Pellet Gun for Survival, any suggestion?

JOERM · Mar 6, 2011

I have a few low power pellet guns, .177 cal in a pistol and a pump but none will kill much of anything. I would like to get a high powered one but there are so many models, types to choose from. I have my rim & center fire survival guns ready for this but I want something quite to kill small game, (never know when one must hit the hills to get away from civil unrest, for what ever reason. Or just knock a critter off during the day while the neighbors are home.)

My guess is that I'd like to have an air gun that would pop the head of a grouse at 30 or 40 feet, if it did that then it would pop squirrels, robins even a small wild rabbit, maybe. Single shot single pump, no CO2, and I guess a 2X scope? What's the next size up from .177? Of course reliability in adverse weather conditions is a must. Some of the real expensive air guns have velocity around 800 fps or more I think. I'd also like to have one somewhat compact, seen some that are huge and heavy. Price range at this point is not a factor, not that I have the money, just want to see the options.

Any suggestions? Or maybe this has already been asked, if so, where is the link?

Thanks in advance. Joe

Chromedhearts · Mar 6, 2011

I know there are pricier .22 even .38 and .45 air rifles but I have killed a pile of squirrels and rabbits with a Crossman .177 pump. You do have to pump it a few times to get killing velocity, but with patience and well aimed shots it will do the trick.

Badkarma 1 · Mar 6, 2011

Hey Joe, I can heartily recommend a Benjamin 342 pump rifle!! It a pneumatic (ya gotta pump it) and is .22 caliber. Both my Grandpa and Dad had/have one and there deadly out to at least 50ft!
My Dad sent his in a few years ago to be bebuilt with new rings and seals and I got to try it out on a piece of eigthth inch steel, made one helluva dent!! Dale

Iggy · Mar 6, 2011

I have a Beeman R-10. It is absolutely the most accurate thing I own. It is a break barrel model.

It reputedly sends a 177 at near a 1000fps. It is sudden death on small critters out to about 50 yards if you hit them in the head.

-db- · Mar 6, 2011

I had a Daisy 880 pump rifle as a kid. I remember it was advertised at 680 fps for a .177 lead pellet back then. I took squirrels with it.

I was looking at airguns in the Midway catalog just last night and saw they still make the 880 and nowadays it's got fancy fiber optic sights, comes with a scope and shoots at 700+ fps. For a basic rifle, it's probably not a bad deal at around $50.

walnutred · Mar 6, 2011

I have two that I'd recommend, both pretty traditional. One is the old Sheridan Blue Streak, mine is 20 caliber. The other one I really like is one of the Chinese training rifles that was imported a few years ago. Mine was $19 in '93 and the kids and I have shot the heck out of it with no trouble.

seagill · Mar 6, 2011

Have you considered a compound bow? You can hunt anything from squirrels to elk.

daparrothead · Mar 6, 2011

Check out the Gammo varmit hunter, they are awesome! One pump and ready to go, I've taken down many possum & coons with mine. Comes with a laser & led light mounted on the top of the scope, these are awesome for the price. If you use the Gammo pellets they shoot 1250fps.

mod29 · Mar 6, 2011

Beeman R-1 in 5mm (.20 cal).
High quality, high power, very accurate.
Pricy but worth it.

Beeman R1 and R1-AW

The 5mm shoots flatter than a .22 cal, and has a bit more weight than a .177. Perfect for high-power air rifles like the R-1.

-Jim

Wyo · Mar 6, 2011

I have one of the old Benjamin pump guns, .22 caliber, that I have taken many, many cottontail rabbits and squirrels with. Never tried it on a grouse but I expect it would work on them too with a head shot. Those old Benjamins last just about forever with almost no maintenance and are more than adequate for small game. The only downside I can think of is that my wife has trouble getting more than 4 or 5 pumps on it, but even that is enough for squirrels and cottontails out to 50 feet or more.

JOERM · Mar 6, 2011

seagill said:
Have you considered a compound bow? You can hunt anything from squirrels to elk.

Yes I have and plan to research that as well. They used to be illegal here in WA. Have no clue as to what to get and what they cost. I don't want a lot of bells and whisles that that can be added, just a plain jane model. I can shoot a re-curve pretty good.

Joe

JOERM · Mar 6, 2011

Iggy said:
I have a Beeman R-10. It is absolutely the most accurate thing I own. It is a break barrel model.

It reputedly sends a 177 at near a 1000fps. It is sudden death on small critters out to about 50 yards if you hit them in the head.

50 yards? You must have a scope on that puppy. 50 yards?

Dang man. Had no idea a pellet gun could have that kind of range.

Joe

JOERM · Mar 6, 2011

daparrothead said:
Check out the Gammo varmit hunter, they are awesome! One pump and ready to go, I've taken down many possum & coons with mine. Comes with a laser & led light mounted on the top of the scope, these are awesome for the price. If you use the Gammo pellets they shoot 1250fps.

1250 fps is unreal for sure. What cal is it? I'll log on to their website now and check it out. Had no idea that some air could push a pellet out the muzzle at that vel!

Thanks for all the input, more then enough for me to get started. I really want to get one within a few weeks.

Joe

Iggy · Mar 6, 2011

JOERM said:
50 yards? You must have a scope on that puppy. 50 yards? Dang man. Had no idea a pellet gun could have that kind of range.

Joe

Yup, got a bodacious variable scope on it.

Just a hint, air rifles will destroy a regular rifle scope in short order. If you go for a scope, make sure it is for air rifles.

JOERM · Mar 6, 2011

Iggy said:
Yup, got a bodacious variable scope on it.

Just a hint, air rifles will destroy a regular rifle scope in short order. If you go for a scope, make sure it is for air rifles.

I don't get it. I'd understand if it were the other way around but a reg rifle scope on an air gun? Is it the lube or something coming out the muzzle?

Downlow411 · Mar 6, 2011

Sound level?

are any of these quite, most I have shot are as loud as a 22 rimfire.

m1gunner · Mar 7, 2011

If you want quiet, use Super Colobri ammo out of a 22 rifle. From my 10/22, the impact of the pellet makes more noise than when fired.

A red dot sighted in for these in a 10/22 is deadly on squirrels in the tree tops.

Alpo · Mar 7, 2011

Joerm, my understanding about scopes is because of the recoil. Rifles recoil back, but because of their springs, air guns actually recoil forward. This, supposedly, will beat a regular rifle scope to death, quite quickly.

I bought a Ruger Blackhawk. .177, 1000 fps. Figgered I could play with it in the back yard. Keep my eye sharp and thin the squirrels in my pecan trees. I fired it exactly twice. It's louder than my 22s. I was afraid the neighbors would call the cops.

Now I plink in the backyard with Super Colibris. They are quiet, but the one squirrel I shot with 'em took five of 'em to put him down. About 25 feet.

bigshot500 · Mar 7, 2011

my .02 My RWS 52 in 22 is an amazing adult air rifle. For starters it weights almost eight pounds! no plastic here, solid wood tock, nice finish and quality bluing on the barrel. Much like any rifle you will have to try several different brands of pellets to find the one your rifle likes. Mine settled on a crossman premier 14.3 grain domed pellet. With these accuracy is fantastic! I have dropped birds out to 85 yards sitting on limbs. If you do your part it will drop game out to 100 yards (smaller critters- squirrels etc) with properly placed shots. Due to the pellets light weight compared to a standard 40 grain 22lr bullet, wind does play quite a bit of havoc.

The RWS makes for enjoyable days when one does not feel driving to a range as plinking in your backard is a nice way to pass time.

Smith357 · Mar 7, 2011

The next size up from .177 is 5mm/.20 then up to .22.

If you are looking for a powerful easy to handle lightweight carbine the The Benjamin pump guns have that covered in spades. Over the years I've had many an air rifle from nice magnum springers to cheap wally world Co2 rifles. The one that I still have and cherish after 20 years is my Benjamin Sheridan Silver Streak 5mm. It a good solid American made rifle that is light, accurate enough, and powerful enough to put small critters in the stew pot. With 8 pumps it send a 14.3 grain pellet clean though a 1/2 pine board. I can regulate the power with fewer pumps for dispatching yard varmints in the city or down to just two pumps for punching holes in paper. It's much lighter than a magnum springer and has every bit as much power because it uses very heavy pellets. Don't be fooled buy raw velocity numbers, many of those super fast velocity numbers on the box come from running super light pellets to jack up the numbers for marketing, but magnum springers actually work better with heavy pellets but then heavy pellets numbers don't look so good to the marketing dept.

Pellet Gun for Survival, any suggestion?

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