best in its price range (rodent pest control)

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stephenszpak

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Oct 24, 2016
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Hi

I'm new here, but I'm sure this question has been asked
100's of times.

What are the top 3 or 4 best air rifles to kill rodent pests?
Temperature range would be 30 to 90 degrees F.
Rifle must have a scope.
Price (without tax or shipping charges) should <$260.
Occasional use (not as a professional). 

Thanks for any suggestions

-Stephen
 
First off, do you have any type of power restriction as this could limit what is available.

Going off the belief that your in the US, you're talking a range out to 30 yards which allows you to choose between gas-piston/spring piston models and some PreCharged Pneumatics (PCPs) in .177 or .22 caliber. I highly recommend not using CO2 powered on live animals due to power fluctuations (+ or -) based on temperature and amount of CO2 remaining in the cartridge. This could affect your accuracy resulting in wounding the squirrels instead of killing them.

If you look at gas-piston models (most likely this will be break barrel design), look for something rated for 1000 fps in .177 or 850 fps in .22. Both of these combinations will give you enough energy at 30 yards and under to take ethical head shots. In terms of velocity, keep in mind that anything going faster than 950 fps may cause the pellet to become destabilized during flight so you don't need anything rated at 1450 or 1600 fps. Also, by going with these slightly slower velocities, you'll be keeping the air rifle more quite since you're not breaking the speed of sound barrier. There are multiple good models/brands out there for this with Crosman/Benjamin and Gamo probably being the best known.

If you want to go a little more high tech, you can look at a PCP model like the Benjamin Marauder Pistol. One thing you'll need with a PCP is a source of air. With the pistol, it is very easy to fill it with the Benjamin air pump (you need a special air pump to fill a PCP). While this is your most expensive option, it also gives you the ability to add more PCPs down the road. You won't find these at most retail outlets, and if you keep an eye out at several of the Internet dealers you may find a package that includes a scope and air pump in your price range.

In terms of pellets, look for a good diabolo or round dome pellet weighing over 7 grains in .177 and 14 grains in .22. At many of the most popular retail and sporting outlets you'll be limited in choice to Crosman/Benjamin or Gamo. You'll want to try several different brands to find out which one(s) the air rifle likes the best. I've shot some types of ammo from the above in the break barrels and had a 16 inch spread at 10 yards while other brands have given me 1/2 inch 10 shot groups at 25 yards.
 
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This one is a little slower:Crosman Optimus .22 Caliber Break Barrel Air Rifle with Scope, 950fps
The single-shot Crosman Optimus Air Rifle shoots at velocities up to 950 feet per second with alloy pellets. For shooting ease and comfort, the Crosman Air Rifle offers a relatively light cocking force. The Crosman .22cal air rifle is a smart choice for anyone needing dependability and maximum performance in an air rifle. Includes 4x32 scope.

https://www.walmart.com/ip/Crosman-Optimus-.22-Air-Rifle-with-Scope/16536068#about


I don't know much about air rifles really. I was wondering though, if a rifle
says '1200 feet per second' {like the Fury NP .177) is there a easy way to slow
it down to 900 to 1000 feet per second? If not, maybe this Optimus .22 is just fine.

-Stephen
 
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Stephen a quality airgun for under $300 is hard to come by. AGD has refurb Diana 34's in stock for $189 shipped(Diana's are made in Germany). Shop around for a Hawke or Bushnell scope, both come with lifetime warranties as long as they arent abused. You will need scope rings, I recommend getting a droop mount with rings built in. Most 34's have barrel droop.


AGD will not have these in stock for long, buy one while you can. Shipping is free on orders over $179 at AGD. Buy 4 tins of pellets at AGD get one free plus they will ship free. H&N FTT 8.64, JSB 8.4, RWS 8.3 and Crosman 7.9 all shot good out of my 34.

Links: http://www.airgundepot.com/refurbished-rws-34-177-scope-combo-1000-fps.html
http://www.airgundepot.com/airguns-remanufactured.html#airgun-type=Air%20Rifles
 
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I agree. A nitro break barrel for a first airgun wouldn't be my choice (been there!). They require a lot of patients in learning how to hold the gun to get even a modicum of accuracy. 

There is noting wrong with a pump gun like a Benjamin 397 or 392. Scope mounts and upgraded triggers are available. Either will shot better than 1/2 inch groups at 25 yards with the right pellet. 
 
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I think the Crosman optimus would be fine for your first air gun. With 950FPS muzzle velocity, it's plenty at minimal ranges like 30-40 yards to kill rats, squirrels, feral pigeons, etc. Plus the price is right up your alley. And using domed pellets of around 14 grains in it would give a good balance of range & knock-down power at good velocities .22 caliber.
 
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@stephenszpak,

Don't get overwhelmed here with all these comments as each one has value. A lot of the read between the lines conversation here involves ease of shooting for consistently repeatable shots. In terms of air rifles, the easiest type to get repeatable results from are PCP style air rifles followed closely by multi-pump, then CO2, then gas-piston and finally spring-piston. There will be those that don't agree with me on this which is fine as I'm talking from my experience, not some scientific report that questioned and monitored 100 different shooters with all of these different power plants.

The reality of this is as long as you hit the squirrel in the brain with something that has at least 5 foot pounds of energy (fpe) at the point of impact, the squirrel is going to die. It could be a rock from a sling shot or a potato from a potato gun. It just doesn't matter. What does matter is how many times you can do that in a row so you're killing the squirrel and not just injuring it. Slingshots require a lot of practice to be consistently accurate with and a potato gun would need a sighting system installed on it and modified potatoes so each one has the same dimensions and weight to be effective. This is where air rifles start standing apart.

A PCP style will have a predictable repeatable shot string over a certain power level based on factors such as how much compressed air the air cylinder is filled with, valve settings and air management equipment like regulators or specialty hammers. A multi-pump will also have a repeatable sting provided the same number of pumps is used each time. A CO2 produces different results based on multiple factors such as temperature and the amount of CO2 in the cartridge. One of the most repeatable in terms of air used per shot will be the gas and spring piston ram models. The reason for this is that you have a set amount of air that will be taken in when cocking the air rifle as the chamber is limited with the amount of air that can be drawn into it during the cocking process. The problem with gas and spring piston air rifles is that the force of the piston forcing the air out the transfer hole and hitting the cylinder wall creates bi-directional recoil. In other words, it throws the air rifle forward and then backwards making them the most difficult. Repeatable accuracy requires some special shooting skills that most recreational shooters don't take the time to learn and/or practice.

As for the other recommendations, I've got an RWS 34 and love it but I also have a Benjamin NP, Benjamin NP2, Gamo Big Cat and Gamo Bone Collector. All five are break barrel air rifles with the RWS 34 being spring piston while the others are all gas-ram and will give 1/2 inch groups out to 20 yards with no problems and I'd have no problem using any of them out to 30 yards for squirrel control. Where you start seeing a difference is in the 30 yard and beyond areas. A 1/2 inch group at 20 yards may open up to a 3/4 or 1 inch group at 30 yards based on the pellet you're using and shooting technique. Now, if I practiced more with them (like I previously mentioned) I know I could get my grouping down to 1/2 inch once I knew what the best pellet to use for each one was, but I don't as the PCPs are my workhouse air rifles for wildlife control so that's what I spend my time shooting. Specific to accuracy at further distances, I do feel the RWS 34 produces better groups, followed by Gamo and then Benjamin, but the RWS is the most expensive out of the 5 so I wouldn't expect anything else. Keep in mind that these results are specific to my personal air rifles with me being the shooter, put these same 5 air rifles in another's hands or 5 different air rifles and the results will be different.

Bottom line here is that even though I've not shot the air rifles you mentioned, either should be fine but my preference for shooting animals is .22 and larger. Also, don't fixate too much on the fps listings. Many manufactures use lighter pellets to get faster results (I've been told by Crosman that they use their 14.3 gr pellets for the .22 calibers while other manufactures may use a much lighter pellet) as the marketing trend is to focus on speed and not much else. It's important to know how fast your air rifle is actually shooting which is why many of us have chronographs to verify speed / pellet combinations. I realize this isn't practical for everyone which is why I gave the fps recommendations before as with my experience, the true performance is 100 fps or more slower than what's on the box.

Lastly, if you do get a break barrel and ever want to slow a pellet down, simply seat it further into the barrel. This is where a pellet pen comes in handy as they tend to have an adjustable probe that allows you to change the distance the pellet is inserted into the barrel.
 
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Dude, go with that Model 34 RWS in .177 and don't look back. That is a terrific starter rifle. You will never regret the choice. Learn to shoot it with iron sights and then get a scope down the road. I have killed plenty of squirrels with my Model 36 and it is the same rifle with a fancier stock. Dead squirrels all day long... no problem.
 
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It's been my experience that cheap Crosmans have junk triggers. You can buy a nicer trigger to upgrade but I'm not interested in being a gunsmith at any level. I think a refurb is going to be your best option for getting the best gun you can at the best price. There's plenty of brands I've not shot but there are several I have and bought. 

How good of a shot are you? As my eyes, and the rest of me, age I don't sight as well as I used to so I wanted to make sure if I'm off a tad the shot will still count due to energy imparted on the target, so that meant I left .177 behind and stepped up to .22 and .25. You have lots of choices in .22, not so many in .25 when it comes to spring guns.

Diana - you can't go wrong w/a German gun 99 times out of 100. Every maker will have issues from time to time but the quality is very strong in these lines. The problem is in your price range you won't have much to choose from.

Chinese - a variety of makes and names but I will say the ones I had were, for the most part, sub $100 pieces of junk. I've never dealt with him personally but I know several here would endorse Mike at Flying Dragon and his tunes on his imported guns. That would be a safe bet.

Crosman - again, due to low budget purchases I've never handled one that I liked due to the poor trigger. I need to try a mid level model sometime and see how those feel.

Hatsan - I've only dealt with the mid line, not the cheapest or the most expensive, but the Quattro trigger is miles ahead of the triggers in the rest of this group except the potentially the Diana. Their guns are heavy if that's an issue for you. Also, their FPS ratings are real, lead pellets and quite accurate. The rest tend to exaggerate. 

You can buy refurbs on pretty much any air gun web store -

https://www.airgunproshop.com/product-category/hatsan-refurbished/

http://www.fieldsupply.com/catalogsearch/result/?q=refurb&uhc_filter_airguns=1901

http://www.pyramydair.com/a/BB_guns_and_pellet_guns/BB_and_pellet_rifles/1117/used

 
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I live 20 miles from the crossman factory,,,,,they a well loved here ,yes the triggers need work some time,I have a bunch of crossmans ,,but my buddy bought the venom,,I have a benjimans np2 he did an upgrade on his trigger real easy ,we shoot pigeons 30-40 yards all the time !! Solid performer great customer service',,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,ever. Wonder why there are so many refurbs out there ? JeffW
 
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