What TO DO with a chronograph! Part 5: May 31, 2008

7. A chronograph tells you what those numbers on the Talon power adjustment wheel really mean! You will learn where to set the wheel for the best performance and perhaps save some air with every shot as you do. Dirt E. Harry

What TO DO with a chronograph! Part 4: May 30, 2008

6. You can perform all those experiments you’ve been reading about. Do .22 pellets really develop 20 percent greater power than .177 in a given airgun? With a Talon SS and a spare barrel in the other caliber, you’ll know for certain in a matter of minutes! Will Gamo Raptors really go supersonic in your Gamo CF-X? Is the Hunter 1250 Hurricane really a 1,600 f.p.s. air rifle with Raptors? With a chronograph, you’ll know the answers to these and many more important questions. Dirt E. Harry

What TO DO with a chronograph! Part 3: May 29, 2008

5. You can check the health of all your multi-pump pneumatics. A chronograph will tell you if your gun shoots faster or slower with the maximum number of pump strokes. No sense doing more work for less results! For example, a Sheridan Blue Streak should develop close to 675 f.p.s. with a 14.3-grain pellet on eight pumps of air – the maximum. If your gun stops at 550 on 8 pumps, or if it gets 614 with 7 pumps but only 567 with 8 pumps, you know it’s time for some repairs. Dirt E. Harry

What TO DO with a chronograph! Part 2: May 28, 2008

4. In conjunction with reason No. 3, you can calibrate the pressure gauges of all your refill devices. Instead of blindly filling every gun to 3,000 psi, you can discover the exact pressure reading at which each of your airguns develops its greatest power. It won’t matter whether the gauge is off by a little bit – you’ll know what it should say for the best results with each airgun. Dirt E. Harry

What TO DO with a chronograph! Part 1: May 27, 2008

There are LOADS of important things you can do with a chronograph. Here are just a few.
1. If you know how fast your airguns shoot a certain pellet, you will know when they have lost performance and need attention.
2. You can check out those inflated advertising claims made by some manufacturers.
3. You can determine the optimum pressure limits for all your precharged air rifles. For example, the AirForce Condor is very sensitive to overfilling. With a chronograph you can determine the exact top fill pressure your gun will tolerate by filling to 3,000 psi and shooting until your gun starts performing its best. By refilling at that point, you will notice the pressure at which the air tank starts accepting the fill, and that pressure is your maximum fill! Anything higher just wastes air. Dirt E. Harry

What NOT to do with a chronograph! May 26, 2008

Some shooters get a chronograph and start chrongraphing all their airguns immediately. People who were once happy shooters now stare at the chronograph screen trying to decide how they should feel about the numbers. A chronograph is to airgunners what a fish scale is to fishermen, and some folks are better off not knowing! Dirt E. Harry

What IS a chronograph? May 25,2008

I must mention here that this article is brought to us by Tom Gaylord; an airgun aficionado that has probably forgotten more about air guns than most of us will ever know. There are several definitions for the word chronograph, but the kind we are looking at measures the speed of projectiles in flight. Whether they are bullets, arrows, pellets, BBs or rocks shot from a slingshot – as long as they pass through the chronograph sensors, their velocity will be calculated. Dirt E. Harry

Who needs a chronograph? May 24, 2008

As it turns out – YOU probably need a chronograph more than you know! Airgunners own more chronographs than any other group in the shooting sports. We own them because we can use them much more often. Who can go down to the basement and shoot a few .300 Win Mag rounds while supper’s heating? You can shoot rimfire indoors, but it helps if you’re not married. Dirt E. Harry

Summary: May 23, 2008

I (Tom Gayord) can’t sum this up any better than to say I’ve been summing it up all along. The airgun silencer issue is complex, convoluted and anything but clear. If someone tries to convince you otherwise, don’t listen to another word they say. Again, this article has been written by Tom Gaylord a true airgun aficionado. We are indebted to you. Dirt E. Harry

You could be found Guilty: May 22, 2008

If that silencer has no serial number, it becomes a firearm without a serial number – the possession of which is a criminal offense. If you made it, you could be found guilty of manufacturing a firearm without a license – another criminal offense. If the judge decides that your legal ownership of a .22 rimfire rifle constitutes the intent to attach your illegal silencer to a firearm, you could lose everything you own and go to prison. Dirt E. Harry