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Duckgod · New Member

I am new to the forum and I am having some issues getting my rifles to get consistent groups. I have a Gamow whisper quiet, and a Remington nitro piston. I am having the same issues with both. At 25 yds I get them dialed in to where I want them shooting. If I set the gun down, and come back to it an hour later it is spraying pellets all over the place and I have to sight it in again. Also if I am fine tuning the group it will just randomly start spraying pellets. The tighter I try to get it the worse it gets. Just a little additional info, I am shooting the gun off a lead sled, and I have been shooting centerfire rifles my entire life so I am really frustrated and need help.

Big Ern · Veteran Member

domer_pyle · Senior Member

Shooting powder burners doesn't mean anything when it comes to springers. Springers don't like to be rested and need to be held the exact same way each time for any consistency. Sounds like you're developing a bad habit as they say at the driving range. The harder you try the worse you do the longer you go, try shooting just a bit each day and if you must rest it then lightly lay the back of your hand on a rolled up towel or something like that

mod90 · Veteran Member

Welcome to the forum Duckgod.
Are these rifles settled in, and have you found their pellet preference yet? When you say set it down you actually mean put it down on its side for a while, correct? Check your scope mounts & make sure they're properly secured. It could also be you're holding too tight with your trigger hand or fore grip, or pulling the butt too tight into your shoulder, or even pulling the trigger too sharply. Springers are nothing like firearms, they're a lot more delicate & fussy with regards to hold & trigger pull. For a little easier time sighting in, if its an option, you could try a fully padded rifle rest & adjust the trigger pull down. But without much more detail than your initial post idk how much we can help, but we're gonna try anyway.

Duckgod · New Member

I am shooting some gold colored PBA raptor ammo, it's a .177 cal. I have mounted tons of scopes on rifles before this is just my first air rifle dealings. I bought the Gamo two days ago, didn't like it but held off on returning it. Bought the Remington yesterday. Shot it most of the day today with the same results. When I say set it down. I mean put in a rack. Come back an hour later and it's off 6" one way or another. When I try and get it dialed in at 25 yds I will finally get a decent group and then it will shoot a pellet 6" high and right. The next shot will be 10" low and right and the next 10 shots I have no clue where it's gonna hit. Then I sight it back in and repeat the same damn scenario all over again. And that's with both of these guns. Same rest, same breath hold, same slow squeeze, same everything. I have adjusted the trigger pull as low as I can. It's still really freaking long. Hope this helps with a diagnosis! Thanks guys!

mod90 · Veteran Member

Ok first thing, get rid of those Raptor PBA gimmick pellets. They're usually too light & unstable in flight to give any type of reliable results. Try Crosman Premier Domes or Hollowpoints. The rest of what you're saying sounds ok, & I see no reason why you shouldn't get a decent zero on those rifles.

Duckgod · New Member

I'll give that a whirl and see what happens, thanks!!

shawnhu · Member

Hi Duckgod,

As mentioned, rid yourself of the PBA pellets, they are too light, and not made for accuratcy.

Also as mentioned, spring airguns are way different from firearms, you'll really need to throw out all of the many years of experience you have with centerfires and start from scratch.

Scopes:
Most centerfire rifle scopes are mounted and set for 100+ yards. This means the parallax is set at that range. For most airguns, that setting is unrealistic. You'll want an Adjustable Objective (AO) scope that can adjust from 10-infinity yards. A parallax setting at 25-35 yards is probably best to start with. Also, when considering scopes for spring airguns, you must look for one that can handle the bi-directional recoil produced by a springer. Unlike traditional bowder burner firearms, spring airguns recoil both forward, and back, making their scopes a little different. Also because of this, weavertail mounts are common for springers, with the use of blue Lok-Tite to keep the screws from backing out.

Hold:
I've found that the hold on most springers are sensitive. At 25 yards, even with the most accurate pellets, a difference in hold can change the point of impact(POI) by as much as 2 inches. Consistency is the key here. For purposes of testing the accuratcy of pellets, I have found that a soft pillow for the fore-rest is sufficient, and support of the trigger hand with the other hand is ok. Don't support the stock with the other hand, just support the HAND that is to pull the trigger.

Pellets:
Airguns are pretty picky when it comes to pellets. Most of the time, it's just a lot of trial and error to find the right pellet-gun combination. You'll likely spend almost as much $ in trying different pellets out as you did spend on the gun. If I had to choose one pellet to try first, I'd recommend the JSB Exact pellets in 8.44 grain. It's a quality pellet, and should give you a fair shot at accuratcy. Some of the mentioned Crosman pellets are also a good pellet to try and can be found locally at your Walmart.

Airgun:
And finally, you may have a bad airgun from poor quality control. I've had to return my airgun purchase due to what I believe to be a defect. My shots were mostly straight for windage, but the elevation would vary up to 4 inches from 15 yards. The replacement now shoots a ragged hole from 25 yards in 5 shots. Expect to go through 250-500 pellets before getting some decent accuratcy out of most springers.

I hope this will help you, and keep us posted on your results.

-S

Airhead · Member

I'll have to agree with the rest, those gamo PBA pellets are JUNK! In my sprinters/gasers I found JSB worked best and didnt cost as much as Gamos high end garbage.sprinters can be frustrating but hang in their once you eliminate some poor variables things will no doubt improve.