Looking for a little advice...

[Lawson1024]

Ok, first of all i'd just like to say hello to everybody here on the forum, i've spent a couple of days reading and researching and you all seem like a pleasant and knowledgable bunch. I'm james, living in pontefract, i notice one or two of you are members of the ponte gun club.

Now, it's been years since i've fired a rifle (and that was a cheap, £10 job i bought from one of my mates as a boy) but for some reason i seem to have developed a sudden urge to own one. I plan to mainly use it for shooting cans, target practice, that kind of thing. And hopefully a little light hunting once i'm feeling capable.

I'm considering spending upto around £300 on a ready to use gun (rifle, scope, pellets) but to be honest i'd probably rather spend closer to 200. I've been looking at various rifles, including the hw95, tx200, a theoben sirocco? But the only thing i know about any of them is what i've read on here. I don't want to buy the wrong thing and end up disappointed.

So my question, if any of you would be good enough to answer (and if you've not got bored and stopped reading by this point) is, quite simply, what would you recommend for this kinda price range, and why? All opinions welcome, and greatly appreciated. I know the best thing to do is really to try them out, but this in not really an option as i don't drive and travelling is kinda awkward. So i'm counting on you guys!

Sorry for the overly longwinded first post, and huge thanks in advance!

James

[ChrisC]

Welcome James.

Most people will advise you to pop along to your nearest club and try out a few rifles. The lads at Ponty are sound and it's a fantastic club, you're also in the NEFTA diamond with Ponty,Emley moor, Redfearns and Anston within driving distance and once a NEFTA member can shoot at other NEFTA clubs.

Unfortunately i'm not a springer guru so can't give you much info on the rifles you've mentioned but a lot of people start on the springer path and very quickly end up with a PCP.

You're welcome to pop along to Emley this weekend if you fancy a look around and i'm sure there will be a few rifles around for you to try....if you pop up i've got a GML s400 that you're welcome to take round the course...cup of tea and some nice banter

[relivingmyyouth]

Welcome aboard James and some good advice above. Just be warned, this hobby has a habit of driving people over budget !!!!

Just don't tell the wife

[BLASER]

Hello mate and welcome you need to think about waight ect a second hand tx200 with scope around £250-£300.
But a bit heavy as said the best way is to try the rifles first if i was near you i would pick you up and take you to the local club shooters love to show ther rifles off
All the best

[Tazz070299]

Welcome James.

Unfortunately i'm not a springer guru so can't give you much info on the rifles you've mentioned but a lot of people start on the springer path and very quickly end up with a PCP.

At which point they mourn having got rid of their proper air rifle, and promptly go out and buy another springer.

As to your question I second Chris's view that you should try and visit your local club and try a few rifles out. You need to decide whether you want a pre-charged rifle or spring powered rifle. You also need to decide which calibre. (A hotly debated topic, but one which seems to be heavily favouring .177 for most airgun shooting at the moment) -a quick search will help you understand this debate better.

For your £200 I would strongly advise thinking about second hand, and you can't go far wrong with makes such as Air Arms or Weihrauch. BSA also have a strong following.

If you go down the PCP route you need to know if you want single shot or multi-shot, Oh and whether you will be manually pumping up the gun (Pump = £100ish) or using a divers bottle (£180+ ).

Choosing a spring fired rifle would possibly need a decision on break barrel or underlever cocking. Having used both it's very much one of personal choice but there are more break barrels around.

Don't forget to budget for a Scope (£40 - £70) as most rifles, sadly, are not fitted with irons (open sights).

If all that sounds complicated I can assure you it isn't, you will soon see themes with the advice you receive.

For myself I chose the springer route, bought a second hand Air Arms TX200 HC and haven't regretted a minute (even though my left arm would now look better on Popeye)

Good luck and happy hunting (for a rifle that is)


Tazz

[Gary Foster]

Don't buy a rifle, get the idea out of your head!
I was the same as you, wanted a rifle but didn't know why. I bought one, then I joined a club (bisley) then it all got worse, I had to have another one then another one, I was shooting HFT, i was hunting, i was shooting in my garden then I got lots and lots of land to shoot on. Before long I put in for my SGC and FAC, that meant yes, more guns! I have owned or now own 10 or eleven guns, I have a gun room too for my guns and work bench.

Get out now while you can! this hobby is far to addictive, it's hobby "smack" and it will take over your life. RUN MAN, RUN FOR THE HILLS!!!

But seriously welcome to the BBS and welcome to the world of shooting.
My advice would be to join a good club and try a few of the other members guns first, I'm sure they will let you as shooters in my opinion are some of the nicest people I've ever met, although I haven't met Gary C yet. Don't make the same mistakes i made and continue to make when buying guns. Try before you buy, try and decide what kind of shooting you want to do. eg. hunting, plinking, competing, HFT, FT etc etc it'll help with your choice of gun. And remember what ever you do do it safetly.

[Lawson1024]

Hi again everyone and thanks for all the replies, I've been offered a AA s400 in .22 + divers bottle and scope for 300 notes, so I think I'm gonna take that. I then plan to take it down to the gun club, and maybe compare it to a few other rifles and see which I prefer. I reckon that, if I decide I prefer a springer, or simply another PCP, then I'll be able to sell this on and re-buy without making a loss.

At least that's how I'm currently justifying it to myself and the missus, I'm actually just hugely impatient.

Am I making a mistake? I see this gun comes quite highly recommended, and the price seems good.

Thanks again to you all (and sorry for seemingly ignoring all of your advice:P)

[DEAN C.]

HI,I dont think you can go wrong with a 400 to be honest as they are an excellent all round hunting or target gun.Good choice!!

I have a Rapid mk1,Titan(falcon)thumbhole,a 410 air arms GML,and two 400 air arms GML's which myself and the daughter use for HFT.

Overall if I could only pick one it would probably be a .177 400 with a Rowan magazine fitted,best of everything for the money.

By the way Chris C is right about the Ponty lads, and the rest of the NEFTA clubs,get yourself down there,everyone is friendly and down to earth.

[Lawson1024]

Ah good, that's what i like to hear. The gun seems to be shooting lovely and i really couldn't be happier with it (apart from one small thing, but we'll come to that), although admittedly i don't have anything to compare it to. How do you find those rowan mags are? I've been considering one as it seems ideal, and much less fiddly than reloading after each and every shot. I just don't wanna blow another 50 quid if i'm not gonna pleased with it.

But now i have another problem, i've been zeroing my scope and seem to have run out of adjustment, with the rifle still shooting very slightly low. Now it's not i huge deal i guess, and it is only very slight. I can correct it by aiming an inch or two higher, but i'd really prefer it to be spot on. Not sure what else i can do.

Cheers for any ideas

James

[soothing]

Hi james i had the same problem with my old combo i placed a small piece of rubber inner tube on the bottom of the front mount between the scope and mount. Worked a treat.. Could use a small piece of card etc just enough to raise it slightly which will give you plenty of room for further adjustment

[Skoll]

More or less what Soothing said, add a spacer between the bottom of the scope and the mount - but unless I'm being totally thick, I think such shimming/spacing should be added to the rear mount rather than the front one?

[soothing]

Possible it was a while ago i did mine coudnt remember if it was front or back. my 12am logic is if it is firing low stick one in the front. if it is firing high stick it in the back..

[Lawson1024]

Hi james i had the same problem with my old combo i placed a small piece of rubber inner tube on the bottom of the front mount between the scope and mount. Worked a treat.. Could use a small piece of card etc just enough to raise it slightly which will give you plenty of room for further adjustment

Ah i didn't think of that, sounds simple enough and should do the trick. Thanks a lot.


Another thing i wanted to ask is this, i've only attempted to fill the cylinder once and managed to get the pressure up to about 180, but there was a lot of air coming from the twisty bit at the top (that might actually not be the exact technical term for it) that you turn to release the air. Is it possible that i'm doing something wrong, or is it more likely that the bottle is faulty? Should there be a real under the twisty thing?

[soothing]

I have a 410 and the sweet spot in mine and generally most others from what i read is between 170 bar and 110 bar this is where you will get the best shot consistency as they do not have a regulator fitted.

[soothing]

Could be the rubber seal not really sure on the twisty top thing..
sorry mate ..