Airgun for Varmints?

[ratski]

So, my grandson is looking to get a pellet rifle for some varmint hunting. He has specifically mentioned raccoons. Been a long time since I've messed with airguns other than to plink some cans.

I told him I'd ask on here to see if anyone has any real life experience and recommendations for a good air rifle for critters.

Thanks

Dave

 

[rickm]

As a kid we would use a Benjamin Franklin pump up 22 cal pellet rifle to disperse coon, possums, squirrels and whatever else the dogs treed.

 

[sh00ter]

So, my grandson is looking to get a pellet rifle for some varmint hunting. He has specifically mentioned raccoons. Been a long time since I've messed with airguns other than to plink some cans.

I told him I'd ask on here to see if anyone has any real life experience and recommendations for a good air rifle for critters.

Thanks

Dave

Depends on budget and if you want something self-contained or not.

To humanely kill raccoons, you will need either a 22cal "magnum" grade break barrel rifle (not the wal-mart grade stuff), OR a PCP rifle such as the Benjamin Marauder or something similar. There are lots of good brands of break barrels, but they are harder to shoot due to their unique recoil (I hate them) so a proper PCP rifle (with a suppressor even better) would be the best option in my opinion. Some of those coons get well over 20lbs so you basically need to view it like you need the power to kill a dog (which of course I would never do).

Honestly it would be much cheaper to use quiet/sub sonic 22lr from a bolt action rifle, but if in a populated area would be more dangerous. (But then again, a pellet gun that can kill a coon is dangerous too).

Well-placed head shots at a proper range with at least 20FPE muzzle energy if you want to be humane. A lesser rifle "might" do it, but I would not be giving you good advice otherwise.

The 177 pumpers we grew up with are not up for the job; airgun hunting for anything larger than a rat costs more than old-school 22lr hunting if you get the right equipment.

 

[sh00ter]

Just saw for grandson...I would probably not send him out if he is under teenage years to piss off a coon with an under-powered gun. BUT the other reply is correct that if Benjamin 22 pumper, or Senaca Dragonfly 22cal, or Crosman 362 could all probably kill a coon with a well placed headshot at full power, but think of that like hunting a deer with a 22lr...ya could, but it is better to have the right tool for the job.

I would suggest staring out with a 22 pumper or break barrel and hunting smaller game first. Then if he is old enough and you have the money, move to PCP rifles for more serious/frequent hunting. They have some in larger calibers capable of killing hogs but those will cost you LOL.

 

[sh00ter]

Having blown all the PCP hot air, it really depends on how much coon killing you plan to do. My neighbor has this exact gun in 22cal and I know for a fact he anchored one with a shot between the eyes.

https://www.benjaminairguns.com/air-guns/break-barrel/trail-xl-magnum
But my other buddy who has to cull them almost every week gave up on pellet guns and uses an antique single shot 22 rifle with CB Ammo.

EDIT: (apparently I have a lot to say LOL) - You want to stay sub-sonic in a pellet gun or it will be much louder and accuracy will suffer. A 22cal in the 900-1000fps range with a 14.3gr pellet or a 25cal with slightly less FPS is where you want to be for airgun hunting anything larger than a squirrel. 12FPE muzzle velocity is the lowest humane FPE for small mammals and it is better to have 12FPE or more on impact. For a coon, again, I'd say "at least" 18-20FPE.

This page may be helpful to calculate FPE based on pellet weight/velocity and they have other links about airgun hunting.

https://www.pyramydair.com/widgets

 

[Ready_fire_aim]

I’ve trapped lots of coons and dispatched many of them with a point-blank head shot from a .22 LR. Coons are tough as hell! Sometimes they’ll keep going and going and require a 2nd or 3rd headshot! Crazy

I’d go for the best quality break barrel .22 pellet gun you can afford. Or just subsonic .22 as mentioned

 

[makeithappen]

I would disagree in the need for .22 caliber or larger for a raccoon. I have a Gamo big cat 1250 break action .177 caliber. I killed 158 raccoons over the last 18 months with it (trapping them). The pellet weight and style have more to do with it than the caliber. Of course a .22 or .25 caliber will have more kinetic energy, but a 4gr cheap pellet will have roughly the same negative effect in a larger caliber. I shoot crossman 10.7gr domed pellets after shooting over 20 different styles and weights.

Pellet guns have come a long way since we were kids. The velocity is troublesome to control and get accuracy. This is where weight is critical. It settles down the gun and provides accuracy where a lighter pellet will be faster but spin off track.

I put a cheap simmons 3-9x40 on mine and it was a world of difference from the stock scope.

 

[Rustytigwire]

closet full. pump, springers, and pcp. 177 22 25 cal.
my BSA 25 cal Lonestar is louder than a 22.
pre charged pneumatic is fun but a rabbit hole.
spring guns are ok and quieter.
i had a 25 break barrel spring gun had quite a punch
use a rimfire would be easiest and more humane.
look at pyramid air website.
im tryin ta quit lol

 

[sh00ter]

I would disagree in the need for .22 caliber or larger for a raccoon. I have a Gamo big cat 1250 break action .177 caliber. I killed 158 raccoons over the last 18 months with it (trapping them). The pellet weight and style have more to do with it than the caliber. Of course a .22 or .25 caliber will have more kinetic energy, but a 4gr cheap pellet will have roughly the same negative effect in a larger caliber. I shoot crossman 10.7gr domed pellets after shooting over 20 different styles and weights.

Pellet guns have come a long way since we were kids. The velocity is troublesome to control and get accuracy. This is where weight is critical. It settles down the gun and provides accuracy where a lighter pellet will be faster but spin off track.

I put a cheap simmons 3-9x40 on mine and it was a world of difference from the stock scope.

A magnum 177 with a heavier pellet you are using will penetrate their skull and shoot flatter than a 22 for that matter. But most 177 guns are not up to the task and people will be using light weight pellets in them. Doing it with the specific gun and pellet you are using works fine for your skill level. But for a kid, I would not even let him shoot a coon with a pellet gun until he could prove he was a good enough shot for a 1-shot dispatch and was old enough. At that point, he would be using a 22 or a 25 if he were my grandson and was going to make coon hunting a regular occurrence.

But I agree in your capable hands with coons who are trapped, then what you do would work. I am actually a fan of 177 and of pumpers, so it is hard for me to argue for the larger guns. I just wanted to give the guy the best advice I could since it was a kid's safety at hand LOL...doubt he's trapping them. My buddy traps them and uses the 22 CB's and still has to use more than one shot sometimes. I feed them so maybe I am a sucker with a soft heart, but my german shepherd put an end to that experiment (poor coon).

 

[makeithappen]

Yeah, it certainly takes the right setup for the person and situation. There are times i wish i went .22 caliber, but not enough for me to upgrade from what i know. Plinking squirrels at 50 yards is fun and understanding your pellet path is key. Pellet guns are underrated in the amount of fun they can provide on the cheap.