Spring Or Pcp ? Good Scopes ? Etc Etc

[eggs 4]

Great i managed to put my back out so no long drives this weekend. Managed to get to a local gun club that have a shop and looked at a air arms tx 200 hc. was a nice gun. seemed quite solid but heavy. Maybe i was expecting it to be lighter but i guess i might get used to it. seemed a decent price. Could do me one with scopes for £450. The dealer said had i thought about a gas ram model. Are gas rams worth looking at ? or are they a bit pricier ?

 

Got another couple of options ( waiting for a call ) and one to look at next week.

 

Cheers

[nomoon 542]

well what ever you decide,can vouch for matty,good gun man and a gentleman,rare these days of rip off and run merchants atb mc

[mattwhite 1,993]

All i would say is the gun alone at my local shop is 375 so with a reasonably good 3-9×40 on it plus mounts (hawk low mounts of mine cost 18.50) that sounds like a good deal. Your right about the weight but it seems to stabilize the rifle and it will make you smile from ear to ear every time you shoot it. I personally think its a good deal.

[eggs 4]

Thanks for the replies. The dealer seemed quite knowledgeable considering its more of a shotgun / rifle setup. Im not sure what the scope was that would be included but i could always ring and check.

 

My call ( that i was waiting for ) turned out to be a no go.Was a shame really. Nice gun good price .... no wonder it didnt last a day on guntrader and i thought i was quick to get in contact !

 

Two other gunshops to contact tomorrow so fingers crossed

 

Cheers

[eggs 4]

What scope would be the minimum i should be looking for ? I might still wait and see about the offer from mattyb but if i can raise the funds "er indoors " reckons the tx would be ok. Im in no real rush at moment.

 

Also ive been reading some horror stories about dealers ! Im guessing you have to go in yourself to see if they are true though. Anyone know of decent dealers / shops in Northants / Bucks / Cambs ? thats is of course if any of you live this way

 

edit : also just found a HW97 but its a .20 calibre ? worth looking at ?

 

Cheers

Edited April 18, 2014 by eggs

[pianoman 3,586]

Hi eggs.

 

.20 HW97 is definitely worth a look. A close pal of mine here shoots a .20 calibre HW90 gas-ram and it's a blisteringly accurate set-up. H&N FTT are the ammo of choice in this flavour. For a good scope, start with a look at Hawke Panorama series for a decent baseline scope. There are cheaper Hawke scope models, but they are frankly rubbish for spring rifles and don't last 5 minutes. Nothing wrong with the Hawke 4-12x40 and 4-12x50mm scopes on my HW77 and HW97 spring rifles.

 

In honest truth, all you really need from a great scope for an air rifle is a quality 3-9x40 with an adjustable focus objective lens or AO. You don't need massive occular lenses and 24xmag zoom if you are going hunting. Low light at dusk and dawn needs a low mag setting of around 6xmag -or even a little less down to 3xmag. This magnification will keep you able to see what you are shooting at, well into the last vestige of light before actual darkness, or as the dawn begins to break in the night sky. And that's all you need for accurate shooting through the changing light of the day .

 

Edited to add.

If I was going to buy an air rifle, just one only, on the back of what I know already...., I would go for an HW77 full-length rifle in .22. This is the very best spring air rifle you can hope to own. And before I get jumped on by every TX200 owner here, I have owned Air Arms TX200 rifles before and still own a TX200HC .177 and, as sweet and blisteringly accurate as it is, it isn't as accurate or as hard-hitting as my HW77 .22, and it certainly isn't as accurate as my HW97K .177.

 

And the HW77 is available in .20

 

Best wishes.

Simon

Edited April 18, 2014 by pianoman

[eggs 4]

Hi again !

 

Cheers simon for your replies. Full of good information and honest to boot

 

Further searching by myself as " er indoors " says cheaper is better ... if i get into shooting in a big way i can go pcp and even FAC maybe eventually i have managed to find another rifle to go and look at. The choices for secondhand are

 

HW77k in .22 with a 3-9 x 50 scope and bag at £280 or the HW97 in .20 with 3-9 x 50 mil dot scope at £370

 

obviously you cant really tell the quality until you see them. Which one to view first ?

 

its a fair drive so think i will let the missus drive .... well my back is soo painful

 

Cheers

Edited April 18, 2014 by eggs

[eggs 4]

Hi all. Sorry to keep multi posting !

 

But i am now the proud owner of a Weirauch HW97k in .20 cal bought from Willards in Milton Keynes. Nice relaxed atmosphere and the chaps in there were polite and friendly and seemed to know their stuff. I even got to shoot it on their small but handy range. It seems to "hold" better than the Air Arms , doesnt seem as heavy which is good for me.

 

Two tins of free ammo and a bag ... all good for me

 

First impressions are im well happy and hopefully im off shooting Easter monday

 

 

Not a great quality photo

 

htt

 

and im sure it was more luck than skill

[mattybugeye 884]

Nice choice very nice love .20 cal its a great hunting cal I had a logun mk2 professional in .20 was brilliant

Fingers crossed you get on with it and bag plenty !

[mattwhite 1,993]

Nice choice eggs... my mate has the thumbhole version in .177 and having shot it i can vouch for its power and accuracy. You will be very happy with it. Look out bunnies!!

[j j m 6,483]

you can pick a decent pcp up for that price

[eggs 4]

Went shooting today. Nothing too serious. Not hunting just a few targets , tin cans etc ( took wife and daughter so had to behave ! ). Surprised myself to be honest. We only got up to about a 20 metre distance but the gun was very accurate and i hit every time. The missus had a go too ... first time she had held a gun let alone shoot and she hit the knockdown duck first time. Of course i got the " look " haha

 

Anyway had a great afternoon plinking / learning and also did a reccy with the lad on his land and saw plenty of pigeons so hopefully get up there sometime this week.

 

Cheers

[pianoman 3,586]

You made a great choice of rifle eggs. I have an HW97K in .177 and it is just a brilliant, quality hunting arm I cannot be without. Fettles squirrels and pigeons very effectively. I have some lovely permissions in Lincolnshire where Woodpigeons are a real nuisance. This rifle really sorts them out. Generally speaking, from direct experience, I find PCPs are inferior to quality spring rifles. They are too temperemental for my liking. Limited shot counts, always need refilling from separate divers bottles, prone to leaks and loss of power and other malfunctions and breakdowns. And really no more accurate.

 

For my money the Weihrauch HW80 is the finest break-barrel you can buy and the HW77 is the finest all-round underlever spring rifle you can buy, especially in .22 calibre. But the HW97K is right up there with it.

 

Best wishes for your shooting with your HW97K eggs!

Simon

[Skot Ruthless Teale 1,701]

Nice result mate she wont let you down. Hw springers are great rifles

Edited April 23, 2014 by Skot Ruthless Teale

[eggs 4]

Hi again and thanks for the replies.

 

All being well with the weather and hopefully not working i can try and get some time up at the lads place. We are trying to source a bench / table from the workshop so hopefully try to extend our range and set up a few more targets for practice and zeroing etc.

 

 

Cheers