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ksredneck · New Member

If you were to buy a airgun for hunting which one could take hunting right off the shelf with minor polishing?

broommaster2000 · Moderator

Depends on what you're hunting, but I'd say a Weihrauch/Beeman, (Make sure it's a Beeman made by Weihrauch) or a Diana/RWS.

Weihrauch/Beemans' are good, but even better with a good tune. They also come with the best trigger (Rekord Trigger) on the market.

Diana/RWS is know for it's great "Out-f-the-box-E-ness". Trigger 's good (T-05), but not comparable to Weirhauch.

Model would be specified by what you'd be hunting.

ksredneck · New Member

sorry I should of got alittle more indepth I'm planning on shooting squirrels and birds around our yard at distances about 20 to 35yds

broommaster2000 · Moderator

I recommend Diana/RWS 31 Panther or the 34.

I'm not much of a hunter (hunting is illegal over here) but there are some forum members with these rifles who are, I believe, more then happy to share their thoughts on these with you.

From what I've read and studied I think it'll most probably fit your needs.

donwalk · Veteran Member

any of the current 'off the shelf' springers should suffice.

one of my favorites is the beeman R-10 (if you can get one) and i also have the beeman RX-1 in .20 that "blows smoke" on small game...

any decent springer that reaches the 600-700 fps mark in .177 is adequate at the yardages you mention and without a great deal of noise.

fritz · Silver Status Member

A 600fps .177 pellet will not make it to 35 yards with enough power for a good kill. Maybe 700. 750 would be the least I would use.

A good .22 going 650fps would definitely do the job.

domer_pyle · Senior Member

if there is a remington genesis on a shelf of walmart or fleet farm or w/e is around you it might be a good bet. got mine for 200 flat with a can of premiers and though i haven't used a scope til recently, it has always been pretty much dead on with the sights. didn't even seem like it needed a break in

kanyon · Silver Status Member

chasw · New Member

Redneck: Your situation sounds similar to mine. We have two kinds of squirrels in my neighborhood, the little native red squirrels and the invasive pest gray squirrels. The latter are everywhere, scavenging from bird feeders and multiplying like rats. I figure its my duty to reduce their numbers.

Since I live inside city limits, firearms are out of the question. After several false starts with a pump up .177 pistol and a CO2 rifle, I finally bought an RWS Diana M48.22 with a 3x9 power scope. Right out of the box, with nothing more than adjusting the trigger, this rifle is accurate and powerful, although quite heavy, about 10 lbs with the scope.

The most accurate pellets are 14 grainers - RWS Meisterkuglens and JSB Match Extras. They deliver a little less than 800 fps and (on a good day) less than 1/2" 5 shot groups at 50 yards. This airrifle has plenty of power for dispatching squirrels, plus its a side cocker. I cannot understand why anyone would put up with "barrel droop".

These days, I have a Leapers 3-9X50mm Gen5 scope mounted, because it focuses down to 5 yards. This is important because my favorite squirrel "trap" is a little feeding station on the fence outside my basement window. From a rest inside the basement, the range to the feeding station is about 8 yards. One shot, one kill. I place the carcasses in a particular spot outside the fence where the coyotes can get them. - CW

domer_pyle · Senior Member

look into a big cat if you don't wanna shell out a bunch of money. i've had mine for 2 weeks and its already got 3 kills under its belt. one being a crow, top of a telephone pole, standing about 30-40 yards from the pole. it was surprising to see it drop since i was just trying to scare them off a bit

Jaxom · Senior Member

So far alot of springers mentioned. You could take a look at some PCP rifles like the benjiman/crosman discovery or their newest addition the maurader.

I know this thread is about what's the best "off the shelf" rifle. But don't sell yourself short. There are plenty of ag rifles that need just a bit of tweaking or a few minor mods to make ideal for the purpose you seek. Just do a forum search on any of the crosman 2240's 2250's 2260, ect. And you'll see what I mean.