Yesterday's Weapons Forums

There are a lot of choices out there, and the decision making process can be a bit daunitng.

A few suggestions may help with the brainwork a bit.

If you've never done the airgun thing before, start out cheap and simple.
Look for something in the low to mid velocity range~ 400-700 fps base is a good place to start.

Power plant?

The most simple of all is the break barrel spring rifle (and pistol).
All that is required for them is a supply of pellets, and maybe the occasional dab of lube on the piston.
Most of these come with reasonable instructions.
The cheapest base models come with usually poor triggers, which can be user remedied.
On-line tutorials abound in this respect.
I would look for a properly fit stock, (this means wood/carbon fiber to metal fit) to begin with, and then a solid barrel latch lock-up.
Most makers have over-come this hurdle now, so there should not be many problem guns on the market today.
I would avoid a high velocity springer for a first rifle.
The jarring dual recoil of these guns rattles the fillings, and takes a bit of getting used to.
I would go as high as 650 fps with a lead .177 pellet for a beginners gun. They are a bit easier on the user.
Scoping these can be a bit problematic- a springer rated scope is a neccessity.

Pumpers or pneumatics:

Again, both in rifle in pistol form.
The Crosman pumper series pistols are a very good place to start.
Power is usually not that high- about the 475 fps mark in .22, and about 590ish in .177.
These guns are easily maintained, with the occasional drop of light oil on the pump linkage and piston cup.
Accuracy is quite respectable, especially when the sights are improved.
There are a few pumper rifles on the market that are a good value.
The 362 Crosman thread on this page is a fair example.

Pre-Charged Pneumatics, more commonly referred to as PCP's:

I would avoid these high power, high pressure variants for a starter's gun.
The cash outlay, and high power need to be worked up to in my opinion.
It would be better to learn about projectile behavior with a moderate cost system that is easy for the neophyte to figure out and work on.

CO-2.

These can be a lot of fun!
Best for plinking and target shooting.
A supply of CO-2 caplets is required, as is a small lube bottle for getting the oil drop on the gas cartridge's nose, as is a supply of pellets.
Most are pistols, ranging from very cheap plastic to high end competition guns.
There are a few CO-2 rifles on the market as well.

Personally, I'm not much of a CO-2 shooter.
These guns require a base temperature of at least 68 F to perform reliably.
I do have a lot of fun with CO-2 plinking when it's warm enough out doors.
I would hesitate to hunt with CO-2, just based on the temperature sensitivity....

Will continue to add to this as I can...

Regards,

Doc Sharptail

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"Ain't no Half-Way" -S.R.V.

"Oh Yeah!.....All Right!" -Paul Simon

I'll agree with that. After watching ratting vids where shooters used big money PCP rifles, I was all set to get a bottom end one. I hadn't considered recharging the air reservoir which involves mucho perspiration using a bicycle tire style pump.

Now if there was a fitting so you could add air from a regular tank, that might be a different story.

So I'll install the steel breech on my pumper, add a scope and get a decent bend in my learning curve. SW

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Slava Ukraini!!

There are compressors and tanks available for just what Hogger is discussing.
This is a route of convenience, and there is more than a bit of fiscal (ahem) outlay.

For safety's sake, bottles and tanks should be hydro tested.
Most new tanks are tested before leaving the factory.
Be aware that the same bottles and tanks do have expiry dates, usually about 5-7 years.
Some tanks like dive tanks, and fire-fighters air bottles can be re-hydroed after expiry.
Most of these systems are in the 200-300 bar range.
These high air pressures act much like steam- the safety idea is paramount.

Regards,

Doc Sharptail

_________________
"Ain't no Half-Way" -S.R.V.

"Oh Yeah!.....All Right!" -Paul Simon

And just for fun, I found the ne plus ultra of air guns. SW

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Slava Ukraini!!

Most shots were 10-Pin balls.

I counted two pumpkin shots on the old E-50 Econoline.

Still impressive- despite the horrendous drop.
I'd estimate a velocity around 900-1050 fps.
I can't hear these vids, and there's no c/c on this one.

Looks like the breech is gonna need a new seal- blow off in that location gets progressively worse with each successive shot.

Regards,

Doc Sharptail

_________________
"Ain't no Half-Way" -S.R.V.

"Oh Yeah!.....All Right!" -Paul Simon

Pellets:



Czech pellets made by JSB in 16 gr.
Branded Air Arms.
JSB does use their own marketing and labelling too.
Seems to be a shortage of them around here recently.
I have shot this configuration before, and they are quite accurate.



There's what a skirted dome looks like under the 55mm f3.5 Micro-Nikkor P.C.
Pardon the short depth of field.
Shot wide open at f3.5.

The 18 gr. version of this with the JSB labelling is one of the best pellets I've shot.
The 16 gr. pellets shown are a matter of convenience as the current hunting .22 air rifle is sighted in for the 16 gr. Predator.
Both seem to shoot to almost the same p.o.i. at 15-20 yards.

I need to do a bit more looking around to re-stock on pellets.
About time to hit a show I think.

I've found that pellet selection is a bit on the important side.
Just like shooting .22 L/R, air guns do seem to have their preferences.
This is where taking shooting time pays off- learning what your particular barrel favors will go a long ways towards over-all enjoyment of your gun.
The issue is even a bit more critical to hunters, when the best shot placement possible is a real concern.

Will add more to this as I can...

Regards,

Doc Sharptail

_________________
"Ain't no Half-Way" -S.R.V.

"Oh Yeah!.....All Right!" -Paul Simon

Don't forget - they're good for fishing, too! SW

pic1a.jpg [ 95.45 KiB | Viewed 8281 times ]

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Slava Ukraini!!

Must be fishing for Asian Carp~ the same fish that were attacking boaters on the river in Chicago a few years back.

Looks like a Benjamin Maraudwer PCP air rifle. I'm hoping it's .25, and not .177 for those mean spirited fish

Haven't a clue on the scope- been a while since I seen an a/o scope that small.

Regards,

Doc Sharptail

_________________
"Ain't no Half-Way" -S.R.V.

"Oh Yeah!.....All Right!" -Paul Simon

I figured the guy was after frogs or turts. SW

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Slava Ukraini!!

And then there are "purpose" air guns like this one:



Umarex "Ace In The Hole" s/a revolver.

It's on C/O-2.
It's 2-1/2" soda straw bbl inside the 3" outer bbl generates low velocity.
It was in the mid 320's last time I chronied it.
The 7.9 gr wad cutter at 7 paces, imbedded in the industrial grade 10 lb folgers coffee thermo plastic-container gives good evidence of the low power.
Strictly a plinker, or target shooter, this one.
It's still a lot of fun, and operation is a dead ringer for the Ruger single six.
Cardboard backed paper targets is where this little revolver shines.
It will fully penetrate the sides of a soda can at 7 paces, which is also a heck of a hoot.
I switched out the grips on this one.
The "Ace of Spades" grips it wore from the factory were awfully slick and slippery.

Compared to:



A 7.9 gr Gamo "Redfire" predator pellet clone at 820 fps at 20 yards from a favorite 24" bbl. 177 pumper. It did serious damage to the brass on this expired 12 gauge hull, as well as launching it a good 30 feet in the air.
Kneeling at 20 yards with ali-express side focus scope set at 6X.
This set-up harvests grouse with a single shot at reasonable air gun ranges- well this side of 25 yards.

One things for sure- I'm never bored with doing these things...
And grouse opener's on the 8th, in case anyone was wondering

Regards,

Doc Sharptail

_________________
"Ain't no Half-Way" -S.R.V.

"Oh Yeah!.....All Right!" -Paul Simon

i like that one - it would fit well with my cowboy guns - cant have too many of those - in spite of what my wife keeps saying ,

SiL was ogling my Crosman 1322 so guess what he'll have under the tree Christmas! I'll score a small tin o' pellets later.

I'll let him get his own shoulder stock, steel breech and scope, though. SW

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Slava Ukraini!!

It would be nice if Snowpeak/Artemis/Diana would come out with a pumper pistol.
Their factory brass flat top rifle pistons are the cat's meow.

A 13-22 would be a great X-mas gift.

Regards,

Doc Sharptail

_________________
"Ain't no Half-Way" -S.R.V.

"Oh Yeah!.....All Right!" -Paul Simon

my high school buddy used to work in Downtown RVA at a bakery,

downtown as in one of the oldest parts of the city, and near the river,

so he would take his Crosman 1377 pump pistol out at daybreak, and rat hut,

he said they were like cats, and everywhere,
one shot to the head or chest usually took them out, if not, he figured they would go underground and die,
no pity for a bit rat,
4--5 easy every morning till they figured out where he was, and when the sun got to high,

10 pumps, irons, and short distances, (inside 25 yrds)
and he would stay out of sight of humans, that area was a bit liberal, so guy with a handgun drew attention

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What's so funny about Peace Love and Understanding?

There are some neat YT vids of guys killing hundreds of rats using high end kit. Like air tank rifles with thermal scopes and expensive tripods. SW

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Slava Ukraini!!

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What's so funny about Peace Love and Understanding?