Okay, It's Not Really For Hunting...

[celticrusader 78]

Bloody hell...I am envious ha ha, yeh sounds good and maybe one day I'll look into the options with this in mind as I have done in recent years, times have changed for myself so it wouldn't be an option now but who knows what the future holds.

[Coypu Hunter 486]

You were right, celticrusader, it seems pretty accurate now I've got the sights there or thereabouts.

 

White dots: 100X Geco standard-velocity 40-grain LRNS in .22LR. Black dots and the holes: 9mm handloads, 125-grain FMJ. I shot the last group of 6 (the holes), after drifting the rear sight back just a hair to the right. The five holes in the black cover about 5 inches, and the group overall was about 8 inches. Happy with that.

 

[ratbuster 808]

Not bad for freehanded shooting from 25 meters ! (where did you live in the Netherlands ? even in this country one can enjoy pistolshooting without to much red tape )

Edited September 28, 2014 by ratbuster

[Coypu Hunter 486]

Cheers!

 

When I had the Browning Pro9, the targets looked more like I'd used a sawn-off shotgun! The Hi Power has enough weight to absorb recoil, remain steady in the hand and get back on target quickly. The trigger is nice and light now too, and altogether that makes for a nice, shootable pistol.

[ratbuster 808]

Think that was the reason a lot of armies choose the Browning / FN GP as their standard sidearm; Sturdy , reliable and good on target.

[celticrusader 78]

Exactly ratbuster! , whilst using one on the range a volley of pistols firing then almost silence and bang bang of me firing off the last two rounds...having to wait for the top slide to resit itself properly is the same in any firearm and makes a hell of a difference in the results of a semi auto .22 or a 9mm browning.

[Paulsand 0]

Hi Coypu Hunter

I've read a lot of your posts re Coypu as well as watching some of your videos on YouTube. Nice read & viewing.

I purchased a place in Ploerdut, 56160....about 10min from Gueneme sur Scorff and 25min from Pontivy, November 2014.

I want to purchase a 4.5mm air rifle..<20 joules, mainly for targets. Firstly where in Brittany can I buy? I've looked online but can't seem to find any gun shops. Also which brand would you recommend. On the property I have a small lake, apart from the Heron, which makes a regular and unwanted visit every few days, as well as a pair of ducks. About a fortnight ago I saw a lot of ripples on the surface, more than I had seen before, I then saw a quite large Coypu swimming on the surface. It saw me, downed its periscope and dived. Since then I have seen it quite regularly as well as smaller ones. How many? I don't know, probably more than 4. Do I report this to the Maire? What's the best way of getting rid of them? So many questions, sorry, but I really could do with your expert advice.

Regards

Paulsand

[Coypu Hunter 486]

OK, firstly you should be aware that hunting or pest control with air rifles is illegal in France. Second, you need a permis de chasse to shoot live quarry, even on your own land. That involves joining your local chasse, which will cost anything up to 150 Euros per year.

 

That's the legal bollux out of the way. What do the French do out in the countryside? They buy a 20-joule air rifle (no licence required, just proof of age and residence) and shoot pests with it. If they want to control coypu or shoot at longer ranges, they join a local gun club or clay pigeon club (called "Ball Trap" in France) to obtain a Licence de tir, which arrives in a couple of weeks. Once countersigned by a doctor and club president, they can buy a 22LR, hunting rifle or shotgun and take care of business. They just do it discreetly.

 

There are plenty of online gunshops in France. I tend to buy Weihrauch air rifles, which are expensive and difficult to find here, so I buy online from Holland: http://www.db-schietsport.nl/epages/61788981.sf/en_GB/?ViewObjectPath=%2FShops%2F61788981%2FCategories%2FWeihrauch

 

Closer to home, google Armurerie Auxerre, Armurerie Girod, Armurerie Lavaux... or just Armurerie! All will ship you a sub-20 joules air rifle on receipt of proof of ID and address, and of course your money. Presumably you're looking for a springer, unless you want to be faffing about with scuba tanks and pumps.

 

Gamo air rifles are available everywhere in France, because there is very little air rifle culture in the country, so people don't realise that Gamo rifles are sh1te. Avoid 'em like the plague. Weihrauch are either very accurate straight out of the box, or need fettling to get them to shoot straight. Diana still makes good air rifles. If you have the budget, go for a Walther LGV or LGU, or the new and cheaper Walther Terrus, which is receiving very good reviews. These three are normally very accurate out of the box. Air Arms makes good, expensive, spring air rifles, but they are extremely difficult to find in France, and even more expensive than in the UK.

 

If you decide not to take care of the problem yourself, then your Mairie will put you in touch with the local Chasse, who will happily come round and remove the problem for you. If the pond is fed by a stream however, then the coypus will come back every year. They use ditches and streams to travel around, but only live on still water -- lakes and canals. If you leave the coypus in place, they will take up residence, which involves tunnelling into the banks to create burrows. This will render the banks dangerous to walk on and liable to collapse, and can even cause your pond to drain away.

Edited December 1, 2015 by Coypu Hunter

[ratbuster 808]

This one's also a good place to shop:

 

http://luchtbuks.com/en

 

 

and have a look at this site;

 

http://www.unifrance.fr/

 

You can search in your own departement for your local gunshop.

[Coypu Hunter 486]

Just bear in mind that Unifrance is very expensive -- it supports many gunshops in France, including my local one. Online elsewhere in France, and especially Holland, will be cheaper.

[ratbuster 808]

Didn't knew that CH, always bought stuff from the local armurier while staying in France, some were part of Unifrance. 70's and 80's those were the days, No European legislation, just plain common French countryman sense aka no licence needed, just the money ..... If one needs a bit of help buying in the Netherlands, just give a shout, and I'll see what I can do.