BSA Lightning XL $279

[onemountain]

Another one over at AoA . It's in "Very Good" condition in their used section. .25 cal.

[350newbie]

anybody have experience with this rifle? is the power too low?

[fatback]

I had both the .177 and .22 lightning XL.  I thought the .22 was a little underpowered and sold it within a month of owning it. I wonder what velocities they get out of the .25 cal. If you call AoA I am sure they will tell you what it chronied at. they usually shoot the used guns over the chrony to make sure it is up to specs.

[lillysdad621]

I got a friend who owns the xl tactical in .25 with a gas ram, and his chronies in the low 600s. But i swear i have never shot a rifle as smooth as that. Is like a badass blowgun, and when it hits you can definitely say that it hit... I think is worth every penny as those are actually factory ordered (no cal. printed on the barrel...) and definitely will increase in price with time. As per the .22 being underpowered... well, i had a supersport (same powerplant) in .177 and then shot a friends .22, i actually liked the .22. it shoots in the low 700s but is very smooth. my .177 shot cpl at 900ish but felt harsher...

[fatback]

My  XL in .177 shot CPHP 7.9's  @ 844fps, and I agree the .22 was a smooth shooter, but if you look at AoA website they say the .22 is shooting at 665fps.  So, I wonder what pellets your friend was shooting in his .25 cal to be in the low 600 range? and granted these FPS readings are at the muzzle. I wonder how much FT lbs they get at 20 yards? I think they are good for plinking and such, but the .25 at 20- 25 yards would probably bounce off of a squirrels head...lol (not the responsible thing to do)  Not what I would like to bring hunting to mame or wound a poor critter. So for me this gun  is very much under powered for hunting (Unless your shooting at 10 yards or less).  but I am sure it would make a good plinker.

[lillysdad621]

I called him to ask how the .25 was doing and he gave me the last average taken on our last FT 3 weeks ago. 606 with Kodiaks. Now if memory serves me right, those weight like 30.something gr. And if my math is correct (which is rare, but i used a calculator, so it should be) it puts out 24.4 ft/lb of energy. Even if by some crazy reason compounded by a head wind and an muzzle enrgy strike, it retained only 50% of its energy at 25 yards, it should smack the nutter with enough force to literally crack its skull to smithereens (and i mean kablooei, no head left) at 12 .2 ft/lbs. Come on, an Isle full of Brits are hunting squirrels and what not with rifles that put that energy or less AT THE MUZZLE, and taking game at 25+ yards... and a heavy pellet retains its energy down range better than a light one, so 50% loss is being incredibly optimistic. For shortish range hunting up to 30 yards, can't beat the .25... after that, the pellet drops too much to reliably ensure a hit. But it still misses with a punch!

[fatback]

Gabe, that is a keeper for sure then.....Or your Chrony is Broke, because if you read the specs on the gun over on AoA's website it is claimed to only be a 18ft lb gun. So that is shooting 6.5 ft lbs over specs. Wow, 6.5 that is more ft lbs than your R7 in .20 is shhoting at 10 yards lol tell your buddy to hang on to that one or change the battery on his chrony :_)

[350newbie]

well, i did notice him mentioning his friend's XL .25 got gas ram power. so i guess spring power XL .25 won't get that much power with  30 gr. pellets

[lillysdad621]

yes... is rammed and tuned by Mr Slade himself... All sarcasm aside, maybe AoA knows the BSA lighting better than their manufacturer, who quotes the .25 at 700 fps. Even discounting manufacturer's exageration, that is 100 fps less than stated.Ok, BSA uses a light pellet and we are talking about the heaviest kodiak available... but theirs is a spring gun, and Rod's is a tuned gas rammed rifle. Suddenly 600 doesn't look so unfeasible... and the chrony gets new batteries every FT shoot... you know... it helps with the sight in and all...

[fatback]

Gas rams dont usally increase velocity much if any at all. They do have a quicker lock time and a more linear shot cycle. (I think you can obtain most of this with a good tune) I think gas rams are a little harsher than  spring guns,  and are rough on scopes and quite a bit harder to cock..  A HW 90 in .25  with the theoben gas ram from the factory only gets 19FT lbs. at the muzzle with 30.70 grain Kodiaks and I owned a HW 90 in .22 and it was a lot more powerful then a lightning XL. for example my lightning XL chronies at 844 with a cpl 7.9 at the muzzle. the HW 90 in .177 with that same 7.9 grain pellet chronies at 1020 at the muzzle.

[fatback]

lillysdad621, let not get in a dispute here, we are all brothers at the GTA. I was only trying to answer 350 newbie's question and not misinform him. the specs you are claiming surpass the HW 90 in .25 cal and are close to that of a UK webley patriot in.25 cal?? I really dont see it possible from the XL's small powerstroke . sorry

[lillysdad621]

agreed, as they remove the twist of the spring as it uncoils when released. But how is it then that the factory is stating a beeman RX2 in .22 to develop 20.8 ft/lb, and weihrauh states that the HW90 in .25 (which is stated as 725 fps guessing with the lightest .25 which are lasers at 17.7 gr) also clears your 19 ft/lb claim by shooting 20.6 ft/lb? And in a gas rammed gun,due to the constant pressure applied to the piston on release (unlike a spring which has an uneven delivery of pressure) using a heavier pellet (like a kodiak) generally shows a more efficient use of the power in relation with the mass of the projectile. Hence, using a heavier pellet, even in a HW 90 will doubtless produce mid to high 20s in the ft/lb department. Chris, I am not here to start an argument, but just to state my opinion. so at the end of this thread, i would recommend this .25 to anyone who is looking for a decent and absolutely humane short to mid range hunter. If you want to drop birds at 40+ yards... get a smaller caliber with a flatter trajectory. End of story. Sorry if i came across as argumentative.

[fatback]

Gabe please read http://www.straightshooters.com/ourtake/ottestrx2.html  It tells pellet weights and velocities for the RX2. I was comparing notes from my notebook on my old HW90/Rx2 and what they have on straight shooters website. I appoligise if I am wrong, but I dont see it possible for a Xl to get 24.4 ft lbs even with a gas ram. this will be my last post on this subject/thread.

[lillysdad621]

yes, it states that. But follow to the right... and at 25 yards it still pushing 16 ft/lbs... and at 50 it has still 13... which brings the point we are arguing... is it going to give a squirrel a headache? or is it a valid hunting gun? if you dont believe that the lighting is good enough for hunting at 25 yards, then i must put all my guns down... I mean, look, there is a thread called "R7 earning its keep" in the hunting gate. I got some pics up... they are not great but show what my old R7 in .20 can do to a squirrel at 24 yards (rangefinder). I still think thatif it would have being a.25 lighting, that picture would have been a bit more... gorish. that's it.

[350newbie]

thanks guys for trying to inform me. i dont see an argument going on, just two person stating their personal opinion. thanks