Chinese air rifles and weapons: quality reviews

It is safe to say that one of the main commercial strategies of the Chinese military industry is to increase the export of military equipment. Undoubtedly, this goal is pursued by almost all weapons manufacturers around the world. Consequently, the PRC is unlikely to be able to stand on par with such leaders in the production of advanced weapons as the United States or Russia in the near future. Therefore, Chinese air rifles are also in demand.

For 7 years, from 2000 to 2007, the People's Republic of China brought weapons to the world stage, the total profit from the sale of which reached no more than $7.8 billion. While the total profit from the sale of weapons in Russia reached $36.2 billion, the USA - $92 billion, and the UK - $34 billion.

In order to displace Europe from the position of “leader” or at least maintain its advantage in the weapons arena, China must implement the production and release of more competitive goods. It is also worth noting that most countries do not intend to buy cheap weapons.

When choosing this or that product, they place special emphasis on the quality of the purchase, and then only pay attention to the price tag. We present to your attention a rating of the best pneumatics from China in their role.

Chinese air rifles

Pneumatics produced in China are quite widely represented on the Russian market. However, let’s leave aside for now the rifles of well-known European and American brands produced in Chinese factories. Ruger, Walther), Stoeger, followed this path .

Entry level air rifles

Just five years ago, the ears of Russian airgunners were fond of such names as “BAM”, “XISICO”, ​​“SPA”. But the peculiarities of the Chinese industry and legislation are such that all the products of these companies were essentially counterfeits of German, Spanish and British samples. After a series of scandals, everything somehow resolved itself, but these names left the Russian market, although they remained on the Ukrainian market. But don’t worry, almost all the rifles that got into trouble can be purchased from us under other names.

So, let's begin.

"XT-207-4" is an entry-level rifle produced by .

Under this name it is sold in Ukrainian weapons stores, but in our country it is better known as SMK “Syntarg” and “Smersh R2”. The difference also lies in the fact that in Russia the rifle is positioned as a “product structurally similar to a weapon” and its power is limited to 3 joules, in the Ukrainian version - 7.5 J. But in any case, it is intended primarily for children and is considered very a good and fairly budget option - about 4 thousand rubles.

With a length of just over a meter and extremely light weight, it produces 112 m/s in the 3-joule version, and 170 meters per second in the original version.

Magnum class rifles

Now let’s move on to the most popular segment - magnum class rifles with a compressor up to 27x100 mm and an energy of 18-23 J. They, like “super magnums”, are already excellent for hunting purposes. The most common is 25x100 millimeters. In advertising articles and technical specifications, the speed that has already become classic for magnums will be given - 305 m/s. But don’t believe them, since it is achieved using ultra-light bullets (see “Pneumatic bullets and shooting features”). Here are the real speed figures:

- up to 280 m/s with bullets weighing about 8 grains/0.55 grams (the so-called “half grams”;;

- about 240 m/s with “heavy” bullets of 10.5 grains/0.68 grams.

Before us is the “XTSG XT-303”, aka “Shanghai QB36-2”, aka “Hammerli Hunter Force 900”, aka “Umarex Browning Leverage”, aka (slightly modernized version) “Smersh R9” (pictured) .

A rifle with an under-barrel cocking, solid looking (length 1150 mm, weight 3.9 kg), and it feels very, very decent, especially the wood of the stock. I liked it at the time. However, I know that there were complaints about the quality of workmanship and the design of the trigger mechanism. At that time, this applied specifically to the Hammerli 900; I had nothing to do with either the QB or the Browning; I think it would be possible to touch the Smersh. It will now clearly be much more widespread than its analogues. The first reviews on it have already appeared, and they are quite friendly. The price is also very attractive. Although I don’t think that the primitive two-part SM will undergo serious changes.

Interestingly, the price of a rifle depends very much on the brand it is produced under. Simply put, if the legendary “Brownig” will cost us 12 thousand, and “Hammerly” generally 14 thousand, then for the relatively young trademark “Smersh” you will have to pay only 7 thousand rubles. True, the R9 does not come with pre-installed optics.

In addition to the “QB36” series, created back in 1957 (not known as “Shanghai Gong Zi Machinery Manufacturing Co.Ltd.”), it produces a slightly higher rank line of rifles with an under-barrel cocking “AR3000” (pictured).

They are five centimeters longer, a little faster, and the trigger mechanism here is from the Spanish Norik. Unfortunately, it also has an outdated two-piece design.

This was especially clearly felt by users of such rifles with under-barrel and side cocking. It is no coincidence that they were nicknamed “finger cutters” among the shooting people. Even with “fractures”, it is recommended to hold the barrel with your hand while loading. Like this:

But in this case, in the event of a breakdown, we will have time to pull our hand away and will only get the classic “banana” (trunk bent upward), and, at most, with this same trunk on the forehead. With rifles with underbarrel/side cocking, due to the inherent features of them, when inserting a pellet, the fingers are essentially caught in a watchful bear trap. And in the event of a breakdown, we have an almost 100 percent probability of very serious injuries.

The photo shows an example of such a design - the bullet entrance of the high-quality German “Diana-54” (see “Diana air rifles”). Such rifles are equipped with “anti-stall” systems, as are most Chinese clones, but, as already mentioned, the quality here is clearly not German.

Here is one example - the once very popular clone of Diana-48/52, known under the names BAM-30 (pictured), XS-B30, BMK-30.

The Shanghai Air Gun factory also has a side-cocking model with an extremely original design - the QB57Deluxe folding carabiner.

By and large, this is nothing more than a toy that produces 650 fps, that is, about 200 m/s. But according to the domestic classification, unlike the Smersh R2, it already belongs to civilian weapons. It’s funny that the “QB57Deluxe” is also available in “hunting” 22 caliber (5.5 mm).

Aurora QB 15 – an excellent budget option

The next example of a Chinese-made air rifle is the Aurora QB15 from the company of the same name. In Russia, this model of weapon is also popular under another name: Shanghai QB15. Many gunsmiths notice the similarities of this rifle with the domestic model produced by the Izhevsk enterprise, IZH-38. Aurora QB15 is ideal not only for professional shooters, but also for beginners. Most people like to hunt; watch a video of hunting with PSP pneumatics here. In Russia, the Hatsan air rifle and the Barrett rifle are popular. Watch a video of shooting a pig with a Hatsan 125 pneumatic pistol here.

General characteristics

The Aurora QB15 stock is made of high-quality wood in both light and dark tones. The buttstock is equipped with a rubber butt pad to make it more comfortable for the shooter to hold the weapon in his hands and, accordingly, more convenient to fire shots. In addition, the distance from it to the trigger can be adjusted independently thanks to the appropriate spacers.

The Aurora QB15 is characterized by a manual safety lock with a reliable spring-loaded latch. A distinctive feature of the sample is the additional optical device. The front sight is attached to the ring muzzle using a plastic sleeve on the muzzle zone of the weapon. Vertical and horizontal adjustments are possible thanks to the adjustment of micrometric screws located on the sight.

Aurora QB15

Technical and design indicators

1. For shooting, 4.5 caliber lead bullets are used.
2. The initial firing speed of the ammunition is 160 meters per second.
3. The stock is made of high-quality wood in both light and dark tones, and the barrel is made of weapon steel.
4. The butt is equipped with a rubber butt pad.
5. Magazine capacity – 1 cartridge.
6. The total length of the weapon is only 97.6 m.
7. Barrel length – 41 cm.
8. Maximum muzzle energy – 7 J.
9. The energy source is a spring-piston system.
10. Weight – 2.5 kg.
11. The minimum cost of the presented sample of a Chinese rifle is 4,000 rubles.

Review of Chinese air rifles

There is a fairly widespread belief among people that Chinese products are of very low quality, but at present this is not true. The Chinese have acquired high-quality equipment for quite some time now, but questions arise rather regarding their assembly. Everyone also knows that the people of the Middle Kingdom love to copy what already exists, rather than create it themselves. At the same time, they often modify them, and initially choose only successful models.

This is true for air rifles as well. All models are copied from real-life prototypes, which are mostly no longer in production, but at one time they were very popular. The quality is at a very high level, and often the models turn out even more successful than the original. And there’s no point in talking about the price at all, since it is significantly lower, which is actually the main advantage of Chinese products.

As a result, it is worth highlighting that Chinese air guns are not worth fearing. These are high-quality, reliable and inexpensive models. You just need to check them at the time of purchase, and when you bring them home you need to sort them out immediately. As a result, you will get a good thing for very little.

A fairly young company that was founded in 2004. Initially, she was engaged only in the production of sheet metal, but later she additionally mastered pneumatic weapons.

On the market you can find models such as B-50, B4-4 and XS-B30. These models differ significantly from each other, so the buyer has a wider choice.

Review of popular models

The B-50 is a Chinese pre-pumped air rifle. Its main advantage is its very low price, which is 3 times less than its competitors. At the same time the quality is good. You can also highlight a wooden stock and a good barrel, a fairly large tank. Gas consumption, however, is quite high. Also, when purchasing, you should carefully inspect the rifle for defects.

Photo of the Bam B-50 air rifle

B4-4 is a spring-piston rifle with an under-barrel lever. Has good accuracy. The power is average and will not surprise anyone. But the price is very low and there are practically no competitors in this price range. It is worth noting that the stock is wooden, and for very budget models plastic is more typical.

Photo of the Bam B4-4 air rifle

The B-30 is also a spring-piston rifle, but here reloading occurs using a side lever, which is not a standard solution. Thanks to the fixed rifled barrel, it has good accuracy. The power is quite high, but reloading the weapon is more difficult than regular break-ins. The stock is wooden, and the weight is noticeably higher than that of similar models.

Specifications

Technical characteristics of Chinese BAM air rifles:

Xisico

This is an American company that initially simply concentrated production in China, but later invested a significant amount there. Currently in the USA they only engage in CO2-powered or pre-inflated pneumatics. But China is already producing spring-piston models.

In Russia you can find the XS-B28 model. Officially, however, it is not supplied, but those who were lucky enough to own this copy never regretted the purchase.

Review of popular models

The B28 is a Chinese break-barrel air rifle that stands out for its good accuracy and high quality workmanship. The prototype used was the Diana 350 Magnum. At the same time, some users point out that the fit of the parts of the “fake” is better than that of the original, but the original company itself is famous for its product quality and the accuracy of air rifles.

Photo of Xisico B28 air rifle

It has a wooden stock, a long piston stroke, very high power, as well as a fairly long and high-quality rifled barrel. As a result, this model has high accuracy, which, combined with a high bullet speed, allows it to be used for hunting.

Specifications

Technical characteristics of Chinese-made Xisico rifles:

Possible upgrade

In general, it will be enough to simply go through the weapon and get rid of excess lubricant. It doesn’t hurt to immediately replace the cuff, since its quality often suffers even in more expensive models from famous manufacturers.

The basic coil spring should be replaced with a gas spring, which will somewhat reduce recoil, increase accuracy and remove unnecessary noise. The trigger can also be customized and the working surfaces can be processed for a smoother operation.

Video review of the Chinese air rifle Xisico B-28:

Review of Chinese pneumatics

The topic is interesting, non-trivial, let's discuss?

As many already know, there is such a Chinese manufacturer - ARTEMIS. https://www.china-airrifle.com Produces firearms for the Chinese army and air rifles for other countries for export. It has been on the market for quite a long time, popular all over the world, except Russia. It is especially common in Ukraine. Produced under the following brands: SPA, Artemis, SMK, FoX and even Diana!

On the Russian market, until recently, imported models were officially presented by the Astra model, or SPA PP700W https://forum.guns.ru/forummessage/30/1740807.html At the Arms & Hunting exhibition held in October in Gostiny Dvor among girls demonstrating candies

I noticed a fairly large stand with an almost complete list of products from this company. That is, they brought it, carried out customs clearance, certified it and will sell it in Russia.

Since I am a person interested in everything in the world, I came up, looked and felt, and made out something a little (the guys at the stand were a little confused by their impudence, but did not beat me.), so I can describe my impressions.

So let's go point by point.

What I liked: 1. Both the iron and wood look very decent. It's almost perfect. 2. There is no such massiveness of parts as one of the popular Turkish manufacturers. 3. The weight of the products is also pleasing. 4. Price! Do you remember how much BAM-50 cost?

5. Despite the strong belief that everything Chinese is bad and unsafe, everything should be fine with reliability. At least I failed the hydrotest of the tank and receiver of the SPA PP700W pistol (photos can be seen in Vladimir74’s thread on Astra), although I tried very hard. 6. The Chinese are “well done.” They lick entire structures and components without really delving into the details, which is why in their models we see FX, Daystate, Edgan, Cricket, Raptor and much more. In this case, this is good; it would be worse if they “reinvented the wheel.”

What I didn’t like: 1. I don’t know how things are with rifles, but my Astra has a paradoxical barrel - it’s made of soft steel, with barrels and constrictions, poorly processed inside and out. But the dog shoots quite decently. I don’t know how things are there now, but we’ll see. Judging by the reviews on the Internet, it can be very different. Although in the same Astra, after editing the chamfers “after the drill,” everything became very good. 2. A large number of cast parts. This may not be a minus, but it’s definitely not a plus either. 3. Simplification of some components for the sake of cost. The filling of the bullpup P15 moderator is something. Replacement immediately. 4. The gearbox is in doubt. Very big doubts. In the SPA PP700W it sucked, didn’t work properly, couldn’t be configured and was mercilessly replaced.

Shanghai

This is a fairly large Chinese company that has 50 years of experience in the production of air guns. It stands out for the good quality of its products, as well as a fairly diverse assortment. However, after purchase, rifles often require reassembly, since the build quality is sometimes poor.

Let's highlight the most popular models, such as QB78, QB79FC, QB58FC, AR1000 and AR2000 Jet. Let's take a closer look at their features and characteristics.

Model overview

The QB78 is a gas-powered air rifle that uses two 12-gram gas cylinders to fire. The prototype from the Crosman company was taken as a basis, however, according to American users, the Chinese version turned out to be even more successful.

This rifle has good power and high accuracy. It is also quite easy to upgrade and turns into a pre-inflated pneumatic.

The QB79FC is the same rifle as the previous model. However, instead of a reservoir, there is a port for a paintball tank under the barrel. It is not included in the package, and its price is rather high.

Photo of the Shanghai QB79FC air rifle

The QB58FC is a fairly cheap and simple break barrel rifle. It stands out for its low price and comfortable wooden stock with notches for a more comfortable grip. Rather, the bullet is medium, due to which it has a long service life and is also well suited for teaching a child.

The AR1000 is another break barrel model that stands out for its high bullet velocity. The stock is wooden with notches for a more comfortable grip. The workmanship is quite good. Firing accuracy is also at a good level.

Photo of the Shanghai AR1000 air rifle

The AR2000 Jet is the most powerful rifle from the manufacturer, as well as one of the most powerful on the market, and for its price it has no competitors at all. The stock is wooden and the stock has a thumb hole for a more comfortable grip. The workmanship is quite high.

Specifications

Technical characteristics of Chinese models of Shanghai rifles:

Upgrade options

As for gas rifles, first you should treat the working surfaces of the trigger so that it works more smoothly. It also doesn’t hurt to go through them, since even high-quality specimens can be poorly assembled. The seals should also be replaced, although they hold compression well out of the box.

By slightly modifying the cylinder in the 78 version and equipping it with a filling port, you can completely get rid of 12-gram cylinders and fill the gas directly into the tank, which will reduce the cost of the shot. It is the 78 model that is also very popular, since it is quite easy to convert it into PCP pneumatics, but you will have to find a good craftsman.

Spring-piston models are easier to modify. Firstly, like other manufacturers, it is worth processing the USM. Secondly, it is better to immediately go through, remove excess grease and replace the cuff. It is also better to replace the spring with a gas one, as it will reduce recoil and remove excess noise and vibration.

Video review of the Shanghai QB 78 air rifle: