New Maverick Owner - Please help me out with a few issues! :(

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DOOM

DOOM

Member
Apr 15, 2021
21
1
IL, United States
Hi guys! This is my first post, so thanks for having me!

I just grabbed a .22 Maverick Sniper and Element Helix scope from TalonTunes (Thanks Tony!) and I am having some setup woes. I am a noob to the FX airguns, but have owned Airforce Airguns for almost 2 decades and have been shooting for 25+ years (powder burners, too). I am also on my 25th season of paintball and have worked as a head technician at various shops/fields - not quite an airsmith, I'd say, but maybe pretty close. I also shoot NRA High Power with my service rifle. Basically - messing with all manner guns and doing things like mounting/zeroing scopes is something I am extremely familiar with. 

  • Issue # 1: Fine Tuning – What are the best reg pressures for shooting 25 grain NSA slugs at like 950?
    • Can a stock Maverick .22 even shoot 25 grainers at 950? I feel like this should be possible!
    • I started with 180/150 bar reg pressures as I’d seen from 68 Whiskey and others (probably 30 cal...). I could not get it to shoot even close to 900. I had my hammer adjustment out as far as it will go. Clearly wasn't getting enough hammer to smack the valve open at 150bar.
    • Adjusted to 160/120 - 25 grain slugs at like 910fps now. I saw another post indicating that maybe you need a heavier hammer or dual transfer port to do any better than that
    • Hammer adjustment exactly adjusted to 6mm w/digital caliper, per Airbuks, for the highest strength hammer spring
    • Can anyone chime in on this and advise? Should I just grab a slug power kit if I wanna launch 25 grainers around 1000fps?



  • Issue #2 – MY BIGGEST ISSUE – Scope out of adjustment range, cannot zero!
    • OK, so I have the Element Helix sitting on Vortex Extra High 1.54″ 30mm mounts
    • Everything is torqued to spec and I leveled the scope properly using my Wheeler levels
    • 4/13/2021 - at 50 yards, with the scope at the zero setting out of the box my POI is like 35 MOA low!!
      • OK, fine, so I go to adjust it and run out of adjustment on the elevation turret. As you can imagine, not being able to adjust any further UP is totally useless.
      • Wouldn't the 20 MOA rail typically make you have to adjust DOWN to zero?
        • I ordered some FX No Limit scope mounts in case that is what’s needed - but my Vortex ones should be fine, no?
    • 4/15/2021 - Went ahead and re-mounted my scope with the mounts a little closer together. Leveled w/Wheeler kit, torqued to spec w/digital wheeler wrench - per usual. I added 2 shims (precisely cut beer can strips) under the rear scope mount to try and help - no dice. Still was wayyyyy low and could not bring it up without topping out on the elevation turret. Oddly, it appeared that I bottomed out on windage, too, however I am not sure if that is a change from before because I didn't touch windage before, only elevation.



I'm down to either I have a bad gun or (more likely) a bad scope or mounts. I will mount a cheap $30 Tasco scope (blasphemy on a $2k rifle...I know) that I have sitting in my shed as well as a red dot to make sure I can zero those - which would indicate maybe a problem with the Element Helix. I will report back on that. 



I am posting this to get some thoughts, and especially as a sanity check for the apparent scope issue. Any help here would be very extremely highly appreciated!! 🙂



Thanks in advance, guys!
 
Doom,

I feel your pain. I have a stock Maverick Sniper in .22 cal and I shoot the 20.2 grain slugs at 100 bar and my hammer adjustment is not nearly all the way out. i tuned the rifle to shoot 18.1 grain pellets on number one on the power wheel at approximately 880 and it just worked out that the 20.2 grain slugs shot one MOA at 975 on level 6 so that's where I left it.

The scope issue I had was that I put a Sumo moderator on it and expected some barrel droop so I started out with the Eagle Vision no limit rings. I set the turret a turn down so I would have the majority of travel to raise for longer distance. From a 30 yard zero for the pellets I only go up 8 minutes for the slugs at 100 yards.

Just food for thought.
 
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Thanks, Mwerks. This is exactly the kind of dialogue I am looking for. 

I had expected maybe I was suffering from barrel droop with the FX chrony lassoed around the DonnyFL Tanto (smallest DonnyFL, should never be an issue). I removed the chronograph and placed it on the table and then shot the rifle - same(ish) wayyyy low POI. 

I have also made sure my barrel shroud and suppressor are both fully screwed in, but have not attempted to remove the barrel assembly; if that helps anyone who also wants to chime in here. Would it be worth removing and re-installing the barrel assembly? Anything to cause such a massively low impact that I wouldn't be able to zero at play there? I figure best is to get out tomorrow and test with my cheapie red dot and Tasco scope - red dot was on a .22 AR and Tasco was on my Talon SS back in the day - so they should be roughly close and I'll certainly notice if I'm 30+MOA low
 
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I think the only reason I would take the barrel out was to see if it was bent. Red dots don't characteristically have a lot of MOA adjustment to them and if you can set your Tasco scope on it's optical center to try it might give you a correlation on just how much the POI is off. I have had powder burners (Anschutz .22 cal) that required 20 MOA rails to just get a 50 yard zero.

It happens. 
 
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Thanks, Mwerks. This is exactly the kind of dialogue I am looking for. 

I had expected maybe I was suffering from barrel droop with the FX chrony lassoed around the DonnyFL Tanto (smallest DonnyFL, should never be an issue). I removed the chronograph and placed it on the table and then shot the rifle - same(ish) wayyyy low POI. 

I have also made sure my barrel shroud and suppressor are both fully screwed in, but have not attempted to remove the barrel assembly; if that helps anyone who also wants to chime in here. Would it be worth removing and re-installing the barrel assembly? Anything to cause such a massively low impact that I wouldn't be able to zero at play there? I figure best is to get out tomorrow and test with my cheapie red dot and Tasco scope - red dot was on a .22 AR and Tasco was on my Talon SS back in the day - so they should be roughly close and I'll certainly notice if I'm 30+MOA low
Click to expand...

Doom to be honest it sounds like you scope rings are to high I want to say my Eagle Vision rings are only 3/4” high I can double check. 
 
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For issue number one, it definitely sounds like you don’t have a heavy enough hammer weight for the higher reg pressures. The velocity increasing when you lower the pressure is a good indication that the hammer weight is too light. I think the 0.22 Mavericks come with either the light or medium hammer weights. I was able to buy the three different hammer weights for my 0.25 from FX for less than $10 plus shipping

Your barrel may actually have the dual transfer port installed already. I read/watched some videos that said the Maverick barrels came with the Ernest Rowe style pellet/slug selectable transfer port installed. It may be as simple as rotating your barrel 180 degrees to select the slug/dual transfer port side of the barrel. I haven’t had the barrel out of mine to confirm if that’s true on my Maverick or not. 
 
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Thanks for the replies, gentlemen.

1 thing for sure, these Vortex mounts are NOT too high. The scope is 3.15" over bore. This is totally normal. I have had airguns where the scope was 3.75" over bore with NO 20 MOA cant on the rail and they zero and dial just fine. 

Today after work I will test with the cheap red dot and the cheap Tasco scope just to try and narrow down if I got either 1) a bad Element scope, or 2) out-of-spec rings from Vortex. Both seem very, very unlikely - but it also seems unlikely that I would get a brand new gun from FX that's shooting super low... Either way, very irritating on a ~$2500 setup. Remember, I have the FX No Limit mounts on order, the sooner they get here the sooner I can figure out if it is the mounts versus the scope. 

I'll reply here tonight. Thanks again and keep the thoughts coming! The hivemind is king! 👍
 
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I have a maverick sniper 22cal. Mavericks don’t like big cranks on the valve. Take the shims out of your scope and buy some eagle vision rings thats what i have on my element. Turn 1 reg to 140 second reg to 112 crank out on spring adjuster till it wont cock then in 1/2 turn. This on power wheel 7 should give you about 960 with 23 gr nsa. And about 900 with 27.5 nsa. Pellets of same weights will go much faster. Im shooting 217 nsa. To go more you need more hammer
 
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DOOM, I would double check your rail for the built in "20 MOA" I have the first gen Maverick Snipper in .22 and WCMK3 , neither one has the "20 MOA" rail as advertised.

My .22 Maverick has the 11gr hammer(.25?) from the factory, some came with the 7gr. My .30 MK3 has the 13gr. My current tune on the maverick is having the 1st reg. set @170bar and the 2nd reg. set @145bar. Ernest Rowe dual TP and DIY modified probe. Hammer Spring is 6mm (+- .003 for tuning) and set on #7 shooting JSB KO 25.39 .2165 @ 990fps.

My Eagle Vision 30mm have my scope height right at 2.77" above bore. Rear ring elevation is set with .076 for a zero @100. Hope you get it dialed in so you can enjoy it.

Patrick

EDIT: My bad on the WCMK3 not having the 20MOA rail. It never was an option, Just the picatinny upgrade. 
 
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DOOM, I would double check your rail for the built in "20 MOA" I have the first gen Maverick Snipper in .22 and and WCMK3 and neither one has the "20 MOA" rail as advertised.

My .22 Maverick has the 11gr hammer(.25?) from the factory, some came with the 7gr. My .30 MK3 has the 13gr. My current tune on the maverick is having the 1st reg. set @170bar and the 2nd reg. set @145bar. Ernest Rowe dual TP and DIY modified probe. Hammer Spring is 6mm (+- .003 for tuning) and set on #7 shooting JSB KO 25.39 .2165 @ 990fps.

My Eagle Vision 30mm have my scope height right at 2.77" above bore. Rear ring elevation is set with .076 for a zero @100. Hope you get it dialed in so you can enjoy it.

Patrick
Click to expand...

How many shots do you get at these settings? On mine i get around 100
 
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Hey Guys - Thanks for the extra info. I am getting about 100 shots at like 900FPS with the 25 gr FX pellets. 

Maverick Serial #: 2122381 if that helps

OK so I got out at lunchtime to do a bit of shooting and experimentation. All shooting done at 25 yards. Here are my results: 

Red dot: This was taken off a .22LR AR pistol, zeroed for that gun at 2.6" over bore. Slapped it on the Maverick and I had to come up like 25 MOA to get on target with the Maverick.....Hmmm. Something is fishy. 

Tasco scope: This was my old Talon SS scope, zeroed for that rifle right around the same height over bore as it sits on the Maverick. I had to come up like 35MOA, just like the element. WTF. I was able to get it zeroed in like the upper 3rd of the elevation turret. Very fishy here as well because the Maverick is supposed to have a built in 20MOA on the rail....

So then I took off the barrel. I discovered I do have the Ernest Rowe S/P transfer port. Cool! So I 180'd the barrel to the "S" port thinking maybe that would help, and give me a little extra velocity. Remounted the Helix. 35-40MOA low when the scope is optically centered. Still shooting way, way low.

Sanity check: I mounted the Helix on my Talon SS - optically centered - and had to come up like 20 MOA to get on target! WTF

I want to chuck the whole new Element/Maverick setup off a cliff!! 😡😡😡😡😡😡



At this point I don't know if it is the gun, the optic, or both. Seeming like the gun, but why is the Element having to come up 20MOA on my Talon SS when optically centered? What the hell am I going to do with this thing? I just spent a ton of money on this setup and it absolutely SUCKS and is useless. My frustration level is through the roof....
 
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Just got off the phone with Tony from Talon Tunes. He said the No Limit mounts should likely get me sorted. He also said that some of the Mavericks did not come with the 20MOA rails, as 2L8 pointed out. He also stated that he test fires every FX gun he sells and every Maverick is always barely on paper. Stay tuned for another update from me once I receive the FX mounts.

If you guys have any other thoughts feel free to share them. Thanks for all the help so far. This forum is awesome and the members are clearly awesome, as well. 


 
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16186074987981415048234139288454.1618607596.jpg


Wellllp.... no 20MOA cant! Both levels are completely level. D'oh!

I'll be emailing FX to see if I can get the advertised 20 MOA rail.... ooof
 
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On the power front, your biggest issue is most likely going to be the hammer weight, as others have stated. I currently have my .22 tuned to shoot the 31.2 grain NSA slugs at 970. I've done a few things to my gun, but the first I did was a heavier hammer weight, so I could crack the valve properly at higher reg settings. Along with the hammer weight, I've done other stuff too, but my gun is currently capable of 84 fpe in .22 with 35.2 grain cast slugs. The gun definitely has power potential, you just need the extra oomph to crack the valve at higher regulator settings is all. The gun should easily be able to send 25 grain slugs at 950, with only the hammer weight :)

Concerning the gun shooting low, it seems you found one issue with a level rail. I wasn't aware that some of the Mavericks didn't have the 20 MOA rail on them. I learned something there! That would explain why I was able to keep my XTR rings on my scope I mounted, even though they had 40 MOA in them... The other is that the FX barrel system is inherently "droopy" due to the design. There's a reason you see so many FX guns with adjustable rings of some sort.
 
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Thanks, for your input., Rallyshark. That is an impressive gun you've built. 84fpe in .22 is absolutely devastating! What's your shot count like with that immense power?

The way I figure is.... I've already bought the gun, so might as well go all in and get the most out of it. I just ordered the slug power kit that includes adjustable pin probe and heavier hammer from SPAW. FX No Limits are on the way. I'll yet make an acceptable (hopefully exceptional!) shooter out of this money pit! 💲 Maybe buy a .30 barrel later on and start flingin' that chonky lead?!? Only time and my willingness to keep opening my wallet will tell...

I honestly wish I had gotten the M3. As long as the Maverick shoots slugs better and more accurately than my Condor SS (which regularly shoots things at 120 yards w/slugs) I think I'll be happy as a clam to have the efficiency and 18 rounds on deck versus the Condor's.....1. My Condor IS regulated and gets 35-40 shots at like 40fpe, really nice shooter, but its getting sold to a buddy to make room for the Maverick.

Are there any other items I should be aware of on these Mavericks? Or does it sound like we have addressed and probably solved all the issues?
 
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Thanks, for your input., Rallyshark. That is an impressive gun you've built. 84fpe in .22 is absolutely devastating! What's your shot count like with that immense power?

The way I figure is.... I've already bought the gun, so might as well go all in and get the most out of it. I just ordered the slug power kit that includes adjustable pin probe and heavier hammer from SPAW. FX No Limits are on the way. I'll yet make an acceptable (hopefully exceptional!) shooter out of this money pit! 💲 Maybe buy a .30 barrel later on and start flingin' that chonky lead?!? Only time and my willingness to keep opening my wallet will tell...

I honestly wish I had gotten the M3. As long as the Maverick shoots slugs better and more accurately than my Condor SS (which regularly shoots things at 120 yards w/slugs) I think I'll be happy as a clam to have the efficiency and 18 rounds on deck versus the Condor's.....1. My Condor IS regulated and gets 35-40 shots at like 40fpe, really nice shooter, but its getting sold to a buddy to make room for the Maverick.

Are there any other items I should be aware of on these Mavericks? Or does it sound like we have addressed and probably solved all the issues?
Click to expand...

At that power level of 84 fpe, not many shots, lol! I honestly don't know, because I was just seeing what the top end was after some mods. I get 54 shots out of it at 65 fpe, and that is with a 480cc cylinder :D It can definitely sling that .30 lead too! With the same 480cc bottle, I get about 30 shots shooting the NSA 54.5 grain slugs around 940-950 fps. Mine actually started life as a .30 Compact. Keep in mind though, my gun ain't stock ;) Stick with your gun, it will be awesome after you get the little bugs worked out, and you'll come out spending less money in the end!

Concerning other things to look for... I would put some blue loctite on the two grub screws that connect the sidelever linkage to the cocking rod, and tighten them good. They are #37 in the parts diagram(you can download it from FX's site). The other thing I would suggest is making sure the micro adjustment tension screw is snug(and maybe a dab of blue loctite there too on the threads of the screw. It is part #88 in the diagram. Other than the slug kit, and hammer weight, you should be ready to sling some serious lead very soon. You'll be able to make some serious power with that second reg at 150 bar after all is said and done. Oh, one more thing, get a Huma or Wika gauge for that second reg gauge. The FX gauges aren't known for accuracy. The other gauge doesn't matter that much, since you can use the gauge on your filling equipment to know what pressure you're filling to.
 
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