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Air Arms S510T Tactical

Air Arms S510T Tactical

Air Arms has a comprehensive range of PCPs, which have long been favourites with target shooters and hunters alike. The latest to join the ranks is the S510T Tactical. Some may say, they’ve hitched the wagon onto the current trend for tactical-style air rifles, but in this case, it’s definitely tactical by name and tactical by nature. Read on and all will be revealed.

As tactical as tactical can be

Many air rifles are presently using various parts that mimic AR-style rifles or use the design for part of the stock. However, here we’re looking at what in effect is an AR chassis with an S510 action nestled into it. The butt uses the exact same layout as the AR, so you have an adjustable butt section that allows you to tailor the length of pull to your personal requirements. Also, the lever that unlocks the butt section from the buffer tube also uses the same locking mechanism to keep it in place. Full marks for authenticity but in respect of a nonrecoiling PCP, the lock is the icing on the cake, as the butt section has five pre-set lengths that it can be moved to. It’s good to see this type of attention to detail.

The skeletonised Magpul butt has a cheek rest and ends with a solid, wellcontoured, black rubber butt pad. There is also a QD flush cup that can be used to attach a sling.

The steep drop-down composite pistol grip is also made by Magpul and is pure AR. It gives a superb platform for operating the trigger. It also features ridging at the front and rear to aid grip.

Front and centre

The forend is manufactured from matte black anodised aluminium, which initially seems to be configured as a heat guard. Obviously, the design isn’t required from a non-firearm, but it does hold a few surprises. These being the milled slots positioned on the underside and at 90º along both sides. They are standard M-LOK spec slots and can be used to fit all sorts of compatible accessories. The rifle comes with a Picatinny-style accessory rail ready fitted to the right, plus a drop-down Magpul forend grip comes supplied with the rifle to compliment the pistol grip, butt and tactical styling.

The vertical grip can be attached to the forend using any of the five slots in the underside. It is attached at the position you require by using the Allen head screws and the T-Bolts supplied. It’s stippled and ridged front and rear to aid grip and once fitted, you realise just how precisely the rifle’s balance can be tailored to suit your build, plus the size of the optic on board.

The M-LOK system has been used on firearms for a long time, as it allows all manner of compatible accessories to be fitted (laser, bipod, torch and grip). If you choose not to use the forend grip that comes supplied, there are even alternative forend grips available that simply attach in the same way or clip in place. Also, of major importance is that the forend assembly can easily be detached from the action, air reservoir and barrel for cleaning, should you and the rifle get caught out in the rain. A very nice touch!

On the pull

Incidentally, Air Arms offers a comprehensive selection of Magpul after-sale accessories, including a front sling swivel, bipod, different height cheek rests and many others, including a special sling.

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For those new to the name, Magpul Industries is an American company that manufactures different accessories that will fit the AR chassis, so the skies the limit when it comes to customising the stock to suit your own particular requirements and preferences.

Cap off/fill up

Once the now very stylish-looking cover cap at the front of the air reservoir is unscrewed, it reveals the very safe and now familiar fill point that Air Arms uses on all of their PCPs. This being a chunky, stainless-steel fill valve housing with a ‘T’ bar-shaped securing point for the brass push-over fill adaptor to securely mate up with. The rifle takes a 250bar fill and is specified as giving 90 full power, regulated shots in .177 (as per test rifle) and 120 in .22 calibre.

The 7 series regulator and valve system have been developed to a level of excellence, as the shot-to-shot consistency is mightily impressive. The reg allows the best possible use of the air stored and helps to maintain a very high level of accuracy once you set zero.

There’s also a neat, colour-highlighted air gauge (manometer) recessed into the chassis. It is positioned forward of the trigger guard, allowing you to easily keep check of your air reserves. Plus, the positioning helps to protect the gauge from knocks and accidental damage.

Drop down side-lever

The rifle uses a biathlon-style side-lever to run the time-tested and very efficient perspex-fronted, 10-shot, self-actuating magazine, as seen on many multi-shot AA PCPs. The biathlon lever is becoming very popular and more commonplace on air rifles these days, and it was no surprise the short cocking stroke was very smooth and positive. It is also very easy to quickly grip it for fast action shooting.

Trigger superior

The 2-stage trigger is adjustable for first and second-stage pull weight, plus sear engagement. It also has the now familiar, manual ‘thru-blade’ cross-bolt safety button, which is the norm on the majority of modern Air Arms PCP air rifles. To operate it, you simply push over from the right to engage, or back in from the left to put the rifle into fire mode. Air Arms has been using this type of manual safety block for ages but here, the button seems to be a tad larger than before and positioned higher up the blade. However, in relation to its position, it could be due to the stock configuration.

Special can

The S510T Tactical comes with quite a stubby and tactical-looking silencer already fitted onto the fully shrouded, match-grade, semi-free-floating Lothar Walther barrel’s muzzle. The efficient can has been specifically designed for this rifle and shows Air Arms’ own, in-house, thread-to-muzzle connection. As well as perfectly suiting the rifle cosmetically, it tames muzzle report to a very acceptable level.

Performance

The scope rail is manufactured to the Picatinny international standard, making swapping out sights easy. It also allows the magazine to sit lower in the action. Once scoped up, the rifle really shows its true potential and with the right accessories, it’s easy to forget you’re using an air rifle of such a tactical build. The accuracy is stunning, as I was soon printing ragged one-hole groups out to 30 yards. It’s also a joy to shoot, as the rifle allows correct head positioning and length of pull adjustment. Also, total stability is achieved due to the forend grip.

Conclusions

The S510T Tactical is the perfect blend of usability and functionality. The tactical platform offers an almost limitless choice of sizes, handling positions and accessories that make using and shooting this rifle a unique experience. In fact, there’s no doubt that Air Arms has managed to create something very special with the S510T. And while tactical-style air rifles have made massive inroads into the airgun scene for quite some time now, let’s not forget some are just cosmetically configured to look that way. However, this is definitely not the case here, as there can be no multi-shot PCP air rifle that’s as truly tactical as this new airgun from Air Arms. Incidentally, there’s also a Tactical High Power version available with a power adjust facility, a larger air reservoir and a longer barrel. It is available in both popular calibres as well as .25.

Thanks to T & J. J McAvoy LTD for supplying the rifle on test.

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  • Air Arms S510T Tactical - image {image:count}

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  • Air Arms S510T Tactical - image {image:count}

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  • Air Arms S510T Tactical - image {image:count}

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  • Air Arms S510T Tactical - image {image:count}

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  • Air Arms S510T Tactical - image {image:count}

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gun
features

  • Name: Air Arms S510T Tactical
  • Type: Side-lever, PCP Multi-Shot
  • Stock: Aluminium Chassis
  • Overall Length: 35.5” – 38.75” including silencer
  • Barrel Length: 15.5”
  • Weight: 6.2lbs (un-scoped)
  • Calibre: .177 (on test) and .22
  • Price: £1479
  • Contact: Air Arms - www.air-arms.co.uk
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