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To tune or not to tune

"NorthLand43"
"AJ"
Similar to "why buy a Honda Civic and spend too much money to make it faster when you can just buy a better car?". Satisfaction, spend as you go, what you can afford for now, etc...Personalized.
If you have an inaccurate Marauder assuming its a 22, you need to try as many different types of pellets with different head sizes and if all else fails then try and use the H&N Barracuda/Barracuda Match with the available different head sizes or the H&N FTTs in 5.53 5.54 or 5.55. It is a hunting gun out of the box in its factory condition for an inch groups at 50 yards.
The Marauder has a wonderful trigger, is really quiet with its effective factory baffled shroud, no grey area with NO obvious THINGY sticking out at the end of the barrel, and can be easily user adjustable/ tuned to 2000-2500 starting psi making it less of a chore when using a hand pump to fill it. If you check out the ongoing Hunter FT and FT results nation wide, you will see Marauders taking top honors which should tell you something. Marauders would not be used by many different individuals in competition if they weren't excellent guns to begin with. I personally like the trigger and have had the opportunity to shoot a highly modified one and it was easier to shoot accurately IMO than an FX brand gun. If you need to turn it into an ultimate tack driver, the bare minimum would be minor user adjustments and buy a DIY drop in $180 upgraded LW barrel. Not needing to send it off anywhere. Lots of Youtube videos on how to.
AJ,
I dont suppose you could comment on the LW barrel and is there a difference between it and a Marmot barrels? 
I am looking at both.
LW offers a polygonal barrel? Is there an advantage over a regular barrel?
Marmot (Jim Gaska) machines LW barrels your choice either standard LW or Poly LW to fit your specific gun and you must specify which you would prefer. I had very good results with the STANDARD LW barrels. They shoot a big variety of pellets accurately and so far, not pellet fussy.
I would highly recommend the standard LW barrel based on my personal experience.
 
Tune...The title for this discussion. Like many in this forum the entry level was a 2240 based pistol to a carbine. Tons of mods later and a lot of money into several of these Crosman's and you come up with the multi breech of the Marauder, the moderator, a new and longer barrel, a trigger job, many many valve mods and you got yourself a nice shooting CO2 or HPA rifle. Enter the Discovery...Again with the mods but this time Science and a great woodworker named Lloyd...Disco Double with a Marauder trigger, Segio's multi breach, moderator and a great looking great shooting little rifle that you could hand pump to 2000 psi or go back and shoot CO2. Thanks Lloyd, I have and still do thoroughly enjoy this little rifle. For the money spent on the Disco I could have easily modded a Marauder or gone out and bought a fresh Daystate, FX ready to shoot. But what I learned from the tuning was knowledge of how everything works and with due diligence what works in harmony. I currently have a Boat Load of Marauders in differing formats and calibers all modded in one way or another not to mention the other PCP's from FX, Daystate, Walter, FWB, as well as Crosmans and of course Daisy's. The Grand kids and neighborhood kids love to come over to shoot the archery equipment and the air rifles and occasionally sit around while I tinker with a mod or let them chronograph a tune to show them the science...Tuning is a learning tool that everyone should try at some point in this evolution of our sport...
 
Nickel to dime sized and under groups at 60 yards 20 shot groups Jim Gaska barrel 22 caliber Armada. Crosman Premiers and H&N Barracudas nearly identical group size. 100 yards 1.25-1.50" avg. 10 shot groups.
Comparing to a Poly LW in a 22 Marauder at 60 yards Nickel to quarter sized same ammo and shots and 100 yards 1.5 to 2.25" 10 shot groups.
The JSBs and H&N FTTs did ok but not as well in either gun on average.
Factory barreled 22 Marauder 2.25" at 60 yards with H&N FTT 5.54mm the ONLY pellet that will shoot decently out of it. 100 yards 4.0-5.25" 10 shot groups.

177 Marauder test at a later date, the LW Barreled gun has not arrived yet.



 
This question isn't really about the Marauder its about Tuning and Why? or should it be done.. Its interesting that you asked this question because yesterday I was actually talking to AJShoots yesterday about the Krawl and some of the issues that are popping up from tunes and mods
Just like cars there are guns that can be Tuned and modded and there are others that should be left alone. Just like Cars The end result is a piece of equipment that you will have more money and labor of love into it that it will actually be worth.
First of all I think there might be a little bit of mashing up of the two words Tuning and Mod Because there is a difference and it can be a huge one 

Tuning is more of a labor of love and is taking a factory gun and its existing parts or upgraded factory parts and well for lack of better term fine tuning it. I would describe it as a deep learning of just what makes your gun tic. There are levels you can go BUT its parts are for the most part are factory, just like taking an intake manifold off a car and polishing it to increase air flow, You polish and lap the barrel to remove tool marks to increase accuracy. These are Tunes, the gun is still factory but better than the factory produced. Its labor intensive but parts wise minimal. Tuning may include some slight mods like putting bigger jets in a carb you might put a heavier or lighter spring and hammer, depending on your goals. I was taught to handle guns the army way, If you couldn't disassemble and reassemble a gun for proper basic cleaning and maintenance you have no business owning it. While Tuning is a level up from this its not a huge leap and with care can be done by most of anyone who can so.

Mods on the other hand is its own whole world and its scale is limited to how much money and labor the owner wants to put into it. Modding leaves the reality of the fact that the end results will cost as much if not more than what it would have cost to go out and buy a gun or car that would perform as well as what the final goals of the mods would achieve. Its purpose may be nothing more than bragging rights, Like a plain Jane out running a GT Mustang.
The Marauder is a fine example of a plain-Jane-mustang all the potential is there all the parts are available to take it to the next level Both in Tuning and Mods. But more importantly it is a great Tuning and Modding Platform for the simple fact that there is so many people who has done it that there is plenty of support for someone who has never done so to learn from.
To Tune or not To Tune is the Question
The answer depends on your final goals
  1. What is the starting quality
  2. What will the final value be--- read number nine!
  3. What is the final goal and is it realistic.
  4. Are you blazing a new trail or following an existing one with tried and true landmarks.
  5. What are the parts availability both factory and aftermarket.
  6. What is the difficulty level and is it in your realm of experience, if above your level of experience are you willing to brick the item to learn from your experience?
  7. If its Mods (Hot Rodding) then how many land mines has popped up and what are the solutions to fix them. If you are blazing a new trail do you have the experience and resources to deal with them WHEN THEY DO POP UP, Because there will be some.
  8. Who you going to call when you've got a table full of little parts laid out and your dog chased a cat right though the middle of them and spread them all over the room. (My first Carb) (Thank god for Dads who used to hot rod!!!! ) that pooch and cat was on my poop list for a month.
  9. LAST BUT NOT LEAST will you be happy with the final result because depending on how far you take it, once again its almost a sure bet you will have more parts and labor in it than you will ever be able to get out of it. What you will have is the knowledge of just what makes that gun tic, and the right to say it does what it does because you made it do it!
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    The above being said and I am not being a smart !@#@ the only real answer to your question is your own.
 
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