300 bar compressor for a PCP air rifle
Updated: 21.10.2026
The pump on the bench says 300 bar, and it is easy to read that as the pressure your PCP should hold. It is not. A 300 bar compressor for a PCP air rifle is a way to put air in, up to a ceiling the pump claims, while the rifle manual states a lower fill. For a lot of current PCP rifles that figure sits around 180–232 bar. This page stays with the rifle: the fill number, the certificate, and the gauge you trust. Prices are on the [300 bar compressor comparison](/hub/compressors/300-bar-compressor).
The pump on the bench says 300 bar, and it is easy to read that as the pressure your PCP should hold. It is not.
The pump on the bench says 300 bar, and it is easy to read that as the pressure your PCP should hold. It is not. A 300 bar compressor for a PCP air rifle is a way to put air in, up to a ceiling the pump claims, while the rifle manual states a lower fill. For a lot of current PCP rifles that figure sits around 180–232 bar. This page stays with the rifle: the fill number, the certificate, and the gauge you trust. Prices are on the 300 bar compressor comparison.
Our top picks
| Badge | Product | Mains voltage | Fill note | Fitting | Note | Price | Offer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall |  SDKEHUI SDKEHUI 350 W 12 V and 230 V PCP compressor | 230 V in the table | One review near 3,000 psi | 8 mm quick connector | 6.1 | about £220.15 | View offer |
| Preis-Tipp |  TUXING TUXING TXES061 4500 psi PCP air compressor | 110 V in the table | No auto-stop in reviews | S410 needed an adaptor | 7.1 | about £152.99 | View offer |
 TUXING TUXING TXES062 vertical wire-spool PCP compressor | 220 V in the table | Needle on the gauge | Cable spool on the listing | 8.2 | about £169 | View offer |
On this page
The pump maximum is not the rifle fill
300 bar is 30 MPa, about 4,350 psi. A title that says 4,500 psi is about 310 bar. BSA’s R12 instructions state a maximum of 232 bar, tell you to use the gauge on the filling kit, and say never to use oxygen. Gamo’s PCP manual also states 232 bar and tells you not to exceed it. Those two manuals are examples, not a universal rifle. Your gun may be lower. Read the page that came with it before you set a needle on the compressor.
Owners often stop nearer 180–200 bar because that is where the shot string they want begins, not because the pump has run out. One UK review in this comparison said a pump reached about 3,000 psi, roughly 207 bar, rather than the 4,500 psi on the title. That can still be enough for a rifle whose manual stops at 232 bar, and it is a poor result if you bought the pump to fill a 300 bar bottle. The compressor does not raise the number printed in the manual. If you are unsure of the fitting, an 8 mm coupler on several of these listings still needed an adaptor for an Air Arms S410 in a UK review of the £152.99 TUXING.
More pressure is not more power
ShootingUK’s charging guide points out that an unregulated PCP can lose power when it is overfilled, then come back as the pressure falls. Chasing 300 bar on a rifle built for a lower fill does not give you a harder hit. It gives you a rifle that may shoot softly until it bleeds down into the range the maker designed, and it stresses seals and the filling kit. Regulated rifles are different again: the regulator, not the extra bar in the cylinder, sets the pressure at the valve. Either way, consistency comes from repeating the fill the manual describes.
We are not describing a method to change muzzle energy. If the rifle is already over the legal limit for an unlicensed air rifle, more air is not the problem to solve and less air is not a repair. Chronograph the rifle as it is, at the fill the manual states, if you need to know what it does. Do that at a club or with someone who already measures air rifles. The compressor has no setting that makes an over-limit rifle into a sub-12 ft-lb rifle.
The compressor and the certificate
In England and Wales, the Firearms (Dangerous Air Weapons) Rules 1969 set the line at more than 12 ft-lb for an air rifle and more than 6 ft-lb for an air pistol. A rifle over 12 ft-lb needs a firearm certificate. An air pistol over 6 ft-lb is prohibited. The Home Office firearms licensing guide, in the September 2026 edition, is the public statement of that licensing position. The compressor does not need a certificate of its own. Owning a pump does not license the rifle, and filling a rifle does not change which side of 12 ft-lb it sits on.
Scotland is different for lower-powered air weapons. An air weapon above 1 joule generally needs an air weapon certificate, unless another certificate already covers it. A rifle over 12 ft-lb still needs a firearm certificate. The Scottish Government’s air weapon guide sets that out. Northern Ireland has its own firearms rules and is not the same as England by default. If you shoot in more than one country of the UK, check the rifle against the law where you possess it. The pump travels as a tool. The rifle is what the certificate is about.
Bottles, gauges and fittings
Use the gauge on the charging kit, and treat the rifle’s own gauge as a second opinion. Drapers, writing for UK airgun owners, makes the same point about 300 bar cylinders: do not trust only the gauge on the gun. If the two gauges disagree, stop at the lower figure that is still inside the manual. A buddy bottle is convenient when the rifle is empty at the range and you do not want to run the compressor there. The bottle still needs a current test stamp before a shop will refill it. Talarms, a UK cylinder service, notes that a surface valve and a scuba valve are not always on the same interval. If the stamp is out of date, or the bottle is dented, do not fill it from this pump either.
The fitting is the other trap. Several listings include an 8 mm quick connector. Your rifle may want a probe, a Foster coupling, or a different thread. Buy the adaptor the rifle manual names, and leak-check it at low pressure before you chase 200 bar. Paintball fittings are a different bottle and stay off this page. When the adaptor is right, the bleed before you disconnect is the step on the how to use page. What to buy is in the buying guide. Products Compared compared amazon.co.uk listings and public UK sources on 19 October 2026. We did not chronograph a rifle and we did not fill one in a lab. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Common questions
Should I fill my PCP rifle to 300 bar?
Only if that rifle’s manual states 300 bar. The pumps in this comparison claim 300 bar or about 4,500 psi as their own ceiling. BSA’s R12 and Gamo’s PCP manual both state 232 bar. Many shooters fill lower still. Putting the pump’s maximum into the rifle is how seals, fills and shot strings go wrong. Set the compressor to the manual, then stop. If your manual is missing, get it from the maker before you fill, rather than copying a number from the pump title.
Do I need a firearm certificate for the compressor?
No. The certificate question is about the rifle or pistol, not the pump. In England and Wales a rifle over 12 ft-lb needs a firearm certificate, and a pistol over 6 ft-lb is prohibited. In Scotland, air weapons above 1 joule generally need an air weapon certificate, and rifles over 12 ft-lb still need a firearm certificate. Buying a compressor on amazon.co.uk does not grant either document. It also does not remove the need for one if the gun you already own is over the line.
What changes in Scotland?
Scotland licenses air weapons above 1 joule on an air weapon certificate, with exceptions where another certificate already applies. That is a lower threshold than the unlicensed air rifle allowed in England and Wales up to 12 ft-lb. Over 12 ft-lb, a rifle still needs a firearm certificate in Scotland as well. The compressor is unchanged. If you live in Scotland and your rifle is a typical sub-12 ft-lb PCP, read the Scottish Government guide before you assume the English rule covers the gun.
Why not trust only the gauge on the rifle?
The charging gauge on the fill line is the one the manuals tell you to use, because the rifle gauge can disagree. UK reviews of pumps in this set mention the same mismatch. If the rifle gauge reads lower than the hose gauge, believe the hose and stop. If it reads higher, stop when the hose reaches the manual’s maximum anyway. One wrong gauge is how a 232 bar rifle gets a 300 bar fill. A second gauge costs less than a new cylinder seal.
Will more pressure give more power?
Not in the way the question hopes. On an unregulated PCP, ShootingUK notes that an overfill can reduce power until pressure drops back. On a regulated PCP, the regulator sets the pressure the valve sees. Extra bar above the manual is stress, not a free power upgrade. Nothing in the compressor manual is a way to take a rifle over, or back under, 12 ft-lb. If you need the muzzle energy checked, use a chronograph at the fill the maker states.
Can the same pump fill a buddy bottle?
Yes, if the bottle is small enough for these pumps, in test, and you stop at the bottle’s rating rather than at 300 bar because the pump can. Sellers of the amazon.co.uk units often talk about 0.5–1 litre. A large cylinder from empty is outside that job and overheats a 350 W fan unit. The bottle needs a current test stamp before a shop refill later. The pump does not stamp the bottle, and it does not make the air breathable.
What fitting do I need?
Start with the rifle manual, not with the 8 mm coupler in the pump box. A UK review of the £152.99 TUXING needed an adaptor and thread tape for an S410. Other rifles use a probe or a Foster-style fitting. Buy that adaptor, seat it fully, and bleed the hose after every fill. If the coupler only half-locks, stop. Paintball and scuba fittings are a different system. The how-to page covers the bleed once the fitting is the right one.
Related pages
Sources
Public UK sources listed below. amazon.co.uk listings for these eight ASINs were captured in October 2026.
- Pressure Systems Safety Regulations 2000, Schedule 1 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- HSE INDG178: written schemes of examination (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- Plugs and Sockets (Safety) Regulations 1994 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- OPSS product recall: Vevor PCP air compressor 2208-0358 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- Firearms (Dangerous Air Weapons) Rules 1969 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- Home Office firearms licensing guide, September 2026 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- HSE DVIS 9: breathing air and BS EN 12021 (retrieved 19 October 2026)
- BSA R12 PCP rifle instructions (retrieved 19 October 2026)