Air Guns

I bagged one today,... first one in a _l o n g_ time. I tagged it out at a hundred yards. I toyed with it yesterday, but hadn't shot in this same down time. So, yesterday was rough. Today, I had dialed in the shot, and, pop went the rodent.

The Hatsan,...
It went back to the vendor. I strongly dislked the single shot tray; it wobbled, and it tried to sideways load the pellets every time. It jammed a few in and required some effort to extract.
The dilema that I had of it aiming too far in one direction, and my being able to make the adjustment with a shim,... that went out the window when I doubled the depth of shot; right back to square one. So, it was sent back. I'm back at the starting point in this one.
Regarding pumping it up to 3k psi,... It was more work to be sure. But I broke the final pumps up into pumps and breaks.
 
I bagged one today,... first one in a _l o n g_ time. I tagged it out at a hundred yards. I toyed with it yesterday, but hadn't shot in this same down time. So, yesterday was rough. Today, I had dialed in the shot, and, pop went the rodent.
:thumbsup:
I hear you Mike. Its been a long dry spell around here for us too - guess we're getting too salty for the little bastards.
Calming, but kind of disappointing in a way. I'm sort of hoping spring will bring on a new crop.
 
I am still researching the Benjamin Marauder, the Marauder target and field, which has a regulated airtank. In addition there is a target and field with a Walther/ Lothar barrel replacement. I like the regulated pcp tank idea but the target groups between the rifles with and without regulation are producing groups that are the same, or at least within similar quality. I also don't see much difference by adding the Walther barrel. Their prices go from $429 to $599 to $729. Has anyone else have or have been doing research about this line of airguns? Any thoughts regarding this gun would be appreciated.
 
OK,... My new distance record was set yesterday, and, then matched.
I've been trying to pop one of the local sage rats at super-duper long distance for the better part of a year now. My previous record was out at 400ft; this one yesterday, made that seem like a backyard shot. Yesterdays shot is another 2/3 deeper again that that, and, is likely around 700'++, 750'? And, uphill.
There is a network of squirrel tunnels out there on this bare hillside (they cause massive erosion by this).
A rodent has been very active out there all week, and, during breaks from my projects, I'll go out there, and show it some love.
To get shots at this rodent, I have to drop dpown in the scope to nearly the bottom of the view. To compensate for windage, I have to move the rodent to the right by a couple of mil-dots, as there is a breeze from the left. I've come danger close so many times; winddrift close, but no contact. Yesterday changed that.

The new owner of the property that I've been pooping squirrels on has covered my targeting area with a larger pile of mulch. The previous pile of mulch was ground up pine tree shredding. When the winds blew, and the rains came, new pine cones would be revealed on the top of this mulch ridge. I used those pine cones for dilaing in at 100 yards.Now a new mulch pile was dumped, so, I added pieces of granite countertop rems to the side of the mulch pile - a huge benefit!
Now, I'm totally dialed at 100 yards.

Back to the sage rat and the long distance shots,...
I've chased it all around that area, landing incredibly close, but missing. That is until yesterday.
Yesterday started out with close misses, and dirt explosions in its face, as typical. Then, i took aim again, and just as I pulled the trigger, the sage rat moved forward, and, the shot held true. I hit it at mid-tail, and turned its tail into a flag at half mast. It spun around, acknowledging the hit, and it thrashed around with its tail. It scampered back into its hole.
OK,... I felt really bad about injuring, and not killing it.
Later that afternoon, I saw it emerge from its hole, and it sat just outside of its hole. I took another shot, and missed in close, which alerted it. It lifted its tail, which went half mast, and confirmed same rodent. So, I took aim again, and fired. This time, there was a jerk, then nothing, no dust puff from a miss, nothing. A couple of seconds later, it started running backwards, erratically. Then it started flopping like a jumping bean, and, then laid silently as coyote fodder.
So, huge distance record set for me, twice, yesterday. And, the rodent only suffered for a couple of hours before being dispatched.

that one makes for 4 over the last ten days or so.
 
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chuckles.

I've also figured out a reason why I experience oddities in pellet flight. Like I've suggested, I see the dang things in flight a majority of the times; saw squirrels tail hit, and the pellet in flight just before impact.
In seeing these flights, I've seen too many times where the pellets fly in a corkscrew trajectory, and, I was baffled as to why.
Turns out that I've been slamming the pellets into the breach with the bolt pellet probe, too hard, and, I speculate strongly, that I was distorting the pellet skirts, causing the spiraling flight.
So, I've changed my loading approach, to that of softly nudging, bumping the pellets into the breech with the bolt probe. Result: far truer flight, and far fewer fliers.
 
This may be my problem. A couple of weeks ago I dropped a crow and a jay at about 45 - 50 yds from my spot at the kitchen window and thought I was pretty salty afterwards but a few days ago it didn't even come close to another jay at about half the distance. I've had this inconsistency happen before but just couldn't put my finger on what the deal was.
I'll try seating my round into the breach better and see if that helps.
 
If you want to put them all through the same hole, and you're doing everything else right.................

Wash your pellets carefully in warm, mildly soapy water, dry them well. Small batches are easier to handle. The manufacturing process leaves crud on them.

When you're ready to find the limits of your platform's accuracy, get a series of pellet sizers. I've sourced them out of the UK in the past, they usually graduate in size by hundredths of a mm. Find the optimal pellet diameter for your setup and carefully size your pellets prior to shooting. When sizing i strongly suggest using a pusher/probe that fits the inner skirt profile of the particular pellet you use.
 
If you want to put them all through the same hole, and you're doing everything else right.................

Wash your pellets carefully in warm, mildly soapy water, dry them well. Small batches are easier to handle. The manufacturing process leaves crud on them.

When you're ready to find the limits of your platform's accuracy, get a series of pellet sizers. I've sourced them out of the UK in the past, they usually graduate in size by hundredths of a mm. Find the optimal pellet diameter for your setup and carefully size your pellets prior to shooting. When sizing i strongly suggest using a pusher/probe that fits the inner skirt profile of the particular pellet you use.

Is a basic dish soap in a pan, and swirl it around cleaning OK?
 
I agree on the complexity factor. The pellets that are 100% lead have less issues, from what I have read. Partial lead pellets tend to foul the barrels. Because of the way pellet guns are built, cleaning a barrel is more of a PITA than with a normal rifle
 
Speaking of non-lead,... I'm going to have to comply with a new reg at some point. Any animal hunted in Cal will now be done with lead-free ammo (in some form of paraphrase).

So, with that said,... experiences?
 
I agree on the complexity factor. The pellets that are 100% lead have less issues, from what I have read. Partial lead pellets tend to foul the barrels. Because of the way pellet guns are built, cleaning a barrel is more of a PITA than with a normal rifle
I've noticed this with the CPHP pellets sold in the tins. They are much too hard to be regular lead and little bits of material tend to flake off of them. The boxed CPHP pellets don't suffer from this in my experience. That said, I really love Daisy wadcutters for pest birds in my yard in suburbia, but man are they filthy! They have to be 100% lead or close to it, the skirts deform so easy. Even easier than the JSB and RWS pellets I use.
 
I have done a large amount of reading about airguns. I want to learn before making a purchase. At this point the amount that I would spend on the gun and all the accessories is running in excess of a grand. That is a lot, but I have not purchased anything for my self in many years. My biggest expenditures in the last 8 years was the cost of having the following rehabbed: SX-1250, SX-1280, G-8000, Sansui Deluxe Model Eight, Sansui Model Eight and my Onkyo TX8500MkII. It cost a bundle, but now I can relax a bit, if only the stock market continues its upward movement, I'll be okay.
 
I have done a large amount of reading about airguns. I want to learn before making a purchase. At this point the amount that I would spend on the gun and all the accessories is running in excess of a grand. That is a lot, but I have not purchased anything for my self in many years. My biggest expenditures in the last 8 years was the cost of having the following rehabbed: SX-1250, SX-1280, G-8000, Sansui Deluxe Model Eight, Sansui Model Eight and my Onkyo TX8500MkII. It cost a bundle, but now I can relax a bit, if only the stock market continues its upward movement, I'll be okay.

My advice, buy something German. Be it Diana, Weirauch, or FWB, they are all heirloom quality rifles that will be passed on and well worth the price of admission. It doesn't matter if you want PCP, spring piston, or gas piston, they are all excellent shooters with fantastic triggers. Have a look at Airguns of Arizona, they always seem to have some great deals on the German rifles. Another piece of advice, if you are considering a spring gun and shooting mostly inside of 50yd, look into a peep sight instead of a scope. A Williams peep runs ~$50 and they're durable as all get out. I run a Williams peep sight on my RWS 34 with a hooded front sight. The target acquisition is very fast compared to a scope and the accuracy is almost as good for shorter range shooting.
 
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