Canadian Airgun Forum

The Crosman Forum has a new post about loading the 13XX and 22xx. There are a few ideas posted. Does anyone here have any useful tricks that work to loading these breeches?

I spent a bit of time with a customized Cr2240 and had no serious issues. At one point I had the pistol clamped horizontally in my Black & Decker Workmate. I dropped domed pellets in the front of the breech and closed the bolt. I'm guessing that .177cal could be a challenge. I know it was a challenge with the Daisy 880 rifle, especially with WCs.

Loading my 2240 carbine can be a bit tricky as I have low-rise scope mounts, so it's a bit crowded for my large-ish fingers under there. Making it worse, I made a hollow probe to seat the pellets about 2mm past the transfer port - the stock probe left half the TP covered by a pellet skirt. So the space left between the front of the 1/4" diameter probe and the front of the breech is exactly the same as the length of a JSB Exact Heavy, the gun's favourite pellet, making it quite likely I'll crash the pellet into the probe if I try to load it in-line with the bore. What I found is that pointing the nose of the pellet to the right (with my left hand), 90 degrees to the barrel, then pressing it lightly against the front of the breech cut-out is the best way to start. I can even load a much longer JSB Monster this way. I then slide the pellet inwards pressing down slightly, then wipe my finger back towards the probe, which spins the pellet skirt down into the tray. Works every time and is much faster to do than it sounds, not fussy at all. No dropped pellets when I do it this way, compared to dropping about 1 in 10 if I try to load parallel to the bore.

I recall many years ago struggling to load my brother's 1377. What a fiddly breech. Plastic, with a feeble metal slide-over plate, and that mounting screw hole in the bottom really trying hard to snag the pellet and keep it from facing the right way. I read recently that some folks drip a bit of hot wax onto those then polish it down making a smooth surface for pellets to glide over. That sounds solid, no down-side.

x2 - Candle wax or black crayon, melted and dripped onto the open breech; close the bolt while the wax is still hot. Bolt swages everything to shape, and
the first blank shot blows out any swarf. Drop pellet in tray, close bolt. Works a treat, even on QB's with a roughened loading tray. . . . Completely reversible - my
favorite type of mod!

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The Bees Wax for the 2240, to smooth out the loading ramp has been in existence when the breech screw was moved.
Can be found on a multitude of Air Gun Forums from at lest 2009.

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Glass ..12" Dobsonian Reflector.
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Muzzle pointed down at a 45* angle and almost drop the pellet in. My 2240 is converted to .177 and I have found the more nose heavy the pellet the easier to load. Longer seems to load nicer also. Ex. 8.44 JSB Exact load nicely and 7.33 Exact RS are a little finicky.

The melted wax into the breech area is the simplest and most effective IMHO. Not only transfering lubricant to the oring but fully reversable.

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May the cry of the pack be with you upon your hunt

Whitewolf

I have never heard of the wax trick. I will give it a try on both of my 1377s. If it works will tell my Grandson as he has one too.

I do the 45 degree angle, or lower with my Crosmans. I let the weight of the bolt nudge the pellet into final, or almost final seat position. This seems to help tighten groups.
FT domes seem the easiest of the lot to load, especially in .177. Haven't yet plugged the breech screw hole, and I've been at this for a while now. I do admit that screw hole gets things on the fumbly side in .177. Seems to be a lot less of an issue in .22 cal.
Those crosman .177 bbls have a serious step to them at the breech end. Every rifled crosman .177 bbl I've had appears to be a bore liner insert, instead of a milled and rifled blank...

Regards,

Doc Sharptail

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The large cone from the beginning of the barrel is by design and necessity. It's a result of them using the same breeches for both .22 and .177, with the same 1/4" loading trough. Since that puts a .177 pellet way too low they have to have the big cone to scoop the pellet up into the bore. With the probe above the centre line of the pellet, it's perfectly placed to tip the pellet into the breech screw hole as you load.