More on our QB78 Tune Kit

Here's some photos of the Archer Airguns "XP" Tune Kit for QB78 family air rifles. The first one shows the difference between the "business end" of a .22 caliber factory bolt and the "XP" tuned bolt.


And here's a shot of the "XP" bolt fitted in a .22 caliber QB 78 Deluxe. The bolt was pushed slightly forward to show the probe section.

As you can see, the "XP" bolt provides much less metal at the front of the bolt to hinder the passage of gas, and this is a vital element in allowing the "XP" Tune Kit to provide such an increase in muzzle velocity.

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New QB78 Tune Kit for Increased Muzzle Velocity

AVAILABLE NOW!

Archer Airguns is introducing its "XP" Tune Kit for QB78 family air rifles. This kit enables you at easily increase the muzzle velocity of any QB78 family air rifle by 100 fps, including the QB79, AR2078 and AR2079 as well as the identical Tech Force TF78, TF79 etc models.

This tune kit takes .22 caliber muzzle velocities for QB78 family air rifles from about 530 fps at 75 degrees F to around 640 fps at the same temperature, increasing the muzzle energy from around 8.5 ft/lbs to about 13 ft/lbs as it does so. This makes the QB78 family much more suitable for hunting and longer range shooting. And it's all done just by replacing two parts in the gun.

In this post we'll look at test results, all shot from the same .22 caliber QB78 Deluxe. The results are shown as graphs. The top line represents muzzle velocity and is read against the left axis. The lower line shows the muzzle energy and is read against the right axis. The figures along the bottom give the temperature in degrees F as - like all CO2 guns - the performance varies with temperature due to the physical properties of the gas. In every case, higher is better!

First, we see the performance of the stock, .22 caliber factory gun.

Next, we see the same gun, same pellets, fitted with the "XP" Tune Kit. Note the difference!

In confirmation of the improved performance, I tested the tuned gun with heavy RWS Superpoints, as follows. As you can see, the results were very similar.

And finally, we have another test, this time with Crosman Premiers. Again, the gun is shooting at just under 13 ft/lbs at 75 degrees F.

And the down side to this improved performance? The shot count drops to about 35 shots per fill, from 50 in factory tune. But, in my opinion, that's not a bad trade-off for such improved performance!

Either you can buy the "XP" Tune Kit and do it yourself, or I'll fit it to QB78 family air rifles purchased at the same time for a small fee.

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New Leapers scopes are great value.

Just added to our store today is an new, low cost scope from Leapers that's ideal for use with air rifles. This 4 x 32 airgun rated scope is supplied complete with airgun rings and - at well under $30.00 - is very well priced. The Leapers SCP432FD model has a fixed objective and, thanks to being parallax-corrected for 35 yards, it gives a sharp image at 10 yards or less. For the price, I'd say this scope can't be beaten!



This 4 x 32 scope joins two Leapers zoom scopes that also have 35-yard parallax correction, allowing reduced price, size and weight compared to their "AO" counterparts. There's a strong family look to these scopes, as you can see. Look carefully to see the zoom ring! Below is the 3-9 x 40 scope - Leapers model SCP-394FMD2-C. Medium rings are suitable for this scope at an additional cost.



And the 3-9 x 50 looks very similar, too. This one needs Leapers High Profile Rings - again at additional cost - due to the large objective (front) lens. It's Leapers model SCP-395FMD2-A. All of these scopes fit QB78 family air rifles very nicely and they're all airgun rated, so are suitable for use on spring-powered air rifles.

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So What Do You Do When The Gas Runs Low in Your QB78?

Over the years, many people have asked this question, or something like it, so I hope this post will help those who are new to the QB78 family of air rifles and anyone finding a Crosman 160 and wanting to shoot that fine old air rifle.

Both the QB78 and Crosman 160 air rifles are powered by two 12 "Powerlets", each containing 12 grams of CO2. After 50 shots, or so, the liquid CO2 in the "Powerlets" is exhausted and only gas remains in the gun. If more shots are fired, the gas is used and the pressure in the main tube falls with each shot. Thus, the point of impact of the pellets falls. Eventually, you need to "mortar" the pellets over onto the target. If this is continued, eventually a pellet will jam in the barrel as the remaining gas pressure will be insufficient to shoot it out of the muzzle.

I normally stop shooting my QB78 after about 55 shots.



"So, what then?" people ask. "The gun's not shooting well any more, but I can't remove the Tube Cap - it's still locked tight and I can't insert new Powerlets".

Well, it's easy. Simply "dry fire" the gun (operate the trigger and bolt without shooting pellets) until the remaining gas is exhausted. It will take about 20 cycles or so to do this. You will hear the bang become softer and softer until all the gas is exhausted. Now you will also be able to unscrew the Tube Cap from your QB78 or Crosman 160. That's it!

If the Tube Cap is still too tight to be removed, there's still gas in the gun. Dry fire it until it's all gone.

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New "Silent" Pellet Trap for NRA Targets

By popular request, Archer Airguns introduces a new version of our world-renowned "Silent" Pellet Traps. This new model is specifically designed for use with the 11 1/2 inch x 12 3/4 inch, NRA 10 meter, 12-bull air rifle target, model AR-5/10. As with the other models in our range, this NRA pellet trap is officially-licensed from the basic design devised by Dr Joe Matusic. It brings the benefits of the "Silent" Pellet Trap to the NRA 10 meter target for the first time.

This new Jumbo Trap is available in two forms - assembled and in kit form. Like the other Archer Airguns "Silent" Pellet Traps, the Jumbo Trap uses Duct Seal to catch the pellets and prevent mess accumulating in front of the target face - as happens with other pellet traps.

We suggest you purchase the Duct Seal locally at Lowes or Home Depot to avoid shipping costs, but we have it available from our online store if required.
Above, we have the assembled trap. You can see this in our online store at www.archerairguns.com. The photograph below shows the kit version. More details are available here. Both versions are supplied complete with instructions and the assembled version also includes one NRA 10 meter air rifle target.
Video instructions for assembly of the Archer Airguns "Silent" Pellet Trap range are available on YouTube here. Although assembly of the Compact Trap is shown, the same principles also apply to this new Jumbo Trap.

If you shoot NRA 10 meter air rifle, I hope that our Jumbo trap and kit will be of interest to you :-)

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