Benjamin trail .22 np - thoughts??

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Gunggeek

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Guy is selling it fairly cheap,i read online reviews and bunxh of sites is raving about this gun, but then i see on cabelas site few guys seems to have problem zeroing it, thats why i ask you guys , i dont need some sponsores site review, just plain facts.thanks.
 
Yeah, I read those sites before buying mine back in the day. Made it sound like one of the best rifles out there. Ended up buying it for $250, and kept it for maybe 5 months before selling it for $100.

Here's my review:

Fit and finish - Not too bad, looks like a decent rifle. Had some sharp edges that needed to be sanded, like the plastic trigger that could draw blood if you weren't careful.

Feel - It's pretty bloody heavy, at over 8 lbs before scope. Needs to be that heavy when it's running full power to tame the recoil, but in non-PAL, it was a waste. Shouldered OK, but not great. Not very well balanced, I felt it was too front heavy.

Trigger - Bloody awful. It was about a 5 lb pull, and you never knew when it was going to fire. It was mushy, and with no discernible second stage, it was a complete guess as to when it would fire. The pull was obnoxiously long, as well. I bought and installed the GTX trigger which improved it, but it went from useless to somewhat usable.

Accuracy - I just couldn't get the thing to group well. I fired my 500 break-in shots after cleaning the barrel, and it was still inconsistent. Whether using the artillery hold or off the bags, I was lucky to get a 1" group at 10 yards. A guy I know who owns one that tuned it to smooth it out, and has fired thousands of shots is getting about 3" groups at 50 yards. All the talks of this being an MOA rifle are nonsense. I've seen plenty of people shoot these things, but never seen results anywhere close to that.

Scope - The included scope was probably the best part. I actually kept it, and it's mounted on my Remington Airmaster. Holds zero well, and has turned that cheap shooter into something I would consider useful.

As for trouble zeroing it in, I could see that. Some people suggest Loc-Tite on the stock screws, others suggest differently. I had no luck either way. It's fine as a plinker, but there are much better rifles for the money. If you are hoping for real accuracy, I suggest moving on.
 
Barfman said:
Yeah, I read those sites before buying mine back in the day. Made it sound like one of the best rifles out there. Ended up buying it for $250, and kept it for maybe 5 months before selling it for $100.

Here's my review:

Fit and finish - Not too bad, looks like a decent rifle. Had some sharp edges that needed to be sanded, like the plastic trigger that could draw blood if you weren't careful.

Feel - It's pretty bloody heavy, at over 8 lbs before scope. Needs to be that heavy when it's running full power to tame the recoil, but in non-PAL, it was a waste. Shouldered OK, but not great. Not very well balanced, I felt it was too front heavy.

Trigger - Bloody awful. It was about a 5 lb pull, and you never knew when it was going to fire. It was mushy, and with no discernible second stage, it was a complete guess as to when it would fire. The pull was obnoxiously long, as well. I bought and installed the GTX trigger which improved it, but it went from useless to somewhat usable.

Accuracy - I just couldn't get the thing to group well. I fired my 500 break-in shots after cleaning the barrel, and it was still inconsistent. Whether using the artillery hold or off the bags, I was lucky to get a 1" group at 10 yards. A guy I know who owns one that tuned it to smooth it out, and has fired thousands of shots is getting about 3" groups at 50 yards. All the talks of this being an MOA rifle are nonsense. I've seen plenty of people shoot these things, but never seen results anywhere close to that.

Scope - The included scope was probably the best part. I actually kept it, and it's mounted on my Remington Airmaster. Holds zero well, and has turned that cheap shooter into something I would consider useful.

As for trouble zeroing it in, I could see that. Some people suggest Loc-Tite on the stock screws, others suggest differently. I had no luck either way. It's fine as a plinker, but there are much better rifles for the money. If you are hoping for real accuracy, I suggest moving on.
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Yeah i guess i better put my money elsewhere, any suggestion? Ruger, walther, bsa? All within similar range400$.
 
I would steer clear of Ruger, as it'll be similar to the Crosman / Benji products. Walther and BSA could be decent options. The Diana 280 Classic is another very good option. You could also spend a bit more and get this one:

https://www.specialtyshootingsports...-nickel-special-offer.html#fndtn-product_info

A very fine, and extremely well respected break barrel.

I guess it really depends on what kind of stock you want, how heavy is acceptable, and what velocity you're looking for.
 
Barfman said:
I would steer clear of Ruger, as it'll be similar to the Crosman / Benji products. Walther and BSA could be decent options. The Diana 280 Classic is another very good option. You could also spend a bit more and get this one:

https://www.specialtyshootingsports...-nickel-special-offer.html#fndtn-product_info

A very fine, and extremely well respected break barrel.

I guess it really depends on what kind of stock you want, how heavy is acceptable, and what velocity you're looking for.
Click to expand...

Fine looking rifle, i just hope there is .22 option thanks.
 
In that price range (and .in 22) you can't go wrong with a Weilhrauch HW 30S (non-Pal rated) or a Diana 280 Classic (Pal-rated). Check out AGS in Peterborough
 
I took a chance on a Benji Titan 22 from Cabelas for 179.00 , it needed to go thru a breakin period but groups very well, shoots 14gr av ammo in the 700fps easily, I dont mind the trigger pull, its long but predictable. Hard to get a fast quiet 22 airgun for under 200$.
 
I had a trail np 22 with the wood stock. after the trigger was upgraded I went through it and thread locked everything also made sure the stock was relieved where it needed. It shot very well after the work... but it took lots of fiddling,time and work. Eventually I sold it and went pcp .
 
Here is my experience with the Trail NP

https://www.canadiangunnutz.com/for...-Crosman-vs-Benjamin-Trail?highlight=trail+np

I didn't put in that thread but it is super picky about pellets. Beeman crow magnums tumble and crossman premiere are super accurate. The trigger is so awful its unsafe. It has a a terribly long pull but the danger is it's non-resetting. Its like working a ratchet. If you pull part way and let off the sear stays wherever you left off. Your next pull could be normal or a hair trigger. There are dozens of YouTube videos on fixing that trigger.

Like others have said it can be a good rifle but it takes fiddling around...I got mine on a CT 40% off sale. If I was going to spend $400 I'd go with a higher quality rifle
 
I have the similar Benjamin Prowler NP @ "1200 fps". It is super accurate with Crosman Premier hollow points. The trigger pull is just awful, but suprizingly, I've adapted, and I'm getting dime size groups at 12 metres. Very happy with mine. The scope the came with mine caused me all sorts of grief, but after tossing it in the trash in favour of a Nikko Sterling 3.5-10x44 LRX Illuminated scope (that came with my Howa 1500), I've been very impressed. I did spend a bit of money and bought a UK-made Sports Match 1" one-piece medium dovetail mount. My advice is to toss the scope that comes with it, don't waste your time. Put on something a bit more decent. For the record, I paid $165 (on sale) for mine, and often spend more on ammo. It won't break the bank.

ps... blue Loctite every screw!
 
My buddy bought one from CT a few years ago. It was right after we did our PAL training, and he was itching to shoot something. At first he loved it. Didn't take long for that to wear off. Didn't shoot any better than the 22cal crossman I got for less than half the price. The scopes are $45 from Walmart on their own.
 
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