First PCP. Tell me if I'm way off base...

Warning - this is all my opinion on a gun that's not released yet. No, I have not seen one!

Will it do the job you want, ABSOLUTELY! is it the best starter PCP, maybe not. At $300 for the bullpup and $400 for the rifle version, there are many other competitors like the Gauntlet that are already proven reliable and accurate. I hesitate to ever recommend a gun that's not even released yet, especially for a first PCP. Either a Gauntlet or Maximus might be good starter PCP's in this price range. I only put the Maximus in that range because one may wish to add a moderator to the stock gun. 

Couple things about high powered guns.

• Sound barrier is about 1050 FPS at sea level. When a pellet breaks the sound barrier, it tends to destabilize and can go where you don't want it to go.
• When the pellet breaks the sound barrier, you'll get a sonic boom. Just like a jet, but not as powerful. It'll probably be a very noisy rifle (no reviews on it yet, shucks!) The moderator won't help with sonic booms, so it'll be noisy no matter what you do.
• With proper shot placement, a 20 foot pound gun will be sufficient (in my understanding). I understand that if a pellet can penetrate a half inch pine board, it's possibly lethal to humans (and since raccoons are smaller, them too). 21 FPE guns should be sufficient for what you need. Lots and lots of those are out there.

Hand pump - I have the Benjamin pump. It works, but the Hill Pump has a more efficient stroke. Figure on $225 for a hill. On the other end of the spectrum, there's a cheap Chineseium pump on eBay for $45 or so. Some are sold by folks in the US, so shipping won't take 6 weeks. These are getting good reviews.

The 165 CC tank will probably give no more than 25 or 30 shots per fill, depending on how efficient the valve is.

So many choices out there

Now, let me put in a plug for the Maximus.

• 2000 PSI Fill, easy to pump.
• 30 shots per fill, 
• $165 at Crosman using the AGNATION code and free shipping on Fridays
• Use the savings to put a moderator on the gun. It should still be under $200.
• It's known accurate up to 50 or so yards.

Using a pump myself for a time, that 2000 PSI fill makes a huge difference in the enjoyment of shooting. Pumping to 2800 or 3000 takes an immense amount of energy. 2000 isn't all that noticeable.

Good luck on whatever you pick

what do you recommend for .25 or .30 caliber PCP with regulator in price range from $500 to $800? I will be using it for hunting.

"Weaklink"...and am going to grab a nice 3x9 off one of my rifles and see if it shoots better.

Click to expand...

A word of warning, if it's good scope you may want to think twice about using it.Most scopes will not survive the double recoil of a spring or gas piston air rifle for long.

HHHMMMMM....... Regulated? I'm thinking more like $1000 and up for regulated .25's and better. Might be best if you bought a $500 rifle, and added a Huma Regulator yourself. That would leave the field open to just about any rifle in the fleet. Do check and make sure that Huma offers a regulator before buying the rifle though. Marauder, Gladius, Airforce Talon's, BSA Scorpion, Air Arms S200

​Unless you are willing to spend $1000 for an FX Streamline in .25, don't think you'll find much with a regulator from the factory in .25 or .30. Crosman's logic in not offering a regulated .25 Marauder is that hunters want full power and would just as soon not have a regulated gun. Airgun Depot has the refurb Streamlines in synthetic for $900 right now. I'm tempted.

i did see the streamline at air gun depot $899 ,,what a nice rig ,i also beleive the benjiman marauder is the besr first gun on the market for $ 420 with coupon above andfree friday shipping ..the bulldog and puncher breaker are also sweet

1st off you have said a few things that has set some alarm bells off.
you are inside the city limits, you are looking to shoot coons, 
Will be a really good idea to check your state and city regs about those.
Please be careful of your backstops 
a .25 Cal Marauder is a great starter gun that at 25 yards will be good at taking coons 

You can't go wrong with Crosman, and their Friday deals. My friends took advantage of refurb Disco's from Normand at DiscosRus, he passed the business on years back. The .22 in stock form is loud and a great 100 foot gun. The newer models appear to have only gotten better. Their is a cheap plastic trigger on the Disco, if you do a google search you can find 2 and 3 screw mods. Simple and strait forward that clunky trigger can now be made to break in mere ounces. Another mod that was popular was the Marauder Gen 1 trigger with a shim to make up the difference from the 7/8' tune to the 1 1/4" on the Marauder. Most of the Crosman PCP guns with some tuning and or filling to a specific air pressure, shots can be optimized in a specific curve. As for taking out the masked devils, take a peak at Gateway to Airguns they had a long post explaining shot placement and energy on these annoying pests. Cedric aka Tofazfu has a great video series on what you can do with an old Marauder .17 HMair. He set the bar a couple of years back with a .257 what he does here is pretty cool.

One thing to be careful of with Regulated Guns, compared to something like the Marauder. They have one (1) power level. The Marauder can be tuned to fire multiple pellet weights at different speeds. Example, stock from the factory, it shoots the 14.3 grain pellet at 850 ish fps. with a few turns of the screws, it'll send a 18.3 grain JSB at the same speed, increasing accuracy, range, and energy. You just get fewer shots per fill.

​With a regulator you can adjust the speed at which the transfer port allows air to enter the gun as I understand it. The other adjustments of hammer adjustments are pretty much eliminated as the regulator overrides them.

​To be honest, most regulated guns do not allow much in the way of adjustments. The regulator is the controller and it's set at the factory. Even good old Ted doesn't usually play with the regulator adjustments on the Impact. Too easy to screw it up.

​While a .25 is a great caliber in the Marauders, I'd recommend looking at the .22 also. Not quite as much power but when adjusted to use the 18.3 grain pellets, at 830 fps, you get 27 foot pounds of energy. With the .25 caliber 25 grain pellets, you get 38 pounds. Big difference, but 28 is plenty to take a raccoon. Lower power = quieter, less expensive, more shots per fill, less chance of hitting and damaging other property in the city limits.

​As for the gun itself, I have a Marauder and am very attached to it. It has serious competition in the low end of the market these days though. The Gauntlet gets excellent reviews. The new Fortitude is one to look at once available. The Maximus Euro edition is definitely on my shopping list. (sub 12 foot pound version). The Maximus gets lots and lots of shots on a 2000 psi fill. Easy pumper.

​As always, good luck!

I agree with Willie14228. it only takes a tiny twig or small pebble to cause a ricochet. make sure you have a backstop larger than you think is necessary.

Whatever you get, I will bet it won't be the last! You are on your way to getting hooked. Before long, you'll be shooting that next gun every day and itching for something else!

For the Gamo, get a GRT4G trigger, and invest in a scope that is made for the forward and reverse recoil of the piston. You should do pretty good for about $50. UTG has a few uptions under $100 that will be better than adequate for the Gamo and come with decent rings with a recoil pin. Loctite the scope screws, and regulsrly check the screws in the stock on the Big Cat. If they loosen a little, accuracy goes away.

It might be a cheap beater, but the Big Cat is pretty decent for what it is. Great gun for a pre-teen or teenager, too. Nice and light, not gonna miss it if it gets damaged.

You tube check out the Karl puncher breaker under 600 bucks