I have an RWS 34 .177 and it's a good gun. Just hankering for a bigger hunk of lead. Been wondering if .22 is enough of a step up or should I go to a .25. I'm talking a gas piston gun, here. Not interested in the PCP route at this time. Not worried about ammo availability...……….. I know you won't likely find .25 pellets in Walmart. But no biggie. Is there a big or noticeable difference in impact/terminal performance between the .22 and the .25 ?? What are the actual "real world" velocities you are getting with .22's and .25's ??
I have a model 34 in .22 and a marauder in .25. Never put either of them over a chronograph. With that said I’m only guessing as to the performance difference. It would appear the .25 cal carries quite a bit more energy. The hits are pretty dramatic, but it could be a velocity difference for all I know.
I don't have a .25 but do have several 22's and 177's. The difference in killing power between the 177 and .22 is quite noticeable on stuff the size and tenacity of grey squirrels. The .22's will put them down quite quickly and effectively with solid chest hits whereas the 177 needs head shots to do the same. .
In my break barrel rifles It's always a balancing act between small pellets and fast, delivering a lighter blow and big and slow that have a looping trajectory.
"Camping places fix themselves in your mind as if you had spent long periods of your life in them. You will remember a curve of your wagon track in the grass of the plain like the features of a friend." Isak Dinesen
What is the velocity difference between the PCP and a gas piston gun ?? I was looking at a Remington/Crosman 725VTR. Supposed to be 30-couple ft/lb energy. Velocity is advertised at up to 725 fps with lead...…….
The only place I can find information to compare apples to apples is Straight Shooters.
Go to their site and select,air rifles, select 25 cal rifle. Pick a rifle, Benjamin Marauder for ex. and click on it, now click on the "Our Take" tab and they list actual velocities for that rifle with specific pellets. Select another rifle and check "our Take" on that rifle and notice velocities for the same specific pellet.
Let us know what you figure out, it's not big game season yet so we need the entertainment!
"Camping places fix themselves in your mind as if you had spent long periods of your life in them. You will remember a curve of your wagon track in the grass of the plain like the features of a friend." Isak Dinesen
I have a plan that will help us all. By one of each shoot them for a while and give us a report. With possession of both you can pick one on whimsy or based on the planned activity. Might want to see if they have any comparisons over at Airgun Nation.
Most of the positive comments I have seen about the 25s is when the shooters are starting to stretch the distances they are shooting.
Last edited by LouisB; 08/26/18.
Some spelling errors can be corrected by a vowel movement. ~ MOLON LABE ~
Just a thought here....your model 34 is probably throwing those little BB size pellets close to 1000 fps....a .25 cal. pellet weighing 3 times as much going 3-400 fps slower is gonna have a rainbow trajectory as compared to that .177.....I was looking at the breakbarrels in .25 a couple years ago, but as of then, I didn't see any that interested me....until someone comes out with one that will sling a medium weight .25 at least 850 fps, and has a good trigger, I'll pass.....
IMO,skip the springer and go with the .25 Marauder. Big investment up front,but well worth it.I have had springers by Beeman and RWS and there is no comparison.My Marauder shoots 25.4 grain pellets at around 840-850. Accuracy is incredible and point of impact never changes.
I'm not really interested in the PCP guns, at all. Too much investment. Too big. Buying both calibers would be nice. But, again...……...kinda impractical for my budget. The high trajectory of the .25 concerns me. Used to putting the hairs of my .177 on whatever I wanna put a hole through to a pretty considerable distance. A mil-dot or similar reticle would almost be a must on a .25, I'd think.
I’ll tell ya that the trajectory of similarly powered .177 and .22 is night and day.
The .177 is way flatter. But the .22 even when using inexpensive 14.3 grain pellets delivers a lot more thump and smackdown on target. I haven’t chronoed them, but I’d guess the 177 shooting 9.8 grain pellets is probably around 100 fps faster than the 22 shooting 14.3 grain pellets. Just guessing high 8’s vs high 7’s.
I have a 34 clone in the Ruger Blackhawk Elite .177 that is pretty fast and super accurate. And a standard Crosman Nitro Piston .22 that’s really delivers a punch. But if I sight the .22 in for long range(65 yards) then it’s way high at 35 or 40.
If I want to hit a tiny target every time, I shoot the .177. But still I enjoy shooting the .22 more and the pellets are inexpensive enough to where I can shoot all day and not think twice. And the standard Nitro Piston 22 is shorter and lighter and I bought it used for cheap.
I like to shoot steel cans with the 22 as far out as I have room to. It’ll really shread an aeresol can at long range.
But if I wanted to do extra long range target shooting with a similar knockdown power at those longer ranges, and I didn’t mind lobbing them in there from a longer heavier rifle that cost a lot more to shoot, then I’d get a .25 in one of the more powerful gas piston models. And if you think a Marauder is big, then your going to think that 725XL is huge.
I have only owned one .177, a China'loca break barrel back in the early 90's, killed squirrels and wounded many more.
I had a Marauder .25 and killed a lot of stuff, squirrel, rabbit, coon, possum and beaver, the power difference is huge between a .177 and a .25, the .22 would probably be a nice split in a break barrel.
Shooting an FX now, accuracy is fantastic at 50 yards, last weekend I shot four 5 groups at 100 and it was less than 2" with the 25.3 gr pellets, BC is .036 so no complaints but I want to try the 33's and see how they fly at a 100..
The sound of the 25.3 smacking a squirrel is surprising loud
Originally Posted by Yoder409
Not sure what I'm going to do, yet.
I'm not really interested in the PCP guns, at all. Too much investment. Too big. Buying both calibers would be nice. But, again...……...kinda impractical for my budget. The high trajectory of the .25 concerns me. Used to putting the hairs of my .177 on whatever I wanna put a hole through to a pretty considerable distance. A mil-dot or similar reticle would almost be a must on a .25, I'd think.
After playing with my .20cal for years and the 25 for the last couple weeks I'd have to say, If I only had one it'd be a .22, probably a gas ram.
I'm glad I don't have to make that decision but it seems the 20 has better killing power than a .177 and flatter trajectory than a .22cal.
The .22 has a much better pellet selection than the .20 and seems to kill critters at least as well along with flatter trajectory than the 25.
The spring and gas ram rifles can't compete with the PCPs for top speed but for usable trajectory, great selection of ammo and adequate killing power in an affordable rifle a .22 makes good sense.
I'll keep my eyes open for a .22 Crow Magnum but I'm not holding my breath. An FX Indy in 25 would be perfect but I can't justify the price.
Airguns of Arizona has Diana model 52 on sale for $299, a super price on a great gun. That was my 22 for a number of years before I traded it away...
You might want to try some of the heavier 177 pellets to see if your 34 will do all you need.
Good luck with your decision, Yoder
"Camping places fix themselves in your mind as if you had spent long periods of your life in them. You will remember a curve of your wagon track in the grass of the plain like the features of a friend." Isak Dinesen
IMO,skip the springer and go with the .25 Marauder. Big investment up front,but well worth it.I have had springers by Beeman and RWS and there is no comparison.
I gotta agree...once you've spent an afternoon plinking schitt with a "quiet".25 PCP you'll look at springers and gas rams kinda like the "flintlocks" of the modern air gun world....
I’m sure that’s true. But the gas ram pellet gun is so simple and self reliant. A 25 PCP takes a lot of air, and a pump, and then a tank, and then a compressor, and then another tank cause the old one got too old, and then another compressor because the other one wore out. Dang I coulda bought a 22 gas ram a ton of pellets and a gazillion 22 shorts for my rimfire too and had money left over not had all that extra junk and a rusted out air reservoir in that fancy pcp rifle. But I guess I wouldn’t mind having one, maybe.
I’m sure that’s true. But the gas ram pellet gun is so simple and self reliant. A 25 PCP takes a lot of air, and a pump, and then a tank, and then a compressor, and then another tank cause the old one got too old, and then another compressor because the other one wore out. Dang I coulda bought a 22 gas ram a ton of pellets and a gazillion 22 shorts for my rimfire too and had money left over not had all that extra junk and a rusted out air reservoir in that fancy pcp rifle. But I guess I wouldn’t mind having one, maybe.
A gun and hand pump are all you need....tanks are nice, as are compressors, but not really needed and it's far easier to do a DIY repair on a pcp than a break barrel...you might also consider that a .25 break barrel is gonna be hell on scopes....as a kid back in the 60s, I'd go out with ONE co2 cartridge in my .22 pellet pistol which was good for about 20 full power shots....I had to get close, and choose my shots wisely if I wanted to connect with a ground squirrel or other critter... if all you're after is QUANTITY of slinging pellets at cans and birds, stick with the .177 I really don't think you'd be happy with the performance of a .25 break barrel....tis probably why the larger calibers are strictly PCP...and if it's cool to shoot .22 shorts, you're better off just buying them instead...The only advantage a .25 pellet rifle has over the CB shorts is the ability to be virtually silent, unless you want to go the silencer route with the rimfire...
At this point, I'm actually leaning toward a .22 and likely in another FWS 34. Not sure how that would compare to other .22 offerings as far as velocity would go. But I like the sleek, compact package of the 34 quite a lot. My .177 has been trouble free, as well. Are the new 34's of the same quality as the 20-25 year old guns ??
At this point, I'm actually leaning toward a .22 and likely in another FWS 34.
If I was dead set on a springer I would go .22 also. They are all ok out to around 25 yards, but once You start to stretch things a little further trajectory becomes an issue in the larger calibers.
Regarding PCP's, I understand the hesitation due to the cost involved, not just the rifle but a tank or a pump. I enjoyed playing with springers but I would have been money ahead if I had just bought a Marauder and tank right off the bat... instead of playing around with 3 or 4 springers (chasing power and accuracy), and then picking up a PCP and tank.
On the low end You can get a Benjamin Discovery and pump for $348 delivered. A pump is adequate for the Discovery, although I would probably pick up a used scuba tank instead of the pump. My Discovery does 880 fps with the inexpensive crosman premier (.22 cal.) 14 grain pellets, and accuracy at 25 yards is about 1/2 inch (basically one ragged hole) for 17 shots. After that I refill it to keep the point of impact spot on. I can take it to 50 yards with no problem.
Cons on the Discovery; loud and a single shot (no magazine).
Hence the Marauders attraction===> a 10 shot magazine, very quiet & more shots (larger air resevoir) per fill (approx. 30). I also should add===> about 2 additional pounds of weight.
I'm glad I don't have to worry about how loud my gun is. If one of my 177 or .22 cal pellet guns isn't sufficiently powerful or flat shooting enough I simply grab my .22 mag. or my .243 or my .30-06. I shot a woodchuck out my livingroom window with my .223 just a couple days ago. It would suck living someplace where I had to worry about how much noise my gun is making just to dispatch some vermin.
