Good, Powerful Air Rifle(UK)

Hello, im thinking of starting to hunt here in the UK. I remember as a kid going into the local woods with my neighbor and his dog to hunt rabbits. It was fun and something i now wish to pursue as im older...for the thrill,money saved and simply because it's good skill to have. As you know guns are illegal here in the uk sadly, so im looking for a powerful air rifle. From what i have read there isn't anything that can take down an animal larger than a rabbit but im fond of rabbit meat so no problems there. Money wise i am willing to spend around £300. It would be good to hear from fellow uk'ers who use an air rifle for hunting, im also open to the idea of a crossbow if there are many benefits over the rifle.

Cheers

www.reviewcentre.com...

I have personally used one of these airguns over a period of years and found them to be excellent.

There are powerfull enough airguns that can kill people.
With 300 thats enough to get one just for rabbit hunting.

Personally If it was for hunting then i would opt for a co2 one. not a rechargable one, nor single fire spring ones.

I was going to get an air rifle a while back wich was co2, and was bolt action.

wich i thought ws pretty cool, plus it had a few shots at a time. rather than shooting, miss, break, reload. wich is a pain in the arse if you are hunting.

i think it was around 165, but i dont know the prices today.

also remember you cannot buy an airgun onlione in the uk any more, it must be face to face sale. plus you need to be 18. also make sure that its not overpowered, as it could put it in the category of a real gun. and you would need a firearms license to own /buy it .

reply to post by MR BOB


Are you saying it's possible to get an air rifle that could take down a small deer for example? As for getting a license, i would happily get one if it allows to me to purchase a powerful air rifle. I don't have a criminal record so im sure it wouldn't be much hassle. As for the price, i would pay more if it allowed me to hunt bigger game. I am really just at the beginning stages of the purchase, alot to learn but im scouring the net as we speak.

Cheers

buit but.. what about the rabbits ? sniff sniff... awwwww the poor rabbits

Originally posted by MR BOB
There are powerfull enough airguns that can kill people.

Indeed.

reply to post by MR BOB

Personally If it was for hunting then i would opt for a co2 one. not a rechargable one, nor single fire spring ones.

Co2 has it's benefits, you can make quick follow-up shots, but it also has major drawbacks imo.

In colder weather co2 guns lose a lot of power, and also, in any condition, before the co2 cartridge is half empty, accuracy decreases because pressure decreases.

A spring rifle is generally more consistant in it's accuracy.

Also, in the price range the OP is aiming at (pun), spring rifles are more powerfull anyway.

Co2 rifles are generally also more noisy than spring rifles, but they can be suppressed, spring rifles can't.

Also co2 can be hassle, you always need a full cartidges laying around, and they're expensive.

For hunting small game, and with a $ 300 prize range I would go for a spring rifle, either a side-cocked one or a break barrel.

You can't make quick follow up shots with a spring rifle, but if you can''t kill the animal in one shot, you shouldn't be hunting with airguns, headshots are a must.

I personally own a Norica Dragon, spring break-barrel air rifle, .22 caliber.

It was around 300 Euro, I don't hunt with it, it's illegal here in Holland, but I can hit rabbit sized targets from 60 yards, and it still penetrates inch thick tree branches at that distance.

I got a 4x times scope on it, wich is a bit too weak for that distance, with a better scope I think it would be possible to make headshots from that distance.

It does have a bit of a heavy trigger pull, witch takes some getting used to.

It's a Spanish made air rifle, here's a youtube vid from some random Spanish guy showing the gun and the small game he shot with it.

www.youtube.com...

I don't know how this guy made thit shot, with open sights:

www.youtube.com...

Have a look at the Umarex 850 Airmagnum, I've owned one of these for a couple of years it's light but robust and an amazing gun with near perfect accuracy, 8 shot bolt action co2.
The carbine version is probably the best ,there's plenty of vids on youtube and a google search will bring up a few sites with all sorts of interesting modifications.

reply to post by Point of No Return


your probably right there. you shouldnt hit something unless you can kill it instantly. hit a bird in the chest by accident, felt realy realy guilty, as it died slowly. and my co2 had run out of power. couldn't shoot it dead.

Guns are not illegal in the UK Why not just buy a shotgun? Or a normal rifle?

Of course, you will need a licence ..... and for that you normally need to demonstrate reasonable cause for possessing a gun.

Also, you will of course need to have the permission of the landowner to shoot on his land.

Originally posted by Solomons

As for getting a license, i would happily get one if it allows to me to purchase a powerful air rifle. I don't have a criminal record so im sure it wouldn't be much hassle. As for the price, i would pay more if it allowed me to hunt bigger game.

An FAC rated air rifle requires the same license as a full bore bolt action rifle (Section 1). Indeed it's easier to get a license for a shotgun than it is for an airgun with a power rating past 12ft lbs. You will need a place to shoot, references from 'people of good standing', and a valid reason to shoot. Reasons can include hunting (if you have appropriate land owners permission) or target shooting (if you are a member of a gun club). The general ethos is that you have to demonstrate a valid reason to own the firearm and have facilities in place to shoot safely and within the boundries of the law.

Shotguns are much easier and require that the police demonstrate good reason not to issue a certificate. This puts the onus on them, not you. You still have to provide a place to shoot, but shotgun ownership is regarded as a right in UK statute. That doesn't mean it's easy, bu there you go.

I don't know about you, but if I had to jump through these hoops (which I have done, several times), then I'd say sod the airgun and give me something a bit more useful.

reply to post by PaddyInf


But dont you need two seperate metal gun cases, secured to the wall/floor with a decent lock on them. one for ammo, and one for guns. in seperate rooms.

plus like you say you need to join a shooting club too.

does the certificate need renewing after a while too?

people who buy guns scare me.

shooting animals for fun is so sick dude

Forget excessive power.....period!

Far more important is consistant accuracy, so quality wins every time. I would look at older german items like Wheirauch or FWB, lthough FWB can be a pain for parts now. HW80, HW77K & HW35 are all top performers in both accuracy and in power, will stay withing legal 12ft lbs limits and parts are easily available.

Telescopic sights are widely available, but take care to get one made specifically for air weapons, as the normal versions dont stand up well to to the 'double impact' of air weapons too well, they can be knocked out of zero or worse....damage the internals.

Yes...you can use a 'silencer', great on Co2's as they take care of the rather obtrusive 'BLAAAAT ! ' Less value on a good springer.

Max range = the distance at which you can 100% guarentee a head shot.
.177 = very accurate but bleeds off kinetic energy downrange.
.22 = excellent shock transfer and keeps power further.
Co2 = very quiet and accurate but where you going to refiill WTSHTF?
Spring = can be serviced at home and parts made if required.

FAC's like gold dust these days and for rabbits etc, of little value, same for shotguns. Far easier to get permission and store an air rifle.

Home that helps?

Originally posted by Rohdan
people who buy guns scare me.

shooting animals for fun is so sick dude

As long as you eat what you shoot, it's ok to have fun hunting.

It's what we always have done as a species, it's normal to enjoy behavior wich has sustained us for thousands of years.

Modern society has made you, and countless others, soft.

Im going to be using the meat, and yes, ask any hunter on here about the thrill of getting a nice,clean kill. Nothing wrong with that at all, perfectly natural. Any way it seems CO2 is the preferred choice, what about theoben Gas? I have looked at Weihrauch HW 90 which is £340, has some good reviews. I think i am going to simply buy an air rifle that can kill rabbits,wood pigeon and forget about anything larger right now. Atleast until i become proficient enough, it really is new territory for me apart from going out with my neighbor. Baby steps and all that.

Cheers for the replies

lol...I don't like killing beings.if that makes me soft I'm totally fine with that.

I still think it's not natural. We don't need meat, that opinion was disproved long time ago. we hunt animals and breed animals to kill them. that's pretty f...ed up isnt it.

"the thrill of getting a nice, clean kill"....by saying that you make my reasoning pointless

reply to post by Rohdan


Im a vegetarian. I dont eat meat.

But I also agknowlege that. there simply isnt enought lettuce to sustain 6 billion people.

You can feed animals on dead grass. and they get pretty big. with a lot of meals on one animal.

People cant eat dead grass, why not give it to these things, and then eat 'em.

oh btw. if you were tinking about just eating rabbit meat for the next few years. you might have some trouble with malnurishment. the same as someone living mostly off boiled white rice.

Originally posted by Rohdan
lol...I don't like killing beings.if that makes me soft I'm totally fine with that.

I still think it's not natural. We don't need meat, that opinion was disproved long time ago. we hunt animals and breed animals to kill them. that's pretty f...ed up isnt it.

"the thrill of getting a nice, clean kill"....by saying that you make my reasoning pointless

Are you a vegetarian?

Not natural? Hello! We are hunter gatherers, you can't survive in most natural habitats, without hunting for meat.

In today's society you can, maybe. But you still need supplements to replace the meat.

The whole world is based on the eat or be eaten concept, and even plants and vegetables are living organisms, so you can't live without killing some other life form.