We are taking another look at the Crosman 800x .22 break barrel rifle with 4×32 scope. We’ve made a few modifications for this testing. As I’ve mentioned before about the Crosman and Gamo triggers, they really don’t do it for me. I know that people say they “break in” over time, but I’m not sure that I want to take the 3000 shots to see that happen. So we’ve installed a GRT III drop in replacement trigger to see if it helps. Also, the first rifle we looked at had some accuracy problems and with the permission of the folks at www.AirgunDepot.com we sent it back to Crosman for their quality control department to look over. Crosman determined that there were issues and they promptly replaced the rifle with a new one.

Crosman 800x .22

There was an immediate difference with this new rifle. First, I was able to adjust the open sights fairly easily and it was near midpoint on the adjustments when I was done. Next, I was able to shoot .75″ groups with open sights at 10 yards. For me, that is pretty good as my eyesight is not great for open sights. When I added the scope however, I was disappointed to find that the scope was different than the one from the first rifle we looked at. It looked the same but the parallax was set for 50+ yards, or at least that is what it seemed to me. At 20 yards the focus was still off. This really bugged me because I really thought that we’d hit the jackpot with this 800x. Anyway, I have other scopes so this is not going to be a big issue.

To solve the trigger problem we’ve installed the GRT III trigger system that retails for about $32. I’m going to write an article about this trigger so I won’t spend too much time on it now. It took about 10 minutes to install and it made a dramatic improvement. I wish I had a trigger pull scale to say just how much it improved, but let me tell you it makes a HUGE difference

Crosman 800x with GRT III trigger installed.

The basic aesthetics and features of the 800x were covered in the first article so I’d really like to talk about how I was able to reduce the 2 and 4 inch groups at 20 yards down to .5″ groups. A lot of things had to fall into place to get these results and I will go through them one at a time.

First, as with any new gun, CLEAN THE BARREL. I read all the time how B.B., over at Pyramid Air, tells everyone about the J-B Non-Embedding Bore Cleaning Compound. It really works. Take the time and get some and a slew of cleaning brushes and a single piece cleaning rod. All this makes life easier. The only difference with me and B.B. is that I LOVE using a bore snake for the final clean up instead of running a dozen patches through the barrel. They make them for both .177 and .22 as well as many other calibers and two passes brings the barrel to a nice shine.

Once the barrel is clean, check all the screws to make sure they are secure. When I’m shooting for accuracy, I’m trying to get .5″ groups at 20 yards. Loose screws will make that impossible, so make sure they are all tight. Be careful not to over tighten, as it can break the wood on some guns. Be sure to check all the scope mount screws as well, even on a premounted scope.

Now that the barrel is clean and all the screws are secure, it is time to do some shooting. Most of the time I set up at ten yards just to get the scope shooting on target. Then I back up to 20 yards. At 10 yards, a good gun should put all the shots in one ragged hole. If I can’t get a good group at 10 yards, then I basically pack it in and call it quits for the review, as with the first time around with the 800x. The best I could get at 10 yards was .75″ groups. The 20 yard groups were 2″ or more.

For take 2 of the 800x, I mounted a Daisy PowerLine 3x9x32 scope. This scope does not have AO, but I can set it on 6x and still have a clear picture at 20 yards so that was fine for this session. We also have the GRT III trigger in place.

Contrary to the advice of many springer shooters, I like to shoot from a rest. The reason that I like to use a rest, bipod or other help, is so that I can take myself out of the picture as much as possible and focus solely on the natural ability of the air gun. I’ve found the MTM Predator Shooting Rest to work well for most guns, once I find the best balance point and the best way to stabilize the rifle. I found that if I balanced the 800x just behind the front screws and place my left hand just behind the rest I got a very consistent point of impact. I also found that if I rest the rifle and use my opposite hand to hold the butt of the rifle in my shoulder, I got the same point of impact. Before I found these positions I noticed that even a subtle change in hold would cause a dramatic shift in the point of impact, up to 2 to 3 inches in various directions. This rifle is very hold sensitive. When it came to shooting at 20 yards, I found my faithful Dragon Claw Bi-Pod to be the ticket.

Now that we’ve got everything set up, let’s do some testing. I’ve found the RWS “Super” line of pellets to be exceptional in many of the rifles that I’ve been testing lately. The RWS Superdome, Super point, and Super H point all work well in the 800x with the Super H point the standout choice. The Crosman premiers (both standard and hollow point) do OK but they are not nearly as consistent as the RWS. I know the RWS cost a bit more but they are worth the extra money.

As with the first 800x, the power plant produced excellent power and velocity. What’s better is now we can add excellent accuracy to the list! Because this is a light rifle it will be highly susceptible to recoil, so consistent hold is VERY important. Any change in hold will throw your shot off target. With practice you can, also, get these results.

10 yards with RWS Super H Point

20 yards with RWS Super H Point

So let’s wrap this up. The Crosman 800x sells for about $120 over at www.airgundepot.com. It can shoot very accurately, but it requires that you do your part. While the first rifle we received was a little off, the replacement shot well and was quite accurate, out to at least 20 yards. I did not shoot it for accuracy beyond that but I have a soda can hanging in a tree 40 yards away and it was not a problem to hit it every time. If you are looking for a hard hitting, light weight rifle, the 800x may be right for you, especially if you like open sights. If you want a nicer trigger pull and better scope, plan on adding about $100 to your cost. Once you get near the $200 price point though, I’d have to say there are a lot of options out there, like the BAM B26, Gamo CFX, and others.

Written By,
Rick Eutsler
Editor / Owner www.AirGunWeb.com
editor@airgunweb.com
Copyright 2007, Dog River Design, LLC – All Rights Reserved.

Today we will take a look at the Crosman 800x, a break barrel rifle with a rated velocity of up to 800 Feet Per Second. Before we get started, we want to take a moment to thank the folks at www.airgundepot.com for providing this rifle for review. You can easily pick one up on their website for only $120, and that includes a VERY nice 4×32 hunting scope.

On to the review! This rifle is lightweight, weighing in at about 6 1/2 pounds with the included scope. The cocking effort is light to moderate (stated as 37 pounds, but feels lighter) and should be light enough for all day shooting.

Crosman 800x Profile

At first glance, this is a very nice looking rifle. It comes with a light colored stock that is very well made and has a nice grain and finish. It is, also, very comfortable and pulls to the shoulder well. It ships with a 4×32 scope that is perfect for this rifle.

Crosman 4×32 Scope Mounted

It has front and rear fiber optic sights. The rear sight is fully adjustable with micro-click adjustments, making the sighting-in process quick and efficient. I would imagine, when in the woods, the open sights would be preferable for quick target acquisition. Since we are shooting fixed targets, I’ll install the scope for our shooting tests. At first look, the scope was very clear and it seemed that the parallax was set to about 15 to 20 yards making it perfect for the effective range of this air rifle.

Fiber Optic Front Sight

Fiber Optic Rear Sight

View through the scope

Well enough about the cosmetics, let’s talk about how this rifle performs! This rifle produced the most consistent velocity of any spring air rifle that I’ve tested. Most rifles, whether spring, pump, or CO2, have a spread across multiple shots. My Gamo Hunter 440 has a spread of about 20 FPS across multiple shots. Review the following table to see just how consistent this rifle’s power plant is.

Crosman Premier Hollow Point, 14.2gn (average pellet weight)
High – 709, Low – 703, Average – 706, Difference – 6 FPS (That’s right only 6 FPS difference!)

RWS Super Dome, 14.5gn (average pellet weight)
High – 711, Low – 704, Average – 708, Difference – 7 FPS

The consistency was the same across multiple pellets not just the ones above. With only a 6 or 7 FPS spread, I was extremely excited to see just how accurate this rifle shoots.

First, I went through and did a complete check of the gun. I tightened up all the screws, thoroughly cleaned the barrel, and made sure everything else was secure. Initially the rifle dieseled, as in combusted LOUDLY, and it took about 10 or 15 shots with heavy Beeman Kodiak pellets to clear it out. The rifle has significant recoil and some twang to it. With the dieseling stopped, I started to sight in the rifle’s open sights. Here is where I ran into my first snag. In order to get the the rifle shooting in the right direction I had to adjust the sight all the way to the left and then some. (see photo below) I also had to lower the rear sight to it’s lowest point and it still was not low enough. It was still shooting high and I decided to just move on and install the scope.

Rear sight adjusted – notice that I had to go past the furthest left notch.

As mentioned before the scope was very nice and perfect for this rifle. There is plenty of adjustment room on the scope to get it on target and the 4x magnification and short parallax make it easy to use at short distances. I set up at 10 yards to start my shooting tests. The first thing that I noticed was just how hold sensitive this rifle is. Any change in the position of the hold would throw the shot off by 1 to 3 inches, and that was only 10 yards away. You can imagine the effect at 20 yards or more. Also, I found the trigger to be very stiff with noticeable creep, making it unpredictable. Here are some of the groups that I shot at 10 yards.

Crosman Premier Hollow Points 14.2gn.

Daisy Precision Wadcutters

RWS Super Dome 14.5gn.

As you can see, accuracy is where things fell short. I was expecting much better groupings at only 10 yards. I put around 1000 pellets through this gun over the last couple of days. What you see above is the best I could get. There may have been several issues that contributed to the inaccuracy. When attempting to use the open sights, they were at their extremes to try and get the rifle on target. It is possible that the barrel is somewhat out of alignment. Also the fact that the rifle is so hold sensitive makes it very difficult to shoot accurately. Lastly, the trigger was very stiff, even adjusted as light as possible, its release was unpredictable which can lead to decreased accuracy.

Now, I want to put all of this in perspective. We are talking about a .22 cal rifle that consistently produces better than 700 fps, all for less than $120 and includes a nicely matched scope. All in all, we are talking about a pretty hard hitting little rifle. I did get the chance to shoot out to 25 yards and while I don’t have any groupings to show you, I can tell you that they were all in the 2.5″ to 4″ range. While these groupings are nothing to write home about, last time I looked, a squirrel was a bit bigger than 2.5″. This is a very “practical” air rifle. While it may not win a shooting competition, it would certainly dispatch small game easily enough. 20 Oz. water bottles at 30 and 40 yards were not a problem. It may not drive 5 shots though the same hole, but it can produce adequate results for a rifle in this price range. I would sum up this review by saying this rifle has a lot of potential, but you will need a lot of practice to tame it and get the most out of its potential.

Written By,
Rick Eutsler
Editor / Owner www.AirGunWeb.com
editor@airgunweb.com
Copyright 2007, Dog River Design, LLC – All Rights Reserved.

In the world of mediocre air guns it is a real joy to get my hands on a really excellent product. From the first shot, I knew this rifle had a lot to offer. But before I get into the review, let me say a quick word about Compasseco, the exclusive distributors of the TechForce® Contender series. Compasseco has invested a lot of time and money in producing high quality, yet cost conscience air guns. Yes their TechForce® line of guns are made in China, but under stringent quality control and continued high expectations from Compasseco and their customers. If it has the TechForce® name on it, it will be a high quality gun. Compasseco has worked very hard to make this a reality and we have all benefited from their efforts, whether we realize it or not. By them requiring better quality products, those factories are producing higher quality products overall. What’s more important is Compasseco’s dedication to their customers. They work to make sure you are satisfied with their products. Lastly, I want to personally thank Compasseco for their help in getting www.airgunweb.com off the ground. They were the first vendor to agree to send us products to review and I’m thrilled to finally put their Contender 89 through the paces!

Right side view of the Contender 89 on my MTM shooting rest.

The first thing that I noticed when I pulled the Contender 89 from the box is just how large the rifle is. It is 46.5 inches long, and with the included scope, weighs nearly 10 pounds. This is a big gun and best used by adults. Compasseco sent the 89 matched with their TechForce® 3x12x44 AO scope and a set of high scope rings. The cost of this combo will run you about $269. At first glance, this rifle reminded me a lot of the Beeman GH950 that I have, but once the shooting started the comparisons stopped. The 89 shoots with a lot of force, nearly 800 FPS with RWS 14.5 grn. pellets and right at 800 FPS with Crosman Premier Hollow Point 14.3 grn. pellets. The 89 makes my GH950 feel like a pop gun by comparison. The “out of the box” accuracy was exceptional. I make my own targets and they have a 1/8″ black dot for a bulls-eye. It is an amazing thing to sit back at 20 yards, and with little effort on my part, drive pellet after pellet through nearly the same hole. Wait until you see the groups….

Left side view of the Contender 89 on my MTM shooting rest.

Now that you’ve got a quick overview of the rifle, let’s talk about some of the aesthetic qualities of the 89. First of all I noticed just how dark the wood stock was stained. It gives the rifle a nice warm look and the highly detailed checkering just adds to the look and functionality of the rifle. Another nice feature are the screw covers for the front of the barrel. They really add to the quality “fit and finish” of the 89.

Nice checkering for the grip

Again, nice checkering makes for a sure grip. Notice the screw cover at the front of the picture.

The 89 ships with a decent set of open sights, but I would have liked to have seen some fiber-optic inserts instead of just metal sights. In fact the sights are my only complaint about this rifle, and that needs to be put into perspective. I’m nearly certain that this next issue is unique to THIS gun and not typical of the Contender 89 line, but my 89′s rear sight had some lateral movement to the tune of about 1/16th of an inch. As you can expect ANY movement on fixed sights makes them basically unusable. I noticed that when I cocked the barrel the adjustment screw hit the wood stock. I’m not sure if this caused the problem, but if you look at the picture below, you can see the notch in the stock. Now to put this into perspective, the 89 is just itching to have a scope mounted on it. So I’m not sure how important the open sights are to begin with. I’m sure that Compasseco would replace the sight without question if I simply asked.

Rear sight, notice the little “notch” in the stock just ahead of the barrel joint.

Simple front site on the 89

Compasseco included their 3x12x44 AO scope for this evaluation. This scope is only an $80 upgrade when you purchase it with the rifle. The optics are very clear and getting your eye in the right spot for a clear picture is really easy, as this scope seems to be fairly forgiving. By contrast, the scope on my B26 is really picky and you have to be in JUST the right spot to get a good picture. The AO feature worked really well and the 12x magnification is a must with this rifle. Because of the power in the 89, you will find yourself taking shots that you may not otherwise take. For example we setup targets out to 60 yards and at that distance the 12x really helps. I would not call this next comment a “complaint” but rather a suggestion. With a rifle like the 89, that has such a long useful range, a mil-dot scope would be a real help for shooting at various distances. The optics in the TechForce® scope are really nice and clear, add a mil-dot reticule and you’ve got a deadly combination. As it sits, you’ll need to do a lot of shooting to get the right “hold over and hope” for various distances. Not that shooting this rifle a lot is a bad thing, I found that it was rather fun. And if you shoot it a lot, you can skip that trip to the Gym. I’m beginning to think that my wife has figured out a way for me to exercise. The 89 takes a fairly strong person to cock the gun. I’m not sure of the exact cocking force, but if I cock the 89 for a while and then switch to my Gamo 440, I about snap my 440 in half.

TechFoce 3x13x44 AO scope

All the pretty wood and checkering don’t amount to much if the gun can’t hit the target. That is most certainly NOT the case with the 89. Not only does it hit the target, it does it with a lot of force. Because of the weight I did not find the 89 that hold sensitive.  It does recoil a bit so this rifle has a noticeable kick to it. I had many people shoot this gun and they all shot it reasonably accurately. I found shooting this from my MTM shooting rest was the best way to go. I spent two full days on the range shooting several air guns. The Contender 89, BAM B40, and BAM B26 were all fun to shoot. As far as break barrel rifles go, the Contender 89 is by far my favorite. It is amazingly accurate and generates 800 FPS with the most accurate pellet, which turned out to be the Crosman Premier Hollow Point 14.3 grn. The RWS “Super” line of pellets were also decent, but the Crosman beat them out. Here are some tables for your review:

RWS Super Point 14.5 grn
High – 788, Low – 782, Average -784, Difference – 6 FPS

Crosman Premier Hollow Point 14.3 grn
High – 800, Low – 793, Average – 797, Difference – 7 FPS

As you can see, the Contender’s power plant produces good consistent velocity, contributing to its accuracy. Another important point about accuracy, and a topic of some of our most recent articles, deals with the trigger. The Contender’s trigger is a lot like my Beeman GH950. It is not like the Crosman or Gamo triggers. While it is not as smooth as the BAM B26 or BAM B40, it does not seem to hurt the shooting characteristics of the gun. It is a nice wide trigger with its own “checkering” and it has a positive release that is very predictable. It is not my favorite trigger, but it is a nice trigger for this gun. There is an adjustment for the trigger, but I did not find that it made that much of a difference. The safety system is automatic and engages each time you cock the rifle. I used to find this annoying, but I’m beginning to see why it is standard on many rifles. Safety is important. And on guns like these, they generate almost as much velocity as an actual firearm and safety is critical.

The Contender 89′s trigger guard and trigger.

Finally, we get to the good stuff. How did it shoot!!! As I mentioned above, I knew this rifle was going to shoot well. After I mounted the scope and got it basically sighted in, the 89 seemed to hit the target all on its own. By comparison, the Crosman 800x is fatiguing to shoot, when shooting for accuracy, (take into consideration it costs 1/2 as much), while the TechForce® Contender 89 takes little or no effort. Just put the crosshairs on the target and squeeze the trigger. The 89 will do the rest. During my shooting sessions with family in VT we shot at everything from paper targets at 10, 20, and 30 yards, to eggs at 60 yards. The Contender was up for any challenge. The most fun were the eggs. Boy did they go splat when they were hit head on. Here is a shot pattern from 30 yards using RWS Super Point pellets. I did not have a dime on me, so I used a quarter for comparison. I’m guessing that is at or less than .5″ c to c?

RWS Super Point pellets at 30 yards

I wanted to do more shooting in VT but the weather did not cooperate. I got this next grouping at 20 yards when shooting at my home range in SC.

Crosman Premier Hollow Point, 20 yards

That group says it all. I had been shooting for about 20 minutes with the RWS pellets when I decided to shoot the Crosman Premier HPs. When the first, second, and third shots went nearly in the same hole, I knew I had found the “magic bullet” for this particular rifle. I’m not sure how the hollow point will do at ranges beyond 20 yards, so I guess I’ll have to hold on to this Contender 89 for some “extended” testing! I don’t think the folks over at Compasseco will mind.

Ok, so let’s wrap this review up. The TechForce® Contender 89 starts at $189 and is available in either .177 or .22. I specifically asked for the .22 version because all the other reviews on the 89 were the .177. I like .22 caliber better and I like to be a little different from everyone else, so that is why most of the reviews you will read here will be on .22 caliber and above. Anyway, the Contender sells for $189 with open sights. In the realm of guns just under $200, the Contender has a lot of company, but not a lot of competition. This rifle is effortless to shoot, is extremely accurate, and generates 800 FPS in .22 caliber. Head shots at 30 and 40 yards should be easy with a good scope. Because of the weight, shooting without a rest will take some practice and patience, but I’ve got a tin can in a tree about 40 yards away with a lot of holes in it from this Contender, all shot from the shoulder. When choosing a scope for the 89, make sure you identify your shooting purpose. If you will always be shooting from a fixed distance, i.e. 20 yard range, then the TechForce® scope in this review is a great choice. If you are going to be using the 89 for hunting at all distances, consider something with a mil-dot reticule. Either way you go, you should set aside about $90 for a decent scope and mounts, putting your final cost at $279.00. If you look at the Beeman GH950 combo from Pyramid air selling at $269, the Contender is a hands down better deal. I want to thank the folks over at Compasseco again for allowing us to review this product. I look forward to bringing you more reviews on their entire TechForce® line.

Written By,
Rick Eutsler
Editor / Owner www.AirGunWeb.com
editor@airgunweb.com
Copyright 2007, Dog River Design, LLC – All Rights Reserved.

Finally a solution? We’ll see.. Have I mentioned that I don’t care for the Crosman and Gamo triggers? You know I have. They are stiff and have a tendency to be unpredictable. Both lines have some really accurate rifles. The Gamo 440 is a great gun and the Crosman G1 and 800x have a lot of potential given the gun is working right. But they all suffer from rotten triggers. I’d rather they keep the scopes and put a really nice trigger system in. Anyway, enough of my ranting.

There is hope however. I came across the following web site, http://www.charliedatuna.com/index.html. I don’t know how I got there, but I was pleased to find they carry a drop-in replacement for many rifles. I didn’t realize just how many rifles use the exact same design, but supposedly this trigger will simply drop-in all the following air guns.

GRT-III Trigger… yep, that’s all there is to it!

The GRT-III trigger blade will fit almost any rifle using the Gamo type trigger including:*

• B-18/19′s
• Beeman S-1
• Cabela’s Outfitter Series (all)
• Crosman Quest 800
• Crosman Quest 1000
• Crosman Phantom
• Crosman G-1 Extreme
• Daisy 130b
• Gamo CFX series
• Gamo Hunter all series (including the 1250)
• Gamo Shadow all series
• Gamo Recon
• Gamo Nitro 17
• Gamo 640 Carbine
• Gamo (all late production rifles)
• Meteor MK-6
• Rapid MK-1
• Remington Summit
• Some QB models like the 88
• Some other TF models
• TF-25 ??
• And some others.

*This data was pulled directly from their site..

Now the term “drop-in” can mean several things. In this case it is literally a “drop-in” procedure. They have detailed color instructions on their site and the process takes about 5 minutes if you know what you are doing. It took me 10 minutes the first time, but the second rifle was a snap.

GRT-III Trigger Installed in Crosman 800x

There is not much to this thing. It completely removes the trigger return spring that makes the original trigger so hard to pull and just relies on the internal spring on the sear for tension. I don’t have a gauge to measure the pull weight but it is light, almost too light. There are two adjustments. One is for the first stage and the second is for the second stage. There is a lot of information on their site that goes into great detail about how these triggers work.

GRT-III’s 2 adjustment screws

Now down to the nitty-gritty. I purchased 2 sample triggers. I installed one in my Gamo 440 and one in our test Crosman 800x. The difference was dramatic. My Gamo shoots like a dream now. In fact just two days ago I made an impossible shot at almost 90 yards. There is NO way I could have made that shot with the old trigger. The pull is very light and distinct and with a careful pull you can clearly feel the first and second stages of the trigger. I’m thinking .25″ groupings at 20 yards are now possible with this riffle. As for the Crosman 800x, the difference was equally dramatic. The groups reduced by more than half with the new trigger in the 800x. (I’m going to take another look at the Gamo 440 with this new trigger so keep checking the site for the article)

All in all, I’m very impressed with this new trigger. If you have one of these compatible rifles and you are looking for a better trigger that DOES NOT take ANY modifications to the original mechanism, then take a serious look at the GRT-III Trigger. However, when you add $32 to the cost of a $130 or $150 rifle, you may find that you’d be better served to get a BAM-B26 that has a great trigger right out of the box. I would not buy a new Crosman G1 with plans to purchase a GRT-III trigger, when there are choices out there with good factory triggers in the same price range.

Written By,
Rick Eutsler
Editor / Owner www.AirGunWeb.com
editor@airgunweb.com