016-020 Test AA S410F Carbine _Rev3_MHNEA.indd

Getting better
with AGE
It may well be a 13-year-old model now, but the S410 isn’t anywhere near
being pensioned off yet. Nigel Allen takes to the farm with the latest
Super-lite model… and shows why it’s hard to put a good gun down
T
hat the 400 Series of PCP air rifles has been in production since the
turn of this century – even longer if you consider the S300 models
of the 1990s from which it evolved – bears testimony to Air Arms’
success as an airgunmaker. Quite simply, their S400 has established itself
as the biggest-selling PCP model range in the modern age and – in PCP
terms, at least – it ranks alongside famous guns like the BSA Meteor and
Airsporter, and Webley’s barrel-over-the-cylinder pistol line. It certainly
deserves its place in the airgun annals.
However, while we consider the S400 series as a single range, the British
gunmaker certainly hasn’t just sat back on its laurels and churned out gun
after gun. Far from it – the S400 line-up has been built upon to bring us
many updates and model variations over the years, from target guns to
take-downs, high-powered long rifles to short-barrelled carbines… with a
multitude of stocks along the way!
This month’s test subject is currently one of the hottest movers in
the Air Arms stable, and while there’s a comfortable familiarity with the
original 400 I tested around 13 years ago, it’s also bang on the button
in terms of fashion and current trends in the PCP world. It’s the S410F
Carbine Super-lite – the poplar-stocked 10-shot model, with a short
action and carbine barrel. While the ‘10’ denotes it’s a magazine-driven
S400, the ‘F’ suffix denotes
the fancy new flutes
applied to various
components on the
rifle. Super-lite refers
to the new style
woodwork – a third
option to the heavier
A ventilated
rubber butt pad
rounds off the
S410 Super-lite’s
Minelli stock –
shown here in
Hunter’s Green
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beech or more expensive
walnut handles.
I’ll begin with the stock – my test rifle’s
being the Hunter’s Green, although traditional
and high-gloss brown finishes are also available. Made in
Italy by Minelli, it’s a good example of how far mass-production
stockmaking has come in recent decades. It’s ambidextrous, with a scopeheight cheek-piece on both sides that’s been heavily profiled by virtue
of the indentations scalloped out beneath, with the belly also sporting a
reverse curve to accentuate the butt’s sweeping lines.
Accoutrements include a ventilated rubber recoil pad – not that
something this soft is needed on a recoilless PCP! – and a redwood-capped
pistol grip, complete with a white line spacer (in wood). The forestock
sports curves that aesthetically complement the butt, and stylish panels of
chequering adorn the forestock and grip. The company’s familiar ‘AA’ logo
is incorporated on the grip’s panels, while Minelli’s stamp is made via a
small ‘m’ roundel etched into the gently rounded base of the forend.
All the chequering is best described as pristine by virtue of its laseraccurate application. And even though it’s presented as ‘cuts’ in the surface,
The pistol grip is capped with redwood,
and adorned with impressive panels of
detailed chequering
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TEST: S410F CARBINE SUPER-LITE
Cheaper than walnut, but equally
as light, the Super-lite’s poplar
stock is a joy to handle
rather than the pointed diamonds of traditional
hand-chequering, it still provides enough
roughness to aid grip – the main purpose of
chequering. This is further accentuated by the
incredibly smooth finish that’s applied to the
rest of the woodwork, which feels very silk-like
to the touch, and much better than most other
mass-produced stocks.
With a hint of a Schnabel at the tip, I can’t
fault the stock for looks – and many a gun shop
will tell you it’s the well-balanced appearance
that helps this rifle to sell itself. In the field,
though, I have a couple of minor gripes, with
emphasis on the word ‘minor’. I could have
done with an extra ‘sail’ at the front of the
forend’s chequering because I tended to place
my leading hand ahead of the forward-most
panel during much of my shooting.
And while I accept that ambi stocks are
a useful selling feature, both right- and lefthanders will, I’m sure, feel that there’s a little
too much wood in the thumb muscle area of the
grip. Yes, it’s risky to make a stock too thin at this
point – which makes it vulnerable to breakage
in transit – but it also rather undoes all the
good work that the Minelli team has done in
achieving an otherwise perfectly-shaped grip for
your trigger hand.
One other point to make about the Superlite stock. Being made from poplar wood, it’s
less dense than beech and, thus, makes for a
lighter rifle. But it’s no lighter than walnut, so
don’t let the name confuse you! For the record,
the heavier beech stock – which is similar in
shape but lacks the cheek’s undercuts – is righthand only, though knocks £32 off the S410
Carbine Super-lite’s price. Walnut is available
in both dedicated right- and left-hand versions,
respectively priced at £49 and £61 more than
the Super-lite’s hang-tag.
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Flutes appear on various parts of the
rifle – including the muzzle weight
Air Arms’ quick-fill charging
set-up includes a filler and
locking system…
The flutes around the S410F are certainly eye-catching and becoming
of a rifle as shapely as this gun is. Suggesting a barrel’s rifling, they’re
applied to the muzzle weight, inlet valve cover, breech block knuckle
and the arm of the bolt handle – and there are also straighter grooves
applied along the breech block and barrel collar.
While these artistic touches are of no practical value, the fluted barrel
knuckle, being machined from the block itself rather than a separate
fitting, does add strength and rigidity to this end of the barrel – important
as the barrel not only free-floats within its front collar, but at just 12mm
in diameter, it’s also quite thin.
One of the reasons why these rifles have sold so well over the years
is that they’re brilliantly simple – and that means reliable. Many gun
shops see PCPs as being ‘overly complicated’, and that means they run
the risk of their customers coming back because they’re either confused
or unhappy in not being able to get the best out of their new rifle. The
S410, though, does what it’s supposed to do – shoot – and Air Arms
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...for a belt-and-braces air fill
Right: The
Super-lite test
model’s shot-toshot consistency
proved superb
deserve a big round of applause for getting this element of the package
absolutely perfect.
For some time now, they’ve been supplying their PCPs with a foolproof, quick-fill charging system. Once connected to the charging hose
(via the 1/8BSP male thread), the connector simply pushes over the rifle’s
inlet valve and locks into place with a twist courtesy of a ‘T’ bar system.
It really does take any worry out of the charging procedure, and I’m a
big fan of it – plus Air Arms fit their inlet valve with a 20-micron, inline
sintered filter that stops the dirt ingress that’s so often the cause of
leaky PCPs.
Air Arms recommend a maximum fill-pressure of 190BAR for their
S410, and claim 80-plus shots in .22 calibre (60 in .177). Of course, this
will vary a little according to the weight of ammo you use, and as with
most PCPs, you’ll need to experiment with where the ‘sweet spot’ – the
flattest part of the power curve – is for your particular rifle/pellet combo.
There is a manometer in the belly of the forestock to indicate on-board
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TEST: S410F CARBINE SUPER-LITE
boosted my confidence when it came to putting
the rifle through its accuracy paces on the range.
Air Arms equip their S410 with match-grade
Walther barrels, and it’s rare that you’ll ever come
The scope-mounting point forward of the
across a rogue model that won’t shoot tight
breech is quite short. Note the stop pin
groups. My test gun was no exception, sticking
in ragged one-holers at 30 yards with all but the
poorest ammo I tested. All the usual quality brands
were impressively accurate at extreme ranges, too – and I printed a few
air pressure – although (as always), I’d recommend you use a bigger
30mm groups on paper with the JSB-made AADF at 50 yards. For any
gauge on your charging unit to meter the air. For the record, I found this
unregulated .22 rifle, that’s probably more than you should rightfully expect
gun’s gauge read 10BAR below that of my bottle’s.
and further affirms the benefits of superb shot-to-shot consistency.
As you can see from the power curve (below), my test rifle’s consistency
Despite the thinned-out butt, the Super-lite’s native balance is actually
with 15.9-grain AADF ammo was nothing short of astounding – and that
quite rearward, but once a scope is on board, this makes the weight feel
with ammo plucked straight from the tin, with no selective weighing.
more biased toward neutral – in other words, between your hands – and it’s
Considering the S410 doesn’t incorporate a separate air regulator, the shotcertainly a gun that can take a long scope without subsequently suffering
to-shot variation is tiny. Put another way, this rifle’s ‘sweet spot’ is massive!
from bad weight distribution.
I don’t ever recall testing a PCP over the years that has this kind of
However, the mounting point forward of the breech is quite short, so you
consistency with unweighed pellets and I can only conclude that Air Arms
may need a reach-forward mount when using a longer scope – though,
really have mastered the art of making a valve. In addition to a decent level
when offering up a few of my own shorter scopes, I actually suffered with
of power, the chrono also didn’t throw up any weird readings, which really
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TEST: S410F CARBINE SUPER-LITE
TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS
MAKER: Air Arms, UK
MODEL: S410F Carbine Super-lite
Air Arms’ 10-shot
magazine sits within a
plastic cassette
TYPE: Multishot precharged pneumatic
COCKING: Bolt-action
CALIBRE: .177 and .22 (tested)
MAGAZINE: 10-shot rotary, removable
FILL PRESSURE: 190BAR
SHOTS PER FILL: .177 – 60+ (manuf. claim); .22 - XX (actual)
OVERALL LENGTH: 910mm
BARREL LENGTH: 395mm
WEIGHT: 2.84kg (excluding scope)
SIGHTS: None fitted. 11mm scope rails, two-part breech
STOCK: Poplar, ambidextrous sporter (Hunter’s Green shown)
LENGTH OF PULL: 360mm
TRIGGER: Two-stage, adjustable
SAFETY: Manual, resettable
SRP: £639
CONTACT: Air Arms ● 01323 845853 ● www.air-arms.co.uk
not being able to bring the scope back far enough to my eye. There’s a
stop pin on the front mounting area to relieve stress from over-clamping
on a sensitive area of the breech and I found that the saddle of all my
scopes easily cleared the magazine with medium-height Sportsmatch and
BKL mounts, the latter on show here. This is actually a good point – many
multishots require higher mounts in order to clear the magazine.
As to the Air Arms magazine itself, there’s little I can add to much
of what’s already been documented on this well-proven system. Its 10shot aluminium chamber sits within a plastic cassette that’s been shaped
to aid insertion and removal – and there’s even a ridged area for your
thumb and forefinger to grip when tugging it out, against the tension of
its spring-clip cleat.
It gets indexed automatically via a simple pawl mechanism within the
breech, this being activated when the bolt is pulled rearwards. Simply lift
up the bolt from its locked position and draw back – you need to give it
a quick yank – to rotate the magazine to the next chamber (and cock the
trigger/hammer). Returning the bolt then feeds the waiting pellet into the
rifling – and during my test period, everything worked flawlessly.
Compared to early versions, the S410’s bolt is now much sturdier, too,
locking into place far more solidly. My only caveat is to beware of doubleloading. If you draw back the bolt to check if the gun’s been cocked or
not, you will re-index the magazine and end up loading a second shot
up the spout.
Once cocked, it’s best to engage the manual safety catch – a pushbutton system that, of all places, is to be found halfway up the trigger
blade! I won’t repeat myself as I’ve said how poor – and potentially
dangerous – I think this design is. It works… but is the trigger blade
really the safest place for a safety catch to be positioned? I don’t think
so – but clearly Air Arms doesn’t share my concern as it’s been an element
of the 400’s design for years now.
I was a little surprised at how much creep the trigger exuded on my
test rifle – maybe the person on the trigger assembly line was having an
off-day or something! No matter, the S410’s trigger has evolved into a
superb unit, and offers plenty of adjustment for its two stages. The user’s
manual provides very clear and concise instructions on how to alter it,
and after 20 minutes or so, I had a very crisp let-off, just how I like it. That
said, I did think the lateral play of the blade was a little on the generous
side on my test sample. Indeed, it was enough to allow the edges of
the blade to ‘rub’ against the side plates, which was noticeable in the
release. It’s a shame, as it rather negated the otherwise very precise feel
of one of the best-engineered triggers on a sporting PCP – as you can
see from the image below, which shows the trigger in full-cock with its
side plates removed.
Not that it was to the detriment of my ability to shoot the rifle accurately,
however – nor spoil my utter enjoyment of shooting this gun. The S410
gets results with relative ease, primarily because it’s so well engineered
throughout and partly because it feels so ‘right’ in your shoulder. It’s not
hard to see why the 400 Series has been such a big hit for so long – and if
Air Arms keeps coming up with innovative new takes on the S400 chassis,
then I can’t see the gun being pensioned off any time soon. The S410F
Carbine in Super-lite guise is proof that no matter how old a design may
be, it’s nigh-on impossible to put a good gun down! ●
Raising and pulling the sturdy bolt
rearwards indexes the next pellet. Note
the new flutes on the ‘F’ model
The S410’s trigger has
evolved into a superb
unit, offering plenty of
adjustment
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