FX Panther no-hype review and tests

[Airgun-hobbyist]

Part 2. Know your gun power abilities​

The next step I’ve taken to get acquainted with my FX Panthera in a better way is knowing it’s power parameters. My thoughts were the following. Panthera has a huge power plenum of 156cc and it is not an easy task to take it all out during shooting (at least this comes out of my previous experience with this type of airguns). And my thoughts were that using MAX hammer spring tension is not a bad idea, because on high pressures I usually use, the hammer can barely harm the valve. So, there is nothing bad in setting the hammer to maximum power level (that is a bit above 4 micro wheel settings) and testing the gun on different regulator adjustments.

I’ve made my tests on 120 – 200 bar with the step of 10 bar and made 4 shots on each to get average velocity of that setting. I’m not sure if using regulator on the pressures above 170 bar is “legal” so don’t try to repeat.

Here is the chart of results that I’ve got (just to remind – 40gr .2185 slug)

Bar	Hammer set	Average velocity FPS	Average velocity meters per second
120	MAX	827	252
130	MAX	860	262
140	MAX	892	272
150	MAX	909	277
160	MAX	938	286
170	MAX	958	292
180	MAX	975	297
190	MAX	995	303
200	MAX	1001	305

You’ve got to take into account that the slugs I use are of rather big diameter - .2185 and of unusual shape – they are more like .22lr ammo. Usually slugs like H&N of the same weight gives +25-30 fps speed on the same settings (from my experience with FX Impact M3).

My intuition tells me that one of the most interesting setups for me (besides the one show in part one of that blog) will be the following:

175 bar reg pressure,
2,85 microwheel hammer settings
970 fps (294 meters per second) with my 40gr .2185 slugs

So, I decided to test that setup from 250 bar in the bottle and got 16 good shots. Here is the prove:

If everything goes fine, I plan to go outside and shoot at my shooting range tomorrow to at least 100 yards distance + will make some of my ideas come true.

The constancy of that shot string is great. With consistent weight ammo that should be a real accurate shooter!

Nicolay, also, thank you for taking your time and effort to produce these videos for us pro bono. ;-)

 

[Centercut]

Looking forward to more testing. 16 shots at 82 FPE from a 300 cc bottle is actually very good. My Impact shooting a similar power from a 580cc bottle only gets 25 good on reg shots, so the Panther efficiency is better than that. Accuracy next? Will you have a chance to shoot it with slugs that are available in the USA? Thanks.

 

[Cloudrider]

The Man Himself, far left.

 

[zx10wall]

Very impressive! Making shots like that in a Russian winter must take skill.

I’m still unsure what advantage there is shooting airguns at 22LR speeds and weights (why not just use a 22 and save $$$?) but these results are impressive.

Well, with the price of good precision .22LR ammo, if you care to shoot a lot and get good at any game, the scale will tip quickly in favor of an airgun.

 

[RusBear]

Very impressive! Making shots like that in a Russian winter must take skill.

I’m still unsure what advantage there is shooting airguns at 22LR speeds and weights (why not just use a 22 and save $$$?) but these results are impressive.

In Russia due to sanctions one .22lr Lapua shot costs 2 USD.

 

[RusBear]

Looking forward to more testing. 16 shots at 82 FPE from a 300 cc bottle is actually very good. My Impact shooting a similar power from a 580cc bottle only gets 25 good on reg shots, so the Panther efficiency is better than that. Accuracy next? Will you have a chance to shoot it with slugs that are available in the USA? Thanks.

I probably have some HN and Altaros slugs. Will see.

 

[Maineiac]

Well, with the price of good precision .22LR ammo, if you care to shoot a lot and get good at any game, the scale will tip quickly in favor of an airgun.

Even factoring in the cost of a tank and compressor plus the increased costs of slugs?

I suppose if you’re already into airguns and have these things it’s not so bad but I think it’ll be hard to win over a PB shooter unless your .22 costs $2(wow!).

What attracted me to airguns was the silence, low cost ammo, and accuracy. As we up the power these advantages start going away, for me at least.

 

[Airgunmann]

I'm sure there pb guns aren't cheap either the ones that they compete with and I bet some are custom built plus ammo cost is up quite a bit

 

[zx10wall]

Even factoring in the cost of a tank and compressor plus the increased costs of slugs?

I suppose if you’re already into airguns and have these things it’s not so bad but I think it’ll be hard to win over a PB shooter unless your .22 costs $2(wow!).

What attracted me to airguns was the silence, low cost ammo, and accuracy. As we up the power these advantages start going away, for me at least.

Good points.

I’m not trying to covert any PB guys to this crazy cool hobby. I just want to out shoot ‘em

 

[tommyb]

Good write up RusBear!

I am also anxious to see some 100 yard groups ( or scoring with EBR/ RMAC like practice target cards ) with the Panthera shooting 40g slugs.

FWIW - Mike N posted a"slugs in the rings" 100 yard virtual challenge quite a while back, almost a year ago. The idea was to see what .22 LR rimfires and high end slug guns could do at 100 yards in terms of scoring accuracy. We used N50 50 yard scoring targets ( 11 X 17" ) and shot them at 100 yards. The challenge was informal and for fun, but I and some others participated regularly. We did not get a lot of 100 yard air rifle shooters in that challenge unfortunately. Mike had asked me try out my two Anschutz .22 LRs, just to have a baseline for the thread and to see how the rimfires would do. It was and continues to be a lot of fun, and check out the thread in the Benchrest area if you are interested. Some good information in that thread, including how to score the targets.

My own experience shooting the RAW HM1000X .22 HP ( JSB 25.39 RD ), Safari .22 HP ( JSB 25.39 RD) and the FX Boss .25 (JSB MK2 33g ) was humbling for this challenge at 100 yards. All of the above for me, did not have enough gas ( power/velocity ) and pellet weight to achieve a high score. So, I am extremely curious to see the Panthera ( or any air rifle for that matter ) shoot at 100 yards with 40g slugs. Mike N and others shoot the Thomas HPX with 40g slugs very well at both 50 and 100 yards. All one has to do is look at the N50 results in 2022 and you can see how the top air guns stack up vs. rimfires. However, it will be interesting to see how the Panthera does at this distance with 40g slugs.

My best air rifle scores varied between a low of 1250 to a high of 1800 with the BOSS .25. By contrast both of my Anschutz .22 LR rimfires shoot frequently in the 2000-2500 range for the 'slugs in the rings' challenge. Only ONE perfect score ( see photo below, top row ) of 2500 with the Anschutz 1907 .22 LR.

My overall thought here is that a nicely tuned air rifle(s) ( other than a Thomas which we already have seen can shoot at both 50 and 100 yards ); should be able to get some very good accuracy at 100 yards with 40g slugs. Of course, Mike N also shot a 2500 as well with his Thomas HPX.

 

[RusBear]

Part 3. Be wise with your hummer strike power

Past weekend was not the best to make accuracy tests outdoors, so I decided to have some tests and tuning indoors – in my workshop.

Is that a wise decision to use maximum hammer hit strike on lower reg pressures like 150 bar? Absolutely not. It will not increase the velocity of the projectile, but will raise your air consumption per shot to unreasonably high values. Here is what I’ve got during my test with reg pressure of 150 bar and 40gr .2185” slugs. 3 shots per every power settings were made and average result was put into the table.

Reg pressure	Micro adjustment	FPS	Meters per second
150 bar	1.25	584	178
150 bar	1.5	686	209
150 bar	1.75	793	242
150 bar	2	883	269
150 bar	2.25	915	279
150 bar	2.5	915	279
150 bar	2.75	922	281
150 bar	3	922	281
150 bar	3.25	918	280
150 bar	3.5	918	280
150 bar	3.75	918	280

So, as I got higher with micro wheel adjustment after 2.25 position, the sound of the shot became louder and the gun definitely vibrated much stronger every time. There is no need to go on higher hummer strike power – just the waste of air and destabilization of the projectile due to huge amount of useless air coming after it.

It is the simplest and obvious example of how it works. There is a curve of velocities going up, as we raise the hummer power from the lowest level, then you reach the maximum velocity and then stabilizing without any profits on velocity, but loss in air consumption. That is how it work with big plenums. Note: In case with low volume power plenum guns the curve will go down after the reached plateau of velocities if you will continue to increase hummer strike level.

I will not deny that there are some situations and reasons to go up to a bit higher hummer strike power after reaching the plateau, but it is the matter of very special purposes and should be done wisely with full knowledge of what you do and why.

 

[mtnGhost]

.22 has a better ballistic coefficient than .30

You could say that it requires less pressure required to shoot a .22 projectile of the same BC as an identical projectile in .30 with barrels proving identical stability factors, but this isn't at all an accurate statement otherwise.

 

[ram2jeep]

Part 3. Be wise with your hummer strike power

Past weekend was not the best to make accuracy tests outdoors, so I decided to have some tests and tuning indoors – in my workshop.

Is that a wise decision to use maximum hammer hit strike on lower reg pressures like 150 bar? Absolutely not. It will not increase the velocity of the projectile, but will raise your air consumption per shot to unreasonably high values. Here is what I’ve got during my test with reg pressure of 150 bar and 40gr .2185” slugs. 3 shots per every power settings were made and average result was put into the table.

Reg pressure	Micro adjustment	FPS	Meters per second
150 bar	1.25	584	178
150 bar	1.5	686	209
150 bar	1.75	793	242
150 bar	2	883	269
150 bar	2.25	915	279
150 bar	2.5	915	279
150 bar	2.75	922	281
150 bar	3	922	281
150 bar	3.25	918	280
150 bar	3.5	918	280
150 bar	3.75	918	280

So, as I got higher with micro wheel adjustment after 2.25 position, the sound of the shot became louder and the gun definitely vibrated much stronger every time. There is no need to go on higher hummer strike power – just the waste of air and destabilization of the projectile due to huge amount of useless air coming after it.

It is the simplest and obvious example of how it works. There is a curve of velocities going up, as we raise the hummer power from the lowest level, then you reach the maximum velocity and then stabilizing without any profits on velocity, but loss in air consumption. That is how it work with big plenums. Note: In case with low volume power plenum guns the curve will go down after the reached plateau of velocities if you will continue to increase hummer strike level.

I will not deny that there are some situations and reasons to go up to a bit higher hummer strike power after reaching the plateau, but it is the matter of very special purposes and should be done wisely with full knowledge of what you do and why.

When your velocity went down, wouldn’t that also mean that the reg pressure is/could be too high? Wouldn’t you want the the micro at 3.75 to be higher fps?
I’m looking at it as I would tune my M3, please correct me if I am wrong? Definitely not sure and I have a Panthera on the way so your testing is ideal and beneficial.

 

[RusBear]

When your velocity went down, wouldn’t that also mean that the reg pressure is/could be too high? Wouldn’t you want the the micro at 3.75 to be higher fps?
I’m looking at it as I would tune my M3, please correct me if I am wrong? Definitely not sure and I have a Panthera on the way so your testing is ideal and beneficial.

Well, in Part 3 I've described the situation when you have one and steady reg pressure. The only parameter that changed is hammer spring settings.
Change one parameter at a time, otherwise you will mess up with all that stuff.

 

[luxurycat]

When your velocity went down, wouldn’t that also mean that the reg pressure is/could be too high? Wouldn’t you want the the micro at 3.75 to be higher fps?
I’m looking at it as I would tune my M3, please correct me if I am wrong? Definitely not sure and I have a Panthera on the way so your testing is ideal and beneficial.

Panthera is not the same regulator.

 

[luxurycat]

Great info Nicolay thank you. It never ceases to amaze me extent of Hijacking that exists on AGN. And the Hijackers showed up here on a No-Hype review and test page. Shame on them. Keep up the good work Nicolay. Those of us, like you that invest in what we speak of appreciate your talents.

Maybe someone should take out the trash so we can enjoy your efforts here on AGN.

 

[Leatherman]

I’m thinking one could later order the Panthera with the larger bottle / butt pad for use in situations where shot count is an issue with the 300cc bottle. Then there has also been shown a double bottle version. Get the one that suites your needs. I’m waiting to see what comes out on this new block. Meanwhile we will have the testimonials from owners of the first model which isn’t intended to be a do it all competition rifle.

 

[cra627]

I put my 580 bottle on the front of mine the other night left the 300 bottle on the back - a dual bottle system. Waiting for parts now from fx to see if it will run both.
I will definitely stick a 700 300 bar bottle on the front for slug testing and for benchrest

 

[carpmaster]

Hello @RusBear
After a couple a week of use, did you notice in the first few shots of the session that the speed, impact point and regulator pressure are the same as in previous sessions?
thanks for your answer

 

[360noscoped]

nice testing!