Need Suggestions - PCP for Silhouette Practice

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wile2k

Member
Aug 10, 2021
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MT, United States
Hello All,

I'm looking for some suggestions. I'm getting pretty serious into smallbore silhouette competitions and I'm starting to plan my off-season (or any inclement weather) practice. For those that may not know, silhouette is shot standing, offhand, with no support, just the shooter and the rifle. I'm currently shooting in competitions an Anschutz 1712 which is a hunter class (less than 8.5lb, classically styled) gun that I shoot in both hunter and standard classes. I want to purchase a similar weight, classically styled PCP. My list currently includes the following:



One, I'd love other suggestions that should be in this list keeping in mind that it is important to me that the gun retain similar ergonomics to a sporter rifle. I'm thinking that I'd stick with .22 cal but I am open to other opinions on that. I'd be shooting indoors at 10m and outdoors at 30m when not at an actual rifle range.

Two, suggestions within this list would be appreciated. My first desire was a Huntsman Revere or FX Dreamline as I like both brands. The problem is that as I research them, they seem to be having some QC issues lately and I really don't want to be disappointed in this purchase. Am I overthinking the QC concerns?

Third, my priorities in order are, build quality, accuracy, ergos, weight, at least 40 shots per fill, and I like customizability / adjustability / ability to tinker to improve function / accuracy.

I appreciate any input and thanks for those that managed to get through this long question.
 
I would highly, highly recommend the Air Arms S510 XS Xtra. I've been shooting an ultimate sporter recently and it's a great off hand rig. In terms of classic styling, it doesn't get much better than Air Arms. Triggers are excellent and very adjustable. The Huntsman/HW100 would be tied for second place.

In terms of QC/leaking issues, they are definitely less common in AA rifles than FX (IMO, others will most certainly disagree). AA rifles are sort of known for being bullet proof and having a simple design that lends itself very well to home repairs if the need arises.
 
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I think the huntsman would be hard to beat. I have one and also a Anschutz 17?? I forget the exact number but it’s a 54 auctioned sporter that I’ve had for 35 years. I think the huntsman and the Anschutz pair up nicely. Not familiar with the other guns but I’ve had three daystate rifles and I think the guns are as good as any. You don’t by chance want to buy a silhouette shooting vest? I used to shoot A LOT of silhouette. You know what I’m talking about.
 
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I have a 1712 myself. When I shoot a lot of small bore silhouette I had a Air Arms S410 for practice. I had it set up Identical to my 1712 it was a very good air rifle to practice with. I sold it here while back only because it was a single shot. I kept my Huntsman Regal .177 because it has a magazine, it's shorter even with a moderator and it's quieter. I think I shot the AA better offhand than my Regal. One thing with the air rifles is I really have to pay attention to follow through. I also have a Wolverine 177, I shoot it more than the Regal. But it's not as close in feel to a 1712 

I really like air rifle silhouettes. but no club shoots them around here. I have a bank of 1/10 rams set up at 45 yards and shoot a bank of ten almost everyday. It is so nice to step out the back door and shoot! one thing I would have never believed is I shoot my Taipan 22 more than both of the daystars. But it doesn't compare with the feel of a 1712.



have fun
 
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You all are awesome. Thank you so much for all of the suggestions and conversation. Compiling the suggestions, I get a distinct trend toward the Huntsman and 410/510 and I'm sure that the others are fine rifles but I do take direct experience very seriously.

As I research, I am adding / pruning the list somewhat. I added and then removed the BSA, it looks like a good gun but the weight is a strong consideration and the BSA seems to be trading some weight for the FT focus.

Regarding the comment about the Avenger, I agree that it seems a little out of place given the costs but it gets really good reviews and mostly fits the profile. I am a person that likes very nice things so I trend toward the mid-high end in most of what I do and I think that I'd be disappointed in some of the cost savings that has to go into the Avenger. Also, the gun is only a percentage (a big percentage but still) of the overall process of getting into PCP so I'm not too focused on the rifle cost itself. I've mostly stopped looking at the Avenger.

Thanks you Solo1 for the targets suggestion. I have a set of swingers for rimfire and I'm still working out how I will practice Silhouette given space constraints when I can't make it to the range. I'll be digging into that aspect as I go as well :).

Again, I really appreciate all of the feedback. I'm already compiling this information into a spreadsheet (yeah, pretty geeky) which will help guide this journey.
 
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Right. I have the FX3 25x on mine and one big consideration was weight (14oz scope). I'm not going to go too crazy overthinking weight on the Air Rifle, it will be for practice so as long as I'm close on weight (within a pound), I think that I'll be happy. I've only just started thinking about optics, need to figure out the rifle first, then optics, then filling, then pellet traps / targets, then... I'm sure some other stuff :).
 
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Right. I have the FX3 25x on mine and one big consideration was weight (14oz scope). I'm not going to go too crazy overthinking weight on the Air Rifle, it will be for practice so as long as I'm close on weight (within a pound), I think that I'll be happy. I've only just started thinking about optics, need to figure out the rifle first, then optics, then filling, then pellet traps / targets, then... I'm sure some other stuff :).
Click to expand...

I m gonna add Redwolf in 177 to your recommendations for silhouette,if adjustable power could be handy I would recommend Ai Arms and the Redwolf first., kelly 
 
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