Target Sports

FACTORY VISIT: A PASSION FOR PERFECTION

Created on 30th June 2009

MARK CAMOCCIO meets the man behind the radically different Phoenix MKII

AN IMPORTANT aspect of the fascination that air rifles hold for me is the sheer ingenuity of many designs. The humble spring piston blueprint may have been with us for generations, but consider for a moment the alternatives: sliding sledge-mounted rifles to counteract recoil; Whiscombe's masterpiece with its Giss-Contra-style opposing pistons; the Park Rifle using a bicycle chain, of all things; CO2; conventional bolt-action PCPs; single-stroke pneumatics, and so it goes on: a plethora of designs, and evidence that the air rifle scene is surely one of the most vibrant and innovative sectors of the shooting market. Behind all these designs that we take for granted lies hours of research and development from the back room boffins. Obviously they don't always get it right first time, and much testing, trial and error, and further modification has to take place before a final spec hits the shops.

So designing a rifle from scratch is no small undertaking. But what if you could sniff out an intriguing current design, and acquire the operation with a view to improvement? That's just what Hugh Earl from Pax Guns in London did. If that name sounds familiar, it's because Hugh is the chap behind a rather successful pellet production facility, producing the old Prometheus pellet (still sold in great quantities to the Germans); the Logun Penetrator; the Dynamic; and his latest heavyweight hunting pellet, the Piledriver; among others. Adding a rifle design to Hugh's portfolio was the next logical step, and the Phoenix operation sits well with the rest of the business.

To be successful in any marketplace, you need to either compete on quality with the conventional, or offer something genuinely unusual. The Phoenix falls into the latter category, being radically different. It's a pre-charged pneumatic - but has no bolt. It carries a charge of compressed air, yet no cylinder is visible. Intrigued? Who wouldn't be?!

Originally designed by industry maverick Graham Bluck (who was initially kept on as consultant to the project), the Phoenix on closer inspection displays a fairly intricate and complex mechanism. Hugh could see the air rifle's potential, and while appreciating the clever operation, knew that just about every area of the original concept could be effectively fine-tuned and improved.

Largely modelled on a full-bore stalking rifle, the Phoenix offers a fast-fire repeating action that uses the classic Winchester style underlever. Shots are available just as fast as that lever can be cycled, meaning the Phoenix is great fun to shoot, once you are familiar with the system.

A 10-shot magazine is supplied with each rifle (this was originally the standard BSA production magazine, which are now all made in-house at the factory). It also comes supplied with spare seals and a charging adaptor, etc. Weighing in at 7.5lb in the rifle version, and 7lb for the carbine, the Phoenix is a mid-weight rifle, offering between 60 and 100 shots, depending on specification. The air cylinder is concealed in the butt, and once the butt pad has been removed the bottle can be unscrewed using a special concealed bar, and withdrawn from the action - all very neat, and in keeping with the streamlined, uncluttered profile afforded by this original gun.

With the business having been acquired in 2003, production was moved from Birmingham to a new dedicated factory in North London. My visit to the factory was always going to be a fascinating affair, and I was most struck with the attention to detail I found there, and by the high level of testing undertaken.

Hugh now employs five dedicated members of staff, who are employed to manufacture, build and fully test the rifles. Most components are produced in-house, other than the barrels and stocks.

The barrel blanks are bought in from Lothar Walther (the industry standard, after all), and then sent for external grinding; the ground blanks are then finish-machined in-house before being sent for blacking. Hugh has learnt that keeping a tight control on the production methods is the only way to ensure consistent results, and his drive for improvement has seen the rifle virtually re-designed since the earlier models.

Passion for perfection

One glance at the company website at www.phoenixairguns.co.uk says it all. A Passion for Perfection is the Phoenix mission statement, and having seen the factory set-up for myself, I don't doubt the sincerity behind it. The two-part woodwork is sourced from Italy, as are many on the market these days, but the finish and quality are spot-on.

Hugh's enthusiasm is infectious, and he seems determined to push his new baby to the limits. With his background in precision pellet production, he's not wasted any time in tailoring the Phoenix to shoot his special ammunition with ease. The loading probe on the MKII will now incorporate a much more refined tip to actually seat into the back of the pellet, avoiding any deformation of the skirt.

Once the machined parts areassembled, the actions are first tested for power using a specially constructed sealed chronograph unit linked to a computer. The operator can cycle an action while the computer logs all the data, displaying each shot's output and running averages and standard deviation.

I saw an FAC-rated Phoenix action being evaluated in this manner, and the action comfortably returned the claimed 30 shots at 20ft/lb energy. In fact, on-test output was nearer 24ft/lb, but a minimum claim is set at the lower figure.

Accuracy was also impressive, but the really surprising aspect was just how consistently the Phoenix grouped in .177 calibre using a variety of pellets. Don't forget that the average air rifle generating FAC power levels in the smaller calibre will often distort pellets with the greater blast of air at the outset. Quite how the Phoenix was able to return tight clusters with JSB, Logun Penetrators and the Piledriver I'm not entirely sure, but Hugh reckons the modified probe plays a key part in the process.

The .22 FAC model should give nearer 30ft/lbs, because of the greater efficiency of the larger calibre. Another reassuring feature of the factory is that they have a 50yd still-air test facility, to carry out specialised tests when required. How many other manufacturers can boast as much?

The on-board 190cc compressed air cylinder concealed in the stock will now be produced in-house, giving further control on tolerances and overall quality; with a fill pressure of 250-bar and a burst pressure in excess of 600-bar, safety margins are encouraging. A new quick-fill option for the cylinder is also planned.

Custom options

Finally, custom options are on offer to the more discerning customer who wants a Phoenix rifle with some special additions and is prepared to pay for the privilege. Gold plating and gold inlaid logos are just some of the myriad options, and Hugh is only too pleased to discuss any special requirements.

Silencers are another field where Hugh has experience, and his popular Phantom model has an ultra-light carbon fibre body, housing a clever ‘reverse-thrust' design that forces the excess gases to twist in the opposite direction to the rifling. Hugh makes silencers for other companies, too, so you may be unwittingly using a derivative of the Pax Guns model.

All things considered, with Hugh Earl at the helm and a dedicated enthusiastic team behind him, the future of the Phoenix looks assured. A full test of the latest model will feature in a future article.

For more information, contact Hugh Earl at Pax Guns:
T: 0208 3403039
W: www.phoenixairguns.co.uk

FACTORY VISIT: A PASSION FOR PERFECTION

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FACTORY VISIT: A PASSION FOR PERFECTION

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