N/A Please, some guidance for very accurate/target air rifle + associated hardware. Finances are a concern.

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In your situation I think something along the lines of a Diana Stormrider or a Beeman Chief might not be a bad starting point. Just do your research on which cheap $250 ish gun has the best reputation. This leaves room for a compressor that isn’t going to be worked to death filling up air tanks or a gun with a big ole bottle. Do your research on little, easy to use reliable for just filling guns compressors.

If you just want to enjoy some shooting again there’s no need to try to jump in the deep end of the pool with a pair of hip waders on. You will quickly sink to the bottom if your budget makes 100 consistency a headache. But that same gun can make 50 yards a joy. Then you can make 75 or 80 yards your own personal 100 yards.

Coming here and bragging about your 100 yard shooting means nothing. What means something is everyone’s personal gun performing its very best at its maximum effective range. For example, when I see a guys springer groups at 50 that look like a PCP group at 50, that’s freakin impressive. Yeah, he’s not in the 100 yard club but who cares. His level of skill and shooting technique far exceeds the 100 yard PCP guy. Bottom line, if you want to enjoy whatever you wind up buying, stay in your guns lane and enjoy the hell out of it.
 
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all this information is incredibly helpful as i know so little of the sport and technology. i really miss shooting, the focus. i always found it very rewarding and was a wonderful way to spend time with good friends.

may i ask, some mentioned purchasing a bottle in addition to the compressor. is the advantage for transportation? i rarely leave the home.
 
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student said:
thank you all....you've afforded me a lot of great information. i can now better focus my research accordingly.
i do think that having to cock the platform might be difficult for me so i'll focus on compressors as well.

sounds like i'll have to limit my search to accommodate 50 yards....that would be fine as well.
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Still think you should buy the Daisy SSP , while your saving for a PCP and all the stuff you need to make it work .
 
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The reason that airguns are more difficult to shoot accurately at 100 yards (or other longish distances) is the projectiles have really low bc compared to powder burner projectiles. Like under 0.1. Often below 0.05. So wind drift is a really big deal. 2 inch groups at 100 yards are not bad groups. But you already said 50 is OK. Wind there will still be a factor but significantly less. There is friendly competiton at 30 and 40 yards. The thread is for the 30 yard challenge. You'll need a gun and a scoring plug but not a lot more. But most of us use 24X or higher scopes.

For a compressor I recommend a GX CS2. I recently bought one delivered from GX for $250. It fills my guns in about 3 minutes. I rigged it up to work off 18V Milwaukee batteries but it came with a power supply that uses 120V and has cables to hook up to a car so there are multiple ways to power it. GX also offers a battery powered version for a few more dollars. I have a bigger compressor (Yong Heng) and 45 minute firemans bottle and I like them too but it costs a lot more for that setup. The CS2 will get you shooting and is really handy for portability and limited storage space. It only weighs about 15 lbs and is reasonably quiet. The CS 3 is mechanically about the same but packaged different and I think it has an auto off function the CS2 lacks. CS4s are more powerful and CS5s more powerful than that. But to fill a gun a CS2 works great. I filled my Avenger from 0-300bar with my little CS2. It took about 9 minutes but never got hot. If you like the looks or features of the CS3 better it isn't a lot more expensive. The CS4 is another step up in price but is the smallest of the GX line suggested to fill a bottle if you think you might want to do that. The bottle is portable but mine is heavier than a CS2 and takes up more space. I think the key advantages are very fast nearly silent fills.

If you have a bottle handy or a battery powered compressor you could refill the gun in the prone position. Or at the bench. Some even leave a bottle hooked up so all they have to do is open the valve to refill the gun. Or with a regulator on the bottle just leave it open.

For inexpensive but accurate airguns I always recommend something from Snowpeak. I have 3 P35s and shot one Stoeger Bullshark which is almost exactly the same gun. They are all accurate. My P35-22 gave me my first 200 on the 30 yard challenge. My P35-177's best is a 197 and my P35-25's best is a 194. The goal is a 200 with 20Xs. I've never done it. I got my highest X count (18) on a 199. It's challenging but my 200 is not the only one with a less expensive airgun. Most guys use more expensive ones but are polite to me and others with what some feel are "lesser" airguns. If you prefer long guns, the Stoeger Scout is carbine length and the Stoeger Ranger is a full length gun. Mechanically I think they are similar to my P35s or the Bullshark. I have an Avenger too and it is reasonably accurate but it is hugely long which I don't like and I think SPA guns are made better. Others prefer Avengers and they do have nice features.

I recommend a 22 for several reasons. First, the variety of ammo is greater than larger calibers and it is less expensive. 177 also has lots of variety and is even cheaper but is also significantly more wind challenged. Inexpensive airguns seem to be sized for 22s and struggle a little to get 25 caliber ammo up to speed. Bigger calibers have better bcs, however, which will improve long range accuracy. But bigger calibers also consume more air and can be more difficult to keep quiet. 22s are a nice balance of reasonable wind resistance, reasonable air usage, and more reasonably ammo cost. Nothing wrong with other calibers. I have two 25s, 3 22s, and a 177 PCP so far. I like them all. I get about 75 shots on a fill from my P35-177, about 40 on my P35-22, and at least 30 on my P35-25. They only store about 250ccs of air at no more than 250 bar. More air and/or pressure would give more shots. Tuning to lower power can also give more shots (but increase wind drift too).
 
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student said:
perfect, thank you so very much

will i need a bottle as well?
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You don’t need a bottle. I filled with a hand pump then a compressor for years. A bottle is a luxury item, not a necessity. The bottle life requires a better compressor or hammering the crap out of the little guy that would happily live a long long time filling up just a gun.
 
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Vetmx said:
You don’t need a bottle. I filled with a hand pump then a compressor for years. A bottle is a luxury item, not a necessity. The bottle life requires a better compressor or hammering the crap out of the little guy that would happily live a long long time filling up just a gun.
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I had a bottle for 5 years. Last year or 2 got rid of it as it was just too big and bulky too much room taken up in my safe. I've direct filled my guns since and likely won't ever buy a bottle again. You can get away with alot smaller compressor filling direct vs a bottle also.
 
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Dairyboy said:
I had a bottle for 5 years. Last year or 2 got rid of it as it was just too big and bulky too much room taken up in my safe. I've direct filled my guns since and likely won't ever buy a bottle again. You can get away with alot smaller compressor filling direct vs a bottle also.
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So you might be the guy who could recommend a good gun filling compressor. I can’t. I’ve been an Alkin guy since 2018. Before that I was a Yong Hengger. Still have two Yongers in crates in the basement just in case.
 
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Vetmx said:
So you might be the guy who could recommend a good gun filling compressor. I can’t. I’ve been an Alkin guy since 2018. Before that I was a Yong Hengger. Still have two Yongers in crates in the basement just in case.
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Well unfortunately I'm not sure I can. I've had a Omega Air Charger since 2017-2018 I think. Still ticking but did buy a GX CS2 for me and my dad a CS3 when they were on sale last year. I tested his when i got it but dont think hes used it since. Mine is in the box somewhere in case my Omega goes down. Hasn't ever yet though. But based on lots of people's reviews I went with the GX line as no middleman and good customer service.
 
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