Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Air Guns Looking for advice on an air rifle for less than $800

Hello all,

I'm in the market to buy a pellet rifle, preferably .22 caliber (though I'll settle for .20) for use in target shooting, but also to take out squirrels, birds, and the occasional raccoon.

My primary concern is accuracy. I'd like to get something that is very accurate out to at least 25 yards (I'm looking for 1/4" groups or less) Power is also an issue, as I want something that can make a clean kill on a raccoon using a head shot. I'm fine with single shots and don't need a repeater.

My last criteria: I want something that I can maintain without having to buy CO2 canisters. So spring guns or pneumatics I can pump with a tire pump would be my preference.

Thank you for your time!

HW95 or Beeman R9 should do everything you want. They're good to go right out of the box, no mods needed.

Would the Beeman R9 be a good fit for a left handed shooter? I noticed the HW95 Luxus has iron sights. Is this model comparable to the Beeman R9?

Check out this site for advice and comparisons
Accuracy will vary from gun to gun, and with pellet choice, so "brand" won't tell you much about that aspect

http://www.pyramydair.com

Highly recommend the Benjamin Marauder. Very accurate, very quiet and within your budget. I have one and couldn't be happier with it.

Given your parameters,
in a break barrel spring gun, the Beeman R9, R1 is slightly faster
side cocking, look at an RWS 54.
under barrel cocking, I'd get an Air Arms TX200. HW97 worth a look too.

I currently have
break barrel, Beeman Crow magnum .20
side cock, RWS 52 .22
pumper,Benjamin 347.177 Big fun, too small for my hunting needs.

Check Pyramid Air, Straight Shooters and Airguns of Arizona.
Or course do a youtube search for videos of those you're wondering about, some good information in the reviews.

I bought one of the AirForce Condor SS rifles last year and could not be more pleased. After I found the pellet it likes and the barrel broke in quarter size groups at 40 yards are the norm.

As to power...I had to get the .177 rated tank to get the pellets SUBSONIC. Right now I am running a .20 14.3 grain Crossman Premier at 1000 fps. With what the factory provided, the standard valed .20-.25 tank, the gun would not go under 1050... At 1000 fps I am getting 40 shots before I have to pump the tank back up.

Caliber...take your pick as the gun is a switch barrel .177, .20, .22 and .25. I bought the setup in .20 and now have a .25 that I have not tried yet.

I have several springers and while nice, don't come near the power of this gun. Springers also take a lot more concentration to shoot accurately. With a PCP gun all there is is a pop and no vibration. With the Condor SS there is hardly any noise at all.

AirForce also has a smaller less powerful version called the Talon series and that gun comes in a suppressed version also.

Bob

Here is the old post...need to update this some time...

http://www.24hourcampfire.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php/topics/7932864/1

Accuracy is even better now....

Bob

Thank you all very much for your replies. I was initially leaning towards a spring-powered like the HW97, but you've given me more options to consider.

Thanks RJM for the link. That is a very interesting thread.

Best wishes to all,


David

Hijack

RJM,

I've been pondering a PCP rifle for a while and don't want to be tied to a Scuba shop for an air supply.

How many pumps to fill the Condor tank and how many shots per fill with the .20 barrel?
I'm not going to jump into a rifle without being sure and am also looking at the FX Indy and Independence.
The Marauder looks good too but I'll be pumping to fill so it makes me hesitate.
I'd best know what I'm in for before I buy.
Thanks

The FX independence is on my wish list also. Marauder is probably what I will end up with realistically..

Waiting on more .22 marauder reviews of the new design. Still seems to be barrel quality control issue.

Just curious here - How do you pump up a pre-charged rifle? I see the tank on the Air Arms S510 is rated at 2,900 PSI. Is there a special hand pump for this, or is the owner limited to refilling from a scuba tank?

several companies make hand pumps for pcp's.

Pumping time...look at it as exercise. You don't need a scuba tank unless you do a LOT of shooting or are using it in competition. Yea the first time the cylinder is pumped up takes a while to get it from zero to 3K psi but from that point on I only let it get down to about 2K psi , which is about 40 shots, before topping the tank back off. Number of pumps...not really sure but it is several hundred...that sounds like a lot but I have come to enjoy the exercise.

Doc...if you look at that AF thread again there is a pic of the airgun with the pump...

Bob

Thanks, Bob. I did a little research on the hand pumps and it looks like the Hill Mark 3 is the way to go. It's pricey, but I like the included desiccant container. I'm ok with the exercise in pumping, as I don't shoot all that often.

Decisions... decisions... I'm probably going to end up with a Marauder, but that FX Boss is really looking good.

David

Thanks Bob,
I'm still pondering which will be my first PCP but your reply was exactly what I needed.

A friend who bought a .25 AF Condor SS and the Talon pistol at the same time I bought mine bought one of the Hill pumps. I just bought the AF one that was in the set...it gets the job does about as well as the Hill...but I have only used his pump once.

I like the FX airguns.... But if you can try and handle whatever you plan on buying before you buy... Some of the PCP guns are REALLY BIG and clunky...

Bob

The Hill Mk3 is a top performing pump. Shameless plug here, but I can sell you one new in box for $225.00 shipped.

HW95 or BSA Supersport in .22 .
Need more power Diana/RWS 350 or 460 also .22 .

PCP's are neat, hard to beat a springer for simple - depends on what you want to do with the gun and how much you will shoot it. I have an R-9 after going through several others - finally satisfied.