Crosman 795 Review

Overall Rating

Accurate enough, VERY easy to cock, full-sized, light, extremely easy to strip down.

Trigger is too stiff, flimsy construction, doesn't work well with a scope

In all honesty, there aren't a whole lot of "youth" break-barrel guns out there, and in light of the current offerings, this rifle doesn't fare that badly.

The action is very, very easy to cock and it has reasonable power (500's with realistic pellets). The rear sight is adjustable for windage and elevation, although it is on the flimsy side. The trigger is heavy and creepy, but it's not quite as bad as the Industry brand "B1" model I got a few years ago.

The barrel is shrouded in plastic, which will likely be more durable in the hands of a kid than a blued barrel. The gun is noisy when shot - the mainspring "gongs" when it fires - but kids aren't likely to notice. The gun is passably accurate, on the order of .5-.75" (at 10 yards) or so, although it seemed to take a few hundred rounds before it really settled in.

Looking at it this way, it's really not a bad $60 rifle - performance isn't too different from the Gamo Delta, which comes in at around $20 more. And even though the Delta has potentially better accuracy, this is still quite a step up from the typical BB rifle that kids start fooling around with.

The problem is in the construction. The barrel on my example was bent, all it took was two hands and my knee to straighten it. The barrel lock-up mechanism is a chintzy stud-and-clip arrangement that doesn't seem to hold the barrel firmly enough for a scope. The pivot is made up of a roll pin, with (obviously) no way of tightening it.

If you pop the action out of the stock, the powerplant and trigger assemblies (which is contained in a plastic housing) practically fall apart into your hands. Super easy to work on, but the preponderance of what appears to be cheap plastic sorta spoils the show. Compared to this thing, the Gamo seems built like a tank. So do the really cheap Chinese break-barrels... although they have their own problems.

Don't get me wrong - again, it is not a bad "first pellet rifle" for a kid to graduate to. And frankly, the cheap-looking plastic might hold up just fine on a lower-powered gun like this one. It's just a shame that it's $60... at $35 or $40, it would be an excellent buy. For only about $20 more one could buy the Crosman Quest or Phantom rifle, both of which are powerful and rugged adult air rifles with blued steel actions and barrels, far more rugged construction, and in general offer an awful lot more for the money. But they are not kids guns.

Like I said, the kid's break-barrel market is limited. The 795 might be overpriced for what it delivers, but at least it does deliver something that the young shooter can use.

Members' Comments onvinceb's Review

• Firewalker on 10th May 2008

  vinceb's review is absolutely spot on. My new Crosman 795 also came with a bent barrel which I fixed using his method. Now I want to knowhow I can safely and simply work on the heavy trigger to reduce its stiffness. Thanks a lot.