Not a "firearm"...so hope this is the right place.....................

I've shot .22s for close to 55years now...... never shot or owned a bb gun or air rifle........................

Thinking about one for pest control..... up to raccoon size..... to drive them out of the yard.

How loud are they?

Thoughts and suggestions welcome.............................

Air guns are great for pest control. Good variety of ammo for different purposes, from scaring to elimination.

Sound study:

Decibel ranking of airguns - Straight Shooters Precision Airguns

Looked around a bit for a good varmint air gun with a reputation for being quiet. The Benjamin Marauder has that reputation.

My little Dasiy Powerline 880 surprised me. Kinda loud.
I tried killing a ground hog with it. No luck. Just runs away.
Now with squirrel's, using Premier Destroyer pellets deadly out to 30-40 ft.

My Red Rider scares squirrels properly. Some more expensive guns seem to be almost as deadly on small game as a .22.

Did you try pellets?

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Squirrel.jpg (192.7 KB, 130 views)

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Really? U saw it in Wikipedia?

Sure have. The 2400 pack of Dasiy BB's.
Seems like the pellets are a little more accurate for me.

For raccoon sized varmits, I would recommend a .22 cal pellet gun. Look at the Benjamin pump air guns. They are actually pretty loud tho. The quietest thing to use would be a bolt action .22 long rifle capable of shooting shorts. Then use the CCI CB shorts, or CB longs. In my old Targetmaster Model 41, all you hear is the firing pin hitting the brass case. More of a click than a bang.

I bought an air rifle for this purpose on my city lot. Much of the ammo is shaped for speed and I was getting a pretty loud sharp report. I bought blunt nosed ammo to slow it down and the noise report was much improved.

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Dennis
SWCA #2409, SWHF #353

I'm thinking an air rifle might be inhumane on a raccoon. There just isn't enough weight in a 22 pellet to do the job fast enough. For smaller critters it's fine. I shoot squirrels with my .17 RWS and they go down.

For raccoons if you want good medicine get a cheap 22 bolt rifle and some sub sonic ammo (>1100 fps).

This link works for me.

Page not found | Aguila Ammunition

Of course that won't work if you live in town.

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That's just somebody talkin.

CCI quiet segmented are supposed to be quiet (from a rifle) and pretty effective on squirrel sized pests

Like a soft clap. Good idea . . .

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Wisdom comes thru fear . . .

Yes, that is a beautiful rifle. I always wanted one but......

It's around $439 Plus a hand air pump $180 and a cardiac arrest or a air tank (scuba pressure) several hundred

Optics optional

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Still Running Against the Wind

I have a little cheap-o Crosman .177 pump pellet rifle and I've lost count of the number of rats, mice and squirrels. Even took down a full grown possum with a head shot. 8 pumps on the Crossman and you're a shootin' a magnum.

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Real men love cats!

I have a nitrogen gas piston Benjamin in .177 that is pretty quiet. Deadly on pigeons.

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Release the Kraken

If you can find one get a Sheridan Blue Streak. It may have to be used because I don't think they make them any more. They shoot a 5mm pellet and the power depends on how many times you pump it. I find 3 pumps to be good for a quiet, close range (15 yards or so) critter getter. At 8 or 9 pumps it really packs a punch.

Mine is close to 50 years old and still works great. It looks like heck from a lifetime of storage in a barn but it still kills rats, squirrels, bunnies, etc., on a regular basis.

I'm sure it's a great gun, but as Rule3 says, look at the price. I genuinely don't know a soul who'd pony up $400-$600 for the Benjamin and accessories simply to scare coons out of the yard. And note that the OP just wants to scare 'em away...not kill them. Really don't even need penetration...just sting the coons a bunch.

Cheaper seems best in this situation.

Then again, coons have good memories...they might decide they don't like being stung by an air rifle. They might come lookin' for you one night.

I love my Marauders, have one in .22 and in .177.
They are accurate, hard hitting, quiet, and dependable.
When fired the .22 is about as loud as twanging a spring, the impact of the pellet is louder.
One of the best PCP rifles for the money!

My .22...



5 shots at 15 meters...

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Hold my beer and watch this!

"I'm sure it's a great gun, but as Rule3 says, look at the price. I genuinely don't know a soul who'd pony up $400-$600 for the Benjamin and accessories simply to scare coons out of the yard."

I'm with you on this. My little Crosman was $29.95 but that was about 6 years ago. Problably gone up some but I bettcha it's still 40 bucks or less. I love the pump action. You can pump it to the muzzle velocity you need. I've never had it over 8 pumps but that possum didn't take another breath or another step with one head shot.

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Real men love cats!

I respectfully disagree, the .22 regularly takes full sized Jack rabbits out to 50 yards dropping them in their tracks, squirrels at the same distance are through shots.

If anything, and you're just looking to drive them away rather than killing them, the Marauder is too powerful.

If you just want to sting them and scare them off, get a full auto airsoft, I use those on the cats that like to try and prey on the birds in my yard when the dogs are inside.

Now THATS fun!

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Hold my beer and watch this!

Not sure on the noise level but the Sheridan blue streak is good. As a kid, I had a Crossman pump up .22 and a friend had a Sheridan. He pumped it less times then me and hit harder on birds. I was at 10 pumps (max) and he was at 6 pumps (max). The solid 5mm pellets worked great. Not sure how long you can leave it sit pumped up before it starts to leak.

The break barrel guns are good as far as cocking the gun and putting a pellet in the barrel. When needed, close the barrel and shoot. No stored air to weaken seals. Larry

Consider a sling shot and its limitless ammo choices. I keep my 50 year old Wrist Rocket by the door with a few different kinds of ammo.

Quiet, cheep and fun so practicing isn't a problem. I'm pretty good with mine.

I used a cheapo Daisy pump this morning to dispatch a S. American Anole that was on my porch hunting my little lizards. It was to close for the sling shot to work W/O taking chances of a ricochet. I shot him through using my tree as a bb stop.

But, The sling shot gets the job done in more situations.

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Dum vivo cano

As many know I'm in the "Burbs of the Burgh".....so sniping with a .22lr/mag. is out...... but the Raccoons are tearing up my fish pond.. well; pulling out the pump/aerator to fish/go frogging ................. by morning the pumps ( out of the water) are overheating and freezing up..... at $22 a pop.

My preference is to "smoke the little s----'.... but then I'd have to get rid of the bodies......and there is that pesky...... safety concern.

My boys have some airsoft guns.... but they are at the cabin ..... and I've never found them to meet my accuracy standards................


Living near/surrounded by two county and a township park.........and with two nature preserves within 2 miles....... I share "Watchdog's" concern that I'm badly outnumbered........


What I really need is an airsoft claymore....................................

Death grip has a good solution. I cast .40" round lead balls and after a few hundred I found that I was getting scary accuracy, and the power levels are adjustable. The geese that live off of my lawn will ignore me until they see the wrist rocket and then they just panic.

I have a RWS 34 .22. I have killed nutria with it.

RWS Diana RWS 34P Striker Combo. Air rifles - PyramydAir.com

The mil-dot works great for an air rifle because the pellet drops a good bit past 50 yds.

Use code 17-BDAY for 20% off and free shipping until 5/17/17

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Corripe Cervisiam

I bought a Benjamin 392 .22 pump for attic pests. It's plenty accurate at attic ranges. I like being able to control penetration by the number of pumps.

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I've still got it made.

I've had a Daisy 880 forever. My 35+ year old 880 got damaged in our move in 2011. I found this one at Midway in 2014 (see picture). I leave it pumped with a pellet chambered and the safety on 24/7 on the porch for tree rat duty

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Really? U saw it in Wikipedia?

The comments on the Benjamin Marauder that I read about for your search indicated that it was quite capable of taking raccoons.

The caliber is different than most other airguns, which are .177 and .22. It's .25 caliber, which does not seem like a big difference, but its a much bigger and heavier projectile, packing much more energy.

I really doubt you will be able to drive Coons out of the yard no matter how many of them you "sting" with a "BB" or "Pellet".....they will only come back in the middle of the night or whenever you are not there and do what they do. Trust me I've been down that path.

IMO, you have two options......shoot to kill and use the SSS method (Shoot, Shovel & Shut-up) or live trap them and then carry them off far enough they don't come back. I've done both and that seems to be the only thing that works with Coons.

I prefer live trapping because the trap is there all night and most of them will learn to come around in the middle of the night when no one is awake. I use a trap baited with marshmallows.....works well and not messy like sardines or cat food.


Don

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Laus Deo! <><

I am in a similar situation. I used to snipe the woodchucks and garden raiding rabbits off my deck with my old bolt action .22. In the last year I have been incorporated in to the city, yea ha love higher taxes for nothing, so I can no longer use a firearm any more, the law say only air rifles no larger than .177 can be used. I have been web shopping and a friend of mine has also recommend the RWS rifles. I am still shopping so I will be following this thread as well.

Yeah, raccoons are nocturnal. You'll have to sit out there hiding all night. Can you get a dog??

Can't speak to decibel count, but my son bought a Gamo Whisper to start each of his boys shooting. It has left at least two full-grown groundhogs DRT.

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Oh well, what the hell.

My RWS Dana Model 48 shoots a .177 pellet at 1100 fps .. actually has a kick to it .. sounds about half as loud as a 22 being shot .. its a beast .. weighs over 8 pounds .. add a scope and you would be carrying over 9 pounds .. very accurate when sighted in properly with a small scope ..

Buts its more then most 22's .. last time I looked they were $450 and up ...

Haven't tried to shoot a groundhog nor would I with it .. but will take out anything else in a farm setting that would be considered pests .. could be used for small rodents and small game hunting .. It would killa coon with a well placed head shot ..

Its actually fun to shoot and can hardly beat the price of the pellets !! A child couldn't cock mine with the side lever its pretty stout !! Had mine out just last weekend shooting through soda cans ..

That is a very interesting concept....but I need to think about that for a bit....

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Real men love cats!

Not exactly an air rifle, but he gets the job done

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Ditto the Sheridan. Powerful and accurate. It is far superior than .177. 3 pumps will easily kill a pigeon.

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Common sense isn't so common.

I had long term problems with raccoons raiding my bird feeders and used a Gamo Whisper .177 to take out 2 of 3 Raccoons busted late one night at the feeders. Unfortunately my wife was assisting me with the spot light and I had to shoot while loading the single shot and holding the spot light light at the same time after she freaked out after seeing them.

I've taken woodchucks. squirrels & a feral cat out to about 15 yards with my old Sheridan 5mm & 7 pumps. Only problem is the accuracy isn't the greatest but it gets the job done. I also use a Remington 514 with CCI short subsonics for squirrels on my bird feeders in town & after dropping about 40 of the tree terrorists over a few years there hasn"t been any noise complaints

So, what Burb gun did you end up getting????? Larry

[QUOTE=Bozz10mm;139594223]Yeah, raccoons are nocturnal. You'll have to sit out there hiding all night. Can you get a dog??[/QUO]


L, This^^^^^^^^ kind of made me reconsider............... I put a timer on the fountain ( shut off from 10PM-6A) and no more damage......

Besides LOL just learned I got "bigger" problems... just spoke with a neighbor ; who has a log cabin about 100- 150 yds from "our cabin" in the Laurel Highlands........ a bear has been making regular visits to their garbage cans over the past 3 weeks..................... pics to follow .......

So.... .... is this ''air rifle " big enough for bears?????????? NO!!!!!!!!!!

Who knew there was such a thing?

I found my .22 pellet gun to be a hard hitter.

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"He was kinda funny lookin'"