New AWESOME air guns are coming to the market, we want to hear everyone's thoughts and opinions on which slug they use and like more between the .22 & .25 and why? Excited to share what's coming next...
.22 VS .25 Slugs, What's your choice and why?! The Ultimate Poll
- Thread starter TopGun-Airguns
- Start date
I voted .25 but that's only because of the energy dump on targets, I like .22 more for accuracy.
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For distance, when I'm shooting .... it has to be slugs. Anything under 100 yards gets pellets
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25 cal. Lots of more potential due to the given surface area for HPA to act upon, which is needed to get slugs moving for flatter trajectory and their optimal velocity, imo.
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For me it’s all about accuracy. I have a couple .25’s but they seem a bit much at 10-15 meters. I like the .22 better and have split cards with a couple of those. I don’t shoot slugs but I don’t need to.
Rick H.
Rick H.
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I have four slug guns. Two .25’s, a .30 and a .22. The nicest one to shoot is the .22 hands down. What slugs do I use? They all use a different slug.
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I'm shooting .22 slugs to satisfy my curiosity, and only for punching paper and plinking out to 128 yards.
For hunting I prefer pellets as I typically keep my shots to 50-60 yards or less.
For hunting I prefer pellets as I typically keep my shots to 50-60 yards or less.
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. 25 caliber 40gr H&N Heavy @970 fps from my M3 
They are extremely accurate and very deadly !
They are extremely accurate and very deadly !
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I'm guessing there was a lot of snark in that comment? Pellets are very effective small game ammo, shot placement is key.
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No, he started an earlier thread and is brand new to the game so still learning.
I switched back to .25 from .22. Both worked fine but the 25 gives me more versatility in what I'm hunting.
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Head over to the Hunting sub forum. Pellets are great projectiles for pretty much any sized pesting/hunting. I've gone as big as large raccoons with .22 cal pellets.
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Agree with the above. I’m willing to bet pellets are probably more than adequate the majority of the time for the majority of what we do. Pellets are also super easy. Set the speed between 850-910 and pick one of the go to’s and there is a 99% chance you are good. Haven’t found the same to be true with slugs. Much more picky. With that said I admittedly haven’t worked with slugs a bunch. If I need to go out past 100 there are just better tools available. I keep the AG’s in a certain lane. With all that said I figured .22 would run away with it from everything I’ve watched and read. Good to see .25 is doing well.
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I apologize if I came across that way, it was not my intention, it was an authentic question from an airgun noob who is trying to learn what are the real life applications of pellets and slugs in their different sizes… you know, some brands are marketing monsters that over stretch what their products can do… hence I’m asking the real users of the products to understand what really does work and for what application…
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I’m a ground squirrel shooter. Made my first trip to Nevada already and will be going on my second trip next week. First trip I killed just over 100 with the air rifles. Now I have tried both 22 and 25. 10 foot pounds of energy difference is not significant in my opinion. I am a 22 guy all the way. On my first trip most shots were 100-150 yards. I did make a couple at 250. To me, the 22 just seems to handle everything better.
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I pest and hunt small game up to rabbit size in a rural area. I live on 10 acres but there are a number of houses within slug range and there is a high likelihood that people will be out riding bikes or walking the dog. The fact that pellets loose their energy faster and have a shorter range is a benefit rather than a liability.
My thinking is this...
How far away can you spot a bird, rabbit or squirrel?
How far away can you consistently hit the 1 inch kill-zone on the animal?
How much energy do you need to dispatch the animal?
How much energy is wasted/not needed after the projectile passes through the animal?
You may be a better shot but for me, under my typical conditions, 50-60 yards is my practical limit and a 30-33 fpe, .22 caliber PCP shooting pellets will do the job just fine. I can consistently hit where I want/need to don't need to compensate for inaccuracies with excessive power. I don't need/want more energy or range.
As far as .22 caliber power goes, 30-33 fpe (16-18 grain pellets) is typical and practical for most mainstream PCPs (like my Air Arms, Daystate, Feinwerkbau, FX and Weihrauch rifles) giving reasonable shot-counts.
To up the .22 caliber power I use my Impact with 25 grain JSBs tuned to around 50 fpe. At this power level the Impact has no problem dispatching groundhogs, raccoons or porcupines.
For more .22 caliber power my Panthera is (currently) shooting 34 grain slugs at just over 60 fpe. I've killed two coyotes (at about 50 yards) with this setup. When I'm done testing slugs, the Panthera will get a new liner and be tuned to shoot pellets.
Slugs have a "cool factor" but from the economical perspective, pellets are a lot cheaper (cost and air) so I can shoot more, they have proven they are effective and (repeatedly) demonstrated that they are more accurate than slugs within their effective range. Yeah, slugs have a better BC and don't drift as much in the wind but that really is a benefit at longer than the ranges I typically shoot at.
In my comment to the OP, I prefer .22 caliber for the reasons listed above. If I was typically shooting larger, tougher pests (groundhogs) or animals like ground squirrels at longer ranges the I'd definitely go to .25 or larger.
As a side bar, I did hunt squirrels with slugs and my Panthera last fall. The young lads who have permission to hunt on my property had the squirrels spooked to the point that you couldn't get within 60 yards of them. I setup a chair and rest in the hardwood bush and took 18 squirrels that season - all head-shots, all on the ground with a safe backstop - at between 60 and 80 yards.
My thought is: Don't underestimate the power of modern .22 caliber PCPs. Each to their own eh?
Cheers!
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