretty excited to start slinging lead... and now I'm saving up for a DonnyFL 
 
Upvote 0
You'll really like the Cayden. I recently went through a similar experience trying to pick between the Cayden or the Akela. I finally settled on the Akela then had to decide on .177 or .22. I went with the .22 this time. If I get another gun it will likely be a Cayden if they come out with it in .177. That series from Benjamin has looks above it price point. My Akela shoots JSB 15.89 very, very well with cloverleaf one hole groups at 30 yards. It shoots AA 18 gr. almost as well so far. I haven't tried the Crosman 14.3 gr. pellets yet for groups but my first 14.3gr. shot showed 1011 fps on the Crony & then dropped off to the high 990's. I got rained out on that shooting session before testing for groups. Your Cayden should be similar. I still have lots of .22 pellets & slugs that I purchased over the years to try. I just need the time and adequate weather conditions to coincide. Have fun & congratulations!

Paul
 
Upvote 0
Cayden.1625705717.jpg


Well, it showed up today. Pulled it out and gave it the once over, cleaned the barrel and mounted my scope...

Loaded up a magazine with some 19 gr. Benjamin's Domed Heavy's I ordered for the purpose or initial shake down , scope zeroing and get some chrony numbers on high and low power. I'm saving the JSB's and the JSB variety pack for when I hit the outdoor range later this weekend.

Initial thoughts....

Trigger is excellent, cocking lever is very smooth and well designed, very ergonomic Turkish Walnut is very nicely figured and the pistol grip has a very good feel to it.

. Accuracy at 10 meters(10.94 yards) is like a laser. Basically 1 pellet holes per 12 rd groups. Everything I've seen on line ihasbeen spot on.

She is loud at full power and has some bark, A DonnyFL moderator is certainly in the near future. One of the reasons I chose this was the adjustable power. I dialed it down and it was much quieter and not as hard on my wood back stop. This was definitely a good choice.

My Chronograph battery was dead, So I'll have to pick up so 9v's tomorrow and continue testing..

I did receive a bag of parts, and the owners manual does not describe them or there use at all, if anyone has any ideas...

Cayden parts.1625706536.jpg


Definitely 
 
Upvote 0
Here are some numbers from mine after my first range day. I was shooting Benjamin 19 gr heavy Domed which it shot surprisingly well along with JSB 15.8's
This was at the full power setting and using a Caldwell Chrony
Avg was 882.5 fps with a SD of 54.0 I'm sure the rookie move of double loading and shooting two pellets did not help.

1-934/36.81
2-934/36.81
3-934/36.81
4-939/37.20
5-933/36.73
6-931/36.57
7-928/36.35
8-934-36.81
9-931-36.57
10-929/36.42
11-927/36.26
12-932/36.65
13-927/36.26
14-934/36.81
15-667/18.77 (double fired a pellet)
16-927/36.26
17-926/36.18
18-923/35.95
19-919/35.64
20-918/35.56
21-913/35.17
22-915/35.53
23-909/34.87
24-911/35.02
25-899/34.10
26-897/33.95
27-894/33.72
28-895/33.80
29-885/33.05
30-890/33.42
31-883/32.90
32-883/32.90
33-878/32.53
34-874/32.23
35-871/32.01
36-869/31.86
37-858/31.06
38-854/30.77
39-854/30.77
40-850/30.49
41-839/29.70
42-844/30.06
43-832/29.21
44-831/29.14
45-825/28.72
46-816/28.10
47-812/27.82
48-811/27.75
49-802/27.14
50-794/26.60
51-792/26.47


Overall, I'm quite happy
 
Upvote 0
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top Bottom
Back
Home
Forums
Resources
Menu