Stoeger X20 Supressor

The airgun market is an exciting place to be right now, and despite the inevitable influence of a languishing economy in general, airgun manufacturers seem determined to maintain a bold approach with new models still emerging on a regular basis.

Stoeger is one brand that up until now, I hadn’t sampled. Yes, I’d noticed that they were part of the world famous Beretta brand, but nothing seemed to stand out to grab my attention.

I had always been a fan of their sleek stock designs though, and there’s no doubting that those wrap around fore-ends create a distinctive, pleasing profile for their whole range of springers.

Main Feature

The introduction of a brand new model however, was clearly a good excuse to get better acquainted with the brand; so my rifle on test here is their latest X20 Suppressor - and an elegant little number it is too!

It’s a traditional spring-piston powered, legal limit airgun, built around a conventional break barrel action; yet the main on-board feature of this rifle does set it apart from the crowd, in a fiercely contested sector of the market. The clue’s in the name, as they say, and the ‘Suppressor’ suffix stems from the fact that the barrel is shrouded over and above its full length by a synthetic casing. Plenty of technical wizardry is housed inside this area, forming the Suppressor, which obviously has an effect on the muzzle report of the rifle - and we’ll come to that later.

What also rather helps this rifle’s case is the fact that it comes as a package deal with the X20 Suppressor rifle supplied complete with a Stoeger 3-9x40 scope and mounts, all-in at the time of writing for a seemingly modest £195.

Nice Scope – But The Mounts Could Be Better

The scope and mounts included in the asking price are obviously fairly basic fare, yet the Stoeger branded scope comes fitted with parallax adjustment, target turrets, and variable magnification. A conventional 30/30 reticle provides a thin central cross hair, set within four equidistant thick posts, and the image quality on test, seemed fine. For the record, the ranges displayed on the parallax ring, were several yards adrift from reality, yet overall function was fine. One minor gripe is the fact that a tiny amount of daylight could be seen between the bottom of the scope and the mount (meaning the scope wasn’t sitting true within the mount base). This may not be the case with every example, but if the test rifle was mine I would replace the mounts as supplied with a quality set from the likes of Sportsmatch, which would hardly break the bank, and would be money well spent.

Looks and Handling

Onto the rifle, and first impressions of the X20 Suppressor with regards to looks alone, centre on a perceived over-use of synthetics, since the entire stock, and action forward of the breech, are formed from this material. Yet handle this rifle for any length of time, and any unfavourable preconceptions are soon put in their place.

For a start, this X20 feels reassuringly weighty, with a nice amount of that heft towards the muzzle. The stock feels dense as well as being well thought out, so overall balance and handling all feel right from the start. That sublime fore-end design means the leading hand just naturally cups the rifle on aim, and despite a cheek piece that is slightly too low, and a butt pad which is slightly too firm, I couldn’t help but warm to this model.

Overall finish is fairly good too, with the traditional blued main cylinder well up to standard.

Range Time

With the Stoeger scope already mounted and sitting in roughly the correct position, (secured with an arrestor stud into the scope rail I might add), I could settle down to the serious business of performance evaluation.

Cocking the rifle requires the breech to be gently jolted open; which is more technique than effort. Once mastered, the actual cocking stroke that follows should be achievable by most, requiring as it does, minimal effort. With a pellet pushed home and safely flush with the facing edge of the breech, the barrel can be swung up - and at this stage with no resistance whatsoever, an incredibly subtle breech lock-up détente can be appreciated.

And so to that main feature. With manufacturers currently waging war by acronym, Stoeger are not to be outdone here. Air Flow Control (AFC) technology is apparently what lies behind this rifle’s headline grabbing spec., and let’s not forget the ‘Dual- Stage Noise Reduction System’, designed by silencer specialists Humbert CTTS. All sounds very impressive; so just how does that Suppressor shape up?

The manufacturers modestly claim that this rifle is the quietest airgun in its class, and whilst I lacked the technical equipment to scientifically validate this claim, I can report that output from the muzzle is noticeably muted, when compared to many other rifles of a similar specification. Bear in mind that this X20 is fitted with a carbine 10.5 inch barrel, and the fact that no ‘crack’ is emitted as the air exits the barrel, is a fine achievement. In the real world though, don’t lose sight of the fact that silencers play a far more significant and discernable role when fitted to pneumatics; with the noise generated by the mechanical action of a spring gun, arguably of far more relevance than that detected at the muzzle.  So the X20 Suppressor isn’t whisper quiet by any means - just highly civilized.

Performance

Over a chronograph, the slick feeling action returned truly stunning consistency with a variety of pellets, along with full legal-limit power output across the board.

Accuracy testing revealed a trigger which is admittedly fairly basic in operation, and whilst technically two-stage, the amount of felt creep before the sear trips means a deliberate routine needs to be adopted to get the best results. I had a play with the adjustment screw, and whilst refinement wasn’t coming any time soon, if the creep was carefully taken up, the final feel before the shot released, was improved.

Using Daystate FT in .22 calibre, the X20 Suppressor printed groups of a little over an inch at 30yds. Best groups achieved were with Webley Xtreme ammunition, achieving clusters of just over half inch, yet 0.75inch seemed a more representative benchmark with this rifle.

In short, my introduction to Stoeger had been most enlightening. The feel, handling and overall design of this X20 Suppressor are reasons enough to take a closer look.
Bear that package deal in mind though, and this rifle has to make an ideal starter pack or budget medium range hunting outfit.

PRICE: £195 including 3-9x40 Stoeger scope and mounts