Air Venturi Avenge-X Tactical slug test

Today reader Ian McKee, whose blog handle is 45Bravo, tells us about how he tested slugs in the Air Venturi Avenge-X precharged pneumatic (PCP) air rifle. After reading his results I have decided that I want to be just like him when I grow up!

If you’d like to write a guest post for this blog, please email me at [email protected].

Take it away, Ian

Air Venturi Avenge-X Tactical slug test
by Ian McKee

Avenge-X-Tactical.

Part 1
Part 2

This report covers:

• Catching up
• Be careful what you wish for
• Where do I start?
• Touching the electric fence
• Tunes and targets
• Making it better
• Stepping out to 100 yards
• The final numbers and caveats
• Now the BIG questions, and some thoughts
• The future of airgun competition
• A luxury I have that BB does not
• I would like your opinions

Some people learn by reading, some learn by watching others, and some people just have to touch the electric fence for themselves.  (Apparently that’s me when it comes to airgun tuning!)

More than once BB has stated that he will never be able to explore all of the options the Avenge-X has to offer.  I agreed with that and started testing my Avenge-X Tactical rifle. Little did I realize the rabbit hole I had just willingly stepped into. I should have listened to BB.

Following my own advice, I tell everyone who is new to PCP airguns before turning ANY adjustments, shoot at least a tin of pellets through it to get a baseline of its performance and learn its particular idiosyncrasies. Yes you can change pellets during that time to find the one that shoots best with the factory settings. But I suggest at least 500 pellets total.

Catching up

In my last report about the Avenge-X Tactical I had decided to follow the slug path first, followed by pellets, as there are more pellet options than slug offerings. At least when I made that decision there were more pellet options. Many new slug designs and makers have come to market. Most are great. The not-so-great ones don’t stay in business very long. .

I set the rifle to a regulator setting of 2000 psi on the gauge, and set the hammer spring preload to zero (fully counter clockwise). The hammer spring preload screw is captive so you can not accidentally unscrew it too far. I make my hammer spring adjustments from all the way counterclockwise.

Be careful what you wish for

I had said that I didn’t have the inventory of slugs and pellets BB has access to so I sent an email to Pyramyd AIR, and they sent a selection of slugs they thought would do well in the Avenge-X. (Thank you for that.) About that same time I suddenly started getting packages from friends that read the blog (for some reason though they never comment.) Suddenly I have ZAN slugs, H&N, FX, JSB, Patriot, and some of the RIFLE brand slugs.

Where do I start?

BB is starting to cover the tuning of the Avenge-X, my advice is to follow his advice. I will suggest making very small adjustments to the hammer spring adjustment, as I have found the difference between a good tune and a great tune can be less than an eighth of a turn of either adjustment (hammer spring and regulator). But where do I start? There are so many slug weights, sizes and manufacturers out there the list is already overwhelming and it is growing every day.

I decided to start with the lightest slugs and work my way up. I really cannot give advice as to the exact number of turns and regulator pressure to use. Some shooters want more power, others want a higher shot count and the OCD people will want the lowest extreme velocity spread in search of accuracy. Choose wisely.

I just want a good shot count, and the best accuracy I can squeeze from the platform. But I will list what my settings are as we go.

Touching the electric fence

I had watched Steve Scialli’s original tuning video when it first came out. I skimmed through parts that seemed unimportant. Please don’t do that. When he released the Air Venturi Avenge-X specific video I skimmed through it as well.

I thought I had found the perfect tunes for several slugs. They would shoot great indoors — even out to 100 yards. Then, when I went out into the real world, the groups fell apart.

I cleaned the barrel, checked all the screws, everything I could think of to do, but nothing worked. Then I watched the video again in its entirety. This time I took notes. That’s when I heard the part about the slightest breeze blowing the groups apart.

This is what I had spent weeks chasing — a problem I thought I had but one that wasn’t actually real. Please learn from my mistakes. Today’s groups were shot indoors, from a front rest and a rear bag.

Tunes and targets

Today we will look at the 0.217-inch H&N 21-grain slug.  The slug has a slightly cupped base, and a hollow point in the front. The ballistic coefficient of the slug is listed as 0.091.

At 25 yards the velocity started out at about 835fps, with velocity spreads in the 20 f.p.s. range. As I started adjusting the regulator higher slowly. The speed came up and the extreme spread dropped, and the groups started to tighten up. Then I started adjusting the hammer spring.

The best 10-shot group I was able to achieve at 25 yards was 10 shots in 0.094-inches, center to center. The Avenge-X can shoot slugs!

Ten slugs at 25 yards made a 0.091-inch group, They just kept going through the same hole!

Moving out to 50 yards, the first group measured 0.291-inches, center-to-center.

At 50 yards the Avenge-X Tactical put ten slugs into 0.291-inches. That’s an outstanding group for 50 yards!

Making it better

I was thrilled with that group.  Then I remembered the video saying to make adjustments at each distance. (See — I am learning.)  I started making very small adjustments to the hammer spring. The group got better, then worse, so I reversed the adjustment slightly.

After adjusting the tune at 50 yards indoors, and shooting several groups the best I was able to shoot was 0.158-inches center-to-center for 10 shots with the H&N slugs.

After retuning the Avenge-X Tactical put ten into 0.158-inches at 50 yards. It just keeps getting better. 

Stepping out to 100 yards

I moved the rubber mulch-filled bucket to the 100-yard mark and started again. Like the other distances I didn’t adjust the scope, I just refined my holdover for the range I needed.

My first 100-yard group was over an inch in size and also off the bull, but I was thrilled with that. A $530 airgun shooting near MOA (Minute Of Angle) at 100 yards is an outstanding feat. Kudos to Air Venturi for bringing this rifle to market!

But again following the advice in the video, I started making tiny adjustments to the hammer adjustment again. After several groups hovered around the magic one-inch mark, the stars aligned and I was able to shoot a 10-shot group that measured 0.597-inches center-to-center at 100 yards.

A sub-MOA group. Time to party!

I continued to shoot more targets at that distance until I emptied the tin of slugs.

The final numbers and caveats

The H&N 0.217-inch 21-grain slugs with a BC of .091 had a high velocity of 893 f.p.s., a low of 884 f.p.s., an average of 888 f.p.s. and an extreme spread of 9 f.p.s.

My regulator pressure is now showing 2200 psi. And the hammer spring is just over 3 and ¼ turns in. Your gun may shoot differently, and while these settings may get you close, will need final tuning for your individual equipment.

Now, following my previous outdoor experience, will the accuracy of the new tune hold up outdoors? Only time will tell, as I didn’t get the chance to shoot this tune in the real world yet. And I need to get more of the H&N 21-grain 0.217-inch slugs.

Now the BIG questions, and some thoughts

I have a $530 airgun that is capable of shooting one inch or less at 100 yards indoors if I do my part.  Five years ago, that was thought to be impossible.

Is it still just as good at 25 and 50 yards after tuning for 100? I don’t know, I didn’t shoot at any shorter distances after moving out to 100 yards.

I still have several other slugs from various makers, and I have them in different weights. Do I stay with this one and enjoy it, or explore the others?

Will the other projectiles do better? I don’t know. Will I be able to replicate this tune after adjusting for other projectiles? Probably.

The future of airgun competition

Most airgun competitions require the use of pellets, some of the competitions like Extreme BenchRest and RMAC (Rocky Mountain Airgun Challenge) and others do encourage the use of slugs, but they are at the leading edge of airgun technology.

I do see the slug becoming the standard for airgun competitions beyond 100 yards. Diabolo pellets are not designed for extreme long-range accuracy.

A luxury I have that BB does not

All I want is something with a high shot count, excellent accuracy, and about 30 foot-pounds of energy, so if I decide to hunt small game with it I can.  The current tune checks all of those boxes. Should I stay here and enjoy it for a while or should I move to the next heavier H&N slug?

BB can not take that luxury as he will always have some other new projectile to test in his test bed airguns. I can always write about something other than my Avenge-X Tactical until I grow bored with the current tune. I can also take the time to shoot multiple groups and show the best group. Because of time constraints, BB does not have that luxury.

I would like your opinions

What slugs do you think I should test? I can say that of the other slugs I have shot from the Avenge-X in the past few months, with tuning they all seem to shoot well out to 50 yards. Beyond 50 yards things start to fall apart for some reason.

Shoot safe, have FUN!
Ian