owners: Bam 50/51 advice

Hi Guys,

Bam 50/51 have hit our shores now, and are marketed under the Stoeger brand name. Really cheap at $480 NZ dollars. By comparison a CFX retails here at $499 NZ.

For a first PCP is this a suitable purchase. Use intended: spend a year to get skill levels up for competition.

Are they able to be down powered at all? Can they be easily altered to shoot 12 ft/lbs?

General quality issues such as the leaking seals and finish: have they been sorted out yet? or are there still new ones coming out with these issues/

At the price I consider you can't go wrong, but how much heartache is going to be encountered along the way to an acceptable performing rifle?

cheers

GS

[Gene_SC]

Hi Adam

DanoTX has one and I think he can give you the answers you want. He was playing around with different mods I think befor he got his TalonSS. I do hear the 50/51's are plenty powerful for the price. Hope it works out for you.

Where you at Dano..:)

Gene

Thanks Gene,

 I am in the thinking about it stage, haven't bought one......the price is a persuading factor, I just nedthe nudge to tip me over the edge into the "dark side".........ARGHHHHHHHHH........

 Any advice from owners who know what going on with this model appreciated.

GS

[dw33]

I think Dano had some problems with the BAM, but he can explain better than I.  I also thought about this air rifle, but decided to spend some more money and get something good right away.  What is the exchange rate between the U.S. and there?  I wonder if I could get rich buying air rifles here and selling them there......lol, just a thought.

[DanoInTx]

Do yourself a favor and pour salt in your eyes instead of buying a B50/51.  Mine was nothing but headaches from day one.  There are some guys making them into real shooters, but by the time you fix all of the leaks, get it tuned, replace the lousy stock barrel you may as well buy a real PCP.  The one I have still leaks and I feel I am a pretty handy guy.  The trigger is adjustable, but very sloppy unless you put some time into it, and once the trigger is adjusted "ok" the safety no longer works, the fill nipples come from the factory with leaks, the valve in mine broke in half....the gun comes with enough seals to reseal the gun at least once completely...this is a pretty good indication that the gun will leak out of the box.  The stock is designed around a guy that stands 8 feet tall and has hands like Paul Bunyan...except for the trigger, it's got so much hook to it you need fingers like a child to fit.  If I had to do it all over again and I had already bought my B50 I would have just shot myself with it for being stupid enough to waste my $300 on it.  Save your money, shove a couple more $$$ into the piggy bank and buy a real air rifle and not a cheap knockoff.  Too bad you don't live closer I'd just send you mine:)

[PeakChick]

ROFLMAO!  Obviously, Dano is very fond of his B50.

[DanoInTx]

PeakChick - 8/10/2007  11:21 PM

ROFLMAO!  Obviously, Dano is very fond of his B50.

Yes, it is my favorite Chinese gun, but only because it's my ONLY Chinese gun.  I would be looking at a good $200 to get a new barrel and a good pro tune...add that to the $300 price tag and you have a $500 gun that is no better of a shooter than say an AA S200, and much uglier and uncomfortable with absolutely no real resale value.  Everytime I see that thing leaning against the wall next to my Talon and my BSA Superstar I worry that the other two will catch something incurable from it.

LMAO.......Thanks Dano.......

I had it in mind to ask about the problems you detailed, I had heard about them before and wanted to know if there was every chance of making a similar mistake. Although Stoeger have put their name to them here in NZ, I am not sure they have sorted the issues yet.

As of last night the NZ dollar was at about 72.8 cents US.

Thanks, I asked this question last night, but since then things have changed. I am coming into enough money in a few months to buy anything I want now.

You might yet get a request to go buy something for me and post it to NZ...lol.

cheers all

GS

[Gene_SC]

There ya go folks. Dano has released his views and opinions of the Bam 50/51... For sure Dano is very mechanically inclined and would have redesigned it if he could have but it seems to be a hopeless case of a real bad knock off wanna be..:)

Gene

[Gene_SC]

That's funny Dano. Sittin here laughin and I am getting a side ache.. I would not put your two other air rifles near that Bam.. I hear they have those lil bitty wood worms that spread like wild fire. So keep your other wood away from the Bam. You may want to have an exterminator company drill holes in the stock and spray for those lil bitty Chinese worms..:)

Gene

[DanoInTx]

I could have made it work, and it actually DOES work now sortof.  It's just the money and effort involved isn't worth it imho, not when you consider how many much better rifles there are out there for the same price after the tuneup.  This isn't a $150 b26 pretending to be an R9, it's a $300 gun that isn't very shootable without some fairly serious work.  Live and learn:)

[kirby999]

Tell him how you really feel. Hehehe. kirby

Dano, its pretty obvious you and the BAM 50 have some "history", and issues of your own....lol.

Thanks for the honest opinion. But next time don't hold back ok?

Its no good sugar coating the facts for my benefit......he he he

Thanks guys

GS

[PeakChick]

Yep Dano, I wholeheartedly agree with you. The Chinese are capabale of getting it fairly right, if they want to. My B26 is worth every penny of the $139.00 I paid for it. I still received mine with a free spinning, prestripped out left stock screw. I had to drill out the lugs and tap them to 6mm and install better hardware.

If they are going to pretend to compete with the higher quality Euro rifles why is it so hard for them understand the concept of craftsmanship and QC? If the B50/B51 was able to be brought up to snuff for another hour of tinkering and maybe another $50.00 then it might be a good vaule. Better yet, for $300.00 one would expect it to be correct out of the box. that's not an insignificant amount of money.

[DanoInTx]

....just kidding:)

I don't!