I noticed that the pellet containers shown on the H&N home website (https://www.hn-sport.de/en/air-gun-hunting) for copper coated pellets (Field Target Trophy Power and Baracuda Power in .177 and .22 cal.) have a label on the tin cover stating "For PCP rifles only". I contacted H&N directly asking why this new label (some older containers do not show this, and instead list only "Hard Impact"). Below is their response to my inquiry:
Dear Mr. _____,
Thank you for your e-mail and your interest in our products.
The reason for the higher energy required is that the copper-plated balls are slightly harder. We have found that these bullets can get stuck in the barrel if the energy is not sufficient.
The pressure build-up in spring-loaded rifles is somewhat different from that in PCP rifles. There it could happen that the bullet also gets stuck in the barrel.
In the past, we have received individual feedback on this from some customers.
Therefore, we have indicated the significantly higher energy and have not recommended the bullets for spring-loaded rifles.
These bullets also work in spring-loaded rifles if the energy is high enough.
I hope this will help you.
Kind regards
Vertrieb - Sales/Customer Service
Haendler & Natermann Sport GmbH
So in conclusion, they are saying not to use the H&N Field Target Trophy Power or Baracuda Power in a non-PCP rifle. At their website, they list the Minimum Muzzle Energy requirement for these pellets as 12 ft-lbs for .177 cal. and 18.5 ft-lbs for .22 cal. I am quite surprised at this recommendation - I don't think it is widely known among airgun users. I have 3 non-PCP airguns - .22cal Benjamin Trail NP2 Elite, .177cal Gamo Hunter 220, and .177cal .Hammerli 850 AirMagnum. I guess I shouldn't use those copper coated pellets in my rifles. Any thoughts or comments?
Dear Mr. _____,
Thank you for your e-mail and your interest in our products.
The reason for the higher energy required is that the copper-plated balls are slightly harder. We have found that these bullets can get stuck in the barrel if the energy is not sufficient.
The pressure build-up in spring-loaded rifles is somewhat different from that in PCP rifles. There it could happen that the bullet also gets stuck in the barrel.
In the past, we have received individual feedback on this from some customers.
Therefore, we have indicated the significantly higher energy and have not recommended the bullets for spring-loaded rifles.
These bullets also work in spring-loaded rifles if the energy is high enough.
I hope this will help you.
Kind regards
Vertrieb - Sales/Customer Service
Haendler & Natermann Sport GmbH
So in conclusion, they are saying not to use the H&N Field Target Trophy Power or Baracuda Power in a non-PCP rifle. At their website, they list the Minimum Muzzle Energy requirement for these pellets as 12 ft-lbs for .177 cal. and 18.5 ft-lbs for .22 cal. I am quite surprised at this recommendation - I don't think it is widely known among airgun users. I have 3 non-PCP airguns - .22cal Benjamin Trail NP2 Elite, .177cal Gamo Hunter 220, and .177cal .Hammerli 850 AirMagnum. I guess I shouldn't use those copper coated pellets in my rifles. Any thoughts or comments?
