Skout Skout Epoch in .177

[cavedweller]

The platform is in it's infancy and as any experienced shooter knows, 1st generation products rarely emerge issue free. This was the Skout's crews first foray into the PCP pellet rifle market and as previously stated, they're finding that more complicated than simply scaling down a functional larger caliber design. However, for those willing to grow through the iterations as they emerge, Skout's CS and dedication to producing the finest product on the market, should sustain them through these inevitable growing pains.

Today I received a brand new Skout Epoch .177 that has been extensively gone through to correct pellet feed issues.
No time to set up and put it through the paces till Saturday 9/23/23.
Point of post is to say Skout kept their word-great company and great customer service!!!
Excited to see what the Epoch will do this weekend.

 

[MysticalDragon]

Today I received a brand new Skout Epoch .177 that has been extensively gone through to correct pellet feed issues.
No time to set up and put it through the paces till Saturday 9/23/23.
Point of post is to say Skout kept their word-great company and great customer service!!!
Excited to see what the Epoch will do this weekend.

I think many of us are excited to hear the results.

Sadly great customer service is hard to find. I love to support places that have it and companies that stand behind their products.

As I'm getting going, Its been suggested to me to wait on getting an Epoch until they are done with the teething pains with the Epoch. However the fact that they are backing it like this speaks volumes.

 

[MysticalDragon]

Today I received a brand new Skout Epoch .177 that has been extensively gone through to correct pellet feed issues.
No time to set up and put it through the paces till Saturday 9/23/23.
Point of post is to say Skout kept their word-great company and great customer service!!!
Excited to see what the Epoch will do this weekend.

If you haven't yet, I would certainly put something in the industry feedback section. Its certainly important to hear the good and the bad.

 

[cavedweller]

Gun cycled way way better, much smoother, but, the Magazine for .177 is still on the drawing table... a little better, but not right just yet. The pellets really need to be fully surrounded by the tray so as not to rest against the indexing wheel. My take is that a pellet should not be used as a detent. Skout is sending me a "true" single shot loader to try. This one was a 5 round only one off test mag.

In general i don't think a pellet should be used as the detent in a precision anything.
A mag from another manufacturer basically has a similar issue - betting if .177's are examined after feed without actually firing the pellet the issue will be similar? dunno? someone want to test it?

 

[cavedweller]

Gun cycled way way better, much smoother, but, the Magazine for .177 is still on the drawing table... a little better, but not right just yet. The pellets really need to be fully surrounded by the tray so as not to rest against the indexing wheel. My take is that a pellet should not be used as a detent. Skout is sending me a "true" single shot loader to try. This one was a 5 round only one off test mag.
View attachment 392035
In general i don't think a pellet should be used as the detent in a precision anything.
A mag from another manufacturer basically has a similar issue - betting if .177's are examined after feed without actually firing the pellet the issue will be similar? dunno? someone want to test it?
View attachment 392064

the magazine below is a Daystate's version - as you can see the pellets circumference are fully protected and the edge of a pellet does not slide along a hard edge.

 

[Scotty1]

the magazine below is a Daystate's version - as you can see the pellets circumference are fully protected and the edge of a pellet does not slide along a hard edge.

View attachment 392208

The Carm mags are similar in that the skirt is completely enclosed, and the stop pin contacts the head only of each pellet. The pellet should be cradled by the wheel, not pinned by an edge.

 

[MAUMAU]

The fact that Skout is listening and immediately looking for a resolution says a lot about a company.

I also like the fact that they are made in the U.S.

Definitely interested in the EPOCH in the heavier calibers.

 

[MysticalDragon]

Gun cycled way way better, much smoother, but, the Magazine for .177 is still on the drawing table... a little better, but not right just yet. The pellets really need to be fully surrounded by the tray so as not to rest against the indexing wheel. My take is that a pellet should not be used as a detent. Skout is sending me a "true" single shot loader to try. This one was a 5 round only one off test mag.
View attachment 392035
In general i don't think a pellet should be used as the detent in a precision anything.
A mag from another manufacturer basically has a similar issue - betting if .177's are examined after feed without actually firing the pellet the issue will be similar? dunno? someone want to test it?
View attachment 392064

Have you received or tried the single loader yet? I look forward to hearing the results when you do.

Reading over this thread is making me want to get one more and support the great service.

 

[MysticalDragon]

Regrettably I don't get the opportunity to shoot FT much. I'm on the fence as to whether fiddly single loading is any better than shooting from a magazine. At least with a magazine you know the pellet is going in head first, LOL!

I've only shot two ft matches so far. Both times with an S510xs with a left loading magazine. The person that loaned me the rifle was using a redwolf with a single shot loader. Most others had single shot loaders as its preferred.

IMO its essential as I see the huge benefits of it, especially with a left loading magazine as the parallax wheel gets in the way. When using a magazine, it must be removed when changing lanes to ensure a safe rifle and no pellet in the breach. Single shot this is not required. I could shoot two lanes but then had to stop and reload. This affected rhythm. I've already seen people load pellets into magazines backwards too.

With a single shot tray and a pouch for the pellets, its easy to get into a nice rhythm. Setup, range, remove a pellet from the pouch, inspect the pellet, load pellet, fire. Then repeat on the next target. Moving to the next lane is easier and no pause to remove the magazine or reloading it is needed, Worse yet is dropping the magazine, especially in rainy conditions like they had at the AAFTA nationals in ohio this weekend. Inspecting the pellet before chambering limits flyers, especially if you dont sort pellets before the match.

The carm single loader for the daystate wolverine actually works from the right side so it isn't interfered with by the parallax wheel. Seeing the wolverine loaded from the left made me stop considering it for a FT rifle but with the right side single shot loader, I'm considering it again.

 

[cavedweller]

Have you received or tried the single loader yet? I look forward to hearing the results when you do.

Reading over this thread is making me want to get one more and support the great service.

Do not have a true single shot loader yet - soon?

 

[cavedweller]

update ! Skout mailed me a single shot (true .177 single shot) loader this week. Hoping to receive today test it this weekend.

 

[Motorhead]

Now I'm not trying to sound or be the tattle-tell of this .177 cal journey that Rudy has been on .... But a conversation one or one with him a few days ago I feel may be of importance to consumers who frequent the AGN board & seek information or data ....
Was told the .177 EPOCH has been returned to Skout as it just had not been satisfactory in spite the efforts to get loading via magazine or SST sorted out ... have faith they will, just not at this time it appears.

 

[cavedweller]

Now I'm not trying to sound or be the tattle-tell of this .177 cal journey that Rudy has been on .... But a conversation one or one with him a few days ago I feel may be of importance to consumers who frequent the AGN board & seek information or data ....
Was told the .177 EPOCH has been returned to Skout as it just had not been satisfactory in spite the efforts to get loading via magazine or SST sorted out ... have faith they will, just not at this time it appears.

Skout is a GREAT company... unfortunately i purchased my skout in .177 long before the magazines were sorted and ready to feed tiny fragile pellets without damaging the skirts or creasing the heads... bottom line is using the pellet as the detent to stop magazine rotation is just a bad idea in general and although several manufacturers do this, the much better option is to have a magazine that completely encapsulates a pellet as it sits in a tray, single shot or multiple "enclose the pellet 360 degrees". Allow a detent that works with the probe to hold the magazine position or some variation of the theme. I am not a tuner nor a tweaker and as an end user i don't have the time or patience to fiddle with almost right... has to be a done deal for me. I also wanted the Skout for Field Target and realistically it is too heavy and lacks accessories at this point. Maybe soon,