Springers vs every thing else

I started back in 1990 with springers. Got out of shooting when my kids came along in 2000' Back into it now. I have a RAW TM 1000....really nice gun. But I have 6 HW30'S and a TX200 mk3 and a Pro Sport, and I'm now in the market for an HW97. I love shooting spring guns. I practice about 4 times a week and I always practice with my spring guns. Gonna shoot NRA SILHOUETTE again next year for the first time since 2000'

Gonna shoot it with a springer. Also going to shoot some of my field target matches with a spring gun next season. Something satisfying about shooting a spring gun well. ( but That may take some time)

Jonnes, you are not alone on the Springer's. These are my toys and I shoot one or combo about everyday.

FWB 124d, FWB 300s, Rws 54.22, Been an R9 .177 Special edition, Cricket compact .22, Cz 200 .177 and a scoped Izh 46m. The one that impress me the most is the king. A dime will cover 5 jsb 18.1 @ 50 yds. Its a Springer that shoot like a PCP. Will out shoot alot. What's to say about the 300s. One hole all day. Every airgunner should own an FWB 124d and/or R9. Classic German workmanship and accuracy. Love both but the R9 win by a very slight edge because of the best in class trigger. Izh 46m, the fun gun. Mine have a Bushnell trophy 2-6x32 on top. Fun shooting 35 yds with jsb 8.4. yep, the better bc fly better . Enough time on stump. The king is calling. Gone shooting.

I own a couple pcp's (3 as of now). They are Awesome! Whenever I'm shooting with them,in particular the Kral Puncher Breaker .22, it seems like "Damn! I Can't miss with this thing!"

That being said,there is just something about shooting my springers that simply cannot be replicated. The feeling of freedom that comes with just needing to take pellets...and thats it. I love the precision and feel of the mechanisms,whether its a break barrel HW,Pro Sport,Diana 75,RWS 54 or LGU.

Sure,they can be somewhat demanding to shoot,but when I get in the groove and it's all coming together,the rewarding feeling I get is very hard to match!

Thats my take,individual results my vary. LOL!

Mike.

I agree. I was going to post a thread entitled "PCP Blues" as one is going out for a reseal, one needs the reg rebuilt, and the only one I thought was perfect, I just filled to 2300 (need to hit dive shop & top off tank) and 3 days later it's at 2100psi so it has a slow leak. At this point, I love the extended range, and have even been considering a big bore and a fully adjustable Crown, or maybe a powerful Hatsan .22 to spit new heavy .22's. I have 3 spring guns, tuned, and no problems ever. 

At this point if I could trade all 3 PCP's, a tank, and a Hill pump, all for one very nice or 2 decent spring guns, I think I would. 

So, it's the spring guns I think I like most though better groups at further distances are obtained with the PCP's.

Somedays I just sling arrows and consider selling the PCP's towards an Olympic style recurve. Not much goes wrong with a bow once set up. Arrows are way expensive versus pellets obviously so it's the plinking that keeps me in the hobby. 

I've never owned anything in the "everything else" category. Just springers. The need to own a bottle and air compressor and drag them along (or use someone else's) is not attractive to me. The more complicated life becomes, the simpler I like my air gunning experience to be. I've even begun shying away from FT matches and my heavy guns with big scopes, fancy reticles, cheat sheets and associated gremlins in favor of shooting short range (10 to 18 yds) air rifle silhouette matches off-hand with an HW55T and aperture sight. Sometimes less is more and yes, the 70's is still a good place to live in, or at least revisit, when shooting air guns.

I think you are like many others out there. I started in air rifles with a springer, several. My favorite was/is the HW95. I then moved onto PCP's with the misconception that they are more accurate than springers. Four PCP's later, which I also love, I now realize that all air guns, heck ALL guns, have their idiosyncrasies that must be overcome/mastered to be "accurate". 

The thing about springers though, is it is a self-contained unit. No external air needed. That is a huge plus in my eyes. Take the rifle, go plinking, go hunting, do whatever and you are free to do so. Analogous to powder burners in that if you have ammo, you have fun. 

PCP's can reach out further due to their higher velocities, but I do most of my shooting with air guns under 40 yards anyway, so it's a moot point. Most guys I know who get into PCP's end up tuning the gun to lower velocities anyway to get the best accuracy. 

They are both great fun, but I'll always have a soft spot for springers, and I'll always keep a good one around. 

Simply stated we enjoy the hobby! I have often considered why I enjoy shooting so much? In the last year I liquidated a lifetime PB collection to further pursue my airgun hobby, I kept a few PB,s of course, I took my first shot in 1960 with my dad and brother at the local dump, been hooked on shooting ever since, I still have that gun! Consider "shooting hoops" with a basketball, or hitting golf balls at a driving range, or bowling, just hand eye coordination with a different kind of projectile. I got into airgun in 2002 to "defend' my bluebirds from English sparrows, (quite successfully I might add), I had mostly springers until this year, R-9 .020, TX200Mk3 .22, and two theoben SLR 98 .22's. had a Theoben Rapid 12 .020 during that time, (I defended my bluebirds many times with this gun!). I don't keep records, I'm not into max power or FPS, I don't hunt a lot, however when I need a "defender" shot it has to be on the mark! I want CONSISTENCY, that is, for my ordinance to group perfectly all the time at whatever distance I happen to be shooting at, (theoretically), that is, a capable gun, projectiles, and the ability to use that platform effectively. I never gave the design of a gun much thought until, on a whim I bought an FX Wildcat .25 from AOA in March of this year, it is a mk1 and AOA was bundling the gun with an FX 3x12 scope and rings for a hundred bucks extra. This rig completely, absolutely, no grey area, changed the way I look at gun design and the ability to shoot that design accurately. This Wildcat Bulpup was so EASY (for me anyway) to shoot consistently and accurately, in any position not just benched, I bought two more FX Bulpups, a Bobcat Mk2 .25 and a Wildcat Mk1 .22, and just this week I bought a Streamline .22 laminate, AOA had another bundle deal, the Streamline with rings and an FX 6x18 scope for two hundred bucks extra, (absolutely beautiful rig, pictures don't do justice to the black pepper laminate). Suffice it to say I'm a big smooth twist barrel fan, I suppose the "X" barrels have their place, but I haven't seen the need for one! The Wildcats are light powerful and EASY (and fun) to shoot, the Bobcat was dead accurate out of the box on low or high power high shot count it's just big and heavy, the streamline, only two or three hundred pellets through it so far, very solid impressive gorgeous gun, nothing "cheap" in look or feel about this gun, highly recommend this Streamline rig from AOA with the bundled 6x18 FX scope and rings for two hundred bucks extra. Of the four the .22 Wildcat is my favorite, short light dead accurate shoulders nice and easy to hold on aim, and to hold on aim for a long time, 70+ shots at 875FPS (I would rather have the laminate stock now that I've seen one). Only issue were the cocking lever pins on the Wildcats needed locktite, and one set screw came loose, (rear shroud bushing) on the .25 Wildcat. I still have three springers, I'm considering their future, I'm so impressed with these FX's they don't get used any more. I was and am a fan of Theobens, I've had great service out of the R-9 my TX200mk3 is a beautiful accurate gun it's just too heavy for me for long shooting sessions, may find it a new home. Shoot safely and enjoy the hobby everyone!!!

I wholeheartedly agree with you on the FX Wildcat.

Don't listen to the naysayers panning the FX Impact. I enjoy tinkering with and shooting this versatile bullpup immensely.

when walking the river that borders the farm i may be out several hours and cover hundreds of acres. i like not having to bring along support equipment with me. the .22 NP2 Trail takes care of woodchucks, skunks, raccoons, squirrels, and pigeons, while the .177 RWS 34 handles the rats, HOSPs, and starlings. (the rws also sounds and feels right like a break barrel should)

the only thing i need with me is a pouch of pellets.



however, when it's really cold outside, those little .177s are tough on the scar tissue riddled finger tips. (i can't get the hang of a pellet pen)



i've been look at a WS 30s for some time, i just need the $.

I shoot at least 2 of my PCPs daily -- 75% of the time in my garage/basement range of approximately 20 yards.

For me FX is the ticket. The FX lever action I find to be buttery-smooth and the FX Wildcat .25 accuracy matches that of my Vulcans (Gen4 and V2), AAS510 and my Daystates -- ahh, but that Daystate Regal XL .177 is exquisite and laser accurate.

I gotta go; there is some shooting to be done.

I own 3 PCPs and 3 Springers.

Out of my PCPs (Cricket Mini .22, Power Cricket .25, and Veteran shorty) it’s the Mini that gets most of my attention. But, for my current needs (pesting rodents inside of 30 yards) it is really really boring. It’s just too accurate at that range. 

Now, while the Mini does come out more often, it’s the Springers that are more fun. I feel that they keep me honest, they are the ones that remind me that I have to breathe a certain way, that I must hold a certain way, that the trigger control must be precise. Frankly the hunt is way more satisfying when I hear the thud of the pellet out of my LGV impact a squirrel 30 yards out. 

The HW30S Urban Pro in .177 does small pest duty out to 20 yards. It’s very accurate and so easy to shoot. The LGV Master Pro in .177 is pretty ridiculous. It thinks its a lazer. Now, the jury is out for the LGV Master Pro in .22, but it sure looks promising. 

Either way, as stated above, these airguns just bring pure joy to my life. 

With springers it’s a combination of easy shooting/challenge.

If I’m in form with my springers, deer-season shooting is a cake-walk

i love my hw95 luxus open sights its very relaxing to shoot a few targets or cans in my back yard after work. No scope no adjusting lt,rt, up,down just cock load and shoot. No obsessing over group size if i can keep a 2inch group at 55yrds off a bench I'm happy. Sometimes i shoot 25-30 shots before i walk down range to see my groups, or fill a empty beer can with water and try to bust it open standing and shooting off hand. I do own a couple PCP's and enjoy them too but 55-60 yrds is all the room i have in my yard and it becomes a bit boring with them and i believe shooting my springer makes a better shooter out of me.

There is a common thread here, and that is that the accuracy and precision of shooting PCPs in a somewhat controlled environment after a while can actually be boring.

My TX200 is a real joy to shoot, and is capable of shooting "near pcp" groups very consistently at 50 yards or under - it just doesn't have the energy that the pcp does. It requires an entirely different hold and methodology to shoot well, and the challenge can really be refreshing.

I love my PCP's and my spring guns too. As of late, I find myself almost always shooting the PCP's and leaving the spring guns in the safe though. If you're happy shooting what you're shooting, that's all that matters. I wouldn't expect everybody to like the same thing. I don't think there's anything boring at all with super accurate PCP's though. I can always find a new way to test myself and having a super accurate PCP that shoots where it's supposed to means hitting the target is all up to me. It enables me to test my skill in the wind, at extreme distance, with small or moving targets and know that if I miss it was my fault, not the gun's. To me that's what it's all about! And...my Crown, my son's Streamline and my other son's Bantam Hi-Lite all get around 65 full power shots per fill, we too can go shooting for quite a while without having to lug anything but a few tins of pellets. If we do need more air, there's always a tank in the truck. Whatever you like shooting, keep shooting it!

Stoti

Also have PCP's and springers. Both have their advantages and disadvantages. There is something to be said for always being able to pick up the gun, cock it, and shoot it without any possible concern over air or tanks or compressors. I'll always have the springers but the technology of the high end PCP's is calling me.

There is something special about shooting and hunting with my springers that is missing with my PCPs. Simple, reliable, hassle free shooting with 80+ year old technology that still gets the job done. I grab my springers about 90% of the time for target shooting and about 50% of the time for hunting.



R

Maybe I need to buy a better springer?

Stoti

I began air gun life with spring guns. I now have a TX200, HW97 and an LGU. They are all 177 cal.

When the Gauntlet came out, I dove into PCP''s and did battle with the POI change that they seem to be famous for. I corrected it by adding a more powerful spring in series with the factory spring between the so called "moderator" they put in and the air stripper. It locked the barrel into a mostly fixed position.

Then came the Wolverine "R" and the wounded bank account that went along with that gun. Even with the "match" trigger, it still needed work and work it got to make the trigger to my liking.

My range is 40 yards and on any given day, my springers can pretty much keep up with both PCP's. They all have been home tuned and they too had a heap of trigger work, again to meet my standards.

When the wind is quiet, I do admit the Wolverine's single hole is a little smaller than the single hole from any given one of springers but not $1000 or more worth that it cost me.