Winter..... Air Guns

[tmwinds]

Do you guys shoot .17 or .22 in matches?

Indoors I’ve found on average that the .177’s may be slightly more accurate. Outdoors and longer distances the .22 may have the advantage. With that said, it’s more about selecting the proper pellet and developing your skills than about the caliber.

 

[JEFFPPC]

.17

 

[JEFFPPC]

Heres a real compact 100 shot target. I went ahead and bought the heavier target paper ..20 weight ? Sure shows the holes nice and sharp, the wad cutter really looks good.
And heres a 120 shot target .....

I thinks all those '9s' need a couple clicks up

 

[glide]

All those 9s look pretty darn good to me!

Indoors I’ve found on average that the .177’s may be slightly more accurate. Outdoors and longer distances the .22 may have the advantage. With that said, it’s more about selecting the proper pellet and developing your skills than about the caliber.

Thanks.

 

[danny]

I found rats at a farmer friends compost site, put a night vision scope on my Gamo swarm. Sit in the truck about 30-40 feet away. Head/eye shots, great practice. Rats however don't come out as much when temps drop below 20F.

Rat shooting is like the sport of Kings...

Danny

 

[brokeasajoke]

I'm itching for a quality springer.

 

[Larry Koch]

Dont shoot your eye out.

 

[tmwinds]

I'm itching for a quality springer.

Careful, you could fall in a hole that has no bottom.

 

[brokeasajoke]

Careful, you could fall in a hole that has no bottom.

I have a Browning Leverage and a Gamo plus my Benjamin PCP. Would like a nicer springer.

 

[MDT6BRA]

What air rifle do you guys recommend for backyard plinking?

 

[JEFFPPC]

I started with an Air Arms TX200. Why.....It has won lots of international competition in the Field Target game ......Very good trigger......I wanted a walnut stock......Its very easy to work on as no spring compressor is needed......have read virtually nothing bad about it. A similar rifle although requiring a spring compressor to tear down but otherwise very comparable is the Weirauch 97 for about 100.00 less but no walnut option just beech. Although perhaps not as easy to learn than say a FWB300 or Diana75 ( if you can find either) I believe the accuracy potential is equal. So basically for the price of a Ruger American you can have tons of fun that WILL teach you good manners with no reloading and almost no cleaning. About 3.5 cents a shot with good pellets. I shoot front bag and rear bag like my centerfire bench rifles. If you have read about the artillery hold, just forget that nonsense.

 

[longbow]

Heres one for you. Putting on Air Rifle Matches for four years back in 2014-2018 we had the Springer Match first in morning. I got alot of guys interested by buying FWB 300s rifles and selling them the gun at my cost. then help them totally rebuild the gun and mount the scope using Burris signature rings. First off the scope crosshair is centered. So you have four revolutions to bottom out scope so come back 2 rev's on elevation and horizontal,your crosshair is now centered in scope.With the different ring shims ( -5/+5 -10/+10 _20/+20) we start with the "0" rings and shoot the gun...its shooting 5" high and 3" to the left at 25 yards. By using the shims you walk that barrel up to your bullet hole as close as you can,you can cant the shim to swing it to the left also. If anything shoot a little high. You can always come down to 25 meters but you will have plenty of elevation to go out to 50 yd or 100 if need be.
Well the 300S ruled the matches, no TX200's around. So I took my FWB 124 and built an aluminum front forearm that in a since was free floating ,being anchored at the trigger guard and 2" forward. So I got this break barrel to REALLY shoot good. took it to the next match and beat out the 300S's with a break barrel ! LOL. Well i only shot it that match,the guys are saying you get us into $600.00+ basic guns before scopes then bring this break barrel gun and beat us ! We all have our good days! Heres some pics on what i did. I also tricked out a Beeman R1 with a plate and got excellet results.I added 1/2" round delrin runners milled 1/4" flat then attached to aluminum plate ,taking out any variable on the front bag......

 

[7315br]

What air rifle do you guys recommend for backyard plinking?

Umarex Notos .22 PCP is hard to beat for the money. Super accurate. Quite, and can be re-charged with a hand pump if one doesn't want to spend the money for a compressor or air tank.

 

[450BM]

I love my air rifles! Started 40 years ago with an FWB 124D I still have. I now have an RWS 48 in .177 (which I would happily sell), a Benjamin Marauder in .177 (a pcp that I would also sell) and an FX Impact in .25 that I absolutely would NOT sell! I’m thinking I need to get a .177 barrel kit for it because pellets are so much cheaper than .25 cal. This gun is unbelievably accurate with pellets.

 

[Court178]

Umarex Notos .22 PCP is hard to beat for the money. Super accurate. Quite, and can be re-charged with a hand pump if one doesn't want to spend the money for a compressor or air tank.

Looking at this recommendation I think it fits most of my qualifications. I've been using a cheap chinese springer that I bought over 30 years ago but it's due to be retired.

1. quiet - I have a cabin with a couple of neighbors about 150 yards away.
2. modest price - My wife already thinks I spend too much on guns. I shoot SR-BR and equipment isn't cheap
3. semi accurate - I'm not going to shoot competitively. Just something for pest control. Potguts are starting to be a nuisance.

With this in mind I have a couple of questions since I know nothing about PCP airguns. So ignore my ignorance if it is a stupid question.
1. What would be a good hand pump for this. Modest price but not cheaply made? I'm willing to spend a little extra to get a decent one but don't want to overspend.
2. Is it worth it to skip the handpump route and go straight to the compressor?
3. What is the range of a PCP? Want to be safe for a backstop. Can the air pressure be adjusted down to allow a shorter range?
4. Best place to buy?

I've been thinking about springers but this PCP interests me.

Thanks.

 

[7315br]

Looking at this recommendation I think it fits most of my qualifications. I've been using a cheap chinese springer that I bought over 30 years ago but it's due to be retired.

1. quiet - I have a cabin with a couple of neighbors about 150 yards away.
2. modest price - My wife already thinks I spend too much on guns. I shoot SR-BR and equipment isn't cheap
3. semi accurate - I'm not going to shoot competitively. Just something for pest control. Potguts are starting to be a nuisance.

With this in mind I have a couple of questions since I know nothing about PCP airguns. So ignore my ignorance if it is a stupid question.
1. What would be a good hand pump for this. Modest price but not cheaply made? I'm willing to spend a little extra to get a decent one but don't want to overspend.
2. Is it worth it to skip the handpump route and go straight to the compressor?
3. What is the range of a PCP? Want to be safe for a backstop. Can the air pressure be adjusted down to allow a shorter range?
4. Best place to buy?

I've been thinking about springers but this PCP interests me.

Thanks.

Sending you a PM. 7315br

 

[longbow]

Accuracy for pests...the springers will do the job.
PCP..... I bought the Yong Heng water cooled compressor...ebay. Been at it for 4 years + easy to rebuild. Though I see alot of $200 electric compressors out there. Maybe someone will pipe in on what they use. Plenty of air rifle forums out there to do your homework and find what best suits your needs. Pete

 

[justinp61]

I started with a Diana 48 in .22, later I installed a Vortek spring kit and it was over 21 fp of energy. It was a hammer and also a scope killer, it was later sold, and I couldn't be happier it's gone. After buying the 48 I wanted a .177 so I bought a Diana 34 and installed a Vortek full power kit too. It shoots good, most of the time. From those two I dove off into the rabbit hole with three FWB 300S's and a FWB 601 single stroke pneumatic. These rifles were bought to shoot 10M indoor matches throughout the winter, nothing larger than a .177 is allowed.

The 601 is literally dead on the shot, the gun doesn't move, and the sight picture doesn't change during or after the shot. It's so accurate it's almost boring to shoot. I love my 300's, although I sold one to a guy I used to shoot with. I kept two, one for offhand and one for bench. We didn't shoot scopes, only aperture sights.

A few years ago, I bought a LH TX200, they only (LH) come in walnut and there is a penalty you have to pay for being a left-handed shooter. I installed a Vortek PG 4 kit in it, around 16ft pounds of energy with an 8.44 gr pellet. It's a certified sparrow killer when they decide to take up residence in my bluebird boxes. It is very accurate, no matter how long it sits the first shot goes where it's looking, important stuff when hunting dangerous animals like sparrows. As Jeff mentioned it will point out your bad manners on a bench.

 

[450BM]

Looking at this recommendation I think it fits most of my qualifications. I've been using a cheap chinese springer that I bought over 30 years ago but it's due to be retired.

1. quiet - I have a cabin with a couple of neighbors about 150 yards away.
2. modest price - My wife already thinks I spend too much on guns. I shoot SR-BR and equipment isn't cheap
3. semi accurate - I'm not going to shoot competitively. Just something for pest control. Potguts are starting to be a nuisance.

With this in mind I have a couple of questions since I know nothing about PCP airguns. So ignore my ignorance if it is a stupid question.
1. What would be a good hand pump for this. Modest price but not cheaply made? I'm willing to spend a little extra to get a decent one but don't want to overspend.
2. Is it worth it to skip the handpump route and go straight to the compressor?
3. What is the range of a PCP? Want to be safe for a backstop. Can the air pressure be adjusted down to allow a shorter range?
4. Best place to buy?

I've been thinking about springers but this PCP interests me.

Thanks.

1. I have a hand pump that came in the package deal with my Benjamin Marauder from Pyramyd Air
2. I think it is. The Marauder has fairly small air tank and it was a workout to pump it up. I bought a GX off Amazon when I got my FX.
3. Depends on caliber…. I routinely shoot pigeons with my .25 caliber Impact out to 100 yards. One windless day, I shot a sub 1/2” group at 94 yards in my backyard, normally it’s about an inch at 100 yards when there’s any wind. I shoot out of my shop in the winter out to 84 yards. At 30 yards, it puts every shot in one small ragged hole, usually .2 or less. My .177 is accurate to 25 yards and will shoot 1/4” in zero wind but when the wind starts forget it. I’ve killed rabbits out to 60 yards with it but I’m convinced that rabbits drop dead if they hear a projectile going past them…. lol!
My FX Impact in infinitely adjustable, my Marauder is not adjustable at all.
4. I like Pyramyd Air, good selection, good prices and knowledgable people.

 

[danny]

I'm itching for a quality springer.

Me too.

Danny