Air guns

samuelrp

Eight Pointer
100's of opinions. I use a .22 caliber RWS Diana 34p for crows in my back yard and sometimes for squirrel in the woods. It's heavy, but a tack driver and has a good scope mounted. These air rifles are a different ball game. Mine's a springer and will eventually shoot loose and require retightening the scope and sighting in.. Mine has barrel droop and requires a specific set of scope rings and a piece of plastic cut from a coke bottle in the ring to facilitate full sighting in. Still, a lot of fun. Edit: the trigger is superb.
 

nccatfisher

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
I have a Benjamin Marauder .25 cal it is one of the more powerful for it's size but heavy. If you want accuracy and aren't going to carry it much it is a nice medium priced unit. It will also hit with a decent wallop. That isn't to say it will do with a .22 LR hollowpoint will do, it won't. But it is real close to a HV short.
 

witler

Eight Pointer
Saw a tv show the other day, guy was using Hammer brand, 50 caliber. Awesome looking gun, he dropped both a deer and a good size bear with it. At least it impressed my simple mind.
 

miketphoto

Eight Pointer
Hantsan makes some amazing guns in .22. My son and I bought.22 rifles when .22lr got too high to shoot. They are accurate at appropriate range and deadly on small game:


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 

darkthirty

Old Mossy Horns
Gotta buddy who has 4-5 that cost more than my skeet guns did. Lol. 17 cal, 22, 25 and he just bought a 357. I think one is a Ed lashley(sp???). He carries around a big scuba tank to refill them. They areTHE most incredibly accurate guns of anykind I have ever shot in my life. He’ll come over and we’ll shoot european starlings out of the back yard. Anything over 50yds, he ranges and dials. I’ve watched him consistently kill starlings at 80, 90 and 100 yards. They're all suppressed too so all you hear is “click” then the pellet impact. Damndest :donk:donk:donk:donk I’ve ever seen.
 

Billy

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
I have a few rifles and pistols and really enjoy them. The first decision is whether you want a springer or PCP. The CO2 cartridges are fine in a pistol, but the PCP stuff can get expensive and complicated. You can spend a lot of money on a springer as well, which is all I have. I have break barrel springers and fixed barrel with a separate cocking handle. I don't like the break barrels and the barrel droop mentioned above is one reason.
 
Last edited:

Mike Noles aka conman

Administrator
Staff member
Contributor
My primary use will be shooting starlings off of my Martin houses and blue bird feeders. Any opinions on the Gamo Fusion Whisper in .177?
 

Eric Revo

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Look at Wing Supply for some really good deals on air guns. The Whisper isn't any quieter than some of the rest and it's darn heavy. But for what you're describing it would work.
I like RWS Diana, I've had really good luck with them.
 

Southern

Ten Pointer
Saddlemountaingusmiths.com
Will Piatt in Ennice, NC
Makes and smiths custom air rifles for hunting and competition.
 

Jett

Ten Pointer
Mike,
I bought my son the Gamo Whisper. It was junk. Loud and not accurate. I replaced it with a Beaman R7. That gun was so much fun and accurate, I bought myself the adult version, the Beaman R9. You can easily put out candles at 30 yards. Very accurate springer rifles. Mine will protect my martin houses also!
 

woodmoose

Administrator
Staff member
Contributor
My primary use will be shooting starlings off of my Martin houses and blue bird feeders. Any opinions on the Gamo Fusion Whisper in .177?

Mike - for what you are wanting to do, expect that would work fine - but I have never used that model

have a older gamo - fair air rifle - springer - used it as a trainer gun in the garage back when I was shooting High Power Sporter competitions on the weekend

have a few RWS - prefer them to the gamo - all springers

when I grow up I'm getting a PCP
 

Billy

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
My personal experience is limited to Air Arms, Beeman, RWS Diana, Crosman, and Gamo. They are listed in my order of preference.
 

Mike Noles aka conman

Administrator
Staff member
Contributor
Thanks, everyone, for the reviews and advise. It's greatly appreciated. Of all that I've read about in a reasonable price range for the use I want, I like what I read about the new Benjamin Mayhem NP .177. Unless y'all have a negative review, that's probably the direction I'm heading.
 

nccatfisher

Old Mossy Horns
Contributor
Mike - for what you are wanting to do, expect that would work fine - but I have never used that model

have a older gamo - fair air rifle - springer - used it as a trainer gun in the garage back when I was shooting High Power Sporter competitions on the weekend

have a few RWS - prefer them to the gamo - all springers

when I grow up I'm getting a PCP
Well if you do and don't get a tank it will keep you in shape. lol
 

PPosey

Twelve Pointer
I have a Beeman R1 springer that I have had since the early 80's. Thing is better made than any centerfire I have, will eat a cheap scope in 5 shots, and has killed hundreds of tree rats.
 

beavercleaver

Twelve Pointer
i bought a rws model 45 back in 1990 still shoots good today ...bought a rws model 48 3 years ago it is again excellent quality but my buddy got the rws 350 magnum and if i had to do it again that would be my pic stay with the 22 caliber so you can get pellets cheap from wally world and shoot lead only light weight alloy pellets are fast but very inacurrate and stay away from 177 cal in fast air rifles the arrowdynamics of a pellet kill accuracy when you pass the speed of sound which i think is around 1200 fps
 

ducknut

Eight Pointer
I use the cci quiets in my bolt .22 for that don't know if it's an option but it makes less noise than my buddy's Gamo springer and much better accuracy
 

beavercleaver

Twelve Pointer
Pellets are under 10 dollars for 500 pellets make great plinking and unless you shoot them on a artellary launch angle only go 200 yards or so because of their 14 grain weight vs 22 rimfire are 30 to 40 grain are dangerous at much greater distance's
 

woodmoose

Administrator
Staff member
Contributor
Pellets are under 10 dollars for 500 pellets make great plinking and unless you shoot them on a artellary launch angle only go 200 yards or so because of their 14 grain weight vs 22 rimfire are 30 to 40 grain are dangerous at much greater distance's


how far does a subsonic CCI quiet go?
 

beavercleaver

Twelve Pointer
a few weeks ago i shot a large opossum at about 40 yards while waddling away..hit him right in the side he laid down thought he was playing dead shot him again same distance didnt move...in the morning he was still there ..must of hit him in heart them suckers are usually pretty tough ...that was a 22 crossman pellet that was probably only had a muzzle velocity of 800 fps from my rws 48 ..buzzards thanked me next day
 

GSOHunter

Twelve Pointer
Contributor
a few weeks ago i shot a large opossum at about 40 yards while waddling away..hit him right in the side he laid down thought he was playing dead shot him again same distance didnt move...in the morning he was still there ..must of hit him in heart them suckers are usually pretty tough ...that was a 22 crossman pellet that was probably only had a muzzle velocity of 800 fps from my rws 48 ..buzzards thanked me next day

They are usually pretty darn tough.
 

Part-time hunter

Ten Pointer
I bought a Remington Black Magic .177 Caliber Pellet Rifle a couple of years ago to shoot in the back yard. It is against an ordinance here to shoot an air rifle inside the city limits so I bought this spring loaded model which advertised as shooting the pellets at 1100 feet per second. I know it's a technicality but I also wanted something that wouldn't drop off significantly after 20 yards or so. It came with a premounted 4x scope and it shoots straight when it is sighted in but it gets off after a lot of shooting. My grandkids and my two grown sons love to shoot it when they're here. I don't remember exactly but it was well under $100
 
Top