High powered/PCP air rifles?

[Andy Griffith]

With all this craziness going on with the price of ammunition, I just don't enjoy shooting the way I did...I hear "$$$$" every time I pull the trigger- most of the time I shoot .22's and blackpowder anyway, and I reload all my centerfire stuff, so I'm a penny pincher in training. (I am not like the trap shooters that go out and try to find any wads that still look good off the range though. Talk about tight "wads!" )

Anyway, last year I got a single shot PCP Benjamin air rifle in .22 and I like it. I wanted something that hit a bit harder, and lo and behold, the pawn shop here had someone trade in a Benjamin Maurader in .25! How in the world one of those came into the shop, much less used is like winning a lottery. I felt like it considering what I gave for it.

It shoots great, but I'm getting too dad-burn ill-tempered to have the patience to pump it up. I guess I'm going to have to get one of those high pressure cylinders to pump it up. This can get expensive really quick...more so than muzzleloading, but once I'm set up, I guess I'm fairly self-sufficient.

The "making fun of shooting a .22" thread got me to thinking...that I should mention this here. A can of .177 or .22 cheap pellets is (or at least can be) a more affordable way to plink. About $6.00 for 500 pellets is a good way to go- better/different pellets will cost more. .25's cost considerably more, but give good power for small game.

These aren't the fine target German air rifles, but are more utilitarian and seem pretty well made, but definitely not something found at the "mart" stores. Try finding .25 pellets there!!!

I guess I'm an air rifle accumulator now...not a collector as I only have one old Benjamin, but I'm rediscovering that shooting them on the front porch during the evening is enjoyable. Bouncing pellets off of the plow harrows at about 60 yards brings a smile to my face.

I'd like to shoot one of those .357 bolt action air rifles I've seen just to say I did.

 

[cowart]

For some air guns that will make you drool, see
Quackenbush Air Guns

 

[tomtheturner]

A few years ago I lost my place to shoot, due to urban sprawl, and I bought an AirForce Talon pre-charged pnuematic .22 air rifle to shoot in my back yard.

I have a large wooded back yard, and it is really fun to go out and plink with it. It is single-shot, which does get old after awhile, but there is no pumping to do, or anything else other than just inserting the pellet. It is very accurate with good pellets, and plenty accurate for plinking with cheap bulk Crosman pellets. This particular rifle is "suppessed," but when shooting with the rifle adjusted for full force it can be quite loud. Almost as loud as shooting Aguila SSS from a rifle, but it is totally legal to shoot where I am at, and it filled a void that I had until I got a new place to shoot.

It can be a little expensive to get set-up by the time you get the rifle, a decent scope, and a scuba tank to fill it with, but it is very cheap to shoot after that, and a lot of fun.

Best Wishes,
Tom

 

[Indiana George]

Although not a PCP, I shoot a BSA Lightning XL more than any other firearm I own. Inexpensive to shoot and more accurate than than my .22s at up to 25 yards.

 

[CW Spook]

Have you checked out the new Crosman/Benjamin Rogue in .357?

 

[Andy Griffith]

I saw that. I saw that it has electronics on it. If they made it without the electronics I would want one.

 

[Iggy]

I have an old Beeman .17 that is absolutely the most accurate thing I ever put my hands on.

Tree rats and other varmints don't come play at my place for long.

 

[m1gunner]

Air rifles are fantastic training aids. I learned to shoot with a pump up Crossman air rifle. I would buy the BBs in the 6,000 size package, and went through several each year. Then I started recycling the used BBs out of the target trap. Would also shoot pellets and darts, but they were too expensive.

Getting sight picture, breathing and trigger pull coordinated is the same with air gun or real gun. Plus, no hearing protection needed with the air gun.

 

[Andy Griffith]

I think I would like one of these in .45 or .357 if they weren't so dad-gum expensive.

https://xp-airguns.com/Ranger.html

I guess I'd have to invest in a way to fill them too.

 

[venomballistics]

I'd like one in 30 38 and or 45 I see no reason these things cant be fed at least some of the range of cast bullets in each caliber but good lord do these things cost.
I figure i'll take a crack at building one after I clear the 1001 projects upon my shoulders... which really translates to I want to try but may never get to it

 

[kennyb]

i recently picked up a gamo and mounted a scope...it's power and accuracy is very surprising...

 

[shaggist]

My air gun experience was with a Benjamin Marauder .22 Cal, 10-shot PCP. With a good Leaper scope, it was accurate to 1 MOA at 50 yards, if I did my part correctly. With more than enough power for squirrels, oppossums, and raccoons, with proper shot placement, it is a great way to shoot alot, very quietly, for not much money. It has a factory diffuser, which reduces the muzzle report to zero. The loudest noise it makes when firing is a metallic ping when you pull the trigger. Recoil is non-existent.
In order to enjoy the gun to the utmost, equip yourself with 2-100 cu. ft scuba, compressed air tanks, and a yoke and hose to fill the fill valve. You can fill the gun to the 3000 psi working pressure, and get about 50 full power shots before the pressure drops to 2000 psi. Then refill and go again.
It is a great hunting and plinking, seriously powerful rifle, and will do anything, within reason, you might want to do with it.