.22 hunting airgun

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Jamesconn

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Since 22 is impossible to aquire at a decent price and pellets are cheap i want to replace my 22lr rifles role as a small game and target practice rifle.

I never had one before so i dont know anything about em. Id prefer one you didnt have to pump and enough power to sling heavier pellets just below the sound barrier. Small game being rabbits, squirrels, and sometimes possum.

Id also appreciate a good bullet trap recommendation.
 
All my pellet rifles are single pump, spring powered.
They do require some muscle to pump, but it's only once and they are quite suitable for what you intend, without costing all that much.
But they have the most recoil and are hard on scopes that aren't made for them.
Airguns that don't require pumping are more expensive.
CO2 powered ones aren't too bad, though.
All my realistic blow back airgun pistols are CO2 powered.
But the cooler the weather, the less power they produce.
And, of course, the more shots the less power as the gas gets used up.
But not always; it depends on the internal design.
Pre Charged P.C. air powered ones are considered the most accurate, but cost the most, for the gun and air supply equipment.
There's lots of good info and videos at pyramydair.com, my favorite place to buy them.
http://www.pyramydair.com/
 
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You cannot do better than a Crossman/Benjamin Discovery kit with the pump. It is a PCP rifle in .177 or .22.

50 yard kills on squirrels are just as simple as with a .22 LR if you learn your gun trajectory, and what pellet it likes. Shooting less than 1" groups at 60 yards with mine is simple. I'll never own a spring loaded/or pump as you go rifle again. Only Pre-Charged Pneumatic for me. It is the most accurate pellet gun I have owned. I added a second barrel band, a TKO muzzle break (5" version) to help with the noise, and I can't think of a better air rifle for me. It sounds like what you are looking for, also.

Then there is the more expensive Maurder series that will shoot up to .25 caliber. You can go up to .50 if you need to in air rifles, but I think a Benjamin Disco is right what you are looking for.
 
You need to give us your budget too. I'd like to say something like a Benjamin Marauder with a tank or pump but that's $1500+. Gun, scope, tank and pump maybe 2500. It's a great replacement for a 22LR, but expensive. Or the same gun as a refurbished model with cheap scope and a hand pump might be $700. That's still way more than most want to spend, plus pumping sux.
A $2-300 break barrel like a Benjamin Trail XL, Umarex Octane, Hatsan 125 etc are not as nice, or as accurate or powerful, but they're more popular for a reason. All you do is cock it once, load, fire. Easy stuff.
 
Id say my budget is about $200 maybe $300 if I sell a 22 rifle. If pcp is that great i might spend $100 on the pump equipment. I realize the importance of a scope and ill probably spend $50 ish on that.

Working in cold weather is a must. I go hunting in -40 to 100.

What stuff do you need to get started with PCP.
 
The Discovery or any other PCP is temp intolerant. You don't have to worry about the temp.
You should try the Discovery because you only have to pump until 2000 PSI not 3000, etc. Below I'll send you to a site with a good deal for the pump and rifle.

$373 for the Rifle and Pump from here, and this is all you need, but I'd add a scope with mil-dots as you will need them. You can get a Center Point scope with mil-dots from China-Mart for $40, and it will last because there is near zero recoil from these rifles, and the discovery is a really good, accurate, and powerful .22 caliber PCP air rifle.
Head shots at 40 to 50 yards are there all day long. Even with wind up to 10-15 mph if you can shoot with dots. Mine loves the JSB Jumbo Diablo 18.1 grain pellets.

Here is the sight for the Discovery rifle combo. He's a great guy, and it is the cheapest I have seen: http://discosrus.net/pcp-airguns/

Then again Pyramid Air has the kit for $419 with a Tech Force Scope that has held up great for me over thousands of shots, and the reticle will glow red or green if needed.

http://www.pyramydair.com/s/m/Benjamin_Discovery_Rifle_Pump/1534
 
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A word of caution before diving into airguns, .177 pellets are so cheap they might as well give them away. .22 pellets aren't anywhere near the same story. Getting into high quality pellets the price difference grows significantly. You may want a .177 for that reason alone.
 
Stay clear from .177 if you are wanting to kill game. Targets, yes. Game, no.

Can's of 500 JSB Jumbos are only $15 for .22 cal. So you aren't going to be losing anything.
 
If they are around $20 per 500 thats fine. Its still cheaper and I always try to use a bit more power than necessary. I dont want injured game i want DRT game.
 
A word of caution before diving into airguns, .177 pellets are so cheap they might as well give them away. .22 pellets aren't anywhere near the same story. Getting into high quality pellets the price difference grows significantly. You may want a .177 for that reason alone.
Click to expand...
Cheap doesn't help if it doesn't fit the basic parameters

The 22's are by far superior for hunting small game
 
I have a discovery in .22 and I love it. I used the hand pump, and its not bad at all. Mine is also very accurate with jsb diablos.

I have a benjamin trail and never could get it to stay zero'd with the scope it came with and it didn't have any iron sights. I wish I hadn't wasted my time and money with it. The discovery is perfect for target or small game hunting. Pump it up before you leave and you're set for a morning of squirrel hunting.
 
Umarex Octane as low as $170 for a referb from Airgun Depot. Pretty good deal for a magnum break barrel.
Before you get a pcp I think you should try pumping one up first. You did mention pumping and it was a deal breaker for me. The Discovery is very loud btw, a Marauder is rather quiet, more powerful, a repeater with 10-shot magazines, upgradable, and a better gun all around. Worth the extra $ imo, and a referb Mrod is $440 at AGD.
An XS-B50 is similar to the Discovery and $210 delivered from Flying Dragon. It's basically the cheapest pcp that has good power.
There's also Aguila Colibri and Super Colibri ammo for your 22LR. I thought I'd mention them since their power and noise are more like pellet guns. Either way I'd suggest you try a box of each because they're really neat. I use Colibri to shoot rats and gophers without waking the neighbors, something that probably only a Marauder can do. The Super Colibri are much louder but more power, but worth experimenting with. FYI.
 
I once shot a home invading possum between the eyes with the .22 Colibri. He shook it off and ran for the hole in the floor of my home, where the washer drain went. I did find him later dead, but it was NOT a quick kill! The Colibri is about 350FPS with a light weight bullet.
A good .22 pellet rifle will double that velocity with a similar weight pellet. FPS rules, assuming proper shot placement! The Colibri and Super Colibri (550 FPS) are not as accurate as a good pellet rifle too.
I have had a running tiff with an idiot over at PyramidAir who didn't seem to think my .177 cal. 1377 was capable of taking small critters cleanly. The 15 mice it killed thought it sufficient....... :evil:
So I avoid PA whenever possible. AirgunDepot has all I need.
 
My two cents: I have the following, with pros and cons of each.
1. My old Benjamin 22. Rebuilt at the Racine factory in the 80s. Up to 597 fps with original Crosman 22 pellets. Fairly accurate, does fine on starlings and the occasional garden raiding rabbit or vole.
2. Later Crosman 22. Lots of plastic. Not quite as accurate. 575fps is the best I can get.
3. Sheridan 20. Accurate, a little heavier and I've gotten in the low 600s. Seems to hit harder than the first two and I've taken squirrel, rabbit and starlings out to 35 yards cleanly.
4. RWS Diana 34 (I think that is the number). Too heavy, very accurate, and does fine with the plastic point or hollow point pellets on little varmints. 1000 fps with lead. .177
5. Crosman Nitro Venom 22. A little smoother than the RWS but not much. Much heavier pellets and a little over 825 fps. Just about decapitates a rabbit. I like it. Still breaking in. Won't comment on the accuracy yet.
Would like to have a pcp but just can't see the money side of it yet (said the guy with two Browning trap guns, a couple of TC and TBs and a M12 Skeet)
Prices on the airguns were a low of 25 bucks on the Benjamin (sixties) to 200 for the Diana.
The .177s crack like a 22 with the pba pellets and accuracy sucks.
 
Jamesconn said:
Since 22 is impossible to aquire at a decent price and pellets are cheap i want to replace my 22lr rifles role as a small game and target practice rifle.

I never had one before so i dont know anything about em. Id prefer one you didnt have to pump and enough power to sling heavier pellets just below the sound barrier. Small game being rabbits, squirrels, and sometimes possum.

Id also appreciate a good bullet trap recommendation.
Click to expand...

What do you mean by you don't want to pump? Does that mean you don't want to pump up multiple times per shot? You don't want to pump the gun at all? You don't want to pump up before hand, like a pcp? CO2 doesn't fit your other requirements, (cold weather) so you are going to have to pump something, unless you want to invest nearly a thousand bucks in a good HPA tank.

You won't sling heavier pellets near the speed of sound without a higher quality PCP. You can do the hunting you want with a lower weight pellet or slower speeds though.

I'll second what Chevota said about the Umarex Octane, Crosman also makes some heavy hitting break barrels with the nitro springs.

If you want to step up in price a little the discovery will be good for you, roughly 400 bucks with the pump, and you can take it into the field already pumped.

And spend a little more than 50 bucks on a scope.
 
the latest pyramid air pamphlet explains how diameter and weight are better than speed such as with the .177.
with a high powered rifle such as the .22-250 they explain the reasoning behind its success, but they also explain that you never get a pellet be it .177 to .50 over 1400 fps in a practical hunting rifle.

So my thinking is for the type of pest and small fur bearing game I'd use it on the Discovery with a second barrel band and a 5" TKO muzzle brake works great for me. A TF scope at 4-12x40, 18.1 grain .22 caliber pellets, and I am making deadly head shots on game at 50 yards easily. I try not to go past the 70 yard mark with the .22 as I feel the .25 would be better, but 50-60 yards and I am bagging game.
I can't wait until the double disco air reservoir becomes available, but I have heard that some even better is coming for us Discovery owners.

The Discover is a great combo kit that will definately should impress you. I have had Crossman 2200 Magnums, Beeman 392, even a Daisy Powermaster or something like that in .22 caliber. They were all decent, but none of them can hold a candle to the shot per shot accuracy of a properly setup PCP rifle. I am highly convinced from personal experience.


P.S. I have heard bad stories about the scopes in the kits. So far after a few thousand rounds mine has not dropped zero or shifted. It is a dead on as a laser could be. I just made sure to tighten the screws just enough to grab. No more, No less. I think that is where a lot of scope issues come from is over tightening scope rings.
I guess everyone's mileage varies.
 
My two bits are just head over to Midway and pickup some 22 they have in stock...yes it is target and yes it costs a bit more, but you will be much more happy in the long run.
 
$200 for a 22 air rifle with the power to take a opossum sized animal is a pretty iffy suggestion. To stay in that budget you are going to have to look at a magnum springer and those guns are with out a doubt the most difficult guns to shoot....bottom line, nothing is harder to master then a high powered springer. Now for the rest of your animals no real worry there with some of the other guns out there.

There is no way in he!! you are going to stay under 300 for a PCP, anyone that suggests that is not giving you the full story. PCP is going to be ONE of the most easy thing to shoot. I would suggest a Benji 392...yes you are going to have to pump it up, but I think it would do 99% what you need to do and stay in your price bracket.....you are going to have to give a little and I think that is going to be the best choice with what you have outlined.
 
I wouldnt mind pumping to fill the tank. I just dont want one i have to pump 20 times per shot. Practice sessions would be pretty short. How many shots do you grt before you have to refill?

Its kinda sad it takes the same amount of money a good firearm costs to get a pellet gun.
 
It isn't that sad when you can shoot .38" or less groups at 50 yards with your pellet gun while your scouring the internet for .22 LR ammo. If you are happy with a $100 Springer from China-Mart that you will not get to group 2" from 10 yards then go ahead and waste that money. Springers are to me the absolute worst rifles to shoot accurately. I'll spend the cash on PCP, and just watch the center "X" get cut out of the target.

on my Discovery from 800 psi to 2000 psi it is 44 pumps with my hand pump. do it 20 times wait 10-15 minutes to cool them pump down, and then fill to 2000.
I get on average around 14 good shots. I should add more if I aim a little higher if the pressure goes below that mark. I read they changed the hammer spring, but you can tweak them if you know how to get less powerful shots that will add longer shooting sessions, but 14 truly accurate shots is a good days quarry.
You can also buy buddy tanks that hold 2000 PSI, and fill them up to take with you in a backpack. they are very big, and work really well in the field for an extra two fills.

You can a Benjamin Discovery and Pump combo for $373 from the link I posted in my above thread, and he may have some refurbished Benjamin Discovery .177 calibers for cheaper than that. If you add a scope, 2nd barrel band (optional) and a TKO to silence it then you are looking more at around $500, but you will not be able to enjoy a Maurader with a hand pump if you pump that sucker to 3000 PSI. It will take you 30 minutes for you heart to calm down to be able to aim straight. That is why the Discovery at 2000 PSI fill is a great gun to enter the PCP air rifles.
 
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