When it comes to the best air rifles for hunting, most users choose pre-pumped weapons, because there is nothing more on the convenience-power market in the non-gun inventory market. But it’s worthwhile to include a low cost in the list of requirements, as innovators in the world of weapons immediately recognize the existence of pneumatics, which is brought into battle by a barrel fracture.
The focus of this article is the Stoeger X50 pneumatics, created by Italian gunsmiths and presented to the public as an inexpensive solution for recreational shooting. Overview, description, characteristics and reviews of the owners will provide the reader with more information about interesting airguns.
Unique Pneumatics Market
Only two rifles on the world market can boast of high power, affordable cost and relative convenience: the Stoeger X50 and Hatsan 125. Naturally, we are talking about the basic configuration of weapons with a spring-piston mechanism as an energy source. In such systems, not only the bypass valve is responsible for the power of the shot, but also a well-made barrel, which customers are less and less paying attention to.
Just do not need to build illusions about the wear resistance of the elements of air guns. Ideal rifles do not exist, whether it is a pre-pumped system, pneumatics with a gas spring or a broken barrel or a hand-made carbine. A completely different principle works here - ease of maintenance, affordable cost, high power and accuracy.
Technical characteristics of the Stoeger X50 rifle
Weapons of the Magnum class have a standard caliber of 4.5 mm for the market. The spring-piston mechanism of the rifle is capable of dispersing a lead bullet along a steel rifled barrel with a length of 1270 mm to almost 450 meters per second. True, to obtain this result, it is necessary to use light bullets. But with ammunition of the Magnum class, the initial speed is slightly less - only 360 meters per second (this is the figure declared by the manufacturer in the technical documentation).
The Stoeger X50 air rifle comes complete with an entry-level optical sight. It is this factor that attracts all beginners to the weapon who want to save on the purchase of devices for precision shooting. As for the weight of the rifle assembly, it is almost 4 kilograms. This is due to a heavy butt and a bed made of wood.
Options and build quality
In a discreet-looking box, the buyer will find the rifle itself, an optical sight, an instruction manual and a warranty card for the Stoeger X50 weapon, a spring and a sales receipt. It is no secret to anyone that on the territory of the Russian Federation there is a law “On Weapons” that regulates some restrictions on the power of pneumatics in the domestic market. Knowing this, the manufacturer installed a low-power spring (7.5 Joules) in the rifle, and attached the standard one as a spare.
As for the build quality, even the most demanding buyer will not be able to find fault with the rifle here. A surface inspection of the weapon gives the feeling that the pneumatics has manual assembly. All components are perfectly matched to each other. Burrs, backlash, scratches and other various defects are simply absent.
The many-sided aiming system
In addition to the optical device, in the kit the user will find that the manufacturer has provided his product with foberoptic threads. They are applied to the front sight and aiming bar. Thanks to this solution, it will not be difficult for the user to hit the target from a distance of 25 meters without an optical sight. Judging by the reviews of the owners, the Stoeger X50 rifle in this embodiment is much easier and more convenient.
As for optics, then everything is simple - an aiming device in the form of the “Dovetail” bar is installed. The kit comes with a Stoeger 3-9x40 AO sight, but no one commits the user to install it. You can, at the request of the owner of the rifle, install a collimator or more efficient optics.
Aiming with a standard optical device and shooting from a distance of up to 50 meters are quite acceptable, however, due to the high recoil of the spring-piston glass mounting mechanism, they cannot withstand the load. It is with this reason that all the negatives of users in their reviews are associated.
Owner's first steps
Many owners of the Stoeger X50 combo rifle assure potential buyers that the completion of the rifle should begin with the replacement of the trigger mechanism. After all, on the market for a long time already all owners of pneumatics switched from a conventional spring to the use of gas appliances. However, experts in the field of air guns recommend not to rush, but to do something different.
Better to start with re-preservation of pneumatics. The fact is that at the plant the technologists of the company did not know the exact terms of sale, therefore, they did not spare oil for preserving the metal structures in the rifle. Before operation, before the first shot, it is necessary to completely eliminate the lubricant, wipe all parts and components with a dry rag. Then you can carefully walk a rag over all elements of the rifle and grease them with machine oil. On this, it is better to complete the improvement of pneumatic weapons and move on to firing, which will determine the further actions of the owners.
Saving life to optical device
The double recoil of a powerful rifle can break even expensive optics, and it’s better to keep silent about the standard device that comes with the kit. Only 500 shots are able to not only knock out the glass in the optical device, but also damage the metal mounts that are connected to the Swallow Tail bar. There are few options for the owner of a pneumatic gun: buy expensive optics or install a gas spring. True, changing the spring can only extend the life of a standard optical sight, but it will not be possible to maintain its integrity.
Fortunately, for a Stoeger X50 rifle, a gas spring is suitable not only for the Magnum universal classification, but also for a modified one from the Stoeger manufacturer. The buyer does not have to decide whether to give preference to Italians, since they never had problems with the build quality, and the compatibility of the elements will be much higher than the purchase of a spring from an unknown manufacturer.
Strengthening the Swallow Tail
This may sound strange to many buyers, but no one bothers the user to modify the mounting of the optical device to the device. It is clear that the Stoeger X50 rifle, whose price is 20,000 rubles, is a finished product, but the manufacturer did not worry about the safety of the optics. By removing the Swallowtail sights, the user will find three large notches on the gas cylinder of the weapon. These are stoppers for holding the optics using special pins. The problem is that they are all located tightly to each other in the rear of the scope.
The revision involves the transfer of the center of attachment from the rear to the front. It is necessary to extend the fastening pin as far as possible to the front edge of the optical device, attach a sight to the gas cylinder, make and remove with a mill 2-3 mm of the metal base of the cylinder. After installing the aiming plate and optics, the user will note that the mount has become more reliable.
Dance lovers
The powerful Stoeger X50 Synthetic airgun quickly disables the piston and cuffs located in the gas cylinder. The defect is noticeable after 200-300 shots - the power of the shot drops significantly, as does the recoil sensitivity. Air rifle experts in their reviews recommend that all owners stock up on cuffs that shooters will often have to change. At the same time, it will not hurt to modify the piston by removing burrs from its surface (in some batches such a defect was discovered).
Regarding the choice of cuffs: buyers do not need to look for original products from the Italian manufacturer on the market. Domestic gunsmiths have long established the production of high-quality components for all air rifles. And the price of such accessories is much lower than imported.
When it comes to user negatives
The disadvantages of the Stoeger X50 rifle, many users in their reviews include the lack of a ramrod for cleaning the barrel. It seems to be a trifle, but it is very unpleasant that the manufacturer decided to save so much. There is also a negative to the instruction manual, which contains the technical characteristics of the optical device, an algorithm for mounting on the aiming bar, but nothing is said about the sighting of the weapon. For American and Turkish competitors, this is much simpler.
The considerable weight of airguns and powerful recoil also give the owner a lot of trouble - to knock out a shoulder by negligence or to cut an eyebrow is quite realistic for both men and women. And there are problems with the platoon of the spring-piston mechanism. Literally at 10-15 platoon, many arrows indicate weakness in the hands - the spring does not want to easily compress.
The advantages of the Italian rifle
Pneumatic weapons are really powerful - this is the main advantage that the Stoeger X50 boasts. Responses of the owners assure others that the rifle is not intended for entertaining shooting at all, as the manufacturer positions it on the market. With such weapons you can safely go hunting - not a single game of birds can resist the power of this pneumatics. You just need to choose the right weight of the bullets. Experts recommend not chasing speed, but give preference to weighted bullets of the Magnum class (0.8-1.2 grams).
The ease of disassembly and assembly has also received approval from the owners. Many users compare the Italian representative with the domestic MP-512 Murka rifle for ease of maintenance - it is easy to disassemble, reliable and simple mechanisms are present, it is assembled without problems. For powerful pneumatics, such indicators are only beneficial.
Finally
Italian gunsmiths were able to surprise the Russian buyer, who could not find a balance between affordable cost, ease of use and high power in the air gun market. The optical sight included with the Stoeger X50 rifle was able to convince potential buyers to make the right choice. Yes, there are negatives and a lot of minor flaws, but all of them are not comparable with the tactical and technical indicators of an inexpensive and powerful pneumatic weapon, which has few competitors in its class on the market.