Why do people spend $300+ on a pellet rifle?

D

deucelee

New member
Hi all. I noticed that airgundepot and other shops have some very nice pellet guns for $300-$500. For those of you that have a very nice pellet rifle, can you tell me why you're spending $300+ on a pellet rifle when you can get a very nice 22LR rifle for the same $?

Maybe you have enough 22LR's/17HMR's/22WMR's?

You want to shoot indoors? Or outside without a lot of noise?

I have a CZ 455 and it's a gorgeous rifle. I'm considering buying a pellet gun for practice indoors. Contemplating how much I should spend before I regret not just buying another nice WMR or something similar.

thanks,
deuce
 
Think about it. An air rifle is actually more complicated than a firearm. Why should it be cheaper?
You get what you pay for, if you demand cheap, that's exactly what you will get, whether you are buying an air rifle or a fire arm. You want a hard trigger with a mile of creep and backlash instead of a crisp target trigger, then buy a $99 dollar .22 rifle or air gun.
You want plastic parts and a poor fit and finish and a cheap look? Then buy a $99 dollar .22 or air rifle.
You want a wood stock that looks like it belongs on a AK-47, then buy a $99 dollar .22 or air rifle.
 
I think its like buying an expensive pocket watch. Sure a cheep watch from walmart will tell time and may even work better for some applications but some people like pocket watches. Just like some people like air rifles.

p.s. there are some cities that allow you to shoot air rifles with in the city limits but not centerfire or rimfire guns. I lived in such a town for many years. We used a 22 caliber pellet gun for taking birds/squirrels that would harm our garden.

Personally I would like one of these. http://www.crosman.com/croswords/?p=1595

its a $1500.00 air rifle that shoots a 9mm sized bullet.
 
Pretty cool, was just looking for something I could shoot in my yard. Can't see spending $1500 on it though.
 
Ok thanks for the input guys...and BLE, you need to relax bro...i never said in my post that i was after dirt cheap stuff. Obviously I'm after some quality. Then again I'm also looking for a good bang for the buck. That's why I bought myself a CZ instead of 2x as much for a Ruger 77/22. Definitely not "demanding" cheap there.

It wasn't clear in my original post but I'm wondering if there's that big of a difference between a $200-$300 air rifle vs a, say, $350-$500 air rifle. I concur, if I want a nice stock, most guns under $200 are cheesy. Anyway, i'll keep my eyes open for a nice referb of a quality gun then. airgundepot sometimes has the RWS 460 Mag for a good deal for referbs.
 
I'm not up tight about it, I'm just saying that being an air rifle doesn't make it cheap to make, when you consider what's in an air rifle.
If I was to buy an air rifle tomorrow, it would probably be an RWS 54, most likely in .22 simply because the 1100 fps of the .177 is too close to supersonic for quietness.
The whip crack noise of a .22LR comes from the supersonic speed of the bullet, not the muzzle blast. If an air rifle shoots supersonic, you get that same whip crack noise.
 
When I shoot an air rifle, it's because I want to be able to work on my rifle marksmanship in my backyard. A plinker won't cut it, and it's just an exercise in frustration. I don't need an olympic-level air rifle, but a decent accurate rifle with a good stock and really nice trigger will cost some coin.


Factory target (HW55):
HW55Factorytarget.jpg


5 shots, standing, 10 meters:
HW55Target.jpg
 
Maybe you have enough 22LR's/17HMR's/22WMR's?

You want to shoot indoors? Or outside without a lot of noise?
Click to expand...

As someone who's dropped more than 300 on a Crosman Challenger, and is saving his pennies for a FWB500, I'd say that you can never have enough 22's, and that if you actually compete in air rifle, you need a good rifle.

I have a CZ 455 and it's a gorgeous rifle. I'm considering buying a pellet gun for practice indoors. Contemplating how much I should spend before I regret not just buying another nice WMR or something similar.
Click to expand...

If you want a proxy for a rimfire or centerfire, consider a pre-charged pneumatic "sporter class" air rifle such as the Crossman Challenger, Air Arms 200, or Air Force Edge. The trigger pull for sporters is 1.5 lbs minimum, so it helps work your trigger control as well.

If you want a good air rifle for training and not competition, get a Daisy 853 refurbished model from the CMP. Just over 100 bucks if you pick it up in the store, a little more if you get it shipped. Triggers are longer and stiffer from the factory, but the sights and Lothar Walther barrel will let you repeat 10s at 10 meters, even if you have to break position to pump once for every shot.

The Daisy 853 new is one of those "300+" cost rifles, so getting one refurbed through the CMP is a real bargain.

Jimro
 
There are very good air rifles in the under $150 range, too.
Look at the Gamo brand, for some ideas.
Some of the cost has less to do with how it shoots, and more about the quality of wood, sights and scope mounts.
Just like firearms.
 
I need an airgun that will...

kill squirrels, quietly, in my backyard, in a residential subdivision in a city - for less than $150, in the Cabela's catalog.

I don't care about quality of wood stock, or fit/finish. Decent trigger is necessary to make head shots.

Best candidate?:confused:
 
Major Dave (retired),

Based on your criteria, I recommend this: http://www.pyramydair.com/s/m/Webley_Rebel_Air_Rifle/2980/5778

The gas system is multi-pump, so you will not have to deal with break barrel springer vibration issues affecting accuracy, is 22 caliber so you get to shoot pellets with twice the mass of a standard .177 caliber air rifle, and the price point is in the range you quoted.

Now air rifles aren't silent, but they are much quieter than rimfires, generally quieter than even subsonic 22 shorts.

If you can add 20 dollars to your top price, it is really hard to beat a Benjamin 392 for what you ask: http://www.pyramydair.com/s/m/Benjamin_392_pump_air_rifle/205/570#Specifications or http://www.cabelas.com/product/Benjamin-Air-Rifle/740656.uts?WTz_l=Header;Search-All+Products

Jimro
 
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Have you tried to buy any .22LR lately? There are still lots of pellets on store shelves. Also, even expensive pellets are less than 5 cents/shot...
 
Why not?

You can use them for small game, pests, practice the basics of marksmanship and even do it in your basement if you want to.
Just as much engineering and skilled labor involved in building them as for a conventional firearm.
 
.

Another excellent reason is that it's not a firearm............ Which means someone wanting quality shooting, but living in a gun-unfriendly area or country, can shoot w/o jumping through legal hoops.



.
 
Sometimes spending a lot more for a "good" pellet gun doesn't justify the results. I regularly beat guys using $2000 Feinwerkbau air pistols at our matches using my $55 Crosman American Classic 1377C. They laugh at me pumping it between shots until I beat them (25 yards, standard NRA outdoor targets).

If you can hold it steady it shoots straight.
 
Spacecoast,

Using my Challenger I was withing 30 points of a shooter using an FWB at my last match. Of course I was wearing sneakers, jeans and a sweatshirt instead of a 500 dollars worth of competition boots, trousers, and jacket. I picked up an Izh-53M for 10 meter pistol shooting, which is my first break barrel airgun. It shoots tighter than I do, but I bought it because I specifically need to work more on pistol marksmanship.

As Col. Cooper said, "Good shooting can make up for poor gear. Good gear will not make up for poor shooting."

Jimro
 
I just bought a recoilless RWS 54 in .177. It goes at 1100 fps, and it does not give off any sonic boom/crack. It is a heavy rifle --- but I enjoy shooting it --- and it is reported to be the most accurate air rifle under $3000. Our indoor range --- AGC at Marriottsville --- will only allow air rifles under 700 fps, so I shoot it at our outdoor 100 yard range at 25 and 50 yards.

Where I can shoot metallic spinners only at 100 yards with a 22 rimfire...I'm allowed to shoot metallic spinners at 25 and 50 yards with my air rifle, though the 22 pellet might make a louder ping on the spinner.
 
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