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[Skylerbone]

No more excuses after tonight. I dragged out my 30 year old $20 rest, put two bolts in the table top, and while it isn't parallax adjusted for short distance the new scope is otherwise ideal for me especially if I choose to hunt a bit this fall for bushy tails.

I am curious how the rifle will shoot with heavier pellets and I bought but did not shoot some Crosman Premiers today. I'll be sending away for more in the 10-11 gr range soon, possibly heavier if accuracy holds at longer distances.



Center Point 4x gone and Leupold Mark AR 1.5-4x mounted and ready.

5-shot group at 10 yds shooting at ~ 2.5x. I've yet to unbox or find for sale any standard targets (and I know I shouldn't be shooting out my aiming point but I'm not scoring targets here).

My slightly cluttered shooting "bench", my first dining room table circa 2000 (thanks Oak Express).

 

[chicharrones]

I know Leopold's are great scopes, but I do not know if they are rated for long term exposure to the reverse recoil that spring piston air rifles dish out.

Regular firearms have recoil that tend to knock a scope forward on the gun, which is why they are pre-loaded forward on a picatinny rail when tightened down.

Spring piston guns tend to make a scope slide rearward, unless the rear scope ring is held in place with a scope stop of some sort. This is due to the spring piston slamming to a stop at the forward limit of its travel.

I'm guessing scopes meant for use on auto loaders are good to go as the bolt of that auto loader is slamming forward and backward?

 

[Skylerbone]

My retail trip last night was a local search for better rings and targets, but the rings in use from the Center Point are both padded and include a stop pin on the rear.

All Leupold scopes are per manufacturer acceptable for air gun use. This was something I investigated extensively the past few days noting Burris and Bushnell make the same claim. I also took note of what online shops carried such as UTG, Hawke, Sightron, and Vortex. I own optics from all but UTG and Burris in that list but nothing I cared to pull for this rifle.

I had my eye on a Vortex Crossfire II with V-Brite reticle in 2-7x but no luck in finding one locally and the deal I got on this one is half tempting me to go back for the last one in stock, the display model.

My caveat, and probably the reason it's on clearance, is the mil adjustments and duplex crosshairs which is not a combo I would find appealing on an AR scope. I'll admit my 3-9x Mark AR has the opposite but is turret marked for yardage to 600 so if you use the reticle to gauge distance, you can dial it in. No such luck with a duplex, at least without figuring subtensions of the crosshairs thickness. If I find a good performing heavier pellet I'll simply set it and learn my come ups from the yardage markers.

 

[LoonWulf]

If you can get them try some jsb exacts, pretty much every gun ive shot has done well with those. I have not used them for .177 tho, all i own are .22s.

 

[chicharrones]

All Leupold scopes are per manufacturer acceptable for air gun use. This was something I investigated extensively the past few days noting Burris and Bushnell make the same claim.

Good to know, thanks!

 

[Speedo66]

Since I was a kid shooting my Daisy Model 25 pump rifle down the hallway in our NYC apartment, I've always used the same high tech BB and pellet trap. That would be a cardboard box filled with newspapers, magazines, and old phone books. There was nothing like old NYC phone books, especially the Manhattan edition, 4 to 5 inches thick.

Lately, the plethora of junk mail catalogs has taken the place of phone books, but it still works well. Toss it when it gets raggy, although as a kid I used to try and recover as many BB's as possible.

You guys are fancy. lol

 

[chicharrones]

Phone books were my favorite. About the only comparable item that can get my hands on is a new Grainger catalog once per year.

I still get a newspaper delivered to my house, but I think I'm I'm a minority here.

But yeah, I have a box stuffed with flat layers of newspaper and another box stuffed with a Grainger catalog sitting in my garage. Peppered with pellets by the way.

 

[Skylerbone]

I took the rifle out to the girlfriend's house this past weekend and even her 6 year old well used springer drilled through 7/16" plywood at 25 yds every time. I would stack up my old Cabelas hardback catalogs but with kids shooting I'd need 4 times as many as I have.

 

[Big7]

NOT knocking anyone's pellet trap.. BUT you can buy a good one for $35.00..

Side note:

The OP's 77/22 is THE BEST you can get. Centerfire Ruger quality.

Basically a Mauser Mauser action in .22rf or .22wmr..

Yes.. They cost about as much as a centerfire.

Say what you want about CZ''s, etc.. That 77/22 is bad A$$.

First hand knowledge.. I have one of each.

 

[maxxhavoc]

If you can get them try some jsb exacts, pretty much every gun ive shot has done well with those. I have not used them for .177 tho, all i own are .22s.

This is golden advice. Whether it is a .22 or a .177 the JSB Exacts are either the best pellet for the rifle or in the top 10%, at least in the 5 rifles I have...including a Shockwave.
https://www.amazon.com/JSB-Diabolo-...=1501671483&sr=8-4&keywords=exact+pellets+177

Some tips if you don't know them already:
-The accuracy of air rifles settles in at about 500-750 rounds. If you are shooting that well out-of the box, it will get better. Also easier to cock.
-Look up "artillery hold". Springers like to recoil freely.
-For that trigger, if you want better, look up CharlieDaTuna. His drop in triggers are generally considered the best upgrade for air rifles. I have shot one, but do not own one yet. You may have to contact him but he should have a replacement for yours.

 

[chicharrones]

Charlie DaTuna triggers are very nice. I've used them on two of my air rifles and bought one for a friend. That friend liked it so much he bought a Tuna trigger for his adult son's air rifle.

 

[Skylerbone]

While I always appreciated the feel of my 77/22, and particularly the action, once I got back into shooting on a consistent basis I began stretching my range and found accuracy problems. Took the Ruger to a good friend's shop and he scoped it, finding some heavy button chatter. I was 20 and poor at the time so I sold it then bought a Marlin 25N. That rifle has been my most accurate to date with only my 452 and an old Mossberg coming dangerously close. Not bad for a sub-$100 sporter.

I am aware of the artillary hold but shot all of those groups rested on bags. I do plan to give it a go though once I've acquired a sufficient variety of pellets including JSBs.

I've also read up previously on the CDT Triggers which may be an option once I invest in a nicer rifle, unless the Crosman turns out to have an exceptional barrel at 30 and 40 yds. For now it fits the role of indoor trainer with a nod toward fun which is just what I need.

 

[cobalt327]

Don't hesitate to try different holds. FWIW, I had resigned my Gamo Shadow 1000 to being a so-so shooter- that is until I stopped shooting it artillery style. One day out of curiosity and a bit of frustration, I simply gripped it the same way I do my rimfires. Not a death grip, but definitely tighter than the uber loose hold I had been using. The results were surprisingly good.

 

[chicharrones]

I've also read up previously on the CDT Triggers which may be an option once I invest in a nicer rifle, unless the Crosman turns out to have an exceptional barrel at 30 and 40 yds.

All the CDT triggers I've used are on air rifles less than $150.00. Those rifles triggers from the factory had so much draggy creep that when you started the trigger press the odds were the sights or reticle would be off target when the trigger finally broke.

The CDT triggers made all of those guns much easier to shoot offhand.