best pcp under $1500 for hunting?

Evan,

I can echo Alex's statements. I bought my Cricket on the advice of my old friend Cliff, who had the Varmintair website a few years back, and I have never regretted it. Over 5 years old now and never had a leak, or mechanical issues at all. Never replaced an o-ring...nothing. As I got it, and I haven't touched it tune-wise, it shoots the 34 grain JSB's at 843 fps, I get about 60-65 shots per fill, and 1/2 groups at 50 yards are pretty common.

I think, and those who have been around PCP's longer than me feel free to chime in, that overall, the Czech/Russian guns are built tougher than woodpecker lips and don't require the upkeep like an FX Impact or something similar. Add air, insert pellet, kill something. The FX stuff is a little higher maintenance. 

Kalibrgun takes some grief around here because the really haven't changed much about the gun since introduction, and don't have a Cricket MK Eleventeen, or a 4.0 version, or a "New and Improved" model, etc. Prolly cuz' it works pretty damn good as is. I am very happy with mine.

I have a Cricket, and I have an Impact. If I had to keep but one, the Impact would be down the road.

Justin

I've switched to a Wildcat Compact from the Impact because of weight. I have no problem carrying the WC around. The Impact is too heavy for normal hunting which for me isnt super long distance.

For long distance and for coyote sized stuff, and for times when I should use slugs I will still use the Impact

Kalibrgun takes some grief around here because the really haven't changed much about the gun since introduction, and don't have a Cricket MK Eleventeen, or a 4.0 version, or a "New and Improved" model, etc. Prolly cuz' it works pretty damn good as is. I am very happy with mine.

I have a Cricket, and I have an Impact. If I had to keep but one, the Impact would be down the road.

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I love it! Nothing like an upgrade/improvement/new version/etc to get us consumers to part with our dollars. Every company has to decide on a business model, selling improvements and upgrades happens to be FXs. Not knocking it, and gotta admit that, coupled with a very aggressive take-over of a handful of YouTube channels, simply a brilliant way to get lots of our wallets open. 

love, love, love my prophet... if you can get one

Evan,

I can echo Alex's statements. I bought my Cricket on the advice of my old friend Cliff, who had the Varmintair website a few years back, and I have never regretted it. Over 5 years old now and never had a leak, or mechanical issues at all. Never replaced an o-ring...nothing. As I got it, and I haven't touched it tune-wise, it shoots the 34 grain JSB's at 843 fps, I get about 60-65 shots per fill, and 1/2 groups at 50 yards are pretty common.

I think, and those who have been around PCP's longer than me feel free to chime in, that overall, the Czech/Russian guns are built tougher than woodpecker lips and don't require the upkeep like an FX Impact or something similar. Add air, insert pellet, kill something. The FX stuff is a little higher maintenance. 

Kalibrgun takes some grief around here because the really haven't changed much about the gun since introduction, and don't have a Cricket MK Eleventeen, or a 4.0 version, or a "New and Improved" model, etc. Prolly cuz' it works pretty damn good as is. I am very happy with mine.

I have a Cricket, and I have an Impact. If I had to keep but one, the Impact would be down the road.

Justin

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"Tougher than woodpecker lips"..... LOL, ROFL....Dude I'm totally gonna use that. And yes I think you can put the Taipans, Kalibrguns, AGT guns all in the tough department. However idk what that makes Edguns then.... I'll never run over my Cricket with a truck.

I have no personal experience with the Fx rifles, however I have been very tempted with the Fx wildcat mk3 and it may yet find its way to me. However I can recommend the Taipan Veteran/Mutant and the Kalibrgun Cricket. I have the veteran and cricket in .25 as well as the mutant in .22. I would definitely go with the .25 for the woodchucks. If you don't mind the rear cocking, which I personally don't, either one is great. The veteran is still relatively new to me and the accuracy is about the same as my cricket. The cricket I have personally taken half a dozen woodchucks out to 85 yards and one unlucky guy at ~150 yards. Starlings and pigeons are easy kills out to 70 yards or so with my longest kill on a starling sitting at 97 yards. I bought the cricket used here on the classifieds over two years ago and it was four years old then. To my knowledge it has never had a thing done to it, never been apart never needed a reseal...nada, zip, zero. That's reliability.... just my two cents.

Alex

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thanks for your input, i really appreciate it! i have a lot of research yet to do and some saving up but ive heard a lot of good things about the veteran and cricket. what scopes do you have paired with these guns?

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I'm running a Hawke Vantage 4-16x scope on my Cricket, and am looking at a Hawke vantage 6-24x for my Taipan. The only reason for the scope difference is marked turrets, otherwise I would just run the 4-16x.

Evan,

I can echo Alex's statements. I bought my Cricket on the advice of my old friend Cliff, who had the Varmintair website a few years back, and I have never regretted it. Over 5 years old now and never had a leak, or mechanical issues at all. Never replaced an o-ring...nothing. As I got it, and I haven't touched it tune-wise, it shoots the 34 grain JSB's at 843 fps, I get about 60-65 shots per fill, and 1/2 groups at 50 yards are pretty common.

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You new Cliff. I tell you what that was a guy way ahead of his time. I found his website when I first got into PCP and he was a huge reason I got into the sport in the first place. I really miss his blog post and all the info. he was willing to share on the sport.

Erapp,

I have one Impact X MKII (.22. cal), two Wildcats Compacts (one of them is the Warcat), and 1 Uragan. Other than the Impact, they are all .25 cal.

My gun of choice is easily the Uragan. I can ALWAYS count on my Uragan for accuracy and reliability.

The Taipan Veteran is of great interest to me but I too am concerned about the rear cocking arm.

Oh, I forgot to add that I had it turned at higher velocities (25.4 grain at 977 fps) by Charlie at Georgia Airguns so that I could shoot pellets and slugs. Shoots both extremely well

Evan,

I can echo Alex's statements. I bought my Cricket on the advice of my old friend Cliff, who had the Varmintair website a few years back, and I have never regretted it. Over 5 years old now and never had a leak, or mechanical issues at all. Never replaced an o-ring...nothing. As I got it, and I haven't touched it tune-wise, it shoots the 34 grain JSB's at 843 fps, I get about 60-65 shots per fill, and 1/2 groups at 50 yards are pretty common.

Click to expand...

You new Cliff. I tell you what that was a guy way ahead of his time. I found his website when I first got into PCP and he was a huge reason I got into the sport in the first place. I really miss his blog post and all the info. he was willing to share on the sport.

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Yup. I've known Cliff for close to 30 years. One of the finest men I've ever known. I met him when he owned The Reloading Center down in Northridge, CA. That place was a powder burners paradise. Not a loaded round in the place, but if you wanted Wilson hand dies, Berger bullets, or an 8 pound canister of H322, he had it. The place was completely bad ass. And then the city of smelL A decided they didn't want ANYTHING gun related in the city, and had the LAPD "Gun Squad" make his life miserable. He got fed a up with it all, closed the store and moved to AZ. The way he was treated by LAPD made me embarrassed to be a cop...

Sorry for the temporary hijack...but I do make a point below.

Anyway, that whole ordeal soured him on PB's, and eventually he went all-in on PCP's. Knowing that, he was my first call when I started down that road. At the time, Cliff probably had one of every PCP made. His advice to me was to buy a Cricket carbine in 25, shoot 34 grain JSB's, and get after the ground squirrel menace. The point being, here's a guy who could have any airgun he wanted, and his go-to was a Cricket carbine.

FYI, he shut down the Varmintair blog because of all the hate mail and threats he received because of his hunting videos.

Justin

Taipans, Crickets are on my list of robust airguns. I would say that a used Edgun r5m would fit the bill too. It’s one of the two airguns I have. The other being a Steyr Hunting 5 semi auto in .22. I wouldn’t recommend the Steyr because they are expensive even used. But I like them both because they carry magazines on the rifle so you can go afield an not fumble with pellets. I like the new Edgun design with the forward cocking lever. I have heard that some people are having trouble with the cocking indexing being off. I must have been lucky because mine doesn’t do that. So I load 4 mags and go off a hunting. It’s a .25 and hits like a sledgehammer!

I would seriously look for an SPA P15 it's light enough to carry all day and cheap enough to have a Lothar Walter or CZ barrel machined for it (odds are you probably gonna need it) and CARM magazines over the junk factory magazines. You won't be bummed if you drop it in cow or pig poo-poo when pesting in a dairy or if you fall down on it while hunting. Second choice would be the Diana Skyhawk that's a little heavier than the same P15 gun in a nicer stock same barrel and magazine upgrade recommended.

The Veteran would be perfect if they weren't as heavy as they are IMHO.

A Cricket compact shorty specifically with skeletonized wood stock would be my third choice due to its lighter weight compared to the Veteran.

The Brocock Bantam HiLite (carbon fiber bottle) unregulated would be my fourth hunting choice Since its lighter than the regulated Sniper and HR versions and has power detent dial to go up and down in power as needed thats repeatable. Or a Brocock Compatto with a small separate carry on pigmy bottle to refill it. 

A cheap $89 eBay Centerpoint (model# LR312SFT2) PLT SFP 30mm 3-12x44 side focus with BDC reticle would be perfect for hunting as it stays clear throughout a broad range of yards don't need to fiddle with side focus all the time with each and every shot just set it at 35-40 yards Or closer if in close quarters then you are fine. They normally sell for around $104 when not shopping 100% smart but still an ok deal for what you get. Retails for around $145.99. All 100% perfect 5 star 10 review comments too. Heres from Wal mart. I have it on a Taipan Veteran shorty and works great for hunting.

https://www.walmart.com/ip/CenterPoint-3-12x44mm-Rifle-Scope-30mm-tube-with-Precision-Lock-Turrets-Black-LR312SFT2/578419421

Regardless of price the reticle is extremely useable for hunting. I wouldn't recommend anything that I don't feel happy with and content to use myself. It's the non needing to adjust the dang side focus with every shot that sold me on this one.

all of them...................

I would seriously look for an SPA P15 it's light enough to carry all day and cheap enough to have a Lothar Walter or CZ barrel machined for it (odds are you probably gonna need it) and CARM magazines over the junk factory magazines. You won't be bummed if you drop it in cow or pig poo-poo when pesting in a dairy or if you fall down on it while hunting. Second choice would be the Diana Skyhawk that's a little heavier than the same P15 gun in a nicer stock same barrel and magazine upgrade recommended.

The Veteran would be perfect if they weren't as heavy as they are IMHO.

A Cricket compact shorty specifically with skeletonized wood stock would be my third choice due to its lighter weight compared to the Veteran.

The Brocock Bantam HiLite (carbon fiber bottle) unregulated would be my fourth hunting choice Since its lighter than the regulated Sniper and HR versions and has power detent dial to go up and down in power as needed thats repeatable. Or a Brocock Compatto with a small separate carry on pigmy bottle to refill it. 

A cheap $89 eBay Centerpoint (model# LR312SFT2) PLT SFP 30mm 3-12x44 side focus with BDC reticle would be perfect for hunting as it stays clear throughout a broad range of yards don't need to fiddle with side focus all the time with each and every shot just set it at 35-40 yards Or closer if in close quarters then you are fine. They normally sell for around $104 when not shopping 100% smart but still an ok deal for what you get. Retails for around $145.99. All 100% perfect 5 star 10 review comments too. Heres from Wal mart. I have it on a Taipan Veteran shorty and works great for hunting.

https://www.walmart.com/ip/CenterPoint-3-12x44mm-Rifle-Scope-30mm-tube-with-Precision-Lock-Turrets-Black-LR312SFT2/578419421

Regardless of price the reticle is extremely useable for hunting. I wouldn't recommend anything that I don't feel happy with and content to use myself. It's the non needing to adjust the dang side focus with every shot that sold me on this one.

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I’m stuck in a hotel today for work. Read this and checked for in stock at Wal-Mart 1.4 miles from here. Done and done. Back in the room now glassing the woods outside my window and I’m absolutely impressed with the glass and focus. It’s a bigger scope than I typically go for, but I think I’m going to like it. 

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I will add to the Chorus of Taipan or Kalibrgun. I have a Veteran short in .22 & a Cricket PT BP in .25 and they are simply fantastic & very robust. Both can be tuned up or down by just adjusting the hammer spring and perhaps choosing the ammo weight. Very versatile and accurate. 
However, they tend to be heavy, so if woods walking make sure to have a sling of some sort. 
A sporting gun like the Daystate Hunstman family of guns could be the ticket as well. They are lighter & have great ergonomics. Great accuracy too. Not as easy to tune up or down, but personally I usually tune to what I need/want & stay there. 

Don't forget your $5.99 Side focus 80mm wheel from Crosman with AGNATION discount code and free shipping Friday. Probably want to buy cheap 2 pack spinner targets too super cheap I would buy 20 of them. Probably never find them this cheap again and free shipping Friday.

$5.99 once the AGNATION code is punched in.

https://www.crosman.com/outlet-store/x-large-side-wheel-for-compact-scopes

No discount but it's already dirt cheap.

https://www.crosman.com/dual-target-pack

I would keep half dozen extras in the car or truck for out of home plinking and mentally zero your trajectory via reticle at various hunting distances out in the field so you know holdover at varying hunting distances at unfamiliar locations.

Evan,

I can echo Alex's statements. I bought my Cricket on the advice of my old friend Cliff, who had the Varmintair website a few years back, and I have never regretted it. Over 5 years old now and never had a leak, or mechanical issues at all. Never replaced an o-ring...nothing. As I got it, and I haven't touched it tune-wise, it shoots the 34 grain JSB's at 843 fps, I get about 60-65 shots per fill, and 1/2 groups at 50 yards are pretty common.

I think, and those who have been around PCP's longer than me feel free to chime in, that overall, the Czech/Russian guns are built tougher than woodpecker lips and don't require the upkeep like an FX Impact or something similar. Add air, insert pellet, kill something. The FX stuff is a little higher maintenance. 

Kalibrgun takes some grief around here because the really haven't changed much about the gun since introduction, and don't have a Cricket MK Eleventeen, or a 4.0 version, or a "New and Improved" model, etc. Prolly cuz' it works pretty damn good as is. I am very happy with mine.

I have a Cricket, and I have an Impact. If I had to keep but one, the Impact would be down the road.

Justin

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hahaha very good points! i may look a step in between my 300$ avenger and the 1500$ beasts that have been menitioned for now like 600ish dollar range as 1500 is a huge purchase for broke ass college kid like me. i got an offer of a modded out .25 cal kral puncher breaker for just under 600 and its right near my house so i can test it if i wanted before buying... maybe in a years time i can get one of these beasts or i'll trade around. thanks for all the help guys i appreciate it very much. the uragan, cricket, and veteran are all look great.... just gotta choose

-Evan

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The only way I would pay $500 for a used Kral Puncher Breaker is only if that neighbor selling it whom you are buying from happens to be Troy Hammer who tunes them. I seen them as low as $399 brand new in the past.

Other than that $425.99 from Pyramid Air.

Not eligible for discount coupon but probably at least free shipping.

The last USED MINT CONDITION safe queen Kral Puncher Breaker I paid $300 shipped and it is actually in fact a MINTY USED GUN.

They actually don't need tuning they shoot great as-is. Plus you can't expect a higher price for a tune for a used gun when a new one is cheaper. You lucky to break even on just the new gun original cost even with the tune paid that can't be recovered.

Paying just under $600 is insane unless it's got at least a $350 scope included as a package and that has to be a good scope that's actually worth the money.

For the higher end I recommend the FX Royale 400 (.22). Simple, powerful, silent, adjustable power, accurate, reliable. The feral parrots can't seem to get enough of it, they keep coming back for more.

For lower end, I am going to flog, again, the cheap but very well made Gamo Urban. The build is on par with Brocock. Its trigger is maligned but unfairly so. Slap a fixed magnification 8 x 44 SF scope on it and you'll be laughing all the way to the bank while the parrots are still agonizing over what hit them. 

For value bullpup, yes the side lever Kral PB (synthetic) or the Hatsan Flash Pup Wood (but have an Audrius reg put into it).

Happy hunting!