Anyone know what the twist rate of the S510 XS is? 1:12 perhaps? What twist rate do most slug guns use, 1:9?
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Air Arms How tunable is the Air Arms S510 XS
- Thread starter nortac
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Sorry bud, I don’t know what the twist rates are in the Air Arms barrels.
They will be optimized for pellets, so will definatly be slower then what a slug likes.
My best suggestion is to email AirArms directly and just ask them.
Include the serial number of your rifle and they look it up for your exact rifle.
I have emailed them a few times asking questions about my 3 AirArms rifles, and they always reply back with in a day, and they always have all the info I am looking for
They will be optimized for pellets, so will definatly be slower then what a slug likes.
My best suggestion is to email AirArms directly and just ask them.
Include the serial number of your rifle and they look it up for your exact rifle.
I have emailed them a few times asking questions about my 3 AirArms rifles, and they always reply back with in a day, and they always have all the info I am looking for
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Odd, my email reply from AA states that it is not information that they release to the public!! What the heck?Sorry bud, I don’t know what the twist rates are in the Air Arms barrels.
They will be optimized for pellets, so will definatly be slower then what a slug likes.
My best suggestion is to email AirArms directly and just ask them.
Include the serial number of your rifle and they look it up for your exact rifle.
I have emailed them a few times asking questions about my 3 AirArms rifles, and they always reply back with in a day, and they always have all the info I am looking for
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You can find out the twist rate of the barrel yourself by inserting a swiveling barrel cleaning rod tipped with a nylon or bronze brush and paying attention to the complete rotation of the rod relative to the length of the barrel as you push it towards the muzzle (or breech) end. I think on my S410 Extra, the twist rate is 1:17” the last time I checked.
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Having slugged my AA .177 Poly barrels, it seems as if the twist is very close to 1:17.7 (or 450mm twist as the Euros call it).
The S510 XS is no less tunable than any other platform - the trick is that it is not easy to tune externally. In my experience all of the AA PCP's come with outstanding tunes right out of the box. I've posted screenshots below for my S510 Tactical in .177. The first shot string is on full power with the 16gr JSB Beasts and the second is on power level "3" with the 10.3 AA pellets. Absolutely outstanding ES and StdDev.
Here is full power (16gr JSB's).
Power level 3 (20 FPE)
Again, this is the STOCK tune that came with my .177 S510 Tactical.
To tune these guns, you are need to take them apart. Depending on what generation S510 XS you have, you might need a special tool to do so (or just ghetto-rig your own). When I tune them beyond the factory tune, I'll typically replace the hammer spring with a shorter and stiffer one, install a lighter valve spring, and adjust the reg +/- 5 BAR. I made a thread about that here:
www.airgunnation.com
The S510 XS is no less tunable than any other platform - the trick is that it is not easy to tune externally. In my experience all of the AA PCP's come with outstanding tunes right out of the box. I've posted screenshots below for my S510 Tactical in .177. The first shot string is on full power with the 16gr JSB Beasts and the second is on power level "3" with the 10.3 AA pellets. Absolutely outstanding ES and StdDev.
Here is full power (16gr JSB's).
Power level 3 (20 FPE)
Again, this is the STOCK tune that came with my .177 S510 Tactical.
To tune these guns, you are need to take them apart. Depending on what generation S510 XS you have, you might need a special tool to do so (or just ghetto-rig your own). When I tune them beyond the factory tune, I'll typically replace the hammer spring with a shorter and stiffer one, install a lighter valve spring, and adjust the reg +/- 5 BAR. I made a thread about that here:
My 50+ FPE Air Arms S510 .25 Tune
Hi Y'all, Last summer, I received an Air Arms S510 Ultimate Sporter in .25. Being a field target and springer guy since I've started shooting, this was my first rifle over 20 FPE, and it was also my first modern high-end PCP, with the previous go to guns being a .22 AA S400 (that I still...
www.airgunnation.com Upvote 0
My .22 cal. S510 XS seems to have a twist rate of about 1:17.75 in. averaged of several passes with the swiveling cleaning rod. Is knowing the twist rate of any use in pellet selection, or is it strictly trial and error?
@Nico5999 , how does one determine the pressure setting of the regulator on a gun with only one gauge like the S510 XS?
@Nico5999 , how does one determine the pressure setting of the regulator on a gun with only one gauge like the S510 XS?
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Great question - do you have a chronograph? If you do, it's very easy to determine what your reg pressure is.
Shoot the gun over the chrony, and when the velocity starts to decline shot after shot, you're off your regulator. Check you gauge, and that's your reg pressure. Your owners manual should also detail what your regulator pressure is.
Air Arms ships their .22 and .25 FAC guns running regs @ 150 BAR
(There was a period of time where .177 and .22 guns shipped running @ 135 BAR, but all the .22 copies I've had my hands on are running right around 145-150).
Twist rate v. Pellet Selection is a long, long topic. Long story short, no, it shouldn't matter. With slugs, YES. Pellets, not so much. Virtually EVERY AA gun I've had shoots the Air Arms/JSB/FX 18 gr pellets the best. The new JTS 18 grainers are also promising. The Air Arms barrels are notoriously NOT pellet fussy. Pick 3-4 quality pellets (JSB/AA 18gr, H&N Barracuda 18gr, H&N Baracuda, JSB/AA 16gr, etc.) and you should find a winner in there pretty easily.
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So the pressure in the air cylinder has to fall down to below the regulator setting before the velocity falls off, correct? Yes I have a few chronys.Great question - do you have a chronograph? If you do, it's very easy to determine what your reg pressure is.
Shoot the gun over the chrony, and when the velocity starts to decline shot after shot, you're off your regulator. Check you gauge, and that's your reg pressure. Your owners manual should also detail what your regulator pressure is.
Air Arms ships their .22 and .25 FAC guns running regs @ 150 BAR
(There was a period of time where .177 and .22 guns shipped running @ 135 BAR, but all the .22 copies I've had my hands on are running right around 145-150).
Twist rate v. Pellet Selection is a long, long topic. Long story short, no, it shouldn't matter. With slugs, YES. Pellets, not so much. Virtually EVERY AA gun I've had shoots the Air Arms/JSB/FX 18 gr pellets the best. The new JTS 18 grainers are also promising. The Air Arms barrels are notoriously NOT pellet fussy. Pick 3-4 quality pellets (JSB/AA 18gr, H&N Barracuda 18gr, H&N Baracuda, JSB/AA 16gr, etc.) and you should find a winner in there pretty easily.
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Yes, that is correct. The regulator reduces the air pressure available in the air tube. When the pressure in the air tube falls below the regulator setpoint, then the rifle basically becomes un-regulated.
Start at ~170 BAR and shoot it down from there. No reason to start @ 250.
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Yes. You can either run the FX Universal Harmonic tuner (pick up a DonnyFL Air Arms Adapter), or an "over-barrel" version like the Swan Tuner.
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Often English gunmakers(in particular airgunmakers) doesn`t no a poop about what they are dealing with. Then its better to come up with an arrogant answer. I have too many cases in reference for this.
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@Nico5999 , so with a 1:17.7 twist rate, would it be a waste of time to try slugs? Would slugs on the lighter end be more likely to shoot better than heavier slugs? What twist rates do most slug guns use? I'm thinking wind bucking ability at 100 yds primarily, terminal performance on game secondarily.
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It depends -
I have had pretty good luck with slugs in my .177 AA guns. Contrary to popular belief, you don't need to shoot slugs @ 1,000+ FPS for them to be stable. Try the lighter .177 slugs (9-14grains). I bet you'd have decent results with at least one or two varieties.
The biggest issue with shooting slugs with these LW poly barrels (in certain calibers), is that the groove diameter/choke don't always play well with slug diameters that are currently available (at least in my experience).
Pick up a few varieties and see what happens!
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I don’t think any sort of good practical testing is a waste of time, u can always learn something from the results, even if they are not the results you wanted.
The big names in the world of slugs all have specialized fast twist rate barrels, I think they are around 1:10 or 1:12, but don’t quote me on that.
I would think lighter slugs will definatly have a better chance then heavier slugs, the further u get from “pellet weight” the slower the projectile is going to go, and from my limited experience with slugs, they prefer to be going faster then pellets.
I stand to be corrected but I think the AA barrels are choked (optimized for pellets) and slugs do better from unchoked barrels.
You could also try some of the very heavy (read long and fat) pellets like the monster redesignes. They still have roughly a pellet shape, so should do well in the barrel, but are long and fat like a slug so will have much better SD then a standard pellet and thus better external ballistics.
Trying all the different combinations of pellets, velocity’s and slugs is where the fun lies
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Oh shoot man I was thinking you were running a .177! My bad!
Yes, you can be very successful with slugs in your .22 S510. The 17.7" twist rate does really well with slugs (Most .22lr barrels are 1:16, the FX slug barrels are generally 1:18 so they are right in that ballpark!).
Start with lighter ones. The stuff about unchoked is for slugs and choked is for pellets isn't really true. TONS of match grade centerfire and rimfire barrels are choked and they ONLY shoot slugs.
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