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HFT: Help kit me out

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Yogi_Rides

Yogi_Rides

Member
Oct 25, 2024
18
16
Williamstown, KY
Greetings folks,

I am long time hunter & shooter that at one time or another has competed in virtually every shooting discipline save one, air gunning. I don’t say that to boast, but rather to give some context.

I am finally setting my eye on this sport & as I look at the various guns & equipment of FT I am frankly amazed. For the 1st time in decades I am in position where I don’t know what I don’t know. Worse still, I really don’t have the gumption of spending weeks researching every rifle & scope so if y’all could provide some suggestions I would be most appreciative!

While I have read the 177 vs 22 controversy I believe I would prefer a 22 anyway because it will likely get used for critter killin as well as HFT. Im old school so would prefer a nice wood stock as opposed to synthetic. I would also ask for a recommendations as to what glass to put on it.

The only other question is price. While I am blessed to be able to afford to buy what I want, I won’t spend a lot just because I can. I have to perceive some value in it so if you could, qualify your recommendations on why that is what I should get. I know a lot of it will be highly subjective but its your opinions & insights that I am looking for.

Finally, I love classic looking rifles & I like bullpups, I have no interest in something that looks like it belongs on the set of Star Wars. ;)
 
To each his own but IMO, you are putting yourself at a disadvantage with a 22 over a .177, for field target. It would help if we know which class you want to shoot. There are hugh differences in equipment in hunter, WFTF and open classes. Are you looking to shoot pcp or a springer. Field target is a great game and you can spend a few hundred or a few thousand dollars depending on how serious you want to jump in. JMHO, Don
 
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Buy a RAW TM or HM1000 .... Top in with an ATHLON HERAS SPR scope ( 6-24 mil for Hunter class ... 10-40 MOA for open or WFTF )
World class set up for under 3K

In the middle sits .20 caliber which is an EXCELLENT FT caliber as well light/med hunting caliber. ( My personal choice for both suggestions )

1A.jpg
 
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Motorhead said:
Buy a RAW TM or HM1000 .... Top in with an ATHLON HERAS SPR scope ( 6-24 mil for Hunter class ... 10-40 MOA for open or WFTF )
World class set up for under 3K

In the middle sits .20 caliber which is an EXCELLENT FT caliber as well light/med hunting caliber. ( My personal choice for both suggestions )

View attachment 510780
Click to expand...

Seriously solid recommendation, all around (gun, scope, caliber).

The .20 is the best of both worlds for your stated use.
 
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doninva said:
To each his own but IMO, you are putting yourself at a disadvantage with a 22 over a .177, for field target.
Click to expand...
I agree with you, however I am pretty good at doping wind & range (long time LRBPCR shooter). I think (hope) I can overcome the challenge of an increased trajectory with good range estimation. If it turns out I am not as good at it as I think I will just buy another rifle for stricktly HFT. I do however want to give it a go with 22.

doninva said:
It would help if we know which class you want to shoot. There are hugh differences in equipment in hunter, WFTF and open classes. Are you looking to shoot pcp or a springer. Field target is a great game and you can spend a few hundred or a few thousand dollars depending on how serious you want to jump in. JMHO, Don
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Sorry, I guess I didnt specify. I plan to compete in Hunter class. I may end up in WFTF if the bug bites hard enough but I am mostly looking to get my feet wet with HFT.
I want a PCP gun. I already own a number of Springers, several of which might actually work out OK for HFT but where is the fun in that? New sport so I gotta have a new gun right? :)
 
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Motorhead said:
Buy a RAW TM or HM1000 ....
Click to expand...
HM1000 is on my short list! This is the 1st Ive heard of the RAW TM. Thanks for that, I will look into it (this is exactly why I made my OP :) )!!
Motorhead said:
Top in with an ATHLON HERAS SPR scope ( 6-24 mil for Hunter class ... 10-40 MOA for open or WFTF )
World class set up for under 3K
Click to expand...

Again thanks, while I am interested in discovering new rifles my google-fu failed me on learning about glass is honestly my 1st priority. Sure I could go buy a Nightforce or the like but I really didnt want to spend that much. I am looking for as much glass as I can get in the sub $1000 range.
Motorhead said:
In the middle sits .20 caliber which is an EXCELLENT FT caliber as well light/med hunting caliber. ( My personal choice for both suggestions )
Click to expand...

And another excellent suggestion! I honestly hadnt considered a 20. I most certainly will now!

Beauty of a rifle you got there, thanks for sharing!
Motorhead said:
View attachment 510780
Click to expand...
 
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Better picture of whole rifle ... tho with another scope that fell short of being ideal ( Schmidt Bender )

Keep in mind in FT you must use the scopes Parallax to range targets and that requires a 10 yard minimum focus !!!
As well SHALLOWER is the Depth Of Field, better an optic is suited to the FT game ... After wearing out 3 identical scopes over 12 years of heavy FT use ... then searching once more for a replacement worthy of my use the ATHLON HERA SPR series has knocked it out of the park and it is doing very well as my Holy Grail replacement.

Second picture a Magnetic attached JD's Customs Nautilus side wheel on the ATHILON (y)

m.jpg
u.jpg
 
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The RAW is a great recommendation. For scopes, be careful. For shooting hunter class, you have very specific requirements. The scope has to parallax down to 10 yards, which automatically removes a lot of high end glass. It also needs to have a shallow depth of field to make range finding with the parallax easier. The Athlon Heras SPR does both of those things well. And it just helped win the National Championship. Make sure you get the reticle with .2 subtensions since you have to hold over for Hunter class. I believe it's the APRS6 reticle.
 
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I’m here to emphasize that as a beginner, 50% of your success will be based on how well you’ve set up your parallax wheel for ranging.
You need to have 10-20y marked and dope confirmed at each yard and 20-55y marked on the wheel and dope confirmed every five yards. While HFT class limits the range finding accuracy it’s still absolutely essential.
I see too many beginners kinda shortcut their ranging parallax setup and they lose several shots per match for no particular reason.

I think .177 is the caliber for FT. .20 is not bad but it gains you little as a hunting gun. Not to get pushy but I think you’ll end up with a separate high power .22 or .25 for hunting soon enough. A sixty FPE .25 cal is a much more versatile hunting gun than a 20fpe field target rig. But it’s hard to say more without knowing what you want to hunt and the environment.

I’m a huge fan of RAW rifles. USFT and Thomas are also popular at the top end but I don’t think they gain much over a well tuned RAW. Martin and other tuners provide great support. While it sounds nice to have knobs and wheeligigs to change the tune as many brands offer, it’s never as reliable or useful as it seems. If you buy the repeater you can use the mag for FT or a single shot loader.
 
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dgeesaman said:
I’m here to emphasize that as a beginner, 50% of your success will be based on how well you’ve set up your parallax wheel for ranging.
You need to have 10-20y marked and dope confirmed at each yard and 20-55y marked on the wheel and dope confirmed every five yards. While HFT class limits the range finding accuracy it’s still absolutely essential.
I see too many beginners kinda shortcut their ranging parallax setup and they lose several shots per match for no particular reason.
Click to expand...

Very good points! I am an avid traditional bow hunter so from the onset ass-u-me'd range estimation would be no problem for me. Honestly, using parallax to range find is completely foreign ground for me so I will have to commit myself to it.

dgeesaman said:
I think .177 is the caliber for FT. .20 is not bad but it gains you little as a hunting gun. Not to get pushy but I think you’ll end up with a separate high power .22 or .25 for hunting soon enough. A sixty FPE .25 cal is a much more versatile hunting gun than a 20fpe field target rig. But it’s hard to say more without knowing what you want to hunt and the environment.
Click to expand...

As I get deeper down this rabbit hole I believe you are right. A "do all" gun, especially in the context of competition has always been a pipe dream. Not sure why I thought FT would be any different. I have been educated :) I will get the HFT gun 1st & then look for a good "Critter Gitter".

Insofar as the enviroment, I live in very rural KY just south of Cincinnati. The gun would be used for nusance animals around my property. Everything from Chipmunks to Coons to the odd Coyote can expect to find themselves in my sights. I had originally planned to buy a FX Wildcat for this purpose but about the same time I learned about HFT & the odyssey began..

dgeesaman said:
I’m a huge fan of RAW rifles. USFT and Thomas are also popular at the top end but I don’t think they gain much over a well tuned RAW. Martin and other tuners provide great support. While it sounds nice to have knobs and wheeligigs to change the tune as many brands offer, it’s never as reliable or useful as it seems. If you buy the repeater you can use the mag for FT or a single shot loader.
Click to expand...

The RAW HM1000 has really caught my eye! In fact I am going to reach out to them today to get an idea of lead time on a build.
 
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I shoot .22 for field target, I do ok. Its like anything else are you wanting to be hardcore about it then go get yourself a Thomas in .177 and don’t look back.

If you’re just looking to have some fun and you want to hunt with the same gun (which is what I do) then get the .22.

The funny thing is when I used a .177 I shot 13.4 gr pellets. Now that I shot .22 I use 14.6 grain pellets. Either caliber with a gun shooting 19.5 ft/lbs really does not drop very much at 60 yards. The hold over is minimum with 25-40 yards using a 30 yard zero requires no hold over. Then heavier pellet has less wind deflection.

Also I use spring guns in .22 and have no issues hitting a 10mm kill zone.

So to make a long story slightly shorter, if you like the .22 like I do then you should definitely get the .22
 
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Your not too far from a club in Ohio that shoots FT matches.
Come out, see what guns and gear are being used, shoot a few, talk to real people and get opinions as well and go from there. Lots of great info here to be had as well.
I was always told use 177 for FT for less trajectory and smaller pellet to squeeze into the KZ on a split vs a 22. Same with 3/8" KZ, smaller pellet has more room for error basically.
Use whichever you like but maybe try before you buy!
Theres a number of shooters in your area and not too far from you in Ohio. Lots of FT matches held in Ohio every year, each weekend to be exact from April thru October.
Im personally finding Hawke optics to be better than the Athlons but I haven't tried the mid tier Athlons only the low end stuff. Sidewinders are great scopes, range well and are very clear. Im using a Sightron S3 on my personal rig and its great but they are the same at 16x and actually prefer the Hawke.
I use a Wolverine 177, Marauder 177 and now have a RAW in 177 im testing. I have a pic of me sandwiched in between 2 other shooters using a Thomas and Red Wolf and im using the Marauder. This was at a GP where we all tied for 2nd! Just saying the cheaper guns can hang just as well as the higher end guns for most of it. Yes, the RW and Thomas are more accurate guns but its up to the shooter.
I have not used a 22 in FT yet but you certainly can. FT guns make great hunters as you have your ranging and dope all figured out. As long as the 18-20fpe is enough to kill what you want, go for it. That 177 Marauder killed a coon in 1 shot. Not typical but doable.
If you look at the equipment list at the GPs you will see where most competitors go, .177.

Nov 17th, at Fairfield Sportsmans Association in Harrison OH is the next FT fun shoot (weather permitting). I plan on being pistol heavy this shoot and bringing the Marauder as I shot my Wolverine and RAW Micro last time.
 
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Shooting a .22 in FT as a Plan ... is a bad plan !!

Likely you will find in the FT game that ACCURACY of the gun/pellet combo rules the day and likely to find the JSB or AA 15.9g to be that pellet ? Staying under the max 20 fpe limit that pellet needs to be about 720 fps and that speed is VERY LOOPY in trajectory !! As one if using a .22 is needing to find the Lightest pellet that is consistently accurate .. educated guess is as stated above.
As such it places a HUGE Weighting on the quality and ranging / parallax stability & repeatability of the scope chosen :oops: for shots at such speed, errors in distance estimation will equate to miss's. :confused:

Yes at our club shoots that average 18-26 shooters every month, some do shoot .22's and NONE of them generally succeed beyond mid to average scores ... this viewed and seen as MD & while doing match reports these past 12 years.
 
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Hi Yogi,

In LRBPCR the distances are known and in FT they are not so that's a important difference to understand. I'm sure since you've been doing this sport a while you've seen newbies show up with equipment not well suited to this game. It's kinda like that now and you were smart to make your post here to ask us.

How competitive do you want to be? If just fooling around in HFT 22 will work but if you want to place high often, or win, which is literally often seperated by only one point, then get 17 or 20.

The BC's for lighter 22 caliber pellets are lower, and usually going slower too(needed to stay under 20 fpe), so you have a more loopy trajectory, and more wind drift, and combined together that's a double disadvantage, also that pellet has to go into a KZ hole without clipping the edge or the target will not fall. So I guess it can be a triple disadvantage.

I'm guessing you wouldn't mind another pcp in your stable ;) and that means the BC's and energy levels go up with heavier projectiles which is advantages for hunting especially as distance increases. One example would be a 30 cal Vulcan 3 HP sending 68gr slugs at mid 900 fps/135 fpe. That's more energy than 22rf standard velocity which is 100 fpe.

However it's amazing what can be done with a 20 fpe 17. Small game within normal airgun distances fall victim regularly and we've been able to hit the 1/5th scale rimfire silhouette chickens much of the time at 80Y in medium winds.
For reference your 17 cal springer is likely 12-14 fpe or so.
 
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Bramezy said:
Nov 17th, at Fairfield Sportsmans Association in Harrison OH is the next FT fun shoot (weather permitting). I plan on being pistol heavy this shoot and bringing the Marauder as I shot my Wolverine and RAW Micro last time.
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Yes I am very close to there, in fact I work in Sharonville.

I will have to ask the Sargent Major (AKA she who must be obeyed) to verify she hasnt made any plans for me that day otherwise I will be there.
 
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Motorhead said:
Shooting a .22 in FT as a Plan ... is a bad plan !!
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Y'all have pretty well swayed me to drop the 22 idea & get a FT gun in 177. I was a bit stubborn about it because I have always believed the most important thing is the nut behind the trigger. I still do but I am also a pretty competitive SOB so if shooting 177 will help me place a little higher, so be it. :)
 
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Yogi_Rides said:
Yes I am very close to there, in fact I work in Sharonville.

I will have to ask the Sargent Major (AKA she who must be obeyed) to verify she hasnt made any plans for me that day otherwise I will be there.
Click to expand...
Wow, very close. Im in Fairfield, others west side of Cincy and West Chester and NKY and so on. But FSA is the local range that holds matches. Many different airgun matches to be exact. Benchrest 100y, N50 50y, Speed Silhouette, FT (rifle and pistol).
 
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