FX Dreamline Classic vs FX Dreamline Tact

[csebald]

I am looking for input on which FX Dreamline setup is your preference, for a novice air gunner.

I am an avid long range powder hunter, but have aged over the years,

Please share with me the reasons for your suggested choice

Thank you very much for your input in advance.

 

[TMH]

Well, besides the obvious difference in stocks, I think that the only other major difference is that the Tac comes with both a power and hammer spring adjuster wheel, whereas the Classic only comes with the power wheel. For someone only recently into air guns, perhaps the simplicity of the Classic is a better rifle to start with.

My wife enjoys shooting a Classic in .22, and I like how that rifle handles and shoots as well. The combination of the power adjustment wheel, the externally adjustable regulator and the ability to easily and inexpensively add 1 or 2 FX Power Plenums to the gun has given us all the adjustability we have required to shoot pellets at the velocity we want, for the accuracy, power and shot count we prefer. Plus she grew up with a grandfather who was an avid hunter, and she has more of an appreciation for traditional, wood stocked rifles than she does for AR type styling.

If you are going to use this rifle for hunting, don't know what caliber you are looking to get. But we also have a similar rifle to the Classic (a Dream-Pup), and it is in .25 cal. When I added 2 Power Plenums to it and left the regulator alone, it was shooting FX 25.4 gr pellets at an average of 945 fps, so the Dreamlines can definitely make some power. I ultimately turned the regulator down by about 35 bar and we are getting the power we want at a muzzle velocity of 880 fps, and a good deal more shots per fill. Plus a smoother shooting rifle.

Good luck on you choice - they are both very good rifles with more similarities than differences.

 

[FLgunner]

I have the Dream-Tac and the Dreamline Classic. The Classic is a much nicer looking rifle with the traditional wood stock. I got it with the Black Pepper Laminate, so it is a striking looking rifle. Shortly after getting the Dream-Tac, I converted it to a Compact with the shorter barrel and 300cc tank. It's lighter, more compact than the classic, but now nearly as powerful. Both use the same action, but the short barrel is a limiting factor if you are looking for power for long range shooting or hunting.

The Dreamline Classic is just as adjustable as the Dream-Tac, you just have to remove the stock to access the hammer spring adjustment. The beauty of either (or any FX for that matter) is the ability to swap barrels when needed. My Dream Classic has both .22 and .25 barrels in the 600mm length, which makes it produce more power in either caliber than the Dream-Tac Compact. The Compact has a .22 and .177 barrel in the 320mm length and a .22 in the 500mm length, so I can up the power considerably just by swapping to the longer 500mm barrel. Plus all the barrels, probes and magazines are interchangeable, so if I truly wanted to convert the Dream-Tac Compact to a more powerful hunting rifle, I can alway swap to the 600mm .25 barrel and swap the 300cc tank to a 580cc tank and then I have a powerhouse Dream-Tac ready to go! The beauty of the whole Dreamline series is the flexibility and interchangeability of the parts!

 

[Bobbybeef]

I have the dream tac compact with a different bottle i love it accuracy to about 50 yards is excellent for what i shoot i love it. 22 cal with the 220 cc bottle i get about 70 shots

 

[DaveT1]

I went with the Dreamline Tac because I like the ability to change grips and butt stocks. The chassis configuration is extremely easy to work on and modify. I've set it up for long range target shooting with slugs. I have it in .22 cal with 500mm barrel and Superior liner. It also has the 480 cc CF bottle. This setup is great when shooting from a bipod or bench, but I don't find as well balanced for off-hand shooting. I'm fiddling with the tune, the best group I've done is 3/4" at 150 yards with NSA 20.2 gr. slugs.

If you like to really fiddle with tuning the gun, the Tac may work better.

 

[csebald]

Thank you for your knowledge on the adjustments. From the factory did you do much adjustments to the hammer spring original settings for accuracy? Also is the classic's stock easy to remove for access to the hammer spring?

Thanks to all for your input.

Chuck

 

[ohio_hunter]

I did nothing to my classic in 25 cal and it shoots 900fps for 40 or so shots with the jsb 25.39 pellets.

 

[TMH]

The Classic's stock is easy to remove (2 screws), much easier, for example, than on a Crown.

Hammer spring setting is something that many folks will do as a project only once, to achieve the state of harmonic tune they are looking for. Subsequent adjustments would usually only be made for optimizing a significantly different pellet weight, or for shooting slugs as opposed to pellets. 

No doubt that the hammer spring adjusting wheel is convenient, but not having one is definitely not a deal-breaker for the majority of folks.

 

[DaveT1]

csebald,

I'm an obsessive tinkerer. I like the dual hammer spring adjustment on the Tac. The knob is good for coarse adjustments and the second adjuster port on the side of the receiver is great for making fine adjustments. I'm OCD about note keeping. I found that the FX chronograph has a "notes" section where I can input all of the adjustments. I then print out the results and put them in a three ring binder. Currently, I'm playing with three different slugs and two pellets. Without the printouts, I'd be screwed. The process is fiddly and time consuming, but the results are worth it. And for me, it's half the fun.

I pair the chrono results with a very cool piece of software called OnTarget TDS (https://ontargetshooting.com/ ). On Target lets you check the accuracy of any gun using their downloadable targets which are scanned to give accuracy readouts to .001" as well as a load of information concerning grouping, spread and stock market tips (just kidding). This a very effective way of checking to see how the accuracy is affected by the change in tune.

There are several other things that I have been experimenting which will guarantee to make eyes glaze over. If you are interested, let me know. I'll give you a personal tour of my airgun rabbit hole.