Practice?

Hutch · Post by **Hutch** » Tue Sep 04, 2007 7:45 pm

If I don't have a range to practice during the week what can I do. Would getting a Air rifle be a good idea. I'm in town but nothing in back yard so I could get away with it. If a Air Rifle is good for practice then what make/model. Thanks

BlauBear · Post by **BlauBear** » Tue Sep 04, 2007 9:40 pm

Dry fire. Get some snap caps for cheap insurance and dry fire.

Gator · Post by **Gator** » Wed Sep 05, 2007 9:15 am

Hutch

Air rifle (a decent one) is great practice. Long lock time will point out your mistakes. You only need 33 feet which will work in the house with a pellet trap. May have to teach the wife and kids how to crawl and keep their heads down. Seriously, I have an air gun range on my front porch. Do it !

Gator

Innocent · Post by **Innocent** » Wed Sep 05, 2007 9:17 am

Hutch,
From my bedroom door through the living room, dinning room down the hall to the boys bedroom door 35 feet. Works good.

Innocent Mary

jneihouse · Post by **jneihouse** » Wed Sep 05, 2007 9:52 am

Hutch,
From my bedroom door through the living room, dinning room down the hall to the boys bedroom door 35 feet. Works good.

Innocent Mary

See Blaubear. I wasn't kidding when I was talking about shooting inside in the winter....

Kitty

pistolero45 · Post by **pistolero45** » Wed Sep 05, 2007 9:57 am

I try to dry fire at least 20 min. every day. This is not complicated, and I really think it helps.

Just make sure the gun is empty!

Using snap caps or spent .22 cases to protect the firing pin and chamber mouth is a good idea as well.

BlauBear · Post by **BlauBear** » Wed Sep 05, 2007 10:45 am

jneihouse wrote:See Blaubear. I wasn't kidding when I was talking about shooting inside in the winter....

Kitty

Y'all are pretty hard corps here...

Somehow, I suspect Significant Other and her Momma might see some problems with this.

Innocent · Post by **Innocent** » Wed Sep 05, 2007 10:50 am

BlauBear writes

Somehow, I suspect Significant Other and her Momma might see some problems with this.

Reading this forum you would think that silhouette shooters are a bunch of wimps. Come on, tell the uninterested parties that you are training for some big match, and you need to win in order to recover some of your expenses. Or just send them to bed and tell them not to get up....

Innocent

jneihouse · Post by **jneihouse** » Wed Sep 05, 2007 11:07 am

Yeah, like it's my doghouse and I'll shoot in it if I want too......

Kitty

Hutch · Post by **Hutch** » Wed Sep 05, 2007 1:33 pm

No problem - No Kids - And when my wife first came to my house some 11 years ago, she said why do you have a bow target in the kitchen. My response was: that's as far as I can get to shoot my bow. TO hot or wet outside.

WHAT AIR RIFLE DO YOU SUGGEST, bought one yesterday and took it back today. Think it had to have a 10 pd trigger.

psteiger · Post by **psteiger** » Wed Sep 05, 2007 1:40 pm

How much do you want to spend? IMHO I think a TX-200 is perfect. You can adjust the trigger to 2lbs or 2 ounces, it teaches you to follow thru and it requires no support equipment, and, heaven forbid, you can shoot it in 2 classes of airgun silhouette. The HW-97 works too, but I prefer my TX.

Dee · Post by **Dee** » Wed Sep 05, 2007 2:40 pm

[quote="psteiger"]How much do you want to spend? quote]

This is truly as loaded a question for airguns as it is for powder burners.

I use an Air Arms S400ERB PCP rifle and it cost more than my CZ. For target I just started using a Steyr LG1 SSP 10m rifle, talk about a challenge to hit the turkeys and rams @36 and 45 yards with a pellet that weighs 7.9g going 600fps at the muzzle, not exactly a tack driving wind bucking round with those specs

I have to dial 3 MOA between the Chickens and Pigs and add another 2.5 MOA for the Turkeys a mere 6 yards further away. For the rams I ran out of scope adjustment and have to shim it but for now a high hold over the back works till I get around to shimming (tonight perhaps

)

An air rifle will definetly help you practice more and do it cheaply at home. the form you must have to be accurate carries over well to all your other shooting IMO and as stated the long lock times mean you have to put it all together to see the results and that is what we need. Here at my new place I have the full setup for SB matches but I still shoot scaled 10m paper sils with the Steyr often its just so much fun. Finally got to use it for a real match last weekend and shot 20/40 in a nice little breeze.

You can't go wrong with a Air Arms TX200 but look out because the prices just went up a bit. Honestly you are better off looking for a good used one preferable that has been tuned up and smoothed out. With this rifle you can shoot sils, plink, hunt, shoot field target matches the works, it is definetly versatile and no extra air tank needed as with PCPs. Expect to spend between $500 to $750 depending on options for one. You will like the trigger, these are not your wally world specials by any means. Plus you can get 500 rounds of match grade ammo for between $8-$10 on average. In the future I plan to get a TX200 to round out my air rifle stable with a sporter spring gun, its my choice for sure.

If you just want a decent shooting pellet rifle your best buy is likely an RWS Model 34 for right around $200. Years ago I had a few of them and for the money they are far better than a Gamo or some other off the shelf brand/model. IIRC the Mod 34 is based on the same action as the old Mod 45 I had in the 80's. Many animals met their demise with that rifle easily out to 40+ yards. So if money is an object

as is usually is thats a good way go as well.

Edit: BTW if you go with a spring gun make sure you get a scope that can handle airguns. These rifles will destroy high dollar rifle scopes not designed for airguns.
Dee

Bob259 · Post by **Bob259** » Wed Sep 05, 2007 5:53 pm

I have two. My first was a TX200 and still love that springer over the other springers, but my favorite is my AZ LG100 Styer at about 875 FPS... no problems with turkeys or rams with this one

BlauBear · Post by **BlauBear** » Wed Sep 05, 2007 6:10 pm

Innocent wrote:Reading this forum you would think that silhouette shooters are a bunch of wimps.

Nah, just me. Actually, there's something about the college rifle team practicing in the gym across the street from my office that makes it okay. Air rifle? Me? What air rifle?

If you can't beat 'em, be discrete...

psteiger · Post by **psteiger** » Wed Sep 05, 2007 6:13 pm

try posting for one on these boards for one

http://www.airguns.net/classifieds/classifieds.html

http://www.network54.com/Forum/79574/

or review them on Staightshooters.com.

bam a chineese company makes a tx-200 copy for 1/2 price. it's called the bam-40. I haven't tried one, but I understand from others it is 1/2 the gun of the original.

good luck!!!