I just got a Crosman "Storm XT" spring gun in .177. I have an old Benjamin .22 that STILL shoots. I killed my first rabbit with it at age 7 and I'm 55 now, you do the math. But, I wanted a new high performance spring gun. I wrote up details on another thread, but it's sorta pellet specific, will shoot sub 1" groups at 25 yards with Gamo "Rocket Ballistic Tips", got a little BB in the nose. Package says for hunting. I've killed a lot of squirrel with that old Benjamin .22 and I've chronographed 10 pumps at about 430 fps. This Crosman thing is a lot faster and BURIES the pellet in plyboard. I think it'd be almost overkill for squirrel. The trigger sux, supposed to be adjustable, but I've been all over the place with that adjustment screw and I swear it don't do squat. Lots of creep in the trigger. Sorta have to take up the slack before it breaks, which can be tricky. Feels like a really bad SKS trigger, but I seem to be able to shoot pretty well with it, especially over a rest or against a tree or something. Forget the cheap POS scopes these things come with, increase group size by about an inch. I don't think the barrel locks in the same place twice, but as the iron sights are on the barrel, it don't matter with the irons. It was a hundred bucks at wallyworld.
Now, if I really wanna kill something with a gun that's really, really quiet, I'll get my old Remington bolt gun and load it with CB shorts. THAT thing is a tack driver with those CBs or about any other ammo. It don't care what you feed it, just drives them tacks. But, for the money, the Crosman is as good as any and, I swear, I think Beeman, Gamo, and EVERYone sources these things from the same Chinese manufacturer. THEY ALL look identical in the pictures, same safety, same adjustment slot for the trigger in the trigger guard, same everything. That Gamo I was looking at MSRP was 279, the Whisper, but looks exactly like my 100 dollar Crosman except for the silencer on it. I haven't looked at high dollar RWSs, maybe they're different, but all the affordable spring guns look like they were made in the same factory, and, even some of the high dollar stuff. Me, I got this thing for my backyard range, not for the Olympics, and it works for that and would hunt if I needed to shoot something with it. Sure would like a better trigger, though, just ain't willin' to spend two or three hundred more for a good trigger on an air rifle.
My old Benjamin's trigger sux, too. I hadn't fired it in a long time, since I was a kid, then about 25 years ago I dug it out to play with, was used to my real rifles, and MY GAWD, I didn't remember that trigger being so bad. I guess, when you don't know any better, don't have anything to compare it to, well...LOL
Markbo, toss the scope. Like I say, the barrel never locks in the same place twice (assuming you have a spring gun). The scope will double the size of the groups. The irons that came on mine have day glow inserts and are very visible. I'm shooting sub 1" 25 yards with decent pellets, but it was over 2" with the scope. Scope that came with it is a POS anyway.