Regulator brands

I have several Huma's, an Altaros in a Hatsan Bully. I also have 2 FX Wildcats, original versions. One has a Huma, one is stock. Don't see much difference in either. I think Huma is just more popular because they are not only a good product, but easy to connect to for help, advice, etc. Customer support!

Top,

I will preface by saying that I am not a regulator fanboy. However, my first experience with one was when I purchased an Evanix 3D bullpup in .177 that a previous owner gave up trying to make it shoot because everything he tried kept going super-sonic and wouldn't shoot worth a darn. I purchased a Lane regulator for it, set by Robert at 150 bar. Instantly the gun came into the fold and wound up being extremely accurate with single digit spreads on velocity. I never tinkered with it since and it doesn't appear to have ever wandered.

Just yesterday, was trying to see if Lane offered a regulated quick-fill for an upcoming project, but unfortunately he doesn't so I ordered a unit from Huma. I have stock regulators in my 4 EdGuns, my BSA Super 10, my Theoben Rapid, 2 P-15's and a couple of Kalibrguns. I had a used R5M that I purchased that the previous owner had installed a Huma and it was not as stable as my stock EdGun units, but the gun was too temperamental in general for me and I traded it off since my stock R3M kept right up with it. I am not trying to say that Huma makes a poor product, just that my personal experience could have soured me, yet I am giving them a chance with this bottle regulator since their products are well embraced by the general market. 

Lane is very interesting to learn from, in my correspondence with him, he freely admitted that his primary field was industrial regulators and that making units for airgun use was an easy transition because the tolerances that he had to hold for industrial applications was exacting. He makes constant improvements and is obviously concerned about his product line keeping contemporary. 

I have faith that most of the manufacturers are putting a decent unit in their guns and would only look at the aftermarket if I was experiencing an obvious problem. If you search through Ed's videos, he has one where he basically sums it up, why would you put a different regulator into a gun that he designed to work so well with the regulator he put into it. 

I don't think anyone has the "best" brand, but some makers are far more diverse in the number of models that their units fit in. Like anything, there will be loyal devotees of a given brand and I can't fault their opinion. However, I personally feel too often many people install them without giving the factory units a good shakedown. My need for purchasing the Huma will be based on trying to create a compact air system on a gun that currently has a regulator, but is not readily adjustable, bulky and the design requires bottle removal to refill.

My opinion with the value of the electrons you are reading this on. 

Mark 

Do not overlook the Andruis regulator, the 1st mass "drop in" reg available in the U.S. . $60 dollar range and work flawlessly. 



John

Unlike Crank I fully admit to being a regulator fanboy. I only moved into PCP about 2 years ago and quickly realized I didn't want to be tuning a bell curve. As an engineer I recognize the regulator as the specific device to perform that task with precision.

I've got 3 guns currently with Huma regs. I've sold off a few others that had Humas as well. They make a quality product and their brand recognition got themselves into the OEM game. You won't go wrong with a Huma reg, but they don't make one for every gun.

I have an Altaros reg in my FX Rachero as they are the only ones to make one which fits a FX airtube. The break-in was a little bit slower than the Huma. I feel the long term consistency of the Altaros reg has been impressive. 

I haven't tried any of Lane's regs, but I wouldn't hesitate to. I've got some of his custom Prod valves and parts. They are extremely well made.

Regulators are one of the simplest parts to manufacture for a PCP Airgun. Nothing really special about any of them, Any of the major brands should work equally as well if set up correctly.

 

With what ctshooter is basing his approach on, I wouldn't want to disregard that he understands the function and has the desire to explore a guns capabilities. So no offense was intended by using that term.

It's like the myriad of aftermarket parts for vehicles, some people choose them because they fulfil a valid need, some because of a perceived need and lastly, those that put them in because it is the fashionable thing. The last category are what I meant by "fanboys". I apologize for any confusion. 

I myself have had solid sucess with my factory regulated guns, but I will admit that I am not the type that typically tunes my air rifle. If it's a solid performer, I tend to leave it well enough alone. However, I like to modify stuff and nothing is sacred. My current evil project (along with a slew of other endeavors) would probably be considered sacriledge, but I have a rifle of compact proportions in mind and there will be some interesting machine work involved. I am just a heretic that hasn't seen much personal need and so I piped in since my experience with the Lane product was excellent and I only now have a real need for another regulator. That's why I need to emphasize that I have nothing against Huma and look forward to the unit I have on its way. 

ctshooter,

Again, I meant no slight by that term. I have been a gunsmith my whole life and mechanical engineering is my world, so I can appreciate the mindset. Unfortunately, I have a terrible tendency to flit from project to project, regardless of its state of completion and find myself unable to devote range time for extensive testing. I did actually just buy a regulator tester from Lane the other day, so that might change.

Mark 

Well heck! I type so slow, that two replies come in during the interim.

top, 

One thing to consider is to simply make a plenum spacer. It could be a simple piece of aluminum tubing sized accordingly to increase volume. If my foggy recollection is right, the regulator just sits in the air cylinder and could be moved. That way you could experiment with $1 worth of tubing without purchasing another regulator. Just a thought and if I am wrong, please feel free to correct me.

Mark

Mark - no offense taken. I was entertained by the term and was just saying I'm coming from the opposite side.

Regulators are one of the simplest parts to manufacture for a PCP Airgun. Nothing really special about any of them, Any of the major brands should work equally as well if set up correctly.

Click to expand...

True - but you gotta use quality precision washers. I know Bellville is considered the best, I guess there are others. But also consider, for the consumer market, you have to design it in a way that you can have some level of calibrated adjustability.

I have a new gun on the way that comes with a Lane regulator. Always heard good things about Lane regs so that was kind of the icing on the cake for me to try this gun. Just hope it gets here from Spain. Things and people are getting weird very quickly with this virus thing. 

I think HW uses their own in house regs. Took a while for the one on my HW44 to break in, but after a few hundred shots it became very consistent with weighed and sorted pellets.

Let us know what you think of the Lane one when it comes in.

I will also let guys know what I think of the gun. Seeing how nobody seems to own one. It’s definitely a gun that has zero hype, fanboys and US distributors. My buddy has the rifle version of what I ordered and his, unregulated, will outshoot my Taipan at 100yrds most days.

Vetmx, I am thinking you are getting a Cometa Orion BP. Just guessing because I remember you mentioning it before. And because they use Lane regulators...

Yes. The mini. 

Awesome! I look forward to your review.

I have only heard good things about Cometa. And they are priced reasonably.

I have a Cometa Orion SH (shrouded) in 6.35, with Lane reg. I also have Lane regs in my 2 5.5 Stormriders and in my Pp 800 pistol (Diana bandit, also in 5.5). I have Audrius, Altaros, and Huma regs in other guns.

About Lane's regs: very well built, easy to set and adjust, reasonably priced, and they come in a useful package with o rings, spacers, silicon grease, instructions, even a drill bit. They work flawlessly and turned these SPA guns into highly accurate and consistent shooters. Very strong recommendation here.

About Cometa: yes, very good price, nice build and unusually good looking beech stock with adjustable comb. BUT it required work ... gird up for a mouthful ... First, it came with a severe air leak and a broken gauge from Aceros in Spain. (I recommend Carabinas y Pistolas or Mundilar after 3 Aceros misses ...) Contrary to my 12 other guns, I could not cure it myself because it requires a special tool to get to the valve unit. I had to return it for repair. Second, the magazine is crap, pellets could not load properly and became inaccurate. I understand that the Cometa Lynx has the same issue. I ended up printing a single shot adapter which gives great accuracy. (Creepy Dan's video also sports such a single shot tray). Third, the pellet probe was too long and blocked the magazine; I had to grind it down. Fourth, the one-stage trigger was the wobbliest I have ever seen. I shimmed it drastically and it is now predictable, yeah sweet almost with a hint of a second stage. Finally, the gun had a hell of a bark. I moved the shroud forward and inserted 2 hair curlers wrapped in felt, separated by a baffle from a Chinese oil filter (8usd on Aliexpress). It is now back yard friendly albeit not quite quiet. Good accuracy with JSB King. To increase the power I removed the choke piece from the transfer port and dremeled the barrel transfer port open to 5mm. Tuned it to 250m/sec, approx. 40FPE. The rear bolt requires a determined cocking effort. There is action noise sounding like hammer bounce but the shot count is good (around 40). I like this gun but it did not come without tears, and I will probably have to craft a special tool to open it up when the valve o-ring is up for replacement. The Spanish Desmontaje video shows what i am talking about!

Agree with Spysir, Audrius is excellent as well. 59EUR incl shipping from Lithuania. Distinguishing feature = Large plenum enabling high power at a low set point. I read somewhere that Audrius regs recover faster between shots than Huma which is considerably more expensive -- you pay for the name ...

(Note: watch the spelling - AUDRIUS - so you can find him on ebay and on utube with his video.)