dgeesaman
Gold $$ Contributor
I enjoy precision air rifles, rimfire rifles, and centerfire rifles. They all have their place. Build quality of some airguns is outstanding.
Airguns are a whole thing. PCP (compressed air) is the pinnacle of power and accuracy.
They require a regular source of air, usually over 4000psi. I have a large 4500psi tank and HP compressor now, though for some years I just had the tank and I’d take it to a scuba shop for fills. Make some calls - if there's a scuba shop close by that can fill to 4500, your cost of entry to PCP comes down to just a rifle and a tank. Pcps have minimal recoil (for their power) and can be tuned similar to developing a load. The cocking lever of a PCP is not strong, so it sure is nice to be in your shooting position and rattle off 20 rounds without breaking position. The other airgun types can't do that. If you're thinking PCP, keep in mind the fill size of the tank on the gun and the air usage. I have a .30 cal that gets maybe 30 shots before it needs a (big) refill to 4000psi and I have a .177 that gets over 100 shots from a 3300psi fill.
The home compressor world is immature IMHO. There are many compressors for several hundred that work, but the life and out-of-the-box reliability is questionable. Even at 2-3k, reliability is not a given. At $4-5k you'll get something truly reliable and good resale, but that's a lot of money.
Hand pumping PCPs generally sucks unless you want a break from your over-used gym membership. Even then you should enjoy rebuilding pumps.
Spring piston guns give good power and moderate accuracy without any air source and are popular for field hunting. But they are also moser traditional and most airgun competitions have a spring powered category. Take care: most scopes will fair quickly on a springer so if you go that route, do research before buying the mount and scope for it. You said you want accuracy and reliability so skip any springer under, say, $500. HW97s and TX200s are outstanding springers in the medium-high power range and HW50, HW30, HW95(Beeman R9) are very good. Springers are hold sensitive on some level - you can't just slap it on a front rest and get awesome groups. They jump both backward and forward before the pellet leaves the barrel. Best way I can describe it, when you find the right hold, your crosshairs stay on target throughout the shot cycle.
Time to trash big-box store airguns. Gamo, Crosman, Hatsan, "Ruger", etc sell cheap springers. Some aren't so cheap - dressed up with moderators and scopes and fancy plastic doodads. A $300 big-box springer isn't worth half of a $600 springer. They claim uselessly fast velocities (based on shooting ultra-light pellets while burning off remnant factory lubes) and their bundled scopes are unreliable. Based on what you said, avoid them entirely.
If you'll primarily be shooting it indoors, consider an old match airgun. I had an FWB 300s that was lovely to shoot indoors, when I had a place to do it. Match airguns are convenient because they used to be spring piston or single-stroke pneumatic, so you get wicked accuracy with no air cylinder required. But take them outside and the wind starts playing with them.
Common calibers are .177, .22, .25, and .30. .20, .357 and .50 can be found too but have fewer options. I don't think .177 is more accurate than .22, but for pure accuracy without wind effects, .177 will go faster (at a happy speed) with less power. As a guideline, the heavier pellets in each caliber are for PCPs and the lighter pellets are for springers. You can get good pellets at a retail store (Crosman Premier) but I mostly buy JSBs, H&N, or FX from an airgun supply store.
One environment where .22 and .177 are competing directly against each other is Field Target. But .177 has an inherent advantage there because the target is a cutout hole and .22's catch the edge of the faceplate more often. If it weren't for that I'd say it's a toss-up.
You do need to make a choice on caliber and power, and there are no free lunches. In recent years the choice got harder because there are so many options at all ends of the spectrum. Big calibers require more power, or else you must manage a loopy trajectory. But those big pellets traveling slower have better BC / wind drift than light pellets going fast. .177 is great for plinking and the flattest trajectory, but if I had to choose between a 900fps .177 pellet and a 900fps .22 pellet, the .22 wins everywhere except the 10m Olympic target case.
There are all kinds of pellets. Every airgun barrel has a preference for a particular pellet or two. Wadcutters work well out to 20y and diabolo work best the rest of the way out. There are many variations but at least test a few basic diabolo pellets with each airgun and you'll probably have the most accurate one of all of them. That said, specialty pellet designs (for example, pointed) have their place but pure accuracy isn't it.
Gotta mention slugs. Slugs have better BC but they require more velocity to be their best and they are very finicky to the barrel. They require a high power PCP, the slugs cost more, and they ricochet like a .22LR. They are great for hunting. I have a couple of air rifles that have the oomph to shoot slugs and so far the best slug is 1/2 as accurate as the best pellet, when wind is not factored in. I suggest starting with pellets unless long range accuracy is your one and only goal.
As far as rimfire vs. airguns go, rimfire generally wins. The most accurate and powerful airguns can only match rimfire, and they aren't cheap. But top quality rimfire is very expensive (if you can get it in 2023) and airguns keep the cost per shot down.
One thing to keep in mind: if you're familiar with long range centerfire - managing the wind particularly - then airguns will make you really good. The loopy trajectory and wind drift of an airgun at 50y is similar to a centerfire at 600, and 100y with an airgun resembles 1000y with centerfire. If you embrace that challenge, airguns will be a lot of fun. If you get frustrated because they don't buck wind like a centerfire, then keep it indoors.
Last edited:
Some people can be such killjoys. Little do they realize that I'm feeding the trees.
