Bushnell Elite on Springer/Nitro Piston

7055steved

7055steved

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Hello! I have a Bushnell Elite 4200 3-9x40 and I'd like to put it on my high velocity Crosman Vantage .177 Nitro Piston. I have an old Bushnell Trophy on it and the POI held up for a few hundred shots but now shoots a little different every time I take it out. I think the back and forth recoil may have been shifting my POI.

The mounts are solid still and no signs of slipping either. I don't think I can blame the steel Millet Rimfire rings...

Am I going to wreck my trusty old Elite on this air gun, or will it work well and survive? Thanks in advance! Steve
 
Don't be too quick to dismiss the rings. Most magnum springers need stop pins, full length rails etc to keep things from moving.
 
The piston guns are pretty smooth and not as violent as a magnum springer, but the nitro pistons have a rep for being inconsistent from what I recall reading a few years back.
Try the Bushnelll on a different gun and try something else on the air rifle as an experiment.
 
I've owned two piston powered air rifles for about 20 years now, and they are different in their firing cycle from a spring powered rifle. I found they are both harsher than a regular springed rifle, and similar to a high powered spring rifle when discharged

These piston powered / gas struts components vary greatly in quality and I beleieve were first used in the late 1970's by an English company called Theoben. I have found them very consistent in use, but susceptible to temperature change. To counter the harshness of the piston, I found using a good quality air gun cylinder grease worked well and it really smoothed out the firing cycle. Personally, I think these gas pistons are good, but both of my rifles are used mainly for hunting so I do not shoot 100's of pellets through them in a single session. My experiences on this subject are with relatively low powered air rifles, sub 12 ft/lb in .22 calibre.

If your scope is a cherished one, I personally would buy a more approriate one which is advertised as suitable for a spring powered rifle. Why take the chance?

Candocad.
 
Candocad said:
I've owned two piston powered air rifles for about 20 years now, and they are different in their firing cycle from a spring powered rifle. I found they are both harsher than a regular springed rifle, and similar to a high powered spring rifle when discharged

These piston powered / gas struts components vary greatly in quality and I beleieve were first used in the late 1970's by an English company called Theoben. I have found them very consistent in use, but susceptible to temperature change. To counter the harshness of the piston, I found using a good quality air gun cylinder grease worked well and it really smoothed out the firing cycle. Personally, I think these gas pistons are good, but both of my rifles are used mainly for hunting so I do not shoot 100's of pellets through them in a single session. My experiences on this subject are with relatively low powered air rifles, sub 12 ft/lb in .22 calibre.

If your scope is a cherished one, I personally would buy a more approriate one which is advertised as suitable for a spring powered rifle. Why take the chance?

Candocad.
Click to expand...

Agree. I wouldn't chance it if you cherish the scope. I have read a few times now where it is said that gas piston guns are actually harder on scopes than a regular springer.
 
gunsaholic said:
Agree. I wouldn't chance it if you cherish the scope. I have read a few times now where it is said that gas piston guns are actually harder on scopes than a regular springer.
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Interesting, mine is smooth and not harsh at all.
Bushnell Elite scopes are well made and covered by a lifetime warranty.
 
Can-down said:
Interesting, mine is smooth and not harsh at all.
Bushnell Elite scopes are well made and covered by a lifetime warranty.
Click to expand...

Would be curious to know what would happen warranty wise if something happened to the scope because it was on an air rifle. Are their scopes air gun rated? If so then I suppose there's nothing to worry about.
 
gunsaholic said:
Would be curious to know what would happen warranty wise if something happened to the scope because it was on an air rifle. Are their scopes air gun rated? If so then I suppose there's nothing to worry about.
Click to expand...

These days most bigger manufacturers seem to offer no questions asked, no paperwork needed warranty support.
I have only ever seen one model of bushnell where they listed it as airgun approved and it was a Sportsman model that sold for around $150-200.

I have a hard time imagining that the inexpensive sportsman model had special reticle structural support tech, and that the higher end models don't.
 
Elites are used frequently for Field Target and Air Rifle silhouette on springers.
The question is if it breaks do they replace it with a current model, the 4200 is no longer made.
 
Candocad said:
Is it a modern air rifle, break action and at what power? Mine are retro fit struts instead of springs and quite ancient! Also low power, sub 12 ft/lb.

Candocad.
Click to expand...

It's a nitro piston Benjamin Trail, laminate stock .22 and I think it claimed around 950 on the box... probably shoots a bit slower? Pal rated. It's possible that the recoil is a bit snappier and I just didn't notice because the piston seems smoother then most of my spring guns.... a nicely tuned and lubed spring gun can be pretty smooth as well. I have an HW77 that I bought used and the previous owner had done a bunch of work on it and it shoots quite nicely.

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Wow, thanks for all the replies in a short time! I might not call the scope cherished, but I would sooner the airgun break than the scope. Especially since the airgun was on sale for $159 new! My guess is that the Elite would take the recoil just fine, but if it didn't I would be pretty disappointed and still need to buy a cheap airgun scope anyways. I think I'll just pony up the <$200 for the airgun scope and be done with it. I just use the airgun for hunting and plinking, but it is quite consistent and groups 1/2" (give or take) at 20 yards for 3 shot groups. It's no high end PCP, but it shoots better than it's worth! :)
 
Scope

I have an elite 3200 on a weihrauch 95 pal rated. It holds zero but these scopes are made for powder burners, so the parallex is set at 100 yards. I set up airgun targets at 50 yards and shot 1-2 inch groups. I then took the locking ring off the scope and set the parallex at 25 yards .my groups shrunk to 1 inch. You can google how to reset parallex on scopes. The only problem with the elites is the locking ring is glued so heat it up with hair dryer. Some cheap scopes dont glue the ring. I measured 25 yards and turned the threaded ring till the image was clear, just like the a.o. on a scope.
 
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