Air Rifle for a begginner

There are quite a few options out there, so we'll need some more information to provide a useful response. I'd suggest going to PyramydAir.com and using their gun selector to see what it suggests. Start at the top and select Rifle or Pistol and continue with their questions from there. Answer these questions and we can help you out too.

What do you intend to do? Hunting? Target? Plinking (shooting tin cans and misc. debris)? Field Target?
If hunting, what do you intend to hunt?
Where do you intend to shoot? Backyard? Gun range? Indoor? Outdoor?
What range?

If you can stretch your budget just a little bit, I'd go for this Benjamin 392 at $270:
http://www.pyramydair.com/s/m/Benjamin_392_Combo_4x32mm_Scope/1431


If $250 is a hard upper limit, go for the same gun sans scope for $170:
http://www.pyramydair.com/s/m/Benjamin_392_pump_air_rifle/205/570

But be aware that adding a scope later if you wish will be more difficult as this model doesn't support scopes out of the factory.

Hello! Unfortunately $250. is not much for an air rifle. Especially an accurate one. Does that budget include a scope? At that price you are limited to a multitude of cheaply made mass produced spring piston guns. They can be powerful but tend to be hard to shoot well and of questionable accuracy. Sometimes you get lucky and find one that shoots well but its a gamble. If you can stretch you budget to $300. maybe a bit more then you can start getting into some better quality ones.
I guess you should tell us what your idea of power and accuracy are as a starting point. One thing to keep in mind is that spring guns also known as springers. (this includes "NITRO" pistons and gas ram guns, they are just air springs) are the hardest to shoot and least accurate type of air gun. That's not to say that there are not accurate spring guns, there are, but they are much more expensive. Also the higher the power the harder they are to shoot well.
Good luck!

PCP (Pre-Charged Pneumatic)'air riffles are generally the most accurate. They also tend to be the most expensive. As people spend more they expect more. But as the cost goes up the market gets smaller so the performance increase isn't directly related to the amount of cost increase. Quite a few of the forum members have PCP rifles that cost well into the $2000 range. PCPs also require a bit more equipment, such as a pump and/or SCBA tank. That's why PCPs are a dangerous and expensive hobby.

What is important is to not get suckered into the pellet velocity myth. Many of the consumer grade guns, the ones you see at WalMart for example, boast speeds above 1000 feet per second. The problems with these claims are that the pellets they use for testing weigh next to nothing. They're basically shooting an angry fart and claiming that as the guns top speed. Worse, above 1000fps accuracy can figuratively and literally spiral out of control. As a projectile breaks the sound barrier (about 1100fps depending temp, air density, humidity) lots of strange things happen to the pellet. It's like running into a wall of water at high speed. It buffets the pellet and causes it to move, wobble and..this is a technical term...go all wonky. What's worse is that as it drops below the sound barrier again the same thing happens again. So accuracy and speed are a tricky pair of dance partners. The higher the speed the more energy the projectile has, but if you can't hit your target that's wasted energy. Most PCP airguns shoot between 800-1000 fps. Projectiles range from .177cal up to .50cal in production models. Bigger projectiles carry more energy to the target at the cost of more air needed to move them. So a .177cal PCP airgun might get 50 shots from a single fill of air, while a .50cal might get 2 shots. The difference is that a .50cal will take down a deer and a .177cal will take down a sparrow. 

If you're concerned about the quality of the scope mounted on a $170 pump airgun you might need to assess what you're looking for and how much you want to pay for it. As mentioned above, there are many many different airguns in your $250 price range. Some are junk and others are really good. The Benjamin I linked to has a good reputation, but you won't be an Olympic field target shooter with it. I think the scope will stretch out its range a bit, but you're not going to be hitting targets intentionally or reliably at 100yards with it. The larger mass of the .22cal pellet gives the pellet a bit more energy to deliver on target and helps it deflect wind just a tiny amount. The Benjamin 397 is the .177cal version of this gun. The .177 pellets will provide plenty of accuracy and cost less and would work just fine for plinking and even hunting small birds, chipmunks, maybe squirrels. I'd go for the .22cal myself, but there's nothing wrong with the .177 either. 

I saw that Amazon is carrying the Benji 392 and 397 for less than PA: http://smile.amazon.com/Benjamin-392-Action-Variable-Rifle/dp/B002J1OZ8G/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1441468208&sr=8-1&keywords=Benjamin+392

Great explanation ztirffritz! One other option to consider if accuracy is paramount is a c02 powered gun such as the Hammerli 850 Magnum:http://hardairmagazine.com/reviews/airgun-test-reviews/hammerli-850-airmagnum-air-rifle-test-review/
Air Guns of Arizona AOA:http://www.airgunsofarizona.com/
has it for $250. Its is a German made gun that is known for excellent accuracy. It is a PCP gun that doesn't require a pump or SCUBA type tank to run. Of course you will have to buy 88 gram c02 cartridges regularly. Its not as powerful but has PCP type accuracy. Its something to think about. I think it would be a great starter gun. Its also a repeater. 8 round bolt action just like many PCP guns. They are even used by many police for training. Also there is a lot of aftermarket mods for this gun. They are very popular for customizing. It can even be converted to high pressure air (HPA) PCP and be as capable as many PCP guns: http://www.the850store.com/rifles.htm

If you are set on a springer then a good starter gun of good quality is the RWS 34. These can be had for $250 if you shop around. Again German made quality at your price point: http://www.pyramydair.com/s/m/Diana_RWS_34_Breakbarrel_Rifle_T06_Trigger/402

$250.00...I suggest a springer. They can be challenging to shoot accurately, but give a lot of "bang for the buck." There are also several that fit into your price range. That said, I'm not sure the words "you get what you pay for" ever applied to anything more than a springer. A really "good" out of the box gun costs. Overall springer disadvantages include: hold and pellet sensitivity (and occaisionally an unforgiving nature), typically pretty bad triggers, mostly inflated velocity numbers, and most are known to kill low-end scopes. Advantages include: low price of admission (compared to other air guns), usually pretty decent power, shot-to-shot consistency, and most of all their relative simplicity. Spring guns are the simplest (mechanically) of all air guns, and as such are easy to repair/modify yourself. Gamo and Crosman/Benjamin have several models well within your price range. Some Gamos have an "S.A.T." Trigger system that's supposed to be ok, but I have no experience with them. Hatsan has the Quattro on some models, but their Q/C as a whole is hit or miss. Crosman has several models that are first generation Nitro Pistons, and can be had for a song. Lousy triggers out of the box, but they can be made better.

 $250.00 I suggest buying used, just be certain who you are dealing with.
I saw a very nice older one owner RWS 48 go for $250.00 with scope recently. Just do your research, decide on a few different models that might suit you and sit on your cash until one shows up. 
John

For a springer an RWS 34 is near the price point-pretty much can't go wrong with one. The Ruger blackhawk is a Chinese clone of the RWS 34 and are considered very good guns. You can get a refurb Ruger Blackhawk or Airhawk from Airgun depot for $100 or so and put another $100 towards a scope and mount.
http://www.airgundepot.com/refurbished-ruger-air-hawk-elite-combo-3-9x40-scope.html
I agree on the advice to not get sucked into the power hype, the more powerful springers(especially the lower priced models) will be hard to shoot accurately and be liable to break scopes from the harsh recoil. A really cool accurate though not a powerhouse springer would be the HW30s/Beeman R7. The HW30s comes with nice open sights-you can get even better accuracy by adding a peep sight for less than the cost of a scope and mount.Here's a link to AOA- http://www.airgunsofarizona.com/
click on Weihrauch products and look at the HW30s, pretty much everyone loves theirs! Good luck with your choice-have fun!

My vote goes to the RWS 34. Good solid gun that will last many years. Put a good scope and a good mount and you cannot go wrong. A very good investment in quality and fun. 

 I agree the 34 would be a good choice, I would (carefully) buy used and get one that has been completely gone through/tuned and that would be easily done non your budget.


John 

I second Hammerli 850. Great gun. Quite accurate of it's price range. Not very powerful, but you don't need too much power for target shooting. Especially at the ranges of a $250 rifle.

Since you mentioned air gun and not rifle in particular perhaps some thing like a Daisy 747 that would fall in your price range and
it is extremely accurate for target shooting out to about 20 yards. Cheap to operate too no air tanks or even c02 required.
If your really looking for a rifle I shoot a friends Ruger Black Hawk today after a barrel cleaning it shot pretty darn good for $100
or so gun. I don't know about the quality but it felt pretty solid and looked built well.
I would say as accurate as my HW30 just a little harder to cock and more powerful it had only been shot half a dozen times and still dieseled a bit.
The scope seemed to hold zero pretty good as well.
I would be a careful buying a used gun even if almost new there is a reason people sell almost new guns. I bought a Benjamin Prod from some one
on another site 6 months old it shot 2" groups at 10 yards. I ending up having to ordering a new barrel for it not such a great deal after all.

Correction the gun I mentioned was a Ruger Air Hawk not a Black Hawk