As I have become more involved in PCP air rifles, I have a growing frustration around the fragility of most air rifles, and the resulting inconsistency of POI from day to day, and the inability to withstand even minor bumps without affecting POI, and the need to zero again. After years of rimfire shooting, I became frustrated with the availability and consistency of good ammo, and turned my attention to air rifles. But, at least the rimfire rifles are rock solid, and the same ammo is going to shoot where you're aiming, even after a weather change or a minor (or major) barrel bump. Thinking about going back to them. Once, while unloading for a squirrel hunt, I dropped my .22 rimfire rifle as the rear gate opened on my vehicle. A short while later, I had a shot, and nailed the squirrel right in the head. Had that been one of my air rifles, I would not have attempted a shot without first re-zeroing, which my experience would indicate it would need.
Air rifles are a lot of fun, but the PCP technology and rifle construction, seems to require a lot of careful handling and maintenance when compared to their rimfire counterparts. Maybe someday, air rifle makers will see the benefit of threaded or pinned barrel shanks and robust actions that can withstand some heavier use. I realize that would take some careful assembly to align air ports and O rings, but maybe machining could be sufficiently precise to preclude the need for so much rubber in the accuracy chain. Maybe I'm just trying to force a square peg into a round hole, so forgive the rant. It's time for some good Kentucky bourbon, which seems to always help in problem solving.
Air rifles are a lot of fun, but the PCP technology and rifle construction, seems to require a lot of careful handling and maintenance when compared to their rimfire counterparts. Maybe someday, air rifle makers will see the benefit of threaded or pinned barrel shanks and robust actions that can withstand some heavier use. I realize that would take some careful assembly to align air ports and O rings, but maybe machining could be sufficiently precise to preclude the need for so much rubber in the accuracy chain. Maybe I'm just trying to force a square peg into a round hole, so forgive the rant. It's time for some good Kentucky bourbon, which seems to always help in problem solving.