Canadian Airgun Forum

Hi All

I have reduced my scope use to only one rifle at the moment because I am really liking using open sights. In the process of changing most of them over, I decided to figure out why I have such grief shooting my nitro-venom which can only use a scope. (I'm working on that too.)

The gun itself is really accurate, but it almost always feels awkward when I hold it to shoot. My Phantom is very comfortable, so I swapped the stocks.

Wow.

The nitro venom action and scope love the Phantom stock and it feels very comfortable with less recoil than with the stock stock. And it's very accurate.

However, my always accurate Phantom with open sights became awkward with the NV stock. To get my eye low enough I had to either get my face right up near the action, or put the part of the stock which was behind the cheek rest right under my cheek-bone, and the recoil hurt.

So I did what I should have done to begin with; I measured all my rifle stocks to get the cheek rest height below the centre of the action. I found that all but the NV stock were about 1/2" to 3/4" below the centre line. The NV stock started at the front only 3/8" below, and rose to be right on the action's centre line at the rear.

It's a wood stock (I really like wood) so I planed off the top of the cheek rest so that now it is completely flat front to back and about 1/2" below the centre line. I can look through the sights now very comfortably. It's sanded and re-stained (I got rid of the original finish a long time ago), and when the stain dries I'm hoping for great things.

I know pretty much nothing about rifle design, but does this make sense? I suppose for scoped use I could just get taller scope rings, but this is what I did.

Peter

PS: Looking for a rear peep sight I found this https://www.amazon.ca/gp/r.html?C=N8Y5N ... _emaildp_1

I had it sent to one of their pick-up locations so the shipping/handling was only around $4.00 and I got it today. It works beautifully but you need a low profile Picatinny converter.

This is a photo of how the gun looks now. The front of the stock is different because I didn't like the shape before and changed it. The cheek-piece is now flat front to back and rounded side to side.

This small change has made a huge difference in the ergonomics of the gun and it's now "easy" to shoot accurately.

Before, my right eye would be either too high or too far to the left, but now I can put the stock up under my right cheek bone, and I get a perfect view straight down the scope.

Is there anything more fun than working on air rifles? Ok; maybe shooting them.

Peter

I like the look of the finished product, and nice and dark. Is that MinWax Dark Walnut? I remember they were sketchy about absorbing the stain so I'd do a light coat, then try to focus on the areas that didn't absorb so well. Some people let it soak all over and end up with the absorbent areas too dark, or with lighter stains they can't get the tough areas dark enough. Was yours like that at all? I imagine they used all kinds of wood so what works for one person is no guarantee it'll work for the next.
I assume you had a muzzle brake which you removed? I like brakes for both the looks and better feel while cocking, but don't care for the new plastic ones. They do sell the older steel ones as a part which I think are really nice, simple but nice. They're super cheap @ $2.20US which I rekon is ~4.40CA, which is amazing if you've ever priced brakes. If you want one I can post a pix with dimensions. It is likely a bit small ID so it may need to be opened up a tad, but I can get into the specs and how-to if you're interested.
Regarding that rear sight; the reason you don't see many on break barrels is the obvious issue with barrel lockup and droop. Either can cause major problems but it is fixable to a point.
Most people just buy an oem rear sight from a Crosman, or whatever brand, and drill/tap the barrel block for it. For the front sight you can again buy Crosman or whatever and glue it on, assuming it's the slip on type. Most people converting have a brake or shroud so it's possible to either bolt a firearm type sight to that, like from a Marlin .22, or make one from a screw, sheetmetal or whatever that is screwed in, glued on or whatever. Of course the front sight height needs to match your barrel droop and rear sight height, so once your rear is on you can figure that out.
Another thought on the stock is Crosman sells all the stocks, all parts for that matter, if you want. My favorite is the Regal, but it has a clear coat so not ideal for refinishing but fortunately it looks good as-is, light but good. It's actual wood w/ stain, not that watercolor paint or whatever it is they use to simulate stain and wood grain. My second fav is the Trail Hardwood, which also has real stain but usually very light, but ready to be stained as-is. The US $ for the Regal and Trail is ~$23 and 29 respectively. CA prices are generally double so not sure if that's worth it.
I hated the look and feel of my Phantom stock so I modified it. I shortened the pistol grip, cut some length off the front and removed all the braille. The front is just short enough that I can take the barrel pivot bolt out without removing the stock. Still kinda hate it compared to wood stocks but it was something to toy with.

Ok, that's a little scary! The finish is indeed MinWax Dark Walnut 2716.

I didn't like the original finish or the rounded ends of the forestock. One thing the original finish had going for it was that it was very very hard, and difficult to remove.

I had trouble getting stain to absorb consistently and ended up with light spots. Eventually I gave up and painted it camo. Then I got tired of that and tried the MinWax again, and this time it worked quite well. That black dot about the size of a quarter near the top of the stock just behind the action is actually "safety tape", the black gritty stuff one puts on the edge of stairs. It sticks well, comes off when you want it to, and doesn't mar the finish or leave residue. That's where I put my thumb.

I'll get hold of my friend at R&R Airgun Repair and see if he can get me an old style steel muzzle brake. The original on this gun was plastic and I didn't like it. It's in my box of "stuff". I'd like to keep my guns so that I can change them back and forth when I feel like it from scope to open sights.

I've fooled around with a Ruger front sight, and I think it can be made to work with Teflon tape wrap around the barrel. For the rear I've ordered a UTG compact peep sight which I already use on a different gun. I figure a scope is as sensitive to barrel misalignment as rear and front sights and those work well on my XS28M and my Quest.

I don't think I'll be buying a new stock due to cost but it's nice to know. Actually I broke my Quest stock (cocking without the bolt into the action by the trigger), early on, and repaired it. It also has been re-finished with MinWax. I like the feel of stained wood.

Those are interesting ideas about the Phantom stock. I hadn't thought of modifying a plastic stock because of cavities molded into them. There's always something new to do with an airgun.

Peter