Upgrade my Impact Mk2 or upgrade to a Mk3???

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Chris_Hoek

Chris_Hoek

Member
Nov 21, 2019
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Louisiana, United States
Hi folks. My question here may be/have been addressed elsewhere in the forum (or maybe someone else has a topic already started that is very similar to this). If you know this to be true, please direct me to that discussion. My question is really just a matter of thoughts and opinions from you guys. I have my own, but I want to know yours so that I can try to make a decision. Thank you all in advance.

I've been stuck trying to decide whether to upgrade my Mk2 or upgrade to a Mk3. I just keep going back and forth and have ultimately gotten nowhere regarding a decision. If you haven't seen my thread in the hunting section, I hunt nutria in my back yard. the Mk2 does get the job done, though beyond 60 yards I could definitely use more power. I'm currently shooting at about 62 fpe (at the muzzle). I also wouldn't mind making the gun a little quieter, I currently have the DonnyFL FX moderator. Bear in mind that I have a tight budget these days and ultimately I may not end up being able to do either of my 2 options. But here they are...

Option 1: Keep my Mk2 and complete the following upgrades: Power Plenum ($200.00), FX Superior STX Liner ($110) to accommodate a switch to FX Hybrid Slugs, maybe Huma high flow dual hole transfer port ($40), maybe upgrade to Ronin moderator ($185). Total cost of this option would be $310 - $535, but probably closer to the high end of that.

Option 2: Sell my Mk2 and get a Mk3. I will either go with a .25cal like what I have or go up to .30cal. I would also go ahead and upgrade to the Ronin moderator. Between what I think I can sell my Mk2 for and what I know I'm going to pay for a Mk3, I would have to come out of pocket about $1000.

Decisions decisions... What do you guys think?



Thanks again,

Chris


 
In your shoes I'd probably go the cheaper route and upgrade the MK2. Are the other benefits of the M3 worth the $500 more upgrade? Not much besides tighter tolerances and the quick micro adjuster. Dual reg isn't a necessity. 

Plus the MK2 upgrade doesn't have to be done all at once which sounds like it would be much easier financially to do for you.
 
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I upgraded my mk2 with power plenum, pin probe and huma dual transfer port and I am shooting JSB KNOCKOUTS at 950 with my reg at 100. I considered moving up to M3 but decided against as my mk2 is shooting just the way I want it. Plus, the M3 will come tuned to shoot pellets at about 890 fps, so you will have to tune it to shoot slugs. FX hybrids are not cheap to shoot either. Tough decision. 
 
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Keep the Mk2. Upgrade to Power Plenum, Ernest transfer port, FX Power Kit with pin probe, hammer weight and lighter valve spring, .25 Slug A liner or Superior Heavy liner. Tune to shoot heavier slugs like the new dish base NSA 34.9 or 38.9 grain or even the NSA 43.5 grain flat base slugs. You'll get in the area of 75 to 80 FPE with reasonable speeds (I shoot the 43.5 grain NSA at 900 FPS, close to 78 FPE), and deadly accuracy. No reason for spending the additional money on the M3 for no substantial benefit. I also recommend the STO Falx Moderator in the High Flow configuration. FYI, my reg is set at 135 bar, its the original reg from the Impact X that my gun started as and has always worked perfectly with no creep...

PS., go with the NSA slugs. Find one that works for you. The FX Hybrids are way too expensive, and the JSBs will no longer be available due to issues in Europe and at the factory. NSA is the way to go for slugs, its pretty much a no-brainer...
 
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O.K., I guess that I'll have to be the contrarian here. Get the M3 - You know that you want it!

When looking to accessorize a gun I always take a step back and look at the cost of the options as a percentage of the gun's value.

In your case, you are looking at maybe spending $500 or more to upgrade your existing gun. And if you sold your existing gun, what is its current value in the used market? Are we talking $1,200? $1,400? $1,600? Based on those values, you would be spending 42%, 36% or 31% of the gun's total value on upgrades. And you would still have an older gun, which may or may not have any warranty left, and which has recently lost value on the used market due to the launch of the M3.

Or... could you purchase an M3 (if/when you can find one), and have a gun which will meet your current needs without further need of modification, and with a fresh 3 year warranty, and with a good used market value if you needed to sell it for some reason?

Personally I can't justify spending 30, 40 or 50% of a gun's value on upgrades unless that gun is truly something special, is no longer in production, is a family heirloom, etc. And after you spend that money on your MkII, will you later be kicking yourself for not just getting the M3 anyway...?

All real personal reasons, which definitely have different meaning to different folks. But that's how I would answer your question.
 
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This is a good question. I think my summarized answer would be to go M3 for the longer haul. I have an MKII, and have already upgraded it to a PP and slug kit along with dual modified ports, additional liners and 580cc bottle. I don't believe the M3 can make anymore power that what mine can do now. With all the money spent to upgrade mine last year, I am still behind on upgrades when looking at the M3 and can't keep up verses the cost of just buying the latest and greatest that also includes improvement areas I am unable to upgrade to.

You are probably doing just fine with what you have. If you want to upgrade though, I say go ahead and upgrade. Just consider you are in a better spot to justify an M3 upgrade than say someone with an already upgraded MKII like myself. 
 
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O.K., I guess that I'll have to be the contrarian here. Get the M3 - You know that you want it!

When looking to accessorize a gun I always take a step back and look at the cost of the options as a percentage of the gun's value.

In your case, you are looking at maybe spending $500 or more to upgrade your existing gun. And if you sold your existing gun, what is its current value in the used market? Are we talking $1,200? $1,400? $1,600? Based on those values, you would be spending 42%, 36% or 31% of the gun's total value on upgrades. And you would still have an older gun, which may or may not have any warranty left, and which has recently lost value on the used market due to the launch of the M3.

Or... could you purchase an M3 (if/when you can find one), and have a gun which will meet your current needs without further need of modification, and with a fresh 3 year warranty, and with a good used market value if you needed to sell it for some reason?

Personally I can't justify spending 30, 40 or 50% of a gun's value on upgrades unless that gun is truly something special, is no longer in production, is a family heirloom, etc. And after you spend that money on your MkII, will you later be kicking yourself for not just getting the M3 anyway...?

All real personal reasons, which definitely have different meaning to different folks. But that's how I would answer your question.
Click to expand...

@TMH makes a very compelling case here.

I recently upgraded both of my MkII's to M3's but my MkII's already had most/all of the latest upgrades so I was able to sell them for a little more than the average market rate and the delta towards paying for the M3 wasn't as much. In that case, it was OK to me to spend the couple of hundred bucks to get the benefits of the M3 that TMH mentioned. I wrote up the details of the upgrade and the differences between the two models here if you're interested:

https://www.airgunnation.com/topic/when-mk-ii-mk-ii-m3/?view=all
 
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While I agree with all of the points that TMH and Triggertreat make above, as well as Yenniedn’s comments, I think it really comes down to what you can realistically afford in the short term. Long term, as others have pointed out, the M3 is probably a better idea. However, as Keynes (the famous economist) once said, “the problem with the Long Term is that in the long term we are all dead”. If $1,000 is simply too much of a jump over $500 then I’m not sure its worth the effort and sacrifice to get there. Plus, as Dairyboy says, you can do the upgrade in stages, saving even more.

I have just received my M3 (Tuesday) and absolutely love it. However my MKII is still a great shooter, and given that I spent all this time getting it dialed in, it’s probably better than the M3 at this stage. It is already clear though, that the M3 is gonna be much easier to adjust and play around with. The 16 step Power Wheel, plus the really easy to adjust Hammer Spring adjuster are real game changers.

My bottom line, if. You can spring for the extra $500 the get the M#. If that’s a bridge too far then be happy with your MKII. Upgrade away and have fun with it.

Chris
 
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Very good input, thoughts, and opinions by all. I sincerely appreciate all the responses. You guys never disappoint. 

I'll try to respond to a few posts here as opposed to replying to them individually. Special thanks to TMH for the link to his comparison thread, that was great info. @ ChRiSiS "in the long term we are all dead", lol, awesome!

I actually am happy with how my Mk2 shoots now, I love it honestly. Just need more power at distance.

I don't know that I would even utilize some of the benefits of the Mk3 such as all the adjustability. I don't fiddle around much with adjustments to be perfectly honest (once it is dialed in). Now I do enjoy having the latest and greatest toys, but I'm getting to an age when I have to make compromises in that regard.

I don't mind the extra cost of the Hybrid Slugs because I really don't shoot a lot. I got my Mk2 when they first came out and have only put about 450 pellets through it. But when I do shoot, I need it to be right on, and I need it to get the job done.

I don't have an official decision right now, but I think weighing all the options, for me, upgrading my Mk2 is probably going to be a better option right now at this stage in my life. I agree that the Mk3 would be a better long haul decision, but I like the ability to pay for the upgrades over time. Plus I won't have to worry about selling the Mk2, then being without a gun until I found a Mk3. Another driving factor is that I was really bummed out when FX later released better versions of the Mk2, seemingly right after I got mine, and mine didn't qualify for free upgrade (mainly talking about the plenum here). Kind of hard for me to justify going through all the trouble to get a Mk3 at first release when there will probably be a better version out in less than a year. 

If I do upgrade my Mk2 I think it will get me by until the Mk4 comes out... hehehe.
 
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Keep the Mk2. Upgrade to Power Plenum, Ernest transfer port, FX Power Kit with pin probe, hammer weight and lighter valve spring, .25 Slug A liner or Superior Heavy liner. Tune to shoot heavier slugs like the new dish base NSA 34.9 or 38.9 grain or even the NSA 43.5 grain flat base slugs. You'll get in the area of 75 to 80 FPE with reasonable speeds (I shoot the 43.5 grain NSA at 900 FPS, close to 78 FPE), and deadly accuracy. No reason for spending the additional money on the M3 for no substantial benefit. I also recommend the STO Falx Moderator in the High Flow configuration. FYI, my reg is set at 135 bar, its the original reg from the Impact X that my gun started as and has always worked perfectly with no creep...

PS., go with the NSA slugs. Find one that works for you. The FX Hybrids are way too expensive, and the JSBs will no longer be available due to issues in Europe and at the factory. NSA is the way to go for slugs, its pretty much a no-brainer...
Click to expand...

What happens at JSB factory?
 
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Very good input, thoughts, and opinions by all. I sincerely appreciate all the responses. You guys never disappoint. 

I'll try to respond to a few posts here as opposed to replying to them individually. Special thanks to TMH for the link to his comparison thread, that was great info. @ ChRiSiS "in the long term we are all dead", lol, awesome!

I actually am happy with how my Mk2 shoots now, I love it honestly. Just need more power at distance.

I don't know that I would even utilize some of the benefits of the Mk3 such as all the adjustability. I don't fiddle around much with adjustments to be perfectly honest (once it is dialed in). Now I do enjoy having the latest and greatest toys, but I'm getting to an age when I have to make compromises in that regard.

I don't mind the extra cost of the Hybrid Slugs because I really don't shoot a lot. I got my Mk2 when they first came out and have only put about 450 pellets through it. But when I do shoot, I need it to be right on, and I need it to get the job done.

I don't have an official decision right now, but I think weighing all the options, for me, upgrading my Mk2 is probably going to be a better option right now at this stage in my life. I agree that the Mk3 would be a better long haul decision, but I like the ability to pay for the upgrades over time. Plus I won't have to worry about selling the Mk2, then being without a gun until I found a Mk3. Another driving factor is that I was really bummed out when FX later released better versions of the Mk2, seemingly right after I got mine, and mine didn't qualify for free upgrade (mainly talking about the plenum here). Kind of hard for me to justify going through all the trouble to get a Mk3 at first release when there will probably be a better version out in less than a year. 

If I do upgrade my Mk2 I think it will get me by until the Mk4 comes out... hehehe



Bear in mind that when you increase the power level those hybrid slugs might not be as accurate. Usually as you increase the power you have to increase the weight of the projectile. NSA slugs are your friend.
Click to expand...
 
Upvote 0
Keep the Mk2. Upgrade to Power Plenum, Ernest transfer port, FX Power Kit with pin probe, hammer weight and lighter valve spring, .25 Slug A liner or Superior Heavy liner. Tune to shoot heavier slugs like the new dish base NSA 34.9 or 38.9 grain or even the NSA 43.5 grain flat base slugs. You'll get in the area of 75 to 80 FPE with reasonable speeds (I shoot the 43.5 grain NSA at 900 FPS, close to 78 FPE), and deadly accuracy. No reason for spending the additional money on the M3 for no substantial benefit. I also recommend the STO Falx Moderator in the High Flow configuration. FYI, my reg is set at 135 bar, its the original reg from the Impact X that my gun started as and has always worked perfectly with no creep...

PS., go with the NSA slugs. Find one that works for you. The FX Hybrids are way too expensive, and the JSBs will no longer be available due to issues in Europe and at the factory. NSA is the way to go for slugs, its pretty much a no-brainer...
Click to expand...

What happens at JSB factory?
Click to expand...

They make JSB pellets there.

















Sorry, couldn't help it...
 
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Keep the mk2, get the m3 plenum kit when it comes out and carefully mod the stock brass transfer ports yourself. 200$ maybe get a m3 rear block if they're available if you want the tighter barrel engagement.

I got a used early mk2 and did a hybrid install of using power plenum kit mixed with pre power plenum model parts and its a little beast. Retains full function of valve adjuster which I prefer over the spring arrangement.

I basically only touch that HST set screw when I want to go for very high power so the micro wheel isn't a big selling point. I'll wait for the mk4 personally.
 
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I would upgrade the MK2. I would start with the dual hole transfer port (Ernest Rowe version) and probe along with the barrel liner of your choice. I think you will get better performance that you are looking for. Power plenum?? Nah, all you will get here is 10 or 15 more shots per fill. Is that a big deal for you? IMO the moderator you already have is adequate. There, only $180 and you can buy a ton of pellets or slugs as you wish.

If you insist on a new gun, consider the Maverick 30 cal sniper. You said that adjustability is not really required. This rifle has the power and pretty much as much adjustability although not as easy. It's an awesome gun right out of the box and about $400 cheaper than a MK3.
 
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I'd keep your MKII, It's a great shooting gun. Sure down the road you may want to add a 2nd gun to your collection. You can let it be the MK3 then. The sake of saying you have more smack at 100 yards. You'll gain very little. You've said you've only put 450 pellets through it, that's only .50-.75 cents a shoot in loss if you sell it today. With that cost you could be shooting your .223 at nearly the same cost,

I recommend to follow what Center Cut as recommended as your budget will allow. I you want I have a new .30 superior liner 1-22, That I'm not using. I'll sell to you cheep. Put a $90 Huma caliber change kit on it, you have a .30 with all the thump you want.
 
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