Pistol Plinkers

[Bob La Londe]

First off I have to say Crosman has disappointed me again... and surprised me a little bit.

One day when I was out back of the shop shooting a few weeks ago my wife came out for some tool or another and commented that she might like to shoot pistols with us. I didn't own any air pistols at the time, and I was sure she wouldn't have a long term interest it them, but I do pay attention when my wife wants to do some of the things I like to do.

I spent a few weeks looking for fair modest price pistol plinkers. I finally decided on a 2300T and a Vigilante.

The 2300T:

Finish Quality: Out of the box I instantly noted that the front site was crooked. I read the manual and I mounted the rear site. Confirmed. It cants off to one side relative to the rear site. I thought that was a little disappointing for a $175 gun. I loaded up a CO2 cart, and walked out to the back of the shop to shoot it. I barely got it up in line with my eye before the next major failing glared back at me. The entire action was canted off to one side. A LOT. Crosman drilled the action crooked. I shot it four or five times, but the poor workmanship bothered me so much I had to put it down. I contacted Air Gun Depot about it, but I haven't heard a thing back from them about it. I cut some thin aluminum flashing into shims (its easily removable) and straightened the action by shimming it up on one side. For anybody who thinks I might be exaggerating I shimmed it up 0.030" in the front and rear on one side, and I think it could stand a couple thousandths more. Now I could finally shoot it without being driven bonkers looking at it. I would note that before I ever did anything I noticed the paint was knocked off on the screw that hold the frame and action together.

How Does it Shoot: Ok I guess. I didn't expect much so I set some empty soda cans about 25-30 feet out, and popped a couple rounds at them. At that range I hit them pretty much every shot. Its not a huge testament to its accuracy. It shoots one minute of soda can at 25 feet. LOL. Then I shot it over the Chrony. I don't know where Crosman got their published 530 FPS from, but my results where not even close. 7.9gr Crosman brown box domes shot at 400-420, and 7.5 grain Daisy pointed pellets shot at 420-440. Those are the lightest pellets I have. I went back to shooting and just kept walking the cans further and further out. Pellet drop is quick as the target gets further away, but the accuracy seems to fade as well. In addition I found the following. The probe and receiver slot seems to be sized for a .22 pellet. It makes it hard to load quickly and easily. I stuffed a few pellets badly, and had to knock a couple out with a cleaning rod. The sites are not sized very well for each other. The front site gets lost and wanders around in the notch in the rear site. It take an awful lot of force to pierce the CO2 cartridge. The first two cartridges I shot were pierced by twisting the cap with my fingers pretty hard, but by the third cartridge I had to use a screw driver. This is not a $175 gun. I would have expected this from a $30 gun. I can see a lot of potential for modifications, but out of the box it is not worth its price tag.

The Vigilante:

Finish Quality: I didn't even open the Vigilante. My wife has a fondness for wheel guns so I let her open, load, and shoot it first. I didn't really expect much out of the Vigilante since its only a $50 gun (as bundled), so I wasn't disappointed. In fact I was a little surprised. The sites (for being plastic) out of the clam shell where sized appropriately for each other. Loading the CO2 cartridge is a little awkward. You have to remove both pistol grips to do it. Loading pellets in the gun is ok, but the catch is very tough to release to open the gun. I put a pretty healthy depression in my thumb to open it, and my wife could barely open it at all. The cylinder discs are easy to put pellets in and the pellets seem to stay in place just fine. Since opening the gun is so hard I decided we should depress the catch to close it so that it doesn't wear out from slamming it shut. The ten round pellet cylinder seems to index well enough both single action and double action, but it does not have a bolt detent to hold it in place. Just a hand to advance the cylinder. The hand works well. As long as you don't touch the cylinder with your hand it advances and shoots just fine. It seems a little floppy, but it works. It really only has one minor irritation that stands out upon first run through. The cylinder tends to fall out and go tumbling across the floor when you open the gun.

How Does it Shoot: My wife hit the aluminum cans often enough that it wasn't too frustrating for her, and it seemed to hit them with some authority. After she had played for a while I took a turn, and found that out to almost 50 feet (with some hold over) it hit where I pointed it when shooting single action. I didn't shoot it double action much, but it seems to work just fine. I don't think as a mostly plastic gun it will hold up all that long, but out of the package it performed as expected and didn't have any hugely glaring deficiencies. I just put a fresh cartridge in the gun and shot it over the Chrony. The first shot was quite fast at 485 FPS with a 7.9 grain CPD (brown box). That was a fluke, because successive shots were 395-420 when shooting fairly quickly with most being around 400. That allows for the claimed 435 FPS to be true. I would also add that I am sure the ease with which you can rapid fire this gun will affect its velocity. If you waited 45 seconds or so between shots for the CO2 temperature to equalize to ambient I am sure speeds would be more consistent. The gun comes with a single 10 round pellet cylinder, and a single 6 round BB cylinder. We didn't shoot it with BBs or lighter pellets, but the speed with the 7.9s confirm the claimed speed well enough for my satisfaction. The holster, and three extra pellet cylinders Air Gun Depot throws in with this gun makes it worth the $50 price tag for a short life fun plinker. I would note that the gun alone without the extra cylinders and holster sells for $35. Its not a great gun by any means, but unlike the 2300T this gun is atleast worth its price tag.