Air Gunning it through the recession
- Thread starter superd222
- Start date
Good airgun pellets cost almost as much as 22's.
Good airguns start at about $400 and go up from there (not CTC types, but Webleys, etc.)
LGH
ps: I've heard rumours of folks shooting "rat loads" (downloaded 22's) in their basement.
Good airguns start at about $400 and go up from there (not CTC types, but Webleys, etc.)
LGH
ps: I've heard rumours of folks shooting "rat loads" (downloaded 22's) in their basement.
I put a bunch of Sears catalogs stacked lengthways in a cardboard box with two lrg blocks of hardwood[birch in back.Red Green'ed with Duct tape to keep all the contents in place.It reliably stops a 800fps .22 pellet 1/2" plywood alone gets ventilated through both sides.Scan or photo-copy targets to pin on it and away you go.Reg .22 RF bullet traps would be fine too but only for pellets not BB's................Harold
wapitiwhacker
CGN Regular
- Location
- East Kootenay B.C.
I'm definitely considering a quality airgun to practice form, and trigger control for rimfire silhouette. Easy to put in 20 or 30 minutes of quality practice a couple times a week vs the time required to go to the range and shoot.
I'm guessing you are comparing good pellets to cheaper bulk .22's but last I checked good pellets were around 8-10 bucks seems they've gone up to about 12 bucks for 500 now.
12bucks for quallity pellets or around 18-20 for cheap bulk .22's...seems good airgun pellets cost today almost as much as bulk .22's used to cost a few years ago....
Jamie Frost
Regular
- Location
- Calgary AB
.22 are still super cheap 2 shoot, bricks of 500 rounds for $25. 12g isnt all that much either. you can get a pack of 100 rounds for about $25 or $30 at walmart.
I just switched to .22 and am living off my components and hoarded ammunition. I only shoot the airgun when I want to shoot but am too lazy to go past the backyard. Every airgun I have seen has been capable of holding my interest for maybe all of a few minutes. Just not the same without a bang.
"...because you can hunt with them..." As daft as it sounds, you can hunt with an air pistol in Ontario too. From Page 21 of the Hunting Regs: "Air and pellet pistols with a muzzle velocity less than 500 feet per second may be used for hunting in Ontario." No real handguns though. A less than 500 feet per second air pistol isn't a firearm.
Airsoft guns are toys. They're not good for much of anything.
"...people who fire .22 pistols in their basement..." Not good due to the fumes. Not legal in Canada either.
Airsoft guns are toys. They're not good for much of anything.
"...people who fire .22 pistols in their basement..." Not good due to the fumes. Not legal in Canada either.
superd222
CGN frequent flyer
This is a very good reason to get to know your air pistol! Especially for grouse.
The better air rifles are more accurate than 22lr's. The PCP (Pre Charged Pneumatic) rifles have a good crack to them when fired too.
I still shoot mostly powder burners however, air guns are beginning to grab my attention. Another advantage of air guns is there's no reloading to do - although it's a great winter hobby that I'll never give up!
I made the jump last year about this time and bought a RWS Diana 34 .177 with the scope combo. I've set up a 10m range in my basement and shoot either off a bench rest or off hand almost every day. Off the rest, I shoot for groups and consistently put 10 shots in .20 to .27 inches. For off hand, I get pics from mags of deer and elk in various poses that I would find in the field. Magazine sized pics closely approximate the sight picture/ size ratio of drawing down at 80 to 120 yds. on real animals.
Accurately shooting a magnum springer like the Diana 34 requires a lot of attention to technique. As a result of this focus on technique, the ease of daily practice and confidence acquired from putting so many shots on target, I have really been able to shrink my powder burner groups for all my rifles and become a much more proficient off hand shooter for hunting type shots as well.
Be warned, however, that it becomes addictive particularly when you start to look at all the nice stuff out there and add tune kits, better scopes, etc.
Accurately shooting a magnum springer like the Diana 34 requires a lot of attention to technique. As a result of this focus on technique, the ease of daily practice and confidence acquired from putting so many shots on target, I have really been able to shrink my powder burner groups for all my rifles and become a much more proficient off hand shooter for hunting type shots as well.
Be warned, however, that it becomes addictive particularly when you start to look at all the nice stuff out there and add tune kits, better scopes, etc.
My first real air rifle was a Feinwerkbau 124/127 .177 cal delivering about 1000fps. Bought it in 1975, thought the price was outrageous at $125. It's a barrel cocking sporter. I had a Williams receiver sight on it at one time, but later added an air rifle scope. It's more accurate than I am for serious shooting. The jerky feeling when the spring releases is unnerving at first but you can get used to it. I have made kills on birds at about 40 yards, but that's been a long time ago.
My second and last is a Feinwerkbau 300, a recoilless match rifle with diopter sights. It is a side lever cocker,still a spring air type, but when you pull the trigger as the spring releases, a catch releases the whole barrel cylinder spring assembly , which slides back a couple of inches on rails, thus counterbalencing the feel of the recoil from the spring piston. Velocity is not nearly as high as the sporter, as it is designed for optimun accuracy at 10 meters for match shooting, but at the time I purchased it in 1987 , was still higher than some really cheap air rifles. Accuracy at 10 meters is supposed to be something like 0.03" center to center if you are good enough.
They are fun and still much less expensive to shoot than a .22, plus quiteness is a big factor. When my son was born I was in base housing while in USAF, in a duplex, and I used to shoot from the room where he was sleeping down a hall into another bedroom where I had my backstop without awakening him.
I have not shot them in several years, guess I should get them out and do a bit. One thing, with the high powered spring air guns is that you must use a special silicon base oil to lubricate the cylinder/piston. Pressures are so high that common petroleum based oils will ignite like in a diesel engine, often damaging the piston seals and sometimes blowing pellets apart.
My second and last is a Feinwerkbau 300, a recoilless match rifle with diopter sights. It is a side lever cocker,still a spring air type, but when you pull the trigger as the spring releases, a catch releases the whole barrel cylinder spring assembly , which slides back a couple of inches on rails, thus counterbalencing the feel of the recoil from the spring piston. Velocity is not nearly as high as the sporter, as it is designed for optimun accuracy at 10 meters for match shooting, but at the time I purchased it in 1987 , was still higher than some really cheap air rifles. Accuracy at 10 meters is supposed to be something like 0.03" center to center if you are good enough.
They are fun and still much less expensive to shoot than a .22, plus quiteness is a big factor. When my son was born I was in base housing while in USAF, in a duplex, and I used to shoot from the room where he was sleeping down a hall into another bedroom where I had my backstop without awakening him.
I have not shot them in several years, guess I should get them out and do a bit. One thing, with the high powered spring air guns is that you must use a special silicon base oil to lubricate the cylinder/piston. Pressures are so high that common petroleum based oils will ignite like in a diesel engine, often damaging the piston seals and sometimes blowing pellets apart.
- Location
- Nova Scotia
I concur about the place of airguns in kickstarting my interest in shooting. 20 years ago, I am not sure I would have taken the plunge to shoot powder based guns. Air rifles to me, served a very practical utilitarian purpose (pest control). This may sound silly but the first time I ever held any gun as an adult, was an air gun. Sure we had some cheeseball BB guns as kids, but I don't remember much about that. But I remember buying my first air gun, a Crosman T4 pistol and was intrigued about the CO2 power plant, and the fact that it shot not just BBs but pellets. That was more fun than anything else, but that led me to buy a 2240 pistol and then several break barrel air rifles.
I didn't have a PAL back then, so it was a pretty limited selection of sub 500 FPS guns. But I dove right into learning the various pellet types/weight and worked on marksmanship in between performing some pest control functions. I found air rifles a great starting point with learning about shooting sports, especially for a person like myself who does not come from a firearms family or had any exposure to shooting sports.
The pellets and (where applicable) CO2 canisters for the air pistols / air rifles were relatively cheap, so there was no obstacle in being able to practice for long periods of time. I was even able to run a bit of an adhoc academy one summer for a week up in Parry Sound, teaching various kids about shooting using break barrel air rifles.
The one thing a lot of people of my vintage seem to comment on is being pleasantly surprised by how airguns and air rifles have evolved from the old Daisy Red Ryder BB gun days of old.
I didn't have a PAL back then, so it was a pretty limited selection of sub 500 FPS guns. But I dove right into learning the various pellet types/weight and worked on marksmanship in between performing some pest control functions. I found air rifles a great starting point with learning about shooting sports, especially for a person like myself who does not come from a firearms family or had any exposure to shooting sports.
The pellets and (where applicable) CO2 canisters for the air pistols / air rifles were relatively cheap, so there was no obstacle in being able to practice for long periods of time. I was even able to run a bit of an adhoc academy one summer for a week up in Parry Sound, teaching various kids about shooting using break barrel air rifles.
The one thing a lot of people of my vintage seem to comment on is being pleasantly surprised by how airguns and air rifles have evolved from the old Daisy Red Ryder BB gun days of old.
