Tally to date, chippers and tree rats.

Add 1 more tree rat, so 68 now and chippers remain at 41.

Off topic for this thread...

I finally got the courage to cut the hammer spring on the Akela. I thought I screwed it up and cut too much until I remembered that I have the transfer port adjuster set to the minimum. I cut a full inch off of the hammer spring.

I really wish this was an indexed transfer port adjuster that I could trust to stay set... but I digress.

I haven't played with the hammer spring adjustment enough to know for sure, but I think I will now be able to adjust from about 600fps to 1050fps with the transfer port adjuster set to wide open. I may play with the TP adjuster later to see if it will hold a setting. If so, it may be a good way to get my desired FPS and great efficiency. BTW, I always use FX 10.3 pellets. Using Crosman 10.5 I could actually see the spiral of the pellet a few feet before it hit. Too bad I still have between 10 and 15 thousand of them... (heavy sigh)

From ~2600psi to ~2300psi I got 60 shots @ ~800fps. At least I think those number are right. (smile)

Now the problem is that I am trying to mount a 1st version Athlon Argos 8-34x50 scope and having trouble getting it far enough away so the short (for me) LOP and ease of obtaining an eye-box come together.

Not to mention I stripped a screw on the Monstrum adjustable picatinny rail riser, so back to looking for something else.

Perhaps using forward offset mount will do the trick?

Thanks for reading my drivel.

BS

P.S.

I also finally found the o-rings that came with my DAR Gen2. I can't even get it to hold ANY air at all, so maybe... with my new found courage (I am notoriously bad at working on PCPs) I can take it apart and replace all the o-rings and make it work again. But that will mean getting another scope, rings, etc, etc, etc... (chuckle) The Athlon Argos used to sit on the DAR.
 
Add 1 more tree rat, so 68 now and chippers remain at 41.

Off topic for this thread...

I finally got the courage to cut the hammer spring on the Akela. I thought I screwed it up and cut too much until I remembered that I have the transfer port adjuster set to the minimum. I cut a full inch off of the hammer spring.

I really wish this was an indexed transfer port adjuster that I could trust to stay set... but I digress.

I haven't played with the hammer spring adjustment enough to know for sure, but I think I will now be able to adjust from about 600fps to 1050fps with the transfer port adjuster set to wide open. I may play with the TP adjuster later to see if it will hold a setting. If so, it may be a good way to get my desired FPS and great efficiency. BTW, I always use FX 10.3 pellets. Using Crosman 10.5 I could actually see the spiral of the pellet a few feet before it hit. Too bad I still have between 10 and 15 thousand of them... (heavy sigh)

From ~2600psi to ~2300psi I got 60 shots @ ~800fps. At least I think those number are right. (smile)

Now the problem is that I am trying to mount a 1st version Athlon Argos 8-34x50 scope and having trouble getting it far enough away so the short (for me) LOP and ease of obtaining an eye-box come together.

Not to mention I stripped a screw on the Monstrum adjustable picatinny rail riser, so back to looking for something else.

Perhaps using forward offset mount will do the trick?

Thanks for reading my drivel.

BS

P.S.

I also finally found the o-rings that came with my DAR Gen2. I can't even get it to hold ANY air at all, so maybe... with my new found courage (I am notoriously bad at working on PCPs) I can take it apart and replace all the o-rings and make it work again. But that will mean getting another scope, rings, etc, etc, etc... (chuckle) The Athlon Argos used to sit on the DAR.
Do you own any SPA pcps? My Stormrider loves 10. 5 Crosman.
 
Do you own any SPA pcps? My Stormrider loves 10. 5 Crosman.
No. I do have 3 Nova Vista Freedoms, 2 in .177 and 1 in .22 that never did work right.

The Freedoms also loved the 10.5 Crosmans (CPUM). In fact, they were tack drivers with them. But I have never had the courage to take them apart and fix them. Thought about making them into bottle guns via Duy Dinh, but I don't think he is doing that anymore.

When I first got the Fortitude Gen2 .177, it liked the CPUM pellets and I already had 20 or 30 thousand of them... so... (smile)

But, as I worked through the boxes of CPUM, my accuracy started to fall off and I started really looking at the CPUM pellets I have. LOTS of mold artifacts, especially in the skirt. It looks like they swept them off of the floor and put them in the box. I bought these about 4 years ago, +/-.

So, I did what every serious airgunner does. I bought a wide variety of 10+ grain pellets and found that the JSB 10.34 were good, but had a lot of aberrations in the skirt. Not artifacts, but some were conical and some were cylindrical. The FX 10.3 version also made by JSB so far has had nearly no such aberrations and gives me well under MOA at least out to 50 yards when I have the chance to shoot that far and the FX 10.3 pellets were the ones I used to make my three 75 yard tree rat kills after practicing the shot for about 3 weeks.

Maybe Crosman is doing better now, but the price difference isn't all that great anymore unless you can get CPUMs at Walmart for a lot lower price. Unfortunately, the Walmarts near me do not carry the CPUMs.

Thanks for the reply! Had any good cigars lately? (chuckle)
 
No. I do have 3 Nova Vista Freedoms, 2 in .177 and 1 in .22 that never did work right.

The Freedoms also loved the 10.5 Crosmans (CPUM). In fact, they were tack drivers with them. But I have never had the courage to take them apart and fix them. Thought about making them into bottle guns via Duy Dinh, but I don't think he is doing that anymore.

When I first got the Fortitude Gen2 .177, it liked the CPUM pellets and I already had 20 or 30 thousand of them... so... (smile)

But, as I worked through the boxes of CPUM, my accuracy started to fall off and I started really looking at the CPUM pellets I have. LOTS of mold artifacts, especially in the skirt. It looks like they swept them off of the floor and put them in the box. I bought these about 4 years ago, +/-.

So, I did what every serious airgunner does. I bought a wide variety of 10+ grain pellets and found that the JSB 10.34 were good, but had a lot of aberrations in the skirt. Not artifacts, but some were conical and some were cylindrical. The FX 10.3 version also made by JSB so far has had nearly no such aberrations and gives me well under MOA at least out to 50 yards when I have the chance to shoot that far and the FX 10.3 pellets were the ones I used to make my three 75 yard tree rat kills after practicing the shot for about 3 weeks.

Maybe Crosman is doing better now, but the price difference isn't all that great anymore unless you can get CPUMs at Walmart for a lot lower price. Unfortunately, the Walmarts near me do not carry the CPUMs.

Thanks for the reply! Had any good cigars lately? (chuckle)
About the only thing I smoke is chipmunks and squirrels. 🤣
 
What are your numbers so far this year?
I don't keep track of them, but not more than half a dozen chippers. They've gotten smart and finally convinced my wife to quit feeding the birds. I might have to go buy a bag of corn and set up a bait station for them. I've only killed a couple of squirrels since we quit filling the feeders. They generally stick to the woods and I leave them alone there.
 
I don't keep track of them, but not more than half a dozen chippers. They've gotten smart and finally convinced my wife to quit feeding the birds. I might have to go buy a bag of corn and set up a bait station for them. I've only killed a couple of squirrels since we quit filling the feeders. They generally stick to the woods and I leave them alone there.
Actually, although I feed the birds and rabbits with cracked corn, rabbit feed, cat food and chicken scratch, I have never killed a chipper or tree rat that was attracted by the feed. I guess it is all the Oak trees (and used to be a pecan tree) that are in my yard and neighborhood. I did get a few rats on the feed a few years ago. But now I have a poison bait box specifically for the rats, so I rarely see one, let alone have a shot.
 
Update:

80 Tree rats
42 Chipmunks

Haven't seen many (any) chippers, other than one in a neighbor's yard where I can't shoot. However, the Tree rats have started showing up quite a bit more. The last 3 were taken today. All were head shots and at 36-53 yards using the .177 Benjamin Akela (Athlon Argos 8-34x56 gen1), FX 10.3 pellets shooting @ ~806fps. 2 were within my PBR and one was at 53 yards. All using the BOG Death Grip tripod...

In many ways I like the BOG Death Grip tripod, but it is far from perfect. I really wish there was an affordable "steady cam" like device available.

Anyway, the BOG DG works fine if you can grip a rifle at or near its center balance point. However, that is not possible with the Akela and probably most other bullpups.

What I have found is if I crank the clamp pressure too far, it actually affects my POI. If I don't put enough pressure on the clamp, I fear the Akela may fall if left unattended. I also worry that it might break the wood on the Akela over time if excessive pressure is applied.

Nothing is smooth with the BOG DG. I have learned to work with it, but it is far from perfect.

Anyway, the .177 Akela shooting FX 10.3 pellets @~806fps is giving me sub MOA out to 62 yards most of the time. (smile)

Oh, and because I haven't ordered cantilevered rings/mounts that will allow me to put the scope forward enough on the Akela to use the stock butt pad, I have extended the butt pad with pipe insulating tube. Nearly 2 inches.

Going to have oral surgery on Oct. 2. So keep me in your thoughts...

BackStop
Kerry

p.s.

Since I can actually grip the Fortitude near the center balance point, the BOG DG works quite well with it. Unfortunately, I am going to have to send the Fortitude in (under warranty) because of regulator creep. I guess 3 years isn't too bad for a regulator?
 
Early this morning I made my longest pesting shot ever! ~89 yards on a chipper!

Unfortunately, if I had used the holdover that MERO and Chairgun suggested, I would have grossly over shot the target.

So... still working on getting the ballistics software to match what I see in the real world.

In any case... WooHoo! ~89 yards chipper kill shot using Akela .177, shooting Fx 10.3 @ ~780fps.
 
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75 tree rats for me so far this year, it has really slowed down around my place. I did see a couple more that moved into my neighbor's yard and will probably be over checking my place out soon. That'll cost them!

Compared to what I used to take (last 6 years) on tree rats, my numbers are still a lot smaller, but I put that down to being successful. (grin)

As the leaves fall off of the trees, that will allow me to see more tree rats and since I am becoming more accurate/precise at longer ranges than just 0-50 yards, that opens up a lot of opportunities. I still have to wait for a safe shot as I do live in a neighborhood where a bad shot without a good backstop might mean damaging a neighbor's property. I pass up a lot of shots because of that.

Forgot to add my tally in the last post:

As of this writing:

88 tree rats
43 chipmunks

Aim small, miss small!
 
New record for me! 96 yards chipper kill!

Went in left front chest and actually exited near right hip. I could see the pellet all the way to the target.

I recently re-tuned the Akela to shoot at ~870fps from ~780fps and boy did that make a HUGE difference!
(The Fortitude has been relegated to my very short distance gun.)

Holdovers are reasonable now at ~100 yards and there are no strange pellet aberrations (spiraling, etc) at distance.

The only thing I have trouble with is reading the wind because of all the buildings in the area and my very narrow window for these shots. It is almost impossible to read the wind shot to shot as it can change directions so quickly and the buildings cause swirling as well.

Anyway WooHoo!!! 96 yard chipper!

As of this writing my tally is:

98 tree rats and 45 chippers. Nearly all of the recent tree rats have been at 50+ yards or more.

Of the last 3 chippers, one was at ~20 yards the other 2 were at 89 and 96 yards!

Much easier to do now shooting at a speed the pellets really like. (grin)

p.s.

Yes, it took me quite a few shots to nail the chipper, but unlike the first one at ~89 yards which I put down to a lot of luck, I claim full credit for this kill! (smile)
 
Tally is now 101 tree rats and still 45 chippers.

The wind has been too high for me to even attempt the long range shots (near 100 yards) on the chippers and occasional tree rats.

The last 3 tree rats were at 21 to 25 yards.

I had one that took 3 direct hits to the upper body, but didn't drop. A first for me! Tough little rat!

It finally re-appeared in one of the Oaks in my backyard at ~22 yards and a head shot ended it.

Checked to make sure I really did hit it with the other 3 shots and as far as I could confirm, it should have been dead from the first shot.

All 3 shots were in the chest area. One through the right shoulder and the other 2 looked like perfect heart shots.

As I said, this is a first for me. Never have seen a tree rat live after putting 1 pellet that perfectly. Especially not 3 pellets!!!

Oh well... maybe it is because I am shooting at 865fps instead of ~750-780 fps like I have for the last several years. Pellet was Fx/JSB 10.3

I guess there is a first time for everything. (shrug)

p.s.

I think I am going to tune the Akela back to 750-780fps because as much as I have enjoyed shooting out to ~100 yards, the experience above proves to me that power doesn't necessarily mean a clean kill.

Most of my pesting is within 63 yards and most of that is 54 yards or less. Not to mention that the gun is a lot quieter at the lower power setting and much more efficient. At ~865fps, I have a "sweet spot" that stays between 867 and 863 for 2 mags or 28 shots.

At ~750-780fps, I have a sweet spot that has similar ES and SD, but gives me more than 3 mags (42+) shots. Yeah, I did say ~750-780fps, but that is because I can shoot past the sweet spot and get ~50-60 shots, but the accuracy suffers, so I stay with 3 mags and the fps is ~763 with a SD of 2 and an ES of 5fps.

Since I have been shooting/pesting successfully at this fps with the Fortitude for several years and I don't expect to shoot the long range shots very often... it just makes sense to me to dial it back. I also think that my kill ratio is better at the lower fps/fpe based on the last 6 years of pesting in my backyard. YMMV (smile)

p.p.s.

I WILL miss the MUCH flatter trajectory that 870fps gives... (heavy sigh)
Yeah, I am really going to miss that, but at least I am used to ~750-780fps with 10.3 pellets... (still... heavy sigh)
 
Last edited:
My tally, as of 10/15/2023 is 104 tree rats and 47 chippers.

The last chipper was at ~88 yards, but I doubt I will get many/any more shots at that distance soon. All shots were taken with the .177 Akela shooting from 850-880fps using the Fx/JSB 10.3 domed pellet. FX branded made by JSB.

I had spiraling issues at least past 63 yards, but I could not always SEE the pellet to confirm the spiraling. Many times I could see the pellet for at least the last 20 or 30 yards out to 90-100 yards, but not always. At times I could only confirm spiraling because the pellet would come in at an angle, instead of dropping (like a rainbow) on or near the target.

The wind was blowing strong most of the time, but it seemed that as long as I was shooting from 850 to 870fps, I had no problems.

As soon as I approached 880fps, the spiraling became very apparent. So, I dropped the fps back to 850 and the spiraling stopped.

I don't KNOW that lowering the fps made the difference, but it seemed to... (shrug)

Since then, several days ago, my health has taken a turn for the worse. This is the first time I have felt like posting anything in quite a while.

So... I want to thank (and I won't name him unless he replies) a venerable member of our community for offering to repair my DAR!

As soon as I am able to make a good box to send it to him. I haven't been up to the effort so far, but I am feeling better... so... (smile)

Also, as my health is not what it used to be, I have ordered a GX-Cs4 compressor. I will post a request for advice on how to get started with that as soon as I post this.

Many thanks to everyone at AGN and the entire airgun community who have helped guide me and others to be able to hit my targets with accuracy and precision!

What a great group of people we all have here!

Kerry
 
My tally, as of 10/15/2023 is 104 tree rats and 47 chippers.

The last chipper was at ~88 yards, but I doubt I will get many/any more shots at that distance soon. All shots were taken with the .177 Akela shooting from 850-880fps using the Fx/JSB 10.3 domed pellet. FX branded made by JSB.

I had spiraling issues at least past 63 yards, but I could not always SEE the pellet to confirm the spiraling. Many times I could see the pellet for at least the last 20 or 30 yards out to 90-100 yards, but not always. At times I could only confirm spiraling because the pellet would come in at an angle, instead of dropping (like a rainbow) on or near the target.

The wind was blowing strong most of the time, but it seemed that as long as I was shooting from 850 to 870fps, I had no problems.

As soon as I approached 880fps, the spiraling became very apparent. So, I dropped the fps back to 850 and the spiraling stopped.

I don't KNOW that lowering the fps made the difference, but it seemed to... (shrug)

Since then, several days ago, my health has taken a turn for the worse. This is the first time I have felt like posting anything in quite a while.

So... I want to thank (and I won't name him unless he replies) a venerable member of our community for offering to repair my DAR!

As soon as I am able to make a good box to send it to him. I haven't been up to the effort so far, but I am feeling better... so... (smile)

Also, as my health is not what it used to be, I have ordered a GX-Cs4 compressor. I will post a request for advice on how to get started with that as soon as I post this.

Many thanks to everyone at AGN and the entire airgun community who have helped guide me and others to be able to hit my targets with accuracy and precision!

What a great group of people we all have here!

Kerry
When I got my compressor off amazon they sent me this message:

Message from seller ANKUL:Hello Valued BuyerThanks for choosing our new launched CS4 pcp compressor. We will provide lifetime after-sale support.Pls keep in mind the important information when you received.
1. Note: For the first use, it must be filled with 500ml of pure water or antifreeze before you turn on power. Otherwise, will cause damage ! !Total 500ml. we suggest coolant and distilled water mixing with ration 7:3 ( 7 coolant). You can use this kind of coolant: https://www.amazon.com/Zerex-861583...128011&rnid=1249126011&rps=1&s=automotive&sr= 1-1notice : when switch on the power, the water pump will work first. be sure to check if the water flows from the upside hole in the water tank into tank.if not flowing, pls contact with us and don't press " start" button to use.
2. Do not turn the grease knob until after 4-6 hours of use, then turn it 1-2 turn. we added before factory. Afterwards, when the speed slows down, turn it around again.After the break-in period, there is no need to add grease any more if speed is normal.
3. ATTENTION: when filling is complete, please release the bottle valve first (when filling bottle) and then open compressor's bleed valve to release line pressure. All pressure must be released from compressor before next starting.
4. Notice:This CS4 model was designed with 2 stages of check valve inside. When working, it does not leak. but after turn off power, it may leak pressure from the second stage check valve. For example, 300 bar drops to 200bar in several minutes. This is normal and please don't worry.When met " Everything sounds fine and works good until 180bar. The unit holds good pressure but will not go above 200bar". It is not defective. You only need to drain the excess grease by refer youtube video.The max design pressure is 5800psi. but most bottles can only support 4500psi.ThanksJason from GX

I did add an external water separator to it for good measure along with an extension line and a couple caps and plugs.

Not sure where you are in the states, but I'd be willing to share some of the antifreeze. I wish you could get antifreeze in smaller quantities. I have a qt bottle of mixed coolant and barely used any of the gallon of antifreeze.
 
Not to keep harping on my health, but I seldom feel like even shooting these days. And I still need to make a box and ship my .177 DAR to a venerable trusted member of AGN to get it fixed.

Anyway... Today I did feel like shooting and got 1 tree rat at ~86 yards and another one at ~7 yards. The long range one was with the Akela shooting Fx 10.3 pellet at ~860fps. The short range one was with the Gen 2 Fortitude .177 shooting the same Fx 10.3 pellet at ~700fps. The regulator is failing on the Fortitude, so the first shot is lower than the ~765fps set point if it sets for longer than a few hours.

Luckily, I can simply sit and wait for the long shots, but the wind makes it very hard to be precise/accurate past 50-60 yards.

Also, for those long shots, I usually have to wait from 3 to 6 hours or more just for one or two shots at a target. Yes, that is dedication! (smile)

But it also takes all the energy I have... (heavy sigh)

Tally 106 tree rates and 47 chipmunks.

I had 3 shots at chippers at 93 yards, but the wind was terrible so I never even came close and decided to pack it in and go inside and lay on my bed as I was exhausted.

Kerry
 
Just a tally update:

Tree rats 107
chippers 48

Since I haven't been shooting much, I haven't needed to use the new GX-cs4 compressor since I topped off my guns.

DAR .177 is on the way to be fixed.

Still need to send the Fortitude to Crosman to fix the creeping regulator, but it is still usable for those really close shots.

Like the most recent chipper @ ~15 yards using the Fortitude (zeroed for short distances now) at about ~710fps using Fx 10.3 pellet. DRT heart shot.

The tree rat was at ~23 yards using the Akela at ~850fps using the same pellet. DRT after it dropped about 50 feet from one of the Oaks in my backyard.

Also a heart shot.

All my best!

Kerry