GTA
Gateway To Product Reviews => Air Gun Reviews => : CaptGeorge March 13, 2009, 05:59:15 PM
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FIRST BLUSH
I had been looking for an inexpensive .22 air rifle. After a lot of research, I ordered a Crosman Quest 800X from Pyramid Air. Original order was lost by UPS, but I received prompt replacement order Thursday. (Pyramid has great customer service. See my other post.)
I'd asked Pyramid Air to check it out before shipping and this is what they reported:
With RWS H-point Pellet 14.2 grains
#1 745.42 fps
#2 739.19 fps
#3 730.31 fps
#4 738.69 fps
#5 745.61 fps
I ran outside to shoot it before the rains came. It's a keeper! After about a dozen shots it started grouping well with Daisy Precision Max .22 flat-nosed pellets. I was shooting one hole groups and cloverleafs at 10 meters with iron sights off the patio table before the rains came. (Rats!!)
It's fairly light at 6-1/2 pounds, but doesn't seem very hold sensitive. I think I'll shoot open sights for a while - it reminds me of my younger days. The stock is only lightly finished - almost a natural satin feel. Stock is slightly thicker than my Gamo and has about 3/4 inch longer pull even though Gamo is about 1 inch longer overall. I'm 5' 11" with long arms and I must admit it feels better to the shoulder than my Gamo. The Quest also has a rubber butt which steadies my aim somewhat.
The trigger is about 4 lbs pull and only slight creep. it's perfectly adequate for a sporter rifle. And, is much better than my original Gamo trigger - long creep and 7 lbs! (That's why I ordered the GRT-III trigger for it. Now my Gamo has a 1-1/2 lb pull and no creep.)
I haven't mounted the scope yet, but it appears useable - it's a Centerpoint 4X32 with parallax adjusted for 30 yards. If it doesn't break, I plan to keep it. It's more than enough for pest control.
Anyway, I'm very pleased with the Crosman Quest 800X at first blush. It's made in China but much better quality than I expected. I'll give a more detailed review after a few weeks.
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CG good report. I have had my Quest 800 for about 2 years now and it's has become my kickaround go to gun. I love how compact and handy it is. Over time I have done various upgrades. GRTIII trigger, sound reducing muzzle brake, new scope and single piece mounts, and most recently a tune with a JM spring, tophat, guide, and seal. It always was a good shooter but after the tune it is a sweatheart. I think the chrony results that Pyramyd gave you might be a little high or maybe it has a little extra Umphh from desieling the cutting oil. The guns do come with a fair amount of cutting oil in them when they are new. A buddy of mine is getting one from his wife for his BDAY and I just spent last night cleaning it up, mounting the scope and installing one of Charlies tirggers in it.
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Thanks, Mike. I plan to keep it "stock" for a while just to see how well it breaks-in "out-of-the-box". You're right about the oil - still some in there, but only slight "smoke" after a dozen shots or so. Of course, I don't know how many shots the tech at Pyramid made.
I plan to continue updating this review as time goes on and I get more experience with it.
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Enjoyed your review. One of these days I might order one to use as a "truck gun". Thanks for the review, found it interesting and helpful.
Jeff
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AFTER FIRST WEEK
I didn't have much time to shoot-in my new Quest 800 much this week. I estimate about 60 shots total now. However, I can tell it's going to be a good shooter. It's still spitting a little "chinese oil", but nothing serious - just a flim around the breech. No detonations, but possibly a little dieseling yet.
One thing I found different from my Gamos - this Quest really locks up TIGHT! I have to tap the muzzle kind of firmly or break the breech gently over my knee to cock and load. Speaking of cocking, this Quest is a monster! You can really "feel" the power. You certainly don't need a "bow flex" for a good workout.
Speaking of power my backstop is exterior 1/2 inch plywood. I decided to test it with Crosman Premier Hollow Points at 10 meters. First CPHP blew right through the backstop! Next, I tried some soft lead Daisy Precision Max Wadcutters (flat nose). The wads almost made it through leaving a huge bulge on the back side. Wow! For a springer, the Quest has a lot of power - more than enough for small game.
I've found the plastic fixed sights to be a little "flimsy" for real target shooting, but more than adequate for small game hunting. At 61 my eyesight is not what it used to be to say the least. However, the glow sights help me a lot - just put the GREEN dot between the two RED dots, sit target on top of GREEN dot, and let her rip. I thought I'd try sighting-in this evening before dark. The plastic sight adjustments are not solid clicks, but a little mushy. However, I had no problems sighting-in and after about 15 shots they stayed locked in place.
Attached are my two best three shot groups tonight before darkness ruined my fun. The Daisy's measured c-t-c 5/16 in (two shot in same hole almost!) and the Crosman's measured c-t-c 3/16 in. Yep, this Quest is going to be a hunter.
More, to come later. I just received a new GRT-III trigger from Bob (aka CDT) so I'll probably install it next.
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Those look like decent groups to me George.
Keep 'em coming.
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that's some good shootin.....
JEff
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Thanks, Guys. I try. Those were my best groups! I can't shoot them that tight all the time....especially with these old eyes and fixed sights.
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I received my third GRT-III trigger from Bob last week. I finally got around to installing it in the Quest 800. As usual, it was an easy 10 job. While I had the action and old trigger I performed a "mini lube".
With a small artist brush I dabbed some of Mystery Oil (30wt non-detergent motor oil mixed with moly paste) into the trigger mechanism. Next, I applied some moly grease to the spring through the open slot with another small artist brush. And, finally dabbed a little moly on all the coking linkage including the beartrap.
After reassembly and a few practice shots, I noticed the cocking cycle was improved and overall the Quest seemed a little more quiet on firing. However, it could have been just wishful thinking on my part. After about 20 cycles or so the cocking effort seem to be smoother and a little easier.
As for the GRT-III trigger, it fit perfectly without any problems with the safety. However, unlike my earlier GRT-III installations, the trigger had a single stage "hair trigger" with Bob's factory settings. After a little inspection, I found that the first stage adjustment needed to be backed off and the second stage adjusted slightly. After that, the new trigger performed perfectly. My guess is that the manufacturing tolerances aren't quite as close in this Chinese model versus a Spanish Gamo.
In any case, the GRT-III vastly improved the Quest 800 as expected. Even though the original Quest trigger was better than my original Gamo Hunter trigger (see prior post), I consider the trigger upgrade an absolute necessity for target shooting or long range hunting.
More to follow next time.
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Well, this week I finally got around to looking at the Centerpoint 4X32 scope & mounts. My first impression was the scope adequate - especially for a hunting rifle.
The modified duplex-mil-dot reticle [See pic.] looked useable, but not necessarily useful since most of my anticipated shots would be within 40 yards. And, it's relatively easy to sight in the Quest 800 to shoot "flat" [within 2 inches or +/- one inch] from 5 to 40 yards. However, it might be nice to try some long range shots using the mil-dot guides for range and windage just for kicks. Back on the farm as a kid, I shot many a pigeon beyond 70 yards with an old .22 cal Benj pumper and "Kentucky Holdover/Windage".
The mounts were a mixed set - single width for front mount and "double width" for rear mount. This was a little disappointing since it couldn't have cost much more for two "double width" rings. And, there were no mounting instructions.
The rear mount included a set screw to match the scope stop hole in the Quest receiver. However, you need to mount the lower half as you tighten the set screw to assure proper alignment. Once aligned, crank down the rail screws and snug down the set screw firmly. [One "old timer" told me once to hold a penny in a pair of vise grips and tighten the rail screws until the penny bends!] I didn't use a penny [they're made out of zinc nowadays, anyway.] But, I cranked them down good with my Chapman screw driver rachet. I checked eye relief and scope cant, then I cranked down on the scope screws. Everything was tight and snug.
Out on my backyard range I had my first disappointment. I could not find a focus setting for 10 meters where both the reticle and target were in focus. Maybe, it's because I wear glasses, but I'm more inclined to think it's just the scope design. After all, what can you expect from a $25 scope? I finally settled on a focus setting where everything was clear from about 15 yards and beyond. So if you're expecting to shoot 10 meter targets with this scope - DON'T! Once again, though, the fixed 4X32 is more than adequate for typical air rifle hunting ranges.
While adjusting the scope, I thought the rather noticeable barrel droop on the Quest 800 might be a problem, but the scope calibrated to Zero at 10 meters - even if the target was a little blurry. Then came the fun part - blasting away with some wadcutters [flat nose pellets]. Once again the Quest proved its power. I knocked my old Marksman pell trap off its perch several times.
After about 30 shots or so I noticed some - scope slippage! [See pic.] So much for miracle tape!!!! Out came the Chapman screw driver set, and I really cranked down on the scope screws. It still slipped. More cranking....more slip. Finally, one of the mounting screws stripped out of the relatively soft aluminum mounts. Scratch one set of cheap mounts.
So there you have it. The scope is useable for hunting, but definitely not a 10M scope. The inexpensive mounts are basically throw-aways. If you can find a Quest 800 without the scope, it's probably a better buy than the 800X combo. However, I couldn't find just the rifle so I'll buy a better set of mounts and use the Centerpoint scope for a while.
More on my Quest 800X review later.
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ADDENDUM
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Thanks to mackeralboy, I've been able to salvage the Crosman mounts. Upon further inspection it was the rather small head screw in the scope rings that pulled through. I found some hex head screws same size with bigger heads that work perfectly. More on scope mounting in next part of my review.
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On the Quest 800X I set up for my buddy the other day I too had a problem with one of the scope rings. Instead of one of the mounts striping out, one of the holes on one of the top pieces was machined to large and the head of the screw would not catch. Luckly I had a spare set and used those.
Here is a pic of the set up I have on my 800 X
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Yes, the included mounts are low quality. What kind did you use in photo? Is there a rod connecting the two mounts? Or, is that an optical illusion?
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The mount looks like a Mac1 custom drooper mount. Very good quality.
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Good eye hodgjy that is exactly what it is. I just live down the road from Tims shop so I get alot of my stuff from him. Tim also installed the SR muzzle break on my Quest.
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Interesting....I re-checked the mounts and found the exact problem. The screw head had pulled through the upper front ring mount just like you described.
After digging through my junk drawer, I found some old hex head screws with the same threads. The hex heads have much bigger heads. So I may be back in business with the old mounts afterall.
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Mackeralboy, I am interested in adding a muzzle brake to my Q800, what is the SR you have? Thanks in advance.
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SR stands for sound reducing. I'm not sure what make it is but I got it installed at MAC1. It's not as quiet as a Gamo Wisper but noticably quieter than a stock Quest. Just be aware that Tim puts them on so they can not be removed and meets ATF guidelines.