OVERVIEW
This is a fantastic sampler pack, I was searching for the perfect pellet for my HW97K and was getting frustrated with trying all of the different ammunition that other reviewers said should work the best with my particular air rifle. I figured out what many others before me has figured out; no two air rifles are alike even if they are the same model. So I started trying entire tins of ammunition until I found this sampler pack. The first two I tried were the Air Arms Diabolo Field and the Crossman Premier pellets, both performed terribly in my rifle. The POI seemed to shift with every shot and I was playing the guessing game on where each shot would land next. I shot 2,000 rounds that way before discovering the H&N Sport Hunting sampler pack. I wish I had known there were sampler packs sooner, I could have saved myself some time. I do recommend though anyone with a new rifle to shoot at least 1,000 rounds through it with cheap ammo before trying to find the best ammo. I wasted 2,000 rounds of Diabolo Field pellets and still couldn't get consistent tight groups with it. Also the POI kept shifting and i tried everything; modifying my artillery hold, ensuring parallax was not affecting my aim, breathing, etc, etc. Nothing helped until I switched ammunition.
I also have a JSB Diabolo sampler pack on the way, I feel like the AA's Diabolo's pellets consistency was better than the H&N's. I had to check each pellet for deformities and damaged skirts when I was testing the sampler pack. If I can find a JSB Diabolo pellet that my HW97K likes I think that will help with consistency.
BACKGROUND
I am by no means a professional air rifle shooter. This is strictly a backyard hobby for me, but lately I decided to get more serious about it. So I ditched my Gamos got an HW97K and an Aztec Emerald scope. Fast forward a few weeks/months later and I still could not come close to the groups I saw people shooting on YouTube and on this forum. I knew there was no way it was the scope or the rifle so I knew I was not going to be able to skip the right of passage every serious air gunner must take; finding that ever elusive "perfect" ammo for my rifle.
With that being said, what follows is a decidedly unscientific review of the different types of pellets contained in the H&N Hunting Sampler pack and how they performed with my air rifle. I need to state once again that there is no guarantee that your results will mirror mine even with the exact same setup. All shots in the attached pictures were taken from 20yds and I was standing. For support I was leaning against the door jamb to steady my forward arm.
In all of the attached pictures you will see some scattered shots because I both sighted in the scope and tested the pellet's consistency with each bullseye. I only had about 30 pellets per tin so I did not change targets after sighting in the scope, not to mention standing is definitely not the best way to get reliable shots. However, I wanted to test the pellets in a more realistic scenario like hunting so I shot all of the groups standing.
H&N Silver Point
This is a very thick, long, heavy, tight fitting pellet that was so tight I thought it might get stuck in the barrel. To my surprise it turned out to be very accurate. If you see the attached picture, 5 pellets went through the bullseye center. The picture is a bit deceiving though, you will see a large group in this picture because I had to zero my scope after shooting the Diabolo Fields. In reality this pellet performed very well it also punched through the backing board the fastest. This was not my favorite though because it was so heavy that some major hold over and hold under would be needed at any range other than the zeroed range. Also in a hunting scenario this pellet would take the longest to insert into the barrel. If all of your targets are at 20yds though or you are ok with the hold over/under adjustments then this might work for you. The pellet definitely hit like a brick and I'm betting would be pretty deadly out to 40yds or so (if you managed to hit your target).
H&N Crow Magnums
These quickly became my one of my favorite pellets out of the pack. They were lighter than the Silver Points but still fit pretty nicely in the barrel. They were also very consistent and accurate. The few scattered shots in the picture was from me sighting in the scope. Punch through was very nice and they were pretty quiet while traveling through the air. I did not need a holdover to switch from a 20yd target to a 30yd target, but I did need a mil dot holdover to hit a 40yd 2" target which is to be expected. The consistency was great after the scope was sighted in.
H&N Baracuda Power
These pellets were nothing short of amazing. I had never shot anything but lead pellets before and I had some misgivings, but they outperformed my expectations. These are big heavy pellets and were the loudest of the sample pack when hitting the target. These also have the added benefit of the copper coating which reduces lead exposure. I think also because of the copper coating these might even keep your barrel cleaner than the lead variety. In the picture all of the outliers were due to me sighting in the scope after shooting the Crow Magnums. These were so much fun that after shooting out the bullseye I started shooting the edge of it just to make the center shootout bigger. These were in my opinion the second most accurate pellets in the sampler pack.
H&N Hunter Extreme
These were the worst of the group. These pellets did the same things that the Crossman Premiers and Diabolo Fields did; the POI jumped to the left right in the middle of testing. You can see that in the picture as well. I got the scope zeroed in for this pellet within a few shots, then the POI suddenly shifted left. I shot a few more waiting to see if it would return to zero and it did not. Eventually I adjusted the scope, but that ruined it for me. I have a feeling these pellets would be all over the place.
H&N Field Target Trophy
These pellets are truly amazing and are my favorite pick. Within 3 shots I knew this was the ammo for me. If you look at the pictures, it took 1 shot to zero the scope after shooting the Hunter Extremes then they were so consistent any variance was due to me; not the pellet. These pellets are also relatively quiet, and seemed to be the least sensitive to how the gun was held. Shot after shot these kept exceeding my expectations with perfect consistency and accuracy. They are also one of the lightest of the group which means they shot very flat at 30yds and 40yds. Towards the very end I moved my windage one click right and was shooting pellet in pellet when I ran out of ammo.
H&N Field Target Trophy Green
I did not test these pellets. They are lighter than I would like which means they will probably be louder and not have enough knock down power when hunting.
CONCLUSION
The H&N FTT was the clear winner for me. Unfortunately they are also one of the most expensive if not the most expensive of the pack but after spending so much on the gun and scope, it would be wasted if I did not use ammunition that matched the equipment. I also discovered that my HW97K likes tight fitting ammunition. The Air Arms Diabolo Field and Crossman Premier pellets felt pretty loose in the barrel and I think that was why I could not get consistent groups. I'm looking forward to testing the JSB Diabolo sampler pack, my results will be just as un-scientific as these results and I'm sure there is plenty I could do to improve my testing process (modified bench rest, zero scope before testing, fixed number of shots, etc), but what fun would that be?
This is a fantastic sampler pack, I was searching for the perfect pellet for my HW97K and was getting frustrated with trying all of the different ammunition that other reviewers said should work the best with my particular air rifle. I figured out what many others before me has figured out; no two air rifles are alike even if they are the same model. So I started trying entire tins of ammunition until I found this sampler pack. The first two I tried were the Air Arms Diabolo Field and the Crossman Premier pellets, both performed terribly in my rifle. The POI seemed to shift with every shot and I was playing the guessing game on where each shot would land next. I shot 2,000 rounds that way before discovering the H&N Sport Hunting sampler pack. I wish I had known there were sampler packs sooner, I could have saved myself some time. I do recommend though anyone with a new rifle to shoot at least 1,000 rounds through it with cheap ammo before trying to find the best ammo. I wasted 2,000 rounds of Diabolo Field pellets and still couldn't get consistent tight groups with it. Also the POI kept shifting and i tried everything; modifying my artillery hold, ensuring parallax was not affecting my aim, breathing, etc, etc. Nothing helped until I switched ammunition.
I also have a JSB Diabolo sampler pack on the way, I feel like the AA's Diabolo's pellets consistency was better than the H&N's. I had to check each pellet for deformities and damaged skirts when I was testing the sampler pack. If I can find a JSB Diabolo pellet that my HW97K likes I think that will help with consistency.
BACKGROUND
I am by no means a professional air rifle shooter. This is strictly a backyard hobby for me, but lately I decided to get more serious about it. So I ditched my Gamos got an HW97K and an Aztec Emerald scope. Fast forward a few weeks/months later and I still could not come close to the groups I saw people shooting on YouTube and on this forum. I knew there was no way it was the scope or the rifle so I knew I was not going to be able to skip the right of passage every serious air gunner must take; finding that ever elusive "perfect" ammo for my rifle.
With that being said, what follows is a decidedly unscientific review of the different types of pellets contained in the H&N Hunting Sampler pack and how they performed with my air rifle. I need to state once again that there is no guarantee that your results will mirror mine even with the exact same setup. All shots in the attached pictures were taken from 20yds and I was standing. For support I was leaning against the door jamb to steady my forward arm.
In all of the attached pictures you will see some scattered shots because I both sighted in the scope and tested the pellet's consistency with each bullseye. I only had about 30 pellets per tin so I did not change targets after sighting in the scope, not to mention standing is definitely not the best way to get reliable shots. However, I wanted to test the pellets in a more realistic scenario like hunting so I shot all of the groups standing.
H&N Silver Point
This is a very thick, long, heavy, tight fitting pellet that was so tight I thought it might get stuck in the barrel. To my surprise it turned out to be very accurate. If you see the attached picture, 5 pellets went through the bullseye center. The picture is a bit deceiving though, you will see a large group in this picture because I had to zero my scope after shooting the Diabolo Fields. In reality this pellet performed very well it also punched through the backing board the fastest. This was not my favorite though because it was so heavy that some major hold over and hold under would be needed at any range other than the zeroed range. Also in a hunting scenario this pellet would take the longest to insert into the barrel. If all of your targets are at 20yds though or you are ok with the hold over/under adjustments then this might work for you. The pellet definitely hit like a brick and I'm betting would be pretty deadly out to 40yds or so (if you managed to hit your target).
H&N Crow Magnums
These quickly became my one of my favorite pellets out of the pack. They were lighter than the Silver Points but still fit pretty nicely in the barrel. They were also very consistent and accurate. The few scattered shots in the picture was from me sighting in the scope. Punch through was very nice and they were pretty quiet while traveling through the air. I did not need a holdover to switch from a 20yd target to a 30yd target, but I did need a mil dot holdover to hit a 40yd 2" target which is to be expected. The consistency was great after the scope was sighted in.
H&N Baracuda Power
These pellets were nothing short of amazing. I had never shot anything but lead pellets before and I had some misgivings, but they outperformed my expectations. These are big heavy pellets and were the loudest of the sample pack when hitting the target. These also have the added benefit of the copper coating which reduces lead exposure. I think also because of the copper coating these might even keep your barrel cleaner than the lead variety. In the picture all of the outliers were due to me sighting in the scope after shooting the Crow Magnums. These were so much fun that after shooting out the bullseye I started shooting the edge of it just to make the center shootout bigger. These were in my opinion the second most accurate pellets in the sampler pack.
H&N Hunter Extreme
These were the worst of the group. These pellets did the same things that the Crossman Premiers and Diabolo Fields did; the POI jumped to the left right in the middle of testing. You can see that in the picture as well. I got the scope zeroed in for this pellet within a few shots, then the POI suddenly shifted left. I shot a few more waiting to see if it would return to zero and it did not. Eventually I adjusted the scope, but that ruined it for me. I have a feeling these pellets would be all over the place.
H&N Field Target Trophy
These pellets are truly amazing and are my favorite pick. Within 3 shots I knew this was the ammo for me. If you look at the pictures, it took 1 shot to zero the scope after shooting the Hunter Extremes then they were so consistent any variance was due to me; not the pellet. These pellets are also relatively quiet, and seemed to be the least sensitive to how the gun was held. Shot after shot these kept exceeding my expectations with perfect consistency and accuracy. They are also one of the lightest of the group which means they shot very flat at 30yds and 40yds. Towards the very end I moved my windage one click right and was shooting pellet in pellet when I ran out of ammo.
H&N Field Target Trophy Green
I did not test these pellets. They are lighter than I would like which means they will probably be louder and not have enough knock down power when hunting.
CONCLUSION
The H&N FTT was the clear winner for me. Unfortunately they are also one of the most expensive if not the most expensive of the pack but after spending so much on the gun and scope, it would be wasted if I did not use ammunition that matched the equipment. I also discovered that my HW97K likes tight fitting ammunition. The Air Arms Diabolo Field and Crossman Premier pellets felt pretty loose in the barrel and I think that was why I could not get consistent groups. I'm looking forward to testing the JSB Diabolo sampler pack, my results will be just as un-scientific as these results and I'm sure there is plenty I could do to improve my testing process (modified bench rest, zero scope before testing, fixed number of shots, etc), but what fun would that be?
