Pellet Pistols - How Much Too Much?

[Confederate]

I want something for the basement and am looking at a Beretta FS92 pellet pistol for about $200. Add some pellets, CO2 cartridges and some a few targets and you're spending as much as you would for a real gun!

Is $200 a reasonable price for the Beretta? It looks and feels like a Beretta 9mm, but the nickel version has an ugly duo-tone design. There are no 3-dot sights, either. The gun has some good reviews but wonder if some cheaper options might be in order.

Does anyone here actually own one? There are also some nice pellet rifles that may be a better bet.

Thoughts?

.

 

[Jackal1]

The wonderful reason to have an airgun is to be able to practice shooting proficiently practically anywhere (as well as pest/rodent control) for a penny or so per shot.

If all you want to do is have an air gun that you can practice general marksmanship skills with and perform rodent patrol, you can get a Crosman 1377 for $40-55. It is front heavy because it is pump powered. But you do not need CO2 cartridges and thus operating cost is $0.

If, however, you want an airgun that fairly well accurately represents your duty handgun - get what you need. $200 for good training equipment that will let you practice anywhere (for practically free) is a good investment.

You can get a break-barrel Ruger, Crosman, Remington, or other brand air rifles for $100-150 that shoot 1000+fps and you can use them to hunt rabbits or other game.

Merry Christmas & Happy Training!

 

[Chicken-Farmer]

Don't stop by my house then...

Confederate,
You would have a heart attack if you stopped by my house! $200 ain't nothing for an airgun. I own several European airguns most notably my Steyr LP-10. The LP-10 has been the winner at several Summer Olympics now and numerous world championships as well. Lets just say that these are not your average Red Ryder BB Gun! These precision guns are capable of putting all your pellets into the same hole.
As Jackal1 stated, the beauty of airguns is that i can shoot all year long inside my basement without a problem.
If you want a very affordable, very accurate air pistol look into the IZH-46. Other than pure plinking fun i think you would be limiting yourself if you purchased the Beretta Pistol.

Chicken-Farmer

 

[Confederate]

Thanks for your replies.

One thing about pump pistols is that while you can get extra power by more pumps, ain't no way I'm going to get one. I have a cheapie single shot that's extmely accurate, but pumping it (even once) is a royal pain.

The cost factor is one thing, but does the Beretta warrant the $200, or will a cheaper model that uses a similar cylinder do just as well? I'm sure a European pellet pistol would be worth the extra money, but tolerances and sights make a lot of difference. In short, how much am I paying for the name and the weight? Would a cheaper Gamo provide worse accuracy, a harder trigger pull?

Also, do the Beretta's "compensators" do anything other than provide snazzier looks? Some say they improve accuracy, but how? And are they permanently attached? (When I see things that may be just window dressing, I suspect the entire product.)

Finally, what about cleaning? Do these guns have to be cleaned often?

.

 

[jad0110]

Finally, what about cleaning? Do these guns have to be cleaned often?

Not really. If you do decide to clean them though, it is best to use a dedicated airgun nylon brush as brass is a bit too abrasive for the more delicate lands and grooves in an airgun (so I've been told).

I have one pellet pistol, a .177 CO2 Walter CP99 with a laser (my wife wanted the laser). The laser is fairly dim, so it is only really visible in low light conditions. Not worth the trouble, IMO. But it is accurate, reliable and the trigger is decent for a gun costing less than $100. The trigger is a little stiff and there is more overtravel than I like, but it is pretty smooth. A fun little gun for the money.

http://www.airgundepot.com/cp99-compact-w-laser-black.html

http://www.airgundepot.com/walther-cp99-compact-bi-color-nickel-slide-bb-gun.html

Oh, and being that you are a fan of the S&W x86 platform, they do have 586 and 686 CO2 pellet guns for a little more than the price of the Beretta.

http://www.airgundepot.com/smith---wesson-air-pistols.html


Hmmm, after reading some of the reviews on the "5866" and "6866", I might have to get me one sometime!

 

[Chicken-Farmer]

There are two schools of thought on cleaning airguns. Some say never clean your airguns because the pellet is moving pretty slow no much lead fowling is being deposited in the rifling. The other school of though is to clean every couple of thousand of pellets, but use only a special felt pellet and at the same time lightly lube up pumping mechanisms and the like.
The attached picture shows what an average Joe can do with an exceptional pistol. I shot the target at 10 Meters (33 ft) 20 shots/20 minutes. Out of a possible 200 points i was able to squeek out 167. Standing, one handed unsupported.
There is no reason that the Beretta could not have the same accuracy, but as you stated the higher end air arms are more "refined" and only help the shooter. Airguns are a wonderful hobby that i find very enjoyable. For $6 i can purchase 500 pellets and shoot in my own house! What is better than that?
The little CO2 cartridges will cost a little bit of money as well, but usually you can get at least 150 shots per cartridge before accuracy starts to fall off.
I've got a little Gamo P232 pellet pistol also, and it's pretty darn accurate, quiet, and fun to shoot. It uses the CO2 and when i just want to plink around and have fun i'll pull it out.
I was unable to find the exact Beretta 92 airgun you are refering to, but if it uses a magazine and provides multiple shots the fun factor would certainly be there. Think of lining up those little plastic army men and plinking away!

Chicken-Farmer

 

[BCRider]

I can see your objection to the idea of pumping after each shot. It definetly breaks the flow of trying to run a string of shots for accuracy and trigger pull practice.

But since there's little recoil does it really matter if the gun faithfully copies your center fire pistol? There's other options such as the Crossman 1088 model with rifled steel barrel and a rotary clip inside a rather generic looking semi auto style casing. Or the steel barreled lever action single shot 2240 that is CO2 powered.

Oh, and you can buy bulk packs of CO2 powerlet cartridges off Fleabay for a resultant cost of far, far less than buying them in 5 packs at the local Wally's World.

Anyhow, I just feel that if you're going to shoot an air pistol then it's going to be good practice but only for SOME aspects of our shooting skills. Obviously anything where you want to work on follow up shots is a waste of time since it does not have the same recoil. But for working on accuracy and trigger follow through it would be great.

The one point that I can truly see having a more faithful or at least a style that mimics our regular guns would be for holster draw and first shot on target practice. For IPSC and IDPA shooters as well as for CCW shooters such practice would require at least a generic style of shape that closely mimics our match guns.

 

[Confederate]

So which way to go? The 686 is about $249, but is highly rated and takes ten shots. The Beretta also is popular and takes eight shots. Which would you go with?

(I'm leaning towards the Beretta because it looks and feels more like the real article. But ten shots is nice.)

 

[chicharrones]

Both are mechanically revolvers. I guess it just depends on what type of gun shape you want. For me, I can thumb cock a revolver easier than a semi-auto hammer like on that Beretta.

I do have a cheaper "semi-auto" revolver pellet gun. It is the Gamo PT80, which is a copy of the Beretta/Stoeger Cougar. It has 8-shot revolver "magazines" that fit under the hood of the imitation slide. It has a rifled barrel and it could be more accurate with a lighter trigger pull, but in the case of the PT80, its SA trigger is just as heavy as the DA trigger.

In between the Beretta 92 you list and the S&W revolver, I'd lean towards the S&W just on the ease of thumb cocking. That's just me though. For simulating my carry guns, I don't have any with manual safeties so I don't need to practice with flicking off the Beretta's safety.

It sounds like you like the Beretta though, so go with that. I believe in between these two airguns, it is "too close to call".

http://www.co2airguns.net/collection/Beretta 92FS/index.htm

http://www.co2airguns.net/collection/S&W 586-8/index.htm

 

[rogertc1]

A pellet gun is not a real gun.

 

[chicharrones]

A pellet gun is not a firearm. True.

 

[robhof]

robhof

Pellet pistols are just toys, but you can't convince the 4 rabbits in my freezer of that, all clean head shots from 10yds to 15yds. No shot to bite into either.

 

[Confederate]

The S&W revolver has ten shots while the Beretta has eight. The 586/686 also may have adjustable sights (I dunno). But you're right. I like the Beretta more. It looks more like the original pistol (even Crossman realizes that "looks" count for something). My only concern is that if the gun isn't sighted in, then it becomes a 2-pound paperweight. Pellet pistols can be very accurate, but for small game and basement shooting, I need it to shoot to POA.

The S&W is tempting, but something else I wondered is if a cheaper pistol might be an option. I've seen the Crossman and it was like handling an RG. The steel is crappy and the fit and finish are horrendous. But Beretta has a model called the Storm that looks pretty good, and it shoots BBs and pellets.

Anyone have one of these? And if I go for the 92, should I go for the blue or nicklel?

 

[jad0110]

I think pistols that shoot both pellets and BBs tend to not be as accurate as dedicated pellet pistols, but I could be wrong on that count.

Can someone else chime in on that?

 

[sansone]

just a thought here.. I shoot Aguilla Colibre shorts in my single-six indoors. The tiny cartridges are much quieter than a CCI-CB. I believe there is no powder, only primer fires the 20gr bullet. . any thoughts?

 

[Franco2shoot]

+1 for the IZH but Gammo pellets are really poor. They vary greatly in weight thus producing inaccuracies. If you want some really solid information you will find it on the following forum: http://www.straightshooters.com/

The guys that run this forum also sell the IZH and there's a wealth of information available. If you check out their store, you will note that these are not Kid's BB guns. These are high end Air guns/rifles. The members can talk to cleaning, pellets, as well as feed back on the Beretta and other options. All this is well worth signing up for the forum.

KKKKFL

 

[group17]

Might suggest the link below for a Beretta PX4 co2 pellet gun review.
Same size and weight as my real one.
Has blow back action like the real one
16 shot drop mag
Controls the same as the PX4.
Costs half the cost or less of the 92 you mentioned.
Great in the basement for winter practice or shot drills.

http://www.airgundepot.com/beretta-px4-storm.html

 

[rogertc1]

I think a pellet gun is great f you live in the UK or Austrailia or under 14 years of age.
A real Beretta PX4 Storm $500 or a real Stoeger Cougar Pistol 9mm is $400.00
http://www.impactguns.com/store/037084317007.html
Why spend 1/2 the price on a toy?
JMO

 

[Chicken-Farmer]

Sansone,
Watch out for lead poisoning! If you are going to be shooting indoors with any type of firearm you need a very good ventilation system with filters specially designed to remove lead particles from the air. The bullet itself is not the culprit, but rather the primers and priming compound found in the rimfire. For centerfire you can now purchase lead free primers that should help to alleviate this problem, but i'm not sure about rimfire priming compounds yet.


For everyone else:
As Americans we have been led to believe that airguns or "bb guns" are toys. Many people don't realize that Lewis and Clark used airguns on their expedition to hunt Buffalo! Obviously this wasn't your typical "bb gun". Airguns have been around for hundreds of years and can be precision pieces of equipment. Countries like England, Sweden, and Germany produce some of the most accurate airguns available today.

I think Confederate is smart to want to practice in his basement. Although what he chooses might not be a true replica of an actual firearm ie; trigger, weight, feel, recoil. Shooting is shooting and will benefit you any way you look at it!

Chicken-Farmer

 

[Jackal1]

Lewis and Clark used airguns on their expedition to hunt

Yep, airguns can be used to hunt deer or other normal game. Don't use a 1,000 fps .177cal pellet rifle to do that, though, or you'll make them real angry.

I think pistols that shoot both pellets and BBs tend to not be as accurate as dedicated pellet pistols, but I could be wrong on that count.

You are correct. The typical air gun that can shoot both .177cal lead pellets and steel BB's is NOT as accurate as a dedicated pellet gun with a barrel specifically rifled for the lead pellets. Besides, the hard steel BB's can erode the steel rifling as they contact at speed. There may be a few exceptions that I am not aware of, but in general you are right.

 

[DoubleTapDrew]

If you like the Beretta 92 design you might want to see if you can find a Daisy Power Line model 92 for sale. They usually go for around $75. I had one and it was accurate, powerful (I think it was listed at 400fps, pretty good for a co2 pistol) and the same look/size/weight of the real thing.
If you are just going to use it for indoor plinking and not hunting small game you could look into airsoft pistols. They are getting very realistic, have gas blowback models so it functions like the real thing with a reciprocating slide, etc. and can be had cheaper than $200.
I picked up a gas blowback glock 26 for indoor practice (it was around $90 IIRC) and it's darn near identical in size, weight, function, and even fits in my kydex IWB holster to practice drawing.

 

[vanguard7]

man when i was a kid all we had were daisy and marksman and crossman, the high end gun was a benjamin pump at around $100.00 at 800 fps. how things have changed.

 

[jad0110]

Quote:
I think pistols that shoot both pellets and BBs tend to not be as accurate as dedicated pellet pistols, but I could be wrong on that count.

You are correct. The typical air gun that can shoot both .177cal lead pellets and steel BB's is NOT as accurate as a dedicated pellet gun with a barrel specifically rifled for the lead pellets. Besides, the hard steel BB's can erode the steel rifling as they contact at speed. There may be a few exceptions that I am not aware of, but in general you are right.

Thanks Jackal for confirming. I'm no airgun expert, though I greatly enjoy my break barrel .177 Gamo Whisper, which I purchased to take care of copper heads and other venemous snakes in my yard (I've got a 4 year old boy to protect). That sucker is scary accurate, I was hitting eggs at 120 feet almost every other shot using just the stock fiber optic open sights (say, about a 40% hit rate). My groups were about 3" at that distance. Amazing. That, despite a gritty, jerky trigger. Powerful too (lead pellet @ 1000 fps, aluminum at 1200), sometimes blasting a lead pellet through both sides of a spent wasp spray can at 50 feet. I wouldn't use if for self defense, but it can certainly be deadly to a human. Not a toy, for sure.

My wife's Walther CW99 is a sweet little CO2 pistol. Very accurate, if a bit weak in the power department. She got that as her snake pistol, as her small frame doesn't match up well with my big Gamo.

 

[vanguard7]

I used to have a crosman 38-t back in 1980 it was very accurate and it was a 6 shot 177 cal pellet.

 

[chicharrones]

Why spend 1/2 the price on a toy?
JMO

Just a few reasons I can think of:

- You can walk out into your garage and do some quick practice when you can't make it to a safe place to fire the real deal.
- Many shooting ranges don't allow drawing from a holster.
- Most Americans live in cities and don't have land to shoot on.
- No range fee.
- Low ammo cost.
- It's fun, especially if you can compete against a friend.