air rifles

quackquackBOOM

i was thinking for going for an air rifle for a bit of fun no competitions just messing and a bit of shooting the pests which live on my roof and in my trees and i know little if anything about them.
which model/make would people recommend ?
which caliber would people recommend .22 or .17 ?
which precharged or break barrel ?
maintenance is a big issue if it needs a heap of work to keep it gion forget it
i like the look of the precharged models but its the cost of the pump and so on which turns me from them
thanks in advance for the help

flanum

i think the law is a bit on the airy side as regards shooting quarry with air rifles.. best stick to "i will be using them for target shooting and plinking" !!!!

in the auld days the rule of thumb was .177 for feather, .22 for fur, but these days the modern air rifle is a different calibre(scuse the pun) altogether.

as regards the pcp's from what i can gather they are fairly maintenance free, but id think of investing in a divers bottle rather than risk a hernia with the hand pump (i believe the last few strokes could give you a stroke).

anyway a good browse through airgunners world magazine should answer most questions (ye can pick it up or order it in an easons).

good luck.

thed4king

I'm in the same situation as quackquackBOOM. I'm very interested in an air rifle for a bit of plinking, and small pests etc....... how much would i expect to pay for a decent starting setup, and where can they be bought in Leinster??

milkerman

For convenience go for a spring powered or gas ram gun. The pcp's are nice but the set up costs are quite high. Of all the spring guns I found Weihrauch the best with the 97k, 90 & 80 models being well up to dealing with magpies, the odd rabbit and best of all RATS! Theoben also make a really nice gun and are wort looking at. I found BSA & Webley& Gamo to be crap in comparisson.
Try Griffin & Hawe, Athy. A bit pricey sometimes but usually have a few on the shelf.
I would go for a .177, best pellet selection & higher velocity. The hollow point versions being good for vermin.

flanum

Try Aim&swing in Mountnugent in co.cavan. (not leinster but not too far!). they have a good variety in stock of pcps,gas,springers etc.

quackquackBOOM

i might stay clear of athy but thanks for the info milker man i think that i might steer clear of the pcp,s
it sounds a good distance for me to travel ive a good few shops in a 20 mile radius of me between drogheda navan and courthlough and i can take a quick spin up to the north as well if im stuck

where about in Mount Nugent is that man you were speaking of flanum i might be up that way in coming weeks and i could pop in and have a gander

i think i might go for a .177 aswell seen as its the recommended.
thanks for your help lads

openseason

best advice is go and try as many airguns as you can , a lot of dealers in the country ll let you take them out the back and fire a few rounds, that dealer in cavan is a good place also in newry theres a shop with a lot of airguns some v interesting models , most shops don't carry many airguns cos they're not big sellers. for your needs a spring gun is prob the gun for you maintenance is simple and they re built tough and take a lot of abuse etc, but as i was sayin try a few out some weigh a ton while others are nice and light , depends on your own preferences really , I wouldn't discount .22 at all , the bigger calibre has more impact and just as accurate as .177 plus the pellets are a little less fiddly to load , better stopping power imo for hunting , you can only legally shoot rats rabbits and mink with airguns according to NARGC tho a lot of people shoot birds(crows etc) the law is definately a bit vague , the other possibility is buying a secondhand PCP which will give you a longer range can get one the same price as a new springer tho an extra few hundred ll be needed for a divers tank or pump , hope this helps

quackquackBOOM

openseason wrote: »

best advice is go and try as many airguns as you can , a lot of dealers in the country ll let you take them out the back and fire a few rounds, that dealer in cavan is a good place also in newry theres a shop with a lot of airguns some v interesting models , most shops don't carry many airguns cos they're not big sellers. for your needs a spring gun is prob the gun for you maintenance is simple and they re built tough and take a lot of abuse etc, but as i was sayin try a few out some weigh a ton while others are nice and light , depends on your own preferences really , I wouldn't discount .22 at all , the bigger calibre has more impact and just as accurate as .177 plus the pellets are a little less fiddly to load , better stopping power imo for hunting , you can only legally shoot rats rabbits and mink with airguns according to NARGC tho a lot of people shoot birds(crows etc) the law is definately a bit vague , the other possibility is buying a secondhand PCP which will give you a longer range can get one the same price as a new springer tho an extra few hundred ll be needed for a divers tank or pump , hope this helps

thanks open i dont like that shop in newry ignorant as hell the last time i was there but there is one out the armagh road twords cookstown

ivanthehunter

the law is not vague about this..

you can not shoot any wild bird with an air rifle... but further on it says that you can not shoot any protected wild bird with a rifle...

According to Ivan
This means that you can with an air rifle shoot Gray squirrel, rat, rabbit,mink,domestic cat:D and domestic pigeon and chickens aswell but try to avoid legal claims of cruelty-- but you could dispatch a cat if it threatened any of you family or your live stock:eek::eek:

Do they still make bb shot(caps) for .22 cal this might fit your bill... i know you can defo get rat shot still..

openseason

you need help:eek:

ivanthehunter

are you going to give it......:mad:

bunny shooter

ivanthehunter wrote: »

are you going to give it......:mad:

I will

openseason

nice one

quackquackBOOM

why o why do you talk such sh1te?

flanum

the aim&swing shop (eamon jameson i think) in mountnugent is actually closer to ballyjamesduff than mountnugent. if you were going from navan direction, id go .. kells,oldcastle,mountnugent, then head towards ballyjamesduff, its about halfway tween mountngent and ballyduff, on the left hand side of the main road, big sign, big shop. Hes a very helpful fella so should put you right.

good luck.

bunny shooter

quackquackBOOM wrote: »

why o why do you talk such sh1te?

my feelings

quackquackBOOM

flanum wrote: »

the aim&swing shop (eamon jameson i think) in mountnugent is actually closer to ballyjamesduff than mountnugent. if you were going from navan direction, id go .. kells,oldcastle,mountnugent, then head towards ballyjamesduff, its about halfway tween mountngent and ballyduff, on the left hand side of the main road, big sign, big shop. Hes a very helpful fella so should put you right.

good luck.

thanks for that flanum will let you know how i get on when i get the chance to pop down to him

quackquackBOOM

bunny shooter wrote: »

my feelings

aww not u
i mean the other half wit:D:D:D:D:D:D:D

bunny shooter

quackquackBOOM wrote: »

aww not u
i mean the other half wit:D:D:D:D:D:D:D

I feel better now

The half wit is more to be pitied than laughed at