New Air Rifle.

If I ever get back there I'll let you know. I lived in the US for three years - 97-99. I was in New York and have fond memories of my time there.

 

I also had a CZ .17 hmr and thought it was the ultimate rabbit rifle, but then I got a really quite old Anschutz 17/10 .22 wmr. With hornady 32gr ballistic tips it was a fantastic rabbit wrecker, very accurate and a good flat trajectory.
Also more than capable for foxing. The best rifle I ever had, centre or rim fire. And it was under £200 second hand.
I still think the .17 hmr with the 17gr ballistic tips is amazing though.

 

Some really nice rigs in here. I forget what a serious past time air rifle shooting is. I know absolutely nothing about it but judging by this thread you can get some pretty impressive performance out of those things. Right now all I got is (don't laugh)- a Daisy Red Rider to shoo squirrels out of the garden. Doesn't even break the skin. I've no interest in killing them, I just want to keep the little pricks away from my plants. I've been thinking of getting a higher end system for some time now.


I was a pretty avid firearm shooter until the covid scare. Here in the States that kicked off a huge gun buying binge. There's been record sales for well over the past year, like 1-2 million purchases/month on average. And within this is record numbers of first time gun owners. All time historic high, IIRC. The byproduct of all this- all the ammo is getting bought up. Cartridges are both scarce and expensive. Brass cased 9mm and 5.56 is over a dollar/rd. Some less popular bullets like .32 ACP or 5.45 have practically dried up, although there's signs things are subsiding a bit. Most people are just sitting on what they have. I'm guessing a higher performance air gun would be an ecomomical way to maintain rifle skills.


That being said- What's a good model to start out with that won't break the bank? From the looks of it some of you guys are pretty serious(nothing says dead-serious like mounting an S&B on a pellet gun). I've spent enough on actual firearms so I don't need to go too high end. Something with a little range that can take out small game.

 

Why not get a rim fire. A .22 LR or .17 HMR? They will have enough punch to get your squirrels boosted into the next world fairly rapidly.

 

That's not very nice - I like squirrels. There's a nice little red one in our garden.

 

Red ones are cute and oppressed by the grey ones. Never tickle a red squirrel with a lump of lead.

 

Don't like squirrels much. Not the ones that came in my garden and dug up some of my young carrot plants. Well there's no carrots on the end of the plants yet and i've got a feeling the little thieving gits are going to ruin the crop. Bastids.

 

I'm not looking to kill them. If I was, I could currently do so with extreme efficiency(I'm in the States. We have access to SERIOUS firepower). I don't kill what I'm not going to eat, and I don't eat squirrel. I occasionally go for turkey w/a Rem 870 during season and boar once in a while with AK, open sights. Turkey suddenly get amazingly elusive during season, and boar are year round and potentially aggressive. The possibility of a charging, 200 lb pissed-off sow is very real. AK gives you solid punch and quick follow-on. It's a fun hunt.

I basically just flick squirrels away with more or less a toy gun. It's also great fun.

So anyway… any suggestions on that serious-type pellet rifle?

 

Any of the Da

Any of the Daystate, Air Arms or Weirauch rifles. Depends whether you want a spring gun or pcp. Most of the "good" ones need a telescopic sight.

 

I’ve seen grey squirrels and chipmunks go at it in my garden a couple times. Chipmunks are maybe 1/2 the size of an average squirrel in my AO but they fight like friggin’ Comanches. They do not cower in the face of a larger competitor and they let off a demonic screech. They’ll both scatter up into the trees when a coyote shows up. I’ve yet to pull the trigger on one, but you have to put the whole “cute little doggy” thing aside and drop them straightaway. They’re invasive vermin and they’ll go after your pets. 5.56/.223 is a good round.

 

All air weapons in the US are not restricted like in the UK (we are only allowed 12 ft lbs) unless FAC licence is held, so your choice is vast as there are many more makes available to you, so it would be very difficult to recommend a rifle as higher power will have different accuracy characteristics than the ones I am used to.

 

Great looking gun. Use my Daystate .177 and FX 177 with NV for rabbits. Got one for tea tonight.

 

Great looking gun. Use my Daystate .177 and FX 177 with NV for rabbits. Got one for tea tonight.

 

So far I’m really digging those Daystate Huntmens. I didn’t realize air guns were quite that regulated in the UK, but it comes a no surprise. My heart goes out to you guys.

 

That’s cute...