So I looked into getting into the PCP game. By the time I purchased something like a .22 Benjamin Marauder for $640, a decent scope for $350 (arguably you would need one on any platform) and a decent 300 Bar compressor for $1,100, I might as well buy a .22 pistol or rifle with a suppressor and shoot 40 grain subsonic ammo with far superior terminal performance. Of course you have to wait forever for a suppressor, but the entry into PCP ain't like the old air rifle days; it's more of a commitment.

Am I sizing this up correctly? Are there any advantages over a suppressed .22?

My neighbor gave me a Beeman chief pcp that needed repair. It's a $180 rifle .22 cal. I repaired it & bought a Chinese handpump for $50 & It's shooting 1/2 -3/4 groups at 30 yards. Maybe better with the right pellets. My point is, when you can find this rifle in stock your gonna pay $250 for a rifle & a pump. I put an old nikon on this one, but any scope you may have extra that holds zero should be sufficient depending on what your trying to do. After shooting this cheap pcp I'll never fool with a break barrel again. I've destroyed to many scopes already.

None, other than legally shooting it inside the City Limits of some City Municipality

But if a tree falls in the woods and no one hears it, it's sorta legal... right? But I get your point.

Ain't for the timid. That Rizinni BR 550 could have been had in 28 !

Hmm 500 rounds of ammo IN STOCK for $20 vs out of stock 22 sub sonic for how much? Also no paper trail on Gun
No brainer here just wish I had found the pcp path yrs ago

Good point

STRSWilson, I can send you an excellent condition, almost pristine, synthetic stock .22 Benjamin Marauder with a Hill MK3 hand pump to keep it charged for less than $500. I've even got a scope and rings I can make you a deal on also.
You will not need a suppressor for a Marauder.

I bought a Air Venturi Avenger - $299
Hill MKV hand pump - $199
Hawke AirMax 3-9x40 scope - $220

Prices are up a bit since i got into it almost a year ago.

They're definitely pricey to get into, but I know I'd never go back to a springer or NP after a PCP. The smoothness is well worth it if you're a high volume airgun shooter, imho. Probably not so much to someone just plinking a few shots here and there.

I do just wish there were still some multipump pneumatics on the market in bores bigger than 177 though. Benjamin still offers one, but that new synthetic stock is terrible for anyone who prefers sights over a scope.

My three reasons that air rifles have a place in the rack.

Pellets won't fly as far as a subsonic .22 bullet because they lose stability faster. I shoot nuisance birds every weekend at a location that is safe with a shotgun or a pellet gun. I could not safely take those same shots with a suppressed .22 cal. Maximum distance of flight for a pellet is about 800 yards. Shotguns (with birdshot) is about 300 yards.

Also any average PCP will outshoot any average .22 rifle. A .22 that'll shoot as well as a moderately tuned PCP is a rarity.

There is no tax stamp or waiting period for an airgun moderator.

There is a good selection of pcp gun/pump combo packages on Pyramyd air.
Many can be had for under $500. Pellets run in the $15 for 350 range for the better ones.
YouTube has a bunch of “ratting”, pest control, iguana hunting videos to get a taste of the fun factor.
Have fun which ever way you proceed.

I live 10 minutes away from Airguns of Arizona in the winter. Been an expensive problem. Last purchase was a Daystate Redwolf Safari in 25 caliber.i fill from a carbon fiber tank. Free refills at shop.
Bought a scope today. I can shoot in the back yard, I won't shoot a suppressed 22 in the back yard

I'll get you in with a Hill pump and Marauder for $500....

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.22s are definitely a better option for me, for now. I have a magnum springer and a CO2 pistol for yard shooting. The cheap route for PCP is a hand pump, but volume shooting will make that get old pretty quickly, and the pumps require a certain amount of maintenance, as do compressors. If there’s a dive shop or other place nearby you can get a tank filled, that seems like a good compromise.

MM, is this quiet?

Went in heavy a year or so ago. Couldn’t be happier. FX Impact, SS 12x Mil, Great White tank, cheap Chinese compressor.

Haven’t even plugged in compressor yet. Local Scuba shop fills my tank for $12. One fill lasts a long time.

Pellets are cheep. $80 for 2500 JSB 18g from Utah air. On my third order now.

Tuned at 915fps. More accurate than any rimfire I own or have owned.

Going slugs next. Friend already has with great results.

Fact is I took the plunge after seeing first hand what his can do. Saved and sold off some stuff to make it happen.

No it's not really quiet. If you dial down the regulator to 1100 psi or so it might fall into the 'backyard friendly' category. Up at around 2000 psi where I have mine now, it's pretty loud. I put a small suppressor on it from Donny FL. That helps a lot. A bigger suppressor would do more, but I wanted the smallest one to keep overall gun size from being too crazy.

https://donnyfl.com/collections/ldc

TY. I have a dive shop near me to fill tanks and now I'm thinking to cry once and go FX Dreamline in .22

That's not a bad idea. I had to do it the hard way. Three break-barrels, then two PCPs Then two scopes. All together spent around $1800 in all of that. Could have bought one top-shelf gun and a nice scope.

Yep, that's why I'm considering the Impact too.

Those Impacts look really nice.

Like my Impact FX very much in 22. Friend has one he's not shooting at all. Has offered it along with a new extra 30 cal barrel and a bunch of accessories at a price thats hard to walk away from. Oh Santa!

They do look nice. But, my R7 is so nice to shoot in the backyard! There is no way to justify the $ for an FX, but I can't look away.

Edited to add that my R7 is really a Weihrach H30S.

It can be pretty expensive to start in the PCP world, but it's a great way to shoot air guns. I'm still shooting my Weihrauch springers, but I've I've been tempted to go PCP. I would probably go Daystate or something like that if I got a PCP. I'm a certified diver so filling tanks is not an issue.

I got a refurbished Brocock from Airguns of Arizona (22 cal) and an omega 4500 compressor, a pretty steep buy in for a “pellet gun” but it’s great fun. My kids save pages from magazines/catalogs and staple them to a 2x12 and shoot very specific targets. I’m really missing Victoria’s Secret now, my 10 year old son would have a hay day with those targets.
I’ve encouraged all my buddies to go ahead and buy a nice pcp. I’m happy to fill them up so I can run the compressor.

PCP, or phencyclidine, is a dangerous drug that was originally developed as an anesthetic. Its use was discontinued in humans in 1965 because of the troubling side effects. It is now illegal in the United States. God dang are there a lot of fn idiots.

Hopefully you realize a PCP air rifle is different and this post is just a pitiful attempt at a joke….

I thought it must be an attempt at humor.

In case it wasn't a joke......regarding air rifles, PCP - Pre-Charged Pneumatic.

My first PCP was a BSA that I bought used with a scope for $399. I then bought a hand pump. I was pumping it a lot. I bought a bullpup rifle and I hated it. I took it back and traded it for store credit and waited for a Redwolf. Fantastic gun.

Sure can get expensive quick! Ordered a Benjamin Maruader .22 with Lothar barrel for myself. Next up is a scope. Once I verify there is someone around that can fill a air tank there goes another $600-700 for a nice size tank.
Just discovered wife is permitted to use an airbow during archery season so there goes another $900 or so for a Benjamin airbow, add in some extra arrows, scope, and broad heads and add a few more hundred.
Once we get all squared away might try a big caliber big game rifle and finally to call it a day, a decent compressor.

Years ago I filled my cylinders at a scuba place, then that died out. So at the same time I bought a Bauer Oceanus pump powered with a 5.5 HP Honda engine.
Fills my SCBA tank in minutes. I was really lucky to but it used, new Oceanas are north of 5000 bucks I hear. Probably more now that the dollar is overprinted.
Anyway I have unlimited easy air now.

One of the advantages of going with a PCP is it opens up so many more opportunities to shoot. I started with a Marauder went to a FX Crown and now I have the FX M3 . I routinely go around to the cattle farms and shoot the pigeons starlings and english sparrows. I don't think the farmers would want me shooting a 22 rimfire there. The biggest advantage from what I see, and I do have a few suppressed rimfires is I just shoot the Air guns a whole lot more. I sit out at the house and shoot a tin of 350 pellets and don't even consider the cost of ammo.