Posted by Dave Carhart on November 18, 1999 at 14:13:00:
I'm looking to get into air gun competition.
and would like a good (mid range) air gun to start
out with to see if I like it.
any suggestions?
TIA, Dave
Posted by RMW on November 19, 1999 at 00:21:41:
Hi:
You didn't say if you were interested in pistol or rifle, ISU or field or NRA position or what, but either way, here's my thoughts.
Probably, the best idea is to look for a used spring piston gun, either a FWB 300S or FWB 65 for ISU shooting. Can't help in field,
since that's not my major area of interest.
You can probably pick up a FWB 65 for $450-$550 and a 300S for $600-750 used which is mid range considering some of the
current retail prices. Both are capable of keeping you in the medals if your skill is there.
To go lower than that as far as I know, your into the Daisy 845 which may be what your looking for in a rifle. Pistol, I'm not
familar with that level. There are probably some Eastern European alternatives I don't know about.
Best
RW
Posted by Rod Madsen on November 19, 1999 at 09:40:16:
Since this is primarily a pistol board I am going to make the assumption that you are interested in pistol. What has been suggested
here is that you get a good used
gun. This would be appropriate. You might look deeper into this board as there are often offerings here or check into Nygord
precision, Neal Johnson guns, Scott
Pilkington (sorry if I mangled your name Scott), or Warren Potter. They all have some used guns for sail, You could also check in
with the Air Gun Letter board.
My suggestion is to get a new inexpensive gun that you can keep after you upgrade to the gun you want and not feel guilty. I
would suggest either the Daisy 177 from
Neal Johnson for around $80. This gun shoots amazingly good for the price and he reworks the trigger so it is acceptable for target
shooting. The next step is the
Baikal IZH-46. You can get this gun from Champions Choice for $225. It will shoot as well as most of the more expensive models.
This was my first gun and I
think it is an exceptional value. Both these guns are SSP (Single Stroke Pneumatic) so you do not have to get into the CO2 or
SCUBA equipment. They both
shoot in the 400 fps range and have a tendency to tear targets. I would suggest using a lighter pellet (Pistol) and get Edelman
targets which will cut cleaner. You can
get the targets and an inexpensive trap ($18.00) from Neal Johnson.
Either of these guns will get you going and are good enough that you can shoot and compete until you have a chance to decide if
you want to shoot more and which
gun you want to own and that save enough to buy it.
Welcome to the sport
Posted by Jim R on November 19, 1999 at 17:58:36:
Dave,
Depending on your definition of mid-range, the usual answers are IZH-46 or TAU-7 or the single shot version of the AERON
B-96 (whose name momentarily escapes me). All are in the $300-500 range. All will shoot far better than you can. The IZH is a
single-stroke pneumatic, the other two are CO2 driven.
The main question is: how likely are you to move on into serious competition? If that is a possibility, most of the folks here will say
go directly to a 'serious' PCP pistol (about $1000).
JIm R
Posted by Nicolas on November 21, 1999 at 19:20:09:
Dave,
If your talking about airpistol, then I would try to find a used FWB M-2 mini or a Walther CP2 junior version. If you do not want a
Co2, go with a used FAS 604 or FWB M-65. I know someone was advertising a used FAS 604 for $250? The velocity is a little
low, but it is a great gun to start out with.
I hope that helps.
Nicolas
Sponsored by Pilkington Competition Equipment