FX Impact .22, .25, or .35 cal.

[EricD]

Hi guys,

I am new to this forum and I would like to ask you several questions for my friend: My friend wanted to buy a new FX impact MK2 + power plenum but he can't decide what caliber (.22, .25, or the new .35 cal). His application is mostly for small game hunting/pet control but the distance can be up to 100 - 150 yards.

1. For the .22 or .25 cal, which caliber is best to shoot slug in term of accuracy, flat trajectory, shot count, and knock down power?.

2. For the .35 cal, it definitely will have the best knock down power among 3 calibers, however, the rifle looks huge. Does anyone know if it is a backyard friendly?

Thank you in advance,

Eric

 

[DShepard]

Welcome to the forum. I'd take .25 over. 22. I've taken a pigeon at 188 yards with mine using pellets. I'm waiting on my Superior liner and Hybrids. The. 35 sounds quiet in the YouTube videos with a Donnyfl on it. Better have very good backstops, it's been blowing through all kinds of things, even at long range. Shooter1721 was shooting through 3/4" plywood at 200 yards with his.

 

[ImpactX]

35 backyard friendly? Lmao. No. Even if the 35 is mouse fart quiet, which it is not, the power it produces is very dangerous to shoot in the backyard. If you need a gun for backyard pest, go either 177 or 22. You dont wanna go bigger than that. I wouldn't shoot my 25 in my backyard. Its loud and can penetrate wood fence into the neighbor yards. .22 is powerful enough to take down a deer. Also they are still accurate even over 150 yards.

 

[cfs916]

Welcome. IMO id say go with 22cal. More choices in ammo selection and cheaper per shot. I’m also getting 80shots per fill (22cal setup) vs my 25cal setup which yields at 60shots. It does have enough power to take care medium size game as well. 

 

[ackuric]

.22 is a great caliber of choice. I personally detuned my .25 cal to .22 cal power levels when I wanna shoot close range / back yard for reduced energy and sound levels.

If the rifle is more dedicated to backyard than anything, .22 is probably the best choice.

If the rifle is dedicated to longer range, medium+ sized game, .25 cal is better choice.


To the guy who said .22 cal air guns can take out deer...yea pls don't go shooting bambi with a .22 cal air gun...thats irresponsible even if you can hit the off switch, and not all .22 cals are equal, sure you can make one to shoot a slug making 80 fpe but not many exceed 30-40 fpe in their .22 cal which is entirely too low of energy to reliably shoot at large game..

 

[foundrypress]

Eric,

If you were talking pellets, I would recommend the .25 without hesitation. If your friend will only have 1 gun and wants to shoot slugs, then .22 is the most versatile way to go.

There are more existing options on the market and innovation for slugs and barrels always seems to start with .22 caliber. Changing calibers in the Impact is not difficult, but it is more expensive than it should be. However, changing liners to optimize performance is quite reasonable if you stay with the same caliber.

Since you mentioned backyard friendly... the .35 is not a good idea in a residential setting. Too dangerous and too loud. I have a .30 Impact with a DonnyFL Emperor and I never shoot it near my home. The Emperor does a great job suppressing the muzzle, but the sound of the .30 pellet hitting anything is jarring. I shoot in the woods behind my house and it sets off all the dogs in my area.



Kevin.

 

[Hynzie]

id go with the 22 then down the road if more power is wanted swap it to a larger barrel.,,thats one of the best options on the IMPACT is the availability of using a variety of size barrels in one rifle ...STAY SAFE SHOOT STRAIGHT HYNZIE

 

[EricD]

Welcome to the forum. I'd take .25 over. 22. I've taken a pigeon at 188 yards with mine using pellets. I'm waiting on my Superior liner and Hybrids. The. 35 sounds quiet in the YouTube videos with a Donnyfl on it. Better have very good backstops, it's been blowing through all kinds of things, even at long range. Shooter1721 was shooting through 3/4" plywood at 200 yards with his.

Thanks DShepard for your opinion.

I also watched his video as well. The sound of the .35cal is not that bad in that video. Since the .35 cal is new so my friend is kind of interested in it.

For the .25 caliber, we both own the MK1 version (in .25 cal) but our barrel can't shoot slug. The slug thing is very new to us. In order to shoot slug, we need to upgrade the whole thing (barrel kit, slug liner, and add power plenum. Buying a new rifle is a better choice). My friend also owns an Air Arms LCS in .25 cal (not backyard friendly). Another reason that affects his decision is by watching Matt Dubber and Air Hunters videos. These guys shoot .22 cal slug. Do you know how bad POI drop if you shoot .25 cal slug instead of .22 cal at 100 yards? just curious.

 

[EricD]

id go with the 22 then down the road if more power is wanted swap it to a larger barrel.,,thats one of the best options on the IMPACT is the availability of using a variety of size barrels in one rifle ...STAY SAFE SHOOT STRAIGHT HYNZIE

Thanks Hynzie!

You are right about the Impact. He really concern about the trajectory between the .22 and .25 cal slug. I can't find any video on Youtube about this topic.

 

[EricD]

.22 is a great caliber of choice. I personally detuned my .25 cal to .22 cal power levels when I wanna shoot close range / back yard for reduced energy and sound levels.

If the rifle is more dedicated to backyard than anything, .22 is probably the best choice.

If the rifle is dedicated to longer range, medium+ sized game, .25 cal is better choice.


To the guy who said .22 cal air guns can take out deer...yea pls don't go shooting bambi with a .22 cal air gun...thats irresponsible even if you can hit the off switch, and not all .22 cals are equal, sure you can make one to shoot a slug making 80 fpe but not many exceed 30-40 fpe in their .22 cal which is entirely too low of energy to reliably shoot at large game..

Thanks Ackuric!

Don't worry, I ignored that comment. In California, I would not hunt a buck with a centerfire rifle less than .243 during our hunting reason. Back to the airgun topic, I will let my friend know about you guys advises and opinions and I let him decide what he wants.

 

[EricD]

Eric,

If you were talking pellets, I would recommend the .25 without hesitation. If your friend will only have 1 gun and wants to shoot slugs, then .22 is the most versatile way to go.

There are more existing options on the market and innovation for slugs and barrels always seems to start with .22 caliber. Changing calibers in the Impact is not difficult, but it is more expensive than it should be. However, changing liners to optimize performance is quite reasonable if you stay with the same caliber.

Since you mentioned backyard friendly... the .35 is not a good idea in a residential setting. Too dangerous and too loud. I have a .30 Impact with a DonnyFL Emperor and I never shoot it near my home. The Emperor does a great job suppressing the muzzle, but the sound of the .30 pellet hitting anything is jarring. I shoot in the woods behind my house and it sets off all the dogs in my area.



Kevin.

Thanks Kevin,

It's good to know. My friend has a 2 acres property but it is in a residential area. He thought the FX is more quiet than his Air Arms LCS (loud). I will tell him.

He owns several air rifles (FX impact mk1 and Air Arms LCS in .25 cal, and Air Arms S510 TDR in .22). After watching those Youtube videos shooting slug, he's really like to shoot slug but it's not worth it to buy a new barrel kit, barrel liner, power plenum, and high side-shot magazine kit...etc. He think buying a new gun is a better choice.

 

[triggertreat]

It sounds like your friend has a really big backyard. If that fits, I would go with the .30 cal max for the longer range and retained power. You can always add a 22 or 25 barrel later, too. It's FX remember. I would not go for the power plenum unless with the 35 cal. You don't need it. The MKII has an increased plenum already that is plenty for the 30 cal to send a 44.7 grain pellet several hundred yards as accurate as anyone can be in the 920 FPS range (85 FPE). In the video on the 35 cal,, the shooter had the mic clipped to him, and was not in front of the muzzle. Don't let that fool you, they are pushing lots of air and that is loud, plus the impact of the pellet hitting bone will sound near like a 22 rimfire anyways when it hits.

 

[ackuric]

2 acres, residential area. IMO that would limit me to .22/.25 being residential. If you were in complete backwoods OR intend on serious hunting trips for large game primarily, the .30/.35 option go back on the table.



The differences between .22 and .25 are so minor, they might as well just make a .235" caliber and get rid of them both...that way its .177, .235, .3...ahh more symmetry in the scaling of calibers..There is very little a .22 can do that a .25 can't, and there is also very little a .25 can do that a .22 can't...



Heres a simple graph demonstrating energy potential in your average pcp operating at 1925 psi based on caliber change alone.

The increase in energy is equal to its increase in surface area... 

.22 can make ~55% more energy than .177

.25 can make ~30% more energy than .22

.308 can make ~51% more energy than .25

.357 can make 34% more energy than .308


The smallest difference in calibers here is obviously between .22 and .25, while .308/.357 comes in second, but note that 34% of 100-200 is a lot more than 30% of 40-60...so again, the difference between .22/.25 is the least between any two calibers.

 

[EricD]

It sounds like your friend has a really big backyard. If that fits, I would go with the .30 cal max for the longer range and retained power. You can always add a 22 or 25 barrel later, too. It's FX remember. I would not go for the power plenum unless with the 35 cal. You don't need it. The MKII has an increased plenum already that is plenty for the 30 cal to send a 44.7 grain pellet several hundred yards as accurate as anyone can be in the 920 FPS range (85 FPE). In the video on the 35 cal,, the shooter had the mic clipped to him, and was not in front of the muzzle. Don't let that fool you, they are pushing lots of air and that is loud, plus the impact of the pellet hitting bone will sound near like a 22 rimfire anyways when it hits.

Thanks Triggertreat,

You are right about the microphone thing. Thanks for your opinion and I will share it with him.

Eric

 

[EricD]

Acuric,

Thanks a lot for the graph and data. It's really not much difference between .22 and .25.

 

[Eaglehorn]

Welcome! Another point to consider for caliber is local legislation for what you're hunting. One of the benefits of the impact is the ability to switch calibers, but those kits are still a good chunk of cash. For the first point, Pyramydair has a good resource for quickly looking through each state's local laws (https://www.pyramydair.com/airgun-map/). I made the mistake of not checking this and doing a .30 build that I could use for long-range target and competition but I couldn't use to take care of small game. After that, it's a bit of a balance. The larger caliber you get the less variety there tends to be, but bigger projectiles tend to be better for long-range. Personally, I like .25 because it's the largest caliber I can hunt small game with in my state, there's a good bit of variety (Hybrids, smooth twist superior, 28 round mag), I can use it in competitions pretty much anywhere, and it's a good balance being very quiet but still packing a good punch. That said I would definitely move to 0.30 if I was able to, but I wouldn't say the same for 0.35. Overall it's a personal preference and finding what fits what you need.

 

[Rj]

Acuric,

Thanks a lot for the graph and data. It's really not much difference between .22 and .25.

My 2cents. I say seriously consider the 22. The way I have mine set up, on max it pushes the 25 grain redesigned monsters at 950. Not even breaking a sweat at 115 bar. Better bc than the 25cal 25 grain. Power level 3 it shoots the 18 grain at 940 and on minimum level it shoots the crappy crossman in the 9 something range with surprising accuracy. 50 to 25ft lbs covered with a twist of the dial. Very versatile for many applications. 

 

[cmatera]

I was in the same quandry a couple months ago. I went with the Impact PP in .22. When available,I will add the .25 500mm barrel kit.

 

[ackuric]

Acuric,

Thanks a lot for the graph and data. It's really not much difference between .22 and .25.

My 2cents. I say seriously consider the 22. The way I have mine set up, on max it pushes the 25 grain redesigned monsters at 950. Not even breaking a sweat at 115 bar. Better bc than the 25cal 25 grain. Power level 3 it shoots the 18 grain at 940 and on minimum level it shoots the crappy crossman in the 9 something range with surprising accuracy. 50 to 25ft lbs covered with a twist of the dial. Very versatile for many applications.

And my .25 cal does 20 to 60 fpe with the turn of a dial. I mean as I stated the two calibers aren't really out performing one or another...there is always an argument against one caliber or another, and IMO...its a wash...



The 35% cost difference in pellets is nearly identical to the increase in their performance. While a .30 cals increase in price to 80% more than .25 cal with their performance difference being much less...see where I am going here? Its pretty silly to try to argue your way to saying either .22 or .25 are more superior than the other. JMO!

 

[Rj]

Acuric,

Thanks a lot for the graph and data. It's really not much difference between .22 and .25.

My 2cents. I say seriously consider the 22. The way I have mine set up, on max it pushes the 25 grain redesigned monsters at 950. Not even breaking a sweat at 115 bar. Better bc than the 25cal 25 grain. Power level 3 it shoots the 18 grain at 940 and on minimum level it shoots the crappy crossman in the 9 something range with surprising accuracy. 50 to 25ft lbs covered with a twist of the dial. Very versatile for many applications.

And my .25 cal does 20 to 60 fpe with the turn of a dial. I mean as I stated the two calibers aren't really out performing one or another...there is always an argument against one caliber or another, and IMO...its a wash...



The 35% cost difference in pellets is nearly identical to the increase in their performance. While a .30 cals increase in price to 80% more than .25 cal with their performance difference being much less...see where I am going here? Its pretty silly to try to argue your way to saying either .22 or .25 are more superior than the other. JMO!

??? Who's arguing? It was just a suggestion for the OP and his intended purpose. Which is similar to mine.(urban environment)Not what caliber is superior.

And in that case, 22 was my choice. Simply because of the vast variety of ammo selection from light to heavy.