My .02 on BSA.
I'd put the Cat's Eye line on a cheapie .22lr or PCP airgun - that's their "elite" line, I believe. That's it. Don't put
any on a spring piston air gun or a centerfire gun, and don't buy any below cat's eye - junk.
Bushnells are fine scopes for the most part (well, you get about what you'd expect from whichever of the 5 different Bushnell lines you buy from). So don't even be lumping them in with BSA.
Elite 3200s and 4200s are very good scopes, and the only scopes to my knowledge with "rain guard" coating, which can be invaluable when hunting in rain or with high humidity.
1 shot, 1 hit: I've done extensive research as to which scopes are strong enough for spring piston airguns like your RWS 54, which are VERY hard on scopes - more so than powerful centerfires even, with the 2-way recoil. I have a database of which scopes are suitable, based on their warranties and whether they exclude spring piston airguns, as well as info gleaned from the internet. In a nutshell, Bushnell is the answer. They go specifically out on a limb and say that all their scopes stand up to airgun recoil (supposedly). Get ANY Bushnell Trophy, or Bushnell Legend, or Bushnell Elite 3200, or Bushnell Elite 4200 that has AO (for focusing down to 10-15 yards). Or, for other brands that are supposed to stand up to spring piston recoil, get a Weaver V16 or Weaver Grand Slam, or a Swift Premier, or if you're loaded, get a Leupold VX3, 6.5-20x40mm with AO (this is probably the ultimate airgun scope, but very expensive). Or, for small (compact) scope choices, get a Leupold "VX" (which I *think* is equivalent to a VX1), 3-9x33mm AO, or a Burris 3-9x32 AO, or Burris 6x32 AO, or Burris 4-12x32 AO.
Don't waste your time with BSA (I even tried the BSA model that is specifically for airguns - the 2-7x32 or thereabouts, and the adjustment knob broke). You need a scope with a good warranty like Bushnell or Leupold or Burris so they will fix it if your airgun breaks it. Nikon's warranty does NOT exclude airguns, but it seems that nothing I've read on the net can independently verify that Nikons are good for airguns, whether Monarchs or Buckmaster or whathaveyou. Plus, Nikons don't have the close range AO that you'll want. I wouldn't mess with RWS or Beeman scopes either - they seem to be of very marginal quality. I also wouldn't mess with the Sportsman or Banner lines of Bushnell. The Banner is supposed to work for spring pistons, (and may in fact since your 54 has the recoil reduction system), but I wouldn't try it. That rifle deserves a Trophy line or better. On a gun that nice, I would put a Bushnell Elite 4200, 4-16x40mm AO, or Bushnell Elite 3200, 4-12x40mm AO, or Bushnell Legend 5-15x40mm AO, or Bushnell Trophy 6-18x40mm AO, or Weaver Grand Slam 6-20x4mm0 AO, or a Weaver V16, 4-16x42mm AO, or Leupold vx, 3-9x33mm AO, or on a budget, a Swift Premier Airgun 6.5-20x44mm AO ($159 here
http://www.eabco.com/swiftmildot.htm ). This Swift may actually be your best value here. I also wouldn't mess with the Simmons that are supposedly specifically for airguns - meh. One possible reason you can't hit anything with your rifle is that the scope is moving around (as you say). It may also be the case that the the scope has been broken by the recoil and you just can't tell by looking at it - you only know because the point of impact doesn't stay constant. But, OTOH, since it's a GAMO, maybe it *will* stand up to the recoil once it is tightened down with good rings. :dunno: On a reeeeeeally tight budget, I might even try the RWS model 300, 4x32 AO - about $105 (this is NOT the model 350, which is NOT strong enough for heavy recoil). But you probably wouldn't own a model 54 if you were on that tight of a budget.
I'd use steel rings. That RWS has an 11mm rail I think, which is kinda weird/proprietary, but it's not much bigger than a rimfire rail, so rimfire rings WILL work with it (thankfully). Spring piston airguns also need a "scope rail stop", as I understand it, which is placed on the rail behind one of the rings, to keep the whole ring/scope unit from slowly creeping down the scope rail, which they have a tendency to do, due to weird recoil. However, I have not been able to find for sale a scope rail stop (I need one too). So let me know if you find one for sale. The only ones I've seen are integral to an add-on rail for drilled/tapped guns without integral rails, which I don't need. (Actually, the RWS rail is not integral, it's removable if you want to). To remedy the problem without a scope rail stop, it would be wise (if possible) to simply place the rear ring snug up against (in front of) the "stop" that is already on the rear of RWS rails - but this may not work, however, depending on the scope length, tube/bell configuration, and your proper eye relief.
Yes, use blue loctite on all screws associated with scope mounting.
Good rings? Hmm, there are many - any good name brand that are made of steel - Redfield, Leupold, Burris, Weaver, etc. For the funky recoil of the spring piston guns, if I could afford it, I'd get the Burris signature rimfire rings. The ONLY reason I didn't go with these rings on mine is because I could not find them for sale for low or medium height - the only ones for sale are HIGH in Burris Signature rimfire, 1" rings. But, if you get a 44mm or 50mm scope, you'll want high rings anyway. Probably even for a 42mm scope, like the Weaver V16 4-16x42 AO. Go to
www.brownells.com or
www.midwayusa.com or
www.natchezss.com for rings.
You definitely want an AO feature (adjustable objective) on an airgun scope, so that when shooting things at close range (under 25 yards), you can eliminate parallax, which throws off your point of impact if your eye is not perfectly centered in the scope bell.
P.S. Leupold calls their scopes that have an AO which can focus down to 10 yards "EFR"s, instead of just "A/O". This stands for extended focal range.
P.P.S. Bushnell says that their Elite 3200 and Elite 4200 scopes have been tested to 10,000 rounds of .375 H&H Mag, for whatever that is worth. That's one-way recoil, but still, if true, that's a lot of violent shaking around. So it would be hard to go wrong choosing one of these that has an AO on it.
1shot, 1hit, also, welcome. And that's a fine airgun you've got there. I'm envious. It deserves good glass!