The Benjamin Trail NP XL is a very nice-looking Nitro Piston break-barrel air rifle that's available in .177, .22, and .25 caliber. For this review, I tested the .177 caliber, which limits how big a varmint it can knock down ... but it is still a very powerful airrifle. I shot at some old metal targets I had 50-plus yards out and I could see decent dents in the old pots and pans and “TING” was satisfyingly audible.
Out of the box I was struck by two things about this rifle. First, the hardwood stock that was checkered with a thumbhole for accurate shooting was attractive. The second thing was that the rifle was on the heavy side. It weighs 8.5 lbs. without the included scope. I can easily see this rifle being used for small-game hunting, but I don’t think I will be hiking up and down hillsides stalking game with this rifle due to the weight. It would be better suited for a sit-down hunt, particularly with a pair of shooting sticks or a rest.
Unfortunately for me, hunting seasons are not in right now and there are no gophers where I live. I have not seen a ground hog since I knocked the last two over in the cow pasture with a .22 last summer, so I could not test this air rifle on small game yet.
The Trail NP XL is generally easy to operate ... other than cocking it. Cocking this rifle takes some effort and that is why it is probably considered an adult rifle. Although I always recommend reading the manual, and it's something l personally insist on doing before shooting, this rifle is very straightforward. There is no guessing what certain things are.
The Trail NP XL comes with a Center Point 3-9x40 scope with adjustable parallax and objective lens. I liked those adjustments, particularly the adjustable objective lens, as many air rifles that come with scopes feature lower-quality glass. Not so with this air rifle! The scope has some nice features.
At first I thought maybe the scope was not responding to my adjustments, but after the rifle broke in, it seemed fine, so that was probably the issue with shots not grouping well at first. The scope is clear and crisp and the adjustments are easy to make with notations on the outside of the knobs. You do not have to remove caps to adjust the scope. That is another nice feature of this scope.
When I started to sight in I noticed the scope was already fitted with rings which mounted easily to the Picatinny rails on the rifle. However, despite the rings being squared with the scope properly (and appearing snug on the scope), they were not at all snug. Once I snugged them down, I began testing the rifle with a variety of pellets. Since this rifle can shoot pellets up to 1,500 feet per second (fps), I knew I was likely to get better results with the heavier pellets that I had. So, I started with Crosman Premier 10.5 grain pellets.
Shots were all over the place at first and I noticed I did not have enough elevation with the scope settings to get it to bull. So, I removed the scope, made some adjustments and remounted it and got the pellets zipping downrange and on the paper. The Crosman Premier pellets were decent at 35 yards, but I tried the GAMO Rocket pellets at 9.6 grains and they often punched an enlarged hole at that range. The worst group I got with them was a little over an inch and a quarter and some of that was probably my fault--the heat had me sweaty and slipping a bit on the bench.
I noticed the rifle took a bit to settle in. Accuracy and the trigger creep improved after 50 shots and got noticeably better near 100 shots. So, this rifle will need some break-in time. Before anyone makes a judgement on this rifle, let it get warmed up and be sure to clean it too. Try different pellets. Just my switch to the Rockets changed the accuracy results right away and I plan on shooting some H&N Baracuda Match pellets too as I continue to shoot it a bit later this summer.
The feel of this gun for an average adult is good. I loved the thumbhole stock. The trigger is a bit long, but it gets better as you shoot it and break it in. From the factory mine broke at 7 lbs., but there is an adjustment screw for the trigger.
The safety is a lever in front of the trigger and easy to flick off from either side. On a noise level I did not find this rifle loud at all. Squirrels were feeding nearby on berries and never really got alarmed. Maybe they knew the calendar said they were not on the menu yet, or maybe the popping of this rifle just is not that loud. (I opt for the latter.) MSRP $302.99; BenjaminAirGuns.com.
Specifications
Calibers available: .177 (up to 1,500 fps), .22 (up to 1,100 fps), .25 (up to 900 fps)
Nitro Piston break barrel
Weight: 8.5 lbs. plus scope
Length: 49"
Safety: lever forward of trigger
Trigger: adjustable 2-stage
Sights: includes a scope, no iron sights but Picatinny rail
Stock: thumbhole hardwood
Comes with a 5 year warranty.
