Hmm... I'm seing a lot of discutions about honnest test, revious of airguns in last several weeks. On USA, UK and polish forums and airgun Fb groups. And most of the opinions are like:
-everyone is payed
- they have to talk good about that stuff because they have it for free from producers and distributors
And I'm wondering - if I'm weird or people are.
Airguns are my hobby and passion but my main passion (I'm just realizing that) is sharing konwledge. Actually sharring knowledge on anything that I'm currentyly passioned about. That is why I own a small motion designers company (ands that puts bread on my table), but I also own a website where I try to share my konoledge on motion design and filmmaking for free for people. That is also why I have - as airgunner - a blog and I run a Fb group about airguns (to share konwledge for community) but about that later.
As my motion design website growed - I got some calls, mails from software producers, scripts developers, and hardware distributors abut reviewing the stuff that they had. And in 11 years of that site I had only 3 sponsorred articles - that were clearly marked as sponsorred, and I got a bunch of stuff for review... but I had one rule: I'm making honnest review and either it will be good or bad review - I will published it if you send me your stuff. And you know what? Most of those people were ok with that, and most of the time (even if my review was harsh as hell) they just left me stuff that i was reviewing. What more interesting was - bigger company they were more ok with my honnest review.
But. Even that I had (and still have) that rule, even when everything about how and why I'm reviewing that stuff - there always was someone who said that I'm a sellout (corrupt).
With airguns it is different (specially in my country - Poland). Most of the big distributors are not interested in sending stuff for review, or if they are - they demand good review. So ... I had other idea of how to find a way to bring new (new as new for review non necesery new as not used) stuff for reviewing. I figured that I will buy a gun, run with it, test it, review, tunned it (as good as I can and as good as that exact model can be tunned to work better than fresh from the box), and then after that - sell it. There is a problem with that idea - if I made bad review it will be harder to sell, and that is the case (that is why I'm stuck with some crosmnan bb replicas and gamo pooptty plastic airguns). But my answer for that is - i found a contact with some distributors and feven if I'made already a review of f.eg Weihrauch airgun or AirArms but I know that quality (trying to sell what is good), and I know how much better I can tunned it for someone ... and every little extra cash that I can make on that is going for buing some stuff that I know that there will be a harsh review of it or if even if review will be objectivli based on gun quality ok - it will be a hard sell.
So Idea is clear, I clearly described it for my readers how it works and why I started that micro-store on my blog ... doesn't matter from time to time I hear that I'm trying to make money from airgun community etc.
What I'm trying to say in my wonky polglish (polish-english

) is - doesn't matter what you do and how clear, honnest and transparent you try to be - there will be people that will call you a sellout. And for you Joe I would say: if they give you a free stuff (not in that sense that it is free so give me that, but in sense that they give you new oportuninty for new test, review, video or article) take it - but state it crystal clear that your review will be cruelly honnest and not for them to review it before publishing. If that client will not accept your rules - ok ... end of story. But if client will agree for your terms - go for it. If company agrees to be honnestly reviewed mean that:
1. they are sure of theirs product
2. even if they're not sure - they are mature and conscious enoug to listen constructive critique
PS.
JOE - love your videos - keep up the good work.