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Tohopko

Tohopko

Member
May 14, 2020
20
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Coeur d'Alene, Idaho, United States of America
I'm thinking of getting started with PCP. I've got fairly extensive experience with powder burners and reloading, and I've played around with pumps and break barrels since I was a kid, but I know very, very little about PCP. Just reading through the forum tends to make my eyes glass over and my head spin. I'm retired military, pilot by trade, so I can handle the technical aspects as long as I can get a good foundation started. Any suggestions on where to begin the knowledge quest?
 
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Tohopko said:
I'm thinking of getting started with PCP. I've got fairly extensive experience with powder burners and reloading, and I've played around with pumps and break barrels since I was a kid, but I know very, very little about PCP. Just reading through the forum tends to make my eyes glass over and my head spin. I'm retired military, pilot by trade, so I can handle the technical aspects as long as I can get a good foundation started. Any suggestions on where to begin the knowledge quest?
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What are you looking to do with this PCP? Hunt, pest, target, fun plinking, slugs, pellets or all of the above?
 
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I am new to this as well. Not knowing how far I would go with the Hobby I started out small and affordable. I was not ready to "Plunk down" lots of money for a lot of "unknown's. So I read tons of reviews and settled on a JTS Airacuda. It is very accurate, "video proof galore", and I didn't have to buy a $500 or more Compressor to fill it. It only requires 3000 psi and is Hand Pump friendly. Cost is a little above $300.00 Many Rifles require 4000 psi and up. I am sure that this will just be a first steppingstone for Me. Desire and $$$$ will be your Guide. How much do I want to spend? If I decide it's not for Me, can I recoup some of My Money? Just saying what My initial questions were. Yours could be much different. It's all up to you. It's a lot of fun being able to go out in the backyard and Kill Cardboard! lol Good luck with how you decide to proceed!
 
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LDP said:
What are you looking to do with this PCP? Hunt, pest, target, fun plinking, slugs, pellets or all of the above?
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Pesting and target mostly. Hunting would at most be small game, and there isn't a lot of that in Idaho or Wyoming, which are my primary hunting areas.
 
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Chief Ten-Beers said:
I am new to this as well. Not knowing how far I would go with the Hobby I started out small and affordable. I was not ready to "Plunk down" lots of money for a lot of "unknown's. So I read tons of reviews and settled on a JTS Airacuda. It is very accurate, "video proof galore", and I didn't have to buy a $500 or more Compressor to fill it. It only requires 3000 psi and is Hand Pump friendly. Cost is a little above $300.00 Many Rifles require 4000 psi and up. I am sure that this will just be a first steppingstone for Me. Desire and $$$$ will be your Guide. How much do I want to spend? If I decide it's not for Me, can I recoup some of My Money? Just saying what My initial questions were. Yours could be much different. It's all up to you. It's a lot of fun being able to go out in the backyard and Kill Cardboard! lol Good luck with how you decide to proceed!
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I'm working on balancing my desire to start small and inexpensively versus my normal modus operandi of going whole hog with high end gucci stuff! I'm going to be selling off some of the powder burners to finance.
 
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Tohopko said:
I'm working on balancing my desire to start small and inexpensively versus my normal modus operandi of going whole hog with high end gucci stuff! I'm going to be selling off some of the powder burners to finance.
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I know the feeling. I am sitting on a lot of Reloading supplies that if I sold, I could Buy a "Fancy" Air Rifle! lol
 
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Tohopko said:
Pesting and target mostly. Hunting would at most be small game, and there isn't a lot of that in Idaho or Wyoming, which are my primary hunting areas.
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I live in western MT. I normally go after ground squirrels, rock chucks, starlings and house sparrows. Pellets work for everything I do with an airgun which includes pest control out to 100 yds. I started messing with slugs this year not out if necessity but I have been shooting pcp rifles for about 8 years. I have a good number of pcp rifles and I wanted to add a new layer to my airgun shooting. Sounds like you would do real good with a nice accurate pellet shooter for your needs. The only problem with that is the abundance of good pcp rifles these days.

For equipment I would plan on budgeting for a fill tank and one of the trusted compressors. I started with a hand pump but once I bought more rifles and rifles with bigger reservoirs the hand pump had to go. I dont know about the area of Idaho you live in but if its like western MT its not easy having a good reliable place to get tanks filled at 4500 psi and thats what pushed me to a compressor.

Decide how much you want to pay for a pcp rifle and supporting equipment then everyone can help you narrow down good rifles with features you like in the price range you want to be in.
 
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the most important to get started is cry once and be done knowing you bought correct...air source is what PCP is all about..rifles is another matter..I like FX.
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Welcome to the rabbit hole! Everyone here is gonna have an opinion and I’m no different. I can’t speak to the inexpensive rifles so I’ll leave that to others my experience is with daystate , brocock and fx. The red wolf from daystate , the ghost from brocock, and the FX wildcat mklll have all given me great pleasure. Good luck with your journey.
 
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LDP said:
I live in western MT. I normally go after ground squirrels, rock chucks, starlings and house sparrows. Pellets work for everything I do with an airgun which includes pest control out to 100 yds. I started messing with slugs this year not out if necessity but I have been shooting pcp rifles for about 8 years. I have a good number of pcp rifles and I wanted to add a new layer to my airgun shooting. Sounds like you would do real good with a nice accurate pellet shooter for your needs. The only problem with that is the abundance of good pcp rifles these days.

For equipment I would plan on budgeting for a fill tank and one of the trusted compressors. I started with a hand pump but once I bought more rifles and rifles with bigger reservoirs the hand pump had to go. I dont know about the area of Idaho you live in but if its like western MT its not easy having a good reliable place to get tanks filled at 4500 psi and thats what pushed me to a compressor.

Decide how much you want to pay for a pcp rifle and supporting equipment then everyone can help you narrow down good rifles with features you like in the price range you want to be in.
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You are correct on my "needs". I have several suppressed rimfires, but there is still a concern with how far the projectile will/can carry beyond the target.

I haven't checked to see if there is a scuba shop associated with diving in Lake CdA, Pend Orielle, or Priest, but there is some possibility. Definitely something to check before I get too far along.
 
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MikeAndrews said:
Welcome to the rabbit hole! Everyone here is gonna have an opinion and I’m no different. I can’t speak to the inexpensive rifles so I’ll leave that to others my experience is with daystate , brocock and fx. The red wolf from daystate , the ghost from brocock, and the FX wildcat mklll have all given me great pleasure. Good luck with your journey.
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I'm looking at an inexpensive option to start (Urban, Notos, etc), but followed closely with something higher end once I've learned enough to be dangerous. I could even seeing buying the more expensive rifle now and just waiting until I'm a little more knowledgeable before doing much shooting with it. I need more starlings!
 
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You can't go very cheap with a PCP. The low-end stuff can and will put you off them all together. It's not like powder burners where the difference in price is often cosmetic but two vastly differently priced rifles will still shoot and perform nearly equally well. Your own air supply is a must and a tank for refills is highly recommended, so you don't have to stay close to a compressor at all times.
Another thing with those "budget air rifles". If there is an issue with them sometimes support to get an issue taken care of is akin to finding hens teeth. Hatsan being one example that gets brought up on these forums regularly.
 
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IndyDurtdigger said:
You can't go very cheap with a PCP. The low-end stuff can and will put you off them all together. It's not like powder burners where the difference in price is often cosmetic but two vastly differently priced rifles will still shoot and perform nearly equally well. Your own air supply is a must and a tank for refills is highly recommended, so you don't have to stay close to a compressor at all times.
Another thing with those "budget air rifles". If there is an issue with them sometimes support to get an issue taken care of is akin to finding hens teeth. Hatsan being one example that gets brought up on these forums regularly.
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And also, in the Reviews from the Vendors as well. Many ugly stories.
 
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Tohopko said:
I'm looking at an inexpensive option to start (Urban, Notos, etc), but followed closely with something higher end once I've learned enough to be dangerous. I could even seeing buying the more expensive rifle now and just waiting until I'm a little more knowledgeable before doing much shooting with it. I need more starlings!
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@Tohopko A couple of threads to review.

N/A - Great Pcps for under $600

for fun list one gun under 600 retail that does damn good even though it may not be higher tier 2 rules list just one gun ... and 600 retail is the cap, a 601 dollar gun does not qualify im curious even the higher end gun owners had to have come up from the minor league ill go first...
www.airgunnation.com www.airgunnation.com

Good Out of the Box Shooters (PCPs) - Share Your Experiences

After reading many threads where members ask questions seeking advice concerning which gun to purchase for hunting/pesting, a first PCP for backyard plinking, or wanting to tryout benchrest styled shooting I saw several posts where tinkerers, competitors, and mechanically inclined members are...
www.airgunnation.com www.airgunnation.com
 
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