Priest… My Take
Will be ongoing and I’ll do a full write up, but wanted to give my initial thoughts since that this gun seems to be garnering some attention.
Got the gun today from RL Airguns…. packed well. Came with a test chrony and group. Looked good…
I opted for the silver/black in .25.
….and of course the one shot I took of the gun came out blurry so I’ll update with a better pic later. It’s dark now.
So quickly my initial thoughts and such. I literally had about an hour of daylight when I got home so I’ve not been able to do much with it. Again, I’ll do a full review on this later, but for now just to whet your appetite…
It’s small. It’s smaller than I had envisioned. The gun dont seem front heavy to me and even with the rather large scope I have on it, seems to be a good carry weight.
Reg whistle…. yep. Mine did it. Alarming at first and I even called Matt about it as I thought something might be wrong. A few more shots and it went away mostly. After several mags, it was barely noticeable. I can hear the plenum refilling every so often, but at this point…. it’s just not a big deal to me.
You do have to be deliberate with cocking. Much like my Hummingbird. You cant candy ass it. I didnt find the knurling to be too sharp.
Overall fit and such… I like it. It looks well made.
I do like the trigger…nice. I’ve not adjusted it yet. I didnt get a chance to do much groups at all. I sighted it in and proceeded to pop leaves at various distances. Nothing I’ve seen so far alarms me with accuracy, but again, I’ve not done any real groups yet.
Mine is shooting around 920 with JSB’s according to the chrony sheet, but I’ve not had a chance to verify that here.
It’s got a unique sound. There is a ping and it’s a little loud, but it doesnt bother me. Matt mentioned they will have a moderator upgrade soon for it for those who require a bit more quiet. I might get it just because, but the sound doesnt bother me.
The gun will accept AR grips, but the bolt to secure is a touch fatter than my spare AR grip so I will need to bore that out a little to make it fit if I want to go that route. I likely will just to have it ‘different’ from some others.
I put an Atlas clone on it and it does a good job of shielding the reg and such. That setup doesnt bother me, really. I’ve got several QB conversions and other conversions so I’m not going to be knocking it around.
The instructions looked good and had color pictures, which I appreciate.
Edit… for the magazine. Yes, you do have to seat the pellets proper. No different really from a Daystate magazine. I used the next pellet in hand to slightly push the previous one down then turn and insert the next pellet.
Going to eat and will be back later if there are any specific questions. More to come!
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Anybody had this long enough to get an accurate shot count in .25?
Not the first clue, sorry.
Any idea how big the regulated plenum is?
OK, so I braved the cold long enough for one group. Just 40 yards, but gives an idea. Suffice to say, I’m happy with this.
I would agree about the website…not a lot there on it and I, too, would like to see an exploded view. If you find one, please share. And thanks for the kind words!
I didn’t notice any spare o-rings that came with it. I gotta say at this point my only gripe is the RTI website. I e-mail them a while back and asked for an exploded diagram and they said it would be on the website soon. As a maintenance guy by trade I would really like to see that and a parts list since the product is now on the market. “Soon” is a word I have heard far too much since I ordered this gun. Another thanks for you rob for sharing your take on this gun.
Thank you, sir… no worries!
I’m still trying to conjure up the balls to go outside in the cold and shoot it a bit…haha It’s awfully warm here in the house!
Rob, you’re amazing with your replies. Thank you kindly.
Also, it came with one mag, correct? Anyone purchase a spare?
I suppose anything is possible, but shooting it, I dont get the feel that it’s ‘flimsy’ or anything of that nature, no.
It did come with one mag. I’ve not purchased a spare. I tend to lose spare mags anyway and generally only use one.
I hear mention of stiff cocking ( 😛 ). Anyone feel as though the side bolt may shear off at some point due to over-exertion by someone not familiar with the Priest or perhaps from fatigue over time?
Also, it came with one mag, correct? Anyone purchase a spare?
Can you unscrew the reg off the action and show us how thick the metal wall is? There’s a lot of metal cut outs for the bipod and flashlight mounts. It’s a bit unnerving to see minimal metal holding back upwards of 4500psi. Also, how deep does the thread go into the action?
Anyone know what type of aluminum they use for the action? I hope these guys ran some metal fatigue tests. They need to get rid of the metal cut outs and add 3/4″-1″ of metal to hold the threads.
Here you go…
Couldnt tell you the type of aluminum or any testing. RTI has been around a while though not in the PCP market.
LOL. Any brave souls care to do a drop test????????? :rofl:
I’m already re-considering buying one. I’m diggin’ the reviews thus far.
Can you unscrew the reg off the action and show us how thick the metal wall is? There’s a lot of metal cut outs for the bipod and flashlight mounts. It’s a bit unnerving to see minimal metal holding back upwards of 4500psi. Also, how deep does the thread go into the action?
Anyone know what type of aluminum they use for the action? I hope these guys ran some metal fatigue tests. They need to get rid of the metal cut outs and add 3/4″-1″ of metal to hold the threads.
I foresee using a rear shooting bag to not be the most prudent method and I’d want to invest in a rifle rest. Can anybody post pics of the rifle shouldered? Gregor’s video was quite thorough but the more reviews the merrier. I see there is no visual way to inspect the mag to find your remaining shot count without removing the magazine? Yes, I can count to, what is it, 9 pellets, but if you hand it over to someone else, they won’t know the remaining shot count.
Anybody have plans to sling this thing? I guess there might exist some provision to mount a sling on the dovetail side rail? I’ve only heard of picatinny mount and stud mounted sling points…
Is there a healthy bit of PCP kick to this bullpuppy? Do the pellets hit with authority? Eh, scratch that, 925fps with 25 grain pellets ought to pack a wallop. And as mentioned elsewhere, any good way to be certain R&L did set the regulator to 150 vs 125 if you happened to have chosen that route? I’m looking forward to seeing more lead dust collectors available for this Priest.
Sorry for the terribly worded paragraphs as I’m just typing as questions pop into my mind. I still want this bitch, but for the past few weeks been looking into getting a synthetic Vulcan with the optional side cocking LEVER but that’ll straight up double the cost of a Priest. Not so sure I can swing that.
Is the trigger a single or double stage?
Going to try to hit all your questions…
How does it feel? Not to sound like a douche bag, but I have more than a few guns and so I have learned to embrace the intricacies of each. That said, I dont feel the Priest to be awkward to shoulder at all. It’s different from a traditional gun, sure…but for me, it’s just as natural as any of my other bullpups. The buttpad doesnt bother me and I think that an add on might deter from the looks, but I’m sure someone will come up with something cool for it that I might want down the line. I’ll leave it to another more photogenic to post a pic of it shouldered.
I do think a rear bag would be helpful. I use a front and rear bag anyway most of the time.
there is no way to inspect for shot count. I’ve thought of putting a couple markers on it, might…might not, but at least a warning marker for your last shot would be nice. Otherwise, it’s fun to watch someone take a gun and fire a ‘blank’ out after careful aim. 🙂
I wont be mounting a sling so no input there.
There really doesnt seem to be much kick do it. I was surprised and thought it would push a bit but I didnt notice it doing so… and yes, it hits! I’m unsure if there is anyway to test the reg output other than from others experience and a chrony.
Wont tell anyone how to spend their cash, but I like this gun so far. I dont have a Vulcan so I cannot comment. I’ve got a Cricket and a Colibri and this gun feels and (so far) performs well comparing.
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not here… I was told around 80 in .25, but I’ve not verified that. I plan to do a partial string on it over the weekend meaning I’ll string 10, then shoot some… string a few more….shoot some, etc so I can get an idea. I’ll keep count of how many and see what I come up with.