New interest in airguns.

[cgdavid]

Hi everyone. First post and just getting into AG. Been in the firearm benchrest scene for nearly five decades. Local ranges are closing so I'm looking at more backyard friendly shooting opportunities. I have a few AGs for the purpose of pest control and introducing kids/grand kids to shooting but am looking at something a little more upscale to scratch the same itch I had while shooting BR. Anyway, I narrowed down a few choices and decided to start shopping. Literally every site out there has no inventory. Everything is sold out and backorder only. I'm not overly inpatient. I've waited years for custom built firearms and was given that expectation up front by the builders but every seller of airguns is quoting '4-6 weeks'. No problem. I wait and three months later they are still saying 4-6 weeks. Is there something going on in the AG supply chain? If so, I'm an understanding person but am not used to be deceived (if that's what's happening). Before I get too excited about it, can someone fill in the gaps for me?

Thanks!

 

[Peashooter]

I shoot .177 from a bench, 100 yards are fine / manageable, but adding 34 yards to my MAX distance, and things suddenly get mighty hard to keep on a 2" target.
But ! i will get sorted on 134 yards too, just like it took me a while to get 92 yards / 86 M working for me.
I now have a nice shed to shoot from, one that can even be heated when temperatures otherwise get uncomfortable for me, at least to shoot in, so i have high hopes for the coming fall / winter.

 

[Treefrog]

Welcome, David.

I'm not up on the latest and greatest, but there are a lot of platforms out there if you want to spend the time and effort doing some improvements on them. A Lothar Walther barrel and a bit of time/money spent machining can make an inexpensive air rifle amazingly accurate. Assuming that you're looking at a pre-charged pneumatic, a Benjamin Marauder or something similar from the used market might just be the ticket. If not, then a co2 powered QB78 or 79 might be what you're after. Springers require a different hold than normal to be accurate, and thus have to be adjusted to by the shooter.

Here's a rabbit-hole blog that I follow. Another Airgun Blog

Cheers,

J~

 

[Firewalker]

Hi everyone. First post and just getting into AG. Been in the firearm benchrest scene for nearly five decades. Local ranges are closing so I'm looking at more backyard friendly shooting opportunities. I have a few AGs for the purpose of pest control and introducing kids/grand kids to shooting but am looking at something a little more upscale to scratch the same itch I had while shooting BR. Anyway, I narrowed down a few choices and decided to start shopping. Literally every site out there has no inventory. Everything is sold out and backorder only. I'm not overly inpatient. I've waited years for custom built firearms and was given that expectation up front by the builders but every seller of airguns is quoting '4-6 weeks'. No problem. I wait and three months later they are still saying 4-6 weeks. Is there something going on in the AG supply chain? If so, I'm an understanding person but am not used to be deceived (if that's what's happening). Before I get too excited about it, can someone fill in the gaps for me?

Thanks!

What exactly are you looking for my friend?

 

[MikeVV]

Hi everyone. First post and just getting into AG. Been in the firearm benchrest scene for nearly five decades. Local ranges are closing so I'm looking at more backyard friendly shooting opportunities. I have a few AGs for the purpose of pest control and introducing kids/grand kids to shooting but am looking at something a little more upscale to scratch the same itch I had while shooting BR. Anyway, I narrowed down a few choices and decided to start shopping. Literally every site out there has no inventory. Everything is sold out and backorder only. I'm not overly inpatient. I've waited years for custom built firearms and was given that expectation up front by the builders but every seller of airguns is quoting '4-6 weeks'. No problem. I wait and three months later they are still saying 4-6 weeks. Is there something going on in the AG supply chain? If so, I'm an understanding person but am not used to be deceived (if that's what's happening). Before I get too excited about it, can someone fill in the gaps for me?

Thanks!

In red above -

Before you get all...gun...happy, unless you live in a "large" open area, best to contact your local police. Make SURE that they are ok with your plan.
Even though I live in an unincorporated location, they were NOT happy with my thought of doing the same as your plan.

Sorta like..."buyer beware".

Mike

 

[Stubbers]

In red above -

Before you get all...gun...happy, unless you live in a "large" open area, best to contact your local police. Make SURE that they are ok with your plan.
Even though I live in an unincorporated location, they were NOT happy with my thought of doing the same as your plan.

Sorta like..."buyer beware".

Mike

+1, shooting in most municipalities is not legal, be it firearm, airgun, bow, airsoft. Also check with your neighbors and make sure they're okay with projectiles flying around.

-Matt

 

[cgdavid]

I have about 60 yards to work with to the back of my property and I can shoot from my walkout basement door. There isn't anything behind my property (farm land) as far as the eye can see. I live on the very edge of town and won't disturb or otherwise concern neighbors. Safety isn't a concern. I mentioned I have airguns for pest control. Just about everyone near me has them for the same reason. Seems our area attracts starlings, squirrels, rabbits etc. I like the wildlife but the population gets way out of hand with the abundance of food the farmland behind us supplies. Law enforcement has never said anything to us before (A guy I shot BR with is LEO)

I've been looking at the FX impact, Skout epoch etc. class of guns I'm liking the Impact the best so far. The M4 trigger really peaks my interest. I've become somewhat of a trigger snob over the last few decades. My favorite trigger (while they were in business) was Jewel. After the time and money I've spent over the decades, these air rifles seem to be a good deal cost wise and an excellent foundation to modify/refine as my interest grows.

Some have mentioned (not in this forum) that I shouldn't start out with the upper end of mid-range of airguns until I'm sure I'll like the sport. I've had enough interests to know that I tend to like what interests me for a long time and working my way up in an interest usually costs me more money than just getting what I actually want out of the gate I'm in a very fortunate situation where I'm retired, have no debt and have enough money to indulge in things like this. Besides, I'm not spending tons of money BR shooting any more and have sold a lot of my equipment/rifles.

Guess none of it matters if I can't get the airgun I want. I hope I've just hit a rough patch in the supply chain cycle.

Thanks so much for the replies and sorry for the wall of text.

 

[Stubbers]

Sounds like you have a rather ideal location that won't inhibit airgun/pest control activities.

What caliber / style Impact m4, sniper, regular, or compact? I am sure we could help source you one from a reputable dealer.

-Matt

 

[cgdavid]

Sounds like you have a rather ideal location that won't inhibit airgun/pest control activities.

What caliber / style Impact m4, sniper, regular, or compact? I am sure we could help source you one from a reputable dealer.

-Matt

I've talked to a few people about barrel length. The more I discuss it, the more I'm leaning to a 700mm barrel (sniper) in 22. That's another thing I like about the impact ( and a few others) is the option to switch calibers easily. I'm liking the idea of slugs so based on what I'm hearing, 700mm is a good choice plus, it shoots pellets well too.

FYI, I kind of did things backwards. I have already purchased a 300 bar pump. The hand pump I used for my pest control/kid training guns bit the dust and I'm tired of hand pumping anyway. My grand kids love to shoot as long as grandpa is pumping and there's no way I'm going to stop that kind of fun and enthusiasm.

 

[cavedweller]

Hi everyone. First post and just getting into AG. Been in the firearm benchrest scene for nearly five decades. Local ranges are closing so I'm looking at more backyard friendly shooting opportunities. I have a few AGs for the purpose of pest control and introducing kids/grand kids to shooting but am looking at something a little more upscale to scratch the same itch I had while shooting BR. Anyway, I narrowed down a few choices and decided to start shopping. Literally every site out there has no inventory. Everything is sold out and backorder only. I'm not overly inpatient. I've waited years for custom built firearms and was given that expectation up front by the builders but every seller of airguns is quoting '4-6 weeks'. No problem. I wait and three months later they are still saying 4-6 weeks. Is there something going on in the AG supply chain? If so, I'm an understanding person but am not used to be deceived (if that's what's happening). Before I get too excited about it, can someone fill in the gaps for me?

Thanks!

Contact airguns of Arizona

 

[Florida_Man]

Just my opinion, FWIW, but I HATE bullpups for benchrest. I also have a PB history doing 3 position and BR.
I’ve had a Cricket Tactical 2 and a FX Maverick. Bottle bullpups get really tippy. You can manage it with different rests, but it’s a process. I have a smaller property and shoot 30y benchrest. I love my traditional rifles (Revere and S200 177’s) for this task. I still have two bullpups, but they are peat rifles i only shoot from bench for fun.

 

[dgeesaman]

I'm a traditional rifle / wooden stock guy so I have no opinion about bullpups or chassis rifles.

That said, I'm a fan of RAW rifles. They're simple, very accurate, reasonably priced for the quality, and many airgunsmiths can work on them. Used I see them from $1200-1500, $1800 for a particularly special example. They have very good two stage triggers. (I've never had an airgun trigger quite as light and crisp as a Bix'n Andy or Jewell, but I've had very close).

I had an FX Crown and the external adjustments seemed like a great idea, except that mechanically it was a bit complicated and not terribly reliable. Trigger was good enough and not a detriment. Dataset of one of course, but I think competitive firearm shooters are accustomed to very reliable equipment.

 

[cgdavid]

What exactly are you looking for my friend?

I'm trying to find out if there's an issue with airgun supplies. Seems everything I'm interested in is out of stock and nobody seems to know when/if available again. I keep getting the 4-6 weeks answer but they're still out of stock. I want to set my expectations to match reality in case there is some issue in airgun supply lines. Maybe the activity has become far more popular than I'm aware of and that's causing shortages.

 

[woogie_man]

Welcome to the mad house man!!!

Like I mentioned in the PM I sent you, we are all more than happy to spend your hard earned money for you! Many of us have dropped a TON of money on these rifles and shoot them more than our other rifles.

 

[cgdavid]

Just my opinion, FWIW, but I HATE bullpups for benchrest. I also have a PB history doing 3 position and BR.
I’ve had a Cricket Tactical 2 and a FX Maverick. Bottle bullpups get really tippy. You can manage it with different rests, but it’s a process. I have a smaller property and shoot 30y benchrest. I love my traditional rifles (Revere and S200 177’s) for this task. I still have two bullpups, but they are peat rifles i only shoot from bench for fun.

I've noticed that most of the pcp's with bottles are kind of high profile..kind of like bench shooting an AR. I've been sketching up an option that might address that using my machine rest and a couple ptfe rails offset mounted on each side of the bottle from a pic rail.. I'll have to get the rifle in my hands to know for sure but it looks like it should work.

 

[ChickenDumpling]

Welcome!

I have not noticed any issues in what I've been dabbling in and there is inventory on several dealers. What are you shopping for?

Know your style of shooting and don't chase bells and whistles in platforms that don't fit what you actually do. You'll look at that expensive rifle in disappointment and you'll take a big loss kicking it out the door.

Don't turn your nose up at discontinued models, there are some excellent gems out there in the used market. Good luck in your venture.

 

[Caliber 22]

Everybody is saying everything but what the OP is asking. He asked about the supply chain and get answers about what and where everyone is shooting.I can't answer his question as I am not in the USA.

 

[Nealgl1985]

Pyramydair.com has the m4 in .25 cal 600mm version 1 left in stock if that's what you are wanting. And they also have 1 m4 700mm in .30 in stock. They also have skout in .177 and .30 in stock if those intertest you. I'm assuming the skout trigger will be better considering it's electronic. I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong.

Good luck on your search and welcome to the forum! Don't forget you need a compressor and an airtank for filling that bad boy up!

 

[cgdavid]

Pyramydair.com has the m4 in .25 cal 600mm version 1 left in stock if that's what you are wanting. And they also have 1 m4 700mm in .30 in stock. They also have skout in .177 and .30 in stock if those intertest you. I'm assuming the skout trigger will be better considering it's electronic. I'm sure someone will correct me if I'm wrong.

Good luck on your search and welcome to the forum! Don't forget you need a compressor and an airtank for filling that bad boy up!

Thanks.

The last few times I looked, PA didn't have anything in stock. I'm looking for a 22 in 700mm barrel. Seems my needs/wants might be my issue or maybe what everyone else's needs wants are.

I ended up buying a 300 bar compressor for my pest control gun a while back after my hand pump died. The grand kids love shooting and I'm getting too old to keep up with them hand pumping anyway. It's capable of pumping up tanks (slowly). A vast majority of my shooting at home so getting a tank is not needed for now. My understanding is the Impact I'm interested in has a 300 shot count on factory settings so that should handle away from home situations for now. If you're a gambler, bet on me having a tank within a year.

 

[cgdavid]

Welcome!

I have not noticed any issues in what I've been dabbling in and there is inventory on several dealers. What are you shopping for?

Know your style of shooting and don't chase bells and whistles in platforms that don't fit what you actually do. You'll look at that expensive rifle in disappointment and you'll take a big loss kicking it out the door.

Don't turn your nose up at discontinued models, there are some excellent gems out there in the used market. Good luck in your venture.

I'm not apposed to discounted/used but for my first gun I'm using as a replacement for decades of bench shooting firearms, I want a clean start . Used guns of any kind generally come with problems (which is usually why they're sold). Until I'm a bit deeper into the obsession, I'd like a warranty to fall back on. I'm well versed in the mechanics of firearms but airguns are significantly different so my experience doesn't translate well. I came to this conclusion when I've had to wrench on my pest control gun a few times then realized I was out of my wheelhouse and sent it to someone who knows what they're doing. I'll learn but just not there yet. Sounds like I'm in the right place when I need help/guidance.