Air rifle for pest control

[Whip_McCord]

To everyone who actually addressed the questions asked, thanks for your input.

Churchmouse hooked me up with a bone collector i but I need to find pellets it likes which is a challenge with the shutdown in effect. It does *not* like the little sabot crossman pellets. I think they are too light and I can see that they are tumbling. It's good enough for real close in work but I'm sure the gun is much more capable then this. I ordered 3 different types of pellets online to see which it prefers.

I have a few nice pellet guns. Yours looks like it should work great for your purpose. After extensive research and tests a few years ago, I determined it is better to use heavier pellets in a high velocity airgun. I like Crosman Premier 10.5 grain pellets for higher velocity .177 rifles. Downrange velocity is much better than light pellets which start out much faster, but loose velocity very quickly. If you look at ballistic charts comparing pellets you will see how dramatic it is. Also in spring guns, the light pellets are much harder on the spring and piston. That is not an issue with your gun, but it would still prevent the piston from reaching the end of it's stroke before the pellet exits the bore, which happens with light weight pellets.

My Beeman R-11 gets 3/4" groups at 50 yards with 7.9 grain Premier pellets (878 fps). My best shot was around 75 yards at a chipmunk. It was deader than 4 o'clock with my first shot. In my side yard I have steel targets every 10 yards or so, out to 90 yards, for pellet gun shooting from my deck. That's how I knew the distance. If there are chipmunks closer than 30 yards, I use my Beeman P1 air pistol with a red dot on top. I use Crosman Premier 7.9 grain pellets for that (525 fps). I love hunting chipmunks.

Check out Crosman Premier 10.5 grain pellets for your new gun. I think they should outperform most pellets out there in your gun. Hope these tips help. Enjoy your new air rifle.

 

[Hohn]

Most gun folk already have a .22lr. Instead of spending a bundle on another pea shooter use your .22lr and shoot Aquila Super Colibri. They are good out to 30yrds. I have killed all sorts of critters with them. Pretty quiet and they also offer a regular Colibri that is a little quieter and not as hot. They are basically a 22 cal pellet crimped in a 22lr shell and fire off the primer.

I know others use CB caps as well with good luck on those birds. My grandpa used to use a sling shot with aquarium gravel. Worked decent and kept them away for awhile.

Super colibris won't hold a paper plate group at 10 paces in my CZ. This is not an inaccurate rifle with regular ammo. I like the idea of them, but the execution pretty much fails for me.


22CB shorts are louder than you might think because they have a lighter bullet.

 

[SmileDocHill]

You might get better groups if you reload yourself.

 

[Skywired]

Super colibris won't hold a paper plate group at 10 paces in my CZ. This is not an inaccurate rifle with regular ammo. I like the idea of them, but the execution pretty much fails for me.

That's interesting. Different results with different rifles. My Winchester 9422 with Simons 4X scope is as accurate as I could wish for out to about 75 feet. The challenge for me is guesstimating elevation for range and deflection for windage. Obviously both are issues with this round.

 

[DadSmith]

I got this in Email today of anyone is interested.
Gamo Whisper Fusion Elite Air Rifle 22 Caliber Pellet with Scope Factory Reconditioned 975fps
https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1022550874

 

[BE Mike]

I recently went through a selection period with air rifles. I had a FWB 601 match rifle in .177 cal. that I used to use to shoot matches and when I retired from competition, it was used for the occasional pest. It was more expensive than I needed for the task and underpowered, although highly accurate. I settled on a Benjamin Mayhem in .22 cal. It is suppressed and very quiet. The instructions said to shoot a hundred pellets in it before it was accurate. I did that and found it to be true. I also found that it shot poorly with cheap pellets and that the scope that came with it wouldn't hold zero. I switched to H&N Terminator pellets and replaced the CenterPoint scope with a UTG Bugbuster. It will shoot one hole at 20 yards now, if I do my part. The only drawback to the air rifle is that it takes quite a bit of effort to cock. https://www.pyramydair.com/s/m/Benjamin_Mayhem_NP2_SBD_Air_Rifle_Combo/4430

 

[BehindBlueI's]

Freehand shooting, Gamo Raptor pellets are giving me a sub 2" group at 27', the distance from my window to the ambush zone. Much better then the sabot ammo from Crosman. I figured it was going to be better as it's a much tighter fit in the chamber and is getting a more consistent seal against the barrel.

I have a couple types of heavier pellets to try on order since 4/27 that still hasn't shipped yet. Locally, this was the last packet of .177 available at Outdoorsman in Greenwood, but it's good enough for my purposes.

 

[two70]

Freehand shooting, Gamo Raptor pellets are giving me a sub 2" group at 27', the distance from my window to the ambush zone. Much better then the sabot ammo from Crosman. I figured it was going to be better as it's a much tighter fit in the chamber and is getting a more consistent seal against the barrel.

I have a couple types of heavier pellets to try on order since 4/27 that still hasn't shipped yet. Locally, this was the last packet of .177 available at Outdoorsman in Greenwood, but it's good enough for my purposes.

FYI, Midway has a really good selection of pellets and they are currently shipping the same or following day.

 

[BehindBlueI's]

FYI, Midway has a really good selection of pellets and they are currently shipping the same or following day.

Thanks, I will look into that. Not sure why I didn't at first since I was looking at them for a gun...derp on my part.

 

[Kirk Freeman]

Amazon has scads of H&N domed pellets. If you have prime, you may have them for the weekend!

https://www.amazon.com/Target-Trophy-Airgun-Pellets-Grains/dp/B0035KIQQM

 

[tosharri]

Sig MCM .177 (my choice)

This is the air rifle I ended up ordering for the very same reason

https://www.amazon.com/Sig-Sauer-Pe...ods&sprefix=sig+sauer+mcx,sporting,177&sr=1-2

 

[BehindBlueI's]

Thanks, I will look into that. Not sure why I didn't at first since I was looking at them for a gun...derp on my part.

As soon as I whined about it here they shipped and I had them in two days.

I've got three weights to select from now. I have not tried the 9.6gr yet. The 7.8gr is accurate enough I'm 4/4 and my wife is 1/1 with them. POI is actually the same as the lighter/faster Raptors at the distance I'm zeroing for, although I suspect they'll probably drop off faster at longer ranges. I do note the gun is quieter with the heavier projectiles.

 

[DoggyDaddy]

This thread inspired me to order this last night.
https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1...roduct-shipped-today-product-description-link

Also ordered a tin of 14.3 grain Crossman hollow point pellets. I have chipmunk issues and the cat has gotten lazy.

 

[BE Mike]

This thread inspired me to order this last night.
https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1...roduct-shipped-today-product-description-link

Also ordered a tin of 14.3 grain Crossman hollow point pellets. I have chipmunk issues and the cat has gotten lazy.

Good luck with those Crosman pellets. I couldn't get them to group well, even at 15 yards. They are cheap enough though and were fine for the rifle's break-in period. Just because they were inaccurate in my Benjamin Mayhem, doesn't mean that they won't be accurate in your air rifle.

 

[BehindBlueI's]

This thread inspired me to order this last night.
https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1...roduct-shipped-today-product-description-link

Also ordered a tin of 14.3 grain Crossman hollow point pellets. I have chipmunk issues and the cat has gotten lazy.

That's a nice price, I think.

 

[Bigtanker]

This thread inspired me to order this last night.
https://www.midwayusa.com/product/1...roduct-shipped-today-product-description-link

Also ordered a tin of 14.3 grain Crossman hollow point pellets. I have chipmunk issues and the cat has gotten lazy.

That's about what I paid for my Gamo Wasp on the clarence shelf.

 

[BehindBlueI's]

Dang it, ruined my streak. Was up to 5/5 and took a partially obstructed shot between a finch bag and a suet block. I hit the suet block. See why barrier blind performance is so important???

 

[DoggyDaddy]

Good luck with those Crosman pellets. I couldn't get them to group well, even at 15 yards. They are cheap enough though and were fine for the rifle's break-in period. Just because they were inaccurate in my Benjamin Mayhem, doesn't mean that they won't be accurate in your air rifle.

I really didn't know what to try first, but I figured they'd give me plenty of plinking practice just to get used to the rifle.

 

[freekforge]

I picked up a hatsan edge today for $55 at stock and field. With the 14.66gr hatsan pellets it looked like someone spiked the bird with a racquet.

 

[churchmouse]

I spent a bit of time checking my Sig for zero today. It has a Romeo dot on it and from my position on the deck to the kill zone is exactly 15 yards.
Half dollar sized groups no rest. Sitting in the deck chair (rocker) into a shaded area. Not bad for this rifle. It is a semi-auto mag fed gas operated piece. It is a serious hoot to shoot it.